California Books

I have been looking for many years for something that helps me improve and solve problems in life -- finally I found something in my hands that really tackles problems at their root causes.
It is amazing how effective the proposed solutions are. Simple, but -- and this is of utmost importance -- they WORK!! It is the first time I found a self-improvement book that helps achieving sustainable results. This book delivers what it promises if one follows each step exactly the way it is stated. If only I had had this book earlier. This Mr Hubbard must have been an amazing man -- I do not understand what his critics complain about; I am sure they never tried the solutions he proposes! In summary: A must read!

This book is simply written so that it is easy to understand. I have used many of the principles in this book and found them quite workable. A must-read for anyone who wants to learn more about several areas of "life".

There is plenty of information in here which loads of vested interests do not want you to have. And these are answers you can understand, legal and ethical ways to get on top of life's hard problems. This is rubber meets the road stuff. I've read, understood and used it all.

I found many things in this book of use to me. What I found the most helpful was the section on assists which give several simple exercises to do if someone is ill or injured. I used the assist on my husband and my daughter and it worked well both times. Each section is relatively short and easy to read. There are exercises in the back of each section to help you learn the procedures. You learn things to help people in a variety of situations. If you like to help people, whether you are a social worker or just as a good neighbor or a parent and want to learn some new things to help, I highly recommend this book.

Over the years I have refered back to the essays and solutions compiled in this volume many times. I've used it to resolve problems with my family, improve my relationship with my wife and keep me focused on my goals. It's amazing how L. Ron Hubbard wrote so many common-sense solutions that no one else though of.

Witty and fast-paced, Vulture Capital is one fun read. Fans of The Immortal Game will be thrilled with the return of private eye August Riordan, and also the reappearance of his likeable sidekick Chris Duckworth. Newcomers and old fans alike will appreciate Coggins' vivid, stylish prose, well-developed plot line, complex characters, sparkling (and also very funny) dialogue, and the novel's San Francisco Bay Area locations depicted in the author's own photographs that introduce each chapter. I say "Hammet is a Coggins for the twentieth century."

I enjoyed the book a lot. The high tech backdrop for the story feels very realistic and provides numerous insights into how this high tech software development and funding works (or not).

The whodunit part of the mystery is very engaging and kept me turning pages rapidly. The reader gets many clues along the way, some obvious and some very subtle, but enough are false leads to keep you in suspense.

Action abounds as the main characters Valmont and Riordan careen around Silicon Valley and the Napa valley wine country. There is also plenty of humor from these two very different protagonists who share little in common except a very sharp and biting sense of humor.

I really enjoyed "The Immortal Game", and I've been waiting for more August Riordan. I found him in Vulture Capital, but I also found a very interesting Ted Valmont character. The concept of Venture Capitalist as hero caught me by suprise, but I loved it. Valmont and Riordan make a great team. I hope we don't have to wait long for their return.

An extradorinarily fine and distinctive mystery. Noir updated and downloaded. And a savage morality play.
Focused writing. And it has enough secrets that it is easy to be surprised, even when you think you're ahead of the plot.
A cliffhanger, too.
Fans of Coggins' first mystery will enjoy encountering the Riordan / Duckworth team from a different perspective.

Vulture Capital is a well executed, slightly twisted and weird, but completely believable story about the dark side of Silicon Valley's start-up community.

Venture Capitalist Ted Valmont is informed that the brains behind a biotechnology start-up he's funded called NeuroStimix is missing. Without the technology guru, NeuroStimix's future is in jeopardy just as a new product designed to aid spinal cord injury victims is about to come to market. Valmont engages PI August Riordan to help find the missing man and we soon learn that the disappearance is part of a larger conspiracy to use NeuroStimix technology for dastardly purposes. To complicate matters, the missing man is Valmont's buddy and Valmont's own brother, as a spinal injury patient, would benefit from the NeuroStimix discovery.

Co-founder of a failed Internet start-up, Mark Coggins injects lots of local color into his work. Technology-types and dot-com veterans will especially appreciate the Silicon Valley photos and clever quotes, which open each chapter. Settings and situations will be familiar to industry types, but the jargon is not overwhelming. The book is even dedicated to the Pets.com Sock Puppet.

