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Book reviews for "Fox,_John" sorted by average review score:

The Shortstop
Published in Paperback by Beech Tree Books (1992)
Authors: Zane Grey, John Thorn, and Norma Fox Mazer
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Dialect: The Literary Device of Realism
In the novel The Shortstop by Zane Grey, the literary device dialect is strong and prominent throughout the story. Dialect can be defined as a way of speaking that is characteristic of a certain social group or of the inhabitants of a certain geographical area. The first type of dialect in the novel pertains to the way the characters pronounce the words they say. Some characters slur their words together or have corrupt ways of pronouncing their words. The second type of dialect present in the novel is the words that the characters use. These words have developed a certain connotation that brings out new meanings of the words. In short, the world does not always talk in their perfect idiom. Grey realizes this and makes sure he keeps the reality in his novel by having numerous dialects.

One class of dialect occurs when a reader comes across certain words that have corrupt spellings. However, pronouncing the word as it is spelled enables the speech of the character to be understood. One of the characters, simply called Benny, says, "Everybody but me hash frens" (Grey, 183). This sentence displays two errors that do not make sense by themselves. However, pronouncing theses words aloud in the sentence makes perfect sense. All in all, the warped spellings of words allow the reader to comprehend the corrupt ways the characters talk.

Another type of dialect pertains to words that have different meanings than what a dictionary reads. Instead of the denotation of the word, these words carry a special connotation that is understood by certain types of people because it has gradually blended in with their vocabulary. When a player named Enoch gets into a quarrel with an umpire, the umpire charged him with a five-dollar fine. In response to this, Enoch proclaims frantically, "Make it ten, you mullet" (Grey, 202)! Mullet might not be a familiar word in the context that Enoch uses it. However, to the characters in the novel, this is a universal word that carries an unfavorable meaning. In summary, special words with unique connotations increase the interest of the reader in the novel.

Dialect brings a plethora of qualities to a novel such as The Shortstop. Dialect enables a novel to have an unarguable reality. In the real world, people do not speak in their perfect vernacular. Almost everyone speaks with some type of slang or slurred pronunciation. Furthermore, having many types of dialects persuades a reader to be more interested in a novel. If a novel had every single character talk in their proper language, the story would become tedious to read. The best way to sum up what dialect brings to a story can be found in the world-renowned novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Mark Twain states, "In this book a number of dialects are used... for the reason that without it many readers would suppose that all these characters were trying to talk alike and not succeeding" (Twain, 2).

great
this story is about a young man who gives up his factory job to go and try pro baseball. after months of practice and many tryouts he finally makes a small iowa team. Before he knows it he is caught in a small town rivalry that tears him between his girlfriend and his dreams.


The Quick Red Fox
Published in Audio Cassette by Books on Tape, Inc. (01 Januar, 1983)
Author: John D. MacDonald
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A Warning
Here's a quick heads-up to anyone thinking of checking out this book: as per usual, MacDonald indulges his sexist attitudes towards women by having his hero, Travis McGee, meet up with a physically attractive, sexually repressed female whom he subsequently restores to mental good health by way of the bedroom. Anyone who's read this far in the series will not be surprised by that particular plot development. However, the book also indulges, in one brief but potently worded scene, some seriously homophobic sentiments. This, of course, fits in nicely with McGee's habit of handily pigeonholing virtually everyone he meets. Like the previous three McGee books (which are all I've yet read), the attitudes may be outdated, and to some degree offensive--but the writing's good stylistically, plot and pacing are tight. If you're looking for a light but suspensive read (or if you're sexist and homophobic), McGee's your man.

Solving Blackmail
Travis McGee is quick to come to the rescue of damsels in distress and doesn't need much coaxing this time when actress Lysa Dean cries out for help. Lysa is being blackmailed over some photos that were taken during a 4 day drunken party, catching her in some pretty explicit scenes. She has already paid off the blackmailers once, but it would seem that the photos still exist and the blackmailers are coming back for another bite of the cherry. Travis is given a list of 10 people who knew about the party and so uses it to begin his investigation into which one of them organised to have the photos taken.

To help him during his investigation, Lysa supplies Travis with her own personal secretary Dana Holtzer, a highly organised, very professional and of course , strikingly beautiful woman. She also has some personal secrets that makes her cold and aloof, particularly when it comes to men. Travis, being the diligent investigator that he is, goes about unlocking the secrets to Dana's heart while he's unlocking the identity of the blackmailer.

