Biography Books

A gripping book from the first page. I couldn't put Black Wave down! I so appreciate the realness and transparency Silverwood's shared in the retelling of their adventure. Thanks so much!

I would not take four children to sea in a catamaran. I would not climb Mt. Everest or marry a man with 17 wives. That's why I read adventure stories. I liked this book for the extreme drama of a wreck at sea, the gut-wrenching spectacle of a mother coming to terms with the fact that she has jeopardized her children, and because it is an examination of a marriage and family bonds within a highly compressed arena. As we know from Tolkien, the group must leave home on a quest, be exposed to danger, and come out the other side all grown up. This book satisfies those requirements with beautiful descriptions of ocean nights and exotic ports to boot.

Couldn't put this one down. It is written from two points of view, that bring the reader to the same conclusion. As a sailor, I find the narrative extremely interesting, and well written from an experienced wind sailor's perspective. Not to give away the later part of the story, I found it chilling, and poignant. The government employees involved deserve kudos from the sailing community as a whole for the timely and courageous responses. This fine story gives an excellent insight into those of us who voyage in our own boats, or live aboard boats as our life style. I thoroughly recommend Black Wave to sailors and non-sailors alike.

I can't believe all the great reviews on this...maybe these people read the book and it is different from the experience of listening to the CD. Jean and John not only put their own lives at risk but risked the lives of their three children (who had very little choice in the matter) to boot! I felt bad that the teenage son was unable to be with his friends at home in CA and instead was dragged around the world...exposed to violent seas and dangerous PIRATES all because his mom and dad apparently were bored with their lives (and marriage it seems) and needed to put some "zest" in it. I am sure they will make a movie out of it...but I will pass on it!

John and Jean Silverwood decide to put their busy daily lives aside and take their four children on a round the world adventure at sea. The Silverwoods feel as though the fast pace of life in San Diego has pulled the family in too many directions. They purchase the Emerald Jane and set of on an once-in-a-lifetime adventure with Ben (14), Amelia (12), Jack (7), and Camille (3). Using the sea and new ports as a school and hoping to satiate John's seemingly endless need for adrenalin, the Silverwoods also have to manage worries about pirates, unfriendly ports, balky generators and whatever the sea throws at them. The close quarters of the catamaran make clashes inevitable as Ben, missing his friends and diversions in California becomes sullen, Jean worries and John slips into old habits and the dream voyage threatens to become a battle of wills. However, the beauty of the sea, the sea life, new ports, discovering new friends and discovering new strengths within themselves, the Silverwoods keep on their journey until the unthinkable happens. The Emerald Jane hits a reef and the family`s survival depends on the lessons learned at sea.



This is an engrossing book that kept me hooked right till the end of the first portion. The portion about the Julia Ann and her crew and fate, not as interesting. I also had bit of a hard time with Jean's excusing John's behaviors (selfishness?) and putting herself down in comparison. That said, this is as much a tale of a family's growth as a tale of a journey

Mistaken identity was a story of two women, one killed tragically and one hurt and comatose. I read this book in two days. I couldn't put it down. I think at first it is a story about how trauma can put you in denial and question what is right in front of you, but then once acceptance is obtained, it shows how strength is drawn from faith and friends and love of family. These were two amazing families. I honestly cannot imagine the trauma that they both went through. An amazing story and an easy read. It makes you appreciate every moment of life.

I bought this book months ago, but kept putting it off for some reason. Yesterday I decided to pick it up and read. I had watched an interview months before with the two families explaining the situation and I wanted to know more. I was amazed by the reactions and the support given to both families during their time of need. I could barely put the book down and actually finished it in less than a day, which is more than I can say for other books. I think you don't even have to be religious to understand whats going on in the book because you go through this process with the families. It was amazing to read how both families pushed through and put on a positive face. Its also sad to have to read about one family finding out that the girl they thought was there own was actually someone else's. I especially felt sad when Aryn, who was going to propose to Laura after graduation, wrote his last blog. He seemed to be the most broken out of everyone in the family because he wanted to have a future with Laura. Its extremely brave of both families to handle the situation in a great way. They didn't feel a need to sue the man who was driving the truck that caused the accident, but instead would have just liked to know what really happened. This book was truly inspiring.

