Central America Books

Perfect is so many ways. The grid is particularly helpful: Economic Buyer (you never or rarely see him/her)--the budget setter; technical buyer (they can only say no); real buyer; coach (can be anyone from Economic buyer, to tech buyer, to real buyer).

Perhaps their best info is they way they got sales people to sell: they worked on the good ones to get better. They found mgt always had excuses for why the good were so good (shouldn't have been) and the bad were so bad (excuses).

Marvelous.

This is the BIBLE for customer focused consultative selling!

If you are a sales professional or manager interested in revving things up and taking your sales team to the next level this is the program to do it! Step by step instructions for detailed account management , opportunity assessment , identification and how to build trust, get the customer to help you understand their needs and then to help you close the deal!

The system is like all Miller- Heiman programs- very detailed and filled with examples. This is perfect for helping salespeople who tend to go to one person at a client and not expand into the account- learn about other people and how they can influence decisions. Underlying message is the more your know- the less you hear "NO!"

I first did this program as a salesperson over 10 years ago- since then I have taught the program 4 times- I personally learn each time I do so. Other programs by Miller-Heiman are all built upon this program and its sister program Customer Focused Selling. Their advanced LAMP ( Large Account Management ) program requires this as a pre-requisite.

Clients of Miller-Heiman include big pharmaceutical companies, top automotive manufacturers and suppliers, I took a class in Chicago with the sales team responsible for selling the big 3 transmissions! Telecon companies use Miller-Heiman. Electronics mega-sellers use the system. Can your business benefit from the system designed to maximize the output of every sales call?

Then buy with confidence! Great book to read before your sales team meeting. --.

Strategic Selling is a long time favorite of mine because of the simplicity and structure to the method. Especially for the new salesperson, this book provides the tools to effectively handle complex sales situations.

It would be great if you could develop some new technique for walking into a large corporation and closing a major sale on the first visit, but it rarely, if ever, happens. Chances are, you're in for drawn-out process with lots of players. Most corporate sales professionals meander through this process hoping to "do what it takes" to close the sale. Miller, Heiman finally offer up a way of keeping score -- of knowing where you stand in the process and what you have to do to keep it moving in the right direction. By developing a standard nomenclature to discuss buy types and their relevant position in the sales process, Miller, Heiman allow you to keep track for yourself, but discuss it with your sales management. This is likely the most important book about the strategic side of selling. I can guarantee you this: read this book -- practice the technicques within, and you will never find out you lost a sale after the fact.

_Strategic Selling_ is a valuable book, especially for those of us who are not "salesmen" in the classic sense, but have to operate in the Complex Sales environment. Consultants and Client Relationship Managers will find it especially valuable.

_Strategic Selling_ provides valuable insight into how to set up "Win/Win" situations: it begins by identifying the different kinds of "Buyers" in every sales situation, the roles they play, and what constitutes "Value" to them.

It then provides a mechanism for identifying what you do not "know" about the various Buyers, with the objective of finding out. It is an approach which helps you paint a complete picture of the dynamics at work in a selling situation, so that you can operate effectively within it.

Finally, it provides a mechanism for "keeping the sales funnel full" -- a challenge which most people operating in cyclical industries can identify with.

Following this methodology can help you ensure that you do not blunder around in ignorance in a Complex Sales environment -- you will know at least as much as the next guy, and probably much more. And you will be actively doing something about it.

Rackham's _SPIN Selling_ is a good complementary book to _Strategic Selling_, as it provides a tactical approach -- the "How To" as opposed to the "Why".

_Strategic Selling_ is an interesting -- though not uncomplementary -- contrast to Holden's _Power Base Selling_. Both approaches can provide insight into the inner workings of the Complex Sale; however, _Strategic Selling_ focuses less on manipulating the political forces at work, and may thus be more palatable for some

A well written, poignant journey into the rich, yet non-existent today, past of the vibrant Jewish community of Europe prior to World War Two.

I have read all the previous complimentary reviews, and agree with them all -- this is a masterpiece and should definitely be owned by all interested in this subject particularly because of its fine text, the wonderful and priceless photos (how did the old ones become in color??), and the pertinent appendices.
But I would like to also mention its limitations, which no one mentioned; but still these should not discourage its purchase:
(1) The most glaring (near-) omission is its abysmal index The text mentions hundreds of synagogues in tens of pages, yet the index consists of only two pages of quite large type.
(2) This grossly incomplete index also has the wrong reference page for many synagogues [I checked two towns and found each discussed on a different page].
(3) One should realize that only certain countries are listed; this is not a criticism; more a hope for a second volume. Those countries listed are: Italy, Croatia and Serbia, Greece, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary.

Again, the grossly limited index makes search truly impossible; forcing one to just read each page in each subject country. Perhaps this is a 'plus'!

Still, a masterpiece.

This is a beautiful book! The pictures are gorgeous, and the accompanying text is clear, concise, and extremely informative. Each chapter contains a beautiful and poignant story of a lost community. I shared this book with my parents, who come from and are familiar with some of the communities mentioned in the book. It brought back bittersweet memories for them, as they are survivors of the Shoah. I showed this book to my children and their friends, and the pictures generated some very good discussions. This is a book that belongs on every coffee table - and it won't stay there for too long. It's a book to be picked up and looked over slowly and lovingly. Each chapter is to be savoured. I highly recommend it!

Winner of the National Jewish Book Award 2000, this jewel of a book should be in every Jewish home and in as many high-school, university and public libraries as possible, Jewish and otherwise.

Like many of life's blessings that seem "accidental," a holiday in Italy developed into this fascinating history of synagogues and their communities in Italy [6 communities], Croatia and Serbia [3], Greece [3], Austria [3], the Czech Republic: Bohemia and Moravia [7], Slovakia [7] and Hungary [5].

That "vacation" expanded into five seasons of research on 350 synagogues. Thirty-four chapters of text are devoted to the history of specific Jewish communities. The excellent photographs of synagogoue interiors and exteriors were taken by the authors, unless otherwise noted. Fieldwork was followed by seven years of research and writing.

Writing the Foreword in 1999, the late Dr. Joseph Burg mentioned the authors' "infinite work, tireless devotion and careful investigation." Their energy has created a rich mixture of information on the synagogues and the Jews who worshipped in them. This combines with a competent description of the architectural and decorative aesthetics.

