On-the-tape

This book is awesome. Steve Gallagher is truly a blessing to not just men in bondage but to all Christians. There is substantial food in this book that should be eaten by all people and all Christians. Before I even finished the book, I had to stop and write Steve Gallagher a letter thanking and praising him for letting the Lord use him to convey this information. That just goes to show how much I had "eaten" before even finishing the book. I feel that if you do not have this book, you will either remain in darkness or be walking in the light with sunglasses on.

For any Christian man desiring freedom from bondage to sexual sin, there is no greater resource available. God continues to use Mr. Gallagher in a glorious way to lead countless men to freedom through his "Pure Life Ministres" (PLM) organization. Yes, there is hope! Yes, you CAN live a joyful and deeply fulfilling life, serving God with a clear conscience! The choice is yours. GET THIS BOOK! If necessary, enroll yourself in the PLM live-in or at-home program...

If you are a christian man and are striving to live sexually pure, buy the book.

Reading this book renewed my pride in being a veteran, and it was heartwarming to read about the sacrifices made by our vets, and the honor they possess. I highly recommend this book to any vet, or to anyone who knows a vet.

As a veteran, I was amazed that I have never read any of the stories in this book in the past. It took me a while to realize that these stories were in fact very personal, they effected the lives of the people deeply. Some of the stories made me cry others made me laugh. Many people do not realize how much so many have give to keep this country free, the only complain about the way thing are run in Washington, never have ever sacrificed even a small portion of what our great countries veterans have. Read this book, and thank God for the things you have, and for not having to go through what some of these veterans did.

As the daughter of an Air Force pilot and the wife of an Army Cavalry Scout, this book touches me personally. The stories relayed in this collection are heart-warming, prideful and on occassion tear provoking, but for anyone who has had a family member in the armed forces or knows someone who is serving their country or has served in the past, this will definitely hit home.

I'd never heard of Lawrence Block until I read one of his short stories, "The Merciful Angel of Death" in THE NEW MYSTERY anthology, edited by Jerome Charyn. I liked the story so much that I was thrilled to find he also wrote novels, which led to A DANCE AT THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE and Matt Scudder. Since then I've read all of the Scudder mysteries and buy the newest one as soon as I hear about it.
So what's so good about Scudder? He's a great character for one thing. He's a recovering alcoholic, a detective without a license, a former cop who left his wife and kids. And he's got some of the seediest friends you'll ever meet. An albino pimp. Mick Ballou, a bar owner who kills people. A high-classed prostitute girlfriend. Then there's T.J., his street-smart partner with a facility for computers.
Scudder walks or takes the subway wherever he goes. He putters around, drinking coffee, going to AA meetings, donating money to the church (any church) when he gets paid for a case. He never seems to make any progress, but his perambulations give us a chance to see New York. Then he finds a tiny thread here, another there, and before we know he's cooking with gas.
In A DANCE AT THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE Scudder takes on the Amanda Thurman murder case. After attending a small dinner party on Central Park West, Richard and Amanda Thurman return to their brownstone on West Fifty-second Street, only to be confronted by burglars who draw guns and herd them into their apartment. They steal his watch, wallet, and Amanda's jewelry, beat Richard, tie him up and tape his mouth; then they rape his wife in front of him. Richard manages to knock the phone off the table, free the tape from his mouth, and call 911. But his wife is dead. The dead woman's brother doesn't believe Richard's story and he hires Scudder to prove Thurman murdered his sister. Scudder's investigation takes us on a journey through New York's "snuff" film, sex-for-sale underworld.
Lawrence Block learned his craft writing for the pulp magazines, and you sure can tell. Who else can make a reformed alcoholic, and wife deserter into a likable character?

I started reading Lawrence Block a few years ago and I have grown to really appreciate his Matthew Scudder books. Block can write extremely readable prose, he can create believable (and interesting) characters, and he can tell a story. "A Dance at the Slaughterhouse" is the perfect example of this. This is a great book that captures the reader early an doesn't turn him loose until the end. Elaine, T.J., and Mick are wonderful supporting characters for Matthew Scudder, who is dogged yet resourceful in his starring role. Scudder is flawed but still highly skilled as a detective and the reader becomes attached to this character very quickly. If you haven't put Scudder/Block on your "must read" list, do so immediately.

Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder series is one of the absolute best P.I. Fiction series out there. He is one of the few that can be compared with the great Raymond Chandler's Phillip Marlowe. And "Dance at the Slaughterhouse" is one of the best and is certainly the most grusome entry in the entire series. Death has always been a preoccupation in the Scudder novels. In New York City, death seems to be Scudder's constant companion as he struggles to remain alcohol free and to keep his life on track. Here he begin two seemingly unconnected cases and follows their meandering leads until they start to connect in some brutally ugly ways. Scudder has come into possession of a genuine snuff film, and he can't get it out of his mind. Ultimately, he encounters a world of sex deviants and children who sell their bodies. Along the way, recurring characters such as gangster Mickey Ballou, call girl Elaine and ex-pimp Chance provide plenty of color.

Block's Scudder series is almost unique among P.I. fiction in that it is able to maintain its edge even as its hero goes through significant life changes. His continuing battle with the bottle provides an added tension that stays in the background like a predator ready to pounce. Overall, this is one of the best Scudder novels and a must read for P.I. fiction fans.

in my coffin of fan-hood of Dick Francis. I first read Banker and loved it. The Danger is a high stakes adventure that finds twists where you would never expect them. Francis develops another excellent character in Andrew Douglas and Douglas' inner dialogue helps the story be truly captivating. The action is vivid to the point that you will be lucky if your life stays normal during the time you are reading this book. It is another installment in a vast collection of entertaining reads by Mr. Francis.

Dick Francis has a knack for developing interesting characters. This book is no exception. The plot is well developed. The characters are very interesting.

Tony Britton does a great job as a reader.

This highly enjoyable mystery is unusual in many ways, from the main character who is NOT a detective or police officer to the villains (kidnappers), plus the clever way Dick Francis worked the milieu he knows best (horses and horse racing) into each of the three kidnappings.
The main character, Andrew Douglas, is a partner in a firm which negotiates for the release of kidnap victims/hostages by working as an "advisor" to police, governments, and occasionally taking things into his own hands (unofficially) as demonstrated in the second kipnapping in the story. Andrew shares many traits with other Dick Francis heroes--he is honest, likeable, an all-around good guy who trumps the criminals and gets the girl in the end. In this novel, Andrew himself is not connected with horses or horse racing, but rather the connection comes from the fact that all of the kidnapping victims share a connection to the horse racing world, be it as a female jockey, a part-owner of a promising race horse, the owner of a race track, and the head of the Jockey Club. From these tenuous links, Andrew and his partners realize that the perpetrator is probably known to the horse racing world, and begin to try to trap him, but not before one more kidnapping takes place!
Like his other novels, this one too is a very easy, fast read, and takes readers from Italy to England to America before winding up most satisfactorily.
I also liked the other characters in the novel, particularly some of Andrew's partners (described and fleshed out thoughtfully and with humor) and his love-interest.
Readers will also learn something about horse racing, this time mostly from the perspective of a trainer and a jockey, as well as come away from the novel with a good sense of what it is like to go to the races, even if they have never attended.
If you have never read anything by Dick Francis, this novel is an excellent place to begin.

Radio has been called the "theater of the mind." The Alamo, presented here for the first time as a radio dramatization, is a professional production that uses talented actors, realistic sound effects, and an able musical score to tell a story. Much like a good book, it will transport you to another place and time where you become more than a casual observer.

The story is told from the standpoint of a young David Cummings an actual Alamo defender from Pennsylvania and begins when he, like so many others, answers the call for volunteers in the Texas Revolution. We travel with Cummings to Texas and along the way meet a bevy of characters, some familiar others not-so-familiar.

This dramatization is just that, drama and as such is also entertainment and should not be taken by the listener to be an accurate reference resource. The writers stuck fairly close to history, but in some cases chose to take artistic license for the sake of telling a good story.

