Washington Books

This is an amazing story and I concur with the previous reviews. There is also a philosophy of suffering and human nature that is presented which the reader will realize as he reads the accounts of the pain and suffering and the authors reaction to them. This is a must read and I'm looking forward to another book about human rights that this author may consdier writing.

This is a gripping story of survival in the worst of political prisons comparable to the Soviet gulag and the Nazi concentration camps. This remarkable book reminds us of the human capacity for cruelty, how ideology can justify atrocity and how absolute power corrupts. The state did not want or expect these prisoners to ever leave alive. This is the only English account of life in the Pathet Lao political prison system and is a crucial document about both Laos under communism and more generally about political systems and man's potential for cruelty. It is also a good read. The ingenuity of the prisoners that allowed them to survive torture, harassment, a starvation rice diet and no medical care was fascinating. It was also heartening to hear that the assistance his wife received from American friends during the time he was imprisoned and she did not know where he was led them to immigrate to the US.

This book is an absolute must read for anyone interested in human rights. The author's personal story of survival is set against a strong, concise modern history of Laos and southeast Asia.

You will find that this is one of the most unbelievable stories of survival ever told. Of the few who did survive the 're-education' camps in northern Laos, only one, Bounsang Khamkeo, wrote the story to bring it to the world. The book is a de facto historic document that cannot be overlooked.

Khamkeo had editorial help from a few individuals in the writing of his book. The text is not awkward like the title. Khamkeo is able and fluent in English. His story both unique and representative maintains an engaging literary quality over the roughly 400 pages. Returning from France to his homeland of Laos after the Vietnam War was over with the intention of helping his country return to normalcy, the author was arrested and put into a prison camp in 1981 after an argument with an official of the communist Pathet Lao government. He was kept in prison until 1988. The lengthy memoir is about this whole time from the early 1970s to the late 1980s, with about half given to each period. The second half of Khamkeo's time in prison is naturally more gripping, and at times harrowing. But the first half has its own significant themes and drama as well--namely, the totalitarian, capricious, demanding rule of the Pathet Lao. Whereas the second part deals with how the author survived the hardships and threats of his years in prison, the first part deals with the more subtle, yet nonetheless engaging, informative, and at times suspenseful story of how he and others had to accommodate the rigid rule of the Pathet Lao while they were at the same time trying to bring improvements to a Laos which like the other nations of Southeast Asia, was disrupted and changed by the Vietnam War. "I Little Slave" brings to light these uncertain and hostile conditions in Laos following the Vietnam War; which have not received as much attention as those in Vietnam and Cambodia. After being released from prison, Khamkeo managed to flee Laos; and today lives in Oregon and works for a state health agency.

It's so easy to ignore the inhumanity and injustices occurring around the world, but once you know, you must speak up. Bounsang Khamkeo eloquently and honestly paints each scene with vivid precision. I felt as though I was actually flying over the forests of Laos, feeling the anxiety of hostile government actions, smelling the stench of hidden prison camps, and witnessing death in it's most unforgiving form. Bounsang should be proud that he kept his promise to speak up against the injustices at the hands of his communist oppressors. I will long-remember the lives of his lost prison-mates, as well as the hundreds of thousands who have no recorded names. This would be an excellent companion to political science texts, and a must-read for us all. I literally could not put it down. As horrifying as his shared experiences were, I am left wishing for another 400 pages. Bounsang, I am proud to have met you. Thank you for speaking out about such atrocities.

James Joyce has a rival in Maeve Brennan. In her first work, "The Visitor," Brennan creates a chilling portrait of a young woman, Anastasia King. But Anastasia is no Stephen Dedalus. Unlike Stephen, she is uneducated and has limited opportunities. Crossing the channel in opposite directions, for opposite reasons, Anastasia and Stephen have visions of different destinies.

For Anastasia,

"Somewhere in her mind a voice was saying clearly, 'Ireland is my dwelling place, Dublin is my station. . . .Home is a place in the mind. When it is empty, it frets. It is fretful with memory, faces and places and times gone by. Beloved images rise up in disobedience and make a mirror for emptiness. . . . Comical and hopeless, the long gaze back is always turned inward."

For Stephen,

"Mother is putting my new secondhand clothes in order. She prays now, she says, that I may learn in my own life and away from home and friends what the heart is and what it feels. Amen. So be it. Welcome, O life! I go to encounter for the millionth time the reality of experience and to forge in the smithy of my soul the uncreated consciousness of my race" ("A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man").