This is a lively mystery which turns out to be more of a mystery than it appears at first glance. The solving of one part leads us onto the next, leading Travis and Dana across the country and forcing them closer and closer together. It's an entertaining entry in the Travis McGee series.

John MacDonald's Travis McGee Series -20 books
John MacDonald, a prolific mystery/terror novelist, created the Travis McGee series. The Quick Red Fox is one of the earlier ones, and the story is rather tacky. What is important about the Travis McGee series is that there is much philosophy about life which rings very true today, even though MacDonald died in 1996.


Trail of the Lonesome Pine
Published in Library Binding by Lightyear Pr (1996)
Author: John Fox
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The Trail of the Lonesome Pine~
The Trail of the Lonesome Pine takes place in the Kentucky mountains, bordering Big Stone Gap, Virginia. It is a story of love, as well as change. At the heart of this novel are the Tolliver & Falin families, who have been in a feud with one another for as far back as anyone can remember. The story begins as life in the mountains is beginning to change..coal mining is starting to boom, and the oustide world is creeping into the simple ways of mountain life. A town is blossoming in Big Stone Gap Virginia..and the Trail of the Lonesome Pine connects the town with Lonesome Cove, home of the Tolliver family, and a pretty little mountain girl named June. When John Hale enters the Tolliver/Falin territory, June is immediately drawn to him. The entrance of this "furriner" will change June's life forever.

Not being from the region that the Trail of the Lonesome Pine is written about, I was definitely reading it from a "furriner" point of view. The Trail of the Lonesome Pine is really two stories in one. Part of this novel is a love story, centering on a young girl, June Tolliver & her love interest John Hale, the "furriner." The other side of this novel focuses on what life is like for the "mountain people" and the effects of the coal mining boom, and the influx of foreigners into their way of life. Both stories are very interesting and blend well together. At times though, I felt the writing was hard to get through and difficult to follow. The last 1/4 of the book really picked up, and by the time the story concluded, I was glad that I read this and look forward to reading more by John Fox, Jr.

An enchanting Tale
The Trail of the Lonesome Pine proves to be an enchanting tale about love. A tall pine tree stood in solitary splendor on the top of a mountain in Kentucky and through its fame lured a young engineer to find it and leaad Hale on a trail of love which I felt was an overall wonderful plot for this book. Since the plot of the book was set in Kentucky June and her family along with the many nountaineers had our good ole country accent which also portrayed that they had not received very much education. In a waaay I feel that it was an insult to Kentuckians knoweledge even though it did portray June's remarkable learning rate when Hale helped her to attend school. I think the beauty of the state could have been captured morewhile telling of how beautiful the land was while looking at the view of the lonsome pine. Many flowers in Kentucky are mentioned throughout the novel and June also had a flower garden built for her of Kentucky's wildflowers. Although I didn't like the waay the law stepped in during the Falins and Tollivers family feuds which continued throughout June's childhoodBecause I think their battles could have been a book by itself rather than to combine them with the love and romance of Hale and June even though they greatly affected their lives. I felt that the novel was deeply expressive in many ways and throughout all encounters portrayed by John Fox Jr. you were sure to experience the poetic side of life in the Kentucky mountains.

A Lovely Love Story
The Trail of the Lonesome Pine is set in the Kentucky mountains of the 19th century. June Tolliver is a very poor young mountain girl who meets an engineer from the outside world. He takes June out of the mountains so she can go to school and get an education. He is also interested in mining coal in the Kentucky hills. The story of how their love for each other grows and of the Tolliver family's feud with the Falin's is a classic American tale. I read this story out loud to my teen-age children and they just loved it! This is the first of a trilogy by Fox.


Rommel: The Trail of the Fox (Wordsworth Military Library)
Published in Paperback by Wordsworth Editions Ltd (1999)
Authors: David John Cawdell Irving and David Arving
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Readable but debatable
David Irving carried out extensive primary research while writing this book and presents an intimate and personal portrait of Erwin Rommel which is fascinating to read. For this reason, this book can only be commended.
There is an absence of references to Irving's more controversial views which also can only be welcome. However in light of recent events the section of the book which deals with Rommel's demise surely cannot be accepted on face value. Essentially Irving's argument is that an unwitting Rommel was betrayed by General Hans Speidel, his chief of staff, and therefore took the fall for Speidel's involvement in the July plot to kill Hitler. Speidel went on post war to become a senior commander in NATO, Rommel of course was forced to commit suicide. In any case, leaving aside the more debatable allegations, I do not view the attempted murder of Irving's precious Fuhrer as a "crime" and therefore found it hard to share in the author's indignation at Speidel's alleged conduct which premeates the book. That aside, this work as I referred to above is not without merit.

