United States Books

So far, this book is such an easy read. I really enjoy the author's honesty and his ability to put the reader into the story, right on the streets of Boston. I would absolutely recommend this book.

While the story chapters in the book are individually interesting, they somehow don't make a whole. The book feels choppy, as if it needed additional narrative to make if flow more smoothly. I expected, based on other reviews, to become immersed in the life of a narcotics officer. Just a average read.

I truly enjoyed this book. Paul Doyle's experiences were something that needed to be put on paper and published for the world to see. Although the names and the places may change, the core root of the drug world remains the same. In reading this book I found that other than the bell bottom pants and silk shirts, the happenings of the underground drug world are in so many ways similar today. The difference being the technology used and the way the intelligence is gained. I bought this book at a fair where the author was present and signed my copy. I spoke to him for a few moments and told him that I worked for a police department in a neighboring town and that my husband was also a police officer. He suggested that I read it and have my husband do the same. This book was a real page turner and I wasn't able to put it down until I was finished. I was truly impressed with his compassion for people which can easily be lost in the investigative and enforcement field. He points out that he actually had to become 'one of them' in order to take some of these criminals down. It was a different day and age. God Bless Paul and the guys that he worked with. It's not a job for the meek and mild.

Read this book at the advice of a friend and it is a must read for every caring American. Opened my eyes to the sacrifice some people are doing on our behalf and opened my eyes to a life most of us cant imagine. These folks do it for us and then in the end the Author takes us on a learning experience about where the drug money goes and who is behind it - the terrorist connection. He also lets you know the solution to cracking the incredible drug problem in this country lies in our families and not in Washington. Read it

Excellent. Didn't want to stop reading until I was finished the book.

After spending a night in a 3,308 square foot model home, McGinn says, "...if I really lived here, my house wouldn't look as good. While I admire the decorating scheme, my family isn't likely to have $90,000 to spend on interior design, so we'd probably have the same furniture that's in our existing house. So in a way the model seems aimed at selling me a dream I couldn't possibly make true." (page 73, Currency Doubleday @2008 1st edition)

If you have used the internet to get the scoop on the housing values of everyone on your Christmas card list, are a serious HGTV watcher, or try to guess the selling price of every house with a "For Sale" sign out front - you may have "house lust", the termed coined by McGinn for America's obessions with everything about the home, interiors to time shares to property values. But do our dreams match the reality of what we are likely to attain?

Attempting to answer this question, McGinn tours the McMansions of the high end market, inquires into the appeal of time shares, speaks with renovators and real estate investors, attends a Carleton Sheets seminar, and even gets his own real estate license as he investigates the how the American Dream of home ownership has become elevated into a desire for the perfectly beautiful abode that is also an incredibly lucrative deal.

Statistics are buffered by Mcginn's neighborly tone as he wonders should the average person consider real estate a good investment, or are we all involved in some kind of mass delusion? While acknowledging real estate's hold on the imagination, even his own, he also researches the probable paybacks of real estate investments and how close the reality is to our dreams. This is a fun book and if you are a fellow "house lust" sufferer you will delight in the chance to peer unabashedly into other people houses with such an informed agent.

In House Lust, Newsweek's Daniel McGinn travels the country to explore the roots of American's Obsession with their homes. Even as the real estate boom has turned to bust, Americans remain obsessed with houses, and at least at the time that this book was written, many people were still trading up, adding on, or buying vacation property.

For others, this zeal for housing has carried a painful price, one that's evident in the soaring foreclosure rates and mounting despair as millions of homeowners (and their lenders) realize they've stretched too far to buy the home of their dreams.

This book is an entertaining look at the house lust of Americans. I like that the author reminds the readers that he is one of those Americans he writes about in this book. This is not just poking fun, it serious as well as the author explores the sociological and psychological relationship between Americans and their homes.

RECOMMENDED

Do any of the following describe you?

You TiVo design and "realty reality" shows on HGTV.

You sometimes scan the real estate listings in the newspaper or online even though you're not looking to buy a new house.

You pore over home renovation magazines on a regular basis.

You have ever Zillowed your neighbors, your friends, or yourself.

You use Zillow as a verb.

I'm afraid I'm five for five on this list. According to Newsweek journalist Daniel McGinn, that means I have succumbed to the neurasthenia of our age: house lust.

In this light, engaging book, McGinn treks across America to examine our fascination with real estate. People have always felt a certain attachment to their bricks and mortar, but McGinn says that Americans have taken house lust to a whole new level in the last decade. One especially interesting chapter explores the rise of HGTV, the improbable network that builds hit shows by capitalizing on people's determination to keep up with the Joneses. We learn the interesting fact in the book that the flagship show House Hunters saw its ratings soar several years ago when the network tweaked the formulaic format just a bit: now, viewers can see exactly how much each prospective home costs. Apparently voyeurism isn't nearly as much fun if we can't imagine ourselves in each of these houses, and that involves the comparisons that are made possible by knowing the price the Joneses are about to pay.

Another chapter explores Americans' drive to renovate and improve our homes--even now that values are tanking and it no longer makes as much financial sense. The book looks at the personal (and relational) cost of renovation, with new kinds of counselors practicing "renovation therapy" to help couples through the stress. (It's a little hard to weep for these folks.) And even in the age of Home Depot and the DIY ethic, the percentage of people who hire out the work has risen to 60%. Apparently we like watching DIY shows a whole lot more than we like actually doing to work of renovation.

What's nice about the book (in addition to the fact that McGinn is such a sharp writer) is that just when he gets critical and a little preachy, he confesses to his own house lust. While researching a chapter on rental properties, and hearing stories of how other middle-class people were receiving steady income from rental properties in other states, the Massachusetts-based McGinn plunked down about $60,000 to buy a run-down apartment building in Pocatello, Idaho, ignoring many red flags that the property had BAD IDEA written all over it. And in one of the book's most eye-opening sections, he takes a weekend realty class and emerges two days later a bona fide real estate agent. It seems that in most states, anyone who can drive through a neighborhood and talk on a cell phone at the same time can qualify to be a real estate agent. Whether they can actually make a living at it, however, is another story.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to all fellow renovators, HGTV addicts, closet Zillowers, and house lusters everywhere. The first step is admitting that we have a problem.

