Washington Books

Alaska is rarely included in Bigfoot books and Rob does a fine job of cataloging sightings in the Southeast part (Panhandle) of Alaska. He adds some good Northwest Native folklore as well as very good timelines and sighting location maps.

I give high praise to Mr. Alley for a job well done and may he write many more in the future!
This is the way to research and write about Bigfoot/Sasquatch, with facts and without contradictions or second guessing one's self!
Where I'm from, Maine, the French call Bigfoot "Loup Garou," which is french for "werewolf; wild beast."
I highly recommend this book. AAAAA+++++
Ken T. ~~

I've been caught-up in the whole Sasquatch/Cryptozoology phenomenon since Jr. High, and consider myself very well read on the subject; John Green, Rene Dahinden, Loren Coleman, etc. But found this particular book extremely interesting. I was aware of several remote sightings in our 49th state, but didn't realize how frequent the sightings, and the rich prospect of scientific breakthrough. I wouldn't be surprised if the final solving of this mystery occurs in Alaska. I did however expect more reports from British Columbia and Washington State, but past publications, and the numerous Internet websites cover those areas quite well. Stunning eyewitness accounts, and absorbing data. I can't wait for future works on the subject from Mr. Alley.

If you are seriously interested in bigfoot or if you just find the topic intriguing or if you are looking for a good casual read, then you need this book. Its well written and easy to read. It is limited in scope, spatially. The author only considers the raincoast region of NA. Yet, the author has a good geographic knowledge of the area and places everything in that context. For that reason, the author doesn't fall into the "I'll hinge all bets on the Patterson footage" pitfall that so many of these guys can't avoid. All-in-all its a very good book with Coleman's book pulling up second. Plus, you won't have to hide it when the neighbors come over. Let them read a few pages and get drawn in.

Great book, a lot of facts, a lot of information, interesting. A well roundes researcher as well as author. Eric J. Mazzi

The book was shipped in the condition described and by the time I needed it.

I Love This Entire Series! The author makes history so interesting. I have enjoyed learning U.S. History all over again (more like for the first time) with my kids. Recommend the whole set!

When I first saw this book, I expected it to be like the awful textbooks found in schools across the country (the ones you could fall asleep reading), but it was nothing like what I had anticipated it being. Joy Hakim's fabulous writing, and the fun facts and illustrations scattered throughout this book make history seem like an ongoing story. Good for kids and adults alike!

This book is really supposed to be for little kids in elementary school, but I am reading it to understand my U.S. history class in high school, because it conveys our history with such clarity, and doesn't muddle things up like big ol' textbooks. SO BUY THIS NOW!You won't regret it...I wish I could have given this book more than 5 stars.

"Reconstructing America 1865-1890," the 7th volume in Joy Hakim's A History of US series, expands the notion of reconstruction, usually applied only to the Southern states of the former Confederacy to include the entire nation. In her preface to the volume Hakim declares "Are We Equal? Are We Kidding?" Her point is to underscore the Declaration of Independence's famous proposition that all men are created equal and to point out that ending slavery does not really free people if they are denied education and jobs. However, while the issue of racial division begins and ends this book, Hakim covers the entire domestic history of the United States in between the Civil War and the rise of the nation as a world power.

This volume does not have a formal structure but you can still find four rather distinction units. The first (Chapters 1-10) talks specifically about Southern Reconstruction and the fight between President Andrew Johnson and Thaddeus Stevens, leader of the Radical Republicans in Congress. The second (Chapters 11-18) tells about the opening of the West and Indians ordered to reservations. The third (Chapters 19-25) contrasts the world of Boss Tweed and Thomas Nast, P.T. Barnum and Mark Twain, with the immigrants who came to both coasts of the country. The fourth (Chapters 26-37) starts with the beginning of the movement towards rights for women and ends with Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois taking on the Jim Crow laws, with the birth of the Industrial Revolution and its patron saint Thomas Alva Edison in between.

As you can see, this is an inelegant division of these 37 chapters at best. But in the second half of the 19th-century of American history lacks the direction of the first, where the nation was hurdling towards Civil War. The idea that America was indeed reconstructing, or remaking itself, makes sense. However, there is no finality to the story at this point because equality between the sexes and the races are still a half and full century away respectively. One sign of the changing focus of history is that George Armstrong Custer and the Battle of the Little Big Horn is literally a marginal topic while the story of Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce gets an entire chapter.

These volumes are wonderfully illustrated, with historic photographs, paintings, and in this particular volume political cartoons that help bring the period alive. Throughout the book you will find detailed features on subjects such as the first conservationist, John Wesley Powell, and the Route of the Nez Perce in 1877. As always the margins are crammed with notes, definitions, mini-biographies, and choice quotations. For children raised on computers and the Internet it is clear that Hakim is speaking their language, and for parents home schooling their children they will find Hakim to be an active teacher who anticipates questions and concerns from students even when she is writing and book and they are reading it. This is an excellent series of American history textbooks.

