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Book reviews for "Powers,_Richard_S." sorted by average review score:
The Luftwaffe's Way of War: German Air Force Doctrine, 1911-1945
Published in Hardcover by Nautical & Aviation Pub Co of Amer (1998)
Authors: James S. Corum and Richard R. Muller
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This excellent book explains much about airpower doctrine!
This book is essential reading for any historian or airpower enthusiast who wants to UNDERSTAND why the Luftwaffe fought as it did. Corum and Muller provide interesting commentary and a very strong introductory essay, but the book's real strength is its remarkable collection of key German documents -- collected and translated by the authors -- that trace the evolution of Luftwaffe doctrine. Buy this book!!

The Peacemakers: The Great Powers and American Independence
Published in Hardcover by Northeastern University Press (1983)
Author: Richard Brandon Morris
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Best Account of the Paris Peace Negotiations
Before the negotiations to end the Vietnam War, before the negotiations to end the First World War, there were negotiations in Paris to end the American Revolutionary War, and all the related wars between Britain, France and Spain. The late Richard Morris, in this book, has written the best account of these fascinating, important negotiations. The American team, perhaps the best diplomatic team we have ever fielded, consisted of Franklin, Jay and John Adams. The other players in the drama include King George III and his ministers, negotiators and spies, and King Louis XIV and his team. Great history, easily accessible.

PRESIDENT, THE CONGRESS, AND THE CONSTITUTION
Published in Paperback by Free Press (1984)
Author: Richard Pious
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Erudite collection of documents supports book's thesis well
Pyle and Pious do an excellent job of bringing together the proper corpus of primary documents to support their thesis that different institutions of power, especially the executive and less-so the judiciary, have not respected the constitutional confines placed on them. The two professors, through an erudite and relevant collection and commentary of source materal, including books, essays, and Supreme Court cases, make a strong argument. Moreover, the authors substantiate facts with source material and are neither implictly nor explicitly supercilious in their presentation of their commentary and sources. I personally recommend this book as either a text for use in an American Government class at the High School or college level in addition to a personal read for any one who has an acute interest in American political history.

The Slave Power: The Free North and Southern Domination, 1780-1860
Published in Hardcover by Louisiana State University Press (2000)
Author: Leonard L. Richards
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Powerful, absorbing account of South's stranglehold
This is an extremely engrossing history of the (virtual) stranglehold the South maintained on the US government from the birth of America until the election of Abraham Lincoln. It is also on account of the efforts by post-war southern historians to cover up the central fact of slavery as the dominating motive in the South's wish for control. I first heard of this book when I read a (highly complimentary) review of it by James McPherson, author of Battle Cry of Freedom. If you like McPherson's book, this will seem in many ways like a "prequel," filling in the story of the run-up to the Civil War in greater depth than McPherson could devote (though he did a great job on that, too). This book blows away alot of the "Gone With The Wind" fairy tales about the South before the war, and shows, convincingly and absorbingly, the Southern States' governments conscious (and for many decades, entirely successfull) attempts to maintain its slavery interests at the expense of the North and , of course, the slaves. When the South could no longer impose its will, it opted for war. Like McPherson's writings, Alan Nolan's Lee Considered, Thomas Connelly's The Marble Man and the writings of Gary Gallagher, this book helps do away with the "Moonlight & Magnolias" view of the South that was so prevalent up until the 1950's and, for some Civil War buffs, is the only reason for their interest. Too, Leonard Richards can write, so the reading of this book is a pleasure right up there with enjoyment of the argument. I think it will appear to all general readers interested in unravelling the complexities of the Civil War and our early history. Unlike so many awful books on the Civil War, this book is intellectually stimulating.

President Kennedy: Profile of Power
Published in Hardcover by Simon & Schuster (1993)
Author: Richard Reeves
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The best and most balanced one-volume JFK biography...
Along with Herbert Parmet's "Jack: The Struggles of John F. Kennedy", Richard Reeve's "President Kennedy" are the best two books ever written about a legendary (and much-romanticized) American President. Unlike Thomas Reeve's hatchet-job "A Question of Character", which basically could be called a job in "character assassination"; or books such as Arthur Schlesinger's "A Thousand Days", which idolize Kennedy and ignore his flaws and failures as President, Richard Reeve's book maintains an admirably objective and balanced view of our 35th President. Reeve's Kennedy is neither a liberal saint nor a debauched devil, but is instead a complicated and often frustrating man who is woefully unprepared for the Oval Office when he moves in in January 1961, but does possess a great many gifts that save him when he gets into trouble. Reeve's Kennedy makes many mistakes early on in his Administration - the Bay of Pigs, his disastrous summit with the Soviet Union's Nikita Krushchev in Vienna, and his reckless womanizing in private, which as Reeves notes might well have become public knowledge if some enterprising reporter had ever followed JFK's movements very closely. Yet Kennedy does learn from at least some of his mistakes, and his handling of the Berlin Wall Crisis and the Cuban Missile Crisis was excellent. Whether Kennedy would ever have grown into a great President is a matter of debate among historians, and after reading this book I had my answer - JFK was a good President in many ways, but he probably would never have become a great one, due to his overly cautious nature on civil rights and the other great issues of the sixties. In short, this is a very well-written, impressively researched, and very fair-minded look at one of our most difficult Presidents to study and write about...this should be required reading for anyone who's interested in the 1960's, the Kennedys, or American politics.

