BOOK REVIEW: Individual Conscience VS Tyranny Of The Mob

 

(Published 1968, 1979, Paperback Edition 462 pages)

Mr. Carter's thoroughly-researched, revised edition published in 1979 made my blood boil. The railroading of nine, illiterate, clueless teenagers based on the extremely blatant lies of Victoria Price and to a lesser extent Ruby Bates highlights some of the worst aspects of the humans condition. The rape of the two prostitutes in a railroad gondola supposedly occurred on March 25, 1931. There was no question that the boys were innocent, but racist, hillbilly, Alabama justice overrode treating the African-Americans as human beings. Granted, you will see that the teens were not model citizens. They came from horrible backgrounds compounded by the Depression, Jim Crow laws and unjustified long jail time, they never had a chance in hell of getting a fair shake out of life.

While the innocence of the teens is unquestionable, the motivations of certain parties is more complex. The zealous, nutty International Labor Defense, which was an extension of Stalin's Communist Party, initially saved the young African-Americans from death by electrocution, but after that caused much more harm than good. The odious Alabama Attorney General Thomas Knight was motivated by political ambition. Blatantly racist Judge William Callahan made a mockery of the judicial system. There are some individuals who's integrity made them shine during the Scottsboro fiasco. Three individuals especially stand out as exemplars of high character: Judge James Horton, attorney Samuel Leibowitz and Pastor Allan Knight Chalmers. The NAACP, who should have spearheaded the boys' defense, were more concerned about their reputation than the boys lives. Also, Mr. Carter's book was originally published in 1968 and he had claimed Victoria Price and Ruby Bates were dead. When NBC broadcast a tv movie based upon excerpts of his work, the very-much-alive ladies sued. The revised edition includes his journal of what occurred during the 1977 trial.

Mr. Carter's excellent, academic-but-readable book shows that the pursuit of justice can cause odd alliances. The depths of Alabama's racist, anti-Semitic attitudes is truly breathtaking. The oodles of death threats received by defenders of the Scottsboro boys; the decades of exclusion of black on juries; Southern law enforcement habitually ignoring Constitutional rights; and deep hatreds of Northerners are also shown in their ugly glory. "Scottsboro" is great history and a perfect example of the darker aspects of racism which are still very with us today.

(Meyers - A few years ago, I started writing, under the pseudonym Franklin the Mouse, short reviews at Amazon's web site. This is my most recent review #351)

I Need A Second Opinion

 

I don't think my primary doctor is very smart.

He told me this wasn't a healthy salad.

O'CHEERS!!

If you were one of the people on St. Patrick's Day standing in line to enter a bar at 6AM so you could start celebrating, then alcohol isn't your friend.

Dumb Ways To Die

BOOK REVIEW: One Heck Of A Week

(Originally published 2010, Paperback edition 324 pages)

The 24-year-old Mike Bowditch is into his first year as a Maine Game Warden in Knox County which borders our coast. This story, however, isn't about our picture-postcard ocean scenery. Estranged from his less-than-ideal, divorced dad, the rookie warden has some major unresolved issues revolving around their relationship. When a company lawyer and a deputy are ambushed and murdered in the more rural wilds of the county, Mike's dad becomes the prime suspect and a manhunt ensues. Mr. Doiron does a very good job, through flashbacks, of fleshing out the rocky father-and-son relationship. The author also accurately describes the life of a Game Warden and the beauty as well as uglier aspects of the rural, rustic parts of our State. Along with positive characteristics such as New England sensibilities, a low violent crime rate, and a less hectic pace than metropolitan areas, poaching and harsh poverty are also very much a part of Maine's character that most tourists never see.

Bowditch is not portrayed as some coastal Sherlock Holmes or having the killing instincts of James Bond. He come across as an all-too-human, young man who just wants to do what's right. Bowditch doesn't wind up figuring out obscure clues that the State officers missed and he also has help from a retired Game Warden pilot in an effort to find and exonerate his dad. It made for a much more believable story. Unlike an Agatha Christie novel which is more disciplined in laying out clues throughout the mystery, Mr. Doiron has successfully written a more complex story and not simply a straight-forward whodunit. There were plenty of unlikable suspects in this mystery whom I hoped were going to be the culprits. Heck, there were a few characters that I wouldn't have minded being killed in a brutal way.

Mr. Doiron's book was so entertaining, I finished it within a few days. I most certainly will be reading his second work "Trespasser" which also revolves around Mike Bowditch. The book is excellent and not a story that only Mainers will enjoy. 

