Government and Politics Books

This book is a fascinating window into the Paris of the inter-war period. Written in 1942 by a well-known journalist of the time, the book contains the reminiscences of Elliott Paul, an American who chose to call a neighborhood in a little back street of Paris home for some 17 years. In the first part of the book, Paul paints a picture of the neighborhood and the characters who populated it. The second part of the book describes the changes to his neighborhood as Europe began to descend into war, and the book finishes with Paul's despair as he thinks over all that was lost to him and to France once the Second World War finally broke out in earnest.

I found the first part of the book most compelling. Yes, it may be historically interesting to read later about how the political events of the time were interpreted by an American living in Paris and by his French friends, but it is the day-to-day details of life in Paris during the 1920s that remain fascinating today. After reading this book, I began to get an inkling at how un-developed France was compared to the general standard of living we expect and find today throughout Europe. From Paul's descriptions, living conditions in Paris in the 1920s were comparable to those found in many developing countries today. In his hotel, for example, the toilet facilities consisted of what some call today a "Turkish toilet", with one shared squat toilet for the entire floor, with only a partition door for privacy. Milk was adulterated before being distributed door-to-door in unwashed bottles by a buxom teenager. There was no central heating in the homes of ordinary people, and those who couldn't afford a small coal stove in their rooms for heat warmed themselves by rubbing their skin with cat-fur mittens, purchased at the local pharmacy. Women had not yet been granted property rights. They couldn't own or sell property or bank accounts, and they weren't even allowed to travel without written permission from their husbands or fathers. Looking back today, it's incredible to think how much French culture has changed. I wonder what Paul would think of modern French culture if he could experience it again- -what changes would he approve of, and what would he find distasteful? No doubt, as an outsider, Paul probably formed a few inaccurate hypotheses about French culture, but he lived long enough in the country and neighborhood to discover some truths as well. And as an outsider, he found them interesting enough to write about. It is only because they were written down that they survive at all- -they are just too far removed from modern realities to even be conceivable today. This is a great written record of Paul's experiences, and well worth reading.

Before getting into the body of my review, I want to clear up a fairly common misconception. The only thing that the movie, THE LAST TIME I SAW PARIS, has in common with Elliot Paul's book is that they share the same name. The movie was based on a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald entitled, "Babylon Revisited."

I wonder what Elliot Paul would think if he could see today's incarnation of his beloved rue de la Huchette where the action of the book is centered. Before the second World War, when Elliot made it his home, it was a poor street of "mom and pop" businesses, small apartments, a laundry that doubled as a bordello, a third class hotel or two, a few small cafes and, most of all, a place where one sat out on the stoop and visited, or debated, with his neighbors until the wee hours. Not a very high class neighborhood and certainly not a place that had any attraction for tourists.

That portion of the Left Bank that includes the rue de la Huchette is called the Latin Quarter because of its proximity to the Sorbonne University. At one time it really was a place where the students hung out, but no more. Because it has become so touristy, the students have moved their extracurricular activities a few blocks away. I get the feeling that every tourist bus passing through Paris includes in its itinerary a walk down the two or three blocks that comprise the street. Every other door leads into a small restaurant and in front of each is a hustler enticing you to come in for dinner and to have a free "aperitif." If you know where to eat, or are lucky, you can get a good, reasonably priced, meal there. The street is always lively and crowded.,

Paul's rue de la Huchette, as I described it above, was a world, or at least a war, away from what one experiences today. He became such a part of the neighborhood that he was always called on to arbitrate neighborhood disputes. One young girl, Hyacinthe, fell in love with him while she was still a pre-teen, wrote him very adult sounding love letters, and even as an adult still adored him.

He describes a scene when, after a long absence, he returns, and, as soon as the word gets out that he's back, he finds himself the guest of honor at the party to end all parties. Everyone buys him drinks but no one allows him to reciprocate. Sometime during the celebration he passes out. The next morning, not knowing how he got there, he wakes up in one of the two front rooms in the hotel, rooms normally reserved for "couples in a hurry." Because the room was free and the gesture so generous, he doesn't complain about the bed bugs.

