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The book focuses primarily on Washington's life up until the time he became President. The book does cover his entire life, but his years as President are skimpy by comparison to the rest of his life. The author's interest is more on who Washington was as a man than on his public accomplishments. Focusing on his formative years provides more insight into his character.
Nevertheless, the novel demonstrates the truly great accomplishments Washington made to American history. Without Washington, we would not have won the Revolutionary War: he provided the military strategy, the determination, and the leadership needed to win. Without Washington, we would not have become a country: he provided the leadership the 13 colonies needed to come together as a union. Without Washington, we would not have become a democracy: he resisted efforts to anoint him king, and he voluntarily relinquished power--first as commanding general who won the War of Independence, and later as the nation's first President.
Washington was an admirable person, and deserves the adulation the nation gave him then and since. But of course he had his flaws, and Citizen Washington conveys them, particularly via the characters in the novel who did not idolize him. Such was Washington's force of personality, though, that even his detractors were in awe of him.
This novel is particularly valuable as an adjunct to a nonfiction account of Washington's life, the best of which is James Thomas Flexner's Washington: The Indispensable Man.
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The book starts off rough for Laura. In order to make money for Mary's schooling, Laura is going away from home for the first time to teach school. She is staying with a family that has a very bitter wife who is not exactly friendly!
When Laura finally returns home she is happy to go back to school, but she is eager to earn more money. So, she helps the town dressmaker on Saturdays.
Mary is coming home for summer and Laura is so excited! The only problem is that she is staying with the dressmaker and her daughter out on their claim. Will Laura be able to go home and see Mary!?
As the book progresses Almonzo Wilder becomes even more a part of Laura's life. It is so sweet to read these two getting closer and more interested. Laura even helps Almonzo break some horses!
This book is interesting and sweet and the ending is wonderful! Pick it up today!
We witness Laura's growing up and realization that life is changing all around her. Mary is in college, and is independent enough to want to stay with a friend for the summer instead of coming home. It's obvious that Laura's relationship with her sisters and friends in school are changing - in 'Little Town on the Prairie' her school life for example, and her after school or weekend social activities with her friends are a large part of the book, but now we only hear of a few remote incidents, and we hardly hear anything about the going ons there, for instance we don't really get to know Florence, the new 'big girl'. This is partly due to the increasing role of Almanzo Wilder's part in Laura's life, but I think that is also partly due to the fact Laura isn't attending school full time anymore, but rather teaches school herself for a term or two a year.Except for Ida's small part in Laura's wedding, we don't hear of them any more for the rest of the series.
We also see Laura herself change: part of it is what I just mentioned about the change in what she describes in her social life. Another one would be her very detailed description of her clothes and fashions - even though we do hear about her dresses in previous books, she seems much more occupied with them this time, like any teenage girl... In betwen the lines, we do see that the Ingles family is doing better financially - they are improving their house, and can often afford luxuries such as a sewing machine and an organ for Mary.
I did find a few points I didn't like in this book, compared to the previous books in the series:
1) Instead of giving an account of a relatively short period (a year or 2, like in the previous books), we are now covering 3 years, and we usually get an 'in depth coverage' of a relatively short period, or a few remote incidents, then run through a long period which is skipped. Laura only described her first school with as much details as I was used to in her previous books, but the next 2 schools are hardly mentioned... It isn't as bad as her descriptions in 'The First Four Years', but it's still noticeable.
2) We get a lot more of Almanzo, while we get less of the pioneer life of that era... This is an autobiography of Laura's life, not a history book, I admit, but I think that the historical and cultural element of these books has been a major attraction for readers, especially the older ones.
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Working with varied groups as a grammar expert, I am concerned about receiving a question I can't answer. Thanks to The Gregg Reference Manual, that's never happened. I've found answers to questions about even the finest points of grammar as do my students. Regardless of the concept in question, the book is amazingly easy to navigate thanks to its unique index. Unlike others, this one does not simply contain page references. Mr. Sabin references the numerous and detailed subjects in his index to distinctly numbered and lettered paragraphs instead. Those paragraphs contain both clear explanations of the related rules along with enlightening examples that serve to clarify rather than complicate the issues in question.
In my business, I have worked with thoursands of corporate and government employees ranging from experts in English to those who can barely differentiate between a subject and a verb. Whatever their English expertise or lack thereof, I recommend this manual to all of them. Without exception, those who bought it are praising it for the resons mentioned in this review and more. In addition, the price is right.
Try it for yourself, and join the myriad of other satisfied users who say, "Gregg is great!"
As a full-time trainer of writers and editors, I have used this book with everyone from grammar-challenged support staff to highly educated professional editors. With some classes, I've also used the optional worksheets (sold separately). I can't recommend Gregg highly enough.
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Douglas MacArthur was a colossus. He did not merely play an important role in the war in the Pacific, he dominated it and went on to play a crucial role in the West's early response to Communism in the Far East. William Manchester's exhaustive biography paints a warts and all portrait of the General. Manchester expresses rightful admiration for MacArthur's strategic brilliance and his amazing role in the recontstruction of post-war Japan. Yet, he does not shy away from criticism of MacArthur's extraordinary vanity which, in many cases, almost led (and during the Korean War did lead) to the General's downfall. I finished the book far more enlightened on the character of this individual and yet was left to draw my own conclusions as to his place in history.