The earliest mentioned synagogue (1408) is in the former Dubrovnik ghetto, where today a congregation of 47 members, up from 23 some years ago, worships at No. 3 Jewish Street. The most recent (1925), the Neolog synagogue in Lucenec, Slovakia, was designed by architect Lipot Baumhorn. The small community remaining after the Holocaust sold it to the state for repair and use for cultural purposes. However, the authorities leased it out as an agricultural warehouse. In the late 1970s, when the tenant moved out, the building was left open to vandals. Today the interior is a picture of "wanton devastation" in contrast to the exterior photographs which imply the past grandeur of Baumhorn's romantic style.

The text provides marvelous nuggets of congregational and artistic history. In Italy, the only European country in which Jews have lived continually since the second century B. C. E., the synagogue design ranges from the luxuriant Baroque-Rococo interior of the synagogue in Casale Monferrato to the white-walled purity at Gorizia. Built in the ghetto in 1699, the latter experienced in 1761 a fire which "licked up to the synagogue and suddenly stopped on the threshold." The congregation celebrated the date and miracle for many years as a "minor Purim." Restored in 1984, the building is now a small Jewish museum. The large Pilsen synagogue in Bohemia, built in 1892, has been restored and is open to the public. The Nazis did not destroy it because of adjacent valuable commercial property. The neo-Moresque styled synagogue and school built in 1903 in Osijek, Croatia, was sold to Pentacostals and is now a church and seminary.

The supplementary chapter "A Gallery of Women" points out that the last resident Jews in remote towns more often than not are women. Today many are the mainstays of the local Jewish presence. Included here is Bernadette Booten's study "Women Leaders in the Ancient Synagogue," and information from Lee I. Levine's "The Ancient Synagogue: the first thousand years.

"The Italian Synagogue through the Ages" by Noemi Cassuto features photos of seven synagogues. Two in-scale floor plans detail the 13th century synagogue in Trani, converted 300 years later into a church.

"Synagogue Interior Decoration and the Halakhah" by Shalom Sabar questions which graphic content has been considered permissible over the years in view of the Second Commandment which forbids making images. The possibility of idolatry has always threatened, as did the simple fact of being distracted from prayer. Rabbi Judah ben Temah stated: Be strong as a tiger, light as an eagle, fast as a deer and mighty as a lion to fulfill the will of your Father in Heaven." Some Jews wanted images of the four "holy" animals used decoratively. In fact, in the 12th century in Regensburg, Germany, images of animals and birds were painted on the walls. Images of plants, fruit and flowers were always allowed, as were geometric designs, often inlaid in metal or mosaic.

"Spirituality and Space" by Rudolf Klein points out that in Judaism architecture lacks a direct link to the spiritual, the Torah, and the spatial. A minyan of ten Jews can pray together in any room, even out of doors. The synagogue is sacred because of the scriptures it contains.

The Appendix on synagogue restoration is a useful reference list to the current status of close to 150 synagogues, i.e., "in Jewish use; museum; new building; institute; community center; concert hall and gallery." In Venice three synagogues are in use, a fourth in restoration; in Zemun, in 1998 the Serbian radical party restored one as "a restaurant and gambling house."

A long list of Acknowledgments; a Bibliography; a Glossary and an Index witness that the entire project was created by many hearts and minds working together to achieve a shared vision. The book is such a rich mine of Jewish community history and religious art that one will return to it time and again.

The authors' parental roots in Moldavia and the Ukraine were transplanted to the United States, where Rivka and Ben-Zion grew up. Rivka has a BJE degree from Hebrew College in Boston and an MA in Ancient Semitic Languages and Art of the Ancient Near East from Columbia University. She studied art history and Jewish art at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and she lectures in Israel and abroad. Ben-Zion earned a Ph.D. in Genetics at Yale University. They live in Jerusalem.

The authors share with the reader the many meetings they had with total strangers during their travels, Jews and non-Jews: the friendships that developed, kindnesses shown, hospitality generously given. They were often asked, "Did your family come from this town?" Feeling themselves "an intrinsic part of the endless list of anonymous Jews who populated these villages and towns, the Dorfmans symbolically replied, "Yes, our family came from this town."

Winner of the National Jewish Book Award 2000, this jewel of a book should be in every Jewish home and in as many high-school, university and public libraries as possible, Jewish and otherwise.

Like many of life's blessings that seem "accidental," a holiday in Italy developed into this fascinating history of synagogues and their communities in Italy [6 communities], Croatia and Serbia [3], Greece [3], Austria [3], the Czech Republic [7], Slovakia [7] and Hungary [5].

That "vacation" expanded into five seasons of research on 350 synagogues. Thirty-four chapters of text are devoted to the history of specific Jewish communities. The excellent photographs of synagogue interiors and exteriors were taken by the authors unless otherwise noted. Fieldwork was followed by seven years of research and writing.

Writing in the Foreword in 1999, Dr. Joseph Burg mentioned the authors' "infinite work, tireless devotion and careful investigation." Their energy has created a rich texture of information on the synagogues and the Jews who worshipped in them. This combines with a competent description of the architectural and decorative aesthetics.

The earliest synagogue discussed [1408] is in the former ghetto of Dubrovnik, where today a congregation of 47 members, up from 23 some six years ago, worships at number 3 Jewish Street. The most recent one [1925] the Neolog synagogue in Lucenec, Slovakia, was designed by architect Lipot Baumhorn. The small community remaining after the Holocaust sold it to the State for repair and use for cultural purposes. However, the authorities leased it out as an agricultural warehouse. In the late 1970s, when the tenants moved out, the building was left open to vandals. Today the interior is a picture of "wanton destruction," a contrast with the exterior that still evokes the grandeur of Baumhorn's Romantic style.

The text provides marvelous nuggets of congregational and artistic history. In Italy, the only European country in which Jews have lived continually since the Second Century BCE, synagogue design ranges from the luxuriant Baroque-Rococo interior of the synagogue in Casale Monferrato to the white-walled purity in Gorizia. Built in the ghetto in 1699, the latter experienced a fire in 1761 which "licked up to the synagogue and suddenly stopped on the threshold." The congregation celebrated the date and miracle for many years as a minor Purim. Restored in 1984, the building is now a small Jewish Museum. The large Pilsen synagogue in Bohemia built in 1892 has been restored and is open to the public. The Nazis did not destroy it because of adjacent valuable commercial property. The neo-Moresque styled synagogue and school built in 1903 in Osijek, Croatia, was sold to Pentacostals and is now a church and seminary.