Dominique & Trinidad's story was one of almost losing, and find love again. I am glad they were able to work through their differences. I won't give away the story, I encourage you to read the book. I am a big Altonya Washington fan, and have read all of her books. This one and "Admission of Love" are my favorites!

Trinidad Salem loves his wife, Dominique, very much, but when he
learns of a secret she had been keeping since they've know each other,
Trin felt deeply betrayed and angry-so much so, that he demands a
divorce. However, before anything could be resolved between them, Dom
was presumed dead in a tragic plane crash. Totally devastated at the
loss of his wife, Trin turned to his work and sought out professional
help to deal with his anger and bereavement. Then about a year later,
Trin receives some unbelievable news - Dom is alive! Ecstatic, Trin
immediately rushes to her side only to learn that Dom has no memory of
him or their marriage. Because. Not about to let a second chance at
his marriage slip through his fingers, Trin begins to court Dom,
hoping that one day soon she will regain her memory and they could
resolve the issue that threatened to tear them apart.

Dominique awakens in a hospital with no recollection of who she is or
how she got there. And, then a handsome stranger appears claiming
that he was her husband and that they were very much in love.
Attracted to him from the start, Dom allows herself to be romanced by
Trin. However, her newly found happiness is short-lived when Dom has
a minor head banging accident that causes her to regain her memory.
Now, Dom realizes that before her amnesia, her marriage was on a
downward spiral and very close to a divorce because of a secret from
her past.

Is all hope lost or will Dom and Trin be able to mend their broken
marriage before the point of no return?

The plot in Remember Love circles around two main issues - secrets and
anger. The heroine was keeping a secret that caused major destruction
to her marriage which leads to the hero unable to maintain control
over his rage and being on the verge of expressing a violent behavior.
Although, Dom should not have kept the secret, I could totally
understand the reason why she chose not to tell Trin. She knew Trin
would be heartbroken and she did not want to cause him unnecessary
emotional pain and heartache. Nevertheless, she never would have
imagined his reaction to be as such. And, if the secret from her past
wasn't a big enough conflict, Dom's job as an investigative reporter
caused even more havoc on their relationship, because Dom's new
assignment was to investigate the company where Trin was the CEO.
Yikes! There are some sexual scenes throughout the book, but they are
vanilla and gently described. Remember Love is AlTonya Washington's
debut novel and I found it to be a pleasant, enlighten read.

Nikita Steele
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

ALTonya Washington is a very complete writer, and provides her readers with the full monty; in that she develops her characters completely, leaving no loose ends. This gives her stories, and the people who read them, a feeling of caring and, also displays the skills she has as a writer. I recently discovered this author, and subsequently ordered three more of her books on the spot! I found the same trend in each book! ALTonya has a reader in me as long as she stays true to this writing style.

This review applies to: Remember Love
A Lover's Dream
and
Love Scheme

I loved this book; could not put it down. The characters, plot, sex scenes were well written. I could not put it down until I finished and when I did, I wished for more to read. This is definetly a keeper for my personal library. I am looking forward to more from this author.

I enjoy very much, the strong and the weak part about these two people was enjoyable read, this is a great story.

I am new to local geology and found this very readable. It read like an interesting book, as opposed to a textbook.

Once, while hiking the North Cascade mountains with my uncle, Duwayne Marlo Anderson (a noted geologist), he pointed to a particular mountain and explained to me how it had moved, by the forces of plate tectonics, from a position far to the south, northward, up the coast, to be lodged in its current location in northwestern Washington.

Four years later I found myself at Paradise, in Mt. Rainier National Park. I'd come there for a weekend of snowshoeing with my wife and her parents, but I'd inadvertently forgotten to bring the book I was reading ("The New Science of Evo Devo, Endless Forms Most Beautiful," by Sean B. Carroll). Desperate to find something to read (I feel naked without a book in tow) I found my way to the gift shop and stumbled across "The Restless Northwest" on display. Leafing through the book, I happened to turn to page 58, which describes two superterranes that were lodged against the northwest coast of ancient North America roughly 50 million years ago, pushed into place by the movements of the ancient Kula and Farallon plates. Here was the explanation for the mountain that my uncle had pointed out years earlier. I snatched up the book and read it cover to cover over the next 5 days.

This is an absolutely great book. Hill Williams is a respected and accomplished science writer with a distinguished carrier. He understands the story, and has the writing skills to make it interesting. And what a story it is.