This wonderful street and these people that Paul loves and brings to life for us are destroyed by the Nazi occupation of Paris during WW II. The saddest moment of the book comes near the end of the war when Hyacinthe, now grown up and become a famous actress, dies as a result of asphyxiation caused by a charcoal burner that she and her mother were using to keep warm during the cold Paris winter. Her death which, like all the events in the book is a true event, is symbolic of the end of an era in Paul's life and of the life of a more innocent Paris.

I think that I might have liked Paul's rue de la Huchette better than the present one. If you read THE LAST TIME I SAW PARIS, I think that you might feel the same.

One of the most delightful books I've read in a long time. Elliot Paul writes of his beloved Rue de la Houchette on the Left Bank of Paris in the turbulent period between the wars. His appreciation enlightens us, appreciation for the arts and culture of France, of its people and its food and its foibles and, it the 20's and 30's, its deplorable politics.

For instance here is some of his ecstatic picture of Les Halles: France, in her wisdom, ordained that all the strawberries for miles and kilometers around should convene near a grand old church just after midnight, and should be ranged there neatly in straw baskets, garnished greenly with their leaves. If one man can small one wild strawberry at a distance of eight inches, how far can four million men enjoy the perfume of one million, five hundred thousand strawberries ... laid out on ancient cobblestones? Or this on mushrooms: Twenty-five hundred square yards of mushrooms, back to back, as neatly matched as dancers by Degas.

How I would have loved to have been an habitue of the bar at Hotel Caveau. To see Father Panarioux heading for the bar at the same time as Madame Mariette of the brothel, from opposite directions, each bowing to the other in a hesitation dance as to whom should pass through the entrance first. To have been served by the always-smiling Georges, the Serbian waiter, who, lacking papers and wanting to avoid internment `finds` some French army clothes and waits by the side of the road heading south - he`s rather fight the Italians than the Germans - for a division of cavalry to go by - he`s good with horses. To have supped with the wealthy M. de Malancourt who used his influence to get his mistress out of prison, married her, settled on her a great deal of money and a passport and delivered her to Switzerland, returning himself to Free France where he distributed the rest of his money to the refugees who poured in from every corner of Europe. Above all, to have been astonished by the extraordinarily precocious Hyacinthe who, a successful actress in 1939, refuses to leave France for Hollywood: I am lost, like the rest of France But I am a part of Paris, of the stifling soul of France. When France goes, I go. When Daladier (the Prime Minister) sells France, he sells me. I am part of the bargain.

Alas, the good times came to an end, helped by Mr. Chamberlain's umbrella and the greed and obtuseness of politicians. Paul writes, No matter how many Frenchmen voted, or how they voted, the same predatory combination ran the country for the benefit of large employers and speculators on a colossal scale. Voters in a so-called democracy may depose tyrants or crooks in isolated cases, but they cannot give birth, full grown like Minerva, to honest and experienced statesmen to take their places.

Plus ca change, plus c'est le meme chose. (Add accents as required!)

I love this book, for many reasons. Ellliot Paul was my father's best friend. They traveled together in Europe, Elliot working on one of his books (I forget which) and my father working on his (alas, never published). I knew Elliot as a kid - I even saw him on his deathbed, a sight I'll never forget. In any case, this is a WONDERFUL read, atmospheric, full of unforgettable characters, especially the author himself. I only wish I could write like this.

What both the reviews currently featured fail to mention is that Elliott Paul has a keen eye and a keen wit. He writes with warmth and affection, but also a journalist's detachment. His writing style is in keeping with the street and the characters he brings to life so vividly. And although he is dealing with a world long gone, if you've been to Paris, even now, you'll recognise it in his pages. This book is one of the most perceptive and delightful travel books I've ever read. One example of Paul's gems: in one chapter he explains that 'Belgian pate' means pate that's half rabbit and half horse, that is, one rabbit to one horse. Several chapters later he informs us that there were no Italians in the neighbourhood since Italians and Serbs don't mix, "and when they do, the Italian has as much chance as a rabbit up against a horse in a Belgian pate" - I love that line and how it sums up so succinctly a whole array of rich rivalries.