The supplementary chapter "A Gallery of Women" points out that the last resident Jews in remote towns more often than not are women. Today many are the mainstays of the local Jewish presence.

The "Italian Synagogue through the Ages" by Noemi Cassuto features photos of seven synagogues. Two in-scale floor plans detail the 13th century synagogue in Trani, converted 300 years later into a church.

"Synagogue Interior Decoration and the Halakhah" by Shalom Sabar questions which graphic content has been considered permissible over the years in view of the Second Commandment which forbids figurative representation. The possibility of idolatry has always threatened, as did the simple fact of being distracted from prayer. Rabbi Judah ben Temah stated "Be strong as a tiger, light as an eagle, fast as a deer and mighty as a lion to fulfill the will of your Father in Heaven." Some Jews wanted images of the four "holy" animals used decoratively. In the 12th century in Regensburg, Germany, images of animals and birds were painted on the walls. Images of plants, fruit and flowers were always allowed, as were geometric designs often inlaid in metal or mosaic.

"Spirituality and Space" by Rudolf Klein points out that in Judaism architecture lacks a direct link to the spiritual, the Torah and the spatial. A minyan of ten Jews can pray together in any room, even out of doors. The synagogue is sacred because of the scriptures it contains.

The Appendix on synagogue restoration is a useful current status reference list of close to 150 synagogues, i.e. "in Jewish use; museum; new building; institute; community center; concert hall and gallery." In Venice three synagogues are in use, a fourth in restoration; in Zemun, in 1998 the Serbian radical party restored one as "a restaurant and gambling house."

A long list of Acknowledgments: a Bibliography; a Glossary and an Index witness that the entire project was created by many hearts and minds working together to achieve a shared vision. The book is such a rich mine of Jewish community history and religious art that one will return to it time and again.

The authors' parental roots in Moldavia and the Ukraine were transplanted to the United States, where Rivka and Ben-Zion grew up. Rivka has a first degree from Hebrew College in Boston and an M.A. in Ancient Semitic Languages and Art of the Ancient Near East from Columbia University. She also studied art history and Jewish art at Hebrew University, Jerusalem. She lectures in Israel and abroad. Ben-Zion earned a Ph.D. in Genetics at Yale University. They live in Jerusalem.

The authors share with the reader the many meetings they had with total strangers during their travels, Jews and non-Jews; the friendships that developed, kindnesses shown, hospitality generously given. They were often asked "Did your family come from this town?" Feeling themselves "an intrinsic part of the endless list of anonymous Jews who populated these villages and towns," the Dorfmans found themselves answering "Yes. Our family came from this town."

As Christian Potholm's former student, I've seen first-hand his enthusiasm for Maine politics and his depth of knowledge on the subject. Therefore, I was not surprised to find This Splendid Game to be a wonderfully entertaining account of politics in the Pine Tree State and a must-read for anyone with an interest in Maine's political history. Potholm captures the importance of the campaign effort and proves that the outcomes of political races are never preordained. He shows that while a candidate's personal qualities are a factor in being elected, it is the "ebb and flow" of the campaign that inevitably distinguishes victory from defeat.

Having been personally involved in many of the campaigns discussed in this book, Potholm skillfully provides an insider's perspective while remaining balanced and objective in his analysis. He avoids the partisan sentiments that dominate so much of today's commentary, and in turn provides a refreshing and honest look at politics in the state.

There is no doubt that one would be hard-pressed to find a more comprehensive assessment of Maine politics. Potholm acknowledges every person who has ran for major political office in the state in the last five decades, and provides biographical information for some of Maine's past and present political titans. However, his scholarly interest is clearly directed more toward the inner-workings of the campaign effort, as well as the many staffers, pollsters, consultants, journalists, and others that make politics so exciting to watch and be a part of.

From the story behind William Cohen's 600-mile walk across the 2nd Congressional District to the strategy behind both James Longley and Angus King's electoral success as Independents, This Splendid Game is truly a splendid read, one that undoubtedly fills a literary void in Maine and honors the countless men and women who have participated in the state's political process over the years.

With this feat to add to his ever-growing list of achievements, Christian Potholm has made yet another indelible impact on the academic discourse in the state and further solidified his reputation as the professor of Maine politics.

Do you ever wonder how Maine Government reached its current size and scope?

Perhaps you have a historical interest in the strategies and unique abilities of the winners and losers of high political office in Maine over the last 60 years.

Or maybe you're curious about the decisions and influences of the key people behind the political leaders of our time- from Margaret Chase Smith and Ed Muskie to Angus King.

Whether you're a student of politics or just wondered how our government has evolved to where we are today, you will find Bowdoin College's Dr. Christian P. Potholm's new book This Splendid Game answer these questions and more from his intellectual and first hand account of the people and policies which have created the Maine we know today.

From the rise of Margaret Chase Smith by virtue her strategy of a "personal campaign organization" over the traditional political party campaign; to the "Muskie Revolution" in the 1950's where he deployed television for the first time in Maine elections combined with "retail politics" which converged to toppled the reign of Republican Party dominance.

Chris Potholm's insight and wit enables the reader to wade past the tedious attention he paid to dates and election results percentages, which well serve the researcher of Maine politics and those of us with a curious eye about the people and issues that has defined and branded Maine.

His success in interviewing candidates, their family and advisors enabled him to paint a vivid picture of our political leaders. Here is a glimpse. He traces Ken Curtis' victory from the jaws defeat in the 1960's and the baker's son Bill Cohen's rise to the rank of United States Secretary of Defense beginning with an arduous 600 mile walk across Maine's 2nd Congressional District in 1972 resulting in the reemergence of the Republican Party.

No account of Maine political history would be complete without an understanding of how the referendum process has enabled special interest groups to get their proposed law decided by the public and not their legislature. Here Dr. Potholm takes you inside the dynamics of why referendums are so different from candidate elections. His political science and keen instincts show you how; the Maine Yankee Power Plant earned the support of Maine voters and remained open.

Potholm proves his theory that Angus King duplicated the dynamics and savvy of Jim Longley's amazing election as Governor in the 1970's worked again in the 1990's when King upset the two-party system to be elected Maine's second Independent Governor.