Everyone saw the news splashed across the headlines or on the evening news reports. The wrong family was sitting beside a recovering girl in the hospital. How could it have happened? Read MISTAKEN IDENTITY to get the inside account from the two families that were involved in the unbelievable story.

The story seems straight out of the movies, almost too hard to fathom. But the Van Ryn and Cerak families, aided by Mark Tabb, tell the story of how Whitney and Laura were misidentified and two families dealt with both joy and sorrow with the help of their unerring faith in God.

Laura and Whitney were both students at Taylor University, a Christian college in Indiana. There were both in a school van on their way back to campus from a banquet with a few other people. A tractor trailer crossed the median and hit the side of the van, plowing it onto the side of the road. "Laura" was thrown 50-feet from the van. When rescue workers found her, a purse and ID nearby said that it was Laura Van Ryn. The photo on the ID looked enough like her. Thus began a five-week trial for both families.

The Cerak family received a call that Whitney had died in the accident. An employee from the university had identified her for the family. Colleen couldn't bring herself to look at the empty shell of what was left of Whitney, knowing in her heart that the true spirit of Whitney was now standing before God. Had Colleen gone and identified the body, would the error have been caught on the first night? No one knows.

The entire story is a bunch of "what ifs" by both families. Little things during "Laura's" recovery made family and friends question and wonder when "Laura" would return to her full self. But with the doctors and therapists constantly telling the Van Ryns that the neurons are firing but not necessarily connecting properly yet, no one gave it a serious second thought.

Only after "Laura" starts to come out of her coma and respond to therapy do the questions truly get raised. When a therapist asks "Laura" to write her name -- out came "W-H-I-T-N-E-Y." In the next few days, the pieces all come together, and a forensic dentist verifies the worst news for the Van Ryn family: this is not Laura after all.

What should be a story of loss for the Van Ryn family is a story of unerring faith. They are truly grateful for the time they spent with Whitney in the hospital. They are happy for the Ceraks' miracle and do not blame God.

The Cerak family went through grief but knew that Whitney had lived in God's love and was in a better place. They had sorrow, but knew that they would all see Whitney sometime in the future. When the call came that she may still be alive, Carly, Whitney's sister, would not believe it. Not until she saw with her own eyes did she believe the miracle that Whitney was still alive.

The story is so uplifting in the true belief both families have in God, that even in the time of sorrow they both experienced, the reader never once felt truly sad. The Van Ryn and Cerak families are both truly exceptional families. They are unwavering in their faith and love in God. They are both wonderful examples of a life lived to the fullest.

Reviewed by: Jaglvr

I enjoyed reading this book. I am not one for reading books, and I couldn't put this book down, a couple parts of this story actually had chills. The two familes are so strong and inspirational. This is a very religious book though.

Immediately after finishing this book, I recommended it to my mother & sister. Both said they couldn't stop the tears whilst reading the book. Especially my mother, who lost a brother in a similar car accident 20 years ago - who knew all too well the pain that the victims' families were going through. She said there were several times when she was forced to put down the book because she was crying so much.

Despite the sadness of the events, I am amazed and impressed by the reactions of the families and Whitney herself. They deal with the tragedies with faith, and even humour. This book is most definitely worth a read - I've lent it to several people so far, and about to purchase extra copies as gifts for friends. I normally don't spend much money on books but this is definitely worth every dollar. I don't even begrudge the exorbitant sum I have to pay for international shipping.

To non-Christian readers who say they felt alienated by the heavy Christian themes, I encourage them to read anyway. If you're interested in reading this book to understand how they coped with the tragedy, those parts of the books aren't just a Sunday sermon - they are part of the families' healing process.