VULTURE CAPITAL is the second in a series featuring August Riordan, a private eye we first met in Coggins' well-reviewed debut THE IMMORTAL GAME (2000). THE IMMORTAL GAME received extraordinary attention for a debut title from a very small press. It was chosen as a Penzler pick and nominated for a Shamus Award. This would only happen because the book was good. Expect similar praise for VULTURE CAPITAL. According to the excellent Vulture Capital Website... we can expect more titles to come in the Riordan series

The story really has good descriptions(I know because I've been to the light house in the book)and it really makes a picture in your mind of what it would of been like back then!This is one of my favorite books so I would definitely recommend it!

The story, Walk Across the Sea, by Susan Fletcher, takes place at a town near the ocean. White people thought themselves superior to others, especially the Chinese. Chinese were often looked down upon and shunned, mainly because of their religious beliefs. The lighthouse keeper's daughter, however, was different from other white people. Believing her father's talks about Chinese people in the beginning of the story, the girl, Eliza Jane, meets a Chinese boy around her age. After the Chinese boy saves her goat, Eliza becomes interested in the boy's behavior. Soon, she learns that everyone may not be as they seemed.
This story was rather interesting in a way. The time of the story show how the characters act and think. The story also shows how different some characters are, such as Eliza's father and mother. ("Something moved inside me, like a sudden shift in the wind.") Eliza was also, in a way, different from other white people. She befriended and showed kindness toward the Chinese boy. ("`You'll do him no harm? I have your word on it?'") I was also amazed by the twist of the story when the story reveals that the father truly worries about the Chinese boy.
Of all of the stories I have read, I have never found one that was perfect. This story is no different. When the Chinese people were driven out of the village by angry white people, I could feel the same shock and anger Eliza felt. The story, however, has a few more bad parts. One boy, Amos, accidentally broke Eliza Jane's nose while trying to find the Chinese boy. Afraid that he might get in trouble, the boy lied to his father about breaking Eliza's nose. To make matters worse, Amos blames the fault on the Chinese boy! ("I had a mind to shout at him, to tell him to put her down...") On the other hand, I did not like how Eliza acted toward the Chinese boy when they first met. When the boy yelled a warning, Eliza thought he was trying to scare her off so he could steal her goat. Therefore, when the boy was holding the goat, Eliza thought that he was taking the goat from her, when what really happened was that the boy saved the goat from a wave. Even so, that was not the worst part of the story. ("`Get you from me,' he said. `I can't be near you now. Get out of my sight!'") As a father, Eliza's father was expected by me to listen and talk to Eliza about her Chinese friend, and maybe even understand why she was protecting him. As a result, I was shocked and disappointed in her father when he told her that he did not even want to talk to her! Thankfully, there was nothing worse than this part of the story.
("Terrible things can happen in this world-things you can't explain away. It's not safe here, Andrew John. I can't promise you'll be safe. But there are miracles, too-like you. And love. And glories well beyond our knowing.") The ending, where Eliza talks to her baby brother about life and the Chinese boy was my favorite part. It ties everything together and concludes the story about friendship.

Ever since she was three years old, Eliza Jane McCully has lived in the lighthouse at Crescent City, California, where her father is the keeper. Now thirteen, Eliza has many responsibilities, helping her father to keep the light burning, and eagerly awaiting the birth of her new baby sibling. One day while chasing her stubborn goat across the pathway to the island, she is caught by a wave. A Chinese boy saves her goat and warns her about the wave just in time. Eliza is confused, because her father has taught her that the Chinese are evil heathens. An unexpected tragedy causes Eliza to doubt her own beliefs as well as questioning her father's. When the townspeople run the Chinese out of Crescent City, Eliza watches in horror, unable to do anything. But when the boy who rescued her comes to her for help, Eliza must make the ultimate decision. Is she is brave enough to openly defy her father? I highly reccomend this novel to readers who enjoy historical fiction.

genre: historical fiction
setting: 1886, Crescent City CA and its lighthouse
1st person account of Eliza, 15 yrs, protagonist

Eliza struggles to come to terms with the contrast/mystery between a merciful God and the loss of a prematurely born sibling together with rampant community prejudice toward Chinese immigrants.