Finally, Dr. Potholm weaves together the realities of how the press, political insiders and scientific polling determined the eventual outcome of most all races long before Election Day. Along the way he rightly acknowledges the courage and integrity of the men and women who at the end of the long election season did not have the sweet pleasure of giving a victory speech. For the scholar and the casual observer of political dynamics alike, reading This Splendid Game is time well invested.

Philip Harriman is a former Town Councilor and State Senator. He actively participated in many of the elections covered and for 25 years has operated a financial services business in Portland Maine.

In the first chapter of Chris Potholm's latest book, he opines, "Lecturing on the important figures and campaigns over the years [in Maine], I often wished I had a single book to assign, one that would put the past fifty years of accomplishment and failures in some common perspective."

Well, Potholm has answered his wish with the publication of This Splendid Game. If there was one feeling that I had to put aside while reading the book it was that I should be making notes on the chapters as there was surely going to be a test in the near future.

Politics has always been an interest of mine and Maine politics has been a consuming one for a part of my life as I served eight years in municipal government as a city councilman and mayor and was elected to two terms as Chair of the Maine Republican State Committee following my municipal service. I have been active in several gubernatorial campaigns in varying capacities as well as most of Bill Cohen's many campaigns going back to the time when we were both mayors of our respective cities.

The book that Pothom has produced is an analysis of what he deems to be the seminal elections of each decade since 1940 and in it he also weaves through the years the lessons that were learned or not learned by those that were invoved in "this splendid game.

If you were any kind of a player during those decades, you are most likely mentioned in the book. In fact the book reminded me of many people whose names had dimmed in my memory and also revealed to me that people I had known growing up were involved in Maine politics in ways I did not know, If you are from Oregon, some of the details of the past might make your eyes tend to close from time to time, but if you are from here or have been here "from away" for some time, you will find it interesting to realize how much you have forgotten.

From the 1970's on, Potholm brings a special perspective to the matters he writes about as he was in the middle of all of it in one capacity or another.However, this is not a chatty, tell-all about Maine politics. It is an analysis and a chronicle of a system in the poltical microcosim of Maine. That a state with Maine small population has harbored and nurtured some of the larger political names in US history remains a mystery to me, but it is a fact. Margaret Chase Smith, Edmund Sixtus Muskie, William Cohen and George Mitchell are clearly in the elite section of such people. But their stories and the stories of other elections have hundreds of names invoved in that melange of political activity. In stirring and disecting the melange, Potholm has no peer.

If you lived through those times you will enjoy a studious analysis of what you thought you already knew. If politics is something you are considering, this is required reading. No matter your reason for reading this book, you will be the wiser for it and I'm pretty sure there will be no test.

Potholm's Splendid Game

Although our lives are governed by politics, few understand how the political game is played and even fewer participate as an active player.
There is one man in Maine who understands and plays the game better than any other: Bowdoin College professor, Dr. Christian Potholm, a nationally recognized pollster and strategist whose campaign won/lost record is the envy of all who aspire to political office and participate in our electoral system.
In Maine, Potholm has dominated what he calls "This Splendid Game," since he managed Bill Cohen's first Congressional campaign in 1972. Few venture into a major political campaign without making a pilgrimage to Potholm's office in the Bowdoin Tower.
Potholm's new book, "This Splendid Game," is a fascinating and informative tour through all of Maine's major elections and campaigns from the 1940s to the 1990s. The professor has been working on this book for ten years and his final product is impressive. Published by Lexington Books of Lanham, Maryland, these 241 pages describe the election results of all major races in each decade, and then focuses on what Potholm calls the "seminal election" - the most critical and defining - in each decade.
I must disclose that the button collection on the book's cover is mine. Look carefully and you will spot a smiling "Smith" button in the middle of the collection. And it was my privilege to work on several of Potholm's seminal election campaigns in the 70s, 80s, and 90s.
Potholm offers amazing insight into these campaigns and wins my admiration for being able to step outside campaigns in which he participated to present objective and illuminative analyses of these campaigns. He does this well.
In the introduction, Potholm asks, "Over the last 50 years, what were the sea changes in Maine political processes? What changed over time in terms of how to run and win a campaign? What are the enduring patterns and trends? Why did some candidates succeed and others fail? What techniques were introduced when and what impacts did they have?"
And then he answers all of these questions and more. While other books have focused on the political leaders, none has looked with such scrutiny at the campaigns that elected those leaders.
I learned a lot from this book. I did not realize, for example, that Republicans were so slow to grasp the power of television and that my friend Jim Erwin lost the governor's race in 1970 "in large part because he did not make use of it."
Did you know that Angus King and Jim Longley won with identical coalitions of Franco American voters and small town Republicans?
The Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel win Potholm's praise, while other larger daily newspapers are criticized for poor campaign news coverage and an "interventionist endorsement style and a rush to assist one candidate over a need to inform the public as to the actual state of affairs."
"The Sun Journal, Central Maine (Morning) Sentinel, and Kennebec Journal seem to routinely do a better job at keeping their editorial comment separate from their reporting arm and their endorsements seem to be more balanced than their larger rivals," writes Potholm.
Potholm's premise is that the outcomes of the major elections that shaped Maine's political system and government were determined not by the candidates, but by the campaigns. And he effectively proves his case.
In these pages you will learn about how Maine's dominant politicians succeeded - but you will also learn about the smaller - but vitally important - roles played by others, including one of my favorite unsung political leaders, Judge Frank Coffin.
I found the description of Margaret Chase Smith's 1948 U.S. Senate race to be particularly captivating - and the account of how Smith won four congressional elections in one 6-month period.
The special sections describing the reasons the seminal campaigns were victorious, and the impacts of those campaigns on Maine politics, make this book particularly valuable.
It is when Potholm turns to referenda that the professor offers insightful lessons that campaigns pay big bucks to learn today. His analysis of the 1980 anti-nuclear referenda includes his ten ballot measure rules and an explanation of why Franco Americans and women who work in the home are Maine's key swing voters.
There is so much fascinating material in this book that I can't begin to do it justice in this short column.
I have purchased several copies of "This Splendid Game" for the leaders of an upcoming referendum, because no one should enter the Maine political arena without the lifetime of knowledge and experience provided in this book by Maine's foremost political guru.
And all citizens should read the book to understand how their votes are influenced by political campaigns - and why they should be paying attention to and participating in this splendid game that rules their lives.

