Newspapers Books

While the author may know a considerable amount about academic publishing, the book's format -- composed of a fictional series of letters to authors who've supposedly committed mistakes in the publishing process or who've supposedly asked questions they want answered -- is distracting and keeps the author from addressing his subject in an in-depth, serious way. William Germano's book, Getting It Published, covers this subject in a more comprehensive, more easily accessible form.

Derricourt does a wonderful job of explaining many aspects of the scholarly book publishing process from the publisher's point of view. His writing style is quite entertaining and easy to read. And the book is designed well, too

This book is full of items the collector needs to know about. How many times have people (I know I have) passed up on great items to collect, simply because they were not sure that an item even existed, as a "real deal" collectible? This book has been well researched by the author and provides the collector with a great resource and guide, a true collector should not be without. A great addition to the library of any Beatles' collector or fan.

This 216 page book is loaded with more than 600 full color, large, clear photos of Beatles memorabilia covering their heydey from 1964 to 1968. The beautiful picture, price guide features: Early Beatles Memorabilia, Jewelry, Buttons, Yellow Submarine, Apple Studio, Yellow Submarine Celluloids, One of a Kind Items and more. There's a brief introduction to the topic, and each picture features a description and price. Some collector resources are included. A beautiful book that Beatles collectors will love. Add it to your library.

It was a delight to read this charming and cogently argued book that takes one into the world of politicking in the mid- nineteenth century and shows how involved voters got. Splendid.

Neely's book offers a fresh and insightful analysis of American political culture during the American Civil War period. More specifically, his book offers a material culture approach to understanding the relationship between people and politics. This study of objects includes lithographs, prints, political cartoons and posters, sheet music, pamphlets and other objects that contained political meaning. These objects can help reinforce or add new interpretations to our understanding of the past.

Neely is interested in showing us these objects of American political culture which in turn tells us more about the people of that time period and their interest or activity in politics. The theme of his book concerns the boundaries between the public realm of politics and the private home. In other words just how interested and involved ordinary citizens were in the politics of their day. Neely argues that the boundary lines weren't as distinct and separate as some historians have argued, though not denying the very limited role of women in political issues and debates for example.

The workplace and clubs like the Union League offered some means of public expression of political activity on the part of various groups of citizens. Minstrel shows, which could be considered part of the pop culture of the mid nineteenth century, became caught up in the political debates and issues of the day, though never purely connected to any party or cause.

Neely discusses these topics much better than I can. His book is relatively short and not always fulfilling; it does lack a bit in terms of comprehensiveness, but as he admits, the material evidence isn't always there in large quantities. Nevertheless, this book offers a different way of looking at political culture during the Civil War period, mainly concerning Northern politics.

I've been a working journalist for more than 15 years. I can say without a doubt, this is the book I most often recommend to people who want to improve their writing. And no matter your profession, you WILL be a better writer after reading it.

Just like anybody else, I bought this book to improve my newswriting skills.
I was hoping for tips on how to write, but instead I got tips on how NOT to write.
Great book if you want to read a bunch of poorly written scripts.

This volume is a selection of the author's articles, columns and essays from the late 1980s to 1992. Although I often disagree with the liberal opinions of Dershowitz, I find all of his arguments quite though-provoking as he roams across issues like the American justice system, censorship, political correctness, Roe v Wade, the war on drugs and the resurgence of anti-Semitism. Of course some of the issues are dated now, hence the 4 stars.

Part One is about judges, justices, juries and the courts. He argues in favor of the jury system and persuaded me that although flawed (OJ), it is a valuable mechanism to check the power of the courts and establishment structures.

Part Two deals with freedom of expression and the rise of intolerance, Part Three looks at the state, the law and the rights of individuals and Part Four with the law and the politics of sex, life and death.

The last section is the most interesting and deals with issues that have continued to loom larger since then. Titled "Observations Of An American Jew," it discusses trends that are quite disturbing and even more of a concern today. The chapters are:

European Semitism, in which Dershowitz looks at manifestations of the continent's enduring plague during and after the fall of communism. Unfortunately this problem has become worse since he wrote these pieces.

Embattled Israel, in which he points out the impossible standards to which Israel is held by the international community. Human rights abuses in other countries are often ignored whilst Israel is harshly criticized. Here he also discusses the trials of Nazi war criminals, the PLO and the Yasir Arafat.

American Antisemitism and Anti-Zionism From The Right explores the similarities between the mindsets. To his credit, Dershowitz had noticed the ominous parallels long ago. These writings contain plenty of essays on the sinister Patrick Buchanan and the creepy David Duke.

American Antisemitism and Anti-Zionism From The Left investigates the lies and half-truths about Israel in the media. I never realized that it was already so pervasive back then because this problem has since become very grave. Personalities like Louis Farrakhan and Hezbollah shill Noam Chomsky are also covered here.

So this book is still a great read after all these years. The witty and intelligent writing makes up for those parts that have dated since the book was first published.