A longer version of this review can be found at The Review Revolution:
http://janariess.typepad.com/reviews/2008/08/the-new-nationa.html

In his 2004 book "Boomer Nation: The Largest and Richest Generation Ever And How It Changed America" Steve Gillon refers to a rather surprising observation from Paul Begala, hardly a conservative Republican, who opined that "baby boomers are the most self-centered, self-seeking, self-interested, self-absorbed, self-indulgent, self aggrandizing generation in American history." You will get no argument from me there and I was born in 1951! You remember the boomers don't you? These were the disaffected young people who were marching in the streets in the late 1960's. Well, a funny thing happened on the way to retirement. Millions of baby boomers have developed a condition that author Daniel McGinn refers to as "House Lust". And the epidemic is spreading to younger generations as well.
What are the symptoms of "House Lust"? If you are spending more than a few hours each week watching HGTV you are likely coming down with this highly contagious affliction. I hear that shows like "House Hunters", Designer's Challenge", "Flip This House" and "What You Get For The Money" can be extremely addicting. Daniel McGinn points to the meteoric rise in the popularity of HGTV over the past decade as a major factor in the real estate craze we have all experienced. Suddenly you realize that you are living in the wrong neighborhood or that your house just doesn't cut it anymore. Another symptom of "House Lust" is an aversion to anything small, outdated or used. Many of those in the market for a house today are looking for a home at least 3 or 4 times the size of the houses they grew up in. They also want homes loaded with just about every amenity imaginable. Daniel McGinn goes on ad nauseum about the myriad of options available to buyers today. Have you heard those commercials on the radio explaining how much happier life will be if you install new Corian counter tops in your kitchen? And then there is the debate about buying a brand new home as opposed to purchasing an existing dwelling and renovating. You will learn the pros and cons of each of these options. Perhaps the most disturbing thing I read in "House Lust" is the story of Dr. Debi Warner, the "Renovation Psychologist" hailing from the great state of New Hampshire. Dr. Warner has evidently carved out a niche for herself assisting embattled couples as they navigate the difficult road of home renovation. Renovating can be s-o-o-o stressful! Apparently there is a TV show in the works as well! In the latter chapters of "House Lust" there is much practical information to he had about other issues surrounding the housing industry. You will learn why so many individuals take a shot at a career in real estate and why so many of these folks drop out of the business after just a short time. McGinn also explores the issues surrounding vacation homes and time-shares. Finally, Dan McGinn examines the pros and cons of investing in real estate. I was quite surprised to learn how many people purchase investment properties they have never seen in states that are hundreds or even thousands of miles away. Sounds awfully risky to me.
At the end of the day I found "House Lust: America's Obsession With Our Homes" to be a fairly well-written and pretty informative book. Yet much of the subject matter greatly disturbs me. More than once I found myself muttering "What the heck were these people thinking?" when reading about some of the obscene amounts of money that people are willing to spend on building and renovating their homes. I hate the conspicuous consumption that seems to be in evidence everywhere you turn these days. And as author Robert Putnam so aptly points out in his seminal book "Bowling Alone" we all pay a price for such self absorption. Clearly, civic participation is at an all-time low as people withdraw from the public square and retreat into their not so humble abodes. It would appear that a growing number of us seem perfectly willing to sit back and "let the other guy do it." As their numbers continue to dwindle, once vibrant civic and religious organizations like the Elks, Knights of Columbus and the American Legion to name but a few are struggling to survive. Our communities are the big losers because many of the volunteer services that once were provided by these organizations have either totally disappeared or have had to be assumed by the government. Another extremely disturbing trend is that political parties are finding it more and more difficult to attract talented people to run for political office.
In the final analysis the American constitution guarantees each one of us the "freedom to be foolish". People who choose to spend outlandish sums on their homes should do so at their own risk. If things go awry these people have no right to expect the government to bail them out. Perhaps the painful lessons we are learning today will help to us all to curb our appetites just a bit in the future. "House Lust" is a great way to get up to speed on these fascinating issues. Recommended.

I really enjoyed this book. It is extremely easy to read, has adequate footnotes for those who want to further explore any of the topics which the author covers, and in my opinion it incredibly accurately captures the fascination/interest/obsession (and yes, even lust) of many of us have for all aspects of activity regarding our homes (and those of our neighbors and even strangers). Whatever the reason (idle curiosity, planning a move, determination of the value of your own home, interest in renovations), if you often peruse the weekly real estate section of your local paper, visit open houses just for the heck of it, often mentally decide how you would renovate or redecorate a home that you are visiting, can't resist checking out the neighborhoods where you vacation with the thought that it might be nice to have your own getaway abode there, or have graduated from watching THIS OLD HOUSE on PBS to being able to recite from memory the most watched shows on HGTV, this book is definitely for you.

Dan McGInn is a national correspondent for Newsweek. He has spent several years covering many aspects of the real estate boom that eventually assumed bubble type characteristics and is now undergoing the inevitable hangover of a correction, which will hopefully not morph into a crash. The tone and style of the book is illustrated by his examination of the traditional competition and envy (not confined to real estate), which he describes in his opening chapter about the Toll Brothers' subdivision in Potomac Maryland, aptly titled "Mine's Bigger than Yours". Other randomly selected chapters include commentary on such topics as "Fix-up Fever", the seemingly favorite neighborhood pasttime in some communities of remodeling cum expansion, and the whole mystique of often little used vacation homes that are usually very uneconomic investments despite their frequent justification on that basis. Included in that discussion is a very interesting overview of the operation of the timeshare industry for the uninformed such as myself, as well as the recently introduced luxury vacation option known as destination clubs (as epitomized by Exclusive Resorts, the largest).

