Alexander Gerschenkron is the type of man many of us would like to be: smart, charming, interested in the world, charismatic, etc. His grandson, Nicholas Dawidoff, seemingly captured his life in a surprisingly honest and thoughtful manner. I say "suprisingly honest" because one could certainly understand if Dawidoff were to give in to hero worship -- given the important role his grandfather played in his upbringing. But Dawidoff saves the hero worship and the highly personal anecdotes for the opening and concluding chapters. The 300 or so pages in between give a very balanced depiction of a complicated man, and that's the stuff of great biography. The first half of the book is a real page-turner, chronicling Gerschenkron's difficult times as a young man in revolutionary Russia and fascist Austria. How could Dawidoff possibly keep up this pace once his grandfather settles down as an educator at Harvard? Well, he doesn't, through no fault of his own. Dawidoff's depiction of Gershenkron's latter life is beautifully written, but the exciting pace of the earlier pages simply can't be sustained. Dawidoff clearly spent a great amount of time interviewing Gerschenkron's colleagues and students, most of whom (although not all) were effusive in their praise. But the book tended to feel slightly repetitious toward the end with the ongoing remembrances and non-related anecdotes. For one so close to the story, Dawidoff managed to expertly review and analyze Gerschenkron's complicated doting relationship with his wife, Erica. Also, a wonderfully telling anecdote at the end of the book reveals not only Gerschenkron's character, but Dawidoff's patient understanding, as well. Although Gerschenkron was an expert chess player, somehow he managed to lose his queen to the 14-year-old Dawidoff. Gerschenkron swept his arm across the board, spilling all the pieces onto the floor. "Num, num," he said. "Let's go eat lunch."

Maybe you had a grandfather who was quite wonderful, but you did not have a grandfather who was wonderful like Nicholas Dawidoff's grandfather was wonderful. Dawidoff's charming biography of his grandfather, _The Fly Swatter: How My Grandfather Made His Way in the World_ (Pantheon) starts with his own memories of Alexander Gerschenkron. For instance, Gerschenkron, known as "Shura" within his family, had an arsenal of fly swatters, each of just the proper color and heft for its particular target. The baby blue flyswatter was just the thing for his particular enemy, the wasps, because they were vicious, and the mild color would make them let down their guard. If he were successful in swatting the wasp (not often), he would give "lengthy disquisitions on swatting technique." He would never allow the insect body to be cleaned up, for he "claimed they were deterrents, that other yellowjackets would encounter their unfortunate colleague and feel inclined to keep away themselves."

Shura was, to be sure, a character. But he was also brilliant in an obsessively academic way. He mastered some two dozen languages, but his field of expertise was not language. He was able to discourse on (and write academic treatments of) _Hamlet_ and _Dr. Zhivago_, but he did not teach literature. He was an economist, a quintessential Harvard professor who left a lasting mark on economic thought with his theory of "economic backwardness." He had a rather exciting early life, fleeing the Russian Revolution, and then fleeing the Nazis, before he found himself in the economic department of Harvard that was to be his academic home. He was a natural show-off. He could certainly be obnoxious and overbearing, and his students often felt they were not measuring up to his superhuman standards, but none of them forgot him, and he left a strong mark on the next generation of economists. Dawidoff makes the case that his standards were so exacting, and his sense of the overwhelming complexity of history and economics so complete, that he constantly spent time in library stacks gaining more information, but was intimidated about committing himself in print. He did, however, play chess with the artist Marcel Duchamp, disparage Vladimir Nabokov for an inept translation of Pushkin, and charm Marlene Dietrich to give him her phone number.