For example, our protagonist, David Cummings, who was 27 at the time of the siege, is suddenly 16 years old. I am not sure why the writers did this when they could have easily chosen other defenders who were that young or simply chosen someone else. This is not a detractor from the story because 99.9% of the population doesn't know David Cummings from Adam, so for most part it doesn't matter. The Colonial Radio Theater players are story tellers and boy do they tell a whopping good story.

I was pleased that William Barrett Travis was presented as a young man (he was 26 when he died) but rolled my eyes when they had him draw the line in the sand. This, and "Moses" Rose going over the wall shortly thereafter were the only instances I noted where lore supplanted history. The writers can be forgiven though, because Travis's line in the sand is part of our cultural consciousness and as such, it effectively added to the drama. The Alamo was about choices and the"line in the sand" scene efficiently depicts the ultimate choice. In the end our hero, Cummings, did not want to die, but was willing to give up his life for something bigger than himself. By experiencing it with the characters you understand WHY so many chose to stand and fight when they knew death was a certainty.

The producers choice of vocal talents was generally good. However, I must admit that I winced at the characterizations of Tejanos or Mexican nationals. It was obvious to this listener that these were not Hispanic actors but rather non-Hispanics actors using a forced accent. (Santa Anna sounded a little like Bela Lugosi.) In fairness, I may be a little picayunish due to my Hispanic heritage and this detail might not be noticed by most.

The Alamo does not contain any colorful language, but sometimes the dialog and action get a little rough. The story also deals with the subjects of death and duty in a realistic fashion and may be too intense for younger children, so I would give this cassette a PG rating. While still a family offering, The characterizations in The Alamo are not unnecessarily sanitized, so you still get the idea that some of defenders were from rough-and-ready stock.

The quality of this digital recording is excellent. The sound effects were realistic and the stereo separation greatly added to the sense of spatial presence, especially in the final battle sequence. The music, as it should, heightens the drama without detracting from the overall production.

If you like the story and drama of the Alamo, then I would recommend this tape. However, if you are looking for historical documentation, stick to books.

Randell Tarin
Managing Editor
Alamo de Parras

I just got this tape and love it! The story leading up to the battle is just as exciting as the battle - and for the final 12 minutes my speakers were crashing and exploding and cannon balls were flying across the room! The battle is spectacular, and I was right in the middle of it - what an experience! I must point out however, reading another review just after listening to the show, that at no point in the story does Travis "draw the line in the dirt" for the men to cross. This never happens in this "Alamo" program. Also, I have read MANY books on the Alamo, and this show was dead-on! High recommended. I don't know why the program is listed as "Abridged," because it is the complete program.

The sound effects of the battle are fantastic. I was especially impressed that the script actually used the real names of two participants in the battle for the roles of the 16 year old boy and his friend. I highly recommend this tape to any Alamo enthusiast.

The final book of the Galway Chronicles is a masterfully woven tale. Joseph Connor Burke is finally reunited with his wife and family after learning that he has been pardoned for treason.

Shortly after his return the potato famine begins. Joseph and Kate are faced with anguish and dispair as they try to keep their family and their people from starving. Their unfailing trust in God is what keeps them hopeful in this tormented time.
The addition of the Grogan family only adds to the story.

As you read this book you will learn more about the people of Ireland in the 1840's then you have ever before. The treatment of the Irish people by the English is deplorable. I was surprised that as the people of Ireland are starving ships are being sent to England full of grain and livestock to feed the English. Always new that the famine was horrible to Ireland but now I know the whole history of why it was so horrible.

I think I now have some insight as to why my Great-great-grandparents came to America.

As you read the books in the Galway chronicle you feel like you are witnessing first hand their joys and sorrows and their steadfast faith in God.

