Mississippi Books

I enjoyed the intrigue of the book, but found the ending to be completely unsatisfactory. Without giving away the story, I had a hard time with John Hubbard at the end, and what Jade was going to do. A very interesting, suspenseful story, with a less than satisfactory ending.

In the 1950s in Drexel, Mississippi, the color barrier remains rigidly in place with each race understanding their sphere. Jade Dupree is raised by her black adopted parents, Jonah and Ruth, although her biological mother is the very socially powerful white Lucille. Jade's half sister Marlena is married to the wealthiest and most powerful figures in town, Lucas Bramlet. Marlena treats Jade like a servant paying her for services rendered including watching her daughter Suzanna.

Marlena accompanied by Suzanna meets her lover, a traveling salesman, by the river. However, men wearing masks attack them. Marlena is rushed to the hospital while Suzanna has vanished. Jade is there watching over Marlena but her husband is at home waiting for a ransom.. Jade has to be careful as some whites feel she needs to be reminded of her place and she has to be careful of the Peeping Tom who is stalking her.

Carolyn Haines known for her lighthearted amusing paranormal mysteries has taken a 180 degree turn around with this dark foreboding historical suspense thriller. Readers see how bad things can get for Blacks living in a 1950's deep South small town even for a woman who could easily pass as white. The audience becomes absorbed with the historical tidbits, but soon the question of who assaulted the mother and daughter takes center stage especially in light of a spouse who does not seem to care what happens to his wife and daughter and whether Jade faces retribution for breaking the color barrier. Ms. Haines writes a strong period piece.

Harriet Klausner

Bravo!!! This is by far Ms. Haines best contempory work of suspense and mystery. The town of Jexville has a wide range of characters, each with their own dark secret, which was typical of southern towns in the 1950s (when everyone knew their neighbors). Mix Jexville's characters with a splash of sexual misconduct, forbidden desires and unfulfilled dreams and you have a story that keeps the pages turning until morning.

As someone who reads more books in one month than most people read in one year, I can attest that this one stands out from the crowd. Haines, who has entertained me well with her series of "Bones" books, made me sit up and take notice of just how good a writer she is with this book. I could barely put it down, finishing it in two days. Fiction set in timeframes other than the present rarely garner my attention, but Haines certainly did with this one. About the only other writer I can think of who has done that in recent years has been Dennis Lehane, whom I consider one of the top American fiction writers. Now, with this book, Haines has reached the top of my personal favorites list.

This book focuses mostly on the explorations of Joliet and La Salle, and does not give readers the full picture. If you wish to learn the true significance of the French and Indians who fought in Illinois and Wisconsin, i would recommend reading W.J. Eccles' "Frontenac: The Courtier Governor" followed by Edmunds and Peyser's "The Fox Wars: The Mesquakie Challenge to New France."

"The Time Of The French In The Heart Of North America" is a superb history of the French dominion in the Illinois-Wisconsin region from 1673-1818. Dr. Balessi introduces the reader to the major themes and players of French Midwestern history.

French expansion into the Illinois-Wisconsin area was driven by the global expansionist policy of King Louis XIV. New France was on life supports when Pierre Boucher, administrator for Trois Rivieres (and my ninth great-granduncle), was sent to France to plead for additional aid. Boucher's three hour audience with Louis led to increased support for the colony, enabling to its expansion from the St. Lawrence into the Great Lakes area. Taking administration from a syndicate, Compagnie des Cent Associates, control was placed in the hands of Royal officials supported by Royal Troops.

New administration lead to increased exploration conducted by the likes of Louis Jollet, Pere Jacques Marquette and Rev. Jean Francois St. Cosme. Initiatives in the interior sparked rivalries between the Jesuits, who wished to reproduce the success of their Paraguayan colony uncontaminated by outside influences, and other missionaries as well as with secular traders. Encouraged by rumors of a river flowing to the sea, exploration depended on cooperation with the Indian tribes.