An eye-opening view that needs to be read!!!
Irving cut right to the bone with his book on Rommel. While some people would have you think that Rommel was the best military genius/strategist in history, Irving paints the man for who he really was. Being in no way disrespectful to Rommel's memory, Irving show's the mans strengths and weaknesses in a way that most military leaders of today would do well to learn about from reading this book.

Rommel was loved by his troops (but not his officers) and the German public, but ego-mania and micro-management were two of his most glaring flaws. Irving shows these flaws and how the affected Rommel's fighting force and his command climate though the observations of the DAK and Pz Armee Afrika staff officers and troop unit commanders, as well as Rommels own recorded actions from both military and personal accounts. Rommel's love of attention is shown clearly thoughout the book, but again, Irving uses it to show that Rommel was human and had downfalls like everyone else on the planet.

Particular attention is paid to Rommel's early military career, and most importantly to his WW1 exploits, and his rivalry with fellow Field Marshal, Ferdinand Schoerner, both of whom were infantry platoon leaders during Germany's campaign in Italy, and both of whom were awarded the Pour le Merite for two consecutive battles. This rivalry directly influenced his actions after WW1, and during WW2, and cannot be overlooked when looking at Rommel as a military leader.

This book needs to be read by all who desire to gain an insight on this charasmatic leader. I've read most of the books printed on Rommel (Desmond Young; "Rommel: In his Own Words"; Liddell Hart "The Rommel Papers"; Hans von Luck's book "Panzer Commander"; von Mellenthin's "Panzer Battles"; "Knight's Cross"; Ruge's "W/ Rommel in Normandy"; etc...) and have found this one to be the most informative and in-depth of them all. It also has provided me with enormous insight as to why the first battle of Tobruk failed and the real reasons behind the DAK's lack of supplies, which wasn't the Italian High Command failing to follow through, but Tripoli's inability to cope with large amounts of inbound shipping.

If you have a very narrow minded view of Rommel and the DAK, then DON'T READ THIS BOOK. It WILL disappoint you since it doesn't conform to the "Rommel is a God of War" theme that most authors have put forth, and attacks him mildly, from time to time, for his percieved inability to cope with situations that didn't follow his plans.

As a military officer myself, I've found wonderful tidbits of knowledge that transcend all levels of leadership. It's really made me think about the military and my career, as well has history on many differnet levels. If you can deal with someone else's view on a subject, even when it's different from your own, then by all means READ THIS BOOK! IT'S EXCELLENT!!!

An Excellent, Highly Readable Biography
I've read this book twice, the last time in the mid-'80's, but I constantly find myself re-opening parts of it for sheer reading plaeasure. Irving employs a lively theatrical writing style that nicely enhances the real drama of Rommel's career. As a result, this is a livelier and more enjoyable bio than the more recent "Knight's Cross."

Irving clearly admires Rommel, calling him one of history's great commanders. That said, Irving doesn't hesitate to point out Rommel's flaws and mistakes, including galling stubborness and unwillingness to heed subordinates' advise at Torbruk in 1941. Irving even presents the argument that Rommel himself, through lack of the same hard resolve and boldness he had prveviously displayed, shares blame for the failure of his critical offensive against the British at Alam el Halfa in August 1942, thus setting the stage for epic defeat at El Alamein a couple of months later.

Rommel clearly comes across as a genuinely decent sort incapable of the types of atrocities carried out by the Nazis on a grand scale elsewhere. All the more touching is his devotion to his wife and son, whom he obviously cherished, so much so that he unhesitatingly accepts suicide to protect them from Hitler's wrath. (Thus on another level, this book is also a touching love story.) This is all the more tragic considering that Rommel, as Irving demonstrates, was not even part of the assassination plot against Hitler, although he possessed enough courage to openly question his leader's conduct of the war.

Finally, some readers may ignore this book because of Irving's indefensible position on the Holocaust. That is certainly understandable, but I think Irving was clearly in his element with this bio. It's a must read for World War II buffs or for anyone who enjoys well-written bios of historic figures on the world stage.