Williams begins by taking us back 200 million years ago to the super continent Pangaea and describes how it broke apart, pulled in different directions by the forces of plate tectonics. He tells the story from a story teller's perspective, weaving the various narratives of plate tectonics, seafloor spreading, volcanism, glacial activity, etc. into the chronicle that describes how the Northwest came by its unique landscape. Of the many topics Williams covers, a few stand out in my mind as the most interesting. First on my list of favorites is his explanation of how the Rocky Mountains were formed. Second is the way he recounts the additions of superterranes and their part in forming the northwest corner of Washington, as well as the Canadian Rockies and Vancouver Island. Possibly the most interesting story he tells is that of the great basaltic floods that covered the Columbia River basin, flowing over much of eastern Washington, even following the course of the Columbia River all the way to the Pacific Ocean. My personal favorite, though, is his description of the great floods that accompanied the semi-cyclic emptying of ancient Lake Missoula.

While those were the highlights for me, there were many other fascinating accounts, including massive underwater flows caused by earthquakes, and the earthquakes themselves, powerful enough to lift whole sections of the landscape by meters, while equally depressing other regions. And, of course, there is the story of the cascade volcanoes, symbol of the Pacific Northwest itself.

This is a relatively short book (only about 160 pages - I read it in less than a week), but it's surprisingly complete and detailed. The illustrations add greatly to the book. They are well drawn, easy to read, and they speak to the text using the same terminology.

This book will appeal most to the casual weekend geologist (I place myself in that category). If you enjoy hiking the Northwest, and especially the Cascades, Columbia River Gorge, and/or Olympics, the book should have special value in helping to explain the formations you'll see, and the forces that created them. The next time you find yourself on a craggy peak deep in the Olympic National Forest, and you look down to see a marine fossil or sedimentary rock at your feet, you'll know why (if you read the book).

As I read this book I had only one regret. I kept wishing I could see a movie that illustrates the string of events described here. I've seen short animations that trace a billion yeas of continental movement in a few minutes or so. That's not what I'm talking about here, though. I'm talking about an animated, narrated production, 45-60 minutes long, tracing the formation of the Pacific Northwest with as much detail as that given by Williams. Until the movie comes out, though, you'll have to read the book. Needless to say, this is one that I highly recommend. Happy reading!

It isn't often one finds a simply written, slender volume
that covers this much ground (sorry). Williams uses analogy
and simple illustrations to present a smack-up-to-date
understanding of Pacific Northwest Geology. Best of all,
he does it in a way that draws the reader into the
scientific process -- the geologists in the submarines
exploring ocean vents and fairylike mineral castles,
or scrambling through brush looking for places where
the pattern of rocks changes dramatically very quickly,
or frustrated in their efforts to gain access to layers
deeply embedded in the earth that might help answer their questions.

From beaches in West Seattle, to tree rings underwater
in Lake Washington, Williams tells great stories of
the puzzles presented in the earth around us, and the
people who figure them out.

"The Restless Northwest" by Hill Williams is a well written commentary on those fundemental processes responsible for shaping our Pacific Northwest. Hill's straight-forward style of presenting technical subjects makes the book an excellent source of geologic information, particularly for the casual reader. His depth of understanding of complex processes and ability to explain them in a manner comprehensible to most readers is commendable. With numerous simple diagrams together with easily understood discussions, he has clearly explained such technical processes as plate tectonics, geologic terranes, the great floods from ancient Lake missoula and many others. Willams has a knack for accurately converting complex sientific data to a form well understood by the general public. I have read a number of books that attempt this challenge and in my opinion "The Restless Northwest, a geologic story" is one of the best of its kind.

The authour, Hill williams was a science writer for the Seattle Times for twentt-four years, not a professor of geology, there in lies his power as a story teller, and by God what a story.
The story of our great NorthWest spans 175 million years, to a time when there was no Atlanic Ocean,to a world pushed together, all in a prehistoric hairball-"Pangaea" (MOM).

This is a new look at a very complex history of the world, plate movement, over a incomprehinicble time span, but with the use of tons of maps, common but understandable nartive, this work is outstanding

Rick and Bubba have done it yet again with another outstanding literary masterpiece. They are the tops of their business, and they aren't ashamed of who they are, and where they stand. They have numerous good ideas for our country, and they truly "care" about our wonderful country, and how they could change it, and help do their part to get things back to the way God Almighty intended. Our country will be in shambled politically when we choose our new administration, so choose Rick and Bubba, and get the book. It is a winner.

the book is so down to earth and real thinking. would love for them to be the presidents B U T ...... then we wouldn't have them on radio and their families would probably torn apart because of the stupid people "we the people" have allowed in congress and the other decision makers under the President. so i perfer them being on radio so i can enjoy them & hopdfully also they will get back on t v

If your laying on the beach with nothing to fuel your brain, I can heartily recommend this book as the funnest light read written by two jolly DJ's I've read this year!!!!
Tho they studiestly avoided quoting any of their illustrious interviewees, these two minds have found their twin in one another.
Please read. They must need the money or why write so many books!?!