Manchester's book is not just an immensely readable, throughly documented portrait of Douglas MacArthur. It also serves as a valuable work on the prosecution of the war in the Pacific and the early years of the Cold War and draws some very valuable and raises some interesting questions on the origin of America's entry into the war in Vietnam.
Individuals such as Douglas MacArthur should not be forgotten. Love them or hate them, they played a critical role in the history of the 20th Century and to the lives which each and every one of us live today. "American Casear" does justice to all aspects of Douglas MacArthur's life and character and I have no doubts that it will fascinate anyone who picks it up.
5 stars without any hesitation whatsoever.
Douglas MacArthur was perfectly bred for military leadership and his future historical role. The son of a Civil War recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor and Military Governor of the Philippines, Douglas MacArthur surpassed even his father's amazing military and historical accomplishments. Manchester argues that MacArthur had a unique genius for military operations, from his quick promotion at age 38 to the command of the Rainbow Division in World War I, to his campaigns in the Pacific and his bold invasion at Inchon in the Korean War. MacArthur's military capabilities conceivably saved thousands of American lives. Typically his military moves were cunning and daring, bypassing enemy strongpoints and leading to victories at lower costs in terms of lives than operations undertaken by his U.S. military contemporaries.
The book's title, American Caesar, uniquely describes MacArthur's career as the liberator of the Philippines and the Military administrator of Japan. Perhaps no other American in history has held the type of power that MacArthur held in Japan as Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers. Yet his immense power was wielded with grace and an understanding of the Japanese people and their culture. MacArthur's long service in Asia uniquely suited him to this role.
MacArthur's weaknesses which ultimately led to his downfall at the hands of President Truman are explored. MacArthur learned that great military exploits are often achieved by acting against the will or explicit instructions of his superiors. Combining this trait with an immense ego, MacArthur's showdown with President Truman was almost unavoidable. This led to his firing and a lasting feud with Truman that ultimately tarnished MacArthur's reputation despite his incredible career and service.
Manchester presents MacArthur as a complex figure full of contradictions. MacArthur is shown as a warrior who exposed himself to extreme danger, but was often derisively referred to as "Dugout Doug" when he vainly surrounded himself with luxurious surroundings in his headquarters. He instituted liberal democratic reforms in Japan, then became a hard line conservative spokesman in the United States. By illuminating these contradictions inherent in MacArthur's personality, William Manchester presents General Douglas MacArthur's long and eventful life in a book which makes interesting and exciting reading.
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This book surprised me by being an excellent management study. The lessons which are easy to take away from the book are aplicable to anyone who is faced with mission definition and achievement. It should be must reading in MBA programs.
Grant's lack of ego is surprising when compared to other Civil War figures and high achievers who have reflected on their lives and actions. By not only focusing on things that went right for Grant, the book has a tremendous credibility borne of real life trial and error, frustration, lessons learned and later employed.
A great book.
Lincoln loved Grant, as he was the first Union commander who seemed willing to fight it out with Lee's army, and who enjoyed any consistent success. When one considers Grant's predecessors at the helm of the Union army, one can understand Lincoln's enthusiasm. You had McClellan, who never read an exaggerated report of the enemy size he didn't believe; "Fighting Joe Hooker", flanked and embarrassed at Chancellorsville; Burnside, who foolishly sent wave after wave of Union soldiers across the Rappahanock to attack an impregnable stone wall at Fredericksburg; and Pope, who was soundly beaten at Manassas. Meanwhile, Grant caught Abe's attention with his successful siege of Vicksburg in the summer of 1863, as Meade was beating Lee at Gettysburg.
Reading Grant's Memoirs is a fascinating experience, as the war, at least that part of it involving Grant, comes to life in the hands of a thoughtful commentator. Grant was obviously there, and he shares informative communications with his inferior officers (such as Sherman) and with the President. Grant sent many men to their doom to be sure, (the Wilderness campaign comes to mind as being especially bloody and ineffective), but overall you get the sense that Grant was respected by his men, who were happy to be marching forward and not backwards after a battle. He restored a sense of pride and accomplishment that was sorely lacking in the Union rank and file. He gave cogent reasons in his memoirs for the actions undertaken, sometimes admitting mistakes in humble fashion, and sometimes explaining why a siege would accomplish the same overall goal without unnecessary bloodshed.
My only regret is that Grant didn't live long enough to write a companion memoir about his presidency, which was clearly outside the scope of this book. Readers who have gotten this far in the Amazon review process are no doubt aware that a broke Grant, stricken with painful throat cancer, wrote out his Memoirs of the Civil War right up until the end of his life to provide financially for his family, finishing the book days before he died. We should all be grateful that he was able to preserve these pages for prosperity, they are truly a model of military memoirs that I consider an extremely rewarding reading experience. When one considers the circumstances in which Grant composed this work, the end result is nothing short of miraculous.