(Meyers - A few years ago, I started writing, under the pseudonym Franklin the Mouse, short reviews at Amazon's web site. This is my most recent review #350)

BOOK REVIEW: The Peripatetic Perfectionist

(Originally published 1998, Paperback edition 562 pages)

There is a reason why Mr. Berg's book won the Pulitzer Prize. It's that good. I knew very little of Charles Lindbergh beyond his famous flight over the Atlantic, the kidnapping of their child and the famous pilot being labelled a Nazi sympathizer during WWII. Mr. Berg's biography does an excellent job of fleshing out the man and the times he lived in. The story starts with his grandfather emigrating to the United States, then explains the father's colorful life and how it effected Charles Lindbergh. The author also spends a great deal of time explaining the difficulties of trying to be the first person(s)to cross the Atlantic; Lindbergh's meteoric rise to worldwide fame; the kidnapping of their first child by Bruno Hauptmann; his World War Two service; and the battle between him and President Roosevelt.

I knew Lindberg was famous, but not THAT famous. It was completely believable that he had no clue his crossing of the Atlantic would receive such a reception. Lindbergh's engineer-brain was always focused on end results and not fame and fortune. What made him happy was discovering and solving problems. His supposedly mild-mannered nature, along with his American apple-pie looks and do-it-yourself attitude, epitomized our ideal of a hero. Lindbergh's impenetrable personality allowed people to imagine this unknown young man as fitting their own personal standards, hope and dreams. He truly was the first modern celebrity hounded by fans and the press. The guy couldn't break wind without it making front-page headlines.

I was somewhat shocked after reading most of the one-starred Amazon reviews. The accusations that it is a sympathetic, gushy book are untrue especially when it discussed his relationship with his wife Anne and their five kids. I typically read about four to six biographies per year. Mr. Berg's work easily falls into the category of being a well-rounded representation of Lindbergh.

On a more personal note: because of our family's unique situation, I have become very good at picking out individuals who show many of the characteristics of someone with high-functioning autism (aka Asperger's Syndrome.) While reading the biography, so many major red flags popped up about Charles Lindbergh's personality and actions that qualify as high-functioning autism, I lost count. If he wasn't one, I'll friggin' eat the Spirit of St. Louis. 

  
(Meyers - A few years ago, I started writing, under the pseudonym Franklin the Mouse, short reviews at Amazon's web site. This is my most recent review #349)

The Muppets Dancing Slinkies

Separated At Birth?

Stephen Colbert and Stephen King

Ah... Nuts.

This morning, Monique and I were driving towards Portland to see Jon compete in a track meet. A huge SUV was driving in the opposite direction. Suddenly, a grey squirrel darted out, stopped and ran back towards safety. The SUV's front right tire ran over the poor thing. It flopped over in the road and was surely dead. Shit, I saw it all. That just ruined my friggin' day. I hate when an animal's life is cut short... WOW... This hamburger is good.

BOOK REVIEW: ... And No Chocolate Mints On Their Pillows To Boot

(Originally published 1977, Mass Market Paperback 659 pages)

It's been 35 years since I read "The Shining." I was 18, it was my first introduction to a Stephen King novel, and the thing scared the everlovin' crap out of me. (The book on the right was the original paperback cover I purchased at a small Hallmark Card store in 1978.) With the author coming out with a sequel entitled "Doctor Sleep" in September 2013, it seemed like a good time to revisit a classic. The book left such an impression on me back in 1978 that I still remember most key events from the story. Despite knowing the end results, I found the book to still be immensely entertaining and suspenseful.

Jack, Wendy and Danny Torrance are between a rock and a hard place. Due to Jack's hair-trigger temper, alcoholism and other family dynamics, he winds up taking a job as the winter caretaker of a remote hotel in the Colorado mountains. Mr. King does a fine job of setting up the situation as very plausible. Being cut off from the rest of civilization due to snow for six or seven months in a empty hotel would've been a nonstarter for my wife, two sons and me. Heck, dumpster diving seems like a more appealing career move than hauling your family up into such a place. Add to it that the Overlook's haunted and you can bet your sweet bippy this chicken would've hightailed it to civilization at the first sign of something weird. The three main characters are given ample time in the story to be fleshed out and for the reader to understand their fears, hopes and motivations. You'll find yourself rooting for the family and hoping they get out of this mess. Even the father, Jack Torrance, with his awful faults is a sympathetic character.

What makes "The Shining" an exceptionally good, terrifying story is never knowing what or when something will go bump in the night. I've read about thirty of Mr. King's works and this baby is still one of my favorites.

(Meyers - A few years ago, I started writing, under the pseudonym Franklin the Mouse, short reviews at Amazon's web site. This is my most recent review #348)