Exploration gave way to development, prominently led by Robert Cavalier de LaSalle and his associate, Henri de Tonty. In the course of founding a series of trading posts, LaSalle and Tonty established patterns of trade and loyalty with the Indian tribes, while launching the "Griffon", the first vessel to navigate the Western Great Lakes. In so doing, La Salle brought the Illinois-Wisconsin area into the Canadian fur-trading economy.

Eventually, the growth of the fur trade lead to increasing numbers of traders plying the Western waters. By the end of the 17th century, the Illinois country was united to the new French settlements established by Iberville at the mouth of the Mississippi and the in area around Mobile. Illinois now had outlets to both the North and the South.

It was at this time that the Jesuit vision of a new Paraguay led to a rivalry with the missionary priests of the Missions Etrangeres commissioned by the Bishop of Quebec. The first quarter of the 18th century would be a period of growth, with future great cities such as Detroit and Chicago rising, while the military bastion of Fort de Chartres was established to guard the Mississippi. Amid this growth, European wars led to shifting borders and Indian wars in Illinois and Louisiana led to shifting tribal alliances.

The increased settlements led to growing populations, not only of itinerant traders but also of communities of habitants, as Illinois became the breadbasket of French America.

One of the most interesting parts of the story, in my opinion, is the story of the dedicated priests and religious who devoted their lives to bringing the Gospel to French and Indians alike. This part of the French story illustrates the similarity between the colonial history of the French and the Spanish, in contrast to that of the English, for whom evangelization of the Indians was not a significant goal.

Dr. Balesi's explanation of French relations with the Indians illustrates a distinguishing characteristic of French colonization versus that of the English. The French model was to work, trade and live with the Indians, in contrast to the British pattern of supplantation of Indians with colonial farmers.

Ultimately, the French and Indian War, with the resulting diplomatic agreements, ended the era of French political dominance of Illinois. Thereafter, a French community shifted between an English east bank of the Mississippi and a Spanish west bank. The rising tide Anglo migration to the west, ultimately, submerged French culture in an American sea.

Though the era of the French in the Heart of North America is gone, it is not, thanks largely to Dr. Balesi, forgotten. Its story is both noble and inspiring. It deserves an eloquent telling. "The Time Of The French In The Heart Of North America" does it justice.

This book should be mandatory reading in all North American public high schools! Mr. Balesi has written an easy to understand, interesting, captivating, and insightful story about the first half of our North American history. Many questions of our present day culture are answered in this short volume. Anyone interested in the Lewis and Clark expedition should read this book first.

This book covers the French in Illinois, as well as the their relationship with the Illini Indian Confederacy. French by birth, and a historian by training, Balesi uses French archives along with Canadian and American sources to bring alive the period from the 1670's to 1800. Never one to shy from taking a stand, Balesi boldly admires the French, and paints a fascinating portrait of the rise and fall of the Indians that formed the Illini. If you are loking for a "multicultural book" that is filled with evil Europeans and noble natives, you will be disappointed as Balesi is only interested in truth, the whole truth and nothing but. Placing all actions in the context of the times, he can wax eloquent about a Mass at Peoria, with the hymns in the Illini's dialect. Then he can just as well describe a Winnebago massacre of a contingent of Illini who came to HELP the Winnebago. Any who have an interest in the history of these times or Illinois, would be well rewarded by a reading of this fine book. Patrick R. Collins

Wow.....wow....I mean, really, this book is just amazing. Abso-f-in-lutely wonderful. It's role as the quintessential American novel is so well deserved you can't help but wonder if this is the best read you might ever have. I m currently going through all the classics of the world, and have such joys as Moby Dick, War and Peace, Robinson Crusoe, among many, many others awaiting me. However, I feel like I ve already found the love for the written word that I felt I may aquire after reading perhaps a dozen or so of the worlds finest.

To the novella: He tells the tale with such heart, such character, such life that I will attest that I dont think I ve ever felt so strongly for a character as I do for Huck Finn. He is so vivid and alive and real; its absurd.