For Joyce and Brennan, Dublin proved to be a cold inhospitable place from which they chose to escape--Joyce to Paris and Brennan to the United States. Here, in her new "station," Brennan created a perfect novella, "The Visitor." This undiscovered masterpiece will now take its place besides Joyce's perfect novella, "The Dead."

To say a novella is perfect is to say that one has no words to add nor subtract, for the work is rare, beautiful, and truth-telling. "The Visitor" speaks volumes about the Irish temper; the icy chill that greets Anastasia shivers through one's soul.

Christopher Carduff adds an insightful Editor's Note to the novella. In it, he says, "In the music of Maeve Brennan, three notes repeatedly sound together-a ravenous grudge, a ravenous nostalgia, and a ravenous need for love. In `The Visitor' she plays this chord for the first time, announcing the key of all the songs to follow." What follows are: "The Springs of Affection: Stories of Dublin," "The Rose Garden: Short Stories," and "The Long-Winded Lady: Notes from the New Yorker."

Read "The Visitor" first: an entrée into the mind of a mistress of manners, Maeve Brennan.

"The Visitor", by Maeve Brennan was found in an archive after her death, and now resides at The University Of Notre Dame. It is her earliest known writing, and the book was created from the only known copy of the manuscript. Written sometime during the 1940's, it represents her earliest work, and is older than her first published piece with The New Yorker in 1950, when she was 34 years of age. Christopher Carduff who has edited all of the posthumous work of this writer and he provides an Editor's note at the end of the volume that is the most concise and accurate description of her work I have read.

If you start with this work the balance of her writings will be understood as she intended them to be read. For though her later work contains humor, it is simply a veneer for dark feelings of contempt, selfishness, and the ice-cold characters she portrays. I have read all of her fiction and this is easily the most mean spirited. There is nothing here to soften the main character, she is cruelty personified. If ranked amongst Dickens' darkest portrayals of the blackness of the human heart, this grandmother would rank near the very top. This same woman is also a contagion; for if one spends enough time with her she can cause another behave in ways that otherwise would be foreign and unnatural.

If you have yet to discover this wonderful writer this is the place to begin. For this brief tale is the start of 4 decades of work that can in many instances be traced back to the dark side of human nature first written in, "The Visitor". The work and the editor's note will send you back, to again read her stories even if you have enjoyed them before. The amazing aspect of this story is that it foreshadows not only what will become of her later writing, but also contains another human condition that she too will become a victim of later in her life.

Twenty-two year old Anastasia's mother has just died and now, six years after leaving, she returns to Dublin to live with her grandmother, the years apart not dulling the bitterness and regret of an old woman obsessed with her dead son.

After a messy divorce, Anastasia's mother left her father, breaking his heart and sealing away any sense of sympathy or pity from her grandmother forever. With nowhere else to go, she is accepted into the purposely old-fashioned, stagnating household where time is whiled away drinking tea and remembering times when everything was better. Every character exudes a sense of existing only to remember the past; nobody has a future, nor do they have a desire for one. Not even Anastasia, the youngest character by fifty years, is interested in moving her life forward, she wants to regress to a time when she could be looked after and protected, unwilling to seek a future that involves taking care of herself.

The novella is very sad. One character loved a man in secret forty years ago, and, on her death-bed, requests that she be buried with a wedding ring he gave to her but that she could never wear. Another exists only to aid Anastasia's grandmother, helping here and there and making sure that everything is the same as it was ten, twenty, thirty years ago. Change itself is the enemy here, the grandmother's only desire is to be buried with her son, no more, no less.

There is a sense of completeness with the character's that is odd to find in a story. There are no great quests - physically, mentally or otherwise - nor are the characters given a chance to grow. In their minds, they have grown as much as they wish to - but not as much as they could - and that is enough for them. For now, they are dead without knowing it, waiting patiently for the time when God will call them up to Heaven.

The writing is grey and cold - at least, that is how I felt while reading it. Sentences are short, crisp, and wonderfully indicative of the mentalities of the characters. Very rarely are there any excursions into contemplation, everything stays very much in the moment, analysing in great detail the all-too-easy stagnation of a life where the reasons for living are gone, forever.