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It is one thing to hear about how slaveholders took liberties with female slaves, it is quite another to read in stark detail about women being commanded to lay down in fields, young girls being seduced and impregnated and their offspring sold to rid the slaveholder of the evidence of his licentiousness. The author talks about jealous white women, enraged by their husbands' behavior, taking it out on the hapless slaves. The white women were seen as ladies, delicate creatures prone to fainting spells and hissy fits whereas the Black women were beasts of burden, objects of lust and contempt simultaneously. Some slave women resisted these lustful swine and were beaten badly because of it. It was quite a conundrum. To be sure, white women suffered under this disgusting system too, though not to the same degree as the female slaves who had no one to protect them and their virtue. Even the notion of a slave having virtue is mocked. The author rejected the slaveholder's advances and dared to hope that she would be allowed to marry a free black man who loved and respected her. Not only was she not allowed to marry him, she was forbidden to see him or speak to him again.
The author shows us the depth of a mother's love as she suffers mightily to see that her children are not also brought under the yoke of slavery. Though she was able to elude her odious master, she does take up with some other white man in hopes that he would be able to buy her freedom. Her "owner" refuses to sell her and tells her that she and her children are the property of his minor daughter. Her lover seems kind enough as he claims his children and offers to give them his name, and he did eventually buy them, though he failed to emancipate them to spare them from a life of forced servitude. Ms. Jacobs noted that slavery taught her not to trust the promises of white men. Having lived in town most of her life, Ms. Jacobs is sent to the plantation of her master's cruel son to broken in after she continues to refuses his sexual advances. She is resigned to this fate until she learns that her children -- who were never treated like slaves -- were to be brought to the plantation also. It is then that she takes flight.
After enduring 7-years of confinement in cramped quarters under the roof of her grandmother's house, the author escapes to the North which is not quite the haven she imagined. Still, it is better than the south, and she makes friends who buy her freedom leaving her both relieved and bitter that she is still seen as property to be bought and sold like livestock. In New York Ms. Jacobs is reunited with her children and a beloved brother who'd escaped a few years ago while accompanying his master -- her former lover -- to the free states.
There is no fairytale ending to this story because the author endures plenty of abuse and uncertainty even after she makes it to the North. She is hunted down by the relentless slaveowners who were aided by the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 and "The bloodhounds of the North." This is a wrenching account of this shameful period of American history, and should be required reading for all.
Incidents follows the "true story" (its authenticity is doubted in some places) of Linda [Jacobs uses a pseudonym] who is born into the shackles of slavery and yearns for freedom. She lives with a depraved slave master who dehumanizes her, and a mistress who mistreats her. As the novel progresses, Linda becomes increasingly starved of freedom and resolves to escape, but Linda finds that even escaping presents its problems.
But Incidents is more than just a gripping narration of one woman's crusade for freedom, and is rather an organized attack on Slavery, intended to convince even the most apathetic of northerners. And in this too, Incidents succeeds. The writing is clear, and Jacobs' use of rhetorical strategy to preserve integrity is astonishing.
Well written, convincing, entertaining, Incidents is an amazing book.
The book indeed has elements of a disguise and of a novel. Jacobs never uses her real name but calls herself instead "Linda Brent." The other characters in the book are also given pseudonyms. Jacobs tells us in the Preface to the book (signed "Linda Brent") that she changed names in order to protect the privacy of indiduals but that the incidents recounted in the narrative are "no fiction".
Jacobs was born in slave rural North Carolina. As a young girl, she learned to read and write, which was highly rare among slaves. At about the age of 11 she was sent to live as a slave to a doctor who also owned a plantation, called "Dr. Flint" in the book.
Jacobs book describes well the cruelties of the "Peculiar Institution -- in terms of its beatings, floggings, and burnings, overwork, starvation, and dehumanization. It focuses as well upon the selling and wrenching apart of families that resulted from the commodification of people in the slave system. But Jacobs' book is unique in that it describes first-hand the sexual indignities to which women were subjected in slavery. (Other accounts, such as those of Frederick Douglass, were written by men.) The book is also unusual in that Jacobs does not portray herself entirely as a hero but describes the nature of the steps she took to avoid becoming the sexual slave of Flint. Thus, when Flint subjected her to repeated sexual advances from the time Jacobs reached the age of 16, she tried to avoid him by beginning an affair with a white, single attorney with whom she had two children. When Flint's advances persisted, Jacobs formed the determination to try to secure her freedom.
The bulk of the book describes how Jacobs hid precariously in a cramped attic for seven years waiting for the opporunity to secure her freedom. There are also accounts of her prior attempts to leave slavery, including a particularly harrowing account of several days in a place aptly named "Snaky Swamp."
Jacobs describes her relationship with her grandmother, a free black woman who was probably the major inspiration of her life. She also describes well her love and concern for her children, conceived through the liasion with the white attorney.
This book offers a rare perspective on American slavery as it affected women. It is also a testament, I think, to the value of literacy and knowledge as an instrument for winning and preserving free human life. Although this story is not pretty, it is a testament to human persistence in the face of adversity and to the precious character of human freedom.
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