Yes, it is quite racist on the surface, and during the 250 odd pages of the story you might read more racial slurs and statements than you have in your life, but in the heart there is nothing racist about this story. I ve heard it defended because thats just how it was in Twains time, and alas, that is how it was then, and the reason it is all so blatant, but there is really nothing racist about the portrayal of Jim. He is so loving and deep and pure. Surely one of the sweetest people you could ever want to meet.

The charm of this story, the unending humor and delight of all the dialects and wordage, the manner of conversation and the subjects....my loves for this story are unending. Its a must read. I know you ve heard that;I know you know that. But damn it, off your ass and DO IT!

Twains masterpiece, and for that matter, a masterpiece of all literature in the history of the world.

This is a collection of two books that are often considered for children. However, they are suitable for both adults and children. The kids will love the adventure, the wonderfully irreverent and humorous view of childhood and the characters with their loyalty and friendship. The adults will also enjoy the satire of life in the "proper" lower middle-class society of the South with the sendups of hypocricy, false religiousity, racism and slavery and the like.

Tom Sawyer is probably more oriented for children than the other one. Here, the focus is Tom, who is largely a child prankster. His romantic ideals of doing things like running away to be a pirate are the source of great amusement and reflection for him - and worry for his family.

Huckleberry Finn has more adult themes. Here, the mockery of society is much harsher as Huck escapes from his abusive, drunk father to sail down the Mississippi with Tom and Jim (a runaway slave). Along the way the get to see the best and worst of what America on the river has to offer.

These books should be treasured and deserve their fame. Twain informs and relates in a totally entertaining and warm way.

Back in junior high school (ie, MANY moons ago) I read Tom Sawyer and/or Huckleberry Finn. However I couldn't remember which one, nor did I know one story from the other (like most Americans, I've seen more film adaptations of these stories than I care to recall). So I decided to read these little jewels once again. And I'm so glad I did.

First of all, I don't believe either story is suitable for children really. Both Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer seem too, well, immature compared to the youths of today. And the crude racist language is certainly unfashionable nowadays. But as an adult one can appreciate these stories as Mark Twain's trip down memory lane, looking at life on the river with rose-colored glasses. No, the stories (..which we all know) are not realistic. But they are fun, harmless and well-written.

The Wordsworth Edition is very nice little package of both stories. And I certainly recommend reading both stories back-to-back since they flow together well.

So I recommed all middle-aged kids (like me) revisit Mark Twain's memorable boys. They will bring a smile to your face.

A wonderful edition which includes both Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn (very handy for the Twain lover). It also has a red bookmark attached to the binding so you can easily find your place. The book is small and light so it is ideal for travelling and reading out of your home. It also includes a nice introduction and a comparative chronology of Twain's life. For a Twain collector, this is a lovely, readable copy.

Vicksburg Is the Key: The Struggle for the Mississippi River, written by William Shea and Terrence Winschel, reflects Abraham Lincoln's view that (page 1) "The Mississippi is the backbone of the rebellion. . . .[I]t is the key to the whole situation." And central to the Confederate strategy to hold the Mississippi after 1862 was Vicksburg, "The Gibraltar of the West." This book does a serviceable job of explaining the Vicksburg Campaign and the context in which that campaign took place.

It begins by laying out the Civil War in the West, and the efforts by the Union to assert control over the Mississippi, from the taking of New Orleans to the success of John Pope at Island # 10. Confederate strategists came to realize the value of Vicksburg as Union forces moved upriver from New Orleans and downriver from island # 10 and Memphis. Vicksburg was transformed into a bastion to control the river from high atop the steep hill overlooking the Mississippi River.

The book proceeds by describing Grant's original plan, with him heading to Vicksburg overland and Sherman by the great river. After one of Carl Van Dorn's few great successes in destroying the Union base at Holly Springs, forcing Grant to retreat, Sherman ran into a stout defense alone and was repulsed. Thereafter, the book discusses the various failed "experiments" that Grant carried out, trying to figure a way to get at Vicksburg without what would surely be a sanguinary frontal assault on the bluffs.

