Illinois Books

This was my first Raleigh book, which I bought as a remainder. Some of his other books were already past their first printing by then. I was so fascinated with the style and flavor that I bought and read all of them. He really nails down the food chain with his chomping dectective, besides describing the neighborhoods in Chi-Town.
I don't understand how he did not get involved with Mystery Guild, as they have a full line of authors, great to mediocre. While I was reading his, I noted that S. J. Rozan had some of her mysteries published through MG.
I really wish Raleigh would go back to writing Wheelan novels. he does it well.

I lived in CHicago for many years and love the city, so I was pleased to discover this mystery series written with a love for Chicago and a sense of place. Raleigh described the city so perfectly I felt I was back there. In fact, you could make an argument that the central character in the film is not the private investigator, Paul Whelan, but the city, particularly the lakefront area (Lincoln Park, Belmont Harbor, and Uptown).

The story begins on a dark Chicago night with a man -- a small time drug dealer -- being murdered at Belmont Harbor. Then the author cuts to Paul Whelan, private investigator/former Chicago cop living and working in Uptown, being asked by a north suburban woman of means to investigate her husband's apparent suicide 2 years previously. The woman says she thinks her husband's partner killed him or had him killed. Paul thinks that the body found in Belmont Harbor may have something to do with her husband and his business partner, so he starts poking around. There's an active investigation going on into the murder of the drug dealer, so the police aren't too happy. But Paul has a sort-of friendship with the police detective, so they share information in various Chicago restaurants.

This mystery is written in "noir" style: Paul Whelan is tough but kind (buys doughnuts for people who are broke, gets involved when someone is being hassled). I couldn't put it down, even though I was not the least surprised by the turn of events in the book (but I read a lot of mysteries and that's an advantage). I intend to read more in the series.

This being his follow up book to "Death in Uptown." Raleigh doesn't fail to disappoint his fans. The story moves along very well. As your read the book you can picture everything in your mind perfectly as he describes the worlds and characters in the book very well.
I would definitely recommend this book if you've read "Death in Uptown"

Atherton's book helped me begin to understand Joyce's "copy/paste" style. His preface provides an excellent philosphical framework within which the Wake can be understood. His chapters that follow explain in great detail how Joyce used the works of Vico, Swift, and the world's sacred books to construct his masterpiece. Atherton goes on to cite and explain hundreds of Joyce's literary references in Finnegans Wake. This is a good book for any James Joyce fan.

I have been checking the first edition of this book out of my library for months, and am delighted to see a paperback edition in print. It's one of the indispensible guides to the Wake, and I'm glad to see it readily available.

Atherton's book is "absotively" wonderful. Appreciating the Wake certainly requires this book. Numerous linguistic influences on Joyce from various authors are catalogued. Particularly interesting is the lengthy analysis of Lewis Carroll's literary influence on Joyce:

1. Carroll is presumably the undisputed inventor of the portmanteau word - a word packed with multiple meanings. Carroll was content to have dual meaning but Joyce packed as many meanings as possible into his words.

2. Carroll (like Joyce) worked with successive alterations of one letter in a word - meat, meet, mate, maze, etc. Sections of the Wake which obliquely referenced Carroll would routinely incorporate this technique.

3. Alice served as an alterego for Joyce's heroine ALP, where "Wonderlawn" is code for the Garden of Eden.

In short, Joyce found much in Carroll's work that (in the case of the portmanteau word, to his surprise) neatly "dovetallied" with his own "work in progress". The Books at the Wake is a fascinating and well-written collection of many more such analyses (Shakespeare, Blake, Vico, etc.).

There is no other equivelent for studying Burmese in english other than John Okell's books. I have the entire series along with the tapes and they are all excellent. My only wish is that these tapes will be converted to CD. I learned Burmese from my parents, but cannot read, write, or understand formal speech. His series of books and tapes have helped me tremendously.

I have purchased many self-teaching language courses and this is by far the best. Starts off simple and builds knowledge and confidence gradually. The variations in exercises also keeps the student interested throughout the book. The tapes are very much like an actual lecture. Okell includes many fascinating points about Burmese culture and the added bonuses at the end of the tapes such as BBC Burmese broadcasts and traditional Burmese music are really interesting to hear. What every language package should be.

This book has the perfect mix of grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and conversation. Okell is a superb teacher, and has chosen good, native speakers for his tapes. The progression of information is very logical and helpful. He also includes an Appendix to allow you to quickly get some useful prhases under your belt, as you methodically learn the carefully chosen vocabulary in the Lessons. The review sections are thoughtfully designed to quickly get you back up to speed after a break (as opposed to having to work through lessons again).