The only minor negative comment I have with this book is the style in which it is written. At times, it's overly emotive. The author's repeated use of "NOOOOOOOOO!" gets a bit tiring at times and suggests poor writing skills. The author could have done a better job of conveying emotions. But this is such a minor element of the book. The rest of the book is very easy to read and I still enthusiastically recommend this book.

Everyone that is interested in politics should read this book. It is truely amazing. I traveled to Mongolia this summer and the Mongolians truely lookup to Chengis Khan and for good reason.

I couldn't put this book down. If you're interested in the Mongols, or Khan himself, or history, or just want a great read, this would be the book to buy. It will make all other history books read like dry text books.

Im not going to rehash the story because others here have done it thoroughly. The book was easy to read and seems to fly in the face of the usual opinion of Genghis Kahn as a blood thirsty rapist mongrel. Apparently new original documents surfaced after the fall of the Soviet Union and scholars got together to pin down the real story.

I too wondered about the missing reference to geneticist's discovery about his Y chromosome, which appears to show that he might just have been the most prolific lover in the last couple of millennia! But not having those facts on hand, like where did they get his dna from anyway since his grave has never been discovered.

Also missing is Coleridge's poem
In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure-dome decree:
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea.

It was interesting to realize that the wives actually administered the kingdoms because the Kahns were off making war. Genghis seemed to have loved his wife a great deal according the the documents plus he did battle for her after she was kidnapped. When she returned pregnant he raised the son as his very own. He seemed to turn out to be his best son. The author is kind of sappy. He is always comparing Genghis to the roman catholic church which slaughtered countless people at the same time Genghis was roaming around.

This is a superb history of Genghis Kahn and the Mongol Hords, without the European and Islamic biases that go with it. The Mongol conquerers and rulers come across as more competent and, dare I say it, more tolerant than the people they conquered, albeit part of the same milieu of conquering, taking spoils of war, and enslaving as most people of their day. As rulers they actually understood economics and commerce better than most and brought prosperity and stability the the worlds they ruled.

This is a well written, nicely flowing work. The author, Jack Weatherford, traces the life and time of Genghis Khan, born as Temujin, and his descendants. He notes the impact of the plague on the Mongols and how that plague spread, to some extent by the Mongols. And he makes the claim that the Mongols had an appreciable impact on the West's Renaissance.

Weatherford begins by noting the purpose of his book (Page xxxv): "The focus remains on the mission of our work: to understand Genghis Khan and his impact on world history." The book is in three parts: first, Genghis Khan's rise to power and the development of the Mongol Empire; second, the period when the Mongols became a major world player, until the empire began devouring itself with internecine warfare; third, the effect of the Mongols on the development of modern society. There is a useful genealogy at the start of the book; however, the book would have benefited greatly with an ample supply of maps, so that the reader could trace developments geographically.

The book does a terrific job of describing Khan's background--from his youth until he began developing a powerhouse, to his death. His military forces used innovative tactics that baffled his opponents, adapting Mongol warriors' mobility to advantage. The Mongols expanded their sway until--at its greatest point, it was larger than the Roman Empire at its height. It stretched, in 1260, from China to Moscow and Kiev, and to the doorsteps of Vienna, from Baghdad to Samarkand.

Weatherford goes on to discuss the Empire after Genghis Khan's death. It continued to function until the combat among his sons led to more and more internal troubles. This depiction of internal problems, again, is well done.

It amazes me how detailed is the discussion of people and events from so long ago.

However, when he comes to argue that the Mongol Empire sparked the Renaissance and later European history, It appears to me that his grasp exceeds his reach. I am not certain that quoting Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales" with references to Genghis Khan (as part of his argument) is compelling. Nonetheless, while I did not find his case so convincing, it did cause me to reflect on important historical issues, and that--in itself--is a contribution.

In short, a well done book on the Mongol Empire and its founder. Worth taking a look at. . . .