One of the great strengths of this engaging book is that it makes Shura's wide-ranging academic endeavors almost as exciting as his flights from political oppression. The love of reading and the love of learning just for the sake of exercising one's mind could not have a finer exemplar. And while most people would regard a life in libraries as unexciting and unromantic, Shura was fond of living his life as fully as his capacious mind would allow. After he had recovered from a cardiac arrest in the foyer of the Harvard Faculty Club, he used to bring his students to the very spot where he had temporarily died. "You know, there was nothing. No beautiful colors. No castles. No bright lights. Nothing. So, if there are things you want to say and do, don't wait. Say them and do them. You won't get the opportunity after you're dead." During decades devoted to learning, this comprehensive biography makes plain, Gerschenkron drove himself to a life which for all of its time in an ivory tower was full of exuberance and courage.

Growing up Nicholas Dawidoff had a talkative and demonstrative larger-than-life maternal grandfather who had lived in, to paraphrase the Chinese curse, interesting times: his home town Odessa during the Russian revolution and Vienna (where he had to start over, learning German as a student) during the rise of Nazism. Alexander Gerschenkron (called Shura) had married a fellow student, Erica Matschnigg, in Vienna, whom he would deem "perfect," and who was his lifelong intellectual sparring partner. To save their lives they emigrated to the US. After a time Shura found work at UC Berkeley, The Federal Reserve Board in Washington DC, and then at his favorite place ever: Harvard. In addition this brilliant and cultured grandfather was kind and funny, educated, eccentric, and more than willing to act as a sort of a dad for his grandson, whose own father was mentally ill.

The one thing, though that Gerschenkron couldn't, or wouldn't, provide for family, friends, or colleagues - or his beloved and loving grandson - was so much as a shred of concrete information about his childhood, his youth, and anything remotely resembling his feelings. No one got into his inner life, and those who tried (and there were many) learned that it was at all times off-limits. So this book is a memoir but also a work of informed conjecture and detection.

Dawidoff, an insightful man and a compassionate reporter, draws a careful and reasoned portrait, "a biographical memoir, a work of reconstruction" that is a pleasure to read. The "dismal science," economics, has never seemed so vitally important and downright interesting as it does in this book.

Gerschenkron was hyperactive; he gave up reading the newspaper in middle age, citing the number of books he had yet to read and reasoning that the time the papers took from this was objectionable. He loved to argue and to win, but he was courtly, too. He practiced what he called "French manners," combining recognizable rules of European etiquette with extreme chivalry. He could be exasperating, but he was generous and possessed astonishing depth and breadth of knowledge (in many areas, not just economics) which he more than willingly shared with the world. Gerschenkron developed theories of economic behavior that are classics, now, and some which were of great importance to US policymakers' understanding of the Soviet Union during the Cold War, and of developing nations' economic behavior. He was a prolific essayist and loved literature. Rather than read translations, he taught himself entire languages. He worked out chess problems without a chessboard. He was a character, and became something of a curmudgeon in later life.

Gerschenkron was also fiercely loyal to certain things - countries, colleagues, ideas, people, and the most ordinary stuff of his life. Dawidoff takes pleasure in this information, and I did, too Of Shura he writes. "[He] had a party (the Democrats); a team (the Red Sox); a player (Ted Williams); a board game (chess); a breed of dog (Labrador retriever); a flower (pink rose); a lower body haberdasher (he sent to a Vienna tennis shop for white linen trousers); an upper body haberdasher (he ordered his wool plaid lumber jackets and matching caps from a hunting supply outfit in Maine); a brandy; a chocolate bar; an aspirin; a bullet; a pencil; a shaving soap; a foreign bookstore; a domestic bookstore; a barber; a newsstand (he would go miles out of his way to buy his periodicals from Sheldon Cohen at Out of Town News); and a weekly news magazine (L'Espresso)." And of course he had a school, Harvard, which he loved beyond all measure. Gerschenkron's calculus was simple: the US was the best nation on earth, and Harvard its best school. He thrived there. Dawidoff claims that Harvard "made his personality possible."

Gerschenkron dominated people and gatherings and enjoyed contact, but also required and demanded great blocks of solitude. Sometimes he hurt those he loved. He insisted that his young daughter practice her flute when he wasn't at home, because the sound annoyed him. He disappointed his daughters often and had some stormy relations with friends and colleagues.