Finally, Grant marched down the west bank of the Mississippi, crossed over at Hard Times, and began one of the most well implemented campaigns of the Civil War. First, Grant prevented General Joe Johnston from reinforcing General John Pemberton, Commander of the Vicksburg forces. Johnston was pushed out of Jackson. Thereupon, second, Grant turned to take on a mobile force sent to defeat Grant by Pemberton. At Champion Hill, Grant's forces won the day. After another reverse at the Big Black River, Pemberton's forces retreated to Vicksburg. After a futile attack on the city's works, Grant settled in for a siege. On July 4th, 1863, the defending forces surrendered to Grant. At that point, and with the later surrender of Port Hudson to Union General Nathaniel Banks, Lincoln could note that the Father of Waters flowed unvexed to the sea.

The triumph of Grant was a key turning point in the Civil War. This book does a solid job in describing the events leading up to the opening of the Mississippi River as a Union stream. It provides useful maps to clarify the geography and the nature of the campaign.

The University of Nebraska Press's Great Campaigns in the Civil War Series has become a great boon to period historians. It offers concise overviews and refreshing new perspectives on the conflict written by knowledgable scholars. I have yet to be disappointed with a volume in this fine series, but this entry has become my favorite, so much so that I felt compelled to praise it. Shea and Winschel simply provide the clearest and most useful one-volume history of the war around Vicksburg. I learned quite a bit that soon will find its way into lecture notes, and I'm suddenly yearning to revisit Vicksburg after many years. Highly recommended.

The text notes that General Winfield Scott observed "The Mississippi is the backbone of the Rebellion.... it is the key to the whole situation." The rapid movement of men and equipment from one front to another in the vast western theater was a strategic advantage rivers gave Union military leaders. Conversely, with its seaports blockaded, unhampered ability to move men and supplies eastward on and across the Mississippi River was critical for Confederate survival. Thus, the Mississippi River was of strategic importance to both the Union and the Confederacy.

The text notes that New Orleans was the South's largest, wealthiest, and most industrialized city. However, New Orleans surrendered to Farragut in 1862, only one year after Fort Sumter. The Federals then began the complex/long campaign, not completed until July 1863, to clear the entire Mississippi River. By the spring of 1863, Vicksburg and Port Hudson were the only two Confederate forts blocking the Mississippi River. The authors, William L. Shea and Terrence J. Winschel, present an interesting narration of the campaign of Grant's progress down the river to Vicksburg and General Banks march north to an unfilled union with Grant. In many respects this was a trial and error campaign; Grant found that it was almost impossible to attack Vicksburg from the north or west, and he decided to cross the Mississippi River south of Vicksburg and attack the city from the southeast or east.

Most interesting during this campaign was the successful combined operations of army and navy resources. Admiral Porter made a dramatic run down the Mississippi past the Vicksburg batteries in order to ferry Union soldiers across the river below Vicksburg. In addition, while Vicksburg was under siege, Porter bombarded the city with his naval cannons.

After much bloody fighting east of Vicksburg, in May 1863 Grant's army reached the Vicksburg fortifications. After two unsuccessful direct assaults on the Rebels, a series of thirteen trenches were dug to the very face of the Confederate fortifications bringing Vicksburg under siege and sealing its doom. When completed over sixty thousand feet of excavations, manned by Union troops, were completed. By July Vicksburg's Confederate General Pemberton and his soldiers were hungry, sick and despaired of rescue. On July 3 General Pemberton asked Grant for surrender terms; Grant's answer was "unconditional surrender." Grant rejected Pemberton proposed surrender terms and promised to send amended terms of surrender that night to Pemberton that he accepted early on July 4.

The authors review the question of the lack of Confederate aid for Vicksburg noting that by early June, Richmond had sent Johnston thirty-two thousand troops and urged General Joe Johnston to relieve Vicksburg. Apparently Johnston never intended to save Vicksburg. Grant next moved east to turn on General Johnston. After eight weeks, Johnston abandoned Jackson, Mississippi and fled east eastward away from Grant.