I think this is a great book. No wonder it has been adopted by so many high schools. The way Ms.Grealy wrote the book it seems as if you want to be going through the same thing she does. It makes me just want to comfort her because of all the pain and sadness she went through.I think this one of the best books ever written.

I liked this book very much, it was hard to read about Lucy. I knew her when she was a beautiful little girl. She would come into the Spring Valley Library with her twin sister. One day I told her she had ink marks on her face and she told me that was for the radiation. She went to school with my kids but they never said anything unkind about her, and years later I saw her on the street, terribly
deformed on her face. It is a very sad end for a very brave girl who didnt deserve the hand she was dealt. Read the book and rejoice in your better luck.

We lost Lucy Grealy too soon. By we, I mean the world of art. She was truly a gifted writer. Her writing slides across the page as if the words are riding sentence surfboards atop waves of emotion. Yeah, I'm pretty corny when it comes to metaphor, but as Lucy might say, "This girl isn't." I wish I could describe how well written this book is, but I've already demonstrated my inability to do it justice. If you haven't read it, you owe it to yourself to meet this incredible little dynamo and see inside someone who held her head and her spirit high enough to challenge us to climb up with her.

This book is inspirational and eye-opening. I experienced a different standpoint of truth and beauty. I enjoyed the mechanics and vocabulary in the book. I found the amazing chapter structure easy to use. "Autobiography of a Face" is intelligent and heartfelt . Lucy Grealy surprised me, after reading the afterword by Ann Patchett, when she stated that she was 'making art not a documentary'. I would've look forward to reading Autobiography of a Face: The "Real" Story although I know it would not be written.

Grealy was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma at the age of nine. From then on, her life was divided into two parts before and after cancer. After the surgery to remove half her jaw, Grealy spent over two years enduring weekly chemotherapy treatments. When she was finally declared 'healthy', Grealy returned to the sixth grade -- only to be met with scorn and cruelty from her classmates.

Her story is written clearly and concisely. She is unerringly honest about how her disease affected her family, her developing personality, and those around her. As we follow her through years of skin and bone grafts, we witness her need or acceptance from others and her gradual acceptance of herself.

I was particularly struck by Grealy's need to be 'strong.' She is constantly reminded not to cry and to never show fear. This begins Grealy's quest to be the model patient. I am amazed that this small child was able to internalize and minimize her emotions, suffering, and considerable pain. To me, she seemed like an adult soul in a child's body.

I recommend Autobiography of a Face -- it is a moving and meaningful read.

I thought this book was the best book on Vietnam that I have ever read. Its a facinating look into life as a line officer in a front line Marine Infantry batallion during the early part of the war. Caputo holds nothing back when it comes to describing life on the front line and what goes through the minds of these young, too young Marines who fought on the front line. An excellent read and I highly reccomend it.

Its a page turner from start to finish. A very unique view of the war.

I assigned this book to my college students for a closer glimpse of the Vietnam Conflict. I had not read it before, but had done research and study on the subject. I found Caputo's book to be insightful, controversial and thought provoking. He doesn't glamorize the war but explains how it effected soldiers and one of the many reasons it was such a mess. Throughout the book, Caputo shows how the conditions changed the average American teenager into a robotic killer and how their experiences stayed with them. In the end, he speaks against the war, but not in the normal Jane Fonda version of bashing the military and labeling them rapists and baby killer. Caputo talks about how the government was at fault and created the situations that lead to PTSD and other issues for returning soldiers.

A must read to understand the war and its effects on our soldiers.

In keeping with the theme of this Memorial Day weekend, I would like to offer my thoughts on "A Rumor of War," a classic tale of Vietnam. Philip Caputo has crafted one of the most moving and disturbing testaments to the men who fought and died in that far away land. When the book was first published in 1977, the New York Times called it "The troubled conscience of America speaking passionately, truthfully, finally." I became aware of this classic memoir when my friend, Capt. Kyle Kalkwarf, West Point Class of 2002, told me that it was one of the best books about war he had ever read. He recommended that I add it to my reading list. He was right in doing so.