The pronunciation section (book & tape) portion is the best I have seen in an introductory text. For example, having wroked through introductory texts in Greek, Thai, and Vietnamese, his explanation of the differences in aspirate, plain, and voiced consonants is the most clear.

As you consider purchasing this text (a wise decision), you really ought to consider simultaneously purchaseing Okell's Burmese: An Introduction to the Script. For anyone wanting to learn more than cursory Burmese, the sooner you learn the script the better. The Roman-alphabet transliteration is far from standardized in Burmese (as opposed to the Vietnamese standardization a century ago) and can get confusing.

Final note: although amazon.com asks that I not display postal addresses or URLs, at the time of this writing, amazon.com was out of most of these books, while the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Northern Illinois Univ (the publisher) was fully stocked. Just an FYI.

When I first read Michael Meyerhofer's poems, I immediately saw him as poetry's modern messiah: a poet that could save poetry from being regarded solely as "high art," or too confusing for modern readers. The poems in Cardboard Urn do not intimidate us with esoteric language; nor are his poems timid or pretentious. While many poems in this collection approach sensitive subjects with barefaced conviction, Meyerhofer tapdances on the line between the tragic and the humorous. He writes not of the mind, but of the physical world, and in such a way that we feel enriched by language instead of burdened by it. Meyerhofer's poems are purely luminous in their simplicity and touching in their sincerity.

One of my favorite books of poetry, hands down.

Mike Meyerhofer's book, Cardboard Urn, manages to cultivate a trustworthy level of sentiment while remaining objectively analytic al to such an extent that the reader truly begins to "understand" Meyerhofer's personal experiences and the effects that they have had. Brilliant use of language, form, register and aesthetics. Get this book and read "Digger", which is my personal favorite

I am just kicking myself. I had the chance to see this wonderful poet read, and I missed it. The poems in Cardboard Urn are pure, elegant, and moving. Meyerhofer's work covers a variety of subjects, but is consistent throughout in quality. Get this book!

Carl B. Stokes And The Rise Of Black Political Power by Leonard N. Moore (Assistant Professor of History and Director of the African and African American Studies Program, Louisiana State University) is a meticulous portrayal of Mayor Carl Stokes of Cleveland and the impact his tenure has had on local and national African-American politics. Individual chapters address a range of issues such as "the making of a mayor"; black capitalism; internal political power struggles; and much, much more. A well-researched and scholarly examination of executive government in microcosm in general, and its reflections in the broader scope of African-American politics in particular, Carl B. Stokes And The Rise Of Black Political Power is a welcome and highly recommended addition to academic Black Studies and Political Science reference collections and reading lists.

Leonard Moore tells the story of the life of Carl B. Stokes in his book CARL B. STOKES AND THE RISE OF POLITICAL POWER. However, the book is much more than the political life of Stokes. There is in a sense a cursory perspective of his life. You don't get a clear view of his personality or his life style. The book is more about urban politics. Moore's essential theme is that Stokes represents the transition of the politics of protest to the politics of political power for blacks. He demonstrates how Stokes, like virtually all blacks who become mayors of large urban areas inherit dying cities created by white flight, deindustrialization and large populations of urban poor. These are tough battles no matter what your race. But in Stoke's election, Moore demonstrates how black voters came together to use their combined power to attempt to change their status.

By showing the intricacies of Cleveland politics, Moore shows how Stokes was never able to take control of City Council and the police departments. Those two obstacles along with several major scandals made life of Carl Stokes as Mayor difficult.

While the majority of the book deals with local politics and are particularly interesting to Cleveland natives, like myself, the conclusion is extremely powerful. In it Moore shows how Stokes essentially set the standard for future black mayors and how many of them had very similar problems. Although Stokes created the 21st District Caucus in an attempt to have a political powerbase outside the Democratic party, the Causus evenually lost its clout when Stokes was no longer in the picture. Moore also shows how neither Stokes or other Black mayors are able to pass on their political power to a chose successor.

An underlying thesis of the book is the maturation of the black voter. As Stokes saw in his many battles, a candidate cannot just rely on his race to draw votes. The black community and the black voter is no longer a single voting block. Just as white voters have varying interest, so do black voters.