There's hardly a dull moment in this account of a life and the many lives that Gerschenkron touched, and Dawidoff has provided enough interesting tangential information to serve as jumping-off points for a lot more reading and inquiry.

There are Source Notes and Acknowledgements. The books lacks an index, which is a real shortcoming. There are hundreds of interesting and important people, places, and works of art and scholarship in this book and its publisher ought to have splurged on something so essential as a good index. Gerschenkron (a lover of notes, acknowledgements, appendices, and indices) would agree.

I loved this book. Twisted & fun up until the very last page. Like I said before, "READ THIS BOOK!"

This is a great collection of twisted minds entertwined with twisted plots. The stories hold the readers interest and maintain a high level of suspense while awaiting the ending.
I want more!

This is a great collection of short stories. Surprise ending and great characters. A really fun read!! I suggest you take this on your next cruise.

I actually haven't read the book, but came here on foot of a recommendation from William Boyd in the Times Literary Supplement. This is not Morgan Robertson's "Futility - the Wreck of the Titan" - as other reviewers seem to think!

I was told of this book by a friend who claimed that it told the story of the ill fated ship - Titanic but it was wrtten 14 years before Titanic sailed. Strangely enough he was correct. Though the plot is ordinary by today's standards, the eerie feelinge once gets in noticing the similarities between Titanic and th story in this book ensures a top rating.

This book astonished me. I heard that it was written some time before the Titanic sailed but I had no idea it that it was this explicite.

I listened to this book over a few nights with my wife, after having read it first some sixteen years ago. It is a masterpiece, and known widely as such, but what surprised me on hearing it was how the book I'd remembered as terribly romantic was actually rather clear-eyed and dark. My wife, who had never read it, listened spell-bound, and at the end burst into tears at the sadness of it. A word about Scourby as reader - he is restrained but emotional, captures the personality of each character with a slightly different tone, and - most importantly for me - brings out the fact that the closing pages, which are often quoted out of context as deeply romantic, are in fact painfully cynical, a voice of disenchantment about the cost of America, not its promise. A masterpiece on the page and on tape. Can't recommend it too highly.

After living abroad in the Middle East for a year and traveling through more than twenty-five countries, I recently re-read The Great Gatsby, seeking the familiarity of America. The Great Gatsby captures what is different about Americans and the American experience. At its most basic, America represents endless striving for greatness. Whether in business, science, athletics or world affairs, Americans imagine and seek the best. Though we often stumble and fall short; though we often cut corners to achieve our dreams - striving for greatness is the essence of America. In Gatsby, we feel what it is like to want something so badly, to succeed in reaching it and to ultimately fail. How many of us have not shared these experiences in some way or another? American writings today, such as David Ebershoff's Pasadena (2002) and Scott Gaille's The Law Review (2002), continue to explore Gatsby's central theme of obsession with greatness. In this time of global uncertainty, we can get back in touch with what it means to be an American by reading such books.

This was a book that stayed with me long after hearing it read. I found Gatsby to be a very intriguing character because of his singleminded passion. I enjoyed understanding the thoughts and ideas of Carraway. The writing provided vivid imagery of a time gone by and yet it was a timeless story. Highly recommend.