Fletcher's description of lighthouse technology and administration and tidal cycles is captivating for someone who has been landlocked most of his life.

What makes the story is the unmasking of fear and loathing toward Chinese immigrant laborers who came to America to bridge our country from Atlantic to Pacific with the building of the railroad and to incur exploitation for the sake of sustaining loved ones back home.

This is the account of the expulsion of Chinese residents from Crescent City, CA due to fears of job loss by white, Christian families. It is part of my own legacy--Chinese residents were massacred and railroaded out of Rock Springs, WY, my own native state, around the same time.

Fletcher makes good use of artifacts and dialogue of the period to firmly ground the story. The one shortcoming--Chinese characters are underdeveloped. It's an engrossing story.

* title of book chapter

18th century California was a time of prejudice. Walk Across the Sea, centers around independent Eliza Jane, a young teenage girl who lives with her parents in a northern California lighthouse. When a mysterious Chinese immigrant boy saves her goat from the California waters, she tries to find him to pay him back. She soon learns that prejudice surrounds the Chinese by the people of her town. Along the way helping her is her brave and helpful friend Sadie, her open minded and kind neighbor, Dr Wilton and her pet goat Parthenia. This story has a mix of friendship, prejudice, religion, compassion, and morality. This out of the ordinary story shows prejudice back then and gives lessons on how we can be rid of prejudice today. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is interested about life in general. Walk Across the Sea makes you think about things that you normally wouldn't think about in life. You learn you always have to been open minded and very conscious of other people and their beliefs. If you want to read a different story, Walk Across the Sea is for you! I also recommend ALL books in the Dear America, My Name Is America, and Royal Diaries Series.

Ron Alexander has written a very funny, poignant and altogether great page-turner. It reads like a breeze and the characters, abetted by Alexander's sharp and flawless ear for dialog and satire, are always engrossing and immediately endearing. One loves them all-warts and all. The author has managed effortlessly to juggle the disparate themes of dog-loving, AIDS, small-town bombastic politics, opera, muscle-obsessed gym addicts, cross-dressing Divas and strippers, and has accomplished this without ever resorting to condescension or ridicule--no mean task. This is my first read of a work by Ronald Alexander. It will not be my last. A really terrific novel that I recommend without reservation.

A special "Bravo" must be awarded for the wonderfully witty illustrations by Nathan Greene that add aptly wry comments on the proceedings.

This is a big-hearted, comic page-turner with multiple layers. Among them, there's a family melodrama that would make Douglas Sirk proud. There's a send-up of local law-and-order politics. There's even a story-within-a-story, a drag cabaret take on the Wilde/Strauss opera, "Salome" (re-tooled to "Salami" in this version). The sub-plots and character arcs are interwoven in a clever structure reminiscent of Russian nesting dolls.

The three main characters open in a joyless, in-between universe of mundane, small-stakes tragedy, disappointment, and fear of ending up alone, all drifting to oblivion. Sergeant Smeltzkoff is finishing his LAPD career on dog duty, viewing himself a personal and professional failure. The Sergeant's son Bobby, HIV positive, and fleeing an unsatisfying relationship, returns to LA from NY to stage his opera Salami, while feuding privately and publicly with his inflexible father. Bobby quickly befriends his father's beautiful stripper girlfriend, Violet, who has a dark past, and a strong, unfulfilled need for stability.

Bitchy, witty dialog and multiple plot lines speed the story along, but also perform sleight-of-hand, amusing the reader, while the characters draw us in with their all-too-authentic longing for acceptance and connection. The high visibility plot lines are great fun: the Sergeant's zero tolerance policy towards dogs on Venice Beach is operatic and media-drenched, and Bobby's cock-opera literally incites a riot. But all three characters face real threats, and the danger doesn't just come from the deadly diseases that loom over them (AIDS and Cancer). They're also all infected by their pasts, which initially seem to doom them, and test the limits of forgiveness.