The text concludes with an account of the battle for Port Hudson. Like Grant, Union General Banks, made a direct assault on the Rebel fortifications with disastrous results.Banks next initiated digging the way into Port Hudson; but impatient for results, tried another disastrous direct assault on June 14. Upon receiving word of Vicksburg surrender, Port Hudson surrendered on July 9, and General Banks informed Grant "The Mississippi is open.". On July 16 the steamboat Imperial, eight days out of St. Louis, docked in New Orleans. The struggle for the Mississippi River was over.

This is a readable account. Most interesting is to witness the development of General Grant into a first rate field general. The last chapter in the book is an EPILOGUE that provides a brief account after Vicksburg of several major commanders after Vicksburg.

This slim work actually speaks volumes, and is written in an engaging, fast-moving account that will satisfy either the Civil War buff, historian or general reader. The final chapter on Port Hudson is the only downside. That city's capture was part of the campaign described in this book, but its exclusion from the rest of this work makes it oddly out of place.

This is as a nice reference for the blues guitarist. It's nice to have so many new ideas in one place. The only downside (more so for the beginner), is most of the turnarounds are in the key of C which means you'll need to transcribe them to different keys. This is not a bad thing as it is helps develop a better knowledge of how the blues scales are put together. It is a good investment as it is a reference and a learning tool.

(101 Razor-Sharp Blues Guitar Fill-In Licks)


Leading Book of Its Type

This is undoubtedly the leading book of its type on the market today. 101 authentic urban blues guitar fill-ins in the Chicago blues style, each accurately transcribed in notation and tablature. Each lick is recorded note-for-note on the companion CD and accompanied by a professional blues band (complete with singer Charles Atkins), and wonderfully engineered by Fred Chester, a well-known engineer in the Southeast who has recorded albums for jazz piano great Marcus Roberts and persons of similar caliber.

As a professional music teacher of many years, I have found Larry McCabe's music instruction books to be of consistently high quality, popular with students, focused and effective in accomplishing the particular objective.

Small wonder. Larry has one of the most reputable names in the music publishing industry. His resume lists over eighty published books for Mel Bay, Centerstream, and other big names in the industry. Two of his books were written for none other than Roy Clark. And he was the guitar writer for Living Blues Magazine for three years, and a member of the W.C. Nominating Committee for many years. This is a teacher who knows how to play and teach the blues.

The author, Larry McCabe, is a well-known and respected author of many instruction books and he has a strong background in the blues. I recall that in the 1990s Larry authored a popular blues guitar column for Living Blues Magazine.

Against the backdrop of a live band complete with singer Charles Atkins, each fill-in lick is played exactly as you would play it on stage or in a jam session. The licks are tasteful and performed in the authentic Chicago style-the licks are the real thing, played by a guitarist who knows how to play the blues and write blues instruction.

I would recommend this book to an early intermediate guitarist whose ambition is to play in the urban blues style. The incredible thing about this set is that the user is actually sitting in with a live blues band that includes a singer.

In the rush to play solos, fill-in are sometimes overlooked. This book is unique and unlike any other book on electric blues guitar. And in fact, Red Dog Music Books entire series of 101 Razor-Sharp Blues Books are enthusiastically recommended to all electric guitar teachers who have students who want to learn to play the blues.

This is the second time that I have read the book and it was just as good as the first time through. I love the witty dialect Twain throws in to create a southern ambiance of the 19th century. This book was a huge piece of controversy at its time due to the fact a young white boy and a run a way slave team up to sail the Mississippi in seek of adventure. I find the book really interesting and at the same time almost weird, kind of on a Sci-Fi level, with everything involving how the two families kill each other including their children. Today's world is full of people trapped in the routine of society's standards and Huck is a perfect example of what many people want - independence and free spirit. I like how Huck, even though without a proper family oriented upbringing, is able to distinguish from right and wrong. It shows the incredible mental capacity humans have in their ability to reason.

This book is a must-have for serious readers of Twain's greatest novel, one well worth the expense. Based on his original manuscript, it provides the ur-text of this wonderful work (including the original illustrations), giving readers the opportunity to appreciate and enjoy the full subtlety of the author's labors.