If you have not read the three previous entries in "The Galway Chronicles" series, you simply must read them first. But if you who have read them, you will not want to miss "All Rivers to the Sea", the immensely satisfying conclusion to the series. The novel commences where volume three left off, with newlyweds Joseph and Kate separated by adversity, and Kate expecting their first child. But there is hardship on both fronts. Away in London, Joseph finds his life threatened by murderers. At home in Ireland, Kate suffers the agony of the death of her own child. When Joseph and Kate are finally reunited, their suffering continues in the form of a potato blight which destroys the food supply of their staple produce, results in more suffering, pain and death. Even Joseph and Kate's marriage relationship is strained by sorrow and misunderstanding.

In "All Rivers to the Sea" the Thoenes not only portray the suffering of Joseph and Kate Burke, but also that of another family told in a sub-plot - the Grogan family. Suffering is epitomized in the Grogan family when they are cast out of their home, totally destitute. Daniel Grogan first suffers the loss of his wife, and then is forced to place his children in a workhouse. The horror of the workhouses is painted with stark reality, demonstrating the heartbreak of impoverished parents faced with death, and forced to part with their children by placing them in workhouses, where they suffered under the "charity" of a corrupt state church (p.117). The only light in the darkness is that one child of the Grogan family enters the Burke home. But even this is shadowed with darkness, because it occurs in a manner that has overtones of the birth of Moses (with the older sister watching the cast out child) and the birth of Jesus (with the family not finding room in the "inn" - in this case, shepherds). This is no coincidence, because the Thoenes make a strong connection between the suffering of believers and the suffering of Christ. Kate reminds herself that the scars of suffering "make you more like Him" (p.185), and some hungry children with simple childlike faith state that they must eat "The bread of Christ ... the bread of suffering." (p.199). And when the suffering are cast out of their homeland, they are reminded by angels "Remember Christ the Savior, the child for whom there was no room!" (p.302). The only flaw here is that Kate incorrectly insists that suffering must not be accepted as God's will (p.163), although what she means by this is correct: Don't be passive in suffering, but "Pray instead for a clear eye and a firm plan to bring your people relief. Work hard to make this hard life better for as many as you can." (p.163).

The significance of the title "All Rivers to the Sea" also has to do with suffering. Mad Molly says prophetically "We'll none of us survive! The river flows, don't ye know? It carried off man and beast, grass and flower, to the sea. Always to the sea! It's over for us." (p.153) Joseph later explains: "Life is about people, and not about things or places or land. A river that rises in the mountains only to die in a bog is a sad, useless thing, Martin. We must be like the stream that bursts through all dams and finds its way to the sea. To a new life in a new way." (p.270-1) And the angels admonish at the end: "Remember the River from whence you came! Remember the Sea which all are bound to cross one day!" (p.302) At the end of the novel there is some taste of justice and redemption. Yet the bitter taste of suffering remains, forcing Joseph and Kate and the people of Ballynockanor to take drastic measures to ensure their ongoing survival. With the last chapter of "All Rivers to the Sea", one chapter of their lives is at an end. The characters must move on to a new chapter, even if it is clouded with adversity and suffering.

Yet it is precisely this that makes "The Galway Chronicles" so appealing. Unlike many contemporary Christian writers, the Thoenes' do not offer us a "feel-good" pill with a "they all lived happily ever after" ending. In the "Galway Chronicles" they are not afraid to make their readers journey through the depths of tragedy and despair, nor to leave them with a bitter taste in their mouth. Some readers might prefer a fairy tale ending, but this is real life, not a fairy tale. And in real life, the presence of sin and suffering is ongoing, even at the end of a book. The solution is not found in a pretend perfect life, but the solution is found in the work of Jesus Christ who gives hope in the midst of a life of sin and suffering. The happy ending comes only when this last chapter of history comes to an end, and when He returns. In this sense the Thoenes' boldness in presenting a harsh picture of a life of suffering, and their refusal to provide a "happy" ending, is heartily refreshing. They do not do the gospel a disservice - as so many other writers do - by suggesting that believers on earth can expect happy endings here on earth, before heaven. These novels show that there is no heaven here on earth, but that the hope of heaven offers real encouragement in a life of earthly suffering. And that certainly makes them worth reading.