"Battling Wall Street: The Kennedy Presidency" is great reading for people who want to move beyond books about the mechanics of the Kennedy assassination. The book helps explain why the "Eastern establishment" and a lot of other influential people, might want to get rid of President Kennedy. Another book, "History Will Not Absolve Us : Orwellian Control, Public Denial, & the Murder of President Kennedy" provides additional pieces of the puzzle by explaining how the American establishment, including leading establishment liberals like Noam Chomsky and Alexander Cockburn, have worked to sell the Warren Commision's 'lone gunman' cover-up. The amazing thing about the Kennedy assassination is that, despite a lot of nonsense coming from the mainstream media, the American people know it wasn't a lone gunman and the killers didn't do us a favor.

In reviewing the thoughts of most researchers of the JFK assassination, one sees that most of them invariably bring up the Cuba issue, and occasionally Lee Harvey Oswald's possible involvement with this issue.
Now, however, in this book, Professor Donald Gibson may have uncovered the real issues behind the death of President Kennedy. He reveals so many issues, in fact, that one has to begin to decide which one is the crucial one, the one that provoked the conspirators to decide to kill him.

The death of Kennedy seems to this observer of the American scene a resolution of the struggle of the two forces to decide who really rules America. Since people who run the government colluded with the murderers of the president, it's pretty obvious who really runs the show.
Readers of this book may want to try Gibson's second book, "The Kennedy Assassination Cover-Up". After forty years, Americans should want a reasonable answer to the question of who killed Kennedy. Gibson may provide the answer.

In 1989 a book was published called "Crossfire", in which Texas-based journalist Jim Marrs reviewed most of the information he thought was then available concerning the JFK assassination. A large part of the book dealt with those people and groups whom he thought were the most likely to have killed Kennedy. Allen Dulles and his CIA were included in his list.
Donald Gibson has added one more suspect to this list in this book, and it would appear to this reader that someone has finally made sense of the events of November 22, 1963.
From this one book alone, one could seriously accept the idea that the eastern establishment, the Wall Street crowd, the corporate elite and all their connections had the most to lose with Kennedy as president. They had the motive and means to kill the president and then to cover it up. Gibson flatly states the establishment and the CIA's interests were intertwined. In fact, the CIA was merely the enforcer for the Council on Foreign Relations global agenda. Both Allen Dulles and John J McCloy were extremely important members of the Council, who managed to land on the Warren Commission and lead the cover-up. In fact, a case could be built that they organized the plot. All they needed was the green light from someone in the inner circle of the Rockefeller-dominated Council, like one of the Rockefellers.

this book helped give me a whole new meaningful perspective on the kennedy assasination..it sifts through all the misinformation, and the same tired trashy expose type books on the kennedy presidency that don't give any meaningful information, i am much more interested in a president's policies economic and otherwise as opposed to his sex life...i highly reccommend that anyone interested in politics, economics, or the kennedy assasination read this book twice and very slowly. gibson lays everything out clearly in an easy to understand way, i highly reccomend this book.

This book is a great read. The subject matter is interesting and thought provoking. I had the privilage of having Prof. Gibson in class. His knowledge is vast and inspiring. His passion has motivated me not only in the college realm but in life itself.

I dont think I would be priviliged enough to be in the same room as this superhero. No need for reviews as the others did a pretty good job. After you read this, you will never trust the government again.

He deserves 10 stars.

Note that this review is 4 years after publication... four years of silence.

A book that tears the mask off the fraudulent "War on Drugs". It exposes the growth of the war from two (highly mutually destructive) agencies in 1971 (Customs and DEA) to 55 and counting. It describes very extensive, high-volume CIA involvement in smuggling itself to obtain unaccountable funding.

It documents the cost of the fraudulent war. In dollars misspent, in innocent lives lost through raids gone amok and witnesses silenced, in the credibility of government agencies and the news media, and in the harm resulting from the 5-fold increase (his figures) in drug usage during the time $1 trillion has been wasted in the fight.

Recommend finding this book used or in a library, or reading Levine's chapter in "Into the Buzzsaw" by Kristina Borjesson.

The first sign of corruption in a society ... is that the end justifies the means. ~Georges Beranos, "Why Freedom?" (1955)

When you finish going through this book, you will gain a new perspective on the drugs war, and some of the root causes of the drugs problem in United States.

"Look Mike, our country has many diverse interests and you're one man in one little corner of the world. There are a lot of people a lot smarter than you and I involved in this business who might know a few things we don't. So just because an action might seem right doesn't mean it is; and even if it's the right thing to do, sometimes it's not the healthiest."