The Case for Israel

Why the Jews? The Reason for Antisemitism

The Changing Face of Anti-Semitism: From Ancient Times to the Present Day

The New Anti-Semitism: The Current Crisis and What We Must Do About It

Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz shows a surprising amount of balance and sense in this collection of newspaper columns circa 1988-1992. Dershowitz covers such topics as pornography, rights of the accused, abortion, capital punishment, civil libertarianism, Anti-Semitism, and Political Correctness. Despite the author's liberal reputation, he attacks hypocrisy and intolerance from the left as well as from the right. I didn't always agree with him, but most of his views seem well-reasoned, and I came away with a greater respect for a man that I had previously dismissed as predictable. Students of law, politics, and current events should read this book; there's much food for thought in these provocative columns.

The title of my review is not hyperbole, as you will find if you read any of Thomas Boswell's fine baseball books ("Craking the Show" is the latest). The book features essays about players, teams, stadiums, season, statistics and Boswell's own unique perspective on the game. For example, Boswell is of the belief that Ted Williams did more damage to the art of hitting than any other player because of his insistance that batters should not swing at the first pitch. Boswell provides ample statistical proof to show that batters who do hit better! This is a great book for anyone interested in the national pastime.

I have enjoyed reading other works by Thomas Boswell including "Why Time Begins on Opening Day", "How Life Imitates the World Series" and "The Heart of the Order". I found Boswell to be one of the very best baseball writers in America. I guess that's why I was so disappointed in "Cracking the Show". In the aforementioned books, Boswell gives a great and impartial perspective of major league baseball. In "Cracking the Show", he seem to hit nothing but "homers". I realize that Boswell writes from that neck of the woods and it seems logical to write about what you know best. I will also admit that I had a very sincere respect for the Orioles of the late 70's and early 80's when I lived in Milwaukee. As the Brewers were rising to their lone American League pennant, it was the Orioles, not the Yankees, we feared (and respected) the most. Billy Martin was a side show; Earl Weaver was a genius. However, Weaver retired and things changed (boy did they ever for the Brewers!). In his previous books, Boswell was forgiven his occassional excesses of the Robinsons or the Earl of Baltimore because he told us about plenty of other players, teams and events. Indeed, the section that he wrote in this book entitled "Five Octobers" brings his overall genius to enough light so that it enables the rest of us to see it's still there. However, for those of us who failed to recognize that Cal Ripken Jr. (or Sr., for that matter) was the Second Coming, this book is a disappointment. Yes, Ripken is a nice guy and, yes, he was one of the best of his era. However, the emphasis is on ONE of the best; not THE best. He's gotten the record, he single-handedly saved Baseball but through that time he was in ONE, count 'em, ONE post season. Ripken also continued his streak throughout each and every game of the famous 0 for 21 games that the Orioles started the season with in 1988. Many people, myself included, thought that Ripken should have sat at least one of those games after the streak got to double digits. It's called shaking up the team and that's what happened when his own father was fired during the streak. Obviously the son's "streak" was more important than the father's job and reputation. I could go on and on regarding this subject and it usually gets me in trouble. However, consider the example that Ripken set the record for most consecutive All-Star game selections. Keep in mind that there was no All-Star game prior to 1933 so some of the very best missed out on this record. However, does anybody actually believe that Cal Ripken Jr. is the greatest player since 1933? That is, besides Thomas Boswell.

Mr. Boswell seems convinced that the rest of us glory in the Oriole's transformation from the worst team in Baseball to almost clinching the division the very next season. He really talks this up while remaining nonplussed when the Braves and Twins did exactly that a year or so later. I wish I could find the quote where he bemoans the boredom of watching aging veterans chasing down magic numbers such as 500 home runs, 300 wins, or 3000 hits (not to mention 2130 consecutive games). His point was, I believe, that the joy in Baseball is not knowing what will happen next rather than keeping tabs on the inevitable. Still, he does give us some thought-provking essays on Pete Rose and the fall of the commissioner's office.

I guess the point is that we've been spoiled by his previous excellence as a sports reporter with national credentials. Instead of reading like a reporter for the Washington POST, he reads, in "Cracking the Show", like the local sports editor for the Baltimore SUN for too much of the time to make this a book worthy of his talents. Whew!, I'd been holding that in for a long time.

I first read this book back in 1977, and have read it a couple of times since. It is an excellent book. It covers disasters from the Chicago Fire of 1871 to the Italian earthquakes of 1976, revealing facts about the disaster and describing how the newspapers of the day covered the stories. The author is very good at showing how opinions of these catastrophes changed and modified as new information became available, and what the newspapers of the day wrote, both immediately following disaster and in the months afterwards. Jones book covers both well known tragedies, such as the Titanic and San Francisco earthquakes, and lesser known ones such as the burning of the ship 'General Slocum', and the Australian Bush fires of 1939. Each entry is well illustrated with photographs and Newspaper drawings from the period. One drawback of the book is that Jones seems to become rather tired by the end, and so his entries for the decades of the sixties and seventies are extremely short, sometimes only a paragraph. The reader needs more. But this is a small flaw in an otherwise fine book.