Caputo's recollections of his time as a Marine in Vietnam are filled with anger and sorrow at the misbegotten policies promulgated in Washington and carried out with disastrous results by General Westmorland and his subordinates. The author makes it clear in his introductory remarks how he felt and feels about that war and the impact that it had upon him and his comrades in arms:

"Beyond adding a few more corpses to the weekly body count, none of these encounters achieved anything; none will ever appear in military histories or be studied by cadets at West Point. Still, they changed us and taught us, the men who fought in them; in those obscure skirmishes we learned the old lessons about fear, cowardice, courage, suffering, cruelty and comradeship. Most of all, we learned about death at an age when it is common to think of oneself as immortal. Everyone loses that illusion eventually, but in civilian life it is lost in installments over the years. We lost it all at once, and in the span of months, passed from boyhood through manhood to a premature middle age. The knowledge of death, of the implacable limits placed on a man's existence, severed us from our youth as irrevocably as a surgeon's scissors had once severed us from the womb. And yet, few of us were past twenty-five. We left Vietnam peculiar creatures, with young shoulders that bore rather old heads. . .

This book is partly an attempt to capture something of its [the war's] ambivalent realities. Anyone who fought in Vietnam, if he is honest about himself, will have to admit he enjoyed the compelling attractiveness of combat. It was a peculiar enjoyment because it was mixed with a commensurate pain. Under fire, a man's powers of life heightened in proportion to the proximity of death, so that he felt an elation as extreme as his dread. His senses quickened, and he attained an acuity of consciousness at once pleasurable and excruciating. It was something like the elevated state of awareness induced by drugs. And it could be just as addictive, for it made whatever else life offered in the way of delights or torments see pedestrian." (Pages xv-xvii)

Caputo's last comments in the section just quoted seem to be eerily in keeping with the themes of the stunning films, "The Deer Hunter" and "Apocalypse Now."

In one of the most gripping passages in the book, Caputo recaptures the spectrum of emotions he felt during a helicopter assault - running the gamut from fear to courage:

"A helicopter assault on a hot landing zone creates emotional pressures far more intense than a conventional ground assault. It is the enclosed space, the noise, the speed, and, above all, the sense of total helplessness. There is a certain excitement to it the first time, but after that it is one of the more unpleasant experiences offered by modern war. On the ground, an infantryman has some control over his destiny, or at least the illusion of it. In a helicopter under fire, he hasn't even the illusion. Confronted by the indifferent forces of gravity, ballistics and machinery, he is himself pulled in several directions at once by a range of extreme, conflicting emotions. Claustrophobia plagues him in the small space: the sense of being trapped and powerless in a machine in unbearable, and yet he has to bear it. Bearing it, he begins to feel a blind fury toward the forces that made him powerless, but has to control his fury until he is out of the helicopter and on the ground again. He yearns to be on the ground, but the desire is countered by the danger he knows is there. Yet, he is also attracted by the danger, for he knows he can only overcome his fear by facing it. His blind rage then begins to focus on the men who are the source of the danger - and of his fear. It concentrates inside him, and through some chemistry is transformed into a fierce resolve to fight until the danger ceases to exist. But this resolve, which is sometimes called courage, cannot be separated from the fear that has aroused it. Its very measure is the measure of that fear. It is, in fact, a powerful urge not to be afraid anymore, to rid himself of fear by eliminating the source of it. This inner, emotional war produces tension almost sexual in its intensity. It is too painful to endure for long. All a soldier can think about is the moment when he can escape his impotent confinement and release this tension. All other considerations, the rights and wrongs of what he is doing, the chances for victory or defeat in the battle, the battle's purpose or lack of it, become so absurd as to be less than irrelevant. Nothing matters except the final, critical instant when he leaps out into the violent catharsis he both seeks and dreads." (Pages 277-8)

Caputo's thoughtful and passionate recounting of the growing up that he did in the cauldron of Vietnam added to my understanding of what many of my generation experienced as they fought in Southeast Asia and returned to a country that had grown sick of the fighting. As our nation once again wrestles with combat fatigue and the questions of when to withdraw and how to withdraw from Iraq, I am grateful that this time around - unlike the situation that existed in the late `60's and 70's - even those who oppose the war have not showered those returning from the Gulf with opprobrium. They desire our admiration and our gratitude.