McGinn has a keen eye and an engaging style; as the title of my review states, I not only found a lot of educational material (admittedly much anecdotal, but a lot of hard facts as well), but I also really had fun reading this book (as it appeared that he did writing it). So if you are a chronic addict with HOUSE LUST that cannot be cured, you will probably relate to much of the material in this book. But even for the more casual hobbyist (who can change the dial and for whom HOUSE HUNTERS is not "appointment television"), the new terminology alone to which you are introduced is worth the time and price of the book. One example - in Las Vegas a new home is as much a status symbol as a new car, and what is in other parts of the country simply considered an existing home being sold is for many individuals in that area a "used home" which carries as much of a second hand stigma as a used car. Other interesting topics include the monogamous vs. polygamist vacationers (as well as "staycationers"), renovation hell, home location "splitters", the risqué practice of "house humping' (I had no clue), as well as lots of insider lingo and shorthand.

He also touches on the topic of how technological innovations are changing both our lifestyles and our homes, and has a fascinating compilation of statistics regarding the growth in size of our residences over the past few decades. Finally, to complete his research he takes the local exam to obtain his real estate license and provides some insights into the profession of realtor as well.

My goal in writing this review has been to provide an intriguing overview of how successful McGinn has been in capturing in an extremely entertaining manner the quest surrounding what for many Americans is a (and perhaps the) central element of their pursuit of the American Dream, a home of their own (and then- the renovations and subsequent additions, and later a vacation home, etc., etc.) I hope that you enjoy it as much as I did.

This is an excellent book for any student who is doing a report on drugs. it has everything you would need to know and not just about the drugs themselves it has the culture, the history, chemical make up. a very well organized book

like title states this book covers it all. whether your a student doing research or a concerned parent this book will make things much clearer. from how addictive drugs are to street names to statistics this book has it all.

I can't praise the author of this book highly enough. He has created a comprehensive, readable and thoroughly engaging reference including almost every drug found in society today. The bulleted notes found at the beginning of every chapter were some of the most helpful I have found; indicating risk factors, addiction potential, chemical makeup and street names. Antic dotes keep the subject matter fun and well-cited scientific facts lend credibility to the oft surprising statements. I wish the author had included a more extensive section on legal substances like alcohol, but it's a small issue in the face of all the other information included. A must read for anyone interested in drug culture or for parents seeking an informed point of view on the subject.

This is an excellent, informative book. The reviewer who said this book lacks cites is correct. Otherwise, it is money well spent.

Paul Gahlinger does an excellent job of finding "all" of the 178 or whatever number he says is the number of illegal drugs in (I guess) America. He readily admits that the war on drugs is not working, but then compliments the DEA on its extreme efforts to curve the war on them. This is a rather old subject of thought that has been updated time and time again. He is an MD from Utah, so remember that as you read. On many of the issues he raises he is correct, but on several he not. For example, he states that caffeine (on page 180) is "highly addictive, creating both physical and phychological dependence after as little as 100mg a day." Now, if that were true, most of my friends and I would be in the ER every other day!! Goodness. This is totally false and he knows it. Also in the book he includes the deaths of Elvis and Marilyn Monroe to get his point across that almost everything except water is not good for you-- or can be addicting. His data at times is two sentences, and his sources are questionable, because they are not listed. I must admit he covers just about any, and I do mean any substance that could used to make something illegal. But Dr. Gahlinger is missing the point. We also have outlawed murder, but it still happens. There are laws against theft, but people steal. I had a student tell me he gets stoned sniffing gasoline, so does the author want to outlaw gasoline also? The US laws are full of these draconian statutes which give the government unlimited power of seizure already. One legislator in congress said recently the US cannot afford to win the war on drugs because it has become too lucrative for the DEA and other governmental agencies. The author says knowledge is the only way to win the war on drugs..haven't we done DARE for 15 years now? It does NOT work. This is a very good text on the history of illegal drug use, but is a little weak on the pharmaceutical aspects or dynamics of how medications become addictive to human beings. Can anyone say the drug problems of the 70s are any better now, almost 40 years later? I do question some of his numbers and science, but as far as covering a subject matter, this is a fine addition to anyone's library. Just double check the numbers before using it as a reference. guyairey

I love love love this book and can't put it down. Not only the entertainers but the food, the place, the agents, the managers = the stories. A great picture (small but still great) of David Brenner whom I love to bits! You will be laughing and laughing. The hair, the clothes !

The Frommers are terrific interviewees and their book is a history and an entertainment resource about the Catskills - what else would we expect from oral historians of their rank.

GREAT INSIGHT INTO WHAT THE CATSKILLS WERE ALL ABOUT

wonderful oral history - - -covers a lot of territory

While working at the Nevele Country Club, one of the many legendary Catskill resorts covered in this magnificent document, I briefly met Myrna and Harvey Frommer while doing their research. They probably don't remember me, I was too young at the time to offer the kind of history they were looking for, but the pair's enthusiasm and obvious love for the area's resorts and their unique (now long gone) familial atmosphere was readily apparent. When I finally got to read this book, it provided me with a sense of pride for being a part of its history. There's even an ancient picture of my father playing sax in the old Art Kahn Orchestra! But aside from personal connections, this book stands as a definitive oral history of an era. The people interviewed are true insiders, some of them legends in their own right among Catskill lore. And while the book provides some deep sociological perspective concerning its ethnic background, the authors know how to balance this with charming, amazing and often sidesplitting anecdotes. If you ever spent a weekend at Grossinger's, The Concord, The Nevele or one of the dozens of small bungalow colonies, this book will wash you in warm memories. And if you didn't have the chance, it will make you wish you did.

This book brought back a lot of memories for me - Warren as our Attorney General who sent the Japanese to the camps in 1942, as our Governor for 11 years, a good governor, a decent man, well respected, pretty much middle of the road with good appointments, my old friend Bill Sweigert being one of them. Earl Warren at Isle Aves in the Bohemian Grove in the early sixties, or in the sorority houses for lunch before a Cal game in the forties, a large genial man, unprepossessing, pleasant.