At key moments, the book switches tone to great effect. At the height of the story's comic absurdity, the Sergeant says, "Bobby Smelzkoff is my son." This simple line is spoken, uninflected, to a desert stranger, by a character who has mostly behaved as a likable, macho buffoon. But it comes out as both a confession and a surprisingly touching epiphany. As in all good comedy, the depth and humanity of the story sneaks up on the reader, shielded by irony. Very satisfying.

The War on Dogs is a fascinating novel that often forces the reader to enjoy and sympathize with a character that at first seems unlikeable. The depth of Smeltzkoff is especially impressive. His struggle with his son Bobby, and the issues he has with his homosexuality, is in turns amusing and touching.

Alexander's satire is a great read for those looking for an emotional, character-driven novel as well as those looking to laugh. His prose is accessible and witty in the style of Ian McEwan and William Trevor.

Ron Alexander's "War on Dogs in Venice Beach" is a great social satire that digs much deeper than a dog problem in Venice Beach,California.It is full and rich, funny and sad. It is a very intelligent and intorospective read.Enjoy!

In Venice Beach, California the owners of beachfront property are livid as the once immaculate sand and spotless parks are being destroyed by dogs. One cannot walk let alone jog without stepping on canine crap. Pet owners seem indifferent to the plight of the affluent while the wealthy homeowners demand the city takes the dogs and their owners to the pound.

LAPD Police Sergeant Smelzkoff is assigned the canine caper case. He feels this is fitting as his life has been one toilet bowl of sh*t after another. Before he begins in total earnest THE WAR ON DOGS IN VENICE BEACH, he is in Manhattan helping his gay son Bobby pack to move in with him in California. Bobby, who suffers from HIV positive, and his dad may love one another, but the continent separation was good for both of them. In Venice Beach, Smelzhoff's campaign is one of stealth and precise military operations as he and his animal control squad arrest offenders (human and dog - no prejudice with this group) who leave their dogs to wander the beach unleashed or fail to pick up after their canine takes a crap. Meanwhile Bobby finds his dad's sh**ty case amusing and with the help of his father's stripper girlfriend Violet writes an opera that satires the war on dogs.

This is a terrific humorous parody on societal struggles between no compromise groups; in this case dog owners and beachfront property owners as the former claim pooping is God's natural way of fertilizing while the latter insists not for their feet. Fans will appreciate this well written satire that spoofs "ism" wars culminating with Bobby writing Salami the opera lampooning how far his once proud John Wayne like dad has fallen when he became the five star general leading THE WAR ON DOGS IN VENICE BEACH.

Harriet Klausner

This is the latest of many maps I've purchased for Baja, and by far it's the best one! The things I love the most: it's basic topographic, with perennial streams and springs marked, and road-quality marked the best of any of the maps I have; the settlements and important points-of-interest (gas stations, etc.) are well- and accurately-marked; and it's waterproof (in case you spill your cafe on it). If they come out with another series that is more detailed (say a 1:250,000 scale), I'll be ecstatic!

I got the map and have spent hours looking at it. If there is a more detailed, current map of Baja I haven't seen it. I like that the peninsula is divided on both sides, allowing for a fantastic level of detail. The texture is also very durable, though I'm not sure that it is truly waterproof. If I could only take one publication with me to Baja, this would be it.

I love maps, and getting one that is water proof is the best laminate for the fact it still folds nice an stores in the map drawer or libary shelf. This came fast and was in perfect condition.

This is an excellent map. It helped us wander our way through Baja over spring break. It's plasticized material stands up to all kinds of abuse, and it contains an impressive amount of detail and useful information. Couple it with The Rough Guide to Baja California (Rough Guide Travel Guides) and you're ready for a guide time.



The only other map for Baja I'd recommend is the AAA one, free to members.

Great map. Water resistant would be more accurate description. A must map for Baja travel. Only complaint of its functionality would be some typos in names and legend icons. Complaint of its aesthetics would be the hideous photo on the cover. Baja is a beautiful peninsula, surely there were a thousand better images to feature on the cover of this map. Get it anyway.