...

He was silent for a long moment. "Mike, don't ever forget a peanut butter sandwich."
"You're kidding."
"No, I'm not. I'm telling you this because I like you."

...

"Bario was one of the best and most committed undercover agents in DEA; he had done some of the agency's highest-level deep cover work. He was also a friend of mine. A year earlier he had been arrested for smuggling heroin from his post of duty in Mexico. While in jail in a Texas border town awaiting a removal hearing, he took a bite of a peanut butter sandwich and went into convulsions, and then a deep coma. He died a month later. He wife was told by the prison warden that strychnine had been found in his blood. The official autopsy report listed the cause of death as asphyxiation -- he choked on a peanut butter sandwich.
Many of Bario's fellow agents were aware that he was involved in cases that overlapped CIA interests. The rumor was that he "knew too much" about the CIA smuggling drugs into the United States to support its own interests and that he was killed by either members of DEA's Internal Security (who was in reality CIA) or by the CIA itself. I had always been one of those who had placed little credence in the rumor. Who could really believe that a branch of the U.S. government would assassinate its own people for any reason?"

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Mike Levine is a good writer. Add that to the fact that he was one of the best undercover agents in American history and you've got the equation for a great book. I had to stop myself a number of times to remember that this is NON-Fiction. The bumbling and deception that goes on at the higher levels of our Criminal Justice system would be laughable had this been a work of fiction. There is just too much detail here for it NOT to be true. This book, coupled with Levine's other book "Deep Cover" show you how the people in power manipulate the media to show the public the reality they want them to see. In light of the Iraq war "intelligence" misinformation, we can see that nothing has changed. In fact, the stakes have gotten higher.

I rank this book with "Dark Alliance" and "C.I.A.: Cocaine In America" as the most telling indictment of America's pseudo-war on drugs. Unlike most suthors who pontificate solutions from ivory towers and exhort stratagem with quill pens, Mr. Levine, not unlike Mr. VesBucci, for that matter, advises from hard-fought experience.

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Shawki, who is also an editor of the International Socialist Review--the theoretical journal of the International Socialist organization--presents a study of the relationship between the socialist movement in the United States and the Black population. He also does a good deal more here. Given the special history and relationship of African-Americans to the power structure and white-skinned US citizens in general, this is more than a study of that relationship. It is also a history of the African-American struggle for freedom. This history is not the first book to examine this historical relationship. However, it is certainly one of the few that predicates the fundamental elements of that relationship on the economic realities of slavery and the necessity to construct a rationale for the racial nature of African-American bondage and the racist structure that followed emancipation.
This book is a comprehensive look at the history of the struggle for Black liberation in the United States. Shawki's effort is well worth the read, especially for those who are looking for a good introduction to this underexplored part of US history. The fundamental importance of the nature of US capitalist economics to the oppression of African-Americans is never forgotten in this book, but neither is this nature pressed to the point of pedanticism. If racism is the chicken and economics the egg, Shawki makes a compelling argument in these pages that the egg definitely came first. Quite readable, Black Liberation and Socialism adds an important analysis to the bookshelf of Black history. It doesn't merely belong in the study group or the library. It should be part of the slowly growing canon on that topic.

Ahmed Shawki's account of the history and politics of the struggle for Black liberation in America is a must read for any anti-racist. We must learn this history as a guide for how to struggle in the present--one thing I enjoy so much about this book is that it gives the reader a sense of the possibilities that existed during periods of social upheaval. Shawki tells us about the abolitionist movement, reconstruction, the civil rights movement, and the black power movement but in so doing he shows us not only what those struggles accomplished--but what they might have accomplished. Read this book!

This book is ablolutely essential reading for anyone who seeks to destroy racism in today's society. This book highlights the main events of US history regarding race and class, beginning with slavery and the origins of racism, and continuing through the Civil War, reconstruction, the birth and politics of the Civil Rights movement, and Black politics today.

The timing of this book could not be better suited as we have witnessed the deliberate neglect of the Black and poor people of New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the racist criminal justice system and death penalty, and the re-segregation of schools to 1950's levels.

