Written in 1899, at the end of the heyday of the sentimental romance genre, this was--I feel--a subversive application of the style. Likely written for a white audience, the African-American authoress was determined to counter some of the more pernicious rumors about blacks, especially black women. To use today's terms, Hopkins was floating her own memes, including the idea that the mulatto, rather than being a tragic figure that could not survive in either the black or white world, was actually a strong bridge between the two races. Or that black women were not "hypersexual," but that the intermixture of the races was much more the fault of white male desires.

As fiction, it suffers from the conventions of its genre as much as Hopkins obvious proselytizing. For the student of history, however, its depiction of black life in the 1900s is a treasure trove. Hopkins even recreates the famous debate between Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois through the mouths of her characters. Interesting as a historical document; not sure that I could recommend this for entertainment, however.

When the poisoned Bowery bum turned out to be a missing Senator, Lt. Weigand was glad that Mr. and Mrs. North were not involved. Then he found that they knew the murdered man -- and were just wacky enough to put their own heads into a noose trying to untangle this bizarre, baffling case.

I've read both books included here, The Final Judgment and Degree of Guilt. Both books are good, entertaining, legal thrillers. Patterson is a good author (although a bit liberal for my tastes), and I've enjoyed all his books.

But I can't understand the reason behind this two volume selection. Why is "Final Judgment" included. This was just released recently as the CAROLINE MASTERS paperback which was relased before that as FINAL JUDGMENT. It all seems deceptive to me. Patterson could have chosen another novel to include that wasn't already the subject of a con job to the public. How many ways can one book be marketed. First they change its title, then they release it in different form with the original title... I am losing respect for Patterson because of this deceiptful marketing.

This Young Reader's PictureBook of Tar Heel Authors has a somewhat misleading title. There is a small (about 2 inches by 2 inches) photo on each page. Each author profile takes up one page, and those photos are the only "pictures" in this book! Parents expecting a picturebook a la Dr. Seuss are going to be disappointed.

The text of each profile is doubtless accurate, having been compiled by the expert Richard Walser. The book is dated though, having been published in 1966. No authors with North Carolina roots who have made their mark primarily since then are included (Gloria Houston, Patricia Cornwell, Rick Boyer, Elizabeth Daniels Squire, Charles Frazier to name a few).

This book looks like it would excite very few young readers, but, to paraphrase Abraham Lincoln, folks who go in for this sort of thing will go in for this.

ken32

This is the first published biography of Chief Washakie, the legendary leader of the Eastern Shoshone Indians, and is reprinted from Grace Raymond Hebard's original edition, "Washakie: An Account of Indian Resistance of the Covered Wagon and Union Pacific Railroad Invasions of their Territory " (1930). Hebard (1861-1936) was a professor of politcal economy at the University of Wyoming and became enamoured of Chief Washakie and the Shoshones during the early 1900s. Her book is basically an unstructured anecdotal read that jumps around in time and place.

I used her as a resource in my own book, "People of the Wind River: The Eastern Shoshones, 1825-1900," but only with great care and corroborating evidence. Hebard's sources were sons of Chief Washakie (including Dick, Charles, and George Washakie, all of whom were paid informants), the Reverend John Roberts (Episcopal priest on the Wind River Reservation from 1883-1948), Fincellius G. Burnett (Wind River agency farmer & ancestor of former Wyoming Senator Alan Simpson), and retired Indian agents and Army officers who had personal contact with Washakie. She also relied on some of the published annual reports of the Office of Indian Affairs (forerunner of the current Bureau of Indian Affairs).

That said, Hebard reveals family stories and legends about Washakie and often quotes verbatim from published government documents. Hers is a good introduction to the the famous chief and his people, but should be read with a cautionary eye. It is not a biography in the modern or scholarly sense, but functions more as remembrances of a cherished relative. Many of the events or actions attributed to Washakie by Hebard cannot be substantiated with other archival evidence and thus her work borders on hagiography. On the other hand, the very fact that such stories exist are testimony to the impact Chief Washakie had on those who knew him. He was a fascinating individual, leader, and statesperson during a difficult time of transition for the Eastern Shoshones.

The author of this book, Grace R. Hebard, was a professor and it shows. This is an awkward book to read. She hops around in space and time and that can be quite confusing to someone who doesn't have her familarity with the history of the region.

What the book lacks in structure, it more than makes up for with its compelling subject: Chief Washakie. I'm sure that few Americans outside of Wyoming have ever heard Chief Washakie's name, yet his accomplishments as a statesman, unifier and leader of his people is unequalled.

He led the Shoshone people through most of the 19th century, into the 20th century. He was a remarkable individual speaking English, French and Shoshone. His charismatic hold on his people only ended when he died in 1900 at the age of 102.

One thing that repeatedly struck me is, in the scheme of things, this was so recent. Another aspect that I enjoyed was that Chief Washakie encountered so many of the characters that we identify with the settling of the West: Kit Carson, Scajawea, Jim Bridger and many others.

The sensibilites of the times described in this book are not what we expect now, and the author brings contemporary (1930) biases to her interpretation. The updated introduction in this edition tries to alert the reader to some of the biases that influence Hebard's comments.

As difficult a read as this book is, I couldn't put it down. As a footnote, Chief Washakie will be memorialized in Statuary Hall the U.S. Capitol in the fall of 2000. He is one of two individuals chosen to represent the spirit of the State of Wyoming.

I never received this book from the used book dealer so I can't rate it or write a review of it.Please remove it from my sharedpurchases. Thank you.

If their was a "0" rating, I would give it.

This early novel by Patterson is far inferior to his later works, but I think it stands on its own in kind of a predatory or sadistic way. The whole concept of hostages being negotiated and aired as a t.v. special is all too frighteningly real, considering the nation's obsession with so-called reality television. But the premise is intriguing, and the story has some tense and riveting scenes. My main complaint is that within the novel, John Damone tells Stacy that "the man I hired killed him. Lord just brought it up again.." So i figured Stacy was in on it, but obviously she wasn't. This little confusing issue kind of squelched my overall enthusiasm for the novel, but even then Patterson was writing awesomely, giving us a glimpse of what he's come to do best---trial novels!
RECOMMENDED.

This book is a 4"X6" book with pictures of only 79 flowers. Though it is a pocket guide, someone interested in flower identification should probably pick up the National Audobon Society Field Guide to North America Wildflowers-- Western Region instead for only a few bucks more. The field guide (4" by 7.5")has over 650 color photos of wildflowers.

This is a paper thin book that is supposed to cover 25 years of Seattle baseball. This practically means it devotes a whole (small) page to each year. There is very little detailed content and not many photos. For the price you pay, it certainly isn't worth it.