I first read this book back in 1977, and have read it a couple of times since. It is an excellent book. It covers disasters from the Chicago Fire of 1871 to the Italian earthquakes of 1976, revealing facts about the disaster and describing how the newspapers of the day covered the stories. The author is very good at showing how opinions of these catastrophes changed and modified as new information became available, and what the newspapers of the day wrote, both immediately following disaster and in the months afterwards. Jones book covers both well known tragedies, such as the Titanic and San Francisco earthquakes, and lesser known ones such as the burning of the ship 'General Slocum', and the Australian Bush fires of 1939. Each entry is well illustrated with photographs and Newspaper drawings from the period. One drawback of the book is that Jones seems to become rather tired by the end, and so his entries for the decades of the sixties and seventies are extremely short, sometimes only a paragraph. The reader needs more. But this is a small flaw in an otherwise fine book.

When I first glanced at this odd publication, I wasn't sure what it was. It resembles a catalogue, including quirky ads, but contains news-type articles. The articles trace events in Egyptian history and are written and directed to the reader as they might have been if such a publication existed during the day. The best parts are the numerous ads, soliciting everything from Egyptian housing by "Akhoty's Abodes" to 70-day embalming services by "Dead World". Through these ads, the reader is educated on the different types of housing that existed during the period and the process of Egyptian embalming and entombing (respectively). The illustrations are great! The content is substantial, however, it is presented in a "light" manner which keeps audiences, young and old, entertained.

A friend showed me this book. It reads like a modern low-budget magazine, but its REAL history! And what a twist. Did you know that the hole 'way up high in the pyramid is actually a way for the bees to get out? You didn't? Then read this book and find out more....

I thought this book would be a dry recital of facts. I thought, what could be more boring than the story of editing stories for a small city paper? Instead I got an indepth look at the vibrant personalities that shaped a newspaper -- including some very interesting personal stories about the editors, publishers, and reporters for the news that I'm not sure we should be reading. All in all a great book.

"From Butler to Buffett" is a must read for anyone interested in the ownership style of billionaire Warren E. Buffett or for serious students of American journalism.

Long-time Buffalo News Editor Murray B. Light tells the story of how he guided this hugely successful regional newspaper into the modern era from the age of copy boys, manual typewriters and telegraph editors with green visors.

With the help of Buffett and his close friend publisher Stanford Lipsey, Light engineered the transformation of Buffalo's Gray Old Lady into a modern metropolitan daily in a city noted for its hard-hitting journalism, hard-drinking journalists and demanding newspaper junkies.

Light's research into the founding Butler family reveals insights into the outgoing founder and his reserved son that were not known outside of a select circle.

But "From Butler to Buffett" comes to life when Warren Buffett purchased the financially struggling enterprise, placed managing editor Light firmly in charge and took on the city's morning paper which had the huge financial backing of a national newspaper corporation.

Light and his newsroom colleagues never seemed to notice that "the guys down the street" with the big Sunday paper (The News was a six-day evening paper), and the guys who delivered in the morning should have won one of the last great Northeast newspaper battles of the 20th Century.

This book is full of the little tales and quick anecdotes that bring 20th century daily journalism to life. Light's newsroom is a newsroom of living characters, described in broad strokes by an editor who spoke the way he writes.

Even though it becomes obvious Light relished the Buffett years, it is just as obvious that he never lost sight of his mentor, the legendary editor Alfred H. Kirchhofer.

This is a journey well worth the effort for anyone who lived through -- or wished they lived through -- the second half of the 20th Century in an American newsroom.

Watch your whiskers stilton

Watch your whiskers Stilton by Geronimo Stilton.... If you like fantasy this is your kind of book. Especially if you like Cinderella...One morning Geronimo Stilton woke up and couldn't find his newspaper in any store or newspaper stand and Geronimo is the owner or the rodent glaze. Then he finds out that he is going out of bisnes. So he has to go on a game show to save the rodent glaze. But he could loss his very valuable tail. Does he loss his tail or dose he win and save his tail. Read this great book and find out!!

In the book Watch your wiskers Stilton.Geronimo loses his his comany because a one eyed rat steals his comany.Through the book Geronimo fights
for his comany back.In the middle of the book one of the mouses that is named ShifT.paws helps Geronimo get his comany back in chapters 13 and 14
ShifT.paws gets Geronimo on mouse trap.
Mouse trap is a game show that a mouse gets asked questions if they get it wrong they sit in a mouse trap if they don't get it right the mouse trap pinches their tail when Geronimo goes on the show he's nervous but he gets the gold and gets his comany back.I recomend this book to people who needs to find a book to read.

By:Carisa Lopez