Therefore not only does this book teach us about Black history, but as the title suggests, makes the connection between racism, oppression, and class society. It examines various struggles against racism and points to the multiple places these meet other liberation movements. As we see Condoleeza rice buying $7,000 shoes while ignoring the plight of Katrina survivors, Shawki makes the case that racism is a severe problem, but it is not the only problem. As he points out, Malcom X came to the conclusion later in his life that the majority of society, whatever race or gender, was subject to injustice - injustice that is inherrently tied to class society. Shawki's conclusion is therefore that we need a new Civil Rights movement to fight for Black liberation, as well as a better world free of class antagonisms. And that world is socialism.

Ahmed Shawki's "Black liberation and Socialism" is one of the most powerful and easy to read books that I have read on the subject. His arguments are clear and his examples are powerful. He argues that to end racism ultimately it will take a multiracial working class movement fighting for a society free of poverty, racism, and exploitation i.e. socialism. His historical examples clearly illustrate how this is possible and necessary. It would be difficult to read this book and not feel angered and motivated to action the second you finish.

Jean Howell
Duluth MN

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Nick has a very special way of relating real events. I found this book very compelling and exciting to read, not only because of the author's straightforward style, but because these were real events.

If you like intrigue and real-life crime type stories... buy this book!

Mangieri's books bring to mind the nonfiction of Peter Maas, author of Serpico. However, Mangieri's work has a sharper edge, simply by virtue of the fact that it is based on his personal experiences and is told in his own words. His books are well worth our attention.

I really enjoyed this book, which tells of corruption in an important government investigator's job. Nick Mangieri dealt with very difficult issues that most of us don't have to face in our day-to-day lives. Despite the pressure, he kept his head and his integrity intact. We can all learn a lot from his story.

This book gives the reader a vivid experience of the day-to-day reality of a white-collar crime investigator. Although the blurb tells us that the author didn't get his main targets, nevertheless he came very close to thwarting his adversaries (who certainly knew they'd been in a fight), and readers will be surprised to see what successes Mangieri had and how his efforts fell short. It's also encouraging to read about some of the allies Mangieri picked up, groups who work largely out of the spotlight but help greatly in keeping corruption and incompetence from wrecking our system altogether.

Outstanding read. I salute the author for his honesty and resolve. Having been assigned to Washington,DC as a member of the armed forces my observations paralleled that of the author's. As a Federal Investigator the author uncovered wrongdoing and by the oath of his office pursued the corruption. A Great Read! This is the Real World Folks! Read it! You won't put it down until you close the rear cover. The author should have received a medal.

EXCELLENT BOOK, A LIGHT IN THE TUNNEL OF BLINDNESS.

NO WONDER THIS AMAZING MAN IS REPRESENTED BY A PUBLICIST LIKE BENADOR ASSOCIATES, WHO ARE PROMOTING HIM AND HIS VIEWS INCESSANTLY IN OUR MEDIA. OTHERWISE, I WOULD HAVE NEVER KNOWN OF HIM.

CONGRATULATIONS MR. TAHERI. YOUR WISDOM SHALL PREVAIL.

The Middle East has been in world news headlines for more than a century. As a meeting place of Islam and the West this region of the globe has often been a battleground as well as a meeting place for the rival civilisations on the opposite shores of the Mediterranean.
And,yet, it is remarkable how misunderstood the Middle East is in the West. ( The reverse is even more true: as the author of this book shows , Middle Easterners know even less about the West and much of what they know is fantasy!)
For the average man interested in politics the Middle East is where Jews and Arabs kill one another, where Kurds are driven out of their homes, and where Iranians and Iraqis devastated each other's homes for eight years.
But these are all headlines.
Taheri's ambition has been to find out what lies behind those headlines. He has succeeded where few scholars and journalists before him have. This is because he is a son of the region but with a deep knowledge of the West where he seems to have been living for some time, as a voluntary exile.
The only trouble I had with this book is the torrent of names, many of them difficult to pronounce let alone to remmeber, for a profane such as myself.Do we really need to know the names of everyone who was someone in some event?
Otherwise this is an easy-to-read book, full of information, and offering much insight into some of the complex issues of what is a zone of political turbulence even today.
Those who find it hard to understand why Arabs and Israelis cannot live together would do well to read this book. It offers some intelligent answers that one finds nowhere else.
A READER IN LONDON