As many Mainers know, Bowdoin College Professor Chris Potholm is Maine's premier political pollster and campaign strategy guru. He has been an insider in some of the state's biggest and most important political battles and is regularly quoted by the press on Maine issues. Naturally, this book will be especially interesting to people who are into Maine history and politics -- but it's not just for Mainers. It provides a lot of basic political insights that will be interesting and useful to anyone who's involved or interested in candidate or ballot measure campaigns. Each chapter reviews the reasons why a particular campaign succeeded or failed, providing excellent lessons that apply to campaigns in any state. The chapter about the referendum campaign on the Maine Yankee nuclear power plant is probably the best analysis of a ballot measaure campaign that I've ever read. As a professional political consultant and a former Mainer, I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.

Through a Glass Darkly describes how US foreign military aid breeds hate and fear and the disasters that result. Many foreigners have a split vision of America - while they admire individual Americans for their ideals they abhor US foreign military aid.

This book chronicles the life of Father Ron Hennessey, a Korean War veteran turned missionary who dedicated himself to bettering the lives of Mayan Indians living in the remote mountains of Guatemala. Padre Ron gets caught in the war between communist inspired insurgents and the army of a banana republic despot. Most of the victims of this tragic conflict are innocent children, women and men. This is a tale of a dedicated man's resolve to tell Americans about US duplicity and this disastrous page of US foreign policy.

Unafraid to name names the author reveals the lies and deception of US government diplomats and CIA operatives as they tried to cover-up the consequences of a policy run amuck. It's not a pretty picture but Melville suggests how we can change this on-going dysfunctional foreign policy that continues to this day. Americans need to hear about these behind the scene goings-on so they will pressure the government to change our policy to reflect America's ideals as practiced by men like Ron Hennessey.

For those unfamiliar with Mayan culture and 500 years of repression in Central America Melville sprinkles anthropological and historical insights throughout the story. It's the kind of book that inspires the reader to exclaim, "Oh now I understand why we're in this mess. That's why young people turn into insurgents."

It's a good read with an important message that will help defeat terrorism at its roots.

This is a book for which many have been waiting. Genocide is a difficult subject to think about, let alone read about in gruesome detail. The stark facts about the genocide of the indigenous Mayans in Guatemala during the 1970's and 1980's have been reported by others, but not in an easily readable format. Other sources have attempted to spell out the role of the US government in the genocide, but more in a legal or academic tone. There are many documented accounts of individual massacres in Guatemala. These individual stories are important, but are more in the nature of individual snapshots. This book tells the longitudinal story in measured detail and in a personal manner through the life story of Maryknoll priest Ron Hennessey.
The book pulls the reader in by describing the gentle nature of the indigenous Mayans and their struggle for survival in their simple villages. Those who are fortunate to escape early death due to malnutrition and poor health care are faced with the new threat of the Guatemalan military. The unspeakable torture and murders are so much more meaningful after identifying with the villagers through Hennessey. The question screams out in the reader's mind: "What did these gentle people do to deserve their fate?" The book presents a thorough explanation of the role (both active and passive) of the US government in the genocide.
This book will appeal to those with a strong interest in Latin America, but also to the general reader with interests in US foreign policy. One warning -- most readers will feel emotionally drained after experiencing the horrors of the Guatemalan villagers through the eyes of Ron Hennessey.

I highly recommend this book, which is both a personal narrative and an overview of Guatemala's history. In telling the story of Fr. Ron Hennessy, it also provides adequate background and context for understanding what happened in Guatemala from the 1960s to the present.

Through a Glass Darkly by Thomas Melville. Reviewed by Larry Egan


Government corruption, hit squads, ecclesiastical intrigue, blood and guts and a lone person fighting the forces of evil sound like the ingredients for Dan Brown's next thriller. But this is Tom Melville's biography of Ron Hennessey, Maryknoll Priest, and his struggle in Guatemala to help his parishioners in El Petén and later in San Mateo Ixtan survive between the military forces of the government and the guerilla forces attempting to overthrow the various military regimes of the 70s and 80s,

Tom starts with Ron's early life in Iowa. His family,-sharecropper farmers,-provide a conservative but deeply socially involved environment in which he develops his own commitment to others. His service in Korea opens his eyes to the suffering and needs of others outside the US. In his own way he helps them-within and outside "the rule". This eventually leads Ron to Maryknoll.

As a classmate and friend of Ron since he joined Maryknoll, I found the book really portrayed Ron as we knew him. The class of 64 had a great habit of giving its members nicknames. Ron's was VOM (The Vile Old Man). He was the senior student and famous for his earthy farm humor. You never knew whether Ron had just given you a compliment or a real zinger. Ron always allowed you to draw your own conclusions.

Ron arrived in Guatemala in 1964 and served in several parishes in the Quetzaltenango area with Mayan Indigenas. This area was adjacent to Huehuetenango, the major commitment of Maryknoll in Central America at that time. Like most of us Ron was aware of the exploitation of the indigenas by the local power structure dominated by the Ladinos (Spanish speaking mestizos). But he tended to see it as a local issue rather than a systemic one.

Tom Melville's own experiences and reaction to the situation was not embraced by most of us in the region. Butit moved many of us to study the situation more globally and in a more systemic manner. Tom refers to his and Marge's own involvement with the guerillas in a few short sentences and in some footnotes and moves on. He is telling Ron's story and not trying to score points or -fight old battles.

As Ron witnesses the genocide of the various military regimes of Arana, Rios Montt and Lucas Garcia he begins to agonize how he can best serve the people with whom he works. He is never comfortable with overtly promoting the guerillas' cause since he was never convinced that they would produce positive changes for the indigenas, though he unquestionably favored them as the lesser of two evils. He also knows that what ever he says will influence people and likely get some of them killed. This struggle is the underlying thread of all that Ron does. He second-guesses himself at times. He gets angry with himself, the Church and God, but continues in the struggles despite his doubts and lack of clear and precise answers.

As the massacres began to increase Ron actively sent eyewitness accounts to his three nun sisters in Iowa and asked them to publicize the atrocities in the US press. His later conversations with the US Embassy officials who try to get him to change his statements to a "more balanced" view are right out of Alice in Wonderland. Embassy officials then proceed to misquote him out of context.