Fox's Book of Martyrs
Published in Paperback by Zondervan (1978)
Authors: W. B. Forbush and John Foxe
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The wise reader will put this book in its proper context. .
. . but the anti-Catholic polemicists will ignore such proper scholarship.

As a non-Roman Catholic historian and theologian, I have seen far too many Protestant "apologists" (read, anti-Catholics) use Foxe's Book of Martyrs as a condemnation of 2000 years of Catholicism, or as a support for the Protestant Reformation, or any number of off-track purposes. This is not fair to either history, or Catholicism.

The Reformation in England was a bloody time. No reputable historian would doubt it. Foxe presents a tiny snapshot (more or less a decade) in which the Catholics (under the aptly named "Bloody" Mary I) executed a number of leading Protestant theologians and clergymen. This much is history. Incorporated with the history are the personal polemics of Foxe, which have little or nothing to do with the history of the times.

It's interesting to note that the Catholics could just as easily present their own book of martyrs, taken from pretty much the same time period, in order to justify denouncing Protestants! Henry VIII was just as unpleasant to Catholics as his daughter was to Protestants! And Elizabeth I executed as many Catholics as Mary I did Protestants.

None of this is intended to justify violence in the Name of God -- such is reprehensible no matter who participates in it. But both Catholics and Protestants have dirty hands, and finger pointing serves no purpose.

Consider this book in its context, but don't try to draw modern polemic conclusions from it.

Be Challenged and be warned!
Sometimes the truth hurts. Religious persecution has come in many forms all throughout history. Neither the Catholics nor the Protestants are completely innocent of spilling the blood of the faithful. The difficulty lies in trying to place the blame on genuine Christianity, which cannot be done. The 'faithful few' Christ has chosen throughout history (because of their obedience to the faith!) have always been the persecuted, despised and forsaken. It's only been since modern times that satan has been able to pass off his counterfeit version of Christianity as the truth to most who profess to believe.
Anyone who would involved themselves in the trial and death of their fellow human being for 'religious' reasons, is certainly NOT a true Christian. 1John3:15 makes perfectly clear that 'no murderer' has eternal life abiding in him!
For the true Christians the weapons of warfare are NOT carnal, but spiritual for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. (2Cor10:5) Opposing the forces of evil in such manner brings persecution and often death, but such is the price of holding forth the words of life as you will see from the faithful first century Martyrs who gave their lives for the truth.
One discrepancy I discovered is the author's information about John Calvin and the Geneva Council who ordered the execution of the Spanish Physician Michael Servetus in 1553. He holds Calvin innocent of the death of Servetus, claiming that he made numerous attempts to have his life spared (if he would recant) and finally succumbed to the overwhelming desire of the Council to burn Servetus. This is a distortion of the facts. Calvin was zealous for the death of Servetus and others who opposed his view of theology and penned in his own hand years after the horrible execution his 'approval' of such acts against all 'heretics!' Congratulating himself for 'having purged the Church of so pernicious a monster!' (quoted from a letter written by Calvin in 1562, out of 'History of the Christian Church' VolIII pp690, 691)
Although many today remain deceived as to the true nature of John Calvin this information is contained in many books and reference material. Why Fox mis-represented it I know not, but the fact remains. Calvin was among the blood letting heretics of the Middle Ages and his so-called theology is a product of the devil. Beware of men who continue to esteem his works as a great contribution to Christianity.
Otherwise this book remains a fascinating read about the trials and tribulations of true Christians who sealed their testimony in their own blood. May we NEVER Deny Him when thrown into the furnace of affliction.

Inspirational and heartbreaking
This book is a must for anyone who is interested in the history of God's people and their incredible faith in the face of unimaginable persecution. After you've read the book, you'll understand Revelation 17 and exactly who "the woman" is. Not a pleasant read, but a valuable one if you cherish your faith and the truth!


The Studio
Published in Paperback by Vintage Books (1998)
Author: John Gregory Dunne
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Great movie book
If you like reading about "inside" Hollywood, this is a book I
highly recommend. Dunne goes inside 20th Century Fox and tells all. Actually quite funny.

A must-read for industry buffs, but not for everybody.
Excellent, casual writing style. Great stories of the Zanucks and others, their gut-based and fact-less decision making and egos. An easy read on that quick plane trip from Hollywood to your Napa hideaway.