Then too there are the memories of the sixties when the "Warren Court" was the bane of the conservatives and "Impeach Earl Warren" signs were abundant in California, particularly in the Los Angeles area and in the South where the end of segregation had not yet been accepted, when we were shocked by some of its decisions restricting recognized police procedures. The Court did, as they said, "go too far into `freeing' the bad guys". I remember being particularly upset by two decisions - Roth and New York Times v Sullivan - which I felt then (and still feel) went too far in freeing the press from any reasonable responsibility for pornography or slander or libel. Particularly shocking was Griswold v Connecticut where, in a passage which will live as the high-watermark of judicial doublespeak, Justice Douglas found that the Bill of Rights had "penumbras" from which flowed "emanations' wherein could be found a right of privacy embedded in the Bill of Rights. And he found it , thus setting the stage for Roe v Wade a year or so later - a decision which almost every constitutional scholar now believes was wrongly decided and which set off a divisive national controversy which has split the country for forty years.

All this and much more is in this remarkable, well researched, highly readable 525 page biography written by Jim Newton a seasoned reporter for the Los Angeles Times and the former long time head of its Editorial Board. I had not realized what a dominating figure Earl Warren was to twentieth century of American politics - in fact how influential he as been over-all in the formation of our society. I can think of no Justice apart from Chief Justice Marshall who has been more of an influence in he Court. Nor can I think of a President - apart from Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt and maybe Andrew Jackson - who has been a greater influence on American society. History will view him as truly one of our "greats". But he didn't start that way.

Earl Warren was first and foremost a Californian. He was born to working class parents in Los Angeles in 1891 and died in 1974 a age 83 in Washington where, far from California, he lies honored in Arlington Cemetery as a World War I soldier and one of the greatest of the great Americans.

His was a rather mundane career until he became Governor in 1942. He had an undistinguished career at the University of California and Boalt Law School, had been an infantryman without combat in the War, tried private practice briefly, didn't like it and then in the twenties went into the District Attorney's office in Oakland. He became a respected District Attorney, served several terms, became well known in Republican circles but to the end of his days remained a prosecutor, but a fair one. You don't have to be a tyrant to be a prosecutor. The essence of prosecution is to be fair. This differs from the essence of the defense, which is to get the best deal. possible for a guilty client. Fairness has nothing to do with it.

He was Attorney General of California from 1938-42 and then served three terms as Governor, being selected as Chief Justice of he United States by President Eisenhower in 1953, three years into his third term as Governor.

I don't think this brief review is the place to touch on all that he did as Governor or as Chief Justice. That's why you should read the book. Suffice it to say that he proved to be as collaborative as Chief Justice as he was as Governor. He was always a consensus builder, a talent without which we might not be where we are today.

His accomplishments? His Court ended racial segregation (Brown v Board of Education of Topeka Kansas), almost as important a decision as Marbury v Madison. The country can't segregate public facilities, nor can it reapportion or redistrict or gerrymander geography so as to deny blacks equal representation (Boynton v Virginia, Baker v Carr.) Every man has one vote (Wesberry v Sabdes). You can' have race-based elections (Gemellion).

His Court severely limited the then current police practices - too
much so in the opinion of many, including mine. A policeman can't stop a car or a person for questioning without reason to suspect that person of unlawful behavior by articulable evidence - not a hunch - real evidence (Terry v Ohio), nor may he question the person about a crime without a proper warning (Miranda). In fact the person doesn't even have to talk to him, He has a right to remain silent (Escobedo). Once the person has counsel, the police can't talk to him at all (Massiah). The person has a right to counsel, and if the defendant is indigent one must be provided (Gideon v Wainwright) and you can't have him in a lineup without counsel. (US v Wade). He has a right to a transcript and to counsel on appeal (Griffin v Illinois). Most importantly he cannot be subject to an unlawful search; and evidence found in such a search is not admissible against him at trial (Mapp v Ohio). (This ruling is, I think, the most hurtful to the prosecution of any of the Warren Court rulings because it has led to countless dismissals of obviously guilty persons and a myriad of decisions on the subject plus incentivizing police perjury in trying to avoid the consequences of an obviously unlawful search. For example "He consented to open the car" etc. etc.)

Then there are the decisions on fee speech, liberalizing the laws against pornography (Roth) and, most importantly in my opinion immunizing the press from libel in almost every circumstance where a public person is involved - and almost anyone who is the subject of a news article can be called a "public person" (New York Times v Sullivan). Sullivan held that a free press was immunized form suit for defamation of libel unless the plaintiff proved "actual malice" which could be equated either to knowledge of the falsity of the story or a reckless disregard of investigation. Either way the decision has polluted our media with nuanced or outright untruths.

Warren dominated the Court during his 16 years (1953-69) as Chief Justice, Always fair, always calm, always adroit he forged consensus among brilliant, independent men - men who had been intellectually blooded at the highest levels of academia or government and who rarely brooked any opinion other than their own. Yet he moulded them by personality, reason and calm judgment into a majority which followed his lead. Rarely was he in the minority.

In doing this he revolutionized our society in ways we tend to forget or overlook because society as now changed has generally accepted the changes. We would never go back to the way it was in 1953, nor could we. We could never go back to segregation. We could never abide a defendant's being convicted without representation, without, a fair trial or by misconduct on the part of the police or the prosecutors. (In fact most of us have forgotten how the criminal courts operated before the Warren Court changed all that.) Nor will we be restrained in our speech, on what we can watch, or where we can vote - or even if we can vote, being black.

None of this was done without protest - by the South, by the John Birch Society, by the religious right, by millions of people who considered themselves "conservative". (I was never one of them) But now- by and large - most of us have come around to accept the way things are.

However laudable the changes have been there is a troubling aspect to the way in which they came to be. Huge societal changes were imposed by decree upon the American people without any public participation. By the stoke of a pen agreed upon by nine elderly men one quarter of our nation was enfranchised, given rights they had never had had before and three fourths of the nation was ordered under penalty of imprisonment to accept them as equals. This was judicial legislation, pure and simple - judicial activism - freighted, to be sure, with the best of intentions, but nevertheless passed without a peep of citizen input.

But what about next time? What restraint is there on the reach of a supreme court Decision? Should there be any? Should we always assume that the nine men and women of the Court really have the best interests of the Country at heart and will avoid any action or decree which will imperil or society or our economy or our liberties? Or that they are not acting with self interest as opposed to the larger interest of the country?