Ron's distaste for Cardinal Casariego and his policies is clear. His growing friendship for Archbishop Romero comes through in ways that probably will surprise many. His willingness to publicly expose Casariego and the Papal Nuncio's machinations in the Vatican against Romero are an illuminating but little known aspect of the larger struggle in the Church in Central America. Pope John Paul II should at least question his choice of informational sources if not his own part in the devastation of the local churches of Central America in this period.

The members of the Maryknoll Central American Region elected Ron regional superior four times,-twice before he began his public campaign to publicize the atrocities-and twice after. Ron always joked that academically he was 41st in a class of 40. People chose Ron as their leader not because of his intellectual prowess, but because of his honesty and commitment to justice for all. His willingness to work with everyone and slowly but surely call it as he saw it resonated with the region. This comes out clearly in his dealings with Bill Woods and Bill's subsequent death. His investigation which finally leads Ron to the conclusion that Bill and his five companions were indeed killed by the Guatemalan military powers will add lots of new information for many.

Tom uses two literary techniques in telling the story. The first is translating the rudimentary Spanish of the local indigena people into idiomatic (pidgin?) English. This is particularly effective in capturing the flavor of some of the discourses. The conversations that Ron has with five guerillas who arrive at the rectory at midnight are a microcosm of the ideological and human concerns that were dominating the area. Despite significant differences in outlooks, the guerillas and Ron part "friends". Tom also weaves the past history of Guatemala, from the conquest to the elections of Arévalo and Arbenz in the fifties, to the later military regimes of Castillo Armas and his successors. This background is essential for placing Ron's life in the wider context of the situation of Central America. For those who know the region this is effective. For those coming to the region for the first time the jumps in chronology may be a bit difficult to follow at times.

While there are a few things that I would have a different interpretation of or different take on, they are minor and in no way detract from the author's main thrust. The book does not use Ron's story to provide a vehicle for a larger social thesis but presents the social, religious and political realities of Central America as the context in which Ron had to make painful decisions.

This book should be a must for all persons who value justice.. It recalls the idealism and conviction that they have felt in their own life. For those who knew Ron it recalls in vivid detail his laconic wit, pithy sayings and deep commitment to serving the Mayan Indians of the altiplano of Guatemala. It also should be on the mandatory reading list for the Vatican School of Diplomacy. It highlights the role that nuncios play in the political and religious life of the people they serve and the devastating influence they can have if they forget that they are Church people before they are political operators. The State Department should also put it on its list of books diplomats should read. Why the people of the world like Americans and hate the foreign policy of the US Government, Republican or Democratic-is graphically presented. US Government officials who lie to protect the integrity of US policy and bishops who lie for the good of Holy Mother Church are apt bedfellows. Tom names names. Lastly anyone involved in Peace and Justice work will find in the book an inspiration to continue the struggle to help those in the two-thirds world.

There are individuals and events that change our direction. These persons or events are so meaningful that we see or possibly live in a better way after that experience. Through a Glass Darkly is a book that can improve the way you live. This is about the U. S. Holocaust in Central America. This window into the life of Ron Hennessey is two intertwined stories. Ron's life with the remote hill people of Guatemala is presented as if you are with him as he meets people in the front room of his tiny residence or in his jeep. The heroic and savage experiences were taken from letters Ron send home and from many interviews by the author who worked in Guatemala seven years before Ron's arrival.

The other equally compelling story intertwined with Ron's journey in Guatemala is a well documented and pertinent Central America and U.S. political and social history from 1954 and the next 40 years. You will view the U. S. government in a new way after this book. We know the media gives a sanitized simplistic view of world events. What happens behind closed doors both in government and church that gives direction to human behavior whether it be heroic, bazaar or horrific? This book gives a documented view into the cause and effect of the range of human behaviors. Current controlled conflict behaviors are the results of lessons learned in Central America and they are exposed here. If you want to observe U.S. policies on conflict, judge your approval of our government behavior and, thereby formulate reasonable action, read this book.

Okay, I've only just received this book and have not had time to test it "in the field". However, I know people who have, and they say it's a great book, and that is my impression from just looking it over, as well.

It has tons of color photos and the pages aren't super thin, either. It looks like it will hold up well over time, and it is exactly what I was looking for!

I'm sure as I use it I will probably find things that could be better (maybe not?), but all I can say is it's a really big book with tons of info and lots of photos and it looks like it is just what I was looking for.

This is an outstanding publication. I was able to identify virtually everything I saw on our course to Costa Rica. I also appreciated the natural history under comments.

My only complaint is the weight of the book. If you are anything like me you will likely have other field guides, birds, herpes, etc. This book is pretty hefty and when added up makes travel cumbersome.

As the author of a travel guide to Costa Rica (Explore Costa Rica, Fifth Edition), which covers flora and fauna (in detai)l, I can attest that this is a great book to take with you and makes a superb companion to Explore Costa Rica (which will be a great help with the rest of your trip). Explore Costa Rica, 5th Edition (Explore Costa Rica)

Willow Zuchowski and Turid Forsyth have created a beautiful overview of Costa Rican vegetation. The photography is wonderful, giving enough detail of individual plants that readers get an accurate sense of what they are looking at. The text has an interesting diversity of information, ranging from plant taxonomy to medicinal uses to pollination strategies. I used the book with a Tropical Botany class, and the students not only loved the book, but found it to be an excellent size which is easy to carry in the field or store in a backpack. The habitat descriptions are well-written and provide the reader with a good idea of what to expect in different parts of Costa Rica.

I picked up a copy of this guide (published in San Jose by Zona Tropical) at La Selva last year and consider it a worthy addition to the small library I carry in Costa Rica. I would recommend it as the most useful single volume work on Costa Rican plants.

The guide is aimed at the amateur rather than the professional botanist: photographs are the prime means of identification, plants are presented out of family order (more below) and there are no keys. Nevertheless, it is quite possible to identify a good many of the country's commoner plants using this guide.

The order of the plants is:-

1. colourful-flowering trees
2. non-colourful-flowering trees
3. roadside and garden exotics
4. crop plants
5. living fences (so characteristic of Costa Rica)
6. special habitats, e.g. dry forests, cloud forests, beaches & mangroves
7. quintessentially tropical groups, e.g. bromeliads, palms & orchids
8. grasses

There is emphasis on those plants that are likely to be most conspicuous to the visitor. This often means a bias towards exotic species rather than natives. However, this does mean that the book is useful outside Costa Rica and I will be referring to it throughout the American tropics.