All Rivers to the Sea was a wonderful way to end the Galway Chronicles. Once more I was moved to laughter and tears as I followed the lives of the people of Ballyknockanor. Martin's character was fleshed out nicely, Corrie and Ceili's story made a heart wringing sub-plot, and Mad Molly was as wise, humorous, and prophetic as ever.

Though it's nice to think of Kate and Joseph living "happily ever after," I would love it if the authors would continue this story in a different series as they have done with their Zion sagas.

Though the title implies that this is the story of a single bomber crew over Germany in 1943, "Bomber" goes farther - much farther, only starting with the crew of the heavy bomber "Joe for King". Deighton proceeds to cover the families of the crew, other crew members and their superiors before cutting across the channel to the enemy - night-fighter pilots, their controllers in German air defense, various suspicious characters from across the spectrum of Germany's military - from "respectable" Luftwaffe and Wehrmacht personnel to shadowy types from the "Abwehr" and the SS. We also meet the civilian residents of Altgarten, a Ruhr-area town nobody would think of bombing, but which manages to get plastered all the same. It's mid-summer 1943, when "Joe for King" is sent into the Ruhr as part of a massive night-time raid against the industrial centers of Krefeld. Lacking night-vision goggles, RAF pilots drop their bombs on targets marked by flares left by directing aircraft - in this case, specially equipped Mosquitoe night-fighters. When the marking aircraft for the Krefeld raid is shot down too early, its flares are released over Altgarten. This error is compounded by inherent flaws in RAF tactics (like targeting bombs in the center of cities, where bombs are more likely to hit civilian homes than factories and military installations), and the town becomes the unintended target for the massive strike. "Bomber" is to RAF's wartime bomber command what "Traffic" is to the DEA - a story of massive scale borne by wide cast if characters that never stops growing. Deighton doesn't let something meaningless as nationality get in the way of determining who is good or evil (the Germans get the bombs here, but Nazi genocide also gets prominent mention, with plenty of nasty Waffen SS to remind us why people were fighting). On the British side, we see officers acting less like gentlemen than soldiers. Political correctness is the rule (this is the country that gave us "1984"; "Joe for King"'s commander is suspected of incipient Bolshevism - it's very name hints at Stalin). Those who won't fall in line risk being labeled as LMF (Lacking Moral Fiber) - officially branded as cowards. Though books with such a command of detail normally favor the efforts of those they depict, Deighton is uniformly negative on the subject, a tone reinforced by his many subplots. Lambert, "Joe for King's" rebel pilot, plays the best cricket in Bomber Command - leading his odious superior to compel his participation in an upcoming tournament on pain of getting LMF'd. (Worse - the commander puts pressure on Mrs. Lambert after her husband has departed for the big raid). The bombers fly from Warley Fen, a once verdant field seized from its original owners who now stare at the airfield, mourning for what they know they will never have again. In Germany, ADF is managed by August Bach, an aged warrior preparing to marry his young son's nanny, not knowing how her youthful looks have made her the target of vicious rumors through Altgarten. The pilots of a night-fighter squadron (nichtjagdeschwader), preparing for a feared RAF attack on the Ruhr, are thrown into turmoil when Abwehr and Gestapo appear in search of a stolen classifed memo. The memo, it turns out, details hypothermia experiments on concentration camp prisoners (this may be same memo mentioned early in Robert Harriss' superb "Fatherland"). The corrupt assistant to Altgarten's Burgomeister arranges for the downgrading of the town's remaining Jews (from 1/3rd to 2/3rd "Jewishness" - though these jews are even more likely to face deportation and certain death, they will have greater freedom to marry other jews). Altgarten itself is flooded with profiteers funneling goods looted from conquered parts of Russia and the Netherlands. It seems that war is the only thing keeping the world safe because it occupies all the amoral typed who have to fight it. The only morally just adults are the TENO - the civil safety personnel who dig people out of bombed buildings. Because they are stationed in Altgarten, they get the biggest break: when the raid comes, they have the shortest commute. With so much going on, you just know you're bound to miss something. This is the sort of book that speed-readers hate. You'll probably lose count of all the characters that Deighton throws at you, though this doesn't hurt the plot as much as make the book one you'll want to re-read. Be warned - once you pick up bomber, you'll probably be spoiled for any other novel on the war in the skies over Europe.

This is a superbly plotted panel book in which every story ends with some sort of twist or irony. I write only to correct one error made by an earlier reviewer. Lambert's plane is NOT 'Joe for King', but 'the Creaking Door'. The CO is so out of touch that he mistakes the planes, thereby indirectly saving Lambert's life, much to his young wife's relief. (The casualty rates were horrific for bomber crews.)

It is somewhat amusing that the reviewer made the same mistake.

The best fictional account of the "Other Side's" (German) view of being the "attacked". Mr. Deighton obviously has done his homework in showing how one massive,confused attack on a German town in the Summer of 1943 devastates everyone involved from the British RAF planners and pilots, politicians, and even more the German civilian home front, not to mention just about everyone else on the German side,from the SS,Luftwaffe, to the totally innocent on the ground. When the air raid alarms go off in the ficticious German town to the inevitable,terrifying end, mistakes and all, you know you're reading from a master. The ending is as terrible as you can imagine...

This is the 20th book in the cozy mystery series about Hamish Macbeth, a constable who lives in the small, scenic village of Lochdubh in the Scottish Highlands with his dog, Lugs. He also tends sheep and chickens in addition to his police duties. In this adventure, someone is writing poison pen letters which results in two murders which Macbeth has to solve. In addition, he has to handle complications in his love life and the village gossips. Beaton does a good job of describing the Highland villages and in developing her characters. All of the books in the series are a quick read and are perfect for a rainy day or lazy Sunday afternoon. Anyone who likes cozies will enjoy this series.

DEATH OF A POISON PEN is set in a small village in the Scottish Highlands. It is populated with quirky characters and a lovable, bumbling, tall, red-haired constable named Hamish McBeth. Hamish is somewhat lazy and likes his little village to run smoothly, but it never does. This time around some villagers are receiving poison pen letters. A postmistress is found hanged in her room and a vacationer comes to Lochdubh with the sole purpose of seducing him. He does have his hands full these days.

I consider the Hamish McBeth series the better of the two series that M.C. Beaton writes. The characters really make the stories endearing and fun. That Hamish ever solves any case always seems like sheer fluke, but you are always rooting for him. The plots are always rather straightforward and not too complicated and it makes for a quick read. This is a perfect book for a rainy afternoon.

This installment of the Hamish McBeth series was one of the best. I enjoyed my visit to Lochdubh immensely and catching up with old friends. I loved how the town showed how much they respected and cared for their unorthodox policeman. The mystery itself wasn't a strong one but the characters and setting more than made up for it. Hamish and company is a delightful way to spend an afternoon. I cannot wait for the next one!

I have to say while I haven't been thrilled with the Destroyer series lately, it is still a must read. I am esctatic that GE can get these books out on time. I like the story in this latest installment and I like the fact that it is going to arc into a miniseries. Remo's adventures have always been part political satire part history lesson rolled into an adventure story. This book goes back to what made this series so enthralling to begin with.

This book brings back the Remo Williams series to its original flavor while adding new dimension to the Smith Character. A must read for Destroyer fans. The series is back!!

The writing is tight, the plot develops and like the very best of the series, I simply cannot stop reading. Remo is himself he is no longer a marionette "karate dancing" for hack writers. Chiun is the reigning master bringing awe not, "aw no". I still have issue No.1 purchased many years ago. I have read all of the Destroyer series and I know that the series now has a chance to surpass it's own roots. There have been continuing themes before but never as tightly scripted and well plotted. The new author is not only extremely well versed in the sun source but he is expanding the legend. It may be heresy But this could be the best yet.

Joseph Berger has written a story that needed to be told, but he has included too much extraneous material about his own life. Much of what he tells reveals what it was like growing up as the child of a refugee, but who cares whether or not he dated in high school?

The best parts of this book were those about his mother's life and about how she managed in the United States as a refugee. Berger's writing is more journalism than story telling. He's got all the facts, but none of his descriptions flare above the mundane. His mother's reminisences are far more artistic, and reveal more than the words on the page.

i loved this book. i felt as though i was right there with him and his family through every phase of their lives. this book had everything going for it, sadness, chaos, happiness, tragedy. it was so personal and you just felt as though the author let you in to share with him.

New York Times journalist Joseph Berger has created a masterful, evocative and moving account of the ever-present duality of his life: his identity as an acculturated American child of Holocaust survivors. This duality gives his account of his mother's life and his own evolution from a bewildered refugee child into an accomplished American a poignancy and power. "Displaced Persons" will stand as an important contribution, not only to our understanding of the long-term implications of being a survivor of the Holocaust, but of the unique burdens, pressures and responsibilities children of survivors inherit from their parents.

Berger is acutely aware of "the unmentioned sorrow that was the subtext to everything [his] parents said or did." Haunted by memories, devastated by enormous loss, handicapped by their arrival in America in their twenties and driven to provide security for their families, Holocaust survivors often perceive their children as replacements of beloved family members who perished and as repositories of hopes and dreams denied them. Worried about their children's safety, happiness and future, Berger muses about his parents' perspective, "What could I say about the dread and suspicion with which they encountered a world that had proven maliciously fickle?"

As the author emerges from childhood, he begins to chafe from his mother's protective, controlling instincts and desires to assert himself as his own man. Berger's wrenching analysis of his status becomes the overarching theme of his memoir. "I saw myself now an an American...I would no more be the timid refugee boy with one leg planted in the fearful shtetls of Poland, with a mother ever vigilant that no more perils come to the remnants of her kin." It is this unspoken loving tension between Joseph and his mother, Rachel, that gives "Persons" its dynamism.

Alternating between two narratives, one his own and the other the gripping account of his mother's survival, Berger deftly intermingles past and present. Aware of his distinct heritage, the young Berger recognizes others in his impoverished Manhattan neighborhood who share his background. "We knew one another, knew in our young bellies that our parents were the same dazed and damaged lot, had the same refugee awkwardness, the same whiff about them of marrow bones and carp." Now attempting to wrest coherence in America, Holocaust survivors tend to frustrate Berger with their problem solving techniques. Berger prefers the American way of standing up directly; survivors "were always scraping by on a willingness to do what was necessary to survive, even if that meant surrendering pride or principle."

Raw emotion floods "Displaced Persons." Rachel's symbolic mourning of a dead child in Warsaw at the onset of World War II serves to remind us that she has no "mental picture" of the actual murder of her family. Unspoken grief undulates throughout the memoir. Berger's stoic father Marcus scarcely articulates his unfathomable sense of loss; nearly half a century passes before he can utter the names of his sisters. Guilt ebbs and flows in Rachel's description of her survival. Anguished over refusing to bring non-kosher food to her hungry brother during World War II, she has never forgiven heself, calling it "the worst thing I ever did in my life."

Yet life surges and humor emerges in Berger's descriptions of growing up in New York City in the 1950s and 60s. With both parents working at dreary, tiring jobs, the author experiences a freedom of movement he admits he would never conceive of allowing his own daughter today. His descriptions of his initial exploration of Manhattan reveal the sheer joy of discovery, the incredible exuberance of youthful hopes and the awesome sense of possibilities Berger recognizes in his new home. Berger's frantic disposal of an illicit girlie magazine carries universal appeal; he becomes an American everyboy. His struggles with self-confidence, academic competition and sexual frustrations are those of not only his generation, but of those before and after.

Written with conviction and compassion, "Displaced Persons" is that kind of memoir that not only describes, but instructs. Through the author's descriptions of his resolute, stubborn and proud mother, survivors attain an identity beyond that of suffering and loss. His own life's story shapes our understanding of the purpose of our national experience and the sacredness of an American identity. Treating both the Holocuast in its past brutality and its implications for the second-generation children of survivors, the memoir blends sorrow and joy, heartache and hope, pain and redemption.