Norman's book is great for offering an historical account of the screenwriting trade, something that is usually overlooked in the Syd Field age. The only problem I had personally with the book is that the author seemed to become a little enamored with the auteurs of the 70s toward the end and didn't really talk about the dedicated screenwriters as much. While I think the stories about guys like Coppola and Lucas are interesting and eye-opening, it would have been nice to hear more about the trials and tribulations of the people whose names weren't above the title during those years.

Overall, a great book, though. It should definitely be on the core reading list of any screenwriting program--from the community group to the graduate level.

This exhaustively researched book starts at the very beginning then steps through each of the decades since D. W. Griffith's famous movie, all in a very entertaining manner.
Not satisfied simply with recounting the history of screenwriting and screenwriters in all their various guises, the author serves up cogent analysis about the business of movie making then comes to the conclusion that whatever else comes down the pike, in whatever form and whatever else screenwriters are called, there will always be a place for the content generator, or composer as he would prefer.
Excellent reading and enjoyable.

Academy award winner Marc Norman's "What Happens Next: A History of American Screenwriting" is as entertaining as a good movie. It can be studied as serious movie history--his description of the forces that moved the early movie industry from the East coast to the West is as good as any I've ever read--or perused as titillating, yet intelligent gossip. The men and women who wrote the words and stories so frequently disparaged and often disregarded by directors, producers, and heads of studios come alive in "What Happens Next" through anecdote, letters, and reminiscences.

From William Faulkner to Anita Loos (the highest paid screenwriter of her day), from Quentin Tarantino to Charlie Kaufman, this book is a delight for any movie fan or writer, or anyone who's ever enjoyed a juicy bit of scandalous gossip.

This book is phenomenal. Not only is it well-written and comprehensive, but it fills a horrendous gap in the legacy of screenwriting and its impact on movies.

Other than Ian Hamilton's terrific work on the early years of screenwriting, this book immediately becomes the cornerstone, the bedrock of the genre -- and for very good reason. It's not just a book about the writers themselves, but how the art and craft of screenwriting have evolved in the context of film. What we get is an alternate point of view that has for too long been neglected in entry-level cinema history.

Starting from Edison, Edwin Porter and D.W. Griffith, we travel the well-trodden (but freshly invigorated) path through the studio system and on into modern movie-making -- with the twist that the writer has not been brushed aside. In fact, we immediately see how crucial key scribes have contributed to the development of the art.

It's a cliche in Hollywood that the writer is abused and overlooked (ask a striking member of the WGA if you don't believe me). But other than a work stoppage, nothing can rectify the place of the writer in the public's awareness more than a historical overview with the screenwriter placed in his or her rightful place -- at the center of the creative process itself.

This is not a scree or a polemic, but a finely written, highly entertaining look at Hollywood. I find myself referring to it all the time. In fact, I've recreated my entire Netflix queue around areas of my movie history that could use some screenings. And I've become a big fan of Anita Loos! (You too will discover that at least 50% of the early screenwriters were women, with Anita being its first breakout star.)

Like a great film, this book immerses you in a world and rivets you to your chair. If you are a writer or a curious film buff, you owe it to yourself to pick up a copy. It will reward you with many great nights of delight and discovery -- a claim not enough movies themselves can make these days.

As a "recovering screenwriter," I can bear witness to the sometimes painful, sometimes hilarious authenticity of "What Happens Next."
It's a history that needed to be told and Marc Norman has done it with head and heart.

i knew i was buying a used book so when it arived i wasn't suprised that it was a little musky. it didn't matter to me and i enjoyed every page. It was a really good read

I've read this book many times and I never get tired of the honesty and humor in it. Some books are not worth reading a second time, but I've found this one only gets better with repeated readings. Zesty...funny...hopeful...all those things.

loved the book. it reminded me alot of my own life

I read What It's Like To Live Now 2.5 years ago. I read it twice and some parts three times.

That time I was confused with my affectional orientation and wanted to know what gay and lesbians are like. I read books of social science research, gay Christian prayers, hate crime reporting, gay marriage, ethics and more.

This is the most inspiring for me. It teaches me what love is. A personal story tells much more than scientific research and theories.

