Governments

I am not writing this review because I have read this book. I am
writing it because this book is so hard to find. If this book was so important to John F. Kennedy, why is it not available so those interested in the late President can read it to? Should this book not be reissued for other generations to read? It is just a thought from someone who wants to know more about JFK.

I loved this book. Of the many books on the period which I have read, this is probably my favorite. Melbourne is a fascinating character, and the author gives a masterful account of his life. For a period which can be dry if not properly set forth, I found this book to be a real page turner. Lord Cecil gives a thoroughly interesting account of Melbourne's early life, and in particular his stormy relationship with his wife Lady Caroline. She emerges, as is well documented, as bordering upon lunacy. Her antics are well documented and amusing, although I couldn't help feel a sense of frustration that Melbourne was entirely too tolerant of her behaviour. While Melbourne appears to be somewhat wishy-washy, his amiable nature is precisely the key ingedient for his rise to Prime Minister: everyone liked him. Lord Cecil's insight into the evolution of Melbourne's character is fascinating, and reveals something of a tragic figure. Indeed, the later part of Melbourne's life, is sad. Much of the later part of the work is devoted to Melbourne's close relationship with the young Queen Victoria, and upon her marriage, Melbourne's life become tragically empty. The end of the book gives an account of the loneliness of Melbourne's later years, and it reveals Melbourne as more susceptible to bouts of melancholy. But that is the truth of the matter, and it does not detract from the enjoyment of Lord Cecil's work. Finally, it is interesting to note that this book was cited by President John F. Kennedy as his favorite book. Some have attributed this to the accounts of the behavior of the ruling aristocracy in Britain during the whig era, wherein they ruled during the week and ran to the country for parties and relations. I found these desciptions of the book by some of JFK's contemporaries to be inaccurate. While such events are described generally, as they should be to properly account for the period, the focus of Lord Cecil's work is upon the character and evolution of Melbourne himself. This results i! n a comprehensive and altogether enjoyable account of the period. I highly recommend this book.

Zev's wit truly comes through in his travels through Jewish Americana. He finds the most intriguing stories to report, from the zaniest to the unbelievable. This is a must read.

great book. Zev Chafets takes the reader on a tour of small-town Jewish America.

"Even Richard Nixon has got soul", wrote Neil Young in his song 'Campaigner'. This book chronicles Richard Nixon's rise and fall with candid honesty and demonstarates a warmth and human falibilty that does indeed afirm Young's lyric.
I was surprised at Mr. Nixon's book in that I was unsympathetic at the time with his handling of Vietnam and felt he was out of touch with the vast anti-war movement in the USA. I feel now that he was harshly judged and that he should be saluted for his untiring efforts to maintain freedom and democracy in Asia.
The best parts of the book are when he describes meetings with other world leaders and provide a fascinating insight into the process of diplomacy at the highest level of goverment.
The Watergate sections are complicated and one is left with the impression that he got into a hole and could'nt stop digging.
I would strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in the machinations of high politics and anyone who wishes an insight into a turbulent period in American history.

Richard Nixon experienced a "comeback" in the late 70's and throughout the 80's, and it started with this excellent book. In it, he goes through all of the relevant things concerning his family experiences, and, of course, his politcal life, culminating in the Presidency and then complete disgrace. But this book isn't really a "downer," and it has wonderful Historical value. It is an excellent read as well as a terrific buy.

The average Westerner has far too little knowledge of the Middle East and North Africa and the author offers a superb and timely analysis of this area. His style of posing questions, both geographical and cultural/political, then answering them in detail gives the reader, both novice and expert, information rarely seen in one tome. Dr. Weatherby's description of the ancient history of the area and how it relates to the present is brought to life by his photography and the detailed maps.

It's hard to imagine a more readable and informative text on the subject.

This is the first book I have found that explains the politics, religions, and cultures of this region in language that I can understand. The writing is vivid and clear. The book uses a historical perspective, which really helps the current events make sense. I gained a new perspective on terrorism. The importance of western colonialism is well covered. Good maps are used effectively. Interesting pictures are included, most of which were taken by the author. Another noteworthy feature is a chapter containing capsules about each of the more than 20 countries covered. This is a handy reference when reading about world events. The book is a good primer for an ordinary person wanting to understand factors affecting world affairs.

This book is an excellent summary of how the people of the United States prepared for and mobilized for World War II. The author had done exhaustive research and has included detailed facts and figures in all parts of the book. For those who are researching particular aspects of the war, this is a very good starting point. In my case, I was interested in learning about the mobilization of industry for war production and found the book to be most helpful.

For those who have a general interest in this subject, you will find the book to be well written and interesting.

If you are looking for a comprehensive history of what was happening in the U.S. during World War II, this is the book for you.

If you want all the numbers and listings and all the boring details, like I did, this is good reading and brings back a lot of memories about our "wartime" experiences in the U.S.

The author is pretty thorough with a tendency to put the reader to sleep by giving you more facts than you actually wanted. So, if you are NOT really THAT interested in the subject, it could be a 2-star reading for you.

The author talks about rationing, the various services and how they were formed, what to do with German and Japanese aliens, rationing of moonshine, discussion about nisei, issei, etc., lots of nice information, (some really interesting stuff) but I was a little disappointed by the "dryness" of the writing and the fact that the author did not mention some of the more obvious subjects I personally would like covered, such as Axis war prisoners interned in the U.S., U-boat activity off the U.S. east coast...