Reeves Neither Fawns, nor Muck-rakes
Richard Reeves' book is a welcome addition to the "CamelotYears" genre. Written from the President's perspective,i.e. "a day in the life" type format, this excellent readneither fawns, nor muckrakes, but rather a balanced account of aPresidency that, until this point, has not been examined in anobjective light. Reeves first person perspective shows a president whohad more profile than courage. Inspite of his many gifts, JFK wasdiffident, at best, as President. Reeves book reveals a JFK that wasdriven, almost maniacally, to get to the White House, but once he gotthere was pretty much out of his league. The portrait of a neophytestatesman is obvious when Kennedy makes his first trip to Europe,receives a lukewarm reception from DeGaulle, and is taken to thewoodshed by Nikita Khrushev who, upon seeing the youthful presidentexclaimed "he's younger than my own son." Reeves accountbeautifully illustrates how the rich playboy-president miscalculatesKhrushev; one gets the impression that Kennedy felt that his Sovietcounterpart could be rolled like a Boston Pol. Kennedy came away fromhis first overseas trip as president much chastened. Richard Reeves'book is excellent; well written, well researched, and balanced. Ihighly recommend it. (I've read it twice!!)

Skillfuly written, you-are-there look at JFK's presidency
Richard Reeves has crafted an exceedingly insightful, well-written, you-are-there look at the Presidency of John F. Kennedy. As someone born the year Kennedy was assasinated, and having been inculcated over the years with the Kennedy Myth, Reeves took me almost day-by-day, minute-by-minute through the events starting from Kennedy's election through the day 33 years ago when he was killed in Dallas.
Reeves' looks at the Berlin Wall and Cuban Missile Crises take advantage of recent disclosures from US, Soviet and other sources to show how close we came to World War III in both of those situations.
The book's description of the start of the US commitment in Vietnam under JFK allowed me to gain a better understanding of how Kennedy's prior failure to stand up to the Soviet Union and Krushchev in Laos and Cuba "forced" JFK to stand firmly behind the unsupportable South Vietnamese government.
Other topics addressed by the book include JFK's tepid support of civil rights and his rampant promiscuity.
I had to rate this book a 9 (I've yet to read a 10), but this book has to be one of the best out of the almost unlimited supply of JFK biographies

The FBI : A Comprehensive Reference Guide
Published in Hardcover by Oryx Press (09 November, 1998)
Authors: Athan G. Theoharis, Tony G. Poveda, Susan Rosenfeld, Richard Gid Powers, and Richard G. Powers
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Great book for FBI overview.
"The FBI: A comprehensive reference guide" is a great book for information on FBI history and organization. I learned a lot about how the FBI carries out its mission by reading this book. This is a terrific reference.

Good book for background information
The FBI Comprehensive Reference Guide is a very good resource for background information on the FBI. I have never seen a better book on the history and workings of the agency. I would recommend it, along with "FBI Careers" (by Thomas Ackerman), to anyone who is seeking FBI employment.

FBI and 20th Century US History
This book covers the history and evolution of the FBI from 1908 to the present from an objective point of view. It has been well researched by these four scholars. The essays are well written and organized in ten chapters. Each chapter gives an in depth explanation of the origins of the FBI, its changes through the years, the relationship with other state and federal law enforcement agencies as well as its relationship with the President, Congress and the media. The reader not only learns about the history of the FBI, but also will learn about 20th century U.S. history. The chapters on Notable Cases and the FBI's influence on the American popular culture are very interesting. This book is very useful not only for the those who are interested in learn about the FBI but also for historians, sociologists, criminologists.