Enhancing the experience is the excellent annotations that the editors provided. While a bit difficult to trace (the editors preferred page-line cites to footnotes, which leaves the text free of supertext clutter), they provide first-rate insight into the details of Clemens's writing and the minutiae of Huck's world. This, along with Clemens's original notes, list of revisions, fascimilies of the original manuscript, and a number of maps of Clemens's Mississippi, make this book an essential addition to the library of any student of this great writer.

This review isn't to give a review of one of the most studied works of the English language, but rather to detail what makes this edition special and worthy of purchase.

At the most superficial level Huck is the sequel to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, which had introduced us to these two icons of the printed word. After Tom Sawyer was a big hit the publisher, perhaps understandably, wanted not only a sequel, but one which logically followed Tom Sawyer. They specifically desired for the two works to sit comfortably on a shelf together. Perhaps there was a time when Mark Twain desired the same thing - more of the same crowd pleasing story telling. But I think that perhaps from the beginning he recognized that he now had the audience that he wanted for his masterpiece, so he began writing it.

Even in the form which was familiar for 100 years Huckleberry Finn was widely hailed as the centerpiece of American Literature. THIS edition reveals that the masterpiece as originally conceived was even more masterly.

Clemens wrote the original manuscript and submitted it to the publisher. I don't know what they thought of the book as it was, but one thing was clear: it was a good deal longer than Tom Sawyer and sitting side by side with Tom Sawyer the two books looked less like a "pair".

So.... the editorial pruning process began and enough was removed from the originally conceived Huckleberry Finn to create both the originally published versions of Huck as well as "Life on the Mississippi".

Now we finally get to see the "complete Huck". The missing text flows along with the "original Huck" as mightily as the Mississippi that Huck and Jim ride along in the book of our dreams.

As if that weren't enough, we also are treated to original illustrations and facsimile reproductions of several of Twain's original text. I found these pages among the most enlightening of all. Almost as if he knew his handwritten pages would be looked at by posterity, Twain used a unique revision technique. Rather than erasing a word or passage he wishes to replace, he would instead line through the words in a single line, leaving the replaced word legible along with the words which would replace the revised word. By examining these hand-written lines we can see how meticulous Twain was in his word selection. In several of the passages he made slight corrections which were plainly intended to make the runaway slave, Jim, as noble as possible. It has long been a curiosity to me that this book, frequently criticized as "racist", has as it's two central characters a runaway slave and the "poor white trash" boy who decides to help him. At one point Huck is memorably torn between what the Southern Society he has been raised in says is right and what gnaws at his conscience. It is obviously an unqualified truth to Huck that Jim is uneducated and so poor that he doesn't even own himself, yet Jim possesses more humanity than any of the "civilized" southerners Huck meets. Seeing Clemens' own scrawl lets us see how diligently Clemens worked to make that distinction clear - that Jim is easily the most noble adult in the book.

I agree with Mr. Hemingway - Huckleberry Finn IS America's greatest novel. Thanks to rediscovering Twain's original text (and an entertaining sequence of events which is detailed in the introduction to this edition) we finally get to read America's greatest Novel the way that the author originally intended.

I cannot recommend this highly enough.

This title is part of a series edited by the University Press of Mississippi, and as I've already reviewed one of the other titles, I'll just say this one is good as usual, but it still lacks the depth of Kurosawa's own "Something Like An Autobiography". The good thing is, his autobiography stops right when he becomes an international director, because he considers unnecessary to tell what people might already know. This book covers a longer span, up until Kurosawa's last "Madadayo". There's nothing wrong with this book, but if you really want to know about Kurosawa, and not just about the way he made films, you'd better start by the autobiography. Then, read this one.

The interviews collected by Bert Cardullo in "Akira Kurosawa Interviews" give us various lenses and filters through which the great director's works were seen, over a fairly decent period of time. We have Japanese filmmaker interviewers, American critics, A Latin American novelist interviewer, and Bert Cardullo himself. We have the very respectful, the respectful but inquisitive, the annoyingly self-absorbed (you'll know it when you read it...a tipoff is that, after the most pompously convoluted question Kurosawa laughs...)and the one mind that provokes a real emotional response from Kurosawa.