I have two answers to this troubling question.
The short answer is that there is no type of restraint, short of a Constitutional Amendment of some sort, which could be imposed without having the "restrainer" - be it Congress or the Executive - subject to the same concern. Examples: Congress' Court Packing scheme of 1934; Andrew Jackson's defiance of the Court in 1835 ("Now they have acted; let them enforce it")

A longer answer is that popular democracy by its very nature must and does rely in the final analysis on the good sense of the people of the United States; and the people of the United States have almost always demonstrated good sense when faced with serious problems of an institutional or Constitutional nature. They are not going to devalue the Supreme Court as one of the three co-equal branches of government. Furthermore, each of the branches of our Government - The Legislative, Executive and Judicial - have tended to right themselves, to purge themselves either voluntarily or by public pressure over time, the one possible exception being Congress. So while one may cringe at the nonsense written by Mr. Justice Douglas, the Court is essential and this book convinces the reader of that fact and of the fact that Warren was a truly great man - one of our greatest.

I found this book in the bargain bin at the university bookstore last December and bought it for $4 (Canadian) as a holiday or end of term present for myself. I ended up finally reading it this past June, while on vacation. The book is a lengthy one and well-researched.

I ate this book up and have dog-eared a few sections (Brown case and some others) for teaching the Supreme Court sections of my American Politics courses. The book does so many things and I'll note a few: shed light on the multi-faceted politics of a liberal Republican prosecutor, California Governor, and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

The Warren Court really did help make the nation with decisions on so many important cases. I have a broader affinity for Warren after reading this book. The book also explored the relationship or lack thereof between Warren and Nixon. The book's coverage of Nixon was honest and unfavorable, which was insightful to read about the sparring between the two men.

This book is great for anyone interested in the law, California history, Supreme Court history, or American Politics. The book's tone is written for a learned lay audience or an academic one examining the history or psychology of the Court and decision-making.

This is a remarkable book of Earl Warren, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in the 1950s and 1960s. The author does a superb job describing both the personal feelings and professional dealings of one of the US's most notable (or notorious, depending on your perspective) activist judges. Few these days remembers him as the Republican governor of California and vice presidential candidate, and that era gets extensive treatment, laying out the roots of his judicial philosophy The book clearly presents the arguments of why Warren was such a success at judicial consensus building and therefore one of the most effective supreme court justices. Interestingly, the book also has one of the most rational descriptions of the Warren commission buried within its pages (explaining both the strengths and weaknesses of their process) and does not try to hide the warts of the man. This book is a fantastic learning opportunity.

I grew up in a neighborhood and a time when "Impeach Earl Warren" signs were common. As an engaged teenager I closely followed the changing legal landscape of the late fifties and early sixties as the Warren Court rearranged the legal landscape and with it the social order of our nation in the areas of civil rights, criminal justice, freedom of speech, privacy and the role of religion in public schools. Even today as a practicing attorney I admit to strong philosophical disagreements with some of the Warren Court decisions. Having said that, Jim Newton has produced a masterpiece in his book "Justice for All."

First, this book is a marvelous biography of one of the most notorious men of the 20th century. From humble beginnings in the dusty backwater of a turn of the century Bakersfield, California to Chief Justice of perhaps the most influential court in the world, Earl Warren's story is compelling. In addition you are treated to a wonderful and readable history of California politics in the first half of the 20th Century, a time of unparalleled opportunity, growth and change in the Golden State. That alone is worth the read.

Nevertheless, the real gold nuggets of this book lie in its recounting of the internal politics of decision making within the court, as Chief Justice Earl Warren, guided not so much by legal principle but by what he perceived to be the "right thing to do", rewrote and redefined some of the most important constitutional issues of our time. While such a disclosure, poorly written might leaden the eyelids of all but the most inspired, Newton masters this task by writing a clear and easily understood layman's explanation of the facts, the legal and social issues and the courts resolution. I found myself excited, engaged and highly entertained by Newton's easily understandable prose. I was in a sense a fly on the wall as some of the most important legal decisions of the 20th century unfolded before my eyes.

Warren is not portrayed as a flawless Deity (he after all recommended and supported the forced incarceration of Japanese American's in WW II) but rather as a multi-faceted personality whose core belief was in using the power of government to do good for the common man and whose political and legal judgment evolved to blend with and sometimes challenge the social and legal fabric of our nation.

I was amazed to learn of his post Miranda concern (fueled by a very real and I would say predictable jump in crime in America after Miranda) that perhaps the court had gone too far in defining the relationship between those who would do harm and those who are ultimately charged with our protection. Thus while the basic concept of Miranda is appropriate and now fully integrated into the fabric of our legal system, later Supreme courts thankfully have more clearly defined the boundaries under which we balance the rights of the accused and the right of our citizens to be free from the terror of criminal activity.

OK enough politics, after reading this book, I am wiser, far better informed and far more sympathetic to a man so many have reviled as the father of judicial activism. Such a label in the absence of context does a huge disservice to this huge man and his historical significance. This book provides a context and insight that far surpassed my expectations. Regardless of your politics or your view of judicial activism, this is a truly enlightening book worthy of your time.

I rarely give a 5-star review on a book. This one gets one for a stack of reasons.

When I finish a biography, I ask myself if I feel like I know the person. I feel I know Warren.

Another reason to like this book, it makes no bones about Warren's bad decisions, his support of the uprooting of Japanese in California in 1941. The author is not shy about criticizing Earl Warren.

Finally, I am a layman. It is a tough task to explain complex legal decisions to a non-lawyer. But Newton does it quite well.

One other thought: After all the learning I did by reading this book, it makes me quite critical of any and all the "teachers" I had in government and American History. They could not teach a politician to steal.

I bought Ms. McKellar's first book to help my grand daughter in 4th grade when she began to struggle with some of the math concepts being presented in school. She was able to get a handle on the work by using that book. She started middle school this year and wasn't able to find some of the math they were now doing in the first book. Luckily, I heard about this second book and sent it along. My grand daughter has found the help she needed in this second book and even takes it to school with her. I think Ms. McKellar has performed a real service for a lot of girls who struggle with math.