A must read for movie industry buffs, but not for everybody.
I loved the author's great storytelling of the crazy ways decisions were made by brilliant people, based on their gut instincts, experience and few facts. Dated, but great background to help explain why decisions are still made in crazy ways in Hollywood. Easy and fun reading about the Zanucks and their cohorts.


The Thunderbird Covenant
Published in Paperback by I M P A C T (1999)
Author: John L. Fox
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Try this book out.
I found the story of the book really gripping. The beginning was deeply disturbing, but it was also terribly hard to put down. I would definately give this book a try if you like thrillers.

Great Travel Book - Riviting!
The book is so riviting that it makes for a great travel book. I have given this book to more friends than any other book. My husband took it on the train to work and had strangers leaning over his shoulder to get a closer read. The scenes are vivid and intense both sexually and in the portrayal of human suffering. It is a brilliant book for readers who enjoy a book written well.

BIG BANG EXPOSURE OF GENETIC ENGINEERING MIS-USE!
The book is divided into sixty five chapters with an prologue and a epilogue. It told the story of Genetic Engineering experiment that was carried out by the Nazi Government under Hitler in 1943 during the Second World War. The principal focus of the book is the exposure of the activities of the Nazi to control the mother earth by a technique of thought-control, genetic selection by eradication of the unfit and unwell beings. In the modern world, a mafia group in Europe(former nazi members)operating under the code name Thunderbird aimed at destroying the American society and controlling the American youths by devicing a high technology medical technique of hiding and exporting very pure cocaine and heroine to America through human skull that are not detectable by custom agents in America. To achieve their aim, they usually target and kill American tourist and citizen in Europe through whose cadaver, the drugs are exported to America. The second phase of the book relate the story of how the Nazi aimed at creating a master race through controlling human mind and destruction by using Genetic engineering experiment carried out on unwilling Polish citizens and create a master race of German descent. The case study of a Polish girl named renamed Helga Baumann was well illustrated in the book. Years after the war, her mind remains bent to the will of the Nazi doctors. She became a tool in the hand of the Thunderbird. She became a super assasin, super espionage and heroin expert. She was tortured by her past memory until she met the love of her life Jeffry Landon through who she was able to recover her past memory destroyed by the Nazi governement.

This book is a master piece and a thriller. It's a must read for custom agents, police, medical experts, lawyers and the whole human race especially Americans, Jews, Polish etc. This generationis bound to benfit from the information contained in this book. The author wrote the book from the view an experienced medical doctor.


Competition Policy and the Transformation of Central Europe
Published in Paperback by Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) (1996)
Authors: John Fingleton, Eleanor Fox, Paul Seabright, and Damien Neven
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one of only two good books available on this topic
Competition (or in the US, "antitrust") laws were among the first set of market-friendly laws enacted in the advanced transition countries -- Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary. Some conservative critics argued that such laws were an unnecessary and even harmful interference with the operation of new markets, but two powerful arguments successfully pushed in the opposite direction: 1) transition governments noted that both Europe and the United States had competition laws as part of their economic law regime, and 2) the public was suspicious of freeing enterprises from state controls and demanded some kind of residual protection from enterprise abuses. The result was a set of fairly similar laws in all three countries -- later four as Czechoslovakia split -- that were in turn imitated in other Eastern European countries and the countries of the former Soviet Union.

The authors of this book examine the laws of these three, then four, transforming countries and then evaluate their enforcement experiences. Their conclusion is mixed: the laws were probably necessary and have indeed safeguarded the public against monopoly abuses; on the other hand, they have sometimes been used to directly regulate enterprises by government authorities, and this has slowed rather than hastened the development of normal market relations and competition.

The book is quite readable -- not a small achievement for a book written by economists and lawyers -- and full of interesting and useful information. My main objection is an inadequate focus -- and a questionable point of view -- concerning the regulation of so-called "natural" monopolies. The authors treat this form of regulation, performed in the US by independent regulatory commissions, as a distraction from the real work of the competition authorities, and yet in these countries, with a complete absence of regulatory commissions, it is difficult to imagine who else was available to act as a regulator. Yes, things will be neater when and as regulatory commissions are created, but in the meantime someone must keep an eye on enterprises like the telephone and electric companies that may face little or no competition.