This novella is very short - 81 pages - but worth the read. It is unhappy, but not in a sense that the reader will become unhappy. Rather, we are able to examine the fruitless lives of four different people happy to wait and wait and wait. In them we can see a reality we do not want, and thus avoid.

THE VISITOR is a miracle of terse writing. The story - a young woman attempting to re-enter her only remaining family in Dublin after her mother's death in Paris and finding that even this is not her home - is as engrossing as a long novel. As a matter of fact, reading this short novella leaves the reader with such clear images of the four women characters that you feel you've been getting to know them for years. For Brennan, the clash of Irish women, struck firmly in the molds they have been assigned/chosen, is fodder for what could be a dark nightmare. But we are awake, her characters are real and unyielding, and we are given a glimpse of just how cruel and isolated estranged families can be. Brennan creates her tale amidst the foggy and rainy depressed atmosphere of Dublin, and even her women who attempt some morsel of kindness get buried in the dank reality of this sad tale. This is committed writing at its best, a joy to read despite the gothic horror of the tale.

What a delight to have read on a recent airline flight, and to be so close to finishing that my eyes raced on the final pages to beat the schreech of the tires on landing. It crossed my mind how awful to be denied the conclusion by some mishap. Of course I made it, but was nonetheless denied the more typical "happily ever after" ending. I believe the author desired the reader's work to continue a bit, to contemplate and possibly turn back and re-read key sections that might suggest a resolution. A terrific book for a book club. I would love to hear folks argue over the author's way of closing the story. If there is a Maeve Brennan expert out there for whom the ending was more obvious, it would be interesting to hear your take. But not necessary. I am happy with it as is.

This book, the second edition for Ellis, Balcomb and Ford, is a beautiful book for anyone interested in whales, their habitat and their behaviour. Focusing on the Orcas of the Pacific Northwest, this book details their lives from what they eat, to their social habits. It includes a wonderful photo chart of all the Northwest Orcas still alive when this book was published. It is a bit heavy reading, with many complex scientific terms. I would not reccommend for children, but if you know anyone with a facination with whales, this book will it into an obsession.

This book, the second edition for Ellis, Balcomb and Ford, is a beautiful book for anyone interested in whales, their habitat and their behaviour. Focusing on the Orcas of the Pacific Northwest, this book details their lives from what they eat, to their social habits. It includes a wonderful photo chart of all the Northwest Orcas still alive when this book was published. It is a bit heavy reading, with many complex scientific terms. I would not reccommend for children, but if you know anyone with a facination with whales, this book will it into an obsession.

May I first say I have never encountered a better identification book then Killer Whales and Transients. Both books are written by THE wild orca authority in the Pacific Northwest. Catalouged pictures and organized information of each individual in every pod along the coast from WA to northern BC along with accurate info on feeding, behavioral and other habits of the pods in Puget Sound and British Columbia. Truly a great book, and as I plan on researching these animals in my adulthood, it has been a great boost to my knowledge on them.

I just returned from a kayaking trip in the Johnston Straight just East of North Vancouver Island known as the inside passage. We had first hand views of the Orcas. This book was used as a reference manual to identify some of the whales. It has wonderful reference pictures of the known pods (families) in the area. It goes into great detail on their eating habits, language, and family history. It also explains their social behavior, and the differences between the pods. It is a wonderful book full of pictures, and details.

This is an excellent book for anyone who is interested in orca whales. It has mass amounts of great information, it's easy to read, there are great photographs, and the ID catalogue of orcas is nothing but the best. This book is a must have for any whale-lover, researcher, or someone with just a general interest.

The bygone days of steam-powered logging railways come back in this fascinating collection of B/W images.
As the title says, the locomotives are the protagonists, but many other details about the whole life of a logging railway in the Pacific Northwest manage to sneak in around the main subject - logging crews, base camps, service cars, rails and trestles - and of course the trees, both standing and felled, some quite awesome by their sheer size.
For the steam enthusiast, a visual feast: the logging locos were often quite off the beaten path - literally, of course, on their crude, temporary rails, but also in their design; several types of odd-looking engines were developed for the particular needs of this job, and rarely seen on mainline rails: all were different fron the conventional, side-rod driven locomotive and especially suited to sharp curves, uneven right-of-ways and, above all, unbelievable grades (happily, they very uniqueness made them survive until comparatively late in the steam era and some are to this day under steam in tourist service).
And for any other one, an interesting and entertaining trip down nostalgia lane; the well-written text complements nicely the images and makes the book enjoyable also to the newcomer.