Education program from the 60s still lasts From the Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet 28 September 1999

In 1965, with anti-Vietnam demonstrations at their worst, philosophy professor Joseph Tussman began The Experimental College Program at the University of California, Berkeley. His goal, education for the sake of the individual and of society, sounds like a dream for the jaded higher education of today. In Habits of Mind: the Experimental College Program at Berkeley, Katherine Bernhardi Trow evaluates the program and its long- term effects. While evaluation of education generally focuses narrowly on the short-sighted and fashionable, this book's great merit is its description of the long term effects. Tussman College lasted four years, from 1965-1969. Some 300 students were chosen at random to participate. Trow interviewed forty students who completed the program, and she paints a vivid picture of how they were affected, what they learned and what positive influence it had in their lives. Tussman maintained that it was the university's fundamental duty to reawaken interest and get students involved for the sake of principles which are fundamental for individuals and for society: to develop an exercise of power built on rational, democratic and constitutional principles; to increase sensitivity to humanitarian values and fundamental human problems; to cultivate and strengthen ways of life and ways of conduct which make it possible for humanity to continue a war with institutions and with a spirit of rational discussion to find solutions to problems. Democracy demands of its citizens a political interest and active participation. To do this, according to Tussman, one must educate oneself in a fashion which before the breakthrough of democracy was reserved for members of the ruling class. Students probed deeply into fundamental problems. They examined the interplay between freedom and power. They were taught to be responsible citizens in a democratic society and custodians of western civilization. The program consisted of two parts: a syllabus and a pedagogical method. The syllabus focused on big problems and cultural crisis periods in history which had driven great thinkers to tackle fundamental questions. The reading list consisted of classics, such as the Iliad and works by Plato, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Mill, and Marx, along with more current books, such as The Autobiography of Malcolm X. These were books by authors now viewed as "dead, white males." But students remember the reading as fantastic. Pedagogically, the program diverged radically from then-prevalent teaching methods. Teachers were recruited from various areas of study. All the reading material was read by both students and teacher, regardless of which subject the teacher normally taught. Lectures were held twice a week with all the students and teachers present, and smaller seminars were held. The students wrote essays every other week, and every day they jotted down thoughts and reflections prompted by books, lectures, seminars and discussions. These notes became an intellectual autobiography. The activities reinforced each other and formed a tight intellectual tapestry which stimulated and strengthened learning and education. It was, in short, a program which moved against the stream of mass education. The program seems even more radical if one considers that it, with its high standards, was established when the general trend was toward a relaxation of the demands on students and when Berkeley, like many American universities, was in a permanent state of uproar. What were the long-term effects? In the evaluation, the dense essay- writing comes out as highly valued and as a central force in the program-- at once challenging and entertaining. Essay assignments taught the students to think more analytically and abstractly. The students' linguistic ability was radically improved, in speech and in writing and as much in style as in grammar. The intense contact with the teacher, and the criticism the teacher provided in tutorials, played a constructive and crucial role. The lack of grades was positive. Instead of focusing on grades, one concentrated on the ideas and the knowledge for itself; competitive thinking was conspicuous in its absence. The important thing was to understand what one read and to be able to apply it in other contexts than the immediate one. It was not regarded as meritorious to memorize details in order to regurgitate them later. Tussman encouraged individual thought. The environment--a separate house and small groups --contributed to the feeling of a learned society and stimulated the students. The program helped students to grow intellectually and morally. Their ability to analyze, to adapt themselves quickly to new things, new environments and new problems and to view these from different perspectives grew. They acquired a better understanding of the world around them and a better ability to interpret and understand events in it. Empathy increased and led to intellectual satisfaction and a more content life, which is reflected in the professions in which the program's former students are now active: physician, journalist, attorney, civil engineer, etc. Why did the program cease if it was so good? The answer is brief: university bureacratic staffing problems and a certain amount of lack of interest in basic education at research-oriented Berkeley made the dedicated Tussman tire. The market has become an ideology instead of a means--even, with some exceptions, in academia. Students do not study to grow as a human being, but to satisfy the market. Within the not too distant future, perhaps we will hear a university or college president who, in a travesty of Kennedy's inauguration speech, will welcome novices with the admonishment: "Ask not what the market can do for you, but what you can do for the market." Doris Lessing calls the product of this competence-fixation the well-educated barbarians; those who have gone to school for twenty years, have brilliant records, but never read a book, know no history, and care only about knowledge in their field. That group does not include the graduates of Tussman College.