This is a magnificent book, full of exciting analysis and new ways of assessing old assumptions.
Anyone who wishes to udnerstand what is in effect " the heart of darkness" in the political map of the world today should read this book.
Wendy Vederer, Bandar Sri Bagawan

This is an interesting guide to the copmlicated politics of one of the most turbulent regions of the world.
The author, a journalist who covered the Middle East for more than two decades,reveals the underlying causes of the turmoil, the violence and the terrorist disease that have affected the region for so long.
He argues that only democratization could stabilize the Middle East and allow its many different peoples to live together in peace.
For the time being, however, there are only two countries that could be described as democracies in the Middle East: Israel and Turkey. But even there democracy suffers from serious restrictions.
Thus we are unlikely to see peace in the Middle East anytime soon. A READER IN PARIS FRANCE

The US-led coalition invades Iraq...
The Arab world is in turmoil....
Muslims everywhere are wondering what future they have.
The US, and the West in general, face terrorism of the most deadly kind for an unforeseeable future...
Israel is faced with years, may be decades, of mortal danger...
All these may be today's headlines. But they are all included and analyzed in this truly prophetic book that treats of the undercurrents of history in one of the most dangerous regions of the world.

The book, by an Iranian author an editor who now lives in the United States, first came out in the late 1980s but remains as up-to-date as any today. Its secret is that it does not bother with the passing appearances but digs deep into the profound and abiding causes of conflict.
I was given a dog-eared copy by a cousin, who had had it on her college reading list in 1992, and devoured the book at a single reading that lasted four or five hours.
Every minute of that time was well spent.
This is a sure classic.
Why is it not reissued so that many more people can read it?
Andrea Keame

Usually, these types of books raise more questions than they answer. "Circle of Death" answers the hard questions. If you want to know how Bill Clinton rose to power, on the wings of narco-terrorism with CIA pilot Barry Seal, and if you want to know how BCCI helped them make millions illegally, read this book.

Richmond Odom has nailed it. Bill Clinton's climb to political power, first in Ark., and then nationally, was financed in large part by CIA drug money. The Mena airport operation, headed by Barry Seal (who was murdered before he could talk), raised tens of millions of dollars. And Mr. Clinton was the direct beneficiary of a lot of those dollars. Odom explains why and how in this book.

Rich Odom has done a masterful job of sorting through the details of Bill Clinton's drug-trafficking money-laundering network in Arkansas. Odom even mentions the small banks in the Land of Opportunity. Several CEOs of those banks have already gone to jail for bank fraud or violations of the laws Odom mentions in the book. Every time a new story breaks, I'm on top of it because I read "Circle of Death."

I just finished Odom's book. This is a masterpiece. What I find very very interesting is that the mainstream media just can't seem to find this information. Why is that? If Mr. Odom could find it, with his limited resources, why can't the New York Times?

Looks like Rich Odom knows where all the dead bodies are. Clinton's henchmen have tried hard to hide them, but, like bodies surfacing from a sunken vessel, when it's bumped another one pops up. Odom nailed the bankers in Arkansas almost two years before they were actually arrested. Two of them plead guilty to the very charges Odom mentioned in this book. A great read if you want to know where the bodies are buried.

This book prepared me well for the AP exam so I would and did recommend it to friends. Cliffnotes makes a great study tip but be warned of the mistake in the court case review. It's Map Vs Ohio not Illinois. But that's the only draw back.

This 356-page book was written in the traditional narrative style of CLIFF NOTES and READER'S DIGEST condensed books. If the large over-sized fonts were reduced to standard and if the empty white spaces were eliminated, the contents would have been condensed to 256 pages. This made the information very manageable for studying.

The vocabulary and writing style were simple enough for a high school sophomore or junior to handle. Also, the information was very well organized and concise. As an example, let us exam the chapter on the U.S. Constitution. The ten pages summarized and condensed 37 pages of GOVERNMENT IN AMERICA, the standard text used in high school AP Government classes. Basic information with a sprinkling of details and updated examples was covered. Subtopics were sectioned off, and important terms and vocabulary were bold printed for the reader to focus. After the topic discussion, there was a 15 multiple-choice question test. The questions were constructed in the same style as the items in the actual AP test. Following these exercises were three sentence explanations on each of the answers. All in all, the format as described above was used for all other chapters that followed.

