Clay Books

Henry Clay is considered one of the greatest U.S. senators ever and along with John C. Calhoun and Daniel Webster made up the great triumvirate that had their last great battle in debating the Compromise of 1850. Clay also served as Speaker of the House of Representatives and ran for president several times as a Whig (he lost all those times, of course, but seeing as how both of the Whig candidates who won the White House died in office, that was not necessarily a bad thing). This juvenile biography of "Henry Clay: The Great Compromiser," part of the Our People series, explains to young readers while Clay is remembered for his political service at a time when American was developing as a nation. Clay is best known for promoting what he called the "American System," an argument for the United States government creating a strong national economy. Known as the Great Compromiser, Clay is identified with a political principle that historian Shelby Foote identifies as being the quality that best represents American genius.

As is the well established pattern with this books, Michael Burgan looks at Clay's life in four chapters: (1) Young Lawyer and Politician explains how Clay's family settled in Kentucky, where his first forays into politics say him actually finish out the term of a U.S. Senator; (2) Leader of the House tells how Clay finish rose to national prominence when he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and became Speaker of the House by the end of the War of 1812; (3) Presidential Politics covers Clay's failed attempts to become President; and (4) Last Years in Washington focuses on his pivotal role in the Great Compromise of 1850, which put off the Civil War for another decade. Burgan does a god job of highlighting the principles and policies Clay supported that are now part of the government today, although those points could easily get lost just in detailing Clay's political resume.

This volume is illustrated with historic paintings and prints on almost every page, but the strength of the book is the presentation of information. There are informative sidebars on key subjects such as The First Parties and The War of 1812, and the margins are filled with Interesting Facts, like how Clay studied law with the same famous lawyer who taught Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe. The back of the book includes a Time Line of Clay's life, Glossary Terms from "abolitionists" to "investors," assorted sources For Further Information, and an Index. Having told the story of the influential senator of the West, the Our People series needs to turn to Calhoun of the South and Webster of the East. assorted sources For Further Information, and an Index.

Stunning artwork that fits perfectly with the corresponding Proverbs scriptures next to each image. It suits any age group, and is fit for those who can use a quick, uplifting and spiritual reading to jump-start the day, or maybe to get through the rest of the day. It is small enough to carry in a backpack, purse, or suitcase, and though should not replace a bible, is definitely suitable for those who are not-so-religious, to those who really are, and can use a thin, compact book full of color and powerful, thought-provoking scriptures to pull out whenever one wishes. All in all, a highly recommended book for daily encouragement and spiritual words for anyone.

This is the story of Jonathan Alder, who was captured by Indians at the age of nine from his home in western Virginia in 1782. He was adopted and lived among the Mingos for 13 years along the Mad River in Ohio. Alder became a respected hunter and warrior and gives a vivid and detailed account of his life among them. He gives a fascinating retelling of his life in a late 18th century Indian village, in an age when white settlers were beginning to push north of the Ohio River from Kentucky and West Virginia in the years after the Revolutionary War and how that increased conflict between the two groups for possession of the Ohio Country led, eventually, to the loss of Indian lands. After the Treaty of Greenville in 1795, Alder leaves the Indians to live in Pleasant Valley, near what is today Columbus, OH, though continuing to live as an Indian. Around 1805, he is persuaded by a friend to travel to Virginia and is reunited with his white family.

Alder's narrative is truly fascinating in all respects. He gives fully detailed accounts of his life among the Indians, from hunting and cooking, to relations with his Indian family which include a genuinely loving and kind mother and father, as well as an abusive sister who is resentful of the white boy and beats him for any infraction. Alder tells of his participation in several horse-stealing raids in Kentucky as well as his part in the Battle of Fort Recovery in 1794, . After Alder leaves the company of the Indians in 1795, he goes on to tell about his relations with the early white settlers in central Ohio and their often strained relations with the remaining Indian population. Although he is reunited with his white family in 1805, and subsequently drops his Indian dress and lives as a white settler, Alder, it seems, is never fully one of them. He views his neighbors through the eyes of one who lived a life far removed from their daily drudgery and often seems to reflect with nostalgia on his Indian days. One gets a sense of forelorn sadness and loneliness in his later years, as though he is the product of a lost time and place. His relationships with both his white and Indian family are intriguing, especially a poigniant encounter many years later with his Indian sister who abused him as a child.

This is a very intereing book and I recommend it highly.

The History of Nations series successfully attempts to capture the essence of what made a nation. From the earliest known invasions, revolutions, wars and other social and political changes to the current state of things are detailed in each chapter.

This book on Japan starts with an introduction of "Ancient Japan." The it travels down the centuries, detailing "The Medieval Era", "Modernization", including the role of women, the Rise & Fall of the Japanese empire, and finally, where the country stands today and hopes to move in years to come.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking to read up on Japanese history and why the country and its people have become the envy of the industrialized world for their hard working, efficient society.

Excellent Book. A must have for genealogist researching Wayne or Clay counties in Illinois. Goes back to 1st family who founded both counties, where they came from, and much much more.

This second volume of this definitive work is also the second installment of the work that is the intellectual monument to Clay Blair.

People have accused Mr. Blair of lacking a human face, yet the sparse prose describing life and death battles between grim, determined men is eloquent in its terse and relentless depiction of the brutality, courage and fear of war. Anyone who has been down to sea in ships needs no more stimulating of the imagination that Mr. Blair provides to understand and wonder at the courage of the men in the U-Boats and men who defeated them.

The only failing in the book is a strangely discordant and increasingly strident reactionary and anti-British tone that creeps into his work. Since I do not know of the personal details of Mr. Blair's life it is only speculation, but I do feel I detect failing health in his later pages of this volume.

It is a pity that while Mr. Blair was so generous of his praise of Britain in Volume 1 he suddenly loses empathy with his British allies and fails to understand the British psyche and the multitudinous problems faced by the war-weary British as they struggled with lack of resources, over worked ships and under trained crews and all the time against a backdrop of fading strength and dying empire. This failure, most manifest in the latter half of volume two, is jarring. At the same time as his anti-British sentiments become more and more unreasonable, so does his extreme support of a pro-US Navy establishment view on the actions of Admiral King in 1942 and 1943.

But this two-volume work is the stuff that us mere consumers of naval history can only gawp at admiration. The reader has a brain and is capable of agreeing or disagreeing with the tone of a volume and to adjudge if the author has or has not been unduly harsh. The breadth of knowledge, the grasp of Naval warfare, the obvious majesty of these two volumes means you just have to unreservedly recommend them as the best general history on the subject available.

I think that I own or have read just about every polymer clay book out there. This one has some recipes for faux gemstones that I haven't seen in any of the others, particularly one for turquoise that can produce a flat surfaced object instead of the bumpy surface that all the other books have for turquoise. Most of the projects I thought were very attractive. Some of the instructions could have been written more clearly, but I believe that any reasonably experienced clayer could figure it out.

Great for those looking for a way to sharpen odd shaped tools.

This book is informative for Bird Watchers & Falconers,Orinthologist or Anyone intrested in Raptors of the 21st Century!

The trilogy winds up with a bittersweet ending. If you've read the previous two books, you know about the human/alien relationships -- but this one ties a bow on most of the storylines, including Tom Gentry (Red Clay) and the contact and induction of Earth into the Federation -- and Tom's dealing with his own species self-hate, as well as his past -- and his wife's unfaithfulness, as well as the Sharwan Problem. The conclusion also deals with death of two of Tom's closest friends, one a bittersweet funereal scene. The entire series is a smart read, though probably not for everyone.