An important study of the impact of an intense collegiate experience on students.

An exceptionally rich and multifaceted account of an experiment which occupies an interesting and important place in the history of American higher education.

Alexander Hamilton is one of the most important, most misunderstood and most under studied Americans ever. He is the central figure in establishing the Federal Bank, as different as it is today from what it was then. He is responsible for the majority of the Federalist Papers, the most important documents produced in support of the Federal Constitutuon and the heated debates it entailed. But another thing most people don't know is that he is an American Revolution hero, serving, with distinction under Geroge Washington, receiving his highest praise and becoming his right hand man. He is the most elegant and gifted of writers. To understand his beginnings, read Alexander Hamilton: American by Richard Brookheiser, and understand the humble beginnings he was born into, working as a store clerk in the West Indies, educating himself in America and turning himself into one of the Americans who has a true grasp on the English language. His politics aside, he was a brilliant man. He was a gentleman and he was honest. He was a mna full of pride and great courage. He refused to let himself be bad mouthed, accepting Aronn Burr's duel, but he refused to fire at his opponent, instead firing into the air. A very honourable end to a great American. His writing are essntial to understand his life and his mind, his political orientation and lifelong goals. Not only that, but this is great literature. This receives my highest recommendation.

With this volume, the Library of America continues its project presenting the best of American culture and thought in an accessible way.

The subject of this volume is Alexander Hamilton. Although John Adams has frequently been regarded as the least understood of the Founders, Hamilton has his own plausible claim to this honor. History has not treated Hamilton kindly. He has certain obvious flaws in terms of arrogance,temper, and judgment.These flaws are amply revealed in this collection of writings. Hamilton, nevertheless, has much to teach us about government and about our country. This collection of his writings is a treasure.

At the outset, I was reluctant to begin a project of reading this volume through in its entirety. As my reading progressed, I couldn't put the volume down.

The book covers all phases of Hamilton's political and personal life, from its beginnings in what is now the U.S. Virgin Islands to his death at age 49 in the notorious duel with Aaron Burr. The heart of the book begins with Hamilton's role in the Constitutional Convention, in which he advocated for a strong Federal government and, in particular for a strong Executive. The book continues with Hamilton's 51 contributions to "The Federalist" in which he explained the Constitution to the people of the State of New York in terms which remain a seminal exposition of the basic governing document of the United States. Again the focus is on the need for a strong central government with a will and ability to act for the public good.

Hamilton was the first Secretary of the Treasury. This book gives us long selections from his work in which he advocated forcefully for having the Federal government pay the Revolutionary War Debt, for founding the Bank of the United States, and in promoting industry in the fledgling United States. These works divided Hamilton from Jefferson and Madison and became the basis of partisan politics in the United States.
In defending the constitutionality of the National Bank from attacks from Jefferson and Madison, Hamilton set the foundation for an expansive view of the power of the Federal government under the constitution. This view was controversial in its time and remains so. Hamilton's position, however, has largely come to prevail over the years and is an important basis for our governmental structure as it has developed over time.

The book includes Hamilton's public confession of an adulterous affair, his criticism of John Adams which divided and doomed the Federalist party, and Hamilton's own political career, and documents regarding Hamilton's fatal duel with Aaron Burr.

There is much to be learned from this book. Hamilton was a paradoxical figure both behind and ahead of his time. This is a valuable work for understanding our country. Kudos to the Library of America for allowing us to learn.

With this volume, Alexander Hamilton assumes his rightful place in the ranks of the Library of America -- not only as a key historical figure in the founding of the Republic, but as a master of political argument and writing. With care and sensitivity, Prof. Joanne B. Freeman of Yale University has assembled the best and most comprehensive one-volume Hamilton collection ever assembled -- but she has done something even more important: She has presented us with a thorough, judicious, and enlightening documentary life of Hamilton. This book will be indispensable to anyone who wants to understand the origins of the Constitution, of the American economy, and of the nation's political system and public life. It also will be indispensable to anyone who wants to understand Alexander Hamilton as a political, constitutional, and economic thinker, as a key shaper of American government and public policy, and as a human being.