Once a plant is identified a comments section provides a host of useful information.

Well worth the price! I will definitely be taking it back with me on my next trip.

Chris Sharpe, 3 August 2007. ISBN: 0801473748

A good history of Guatemala's civil war that is not boring to read. While the viewpoint seems to be that the communist rebels had a just cause, they are given as much blame for the violence that ensued.

Victor Perera is a native guatemalan who took the better part of 6 years to write this book. This book is chock full of great information gathered from hundreds of interviews. Perera doesn't waste time trying to interpret the events he writes about, instead he let's the participants and witnesses speak for themselves. He interviews everybody for this book from wealthy landowners, government officials, military personel, catholic and evangelical clergy and mostly the mayan people who have suffered from 30 years of civil war. He then fills in the cracks with historical background. His writing is very precise and specific, his descriptions paint a very vivid picture of the oppression and genocide that continues to take place.

The book begins with his visits to the garbage dump slums of guatemala city and proceeds to other hot spots of violence. The core of the book is those chapters about the ixil triangle area where as many as one third of the local mayan population was killed, disappeared or forced to flee the country.

..............socks

The terrible situation that happened to this Central America nation is very well documented in this book.The author, Mr Perera, writes with a lot of insight and first hand knowledge since he lived in Guatemala for several years.The book is full with interviews the author did with local people such as soldiers,politicians,ladinos,mayas and just the average person in the street.The author is not afraid to let the reader see what is the real situation in Guatemala and is not afraid to point fingers to the real culprits.This book is a very good work that identifies the problems of not only the mayans as a people but also the problems and corruption that politicians have brought on its own people.Great work!

AND I BELIEVE That everything that this "people" have done to the poor of the world, is going to come back at them to bite them right in their behind!.

"THIRD WORLD COUNTRY" STANDS FOR MIND, BODY AND SPIRIT.

This wide-ranging book, written beautifully and knowledgeably, is a pleasure to read and a must for anyone interested in Guatemalan (or Central American) history and/or Mayan culture. Mr. Perera does not take particular pains to hide his sympathies (clearly pro-environmental protection, pro-indigenous people's rights) but the intelligence of his writing and the mastery and breadth of the subject matter make this the most articulate, beautiful, informative statement of those views I've read. What a disappointment to learn that this powerful voice was silenced not long after this book by a stroke and his subsequent death. Read this book!

This is a fascinating and brilliantly written book that allows you to a feel very close to seminal American wars. This private but heroic family deserves our attention,

Wars and Peace is the work of a Vietnam Veteran, Rory Quirk, whose father, James served in WWII and later Korea, as a behind-the-scenes major player. For a seemingly humble, low-keyed guy, James is an eloquent writer as is his wife, Elizabeth; although we see far too little of her work, since it was apparently difficult for James to hang onto her letters as he traveled the front with the likes of Generals Bradley, Paton and Ridgeway. James' letters offer never before published insights into these leaders with some comical anecdotes about Paton that suggest we heard more of Quirk than Paton in earlier press releases, in stark, often amusing, contrast to post-Quirk Paton statements. The Korean letters, researched painstakingly by the younger Quirk, reveal frightening historic events that need to be responded to by those who might still know the truth. Matthew Ridgeway, about whom I read nothing in my history books, is depicted as an incredible leader and strategist deserving of great recognition and adulation. On the other hand, General MacArthur; about whom we spent so much time; comes off as an egotistical, narcissistic insubordinate. Go figure. It would have been good to hear and know more of Elizabeth Quirk, whose letters on VE day and the first birthday of their son, Rory, portray an intense love and loneliness that suggests that perhaps this is all we need to know. This is Elizabeth. Quirk brings us through the third family war with the devastating effect his service in Vietnam had on his father, the loyal patriot. Contrasted are his views of this war then and now, through his memories of 3 former college classmates who died young for something we either don't understand, or worse, for nothing at all. Quirk's father wrote his letters almost 60 years ago and they are remarkable if one thinks of his writing them late at night after, harrowing experiences. We are fortunate to read them unedited. It is uncanny to detect the similarity of style if not language, between father and son who have not exchanged a word in over 30 years. Quirk connects these human stories with flawless historical research, offering a context to the events depicted in the letters. I still don't know how I missed this when it came out. I hope it will be out in paper soon and in print large enough for seniors. It should be on tape for the visually impaired who may well hear this as their last human connection to their past. And if they haven't yet, and I believe I would have seen it, The New York Times must review this important work. This would be great book club material for serious readers interested in the human impact of war beyond the obvious.

A great inspirational book for young and older families. After all is said and done, whether success is achieved through financial rewards or attainment of immense power, the most cherished parts of our life are, and should be, our loved ones.

An emotional and gripping story quintissential to the 20th century American family experience. I loved every page.

This is a family memoir, in the form of parents' letters and a son's narrative, gracefully written by three individuals who lives were touched by World War II, Korea, and Vietnam: a father, who served with Bradley, Patton, and Ridgeway; a loving and supportive wife who served on the homefront; and a son who served as a U.S. Army Ranger in Vietnam. It's a fine memoir of an American family's courage and sense of duty during this American century.

How JFK kept sane we will never know , obviously the JCS wanted to send us all into god knows where but you can bet they would have been safe in their hideaway . Seems to me , like Churchill had his mission in life , there at the right time , then so JFK was put in charge for his ability to change the thinking.

Sheldon M. Stern's aptly chosen title recalls that wonderful science fiction film of the 1950s, "The Day the Earth Stood Still." It is good to have that echo in mind as you look back upon the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962. Mid-century Hollywood reminds us of what the Cold War was like and Mr. Stern's book expresses what nearly happened. Aside from age and place of birth - I wish an aversion to war was a presidential requirement. President John Fitzgerald Kennedy had it. He had been to war and in his heart he did not wish to start another.

This is a great book for History Students and we should all be students of our history. While it is a condensation it seems more like an explosive compression of "Averting the Final Failure" (2003), which I have reviewed earlier -- describing it as, "a chilling, provocative page turner." So is this book and there are fewer pages to turn; this would have gratified me in my student days. If you would like more information, thoughts and opinion please turn to my earlier review.