I haven't finished this book yet, but have had some great chuckles so far. These guys are right on about the situation this country is in, and have some great ideas on how to make things better!! I had never heard of them before seeing a blurb on the internet about them. They are great, and I will purchase more books they have written.

after reading this book, there is no doubt in my mind that Rick & Bubba are the best candidates for president. if you are a true conservative, and you read this book, after you wipe the tears from your eyes from laughing so hard, it hits you that what they are saying is simply right on target. however funny they are, they also tell it like it is.

I read this book before giving it to my 8-year-old. I couldn't put it down. You will quickly come to care about the main character, Grace, and her family that has fallen on hard times. In this time when most kids have more stuff than they need and often feel entitled to more and more, this book really brings the Depression to life. Valuable lesson on what is truly important without being preachy.

There is a family: mama,papa,Pete,Grace,Iggy,and Owen. Pete is the oldest son and he is 13 or 14. Grace is only 11, and Iggy and Owen are still very young. Mama is expecting a baby soon, and the family has very little money to put food on the table. Pete and grace have to walk to the fire hydrant to get pails of water, every morning. Pete's left arm is not all there so he can not carry but one pail. One morning he starts coughing and breathing really hard, so his mom makes him dress extra warm. She tries to make him stay but he goes. It is the middle of winter outside. When they get to the hydrant the man opening it says he is going to have to move it to a different location, because it pours to much water into the grass or snow. The parents go poor and Pete gets really sick and they have to send all the kids away to a mission.They send Pete to a free hospital that won't cost them any money. The other three go to a mission near by. Grace makes a new friend while there, she also gets a chance to go to the Hammond's for Christmas. Grace,Iggy,and Owen go back home with their mom and baby sister.

Saving Grace was a really good book and probably one of my favorite books that I have read. Grace McFarland is a young girl who lived during the the Great Depression. At the begining of the story Grace played with an Ouija Board even though many times before her mother told her not to because the board was the work of the devil. The board predicted that Grace was going to start a new life. Grace has a terrible and a very rough life. She lives in an old and beaten up apartment building with her family. There are five people in her family. The people are Grace's mother and father, Owen who is four,Iggy who is around the age of one, and Pete who is 14. Grace's mom is also expecting a baby and they have no idea what they are going to do financially. They can barely feed themselves right now. It has gotten to the point that Grace and Pete take turns skipping meals. Pete and Grace are best-friens and they are very close. Pete is a great big brother and he loves to play marbles. The Great Depressin is at its' peak and jobs are almost impossible to find. The McFarland family keeps getting threatened to be evicted from their apartment. If it happens they wil probably have to live on the streets. Their dad is very upset and is doing any job he can get his hands on to keep the McFarlands from living on the street. He does construction jobs with railroad company evey once in a while to earn some extra cash. One night Pete and Grace decide to follow their dad. They end up finding out that he is brewing beer illegally. Grace and Pete's mom doesn't even know about so they have to keep it a secret from her too. They know that he is only doing it for their sake, but they are still upset with him. It gets to the point that Grace and Pete steal from other people and trade items to get money. One day Pete and Grave go down to get the water from outside at the fire hydrant and they find out they only have one or two more days until they get evicted from their home. When they go upstairs they tell their mother and she really begins to worry. Grace and Pete's stealing results in a list that has everything on it they have stolen. One day they agreed that they are going to repay everyone for what they stole from them. Grace keeps teh list in a little box that has all of her treasures in it. One day Grace's mother sent Grace and Pete to the alley store to get a few groceries for her. They used what little money they had earned from selling milk bottles to do so. On their way home a kid named Martin got in their way. He was with two other boys. Martin always teased Pete and he was a very unfriendly person to be around. One of the boys took the bag of groceries from Grace. They beat up Pete very badly. The boys and Martin finally ended up leaving.. No one was around to help Grace get Pete home. All of the groceies for supper were ruined along with breakfast for the next morning. On the way home they heard a small cry. The nightmare came to life in front of their eyes. On the sidewalk in front the apartment Mama sat crying on the four-poster bed that used to be in the apartment. All around on the ground the family's possessions were piled up. They had been thrown out for not paying the rent. Will Grace and her family have to live on the streets? Will the prediction that Grace is going to start a new life come true? You will have to read the awesome book Saving Grace to find out what happens.

Saving Grace, by Priscilla Cummings, is one of the best books that I have ever read! My mother always talked about going through the Great Depression and I would sit there and say, "Yeah yeah yeah..it's over now so drop it, ok?" But after reading this book, I see now what it was really like to go through the Great Depression. I found after finishing the book that I couldn't stop thinking about it! Very well written and incredibly real! I reccomend this novel to anybody who loves inspirational fiction! :-) !