After the subject reviews, there were two sample practice tests. Again, the multiple-choice answers were explained in detail. More impressive was the author's treatment of the Free-Response Section. On each of the essay questions, he provided scoring guidelines, sample essays, and analyzes of the written works.

Appendixes were located at the end of the book. These contained a glossary of key terms, a copy of the U.S. Constitution, a listing of important U.S. Supreme Court cases, and an eight page listing of internet sources.

My only criticisms of this book focused on the second and third items in the Appendixes. Instead of a copy of the U.S. Constitution, a better alternative was to provide an annotated and simplified version. This document was very hard to understand with its 18th Century prose and "high level" vocabulary. Fortunately such a simplification does exist. It is located in the latest Compton Encyclopedia under "Constitution." Secondly, the U.S. Supreme Court case listing needed to be better organized. The cases should to be individually grouped by Constitutional issue and sub-grouped by whether they expanded or limited the specific civil liberty.

As a suggestion, buy Pamela K. Lamb's 5 STEPS TO A 5 AP U.S. GOVERNMENT & POLITICS to accompany Soifer's text. Instead of a narrative approach, the contents was arranged in outline format. In other words, the information presented in U.S. GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS was further condensed in outline form by Lamb. This arrangement made it easier for studying.

This book is a great, concise prep for AP US Government. It has a clear well-organized layout and cuts out all the extraneous information so you know exactly what you need to know for the AP Test. I could not recommend it more highly.

Paul Soifer strikes again with his gorgeous portrait of the US Government, and preparation for the AP exam. I think I met Paul one time, albeit not for long, and he sold me on the book. I then took the book and have studied with it. I am assuming I will get a 5 on the test. Doc, This buds for you!

This is another great Cliffs AP book which will help you get your college credit. It really is a help for reviewing the branches of the government, how a bill becomes a law, the Constitution, the amendments, elections, and civil rights. Those are the main, "must know," topics you need to review to get a 5.

this book tells us about rfk,jfk and kenny o'donnel. it tells us about how they were, and it's very interessing. I suggest it to all people who are fan of the keenedys, like me. there are a few rares photos.

I used to work with the author's uncle, Cleo, who also plays a large part in this book. Over lunch and sometimes drinks after work, he used to tell us some of the wonderful stories of his and his brother's friendship with the Kennedy brothers. When I saw this book, I had to get it and it is bringing back wonderful memories of 25 years ago in Boston. In fact, if I am not mistaken, the author herself may have helped out in the office once or twice during school vacations. In any case, if you are a Kennedy fan, this is a touching, well-written book full of warmth and good stories about the Kennedys' and O'Donnells' as real people, written by someone who knew them. Don't miss it.

Kenny O'Donnell has done an outstanding job of providing insight to a man who figured largely in world history. He has drawn a very real, very strong portrait of a man who set and met many personal goals in his personal and professional life. Robert Kennedy was, in my opinion the most interesting of his brothers. Mr. O'Donnell does an excellent job of describing the aura of sincerity Robert Kennedy exuded. He helps bring a man into focus who has been dead for many years by describing the consistencies of his character. Robert Kennedy was clearly a very driven, very determined and very hard working man. He was also a very caring, very committed and very compassionate as well. He was a central figure in world history and I think the late Senator's works have certainly influenced the world for the better. This book is definitely worth reading.

A Common Good is an enjoyable, fast-paced read. It is a warm portrayl of Bobby, Jack and Kenny O'Donnel as people. There are laughs and poignant moments. It s a must for anyone interested in Robert Kennedy.

This is a very well written and, at times, touching book by (former JFK Chief of Staff) Kenny O'Donnell's daughter Helen (with a little help from former DNC advance man Jerry Bruno and her late father's audio tapes). There is great information about Kenny's relationship with RFK and, to a leser extent, JFK. As the elading civilian expert on the Secret Service, one word of caution, though: she misspells Secret Service agent Jerry Behn's name as "Bain" and she concludes that her father had a hand in planning JFK's Dallas motorcade route-he did not.
Vince Palamara
Secret service expert, History Channel, author of 2 books, in over 30 other author's books, etc.