Thanks Kyle, for recommending this book, and for your continuing service to our nation.

Al

Caputo wasn't much of a marine. He started complaining about Vietnam before he arrived. Every page is filled with criticism, cynicism, griping, complaining, and self-serving tripe. He wanted to be a hero, but he didn't have what it took to be anything but a whining wimp. Certainly he writes well. But writing well and living well are entirely different. He doesn't understand honor or duty. Sure the war was politicized, but so is every war. Sure the rules of engagement were stupid, but a soldier serves. Caputo did not serve; rather he whined. Many of us who served in Vietnam believed there were many things that made no sense. But we didn't turn tail and run. We served. For those who want to understand what is was like to be a soldier in Vietnam, read "We Were Soldiers Once... and Young" or "Steel My Soldiers' Hearts". If you want to know what is was like to be useless in Vietnam, read this book.

In an e-mail exchange, a ministry colleague asked, "I have never read Anne Lamott. Do you recommend her?" I responded:

Knowing your heart for broken people and for Jesus, I can recommend "Traveling Mercies" to you without qualification. I have only about 16 feet of easily reachable bookshelf, including my favorite reference books, yet this is one book that I keep avoiding moving to attic storage.

Lamott is blunt about what she has gone through, how she has felt (especially about those of us who make a career of being nice), and her determination to keep Jesus out of her life at all costs. She is a product of multiple dysfunctions, and you can see why she'd have a hard time learning to love herself or to admit that perhaps God could love her. But I love the sentences by which she let Jesus come in; I have never otherwise heard such a simple prayer of conversion, nor one that is so true at the heart level.

My daughter-in-law said that if I enjoyed Lamott, I'd also enjoy Kathleen Norris (The Cloister Walk). I did, but Norris is more cerebral. Lamott is at once pithy, practical, shocking, and profound. "Traveling Mercies" has confirmed in me, probably more than any other source has, an understanding of how varied, unexpected, and original God's work is in any one individual's life.

Anne Lamott recounts the stories of her growing faith from disbelief to belief in a God who crouches down and waits patiently for her to open the door and welcome Him in. Anne recounts a harsh life of challenges with addiction, love, family, and herself. She shares her simple yet profound spiritual conversion careful to incorporate the people who have had some of the greatest impact in her life.
We catch glimpses of her faith story through the people she shares relationships with: her childhood friend, a Jesuit, the people (especially the older women) of her church community, and her son. We see in her life the mundane, the struggles, a person who can be gritty in one breath and sweet in the next. Anne Lamott tells her journey of faith, in a way that is not for the faint of heart. (or the straight and narrow) She packs this memoir with everything that life is made of and allows one to enter into her story and glimpse the God who unwearyingly waits.

This book is written differently than just your average book. It's a compilation of several life lessons all molded into one story. The short stories are really interesting and her humor gives it a fun kick. She tells her stories in such detail it feels as though you're experiencing it with her. The stories are so diverse that I guarentee someone finds some story in there that they relate to. No matter what your religion is, this book is a really powerful read. Prayer helps the author out in numerous ways that will prove to the readers that there is power in prayer. This book is touching and it really makes you think about life.

Brutally honest, endearingly quirky, funny as the dickens, and turning on dimes to catch a reader's heart by surprise. This little volume is a treasure. From discussion of her formative years and early losses, through alcoholism and on into single parenting, Lamott holds nothing back. Her prayers, her curses, her neuroses, her blessings, are all laid out for inspection. Through it, despite her admitted self-absorption and bottomless fears, wisdom born of close attention and contemplation leaps off the page. More than once the reflected brightness lit up parts of my own life and character and motives that suddenly seemed to have lain too long in the dark. Breezy and deep are not two words I would commonly apply to the same essay. Here they fit.