That's a nice survey! You will hear many stories repeated (I begin to think that Kurosawa relied heavily on some basic themes drawn from his experience, and reiterated in his work with Audie Bock:"Something Like an Autobiography" and nearly word-for-word in Cardullo's final interview in the book) but, despite the repetition, new stuff is intermixed, and quite fascinating for Kurosawa fans and scholars.

Goes on the Kurosawa bookshelf.

Akira Kurosawa: Interviews.

I recommend this book unreservedly to anybody interested in film. In conversation with knowledgeable and distinguished interviewers Kurosawa gives detailed insights into how he works: how every stage of a film is exhaustively discussed beforehand by all its participants and the Director himself; how unplanned factors such as the weather can contribute to episodes of unforgettable beauty and mystery in the finished film; his refusal to be regarded as a philosopher, let alone a preacher ('I look at life as an ordinary man. I simply put my feelings into the film'); his passionate interest in, and extraordinary knowledge of Japanese history, of the social and military life of the given period; of how his early training as a painter has informed his perceptions and his methods.
Apart from all that we learn about Kurosawa's work, the book is full of insights into recent Japanese history and contemporary society, including, of course, Japanese cinema.
Kurosawa's speech is engagingly fresh and energetic, and despite his great fame he seems to be utterly without self-importance.

I gave this book to my Dad who attended Ole Miss at the same time Meredith was there. He felt the book was an accurate depiction of the events and has throughly enjoyed reading it.

This is a great book. The story takes place in 1962 when a black veteran James Meredith tries to enroll in University of Mississippi. Since Ole Miss is a white school, he is refused. After court injunctions, the Mississippi state government and Governor Ross Barnett flatly refuse to enroll Meredith. The Federal Government through similar attempts also tries to enroll Meredith. Finally two weeks into the fall semester, Federal Marshalls and government troops are called into action to enroll Meredith. White students and right wing radicals from surrounding states decide to confront Meredith and the registration process and a riot/battle ensures. The battle is the climax of the book. It is amazing this happened in my lifetime. I am surprised how narrow minded these people were in intregating the University of Mississippi.
I commend Doyle on a great book. He tells the story with suspense so it becomes a page turner. This is not a short book, but the reading flows well and it becomes an easy read because of how the author approaches the subject. This book also is well researched and is ground breaking telling the reader of a little known conflict that most people now would like forgotten.
Great story.

William Doyle brilliantly recreates a little remembered incident that challenged America to its core: the attempt of an Air Force veteran named James Meredith to exercise his right to go to school. That would, on the surface, seem an easy task. However the year was 1962, the school was the University Of Mississippi, and the citizen was African American. The battle which took place left an armed force occupying an American campus, two people dead, and a nation facing the inevitable moral conflict brought about by segregation.

Doyle's research is superb; he uncovers evidence, testimony, and events which have never before been reported. At the same time, the writing is crisp, exciting and momentous - events race along spinning out of the control of the racist Governor (Ross Barnett), the vacillating President (John Kennedy) and the cool observer (Meredith himself)

Readers wanting to know more about the Civil Rights Movement, human courage, and the Kennedy Administration will, naturally, find this book to be fascinating. However, any citizen who wants an exciting read about the history of their nation should buy this remarkable book.

Michael Orey begins his thorough examination of the courtroom battles against big tobacco by examining Horton v. American Tobacco, the Mississippi case that launched the mid-1980s barrage of legal attacks on big tobacco and led eventually to U.S. settlements of more than $200 billion. As they read about the assault on Brown and Williamson, cinema buffs may feel they are revisiting The Insider with Al Pacino. The book combines a walk-through of the day-to-day legal procedures and motions with a look into the lives of the major players. This well-written volume presents the tobacco case like an engrossing true-crime story, although some readers may find it has too much detail to hold their interest. We [...] recommend this fascinating book to most general readers. But while executives searching for principles to apply to their own companies may find themselves captivated, they won't find much here that is generally applicable.