This is an excellent book with great photos of many geared locomotives. A must have for anyone wanting to detail a model of a geared locomotive, or just for looking at the pictures. Each photo has a short narrative describing the photo. A well done book.

This book is a source of absolutely excellent photos of Shays, Heislers, and Climaxes used in the logging industry in the Pacific Northwest. With his huge box cameras and glass image plates, Kinsey was to B&W photography of the period as IMAX is to color motion pictures of today. The photos are the best B&W photographs I have ever seen on any subject. They are definitely of museum quality.

Geared Steam Locomotive Works

This is a beautifully produced work of a master photographer. The large format duotone prints are a joy to look at, with crisp detail and lovely tones. The book provides excellent examples of Darius' ability to capture the majestic beauty of hard working (but well cared for) steam locomotives (both geared and rod), along with the people whose lives they touched (engine crew, loggers, camp crew and families). I would have paid $20 each for several of the prints in this book. This is primarily a "picture book", but the additional commentary from railroaders and loggers of the Kinsey era adds that personal touch that the photographs so often contain.

I have looked at many hundreds of railroad books (and well over 100,000 photos), but the photographs in this volume are the best I've ever seen. Kinsey used a view camera and 11"x14" glass plate negatives to produce large contact prints for sale to the subjects (locomotive crew members) early in this century. The results are absolutely stunning; every photo has extraordinary tone and detail, impossible to produce with the small format (35mm and rollfilm) cameras commonly available today. This is a "must have" book for any photographer who wants to see what print quality large negatives are capable of producing. Darius Kinsey is the "Ansel Adams" of railroad photography.

Profusely illustrated with brilliant, full color photography, Gary Wyatt's Mythic Beings: Spirit Art Of The Northwest Coast is a superb introduction to aboriginal art including totems, wood sculpture, masks, stone carvings and more. Wyatt's informative text is an outstanding survey placing each art piece within their cultural context, enhanced with the artist's own descriptions and commentaries. Mythic Beings is a very welcome addition to personal, academic, and professional Native American art and cultural reference collections.

Great color photos and and discriptions of the carvings and artwork. I would definitely recommend this to anyone that is interested in Northwest Coast art.

Mythic Beings is an unassuming but impressive book. The major organizing theme is that spirit art captures the rich cultural and aesthetic traditions that permeate regional artistic expression. Northwest Coast art can be intimidating because it has a complex cosmology and iconography. Wyatt, however, makes this complexity accessible by using two underlying principles. The universe consists of separate but interrelated realms (e.g., sky, underwater), and each realm has its characteristic real and mythical creatures. Mythical creatures have distinctive physical representations used in both sacred and secular representations.

Mythic Beings features 75 beautifully reproduced photographs of masks, robes, and rattles representing the work of 34 artists. Each artist provides a commentary about his/her piece. This provides an opportunity to become familiar with the physical depiction and mythological roles of the creatures depicted by the artists.

Mythic Beings is a gem. It is a wonderful gift book for anyone interested in indigenous art and First Nations peoples.

Great color photos and and discriptions of the carvings and artwork. I would definatly recommend this to anyone that is interested in Northwest Coast art.

I recently came back from a trip to the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State. It isn't enough that it is some of the most beautiful landscape on Earth, but I also discovered the amazing artists of the Pacific Northwest community. The artworks within this book (as well as Spirit Faces also by this author) are so moving and beautiful, my only regret is that I am not able to start collecting on a massive scale.

Mr. Wyatt also allows the artists to describe for the readers their inspirations and ideas behind their products, which allows us to get to know them a little. After a short while I was able to determine the various artists based upon the varying styles of the pieces depicted here.

Highly recommended!

This story of a city government responsive to community people and empowering them to build better communities through small grants and support is inspiring and hopeful...both for our neighborhoods (especially those so often left out) and people, as well as for a kind of government that partners with people to make things happen. Stimulating and gives ideas that can be replicated elsewhere. Mary Nelson

Neighbor Power is an excellent book! Smart. Funny. Inspiring. If you're interested in Seattle---or if you're interested in community building---or if you're interested in how local government works (and sometimes fails to work)---or if you're just interested in people and you like hearing good stories---read this book.