Humorous look at life in the 90s from the point of view of a divorced mother trying to raise a family with her lover. Her insight was touching. At times she seemed a little self absorbed, but isn't that what autobiographies are all about. She has a story to tell and does it well. I eagerly await her next book.

As a person very interested in California history, I thoroughly enjoyed "When the Great Spirit Died" by William B. Secrest. It is the most informative and educational book I have read about the Native American Indian tribes of early California. Mr. Secrest's clear descriptions of the culture and way of life of California's first inhabits stirs the imagination. He vividly illustrates how cultures clashed with the arrival of the white settlers. He truly makes history come to life. I highly recommend this well-written book.

William Secrest has once again done an outstanding job of historical research. This book explores one of the most painful episodes of Euro-American history, and brings to light the attitudes and morays of early settlers whose goal was, indeed, to exterminate the Native American population. He offers irrefutable proof of a shameful period in our history, one that we need to recognize and deal with.
It is a factual and well-written documentary that every American should read, especially those of us whose roots go back to those settlers.

Len Wilcox
Author, Desert Dancing

This history deserves to be better known. They didn't teach this in school or college when I was growing up; and when traveling to the various historical sites and museums in the state you'll see few references to the many sorry episodes well told in this excellent book.

The book is broken into eighteen chapters. The first briefly sketches the history of the California Indians to 1850. The following chapters are each a regionally centered story of the one-sided conflicts during the period 1850-1860 that traditional histories refer to as Indian `troubles' or `wars'; but is no different from the genocides or ethnic cleansing of more recent times.

The author makes powerful use of newspaper accounts, diaries and similar sources to tell the stories of the brutal destruction of California's original inhabitants by Americans flooding in. As the settlers and miners spread throughout the state they took land and, more importantly, access to traditional sources of food away from the local Indians. And no matter whether the Indians resisted or cooperated the men, women and children were killed with impunity. Many children were sold into slavery; many women were kidnapped and raped or forced into prostitution. Treaties weren't honored. Assistance from the Federal Indian Department was diverted by corrupt officials. Even on the reservations the Indians starved and were ravaged by disease. It can be a difficult read.

The author acknowledges that he isn't an academic historian or anthropologist; and thankfully this book is free of 'theory', although it might have benefited from some additional context. It is nonetheless well referenced for those looking to check his facts and sources. And it is a history well worth knowing and thinking about.

As Jonathan Kirsch says in the March 2, 2002 LA Times Book Review section (p.R2), 'Secrest reminds us that the California dream was a nightmare for its original inhabitants... For anyone whose knowledge of California history derives from bland grade-school textbooks, Secrest's book will be nothing less than shocking." An important supplemental history to the usual tales of missions and the gold rush in California.

This history of the destruction of California's Indians covers a narrow time frame from 1850-1860, but documents a startling point in American history where Indians were slaughtered and hunted. When The Great Spirit Died probes the philosophy behind these killings, using source material references, previously unpublished material, and a host of vintage black and white photos to capture the terrible events. A 'must' for any Native American history collection from high schools through public libraries.

I thought this book covered some very practical ideas. A lot of the stories found in the book were a bit surprising. He truly made a turn around with some of these kids. He also admits that not everything worked.

At times I found myself getting a little caught up with his sense of an ego lingering through the pages. I almost felt as if there was a bit of bragging going on. Although I think he is a man who deserves to boast since he sacrificed a lot of time and money to help others, not mention often putting his life at risk for his kids.

I gained a couple of good ideas about how to get kids inspired to do things, to build up courage to do the right thing, to ask more of parents, and most of all to emphasize strong morals and values. I'm not talking about religious morals, he vaguely mentions them, I'm talking about being a good person and fighting for justice in your daily life.
He talked about sacrifice, work ethic, respect, integrity. I even learned some things about these values myself. It's what this nation educational system is lacking and I'm glad he brought up!

One thing I found faulty with his system: he had the option of kicking kids out of his schools if they chose not to comply with his standards. That is one very significant option teachers and parents usually don't have.

