A superlative and engrossing history of the New York Herald, the New York Tribune, the merged Herald - Tribune, and the rest of the New York newspaper scene from the mid 1800's to the 1960's. Fans of journalism history will love it. The author shows a slight liberal bias in his choice of adjectives but this is a minor blemish.

This is the most thorough book you will read on Brown v. Board of Education. Kluger makes an attentive reader of his work a modest authority on the subject. You had better be very interested in the topic, however, as he leaves no stone unturned. Kluger writes not as a lawyer or historian but as a journalist who is witness to the multitude of events which he depicts.

Besides the numerous civil rights leaders and soldiers the reader encounters, the author provides an intimate account of Supreme Court justices and the process of decision-making. This proves to be the most compelling aspect of the book.

It's required reading for every social revolutionary.

A quarter of a century after it was first published, "Simple Justice" still has the power to move, enrage and touch the hearts of anyone who believes that justice ultimately prevails.

It should be required reading in any college U.S. history course because it shines an intense spotlight on the complex development of legal issues and thinking that produced the end of segregation in the United States.

I do not exaggerate when I say I believe that this is the best history book I've ever read. Further, it's wise to read it now, because an awful lot of the people instrumental in the ultimate decision, Brown vs. the Board of Education, are dying out. The late Thurgood Marshall is a great example of a lost legal talent and courageous leader who did the right thing by all Americans by winning this case. Read this book now, if only so you'll recognize the heroes in their obituaries.

What Richard Kluger has done in this account is spell out the development first of segregation, telling us just who and how the dreaded Jim Crow laws came about-including segregation laws in the North-and then walk us through how, piece by piece, legal decisions were strung together to put an end to legal segregation.

I grew up in the 1960s and 1970s and, if I thought about it at all, had the idea that the Brown decision had more or less come out of nowhere. Eventually, I began to catch on, and then I read this book. If you are similar-minded, this book will set you straight and point you to the many unsung heroes who have made us a fairer country, in line with the ideals that helped found this country. If you're a parent looking for good role models, forget sports and entertainment. Look to this book for examples of people who literally risked everything, and often paid dearly, to do the right thing. They didn't shrink from the challenge; they stepped forward, many many times. That so many others did not only reminds us of how fearful we are to force change or risk our own well being to tackle injustice. I wish I could rate it higher.

This is the one book where all the rumours, gossips,government
participation in hindering black movement into the mainstream for obvious reasons like votes was documented. Simple Justice is really two books in one.
On the one hand there is the exhaustive documentation of the race relation in this country. the evolution from sharecropping, the obstacles and outright bigotry of some white people even leaders and experts in concluding thru so-called Sponsored studies that the blackman was genetically inferior and the subsequent counter studies that goes contrary to genetics, in d issue of Gene vs. Enviroment
On the other hand the legal maneuvering resulting in d decision we now called the brown vs. boe. the role of some white brothers is acknowledged here. thanks to the supreme court later to be headed by chief Justice Jarren-for daring to do what was then the inconceivable.
the decision among other thing brought the power of government and the role of d supreme court as the pre-eminent decision maker to the fore.
I must mention here that the actors like martin luther king jnr, Thurgood Marshal later a supreme court judge ,naacp members and other black men and women who risk all they have to win this case.
**I recommend that this book should b fed if possible to all blackmen in high schools that they may know how much it took to get to where we are today. that education should be taking seriously by all black people.

I can't fault the author's research here. If you wanted to know about medieval tax collection, here's your chance. If you wanted to know about chivalric culture, troubadours, or some other aspects of the time, you won't be in as much luck. But overall the research is very strong. My one quibble was about the presentation of contemporary Welsh culture as more or less Stone-Age; a considerable overstatement.

And the book presents an interesting character study, a man of extreme uprightness and honesty, who never changes no matter what temptations or ill fortune come his way.

Now, the problems I found with the book. Heavy-duty expositon; almost no action (though when the author deigns to give us some, it's good); and most of all, no crisis. Although moments, such as the hanging of the Welsh hostages, are effective, the sheriff is never really put to the test. I kept waiting for everything to go smash and it never did; the book ends with a whimper. As a story, I'm not sure it entirely works.