I bought this book for my two grandaughters
ages 9 & 13. I started to read it myself and became
wrapped up in it. I felt as if I were twelve again
and going through what she was feeling. I grew up
in the Washington, D.C. and Maryland area and can
relate to a lot of the areas mentioned. It will hold
the childs attention as well as a mom and grandma's
attention.

Set along the desolate coast of the Pacific Northwest, Shadow Coast, conjures up a wonderful supernatural story involving ghosts, fear of the unknown and Native American mythology.
Mark Sayles sails to a remote island off the Washington coast to visit his wife who has been working on an archeological site. A powerful storm sinks his ship and two of his crewmates are killed. Half drowned Sayles is rescued by local islanders but once he recovers from the accident his world is thrown upside down when he discovers his wife is missing, and she isn't the one.
Then the mist and fog envelopes the coastline and Sayles and the town's folk begin seeing visions of people that should not be alive. The story develops with Sayles having to accept his wife's disappearance and probably death as he wrestles with the fact that supernatural forces may be at work and that no one is safe from the town's past or the superstition of a mythological deity that comes in with the mist to cleanse the town for long ago misdeeds.
The physical descriptions of the area are magnificent. I have never been to the Pacific Northwest but through Mr. Halderman I could envision myself standing along the bleak rocky coastline, with thick forests standing behind me and I can envision the fog as it forms over the sea and moves inland--I get scared just thinking about it.
Hopefully, Mr. Halderman has some more stories for us in the future and I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a great supernatural tale. One word of caution: Don't read this book if you find yourself alone on a remote island and the fog starts to roll in.

James Clifford
Reviews Editor, Northwoods Journal
Author, Double Daggers

I love this book, it is quite simply the best thing I have read in a really long time. I am recommending this to everyone I know. The story is exciting, eerie and chilling. The writing is wonderful and the characters believable. I cannot wait for Mr. Haledman's next book!

My husband read the first chapter and made the mistake of putting the book back on the coffee table. I was curious about the book, picked it up and could not put it back down. I even got up an hour early one morning to read more - and I am not a morning person... At night, I turned my daughter's nightlight on because I was too afraid to sleep in the dark.

This is a great read. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Very fast paced, very descriptive, very entertaining and may I say - addictive. I loved the writing style and character development. And I got that little kick in the butt which is always nice...

California architect Mark Sayres is on his way to the Pacific Northwest to retrieve his wife, Maggie, when the yacht he's traveling on is in a terrible accident at sea. Mark is hoping to get to Maggie as soon as possible; she's working at an archeological dig near the small island town of Neah Bay, and the last time he spoke to her she sounded strange. After recovering at the home of Sandra Torrel, Mark learns that Maggie has disappeared from the island without a trace. Hundreds of volunteers have been searching for her for days, with no luck. Maggie, though, is only the most recent person to disappear from the island; Sandra Torrel's husband is also missing, along with a string of others. And then, as the fog moves over the island, cloaking it to the point of invisibility, the missing begin to reappear against all odds, and there are whisperings that an ancient Native American evil has awakened from a century-long slumber...

SHADOW COAST's real strength lies in author Philip Haldeman's breathtaking physical descriptions, which evoke mist-laced beaches, verdant, dark forests, and an eerie coastal town brilliantly. These stunning descriptions are relayed with better-than-average prose in a tale of quiet horror. The novel moves along at a nice pace, and I could really feel the tension and fear in the narrative. The inclusion of Native American mysticism in the novel just made it ten times scarier for me.

While the novel's eerie atmosphere is clearly its strength, the characters are also well-fleshed-out and engaging. Haldeman does an excellent job of balancing Mark's grief with his desire to find out the truth, and he effectively relays Mark's internal struggle. Some of the more minor characters are equally fascinating; I really found myself trying to uncover some of the more mysterious characters' motivations and secrets.

SHADOW COAST isn't an in-your-face horror novel, not by any means. The horror here is quiet, subtle, soft as the fog in which it comes. It's psychological horror as much as it is physical, and it is relayed in a way that will send chills down your spine. And SHADOW COAST'S ending just blew me away; it almost reads like a really good horror movie ending -- twisty, unexpected, slightly repulsive, something you'll be thinking and talking about for days to come. SHADOW COAST was a deliciously scary treat, and I can't wait to see what Philip Haldeman does next!

A fantastic book. At once relentlessly paced, eerie, and terrifying, it's easily one of the most memorable horror novels I've read. The claustrophobia of a small town, the bleak forests and coastline, the mysterious mythologies of the Native American culture, and the increasingly bizarre and horrifying storyline combine to create something seriously original and engaging. Great, great stuff.