As a resident in a transitional neighborhood, I find the example and stories in this book inspiring. The book is informative with examples of individual contributions make a difference as well as the power when people organize.

This book is both inspiring and full of practical information. I recommend it to anyone interested in working at the grassroots level to make cities better places to live.

It was cheering to learn that, in a city obsessed with reaching impossible consensus before acting, things are actually getting done here. I also learned some delightful details about when, where, and how certain Seattle landmarks were born.

If you're an activist, you'll find some concrete, useful theories and techniques on how to accomplish your goals. I'm no activist. But reading about these small, very important changes--made by common citizens--could make an activist out of anyone.

My husband couldn't put this book down and he has read so much on WWII

The Doolittle Raid has always been a favorite chapter in history and Ross Greenings account of flying the Hari Kari-er (#11 off the deck of the Hornet) is an incredible new addition. More remarkable is his experience in the N. African and Italian air campaigns resulting in being shot down, capture, escape, capture again and eventual liberation. Because Greening was an illustrator, the book is full of his original work done during the war. In this regard, the experiences and parallels between Greening and Private Robert Knox Sneden of the Civil War are remarkable. Both recorded their respective combat and prison
experiences in journals and illustrations. The printing of "Not as Briefed" is excellent and Washington State University Press has done an incredible job. One can read 50 to 100 books a year, but it is only every 2 or 3 years that one finds a real gem. "Not as Briefed" is one of those gems. It is a simple and humble recounting of a remarkable life. Kudos to WSU Press and the family of Ross Greening for publishing such an historical treasure.

In my opinion, Not As Briefed is one of the greatest World War Two memoirs ever published. While every valiant hero of that war has a story to tell, few have stories as dramatic as C. Ross Greening. Greening writes his story in a fascinating style, captivating the reader and making real his experiences. His blunt, humorous recollection of events can make the reader laugh or cry.

Not as Briefed is the story of bombs over Yokohama, bail-outs over China, and a purple heart on the slope of Mt. Vesuvius. It is the story of a pilot who could use his mind to get out of trouble when he spent months running from the Nazis in the Italian alps. Greening made so many brushes with death that readers will wonder if they are actually reading fiction. But Greening was right in the middle of a brilliant history.

Once captured, Ross Greening put his talents to use in Stalag Luft One, and demonstated one of the finest measures of character ever to touch the thousands of POWs in Barth, Germany. Greening's memoirs are an important reminder of the price of freedom, and illustrate his own love for America that grew as WWII wore on. Not As Briefed is patriotic and moving, and ought to be rated by American readers as one of the finest World War Two documents ever published.

I enjoyed this book very much and would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys WWII stories. This book was an easy read and was filled with exciting and touching events. The personal perspective that Ross gave to the war and his situation made the book very informative. This is a book that you will read more than once.

The unpublished manuscript of this book was discovered by the author's neice many years after the author's death. The neice, obviously captivated by her uncle's writing and World War II experiences was motivated in spending 5 years putting together this incredible biography.

Her uncle, Ross Greening, was #11 on the Doolittle Raid. After surviving that assignment, we was transferred to the North African/Italian theater of operations where his B-26 was shot down and his story of evasion and escape from the enemy is what makes Hollywood Movies but don't wait for this to be made into a movie. It is too long and detailed for Hollywood but is a heck of a page turner. It is well written and reads like a novel. But as you read, remember this isn't fiction. This stuff really happened.

Greening was an art major from Washington State U and uses these skills throughout the book with hundreds of illustrations of the events of this story.

If you are at all interested in the human side of war, you will love this one.

It is informative on what perennials work well in the PNW and what extra care you need to know about them to make gardening a success.

This book and its companion volume: "annuals" are my current garden favorites. I am a long-time fan of Marianne Binetti and these books are like taking her expertise as a "lazy gardener" to FlowerWorld or the garden show with you. I save money by not buying tempting plants that won't work here. The seed starting tips are also excellent.

One suggestion for future editions: I had Kinkos cut and spiral bind my copies of these two books so they stay open on the table when I am reviewing catalogs or making lists or planting seeds. This 8.00 investment really makes them perfect.

I've bought a number of different gardening reference books over the years, but none has been as helpful as this book. Only 96 perenials are covered (not counting the variations of each plant.) Every one of them can be grown in the Pacific Northwest.