Sheldon Stern has presented a harrowing study of one of the most dangerous events in World History - The Cuban Missile Crisis. In his book, The Week the World Stood Still: Inside the Secret Cuban Missile Crisis, we are presented with an event whose story line reads like it was written by a Robert Ludlum-like mystery writer, this story, however, was frighteningly true history. With the careful, thoughtful, and thorough research that is Mr. Stern's trademark, the reader is presented with the complete inside story of that fateful week. This is a must read for, not only students, but adults as well. Kudos!

Sheldon Stern takes us right into perhaps the most important decision-making in U.S. history. This account has been scrupulously put together from the primary sources, including the taped deliberations. Kennedy no longer emerges as a simplistic "cold warrior" but as a statesman whose value has even been enhanced by subsequent events. This is about as definitive account as we are likely to get, and is essentially reading for anyone who wants to be informed about those days of crisis.

Herbert S. Parmet

The Cuban missile crisis was the most dangerous moment of the Cold War and has received numerous analysis in other titles and articles. What makes Sheldon M. Stern's The Week The World Stood Still: Inside The Secret Cuban Missile Crisis different is its focus on a narrative written for students and general readers. The author's own transcriptions of the secretly recorded ExComm meetings serves as a foundation for an analysis which captures the striking moments of tension behind the scenes. The newest addition to the "Stanford Nuclear Age Series", The Week The World Stood Still is an impressive work of scholarship that is also highly recommended for non-specialist general readers with an interest in the history of the Cold War era.

The conservative, european-american movement's declaration of the end of white supremacy in this country requires the kind of challenge offered by "Whitewashing Race". This book offers every fair-minded reader an opportunity to judge the realities that still persist as a consequence of 250 years of chattel slavery, 100 years of complete segregation, lynchings and restrictions on work and educational opportunities. The efforts needed to create a truly non-racialized culture in America are far from over.

It presents information in such a way that you are at the very least, forced to consider what they've presented. As a self-identified "African-American" who considers himself a conservative, I think this book does a great job of presenting the foundation of how the problem of race still exists and presents pragmatic ideas - however controversial - that are far better, in my view, than maintaining the status quo.

If those who on principle oppose these ideas (specifically, the conservatives this book spends a lot of time lambasting) would come out with substantive data to disprove what this book says, the race debate would become a lot clearer and would bring us closer to realizing a better America for all.

For anyone interested in how the politics of race are presented in today's world (affirmative action, prison sentencing, etc.), this book is a definite must-read. The authors analyze the conservative's overly-simplistic view of race as being based simply on whether a person exhibits overt prejudice while ignoring the larger implications of accumulated wealth and advantages enjoyed by whites from years of legal discrimination.

The authors poke holes in much of the misinformation coming from the conservative side of the aisle, and reveal just how sinister and permeating racial bias still is in America. Grab this book, a good cup of coffee, a high-lighter, and become updated on the dynamics of race in 2003 America.

I read this book hoping to find some ideas about the status of race in post civil rights America. Although I found the book helpful and infomative, I do remain highly concerned that the issues the book addresses seem static. The authors do offer a lot of statistics and concise ideas to help understand the problems concerning race in America.

The attack on the racial realists and conservitive views on race really caught my attention. I find the arguements in this book far more convincing. I struggled to articulate how the conditions of American culture create a negative experience for blacks, but this book articulates the message clearly. I find myself reading and hearing arguments about race with a new understanding.

Should one send political scientists to do a historian's job? That is the question one has to ask about this book compiled by a consortium of political scientists, in response to the "racial realism" of today's right-centrist consensus. This consensus, argued by such authors as Jim Sleeper, Tamara Jacoby, John McWhorter, The New Republic and the renowned historians of American immigration Stephen and Abigail Thernstrom, argue that racism is not really a problem in American life. To the extent that African-Americans are disadvantaged it is because of their own failings or, somewhat more tactfully, the failings of the black politicians and the guilty liberals they (overwhelmingly) support.

This book argues that this fundamentally optimistic view is wrong. They are right to say so and their book is very detailed and comprehensive (the Thernstroms in particular are repeatedly criticized). Still the book is not perfect. The book makes an error in numbering its footnotes in chapter five. It also incorrectly says that until recently there were no African-Americans elected from North Carolina since Reconstruction (one in fact was elected in 1898). The style is not very engaging, it consists mostly of summaries of papers in economics, political science, sociology and the other social sciences. The result is a certain dryness and abstract quality that could use more historical analysis (the treatment of unions is somewhat superficial). The discussion of racism is not the most thoughtful available (and little is said about Latinos). Nevertheless one should not ignore its points. "Racial realists" argue that racism is not a problem because only a handful of people would support racist attitudes in opinion polls. There are several problems with this argument. Aside from the fact that people do not necessarily volunteer their support of unpopular ideas, it turns the concept of racism and racist harm into a question of pure malice. If there is none (or if it somehow "rational") there is no racism. One might ask why showing discrimination should require showing malice, when other torts merely require showing negligence? Also it is a non-sequitur to argue that if whites are not malicious, blacks and/or liberals must have screwed up. Moreover, rephrasing the question can lead to rather different results: in a 1980 poll only 5% supported segregation, but only 40% supported a law stating that a homeowner could not refuse to sell because of race. The authors go on about how in the post-war period African-Americans were discriminated in social security legislation, GI bill benefits and housing segregation. We also relearn about the insufficiently notorious effects of urban renewal and automation.

What is best about the book are the statistics it provides showing consistent racial gaps, even when corrected for class, age, income or any other variable. For example 53% of mortgages in black Chicago middle-class neighbourhoods are from sub-prime lenders, whereas only 12% of mortgages in white neighbourhoods are. African-Americans are 25% less likely to get mammograpy screening, notwithstanding age or income, while a 1985 Massachusetts study showed that whites underwent significantly more corony surgery than blacks. 61% of basketball players were black in 1996-97, but 81.5 % of coaches were white; 52% of football players are black but in 2001 nearly 97% of head coaching positions were white. During the 1990s in Los Angeles, Latinos make up 41% of the population, but only 6% of the jurors. It is often said that spiralling illegitimacy is the key reason for persistent black poverty today, but the President's Council of Economic Advisers has noted that the poverty gap would have fallen by only a fifth had there been no changes in black family structure since 1967. Likewise the Thernstroms et al have argued that high black youth unemployment is the result of their demand for excessive wages. Yet studies have shown that their length of employment is not correlated with wage demands. The gap between black and white test scores has infuriated potential university students. But the correlation between scores and success is somewhat weake