Secrecy: The American Experience
Published in Paperback by Yale Univ Pr (1999)
Authors: Daniel Patrick Moynihan and Richard Gid Powers
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mediocre at best
Moynihan presents an array of anecdotal evidence of instances where secrecy produced unintended, and unfortunate results, and draws that sweeping conclusion that secrecy is bad. A more modest conclusion, such as that the government designates too much stuff as secret might be supported, but Moynihan's generalization is too much. Also, the introduction to the book written by Richard Gid Powers far outshines the portion written by Moynihan. Moynihan's stuff is a dry as dust.

Supplementary book for American Politics Course
A very interesting account of governmental secrecy during various times of conflict. Would make a nice supplemental reading for professors teaching a American Politics course. I touches upons foreign policy and the relationship between the Executive, Congress, and the Supreme Court. Most of the material deals with the development of secrecy as a standard operating procedure during WWI and WWII. Vietnam and the Iran-Contra Affair are touched upon but could have been expanded.

Extraordinary Contribution to National Sanity and Security

Senator Moynihan applies his intellect and his strong academic and historical bent to examine the U.S. experience with secrecy, beginning with its early distrust of ethnic minorities. He applies his social science frames of reference to discuss secrecy as a form of regulation and secrecy as a form of ritual, both ultimately resulting in a deepening of the inherent tendency of bureaucracy to create and keep secrets-secrecy as the cultural norm. His historical overview, current right up to 1998, is replete with documented examples of how secrecy may have facilitated selected national security decisions in the short-run, but in the long run these decisions were not only found to have been wrong for lack of accurate open information that was dismissed for being open, but also harmful to the democratic fabric, in that they tended to lead to conspiracy theories and other forms of public distancing from the federal government. He concludes: "The central fact is that we live today in an Information Age. Open sources give us the vast majority of what we need to know in order to make intelligent decisions. Decisions made by people at ease with disagreement and ambiguity and tentativeness. Decisions made by those who understand how to exploit the wealth and diversity of publicly available information, who no longer simply assume that clandestine collection-that is, 'stealing secrets'-equals greater intelligence. Analysis, far more than secrecy, is the key to security....Secrecy is for losers."

Rostenkowski: The Pursuit of Power and the End of the Old Politics
Published in Hardcover by Ivan R Dee, Inc. (1999)
Author: Richard E. Cohen
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One of my favorite politcos -- politics aside
Though I've been a Republican (and occasional Libertarian) since I was old enough to vote, one of my favorite politicians remains a Democrat. Chicago's own Dan Rostenkowski served as chairman of the very powerful Ways and Means Committee until 1994 when he was voted out of office amongst corruption charges and disgust with the Democratic establishment in general. Richard Cohen's book is the first and (as far as I can tell) only full-length biography of this politician and its a fascinating read. Following Rostenkowski from his beginnings as an obscure lackey of Mayor Richard Daley in the '50s to his position as the most powerful man in Washington, D.C. in the late '80s and early '90s, and finally ending with his downfall, Cohen's book shows how this man came to power though the old fashioned politics of patronage and was eventually destroyed by them. Its also a finely nuanced investigation of a man who remained bluntly unglamorous as American politics were transformed into the world's most vapid beauty contest by the Clintons and their ilk. Even as you read about the man's flagrant abuse of power, its hard not to miss Dan Rostenkowski whose ill-fitting suits, cheap haircuts, and blue collar manner become all the more likeable in the face of our recent crop of lip-biting, pain-feeling, bridge-building politicians.

A great tale of a human being and American politics
COHEN's book takes us from boyhood to the ignominious end of a political career -- and does so while telling a second and equally fascinating stoy about the changes in the American political system that accompanied, and ended, with the ROSTENKOWSKI era. For those who find Chicago politics -- where tombstones sometime vote -- to be worth a good read, this is a wonderful view of how all that worked in and around a Congressional district. For those who find the story of this Polish-American icon to be worthy of a book investment, this volume delivers 200%. For those who appreciate what a professional journalist with 30 years of Washington reporting can add to the ROSTENKOWSKI story by way of historical perspective and evolution, this is a book that cannot be missed.

Kings of the Hill: Power and Personality in the House of Representatives
Published in Hardcover by Continuum Pub Group (1983)
Authors: Richard B. and Cheney, Lynne V. Cheney and Lynne V. Cheney
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Controlling Caos
Want to know where the real seat of control lies in the US government? Then this book about some of the most powerful men in the history of the House of Representatives is an excellent (although short) resource. I now have a much better appreciation of the need to ensure control of that body is in the hands of truthful, focused and principled people.

The book needs a re-write, though. It stops (was published) before the full impact of Newt Gingrich's term could be evaluated.

Read this book and you'll have a new respect for the workings of the House of Representatives and, by extension, the federal government - something like controlling chaos!