Anne Lamott writes with tremendous vulnerability and sincerity. She opens her veins for us and spills the contents of her life onto the page--the good, the bad, and the very very ugly. Her words are raw and evocative.

I must say that while this book resonates with many people, including myself, who have been hurt by life, disillusioned by the church, and a bit angry at things, I did not come away feeling closer to any tangible answers. I didn't think her crass and vulgar language added much to her message. It was kindof distracting, and I felt like taking a shower after wading through it.

My generation is craving something more--something deeper. We want real answers for real problems. While I continue to read Lamott, I would not say this is her best work.

Shameless plug--check out my new book Sex, Sushi, and Salvation: Thoughts on Intimacy, Community, and Eternity

I am very hopefully awaiting the arrival of the book. I have a daughter in law who is severely bi-polar and am still hopeful we can find some kind of help for her. Her family, for the most part, has tried to isnore and deny that she has a severe problem. Having said that, we found out they put her in the state mental hospital when she was eleven. Her Mother ignores the name calling and says she is just mad at something. Her brother simply tries to avoid her at all costs. The poor girl cannot be left alone with her children; much too dangerous. Unfortunately, ALL mental health facilities in the state they are in were shut down in 2001/2002. The patients were given a years Rx for what ever drug they were on and sent on their way. She has gone down hill dramatically and her episodes have escalated into screaming violence from which her children must be protected. She has had episodes where she broke vertibra in her husbands back; where she threw a coke can and cut his face...too many horrible things to mention. Still,
he feels that God means for him to take care of her, since there is no alternative. He cannot leave her to go to work, he cannot trust her to be there when the children get off the bus. She has been on Geodon (sp?) with disasterous results. She now takes some kind of drugs that make her slur her words, close her eyes and then scream about nonsense. I am hopeful this book will shed some light on the horrible disease for the family.

When I originially ordered this novel I thought it was a work of fiction; that is, until I saw the word memoir on the cover. Since I'm so used to reading fiction, I had to continually remind myself that the people and the events in this story are real.

I learned much about psychosis reading this. I was under the impression that most people who are afflicted with a severe mental illness never showed any signs of recovery and were confined to a rubber room for life. But characters in the novel are constantly checked into and out of the psych ward, many returning for a second or third time. It seems that although many never reach the point where their psychosis is gone forever, they do reach lengthy periods of sanity and are allowed back into the world.

The back of the book describes the landlord as an unforgettable character, but I'd have to disagree. He's mentioned maybe three times in all. The most unforgettable character in the book is clearly the author's brother Steve. Steve is a very quiet and polite (although still extremely disturbed) fellow for decades, and suddenly becomes a foul-mouthed and vocally angry soul. In what I found to be the most amusing part of the story, he makes friends with some dope smoking bums off the street and invites them into his apartment. The author gives "impotent" threats to the fattest of the three friends ordering them to leave Steve alone, and the man (called Junior) simply takes a draught of alcohol in response, saying, "You don't need to worry. Because Junior's watching out for him now." I found myself laughing at the description of the scene, and again, had to remind myself that this event really happened and is not something to be laughed at.

In the middle of this story, I realized that I was born in the same year as the main character Sally. She should be somewhere around age 26 right now. This really puts things in perspective for me. I confess, sometimes I've considered myself so avant-garde that I'd be interested in dating someone with severe psychosis like Sally, but then again, I wouldn't want her to scratch my face up before she goes out into the street attempting to stop cars by dashing in front of them. That would be a lot to handle. She seems so sweet when her psychosis is in remission though. It's a shame, especially since I do kind of agree with her that we're all born geniuses and gradually lose our sense of genius as we get older. When I think about folks like J.M. Barrie, Walt Disney, Lewis Carroll, and Jesus, I'm convinced that young childern have some kind of magic inside their brains that most adults do not. If it wasn't for her overly-violent zeal for her genius of newborns idea, Sally probably wouldn't have ended up in a ward.