What an interesting recording how Lawyers violate their own standards of conduct just to win. The book shows how documents about Tobacco were stolen and then how the person who stole them was paid $1.8 million by the very Lawyers he helped to win billions for in fees. Yet, I wondered what those same Lawyers would have the same tactics used against them, how they would feel. But the cause was to show that smoking Cigarettes is evil and not good for our health, yet we already knew this and making the companies admit it was a victory. So in the end whenever someone is being sued and if we applaud those breaking ethics and the laws in pursuit for justice, then we encourage bad behavior. In the end when we celebrate this kind of action how far can murder, threats of murder and destruction's of families will be justified in pursuit of justice? Billions have been made, billions have been won, but by whom and for whom? No one should be proud of their actions as described in the book and if they are they can wonder later what will happen when others use the same tactics are them. What is tragic is Society knew shortly after the Native Americans gave Tobacco to Columbus that it was deadly, but people wanted it, and used it, so the governments created Sin Taxes to help discourage it. It did not work back then and it will not work now. People will be free to do what they want and nothing will stop it. At the same time, no one should begin to smoke or smoke but how do you stop it. The book is a great read. I recommend it highly but read it without smoking if you can!

It may seem paradoxical to most that for trial lawyers are not afraid to lose a case. Every trial is a learning experience. You learn about your opponent; you learn about yourself. You try a losing case over and over in your head at night. You learn from your mistakes. You learn from the opposing lawyer. You become obsessed and through it all you learn how to win.

This is the true story of some country lawyers in Mississippi who launched a holy war against Big Tobacco. They were unlikely Davids battling a Goliath.

The country lawyers looked like easy pickings to the big firm lawyers from the big cities. The silk stocking crowd would bury them in paper, bankrupt them in endless discovery, and outdazzle them in court, if the bumpkins ever got that far. These champions of nicotine had never lost a case. The clients had never paid one dime to any tobacco victim. They were the chosen ones, selected to keep the streak alive, to bring home the scalps of the piteous Mississippi lawyers.

Trial lawyers know that a lawyer who has never lost a case has never tried a case. Undeterred by the myth of invincibility of the tobacco industry these dreamers were able to use the industry's incredible arrogance on itself to bring it to its knees. In short, the truth got out, and the rest is history.

If you are a law student or a young lawyer thinking about trying cases for a living, read this book. This is how its done and how you can sleep at night.

New Orleans, along with New York and San Francisco, was one of the three poles of the Beat movement. This book illuminates a small but important corner of what was a much larger story about the Beats and The French Quarter. The title is greatly misleading. The book says almost nothing about "bohemian New Orleans" per se. The book is a dual biography of Jon and Louise Webb. The Webbs flitted (not meant pejoratively) around the country, alighting at various times in New Orleans. But the bohemian aspects of New Orleans are mostly MIA here. There is no mention of the resident Beats of the time, no mention of the Ryder and Quorum coffeehouses, no mention of Ivan Kotterman's salon, and so on. However, if you want a very detailed look at the world of 50s and 60s Beat poetry, and who owed what to whom, this is your book. A thoughtful re-titling is in order if this book goes to a second edition.

Like most potential readers, I first read of Loujon press via my interest in the writing and life of Charles Bukowski. My interest in Loujon increased after having lived in New Orleans in the 80s and having encountered a little of the artistic and literary life there. From Weddle's book I've learned a lot about the Bukowski connection and the New Orleans connection and how the beautifully hand made publications of Loujon were also premier in American literature re-emerging in the 60s. Very interesting to learn of Walter Lowenfels involvement and the focus that Loujon had on Kenneth Patchen as well as Henry Miller.

I really liked this book this a lot. I thought at first it might be a little too academic for me but I was impressed by how accessible it was since I didn't know much about small press publishing beforehand. It turned out to be a great story about the literary small press in New Orleans. Also, it is a good read for any Bukowski fans or fans of the Beat generation.