Great insight into role of the Speaker
I thouroughly enjoyed this book. It covered each topic just enough with a good balance of political, social, and personal aspects and how the three inter-related and affected the subjects. For someone just beginning to understand the history of the House, it is a great book to read.

Quick Read About Fascinating Leaders in Congress
Ever wonder how 435 egomaniacs get even a few bills done in
Congress?

The Cheneys supply the answer in this book of excellent
vignettes on several masters of the US House of Representatives. Meet
Clay, Polk, Stevens, Blaine, Reed, Cannon, Longworth, Rayburn and
Gingrich as they work their will on their members to controll the
legislative process.

By examining the role of congressional
leadership through history and historic personalities, this book both
illustrates how the House has changed and how the nature of power
hasn't. These men relied on personal relationships, codes of honor
that won respect and a willingness to exercise power (ie, risk tough
battles, reward friends and punish enemies) to run the House.

Both
the history buff and those interested in leadership studies will find
this book interesting. Though well written, the book is short. I
think that it could have delved into more detail of some of the
political battles these men faced and still been fascinating. Maybe
Dick Cheney will have the time to expand upon this theme as Vice
President -- there is a lot of opportunity for writing while jetting
to and from foreign funerals (as John Nance Garner -- FDR's 1st VP --
said "the job's not worth a bucket of warm spit!).

ABUSE OF POWER : The New Nixon Tapes
Published in Paperback by Touchstone Books (1998)
Author: Stanley Kutler
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A Look at a Sad Man
If you are interested in how the Nixon and his staff handled the Watergate issue then this is a wonderful look into the private conversations that took place. The author does a good job of setting most of the conversations up with comments as to what the conversation covers. There are also some explanations at the beginnings of the major areas of the book. I would have preferred a little bit more editing out of some of the conversations, but they do serve a point in the overall book.

What struck me the most was just how desperate Nixon kept getting. I almost started to think that maybe he even believed the lies he was telling. It was so fascinating to see how he would formulate a "cover" story and then keep presenting it to staff to see if they would replace their understanding of the events with his. What is sad is the amount of denial that Nixon was sliding into at the end. He was justifying his actions so hard, I started to think that he was trying to change reality with his force of will.

Many of the conversations are very revealing and interesting. I wonder if at times Nixon forgot he was being taped? Why would anyone think that what he was up to would stand the test of time and be thought of as acceptable behavior. You get a good understanding of why Nixon and his family fought so hard to keep the tapes private. In my opinion, these tapes have set back all the work Nixon did after leaving office to rebuild his reputation. My only warring would be that this should not be the first or only book on Watergate that you read. It will help you if have read something else to give you some back ground on the conversations. Overall the book is interesting and a good addition to your Nixon collection.

Masterful Logic Leads Astray
A fine addition to any Watergate library. Kutler is a dazzling professor who often turns fine logic and thinking to the wrong conclusions. As a litigation historian he can shed copius amounts of illumination onto America's law. However, the fine paths which are followed by Kutler often lead to the wrong conclusion. He has made brilliant arguments for the separation of church and state which in the end only elegantly confirm the opposite conclusion. Our high law not only encourages religous affiliations in civic life, but that government cannot in fact prohibit this free exercise of religion by not only any individual, state, judge or other federal official but by even the federal government itself. It is always a joy to consume a Kutler premise, but even more enjoyable to find the true conclusions.

A New Insight Into History
If you are interested in how Nixon and his staff handled the Watergate issue, then the book Abuse of Power: The New Nixon Tapes by, Stanley Kutler is a great one to read. Kutler does a great job of setting the private conversations up with comments as to what they cover. He also gives some explanations at the beginning of the major areas of the book. I was happy that they did not edit much of the conversations that took place because they serve a good point in the overall book.

What struck me the most about the book was just how desperate Nixon kept getting. I almost started to think that maybe he even believed the lies he was telling. It was so fascinating to see how he would come up with a "cover" story and then keep presenting it to his staff to see if they would replace their understanding of the events with his. What is sad is the amount of denial that Nixon encountered at the end. He was trying so hard to justify his actions; I started to think that he was trying to change reality with his force of will.

Many of the conversations are very revealing and interesting. It makes me wonder, if at times, Nixon forgot he was being taped? I got a good understanding of why Nixon and his family fought so hard to keep the tapes private. In my opinion, these tapes have set back all the work Nixon did after leaving office to rebuild his reputation. It will help you if have read something else to give you some background on the conversations. Hopefully, this will not be the only book on the Watergate scandal that you read. Overall, the book is interesting and well written.

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