This was a wonderful work, a blending of fiction and reality. Historical facts were like steps used to climb deeper into the storyline. It was nearly impossible to discern what was fact, as it was so interwoven with the fabrications. But there was more, the story was absolutely captivating. The characters were vibrant and alive. The Sheriff himself was remarkable in both his pride and devotion to his beliefs and to the crown. When the inevitable conclusion to the story came and the Sheriff dies, I was brought to tears, reminding me of my own mortality.

This was a wonderful work, a blending of fiction and reality. Historical facts were like steps used to climb deeper into the storyline. It was nearly impossible to discern what was fact, as it was so interwoven with the fabrications. But there was more, the story was absolutely captivating. The characters were vibrant and alive. The Sheriff himself was remarkable in both his pride and devotion to his beliefs and to the crown. When the inevitable conclusion to the story came and the Sheriff dies, I was brought to tears, reminding me of my own mortality.

"Ashes to Ashes" examines the volatile history of the big tobacco companies during the twentieth century. This book is somewhat lengthy, but it is full of information and historical trivia.

The tobacco giants have endured more challanges than any other business in history. Bad press, lawsuits, slander, moral questions, etc., have all threatened to bring an end to this icon of American business, but the tobacco companies have managed to survive. Through the use of clever advertising, deceptive health claims, manipulation of facts, and gifts to political allies, the U.S. tobacco industry has managed to dodge all of the stones hurled in its direction.

Should the tobacco industry be held liable for the millions of deaths resulting from consumption of its products? Is the consumer solely responsible for the effects of what he/she ingests or inhales? Should both sides share the responsibility? In the early part of the 1900's, there were many question marks regarding tobacco and little information available to the public. But in the last forty years or so there have been many indisputable health studies linking tobacco use to several diseases. So, I do not see how any reasonable person nowadays can blame the cigarette manufacturers if the consumer succombs to ill health. Anyone who decides to smoke knows the possible consequences and therefore has no one to blame but himself if he falls victim to smoking related disease. Author Richard Kluger seems to have the opposite opinion: that the tobacco industry should be held liable. Kluger displays an obvious bias against the tobacco industry throughout the book, although he does manage to avoid excessive name- calling.

What the future holds for tobacco is uncertain. Phillip Morris and R.J. Reynolds have both diversified their businessess through massive acquisitions of food companies which will no doubt help to soften the financial blow if government continues to intervene and regulate, but it may not be enough.

The book ends with a presentation of alternatives that the tobacco industry may be forced to adopt if it hopes to survive. One thing is certain: the controversy is far from over.

This is not a book for a quick casual read. Kluger offers a comprehensive, thoroughly researched, and exhaustive history of the cigarette industry in this country. I was fascinated to learn of the backgrounds of the major players, and the data leaves no question that they deliberately set out to addict customers with full knowledge of the consequences. You'll never look at a cigarette ad or display the same way again.

I highly recommend Ashes to Ashes, by Richard Kluger, to anyone who wants to know more about the tobacco industry. Kluger provides a comprehensive history, beginning with the temperance of the tobacco leaf and the physical labor involved in producing marketable tobacco, and ending with the struggles the tobacco industry now faces with public health groups and government regulations. Kluger's narrative style makes this thick, fact packed book easy to read. Rich in history, critical, and thought provoking, Ashes to Ashes is a worthwhile read.

This is an old book fresh in my memory after twenty years. Moved from Atlanta to the more colorful setting of Savannah, this real-life mystery of the murder of Mary Phagan in 1913 and the historic rise of Coca Cola are blended ficticiously into a satisfying story. It is a tragic description of the outbreak of anti-semitism in Georgia following the strangling of a teenage factory worker, allegedly by her Jewish employer. Savannah itself is the main character, lovingly described by a "Yankee" admirer. This is a great read with a tantilizing twist at the end, well worth rereading especially since the "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" phenomenon hit the bookshelves and video stores. In real life, the case led to the conviction of Leo Frank, who was later lynched by the Ku Klux Klan to thwart his life sentence. In fact, this case was the catalyst that brought the Klan back to life in 1915, initially as the Knights of Mary Phagan. As a fifteen year-old, I remember riding the bus to Rich's Department Store in downtown Atlanta. Across the street at the soda fountain, postcards of Leo Frank hanging from an Oak limb were for sale on the revolving rack. That was more than forty years after the lynching.