The centrality of Thoughts on Machiavelli within Strauss' work cannot be overemphasized. During his lifetime (by my count), Leo Strauss published some 14 or 15 books (depending on whether you count The History of Political Philosophy). Thoughts on Machiavelli was published in 1958. It had been preceeded by Persecution and the Art of Writing (1952) and Natural Right and History (1953) and was followed by What is Political Philosophy (1959) and The City and Man (1964). This five books form the central period of Strauss' work wherein he came to his mature philosophical outlook. The four books prior to PAW can be seen as the ground work for his mature work. The books that follow the central five can be seen as Strauss' return to classical political philosophy to try to reveal the grounding experiences that led to the development of classical political philosophy and what he saw as its version of natural right.
Thoughts on Machiavelli (hereafter ToM) is central in another sense. Strauss saw the history of philosophy as the struggle between the Ancients and the Moderns. This was the historical theme that he used to frame his main theme which was the fundamental alternative of Reason versus Revelation. Strauss saw the conflict between reason and revelation as playing out differently in classical political philosophy and in modern political philosophy. Machiavelli (hereafter, M.) is THE turning point.
ToM is divided into four chapters. The first delves into the relationship between Machiavelli's Prince and his Discourses. The second chapter explores what M.is trying to do in the Prince and the third chapter explores M.'s intention in The Discourses on Livy. The fourth (which is wonderful example of Strauss' frustrating, demanding and consice writing) is Struass' critique and explication of what M contributed to modern political thought.
A good deal of what Strauss is trying to do in the book is to get us to experience anew the traditional insight that M. is a teacher of evil. Strauss feels that M. rejects both Christian and classical political philosophy because M. felt they were both based on unrealistic, indeed, unattainable ideals of morality. These overreaching ideals had had a terrible impact on the Italy of M.'s time turning it into a weak and corrupt group of city states that were incapable of defending themselves let alone of achieving greatness.
M. wanted to replace these moral theories (and their subsequent political philosophies) with one that was based on man as he was, i.e., driven first by survival and then by the need to excel over other men. This was matched by M.s way of seeing the world- a universe ruled by nature and chance (no God, no teleology) that could be mastered by men who exercised prudence and strength of will. Preferably that would be in the form of an elite leading a republic but there were times (such as the founding of a city or after a republic had devolved into corrupt licentiousness) when the leadership demanded the ruthless efficiency of a prince willing to do what had to be done. Thus Strauss sees M. as neither an advocate of a republic or of a prince but of whatever was called for by the circumstances of the time.
One last thing-Strauss is hard to read largely for two reasons. The first is that he almost always chose to make his argument by commenting on the work of a great thinker such as M. This presents several difficulties. The reader has to keep in mind whose thought is being expressed at any one point in time. I have sometimes found myself thinking, "wha' the ...Oh, that isn't Strauss talking, that is Strauss talking in the voice of M. so as to present M.'s ideas.". The other difficulty inherent in commentaries is that it helps to know the writings of the thinker being commented on. And you will never know those writings as well as Strauss (I cannot exaggerate Strauss' learning). He not only makes use of M.'s Prince and Discourses but The Life of Castruccio Castracani, Mandragola, The History of Florence, An Exhortation to Penitence and the occassional letter.
The latter complication is what makes for the second great problem when reading Strauss. Enter The Notorious Theory of Esoteric Writing!!! ToM is lastly central because it allows the reader to really see Strauss working with his theory of esoteric writing/reading in the second and third chapters as well as the assumptions on which that theory is based (for example, the idea of "perfect speech" on p.121). Strauss makes the assumption that very little, perhaps nothing, in M.'s writing is a mistake. One commentator said that "in Strauss, a blink is always a wink" (sorry, I don't remember where I read that). If there is a contradiction between what M. said in two places, than there is a reason that has to be teased out.
I am going to make one comment on the whole esoteric business. I challenge any of you who think that it is an absurdity that some people wrote esoterically to do what Strauss and the better of his followers have done over and over again. Come up with a coherent interpretation of a thinker that is based on the whole of their work that has nothing to do with what that thinker thought. I don't think it can be done. I am not saying that Strauss is right. I am saying that he never spouts nonsense and that any commentator on M. has to deal with Strauss' presentation.
In the meantime, you will find much more to profit from by wrestling with Strauss in ToM. As I say over and over in my reviews of his writings, I agree with little of his philosophy but I have learned much from him. Read him for yourself and see what YOU think.
By the way, as a follow up reading, you might try Kim Sorensen's Discourses on Strauss. It is a close reading of ToM that focuses on how that particular book discloses Strauss' thought on his reason versus revelation theme.

Yes, Leo Strauss has the guts to say that Machiavelli is evil, and through a scintillating display of close reading, Strauss silently points, and nods, in the direction of the solution to why Machiavelli is evil. The other reviewers accurately convey the sense of mystery and sophistication about this text, but by reading Strauss's book "Persecution and the Art of Writing", the reader of "Thoughts on Machiavelli" may be able to arrive at the solution to the mystery.

A brilliant book.