-- R. B. Bernstein, Adjunct Professor of Law, New York Law School

If you've been troubled or frustrated by surface relationships within the church, Strauch's book will likely point you in a direction you desire to go. Sadly, I've never heard anyone teach on hospitality before - I expect many others have not as well. Strauch does an excellent job of explaining the church's need to demonstrate hospitality between members and to those outside the church.

Most of the book takes a look at what the Scriptures command about showing hospitality. The closing pages give a few ideas for practicing hositality and list several additional resources to assist you in practicing hospitality.

Possibly one of the best books I've read in a while, its short, but complete. Strauch puts this important subject in perspective, and gives great advice to those who want to implement hospitality. I recommend this to every Christian! Buy more than one copy if you can, you'll want to pass it on. If only Christians were reading this like they were "Prayer of Jabez" then their walk would truly be impacted!

Strauch is right... Hospitality is the Lost Jewel in our ministry arsenal. We're much more comfortable with large, bureaucratic and impersonal programs. That way we can "turn off" our Christianity when we leave the building and go about serving ourselves. It's threatening to help other people or - God forbid - let them into our homes. Every godly household should read, heed, and practice this advice. The need for most "programs" to do "ministry" would evaporate overnight! Did I mention you should buy a copy for every household in your church?

Bevin Alexander's book is a must read for any one interested in the principles of warfare and how future warfare is likely to be conducted. On page one he gets to the crux of the matter. "Two unrelated developments have fused to produce a true revolution in warfare. The first is highly accurate and extremely powerful weapons. The second is the discovery that modern conventional armies can be defeated by guerilla methods." His first chapter breaks the most new ground for how future wars will be fought by the U.S. His idea of "swarming" using pods or clusters of small units tailored for specific missions was very much in evidence in both Afghanistan and Iraq. The use of these units to surround and attack from many different angles simultaneously using superior weaponry will be how our forces fight in the foreseeable future. He recognizes that our technological superiority will be our great advantage in warfare for years to come.

Alexander's chapter on terrorist's strengths and weakness' is very illuminating since it was written after the September 11th attacks. "Terrorism has one great strength: it makes sneak attacks on unsuspecting people, and thus is difficult to prevent. But it also has one profound weakness: it operates as a clandestine cell in an alien environment, and thus can be isolated." He gives a good account of how to fight terrorism and why terrorists ultimately loose.

This book is a great read for laymen and professional alike. In light of today's dangers that we as a nation face I highly recommend reading this book.

September 11 marked a turning point in the grim history of warfare. Though the attacking terrorists were given aid and comfort by at least one rogue state with an anti-American agenda, they were not acting as the agents of any particular country. They used weapons that they found "in the theater" (i.e., fuel-laden civilian airliners) to inflict enormous casulaties on an unsuspecting civilian population. The 21st century thus began with the first "asymmetrical" war between a superpower and a shadowy but deadly opponent.

Bevin Alexander agrees that September 11 is a watershed event that "dramatically changed the face of war." But he also notes that the terrorists used the ancient tactic of the ambush, a hit-and-run strike against a defenseless or unprepared opponent. Though the "war against terrorism" will doubtless offer up cruel novelties in the years to come, Bevin argues that history still has much to teach us about the strategies that win wars.

"How Wars Are Won" devotes a single chapter to each of 13 rules of war. Bevin explains how these rules work in practice by describing examples drawn from throughout history. For instance, the rule of "defend, then attack" is illustrated by battles that occurred during wars as diverse as the Byzantine invasion of Italy, the Hundred Years War and the American Civil War.

Bevin writes fairly well, and he does an excellent job of explaining why history's greatest generals won their battles, and why lesser leaders managed to lose. I came away with a much better appreciation of the genius of Napoleon, Alexander the Great and Stonewall Jackson.