There is one additional thing that is important about the life of Carl and also his brother former Congressman Louis Stokes. They grew up in poverty but also learned that they had to work. Both Stokes often tell the story of how they came to live in public housing and how it was the first time that each of them was able to sleep in their own bed. Prior to that the two boys and their mother all slept together. As a result, their mother was able to make a better life for them. It shows how they, like millions of other veterans, used the GI Bill to go to college and law school. In many respects, the Stokes brothers represent a part of the American dream. They used federal programs to better themselves. Their father died when they were young but they did not use the fact that they grew up without a father hold them back. They used what was available to them and make a better life for themselves and a better life for millions of American.

Carl B. Stokes And The Rise Of Black Political Power by Leonard N. Moore (Assistant Professor of History and Director of the African and African American Studies Program, Louisiana State University) is a meticulous portrayal of Mayor Carl Stokes of Cleveland and the impact his tenure has had on local and national African-American politics. Individual chapters address a range of issues such as "the making of a mayor"; black capitalism; internal political power struggles; and much, much more. A well-researched and scholarly examination of executive government in microcosm in general, and its reflections in the broader scope of African-American politics in particular, Carl B. Stokes And The Rise Of Black Political Power is a welcome and highly recommended addition to academic Black Studies and Political Science reference collections and reading lists.

Mr. Bill Hasbrouck's book The Chicago Architecture Club proves examples of late 19th century architecture are fascinating with their stew-pot excesses of decoration and exotic blends of classic styles. They achieve a unique beauty as they reflect the sensibilities of their time and stand as elegant baroque backgrounds to the more spartan work of Wright and Mies.

His account of the Chicago Architecture Club is a delight, describing how it grew, offered draftsmen a place to hone their skills and have fun in a club atmosphere. All too often, these artists are viewed in their stiff portraits and group photos as a bunch of stuffed shirts. Hasbrouck's descriptions of the hail-fellow-well-met activities contrasted with the sketching competitions that required hours of unpaid time in order to compete and were endlessly conjured up by the senior members of the club add a very human touch. The renderings are excellent and each period is very well visualized to provide a context.

The Chicago Architecture Club is a go-to book at the end of a long day, to pick it up again and see how the fellows are doing after the 1893 Chicago World's Fair and find out who won the club competition for the design of a Gatekeeper's Cottage. This book allows the reader to look into a world we've glimpsed, but never seen with such warm clarity.

A history of a club of draftsmen? You would think such a book would be a slog. On the contrary, Hasbrouck evokes the City of the Century (the 19th, that is) and its astonishing group of architects with grace and verve. The carefully selected illustrations, in their hundreds, let us look into American professional life around 1900, with its human comedy and sadness and joy, tossed by Windy-City puffery. What a sweet and illuminating book, an instant classic in the history of the Chicago School!

Mr. Hasbrouck's detailed and well-written account of the Chicago Architectural Club does more than document the history of this seminal organization. It reveals the architectural and cultural milieu in Chicago during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This book is exceptionally researched, documented, and profusely illustrated. Mr. Hasbrouck's excellent writing capability is evident on every page and the layout and presentation of the book benefits from his many years as editor and publisher of the Prairie School Review.

More than just a good read, this book will be an important research tool for anyone interested in the history of Chicago, its architecture, and the Prairie School. Your library will not be current without a copy of this book.

This is a great book and has wonderful facts on the Chicago Bears I would reccommend to all Bears fans.

I had a great time reading this book. It has many photographs throughout the Bears' history, which made the reading more enjoyable. The story is thorough but not dull and boring. The chapters are parceled out in such a fashion that it keeps your interest, and enables you to put the book down and pick right back up again later. This book would be a delight for any Bears fans, young or old.

Roy Taylor does a fine job telling one of the most compelling sports stories of all time. The photos/captions combined with the text give a true and complete depiction of what the Bears have meant to the fans since their 1920 inception. This well-written book is a must-have for any Bears fan.

Each time I reread this book it takes me home. I grew up in the 50's,60's in Humboldt Il. Mr Thomas deserves a big plus for bringing out the closeness of people in a small town. I knew and loved many of the people he wrote about in this book. If I could locate Mr Thomas I would invite him to walk the streets of Humboldt with me. We could relive the best days of our lives.

This book transports you to a time and place where people passed their days doing the big and small things that weave a time and place in history that should not be forgotten. It is a wonderful book that talks about Humboldt, Illinois and individuals living there during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This is a story of German immigrants and their descendents as well as others, making a living by farming or whatever else that would make a living. It is a treasure of everyday life on a farm or small town in the midwest. For those who lived in Humboldt, it evokes powerful sensations, memories of a time that was........ Even those who have not lived in Humboldt will appreciate the way Mr. Thomas has ensured that those unique individuals in his book will never be forgotten.

I was raised in Humboldt and this book brought to me many hours of history and memories. This is a very laid-back farm community with a real midwest lifestyle.