One of the best and most important books of the 20th Century. I know that sounds ridiculous (shouldn't it be famous then?) but it's true. Strauss traces the beginnings of modernity to a concious design of Machiavelli's to overthrow all previous authority in favor of "new modes and orders." In other words, according to Strauss, the world we live in is not only not the result of imperonsal, inevitable "progress," it was made possible by one man who knew exactly what he was doing.

Through a detailed analysis of Machiavelli's books, Strauss shows how every important feature of modern thought is either directly traceable to Machiavelli, or else depends on a foundation he built. More importantly, Strauss outlines the differences between Machiavellism and what Machiavelli sought to replace--thereby making possible a (qualified) return to the superior understanding of pre-Machiavellian philosophy.

Such a return becomes more necessary every day, as the contradictions and prodigious errors of modern thought continue to erode civilization. Strauss alone has shown that return is possible--and this book is an indespenible guide for how to get there.

So, says Strauss, Machiavelli is evil? Is that so? What do we mean by this? Is this not all too comforting an answer to a question that Strauss hammers the complexity of throughout his book? The problem of this book is one esoteric writer writing about another. You sit there with Strauss on one knee and Machiavelli on the other as Strauss remorselessly "blows his cover." Machiavelli has something to hide and Strauss is intent on showing what it is. The question that constantly recurrs is: What has Strauss to hide? Nobody is this adept at ferreting out others' hidden meanings without having hidden meanings themselves. Especially not when their doctrine is that philosophy is a series of hidden meanings reserved for the philosopher and encoded so as to be missed even by the scholars. It, in other words, takes a thief to catch a thief. So Strauss catches Machiavelli leaving us to wonder what he has also stolen from us in the process

Leo Strauss does a masterful job of bringing the teachings of the world's first modern philosopher to light. Machiavelli is notorious for his "evil" treatise on political thinking and acting, "The Prince". Strauss writes the U.S. is the only country "founded in implicit opposition to Machiavellian principles". Modern philosophers starting with Machiavelli reject the classical view as undemocratic and elitist. Only wealthy men of leisure would have time to develop the virtues and character necessary to rule. Machiavelli believed that man by nature was selfish and driven by ambition. Machiavelli is not interested in character formation and moral appeal but in building the right kind of institutions to govern society. Laws and justice would protect men from power hungry rulers. Modern philosophy is an out growth of the revolution that takes place in the natural sciences during the Enlightenment. The purpose of science is the conquest of nature man is in control of human life. Philosophers from Machiavelli on become sectarian. "Everything good is due to man's labor rather than to nature's gift." Yet, when you delve into Strauss' "Thoughts On Machiavelli" you come to realize all he teaches is not evil. Machiavelli in his treatise "Discourses On The First Ten Books Of Livy" believes the Roman Republic was the best and most virtuous form of government to emulate. His breadth and understanding of Roman history is remarkable. This book is not the easiest of reads and I recommend it not be the first book by Strauss you read. Start with his "Introduction To Political Philosophy" or "History Of Political Philosophy.

As a retired Army officer and student of political philosophy, I found this to be a great book to start one's journey into political philosophy.

This book gave me a great education on the real story of the Washington Nationals/Senators and the Expansion Senators. Before reading this, I always thought baseball in DC failed because of poor teams. That is still true, but it also had a lot to do with Clark Griffith's selling off of star players; that he missed out on the chance to be the first to integrate the game (he was against integration, but mainly because he depended on the gate receipts of the Negro League teams at Griffith Stadium); and of unstable ownership in the 1960s, that apparently operated without long-term goals.

One story in this book really shocked me: Sometime in the 1920s, an elderly black man who had been a lifelong fan of the Nationals/Senators attended an Opening Day parade was spit in the face by one of the players who apparently could not tolerate this black man cheering on the players and calling them by name. The old man was so hurt, he never went to another baseball game again. Of course, he would not encourage any other blacks to go to games either. With all the talk today about the decline of African-American interest in baseball, I can't help but wonder if this incident was another seed sowed in the situation we have today.

Remember in the movie "Jerry Maguire" when Renee Zellweger says, "You had me at hello!"? Well, in his book about The Washington Nationals, Fred Frommer had me with the opening sentence to his preface where he laments that on moving to Washington from New York, the two missing items here were a baseball team and a place to get a good slice of pizza. Much like Fred, I am a transplanted New Yorker (and a lifelong Yankee fan who has adopted the Nats as well), and for my first 31 years here I had to do without a major league team (although the Orioles are within driving distance, they were not and never will be a Washington team). And, Fred's right, the pizza (and bagels) here are definitely not New York.