Last week I decided that would finally get around to planting in the rocks around my little backyard pond. It didn't take long for me to identify a number of plants suitable for the rocks that could be planted in fall. Sure enough, I was able to find them all at the local garden center! This would have been an overwhelming task if I were using one of my big, more complete garden reference books.

While most of the book is about the plants, the first sixty pages of the book has general information on gardening. The information is simple enough for the beginner, but comprehensive enough that all but the most advance gardener won't find something to consider. This section also has mini lists of plants suitable for some basic conditions, like sandy soil, or shade.

I have absolutely no problems recommending this book to every homeowner in Washington and Oregon, especially those west of the Cascades.

I found this book very useful. I especially enjoyed the rear section that graphically showed the comparision between each plant. Plenty of photos and more specific than other books. Highy recomended.

This is an excellent book for novice perennial gardeners. The photos are great for identifying unknown plants. I would recommend this to anyone thinking of developing their own perennial garden--it definitely takes the guesswork out of choosing, planting, and growing them!

I actually got to meet Connie Rae Strain and see a presentation given by her about "Perfect Imperfections." She is one of the nicest people you can ever meet! "Perfect Imperfections" is a great book about a girl and her horse. Connie really wants a horse. She begs her dad to get her one and he does! This book is about their adventures.

My first reaction when I heard about the book from a friend was,
"It's a book about a horse, maybe I'll read it, maybe I won't--how intersting can that be?" So I bought the book..and I read it..and I loved it!! It is a well written story that moves at a good pace. The young girl's adventures through a life that isn't always so happy, tugs at your heartstrings. Reading about areas I am familiar with in the NW was a fun bonus!! I highly recommend this book and look forward to Ms. Strain's next adventure!!

This is a fun and heartwarming story of a young girl growing up in adverse conditions yet continues to pursue her dream. The bumps in the road are just small obstacles that only a young girl would see as a challenge rather than a roadblock. It made me laugh out loud at times, remembering myself as a fourteen year old.

it offers memmories of the good times and the badtimes. shows what life has to offer,that you should never say never.cause you never know.don't be afriad to try new things.shows a strong bond between a family afetr a, painful divorce.I SIMPLY LOVE IT.THIS SHOULD SELL MILLIONS.YOU GO AND DO YOUR THING MRS.STRAIN.

This book was an absolute surprise! Connie Rae takes us on a journey with all the twist & turns that life has to offer. She cleverly shows us through the eyes of a fourteen year old and seamlessly switches back to an adult perspective, which made it all the more entertaining. What a charming way to remind us all that whenever life gives us lemons it serves humanity to make lemonade. YOU GO CONNIE! SIMPLY FABULOUS...

Amazon and its various sub-concerns obviate customer inconvenience- and any reasonable complaints! First-class people of merchandising withal.

Much to my surprise and delight "The Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant" are surprisingly readable and full of a dry understated sense of humor. U.S. Grant's memoirs give a very down to earth approach to his personal history starting in Ohio and continuing through his education at West Point and his involvement in the Mexican-American War. I highly recommend this book to anybody who enjoys Antebellum U.S. and Civil War history, or just history in general. Personal memoirs are an excellent medium for getting into the shoes of some of histories greatest figures and seeing the world as they saw it. U.S. Grant's memoirs do all that and more. You will not be disappointed.

To start off, I am usually relectant to read autobiographies, as many should be considered works of fiction. I have read countless book on the Civil War and several on Grant, but I had shamefully neglected reading his Memoirs-my mistake. Several years ago I got a copy on sale and thought I would give it a read-I was a born again Grant fan!
As many know, after leaving the presidency he lent his name and money to a failed business venture in New York and was near bankrupt. He had been approached by many to write his memoirs, but always resisted. The prospect of his beloved Julia not being provided for plagued him and so he consented to write them. He intially had a fairly good contract to write a subscription book, but his friend Mark Twain interviened and got him a deal that was substantially better. For an excellent overview of this, see Mark Perry's, "Grant and Twain".
After reading this, I came away with a completly different view of Grant. The only job he suceeded at was the one he disliked the most-a soldier. He served with distinction in Mexico, but was opposed to the war. All he wanted to do was to teach math at West Point.
The real heart of the memoir is, of course, the Civil War and here a masterpiece was made. He writes in a simply, though not an uneducated style. He is quite defferential and praising to his subordinates and clear describes where he made errors in judgement, not the usual justifications seens by so many. He cannot say enough good about Sherman and tactfully puts down Henry Hallecks meddling. The book ends with the end of the war and his last words were written only a week or so before he died.
In my opinion this is a classic in history and needs to be read by anyone interested in knowing how the North really won the war. The copies of the original maps leave a lot to be desired, but this is trivial. My only regret is I cannot give it a higher rating than 5 stars!