Tiny Kline spent her entire life doing stunts. From youth to middle age, she worked with the circus, her love for which is apparent throughout the pages of her memoir. She continued doing iron jaw stunts, descending inclines at ridiculous speeds suspended only by her teeth, into old age and performed as Tinker Bell at Disneyland when she was in her 70s. By all accounts, Tiny Kline had a fascinating life. She really wrote two memoirs in an attempt to share that life with us. One contained mainly personal anecdotes, related to her work on the circus. The second mainly contained circus history and was stripped of these more intimate details. The editor, Janet M. Davis, combined the two to produce a memoir that is still Tiny's but in a form readers will be more eager to consume.

This book was a very educational experience. Circus history, while an interesting topic, is not something that I've ever learned in school and there don't seem to be many accessible books written on it. There is the fiction bestseller, Water for Elephants, which I read and loved earlier this year, but that's about all I've seen on my book radar. When this popped up on LT Early Reviewers, I knew that I simply must read it. And good choice by me; this is a terrific memoir. The combination of memoirs is brilliantly done and I never noticed a gap between Tiny's two styles of writing. It's fascinating to see how the circus changed over time, the insider's view of circus politics, and just how some performers climbed the career ladder faster than others. Tiny's ambition was tremendous and it's easy to see why she advances so quickly.

The book does read precisely as someone's account of their life. Tiny was not the best writer and it's evident at times that she had little training, but it never hampers this book, just makes the author more real, if that is possible. It reads like a letter written by a friend; conversational, easy tone. There were some nice touches put in by the editor, such as including photographs with Tiny's descriptions of some of her fellow performers, all bringing the circus to life. Tiny admits one lapse in her introduction; she included some fictional romances to make the book more "exciting", even though she never had a romantic interlude after her husband died shortly after their wedding. The fictional parts are obvious and only in one part of the book; I don't count this against it, especially as she admits their existence before the book even begins.

I'd definitely be recommending this book and if you're interested in circus history, you shouldn't miss it. I'm glad that I didn't!

These memoirs, brilliantly edited by Janet M. Davis, Ph.D are a wonderful seldom seen view of circus life, and the important roll that circus played in the 19th and 20th centuries in providing entertainment to the masses. I remember my dad talking about Tiny Kline when she made history in 1932 by crossing Times Square on a strung wire from the Edison Hotel (still there) to the roof of the Palace Theater, suspended by a fine wire with a bite plate attached. Such was her "Iron Jaw" act that she performed up to her 70's. For such a tiny little girl and woman, she proved to be a brave and wonderful athelete as she did so many other things in the circus. This book whetted my appetite and I subsequently ordered Dr. Davis's book, The Circus Age. Wonderful and interesting reading.

Norman L. Rosenberg

This is a really fascinating book..with great detail..on the circus life..gets below the surface.and takes you into the corners of this amazing underworld..Simply written..it rings with truth..

Professor Rable has produced an excellent book describing how the Civil War affected the women of the South and detailing their role in the conflict. He did not pursuing his topic from the fradulent perspective of women fighting for "gender" equality and power, which is so popular amongst women historians nowadays.

Short and to the point: The only work today that looks at the "past" civil war through the writings and lives of women. The civil war is often dismissed today because it involves "dead white guys". Not true. And in his meticulous use of diaries and letters Rable puts flesh on the bones of other casualties of the war, the women who suffered and died for their beliefs as well. This is a book which concerns the "home front" which entails fighting only slightly different than that of the battlefield. The leading champion for civil war readers today concerning the role and status of women during the civil war.

The thesis of this book is that Confederate women were slow to challenge the class and gender roles of their society, even though the Civil War exposed them to hardships that required them to temporarily take on the roles of men. George Rable uses a variety of sources, including women's diaries from the period, official Confederate military records, and family papers and correspondence from women and military leaders from the period. Rable shows how the plantation women stepped up and ran the plantations in the absence of most men, who were gone off to the war. He also takes the reader back to a time when the Confederacy was being overrun by Union soldiers. By showing how Conederate women suffered as a result of the thieving and looting carried out by Union soldiers, Rable gives the reader a good insight into why women longed for a return to their traditional and familiar lifestyles. War and ruin would naturally make anyone long for the past, even if the past meant a return to submissive status. If the book has a weakness, it is the fact that Rable limited his study to white women. He did not discuss the roles of African American or Native American women in the Confederacy. However, he did discuss women from wealthy, yeoman, and poor backgrounds. This book is very informative. It is one of my personal favorites. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT!