Other-sources

"Every Man Will Do His Duty" is an anthology of 22 excerpts from actual diaries and journals of men who served in the the British and American navies during the late 18th century and early 19th century.

I loved this book. Each selection was entertaining and well chosen, both for the glimpses the provide into the lives of the officers and men who served on such ships, and for their historical context (Such as Dr. William Beatty's account of the death of Horatio Nelson).

I'd suggest it to anyone who enjoys Naval History, or historical fiction (Such as Forrester or O'Brian) on the subject.

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If all you read in this book is "The Audacious Cruise of the Speedy", you will have gotten your money's worth.

If the only stories you read are the two chapters from the Nagle Journel, "For the Good of My Soul, 1795," and "Mad Dickey's Amusement, 1798-1800", you will have gotten your money's worth.

But you get more than this. You get a total of 22 stories picked from many to capture the history and character of the times.

If you like Patrick O'Brien, and C.S. Forester, you will enjoy the history that gave seed to these stories. You will recognize the events of Lucky Jack Aubrey's fiirst cruise in the cruise of the Speedy, and be amazed.

Index of stories:

1. In the King's Service, 1793-1794

2. Commence the Work of Destruction: The Glorious First of June, 1794

3. The Noted Pimp of Lisbon and an Unwanted Promotion in Bull Bay, 1794

4. For the Good of My Own Soul, 1795

5. The Would as Soon Have Faced the Devil Himself as Nelson, 1796

6. The Battle of Cape St. Vincent, 1797

7. Mad Diskey's Amusement, 1798-1800

8. The Fortune of War, 1799

9. The Audacious Cruise of the Speedy, 1800-1801

10. Bermuda in the Peace, 1802-1803

11. The Battle of Trafalgar, 1805

12. The Death of Lord Nelson, 1805

13. An Unequal Match, 1807-1808

14. With Stopford in the Basque Roads, 1808-1809

15. When I Beheld These Men Spring from the Ground, 1809

16. "Damn'em, Jackson, They've Spoilt My Dancing," 1809-1812

17. The Woodwind Is Mightier than the Sword, 1809-1812

18. HMS Macedonian vs. USS United States, 1812

19. An Unjustifiable and Outrageous Pursuit, 1812-1813

20. A Yankee Cruiser in the South Pacific, 1813

21. Showdown at Valparaiso, 1814

22. We Discussed a Bottle of Chateau Margot Together, 1812-1815

For anyone who is interested in naval warfare in the age of sail in general, or in the Napoleonic period, this book is a must. It is simply superb.

This anthology of first hand accounts covers events in both the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, including the War of 1812, in which the Royal Navy getting some very nasty surprises, and even nastier defeats, at the hands of the small, but expert United States Navy.

Some of the subjects covered are the Battle of Cape St. Vincent in 1797, the sea fight between HMS Macedonian and the USS United States in 1812, the cruise into the Pacific of the USS Essex, and such esoteric subject as 'the noted pimp of Lisbon' and Bermuda in time of peace.

This book is an enjoyable read, an outstanding primary source, and one of the best books available on this often neglected subject.

Mary C. Boys' book is desperately needed, especially in a culture where Mel Gibson's movie about the Passion is the only source many people will go to for their history (or lack of). After reading this book, if you are a thinking person, your spiritual foundations will grow and your previously mistaken understandings about Jews and Judaism (not to mention God's "irrevocable" gifts and call to Israel - Rom 11:25-36) will change for the better.

It is time to let theologians like Mary C. Boys pave a new path for the ongoing Christian culture and its relation to "the root that supports" it. Buy this book for your Pastor!

In our contemporary era, it is not usually considered acceptable to explicitly embrace bigotry and religious intolerance. Yet, as Christians we often do it in implicit ways which have shaped us since childhood. In this powerful book, Mary Boys offers a review of the history whereby Jews and Christians moved from being siblings, to being rivals and finally, enemies. This is a situation that can be reversed as Christians learn more about Judaism and, in turn, understand their own religion with more depth.

Mary does not profess to be an expert of Judaica. But here grasp of catholic theology and history is superb. Carefully and objectively she lays out her case for why Christians should refuse the supersessionism which infects our tradition. As she explains, Christianity should be able to express the power which is inherent in its tradition without denegrating the faith of the Jewish people. It is not necessary to insist that Christians are the new People of God in a way which proposes that the Jews are no longer God's people. As the title suggests, Mary demonstrates that God has blessings enough for both.

As a doctoral student in a summer session at Boston College, I have had the privilege of studying with Mary Boys. Hers is a powerful and persuasive argument that seeks to recapture something authentic and true about the foundations of Christianity. It is too easy to misread the gospel accounts as if Jesus and the Jews were arrayed against one another. In reality, Jesus of Nazareth was a Jew himself and this fact is far too often forgotten by Christians.

Typical of other Pharisaic rabbis of his day, Jesus had a particular approach to Jewish Law and customs and he had his own group of disciples who referred to themselves as "followers of the Way." In this simple rabbi these disciples encountered the power of God, placing Christians in a position which should be one of gratitude toward the Jews, not condescension and condemnation.

As Christians, are we able to develop a new paradigm which is faithful to our tradition without demonization of the Jews? I believe we can. I believe we must, and Mary Boys points a way in which we can better understand ourselves in the process.

With "Has God Only One Blessing" Mary Boys has made a major contribution to Jewish Christian relations. It is a singular contribution and advances the conversation to what is for Christians the most challenging area, which is the way we worship.

Jews and Christians have made enormous progress in mutal respect and understanding over the last forty years. Religious text books have been reviewed for negative stereotypes. We are quick to rally support for victims of discrimination and hate crimes. Our leaderships have made thoughtful policy statements. There are high levels of cooperation in efforts for justice and peace. Scores of colleges and universities have centers for interreligious study and research.

How Jews and Judaism are presented in our worship is quite another matter. Our words and our structures are riven with supersessionism, the assumption that Christianity fulfills and replaces Judaism.

It is this enormous diffuculty Mary Boys analyses with the a clear vision and practical directives. Her work is most welcome and merits great attention.

Cato's Letters are a must have for any lover of liberty. They are filled with enough passion, wisdom, and wit to make them shining gems on any bookshelf. The philosophy expounded in these letters is that of radical liberty according to the laws of nature. It is made clear throughout that governments are the servants of people, not there masters. The only just role of government is to protect the life, liberty, and property of the governed, any other role being usurped and explicitly tyrannical. It was this radical philosophy that made Cato's Letters such a huge influence in America throughout the 18th century. Their influence on the Revolutionary generation is rivaled only by John Locke and his Second Treatise of Government. Above all, these letters are classics of reason and resistance. In my opinion, they are the best exposition of libertarian principles ever written.

Anyone who adocates capitalism, liberty, freedom, etc. should read these letters. They inspired the American Revolutionaries. They inspired me. I'm willing to bet that they'll inspire you.

How one chooses THE 50 GREATEST LETTERS FROM
AMERICA'S WARS must be a difficult task, but David H.
Lowenherz (the book's editor) has done it well . . . he has
selected a range of letters from the Revolution to the operations
in Afghanistan and presented them with fascinating commentary
about both the combat and the writer.

Presidents, ranging from George Washington to Dwight Eisenhower,
are included . . . but so are frontline soliders, nurses, prisoners of
war, generals, and even spies who I would have never heard of
until I read this short work that is actually hearbreaking in parts.

It is one thing to study history in the abstract . . . it is
another to hear stories--told in the first person--that have
actually been written to families, friends and sweethearts.

I recommend this book highly.

There were so many memorable passages in these letters that
it has made my job difficult; i.e., to present just a few for
your consideration . . . but I'll try, nevertheless . . . so please
consider, if you will:

(Captain Rodney R. Chastant to his parents from the Vietnam War)
Mom, I appreciate all the letters. I appreciate your concern that some
of the things you write about are trivial, but they aren't trivial to me.
I'm eager to read anything about what you are doing or the family is
doing. You can't understand the importance these "trivial" events take
on out here. It helps me keep civilized. For a while, as I read your
letters, I am a normal person. I'm not killing people, or worried about
being killed. While I read your letters, I'm not carrying guns and grenades.
Instead I am going ice skating with David or walking through a depart-
ment store to exchange a lamp shade. It is great to know your family's
safe, living in a secure country; a country made secure by thousands
upon thousands of men who have dies for that country.

(Fireman 1st class Keith Lynch to his family in World War II)
To think that a thirty-pound bomb the size of a basketball, exploding a
thousand feet in the air, could cause such a holocaust was simply
unbelievable. I shudder to think what these people underwent when
the blast occurred. A blast that literally dissolved their homes, family,
friends and any other material thing in the vicinity. A blast that pushed
over huge steel structures a mile and a half away as if they were made
of blocks. Now I can see what they mean when they say Dead City. A
city with no buildings, no trees, no facilities, and no people. All you see
from the top of the hill is a ground covered with bricks, burned wood,
twisted and pushed over steel frames of buildings for several miles in
each direction. There is nothing for the people of this Dead City to do
but walk around and think, "What manner of people would do such a
thing to us, who are a peaceful, courteous and civilized people?" I
wondered what they thought when they looked at us as we were
driving along. "Are these the barbarians who did such a thing to us?
What can we expect now that we are at their mercy?" I only wish they
could be made to suffer a tenth of the atrocities that they performed on
our men whom they held prisoner. People can say these people are
simple, ignorant of the facts, or under a spell, but a nation cannot wage
war as they have without the backing of the majority of their people.

(Major Sullivan Ballou to his wife in the Civil War)
The memories of the blissful moments I have spent with you come
creeping over me, and I feel most gratified to God and to you that I
have enjoyed them so long. And hard it is for me to give them up and
burn to ashes the hopes of future years, when God willing, we might
still have lived and loved together and seen our sons grow up to
honorable manhood around us. I have, I know, but few and small claims
upon Divine Providence, but something whispers to me-perhaps it is
the wafted prayer of my little Edgar-that I shall return to my loved ones
unharmed. If I do not, my dear Sarah, never forget how much I love
you, and when my last breath escapes me on the battlefield, it will
whisper your name.

This is a new title that's a who's who of cheap travel providers worldwide, listing hundreds of top-notch ticketers around the globe who consistently offer the best fares to independent travelers. With phone numbers, fax numbers, and internet addresses, this book is a bargain-hunter's dream. You'll earn your $10 back many times over.

The author of this book (Asser) was a contemporary of King Alfred's and was brought to Wessex (Alfred's kingdom) in the ninth century as part of Alfred's plan to improve education and culture in Anglo-Saxon England. The text is highly readable and gives students an eyewitness account of Alfred's kingship: military successes and failures (esp. fighting the Vikings), advancement of English culture and education, consolidation of the seven kingdoms, and cultivation of Christian kingship in the Early Middle Ages. This kind of book is especially fun for students to read as it shows us "real history," including things such as Alfred's 20-year fight with some sort of intestinal disorder. We see Alfred as a man, not just an aloof, wooden figure that died long ago. This edition also includes maps, geneological charts of the Carolingian (i.e., "French") kings and the English kings up to Alfred, and a 29-page introduction by Simon Keynes and Michael Lapidge, which provides excellent background on the period in which Alfred and Asser lived. Also included are excerpts from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, which was begun in Alfred's reign, extracts of Alfred's own writings and translations, and miscellaneous primary sources such as letters, books, and documents of the era. These items make good backgrounding for teachers. When this biography is read together with the Arthurian legend, it helps students to compare the real and the ideal kings of the Middle Ages.

This novel thrilled me, at least the title did, that's all i was able to read through

This is an excellent collection of documents concerning pacifists who resisted the American Revolution in the name of religious liberty. Anyone interested in the difference between the American and French Revolutions should read this material. It shows that some of the same intolerance seen in the Jacobin Republic in France between 1792 and 1794 was present in the new United States. Another example of how patriotism can be the enemy of liberty.

Teach an old dog new tricks? Absolutely, provided the pooch in question is Blue Dog, that colorful canine spawned from the mind of Cajun artist George Rodrigue. (For those no up to their four-legged friends fodder, the cobalt canine with the yellow eyes is based on three of the artist's now-dead dogs, and was first immortalized on slick papers back in 1994.) Who says a sleeping dog must lie? This babe is everywhere: portraits hang in the White House, on the set of "Friends" and in fan Whoopi Goldberg's abode; Blue Dog also stars in an Absolut ad. This volume boasts 60 gorgeous never-before-published paintings, along with commentary by Rodrigue on the birth of Blue Dog and its transformation into a pop culture icon. Tom Brokaw, an avid Blue Dog collector, wrote the book's forward. The cat's meow. Really.

You just can't fully appreciate or understand the scope and delight of Blue Dog until you read this book. I adore Blue Dog. This silly, goofy blue dog provokes emotions in me that I have not experienced with art before...there is some strange, sad, beautiful, eerie, rapturous, haunting, joyful essence to this darn dog. This book is completely unique, fun, inspirational...I could go on and on. You just have to touch this book (the cover is fuzzy!) and open it...you will be hooked. The best coffee table book and a sure conversation starter, though that is hardly its value.

Any book with more of Blue Dog is great. This features more of the pop art world of Blue Dog than the previous books of Rodrigue's work. (I actually like the paintings of Blue Dog in cajun settings best.)

Other than flying, the next best thing for a pilot is talking to others who fly, listening to their stories, telling some of your own and sharing the thought that we all think of at the end of a flight, "cheated death again." Bill Kershner has pretty much done it all from ragwing taildraggers to flying jets off an aircraft carrier. All of his yarns are interesting, some are humorous, many are instructional, gleaned from 50 years of flying. Reading this reminds me of many days when weather or some other matter outside of our control found us sitting around the FBO telling our stories and listening to others. Bill's stories are well worth listening to.

William Kershner is a technical author with a flair for humor that is reminiscent of Samuel Clements. His writings are clear, instructional, and pure reading enjoyment. Bill's latest work, "Logging Flight Time" is a core book for the libraries of true pilots everywhere. It also is a MUST for non-fliers who might like insight into those individuals who lived during an era when aviators were heroes.

Kershner's crisp collection of events from his career will appeal to all who have any fascination for the sheer fun and wonder of flight.

I was lucky enough to meet Bill Kershner some years ago at his Ace Flying Academy in Sewanee TN. Having read his articles in the AOPA magazine it was no surprise to find a very readable book. So much so that I sat awake all night on the flight back to the UK reading it! I hope that he has more stories to tell and will publish them soon