This may be the best math resource for the new 7th grader that is on the shelf today. Our son started 7th grade pre-algebra this year and, while he is an A student in other subjects, this brought him (and us) to our knees. Danica's book has been able to make every chapter in the school text book capable of being understood. Danica has some funny ways she gets the kids to humanize some of the more technical aspects of math, making the concept easier to relate to and to remember. Our son just finished the first trimester with a B+ and we are certain this would have been a C or less if we did not have Danica's book. This is the best $15 you will spend helping your kids in pre-algebra.

This book explains math in a way that is easy for young girls (and boys) to get a more thorough understanding of Algebra. It builds off of the fundamentals learned in her first book. My daughter loves it and I do, too! Danica, you rock!!!

Danica McKellar is a beautiful actress who is probably very well off and successful. So why did she go to UCLA to study math after being a very successful child star on the wonder years and then bother to write a book entitled Math Doesn't Suck. Well it is because she wanted to prove she was more than just a good looking actress. She had a brain and could handle math. The attitude that math is not for the ladies was a horrible prejudice in my high school years and even in this enlightened age we haven't quite gotten over it and many a capable young lady lacks the confidence and courage to try to do math. Danica is a rol model who proves that they can. Her first book was so successful and helped young middle school girls overcome their fears and lkearn that math is not really hard and can be fun and interesting whenit is approached in the riht way. So math does not suck! But in addition to convincing young girls and boys that they can learn it she became encouraged to write another book based on the encouraging emails from young ladies who benefitted from the book. Well love of math should not end with middle school and algebra, geometry and calculus are very different form the kind of math you learn in the elementary and middle schools that a good series of lectures in pre-algebra is needed to help those who become discouraged again in high school. It bothers Danica to see a girlfriend of hers give up on medical school just because calculus is required. So in the same interesting style as her first book Danica interest the high schoolers with concepts like negative numbers, mathematical inequalities, exponential functions and much more. By uncovering the mysteries of pre-algebra Danica unlocks the door to advanced levels of mathematics that students in high school need. This book is good for high school teachers and anyone else with an interest in mathematics. But it is aimed at and can help most high school girls who are capable of doing well in math and nedd it for the careers they seek, like med school.

I loved the show Wonder Years and Danica was great it it as Winnie Cooper. But it was interesting to see that she went on after that success to get a college degree in math from UCLA. These two books she has written are intended for elementary and junior high school girls to help them gain confidence in math. I think the books could be helpful to my boys as well had the come out earlier. My eldest son is in college and the younger one is in 11th grade. By the time she writes one on high school math like analysis and calculus they will both be in college. But keep it up Danica, an actress and glamour girl and a math whiz, what a amazing combination.

This book was amazingly well written! It wonderfuly portrays the life of a very talented and amzing man. Please, for your own sake, read this book!

This book is subtitled "An Extravagant Life," and is available in hardcover. Laurence Bergreen also wrote "Louis Armstrong: An Extrodinary Life" Unfortunately I got the impression that Mr. Bergreen became a little disillusioned with his subject. He glosses over Armstrong's flaws. For instance, Bergreen seems to accept Louis' infidelities were the result of bad advice about women he received in his adolescence! His relationship and treatment of his mentor Joe Oliver is also rather quickly dismissed. I wish more time was spent on these parts of Armstrong's life. I can't fault the research and musical analysis, though.

This was one of the best biographies I have ever read. By far the best one of the life of Louis Armstrong. It took me only 2 days to read this book, I could hardly put it down. Not being much of a fan of Dixieland, New Orleans Jazz, etc...after reading this book I was hooked. I wanted to listen to every Louis recording available. Bergreen paints Armstrong as such an amazing character which he completely was. Even if you aren't a jazz fan this is just a great book about a great man.

You get not only a bio of a great musician & person, you get a detailed description how Blacks lived New Orleans through the turn of the century. From it you get a better understanding of how the pre-recording (and therefore unrecorded) sounds of untutored musicians became the roots of the New Orleans musical genre and how the odds were stacked against Louis. You come to understand his workaholism and his deference to his eventual agent, who probably exploited him.

As the book progresses, the historical descriptions are not as detailed but you feel the music and the person developing. Ironically, the two best known pieces "Hello Dolly" & "It's a Wonderful World", were late stage, not representative, but somehow routine work for the prolific Louis.

It's hard to imagine from the impoverished roots, the raw deals and the omnipresent daily racism (even to his death in 1971 segregation both de facto and Jim Crow continued), how Louis kept his optimism and exhuberance. It was not self deceptive, when the chips were down, he supported the Brown v Board of Ed decision, not just in his heart, but words and actions.

He was an unfaithful lover and husband. We don't know if he ever promised otherwise... all his wives but the first (who was common law married) knew he was a married man when they started "dating" him. The world owes Mrs. Armstong the 2nd (Lil) a debt. She gave him confidence and a platform to be the star he became.

In the Acknowledgments the author says this is the first bio he's written where his admiration for his subject grows.

Louis Armstrong blazed a trail. He was a tough cat, much tougher than all the supposedly macho dudes who posture now. He doesn't have to posture because he's dealt with the mob and prostitutes who slash with the knifes in their shoes, and somehow reminds us, that despite all this, it's a wonderful world.

I believe I've read them all and nothing ever written about Louis Armstrong is as detailed as this book. Moreso than the "tired old stories" you see repeated in version after version of other tales of Armstrong, this one actually delves into the personal life as well as the persona of the man. Every Armstong fan needs to read this book - it's an awakening!

This book is beautifully photographed and well written. It is a perfect example of how new homes can be constructed to have the timeless appeal of historical properties by using old and new materials and thoughtful intrepetation of historical designs. Mr. Town's homes are the kind that can be handed down from generation to generation due to their quailty and beauty. Mr. Town's residential projects should be an inspiration to those considering building a new home in any price range. It is the design that counts.