The other good book on this topic is Ben Slay's De-monopolization and Competition Policy in Post-Communist Economies (Westview Press, 1996). This is a collection of articles by numerous authors rather than a single treatise; thus its coverage, while excellent in places, is lacking in others. The two books fit together nicely as a very complete (combined) source of information and references on this interesting topic.

The views expressed in this review are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the U.S. Department of Justice


Stone Fox
Published in Paperback by HarperTrophy (2003)
Authors: John Reynolds Gardiner and Greg Hargreaves
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Stone Fox
This book is one of the best that I have ever read.This author is good real good he told every thing so well.Stone Fox took place in in a litte town in Whyoming. It's about a 10 year old boy that lives with his grand father, and they live on a potato. His grand father has a Illness and can't get out of bed. Grand father can not talk or move. The only thing he can move is one hand but not much. They need to get money to survive.They have to get the farm going. His grand father is broke and if they don't get the money for taxes the farm will be taken from them. Little Willie The boy enters in a dog sled race to get money from the prize cash $500. the race is 10 miles long and he kows half it by heart. the other half not really. He later finds out that Stone Fox is racing.Stone Fox has never lost a race in his life. Little Willie does so well and he is neck to neck when somthing happen 10 feet in front of the finish line. If you want to hear the rest READ THE BOOK.

Please read Stone Fox!
Overall, I thought Stone Fox was really good, but there were some parts I didn't like. I didn't like the fact that the story didn't tell much about Stone Fox's dogs. However, I did like that there were a lot of different descriptions about the harsh winter weather in Wyoming. I especially liked that there were a lot of details and I could picture what was happening in my mind. I liked how there were some funny parts like when Grandfather dressed up like a scarecrow. Stone Fox was so exciting that I couldn't stop reading until the end. My favorite part was when Little Willy carried Searchlight over the finish line and even won. I encourage many other students to read the book Stone Fox.

Stone Fox
I like this story because at the beginning it was funny,a little bit.I think Willy had a lot of courage to try to save Grandpas farmk with the $500 they're givingthe winner of the dog sled race, that's if Willy wins.At the middle it was sad because Grandpa got sick and they almost lost their farm, untilWill won the race. Last, it was very, very, very sad but I can't tell you why because it's a secret. You will have to read the book Stone Fox.


Experiencing Politics: A Legislator's Stories of Government and Health Care (California/Milbank Series on Health and the Public)
Published in Paperback by University of California Press (04 November, 2000)
Authors: John E. McDonough, Daniel M. Fox, and Samuel L. Milbank
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Tedious, unnecessary detail
McDonough's stated purpose is to illustrate explanatory political models taken from the political sciences with specific illustrations lifted from his political career. Unfortunately, his analysis of the models is superficial and disorganized and his personal anecdotes are excruciatingly long and unnecessarily detailed. As a result, he is like the wise uncle who repeatedly masks his wisdom behind voluminous, forgettable chatter. For those interested in government and health care, this book is likely to be a complete waste of time. This is one volume it would help to look through at a bookstore before purchase.

That's all well and good
but John McDonough was in the Massachusetts Legislatorship and all the other states are different as to thier laws and the ways they perform public policy, so you would have to live in Massachusetts in order for anything within the book to be of any consequence to you personally. So how can we call outselves The United States when we have so many divisions amongst us, even within our state of Cslifornia. The laws change across state lines and there were over 40 Million new laws passed just last year for the average citizen to follow, therefore there are way too many laws for anyone to comprehend.

Bay Staters Will Appreciate This One
Former Massachusetts state legislator John McDonough takes readers from the theory to reality of practical politics in a surprisingly unegotistical fashion. He uses various theories about why and why political actors do what they do as they go about their business to introduce his own experiences.

The obligatory academics (the book is a valuable text book as well as a good read) are clear and easy to get through. The political stories are particularly informative and of great interest to people who want to know some of the 15,000 ways and by-ways that bills can travel to become law.

Experiencing Politics is instructive and should be required reading for zealots who'd rather make a point than make a difference. Of particular interest to all the victims of Narcissistic Advocates Personality Disorder (the Nader types, the zealots, the self righteous as only the Boston/Cambridge axis can breed) are McDonough's experiences and observations as an advocate for housing and as one who tried to ameliorate the impact of the loss of rent control.

Massachusetts political junkies and students of legislative process should love this book. McDonough doesn't describe his role as that of savior or saint, but as an interested student and practitioner of practical progressive politics who wants to be a player in his legislature.


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