Fred's book is neatly compartmentalized into ten chapters. The first chapter chronicles the earliest baseball in Washington, actually going back to the era of Abe Lincoln! The second chapter of the book is incredibly upbeat as it deals with Washington's only World Championship in 1924. Frommer does a splendid job of taking you through the season. You can feel the excitement being generated here in D.C. by the Senators' unexpected success. The next chapter, called "Glory Years," deals with the best years of the Senators in the 1920's and 1930's, when they often contended and even won the pennant in 1933, only to have the Giants exact revenge in the World Series. Fred's following chapter, perhaps the best in the book, focuses on the Negro Leagues and Washington's entry therein, the Homestead Grays. There is plenty of excellent history and a great look at sociological views of the era. There are wonderful anecdotes about Buck Leonard, the amazing Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige, among others.

For members of Red Sox Nation, there is a chapter devoted solely to Ted Williams' stint as manager of Senators II. Another chapter is devoted exclusively to interviews with old-time fans who reminisce about attending games at Griffith and DC/RFK Stadiums. These phenomenal fans have wonderful stories to relate and Frommer does a great job of eliciting them. The final chapter is dedicated to the magical 2005 season of the Nationals.

My hats (both a Yankee cap and a Nationals cap) are off to Fred Frommer for coming up with a highly entertaining, educational book about baseball in Washington, DC.

Growing up in the District, hearing stories of the Senator's rich past from my 80 year old next door neighbor had to fill in for not having a team in my city. When other kids talked about how the Orioles were "our team", I'd be the lunatic ranting that the Orioles weren't DC's team, that our city had a long and storied baseball history; DC was once a baseball city.

Mr. Frommer's well written book is an easy read that truly imparts the excitement and depth of DC's baseball history, able to bring that history to life for the District's generations that grew up unknowing after the nation's capital was robbed of the nation's sport. A must for all DC baseball fans. Go Nats!

This book it the best little compilation of Washington D.C. baseball history around. It is packed full of interesting facts and vignettes about Washington Baseball. It also has great illustrations and photos. A must have for every Washington Nationals baseball fan.

Baseball in DC is a sorry topic indeed, with as much success coming via fictitious, supernaturally affected means ("Damn Yankees") than actually on the field. This book chronicles that mostly sorry history with grace, humor, and tenderness that only a seasoned baseball writer can achieve. The chapter on how the Sens won the World Series in 1924 actually brought tears to my eyes. This is the best history of Washington baseball I have ever read. Go Nats!

"The Watch" is a long story placed third in the collection. It is a tale of loneliness. A man and an older man, his father, have a store that has almost no customers. An exception to the general trend is Jesse, a cyclist, who stops for cokes and comes to be an expected presence in the life of the younger man. Jesse is aware of the fact that he is expected and begins dimly to resent the fact. The older man runs off to the fever camps and the younger man and Jesse pursue him and finally manage to carry him home. Jesse feels guilty when the older man ends up being chained to the store to keep him from running off again.

A gallery of characters are featured in the stories. Along with the diverse characters, out of the way geographical places are described. Mostly the places are exrremely to the south or to the north. There is the unpublished writer and teacher from Jackson State who feels annoyed with someone who attended Millsaps. The geometry teacher who teaches in a sort of frustration in Houston and tells stories of WallWalla Washington is portrayed. The teacher drives a corvette. When he appears all bruised, he tells the students he fell out of his car and his wife drove away in it. Kirby, the narator, and Trish appear in several of the stories. Kirby and the narrator met in college. The style is laconic, indirect, artful.

The first story I ever read by Mr. Bass was "Fires", published in "The Quarterly", a now-defunct publication. Since then I've bought every published work he has put out. "The Watch" is a superb example of Mr. Bass' haunting and near-mythical prose about the lives of everyday people. His characters are larger than life and imbued with a strength of personality. "In Ruth's Country" is a beautiful, poignant story of modern-day star-crossed lovers. "Choteau" is a fine example of Bass' ability to create heroic figures out of ordinary people. "Mexico" grips one with such a strong sense of place that you can imagine yourself in any of the character's shoes. "Juggernaut" allowed me to return home to a simpler place and time that I'd almost forgotten over the years. Every story in this collection is as fine as any writer today is producing. Each character is true, and the prose is full of desperation and longing. If you liked this book, you will probably appreciate short story collections by Richard Ford ("Rock Springs" and "Wildlife") and "Borrowed Hearts" by Rick DeMarinis.

The stories in The Watch are both youthful and wise. Rick Bass is a master of the short story form and this collection is a wonderful representation of his earlier works of fiction. Highly recommended for someone looking to get into contemporary literary fiction. Back in '92, the book captured me.

i came to rick bass through the many stories he's had anthologized in the best american series, and each of those are more than memorable. the watch, his first collection, is simply amazing. lots of emotion and depth, and a structure that is often seeming-to-be loose, until it reaches a point where everything comes together. highly recommended.

One of my favorite short story collections. The language is beautiful. The characters, settings, and actions are all so persuasive, and complement each other so well. Finally, the stories are MOVING--not just witty or clever or inventive. Bass' stories have it all!