Being born and raised in SE Louisiana just outside of New Orleans I really enjoyed the homes presented. I am currently planning to build our home here in the Houston suburbs and the ideas presented are awesome!!!

We are building a new home with the Hays Town Louisiana houses as inspiration. His style should translate well to rural Atlanta. But we have to pass on the German Shepherd.

My wife loves the A. Hays Town homes, and this book is a nice representation of his work. A good coffee table item for guests to view.

I found this book to be exactly the view of Hays Town's work that I wanted to see.

An excellent history of the B-36 and its variants, including the YB-60 jet version. Plenty of detail, along with many pictures and drawings. A worthwhile book for students of aviation history, especially those with interest in the B-36.

To those B-36 and SAC fans, this book is well worth it and fantastic. I find it hard to believe all those so fine pictures contained in this book. I am a man of short words, but the only disappointment for anyone is if they did not buy it. So take heed to my advice: do not put off buying it. In conclusion, do not make me say, "I told you so."

"Uncle Sam's newest, biggest bomber -- the B-36 -- is a long, slim gal with a wiggle in her rear. She's a little on the skinny side, but she's beautiful", gushed the New York Daily News.

My earliest memory of her was Jimmie Stewart's arctic crash landing in the Hollywood epic, "Strategic Air Command." Later he falls in love with a younger, sexier plane -- the new B-47 Stratojet.

Looking back, we remember the B-36 as a colossal cold war relic, but the massive B-36 was originally conceived to fight another foe -- Adolph Hitler's 3rd Reich. Describing the Peacemaker, author Dennis R. Jenkins relates, "The story of the B-36 is unique in American history. The aircraft was an interesting blend of concepts proven during World War II combined with budding 1950s high tech systems."

Mr. Jenkins reveals, "The B-36, despite its seemingly conventional appearance, pushed 1950's state-of-the-art further than any other aircraft of its era. Its sheer size brought structural challenges, while its high-altitude capabilities brought engine cooling and other problems. Sophisticated gun and bombing systems presented development, maintenance, and operational headaches."

"Magnesium Overcast: The Story of the Convair B-36" is a high quality, glossy, format book with a jackpot of intriguing photographs (many in color), instructive drawings and tables. Many of the wonderful interior photographs, diagrams and engineering drawings were taken from U.S. Air Force technical manuals. The graphics alone make this one of the finest aircraft books I have ever seen. Mr. Jenkins had done a superior job of presenting all the modification programs in great detail with a clear, concise style. He has meticulously researched and presented the life cycle of the B-36 from conception through scrapping out.

To meet the extreme requirements of its mission, several outlandish design features were tried -- bunks for the off-duty crewmen and a gallery complete with oven to prepare hot meals --- a complex system of 8 retractable remote control dual 20mm gun turrets -- various parasite fighter planes that could be launched from aboard the B-36 when needed -- a nuclear reactor to power greatly modified turbojet engines.

Nuclear powered aircraft theoretically could stay airborne for years. Unfortunately, very heavy radiation shielding was imperative for crew protection.

Thankfully the B-47 Stratojet and the B-52 Buff became operational and finally put an end to the expensive Frankenstein experiments with the outmoded B-36.

A great long range bomber that served in SAC to perform as a bridge between the "prop" planes and the pure jet. This book is throughly
researched and easy to read. Many photos.

"Magnesium Overcast" is just what an "airplane book" should be: large, attractive, detailed, with a wealth of superior illustrations, many in color. I'd hazard a guess that there are more than 300 high-quality photos and drawings, including a rare chart of the Convair production line.

In any case, it's all here: something for "rivet counters" and "number crunchers" alike. The authors deserve full credit for the thoroughness of their work and the obvious care they lavished on this project. Kudos also go to Specialty Press for producing this significant volume in such lavish style at a reasonable price.

The Man Called Cash is a very good book. very informative.I think a child 11-12 years old could read it and beable to understand what they are reading.I think it gose behond some of the other books I have read on Johhny Cash.I would recomend it to any one who is interested in seeing where Johnny Cash were he came from and the legacey he left.

I am a legally blind man and and I usually get my books to listen to through the library, but after I saw the movie walk the line I felt I had to know more about the ledgend of Cash through an audiobook if I could find one. I was lucky to find this one. I love the way Kris Kristofferson reads the book. Since he was a friend of cash's, he put feeling into the reading like no other person can. Through the author's extensive research on Cash, I found out things I never knew about him. The Movie is good, but if you really want to know who Cash is, just by this and Listen to Kristofferson tell you about his friend. The man in black.

I learned a lot about Johnny Cash, as well as people like Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, and many others who were the ones that generated so much buzz about music in the 1950's. Toward the end of the book, I was sad because I knew that it would speak of his death. I found myself not wanting to hear about it, because I had loved learning about his life so much.

My favorite story in the whole book was about a prayer he prayed at dinner. His dinner guest recalled the story:

Cash prayed and said, "... and we thank you Lord for this food, and we ask that you would bless it to our body. We pray these things in Jesus' name, Amen. When he finished praying he winked at me and said, "I still miss the drugs though."

It is precisely that juxtaposition of piety and weakness that I think I love about him. It reminds me of another man who is known well for his writing when he said:

I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do ... What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?

In case you didn't catch that, the other man to whom I referred is the Apostle Paul. He happened to be one of Cash's favorite people for obvious reasons. I have wondered why I am so enamored by people like Johnny Cash and Paul; these men of such conviction, but at the same time so open about their transgressions. I think it is because they knew themselves well, and they never allowed the good in them to elevate them to a place where they could look down at others. They knew the darkness, and that it was always waiting if they would just relent and turn to it.

Cash turned to it a lot. However, like Paul, he also said:

Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!

At the end of his life, after June Carter died he hung around for a few months more. He could barely walk, was in massive pain, and was eighty percent blind. In this state, however, he still had the Bible enlarged big enough so he could read it. Others spoke about his love of Jesus, his kindness, his generosity, and his faithfulness to June.

So many want to be cynical about people who struggle, fall, get up, and fall again. They like to point and yell to expose someone else's flaws. I am more convinced that the ones who yell the loudest are the ones who are the most scared of having their flaws exposed.