However, he emphasized parents roles in their children's lives. I would definitely recommend this to parents, because he acknowledges that more often than not bad behavior is caused by a weak structure at home, reading this would only help. He really brings these kids back from the dead as well as some families in the process. I'm glad someone finally acknowledged the growing problem of education systems: the lack of care or concern for these kids BEYOND the classroom.

Mr. White doesn't claim to have a system to cure all of the schools' ills but he certainly has a good start. He also makes the statement that today's kids aren't any worse than we were but just the boundaries aren't as well defined as we had back in the 50's and 60's.

Mr. White does admit to his failures, not every one has coming through his doors went out a better human being but many are able to shop where they want and get ahead instead of stuck in the same dependency cycle.

His rules are simple. He outlines them in the book and how he applies them. He told a story on the radio about a wealthy parent pulling her child out of an expensive private school to attend his charter school. The usual method of admission to his school, Mr. White jokes, is 2 felony convictions. The wealthy parent was impressed with how the kids behaved and were learning much more than at the expensive private school.

Now there is a caveat here, Mr. White's school is only 30 to 40 students with himself, a probation officer, and another teacher in a tough part of town. The teachers and the students spend the whole school day together talking about personal issues as well as the educational topics.

Mr. White has taught in regular schools and admits he has as many non-contract renewals as awards, so everything has not been a bed of roses. He says the biggest key is the administration backing up the teachers and principals. The parents need to talk with the teachers - so this isn't just a teacher working against the system but creating a support system for the students.

paul white has made it simple...just do what is already available to do..the kids will get there if we let them and encourage them. this is a must read for everyone...

i passed this book on to some teachers and adminstrators...they tell me there is a waiting list to read it.

well done

There's tendency as a veteran teacher of twenty-five years to think I have all the answers about how to run an effective classroom. White's Rules is a reminder that what is basic in life is also basic in the classroom. The classroom must provide more than academic instruction; it must be a place where teachers establish the primary values and morals that their students need to survive in the world outside the classroom. This book shows how teachers can demand bedrock solid values of their students and reap the rewards of mutual respect that such values create. White's Rules is not just a book for inner city teachers and their "incorrigibles" it is also a book for teachers like me in the suburbs with diverse middle class kids. The combination of strict consistent discipline and unconditional love is a formula that works. I recommend this book to anyone looking to find what's essential and what works in the classroom today.

I agree with the many points that White makes. Kids will naturally test limits and so clearly defined limits with significant consequences are necessary. But while enforcing rules that students must be punctual, not swear, and not dress like a gangster are worthwhile, the later half of the book is the most important. Teachers should not simply teach kids academics, they also need to teach morals, how to live right, to care for others, and to make a difference. While his rules might not be able to be enforced so strictly everywhere, I think they can be modified and adapated for most schools and other similar organizations. The book is motivational and encouraging, I recommend it to parents, educators, and anyone who works with groups of adolescents.

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 weaker for women and Asians. Another questionable use of data by "racial realists" is their concentration of Berkeley in the 1980s. There the white graduation rate within 6 years was 88% but only 59% for blacks. But in 28 other colleges the white average was 86% and the black average 75%. Might this not say more about the problems of particular universities than an inherent cultural failing of African-Americans?

We also learn about a third wave of criminology scholarship and we learn how only 26% of the gap between blacks and whites drug offences in Pennsylvania is the result of the higher arrest rate among blacks. Even after making every allowance Georgia blacks are five times more likely to get life sentences for drug offences than whites. We see at every stage of the arrest process, from scholars such as Madeline Wordes, George Bridges, and Michael Leiber, a clear bias against African-Americans. Although the prospect that somewhere, somehow affirmative action might hurt white men has haunted the conservative imagination, only 4% of 1990-94 sex/age discrimination suits were launched by white men, (yet they file three-quarters of age discrimination suits). Oddly enough, racial realists have blamed blacks for inadequate black representation. Supposedly they won't vote for whites. Yet in the past few decades only 0.5% of white majority districts elections have chosen a black representative. And whites have shown great reluctance or active hostility in voting for blacks in prominent elections in Chicago, Philadelphia and California. The authors conclude with sensible suggestions for reforms in education, stronger civil rights protection and an improved welfare state.