"How Wars are Won" also offers many interesting observations about how future wars are likely to be waged--including the one that will probably be fought in Iraq. Bevin's book is required reading for another dark time in world history.

Written by a seasoned historian, this book takes you into the minds of the commanders on both sides, as you relive some of the most innovative campaigns in history. The author analyzes
each campaign step by step, comparing not only the moves made by each player, but also pointing out possible alternative moves not taken, and their consequences. Sometimes you feel like you're watching the World Chess Championship ringside. You can experience the visceral thrill of battle right in the safety of your living room, and appreciate the brilliance of the great generals, as they unleash unexpected or unstoppable attacks on their opponents, as they move towards checkmate in the great game.

And if this leaves you hungry for more, check out the author's earlier masterpiece, "How Great Generals Win" - after all buying both books gets you a hefty discount on Amazon! Here the author studies the methods of each general in considerably more detail than in his latest book. Or if you're an aficionado of WWII, go grab "How Hitler Could Have Won World War II", which is a great piece of kriegspiel.

Very interesting account of an Eurasian American college student's search for his ancestors in China. This book is a real page turner, even for those who have no interest or knowledge of China. Travelers will get a realistic overview of the Chinese history and culture. Very Funny! Well worth the price!

This book was so amazing I read it twice! It is a funny, witty, educational story which really makes you feel like a part of the author's journey. His story is honest and fullfilling. The reader does not even need know much about China to be greatly entertained. I would suggest this book to anyone. I hope the author writes again...Horray for Beadle Lu!

This book combines the funniest "travel stories" I have ever read with lots of useful information including history, very practical travel tips, and a wonderfully insightful analysis of how recent changes in China have affected her people. The author steadfastly avoids any and all "travelogue cliches"- his account is all the more hilarious (and informative) for its brutal honesty.

In addition to all of this, there is a delightful plot twist (related to the title) that is both touching and hysterically funny. (And good plot twists are sometimes hard to find in travel memoirs.) This is one of the most entertaining books I have ever read!

Of all the many books on suicide I've read through the years, this book rates highest on my list of books that are helpful in terms of the understanding it provides to survivors of suicide, including both the legacy and the different ways we process and come to terms with a suicide. What I spent years trying to understand in myself, my family members, and other suicide survivors, I found on the pages of this well-written and organized book. Time and again while reading, I would say aloud with some excitement: "That's WHY!" or "Exactly!" or "I wish I'd written that!" In addition, I couldn't resist sharing some of the passages and/or the insights I'd gained to others who were either struggling with the legacy suicide leaves behind or were contemplating suicide themselves. This book clearly shows that suicide leaves its own distinct fingerprints on the hearts and lives of its survivors. I wish I'd discovered the book long ago. Kudos to Victoria Alexander!

An excellent read for health care professionals, survivors of suicide and anyone seeking stories of human strength, Victoria Alexander offers a well organized collection of narratives from survivors of suicide. Raw in it's honesty, it offers hope of a future to the recently bereaved and a reference point for professionals and laypeople caring for those left behind. A survivor myself, it allowed me to address issues I had burried years earlier. A decade of collecting these touching, sometimes painful stories has allowed insight into a suffering that shame so often causes us to conceal.

Victoria Alexander brings her own experiences in life into this book that describes the isolation, confusion, desperation, anger, lack thereof of any emotion...once someone close to you takes their own life. For once I have found a book that is not purely engorged in its academic statistics. I applaud Ms. Alexander for seeing the truth of the terror. I am a survivor of suicide, and this book proves a great comfort in knowing that I am not the only one. I pray that we rid ourselves of the stigma. Interviews in this volume range from every corner of the nation, be it a son, wife, husband, daughter, mother, father, or anyone close who has died by their own hand.

Thank you Ms. Alexander.

Molly Leach Boise, ID