One of my favorite lines in music comes from a song sung by Cash. It was written by Bono and performed with U2 (yeah, I know big surprise). The line goes:

I went out there,
In search of experience,
To taste and to touch,
And to feel as much,
As a man can,
Before he repents.

Isn't that all of our stories? I know it's mine. I also know that it is mine everyday. I walk around, and like a little kid test the boundaries of God's love. Some days, I may not go far, other days I may feel restless and I just want to run. Yet each time I return home to talk with God I find myself speaking the words of Paul:

Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!

I usually don't read many biographies, but I received this one for Christmas one year since I am a huge Johnny Cash fan. I was glad to see that this book was very well written and also a very easy read. I knew it was going to be good when the first chapter was pretty emotional, as it starts off with June Carter Cash dying. The book also focuses well on some key moments in Johnny Cash's life that made the most significant difference - the first being the death of his brother, Jack, and the others that revolved around June. Like other reviewers have stated, Walk The Line used a lot of moments from the book and I would recommend reading the book as well as watching the movie. I think what was great about Johnny Cash, and what we can all relate too, is how open he was with how he was a sinner and how he had made a lot of mistakes (ie. drugs, affairs, etc.), but he changed his ways when he fully committed himself to Jesus and his faith. I think this book can be a great tool to those who have struggled and have difficult pasts because Cash showed that it doesn't matter what you have done, that you have forgiveness and that you can always start over. Great message and this book has a lot of interesting and funny stories that will want to make you laugh, smile, shake your head, or make you feel sad. Steve Turner has done a great job and had made me rethink biographies. If you're a Johnny Cash fan, this a must-have!

Before I read this book, THE MAN CALLED CASH, by Steve Turner, from 2004, I had also read the 1997 book called CASH: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY (with Patrick Carr). They both cover similar ground. The 1997 book seems more homey, like Johnny Cash is talking to you, but this book, by Steve Turner, seems more accurate.

Having know Johnny and his family for over a decade, author Steve Turner was actually hired to help write another autobiography, but June and Johnny died unexpectedly, and the book turned into an in-depth research research project, instead of just helping Johnny write with decent grammar, or whatever it takes two authors to do with an AUTObiography.

Both books seem to be equally long in content, though the page counts and page sizes differ between the hardcover of this book and the small paperback of THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY book that I read.

Though both books cover a lot of the same incidents from Johnny's life, this book, THE MAN CALLED CASH, features some highly interesting coverage of the last living days of June and Johnny, before they both passed on in 2003. There is also plenty of more in-depth coverage of events told in THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY, and there are also plenty of events from Johnny's life that are not mentioned in the 1997 autobiography. I recommend that you read both books, actually.

The author also points out that since he had to do research, instead of just typing out whatever Johnny told him, he has discovered that Johnny Cash never had trouble telling a good story, or making a good story even better! For example, Johnny Cash has written and talked about how rowdy he was in the Air Force, fighting with the military police, etc., but Steve Turner points out that the people who were in the Air Force with him don't remember any of that kind of rowdiness from Johnny, who never got into much trouble, and would have been widely known on the air base if he HAD fought with the guards, etc. This book also tells about how Johnny would play music with other airmen in his dorm, and Johnny was the worst of the bunch, learning a lot from the others!

There are many interesting b/w photos, although mostly small, but in high quantity! There is a photo of his brother Jack, whose childhood death affected Johnny for the rest of his life.

This book also has a chronology of major events in Johnny's life, and a discography of his primary releases, which is good to use as a shopping list, for me.

This book does have some distracting typos that I hope get fixed in future printings. On one page the same sentence appears twice in a row. In the Chronology, the death of his father, Ray Cash, appears twice on the list, in 1985 (correct), and then again in 1993 (incorrect). This is unfortunate, but these two are the worst distractions that I found without even trying.

It is also interesting to see how the movie WALK THE LINE compares to what is contained in both of these books! For instance, both books say that June Carter never really met or toured with Johnny until he was a big, established star, years into his music career, while the movie gives me the impression that they met on Johnny's first fledgling tour.

THE MAN CALLED CASH gives information about the the saw accident and his brother Jack. This book says that actually there was another 12 year old boy there, who witnessed the event, and Johnny suspected him of being involved in a bad way, though none of the adults thought so at the time, or ever! Both books mention how Johnny would see Jack appear in his dreams for the rest of his life, always a few years older than Johnny at whatever the age Johnny dreamed the appearance.

This book talks about Johnny's friendship with the evangelist, Billy Graham. I personally enjoy Johnny's Gospel albums and projects, but I am a little bit disappointed over the wasted years of drug abuse and family neglect from Johnny, who thought of himself often as a lost Christian, but a Christian none the less. What do you think about that?

The Bible says, "What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice." -- Philippians 1:18. Using this Bible verse as a model, it tells me that Johnny Cash's Gospel works, as good as they are, are also totally legitimate as long as they correctly preach the Word of God--regardless of the depths of sin and abuse that Johnny heaped upon himself and his loved ones.

As long as Jesus Christ is being preached correctly, the sins of the messenger do not negate the message itself (and we are all sinners, just not as extreme as Johnny was, I suspect)! I do not and cannot condone his sinful abuses, (though I have done most of them myself, before I got Saved 8 years ago), but I will let God judge his own servant, and I will continue to enjoy the many beautiful Gospel projects which Johnny Cash was always eager and happy to work on!

GOSPEL GLORY is my favorite Johnny Cash Gospel CD, so far. His movie, THE GOSPEL ROAD, is on DVD and is also really cool! My favorite Gospel project from Johnny Cash is his spoken word reading of the entire NEW TESTAMENT on 16 CDs, very affordably priced from amazon.com, and all three of these items come highly recommended by me!

I can recommend both of these books for anybody who enjoyed the WALK THE LINE film.

Bottom line: read CASH: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY for a fun time spent with Johnny Cash in his own words, then read this book, THE MAN CALLED CASH, for the REAL story on how many of those stories actually went down!