A comprehensive book, but dry, sort of like a very good college paper. A confusing little book: it lacks that extra zest you expected, but you still read every word.

This is an excellent guide to the basics of money and financing.

The book focuses on London as a financial center and the British finanacial system in general, making frequent comparisons to New York and global practices. However, as it describes financial basics I think the that it would be useful to people almost anywhere interested in understanding such basics as: interest rates, banking, shares, insurance, foreign exchange, etc.

I was most impressed by Coggan's clear explanations helped by historical descriptions, e.g. goldsmiths and silversmiths became the earliest bankers when they stored gold and silver in their safes for nervous citizens. Then, when they noticed that of all the gold and silver stored in their vaults only a small amount was required for withdrawal, and this amount was roughly matched by new deposits, the idea of lending the idle gold and silver was born. The earliest smiths were from Italy and did their business from wooden benches in the market places. The Italian for bench is "banco" and was corrupted into the English word "bank".... Suddenly at the hands of Coggan banking seems like a very human enterprise and becomes easy to understand.

Coggan's knowledge is obviously thorough and his explanations are excellent. I highly recommend this book. Comments to LearningResearch@Cox.net

I bought this book about 5 years ago when I first got a job in the UK Financial Industry. It covers all the basics and you can start with little or no previous knowledge (I did!). To illustrate his point he includes examples of Indices, Exchange Rates, Unit Trust prices etc. from the Financial Times newspaper. It is easy to understand too. Can't recommend it highly enough.

If you are interested in campaign finance, then this is a must read. It is very informative and the authors obviously know a lot about the subject.

Money Matters is a very important and thought- provoking analysis of campaign finance reform. No matter what your specific opinions about this issue are, I certainly recommend that you read this book.

An excellent collection of speeches by Governor Cuomo. Governor Cuomo is without a doubt the greatest political orator alive. His "A Tale of Two Cities" from the 1984 convention is a masterpiece. The same collection on video would be even better.

This is an excellent compilation of the best speeches of America's foremost orator. While the speeches lose some of their magic on paper (the Governor's delivery is an essential compliment to the texts), they remain eloquent and beautiful examples of the speechwriting art. Consequently, the book will appeal to fans of Mario Cuomo, students of speechwriting, and those interested in history (especially political history in the 1980's and 1990's).

A few speeches stand out as masterpieces, specifically two from 1984. The first is Cuomo's most famous speech, his keynote address to the Democratic Convention of 1984. The second, which is even better, is the Notre Dame speech in which Cuomo explains how, as a Catholic governor, he also supported abortion rights. An entire book could be built around this one speech. Once Cuomo gets into his argument, his every word is carefully chosen. He uses the structure of his speech to construct a penetrating, complicated and ultimately sensible argument. Since this speech, other politicians have attempted to ape Cuomo's argument without fully understanding it by claming they are "personally against abortion, but pro-choice in their official capacity."

This book can probably best be appreciated if read along with other speech books. The individual style of the speakers emerge when several examples are read, and then contrasted with other styles. Ronald Reagan's speeches, which he did not write, nevertheless stand out as evoking compelling patriotic visual images using simple but entrancing language. FDR's are marked by religious-sounding language translated into entirely secular contexts. John Kennedy's are distinguished by soaring rhetoric that was global in scope and timeless in the use of ancient, present and futuristic allusions. Cuomo's speeches are great as arguments. He doesn't just paint pictures, he builds meaning on top of meaning. They are best appreciated as wholes rather than strung-together sound bytes. In this regard, Cuomo is a disciple of Abraham Lincoln. Like Lincoln's, Cuomo's speeches should stand the test of time and give future generations insight into the logic of the speaker's governing philosophy.

Again, the one thing missing from the book is Cuomo's voice. As great as these are in print, they sound even better when he's delivering them. Perhaps it's too much to hope for a video collection. Until then, "More than Words" is more than adequate. It's the kind of book you want to keep for inspiration.

A good companion, which gives insight into how a great speech was written, is Garry Wills' "Lincoln at Gettysburg."

A compilation of articles from reknowned conservative commentator George F. Will. Will presents us with plethera of political and social issues of the 80's agrued eloquently and presuasively. A must read for anyone who wants to understand the social and political melieu of the 1980's. A true classic.

Whatever your views, this book should make you think about what they are and why you hold them.

His discussions relating to abortion (especially of the permanently disabled) is particularly poignant, since his son has Down's syndrome. He becomes particularly vocal where his son is concerned (what father wouldn't?) and makes a undeniable case against abortion.

A must read for any politically aware person.

Author Jim Merriner covered politics for the Chicago Sun-Times, and he brings that insight -- and razor-sharp writing -- to this book. There are two biographies of Rostenkowski out right now, and for some reason, reviewers and bookstores have given more prominance to the other book. But Merriner's book is the better of the two. It is written by a pro who knows politics, knows Chicago and, despite his years as a newspaperman, has an aversion to cliches. Rostenkowski's story is an engrossing one, and Merriner does it justice.

This book is very well written. Easy to read for even those of us who may not be "politicaly oriented". Gave me a great insight and understanding of American politics. Definitely would recomend it! Covers a time span from early Chicago to present day.