General Grant wrote this book while dying of throat cancer. He had been swindled by a dishonest Wall Street Broker and his trophies and possessions were stripped from him to satisfy the demands of his debtors. Bankrupt, suffering from a terminal illness and never passing a moment without acute pain, he produced this magnificent monument to his greatness. Those who denigrate Grant as a drunkard, butcher, bumbling President need to read this book in order to correct these errant assumptions. It is impossible to read this book and not realize that Grant was an inordinately intelligent man and one hell of a writer.

Grant's Memoirs are a deserved classic in American literature and considered the greatest military Memoirs ever penned, exceeding Caesar's Commentaries. Grant wrote as he lived: with clear, concise statements, unembellished with trivialities or frivolities. The only "criticism" the reader might have is that Grant bent over backwards not to wound the feelings of people in the book. He takes swipes at Joe Hooker and Jeff Davis, but what he left unsaid would have been far more interesting. A compelling and logical reason why Grant was so spare in his comments was because he was involved in a race with death. He didn't know how long he could live and therefore, "cut to the chase."

Grant's assessments of Lincoln, Sherman, Sheridan and other military leaders are brilliant and engrossing. His style, like the man himself, was inimitable and couldn't be copied. In everyday life, Grant was a very funny man, who liked to listen to jokes and tell them himself. His sense of the absurd was acute. It's no accident that he loved Mark Twain and the two hitched together very well. Twain and Grant shared a similar sense of humor, and Grant's witicisms in the Memoirs are frequent, unexpected and welcome. There are portions where you will literally laugh out loud.

Though Grant's Memoirs were written 113 years ago, they remain fresh, vibrant and an intensely good read. I have read them in! their entirity 30 times in my life and I never weary of the style and language that Grant employed. He was a military genius to be sure, but he was also a writer of supreme gifts, and these gifts shine through on every page of this testament to his greatness. All Americans should read this book and realize what we owe to Grant: he preserved the union with his decisive brilliance. In his honor, we should be eternally grateful.

General Grant wrote this book while dying of throat cancer. He had been swindled by a dishonest Wall Street Broker and his trophies and possessions were stripped from him to satisfy the demands of his debtors. Bankrupt, suffering from a terminal illness and never passing a moment without acute pain, he produced this magnificent monument to his greatness. Those who denigrate Grant as a drunkard, butcher, bumbling President need to read this book in order to correct these errant assumptions. It is impossible to read this book and not realize that Grant was an inordinately intelligent man and one hell of a writer.

Grant's Memoirs are a deserved classic in American literature and considered the greatest military Memoirs ever penned, exceeding Caesar's Commentaries. Grant wrote as he lived: with clear, concise statements, unembellished with trivialities or frivolities. The only "criticism" the reader might have is that Grant bent over backwards not to wound the feelings of people in the book. He takes swipes at Joe Hooker and Jeff Davis, but what he left unsaid would have been far more interesting. A compelling and logical reason why Grant was so spare in his comments was because he was involved in a race with death. He didn't know how long he could live and therefore, "cut to the chase."

Grant's assessments of Lincoln, Sherman, Sheridan and other military leaders are brilliant and engrossing. His style, like the man himself, was inimitable and couldn't be copied. In everyday life, Grant was a very funny man, who liked to listen to jokes and tell them himself. His sense of the absurd was acute. It's no accident that he loved Mark Twain and the two hitched together very well. Twain and Grant shared a similar sense of humor, and Grant's witicisms in the Memoirs are frequent, unexpected and welcome. There are portions where you will literally laugh out loud.

Though Grant's Memoirs were written 113 years ago, they remain fresh, vibrant and an intensely good read. I have read them in! their entirity 30 times in my life and I never weary of the style and language that Grant employed. He was a military genius to be sure, but he was also a writer of supreme gifts, and these gifts shine through on every page of this testament to his greatness. All Americans should read this book and realize what we owe to Grant: he preserved the union with his decisive brilliance. In his honor, we should be eternally grateful.