Even in her present state, I think Sally still has the potential to become a great artist or writer. Hopefully Mr. Greenberg can make enough money off this novel to give Sally the chance to publish her own ideas and promote her genius of children idea in a more suitable manner than she has done in the past. I wish her luck. And I wish that Steve fellow luck too, but I don't see him as the writing type.

This is an excellent memoir--written by the father of a 15-year old daughter about her descent into psychosis through bipolar disorder, and the impact on their extended, blended family. It is a very real look at mental illness, one that is not weepy or falsely brave--one of the best of the genre.

Michael Greenberg is a literary columnist whose community is one of writers and artists in New York's Greenwich Village. The setting may seem atypical to some readers, but the family's experiences are not. The book's strength is in the ordinary--the search for a "center of balance" that can be called recovery.

One summer, Sally, the daughter, is "struck mad" and hospitalized for several weeks. Upon discharge, she sets a goal of starting school in the fall, which she fulfills. But at no point is the achievement pre-ordained. Greenberg succeeds in conveying the step-by-step uncertainty that marked her treatment and recovery--a process that will recur throughout her life.

Coming together to support Sally are her grandmother, mother, step-mother, brother and of course, her father. Her illness becomes a prism through which their relationships are examined, exposing strengths, tensions, and fears.

Greenberg's description of life on a psychiatric ward is exceptional: marked by critical insight and occasionally dark humor. Families visiting loved ones on the ward are like passengers in train compartments, traveling the same route, but getting off at different destinations, and rarely exchanging addresses.

When Sally leaves the psych ward, the nurses tell her: "You made it, girl" and "We don't to see you here again a girl"--an encouragement that also signals stigma for those who may be left behind. Her brother is more explicit: drawing a line of distinction between her and "those people" and warning against the risk of becoming an "eternal mental patient." He argues for keeping her experience a secret.

Sally herself wonders what to say when she returns to school and people ask her what she did for the summer. The vulnerability of "getting out" and "getting better," is nicely described. It is a process that requires a higher level of self-awareness and self scrutiny and in some respects, self-definition. Places from "before" are "like visiting myself in a museum." Ultimately there is "the lunch counter test," in which she can sit in a public place, without worrying that people will "detect" her mental illness.

Sally goes back to school. In the epilogue, we learn that she graduated with honors from high school, but withdrew from college after a relapse. She later married, but separated after her third major relapse. She then works as a baker in Vermont.

"She is wry about herself and courageous even during her periods of retreat and loss," Greenberg writes. "She is determined to learn to anticipate her worst bouts of psychosis and head them off before they overwhelm her." When Sally learned that father was writing a book about her, she also told him: "I want you to use my real name." Overall, the book strikes a significant blow against the stigma that traditionally has surrounded mental illness.

I have not finished this book yet, but felt I would write the review anyway. I highly recommend this book, especially for those who want a glimpse at mental illness.

The writer's style flows and is easy to read and yet conveys complicated mental health and family issues in a way that I feel as though I know them.

It is a captivating read. I can't wait to have more time so that I can finish it and see what becomes of his daughter and family.

The author tells the story of his daughter's first psychotic episode in the summer of 1996. Throughout, he intertwines it with other stories such as that of his relatively new marriage, the leftovers of his divorce, his interactions with his brother, who is also mentally ill, his landlord, and other people he meets in the hospital, as well as with historical and literary reflections on madness (he spends a fair amount of time discussing James Joyce's daughter). The result is an effective and moving mosaic that describes not only his summer but also something about the human condition.

The writing is particularly excellent, neither shying away from emotional topics nor particularly overwrought. There is no "moral"--stories are dropped (we never find out the longer-term fate of the brother, for example) or left open-ended. When the author doesn't know how to evaluate something, he leaves it open ended. The decision of the author and his wife to have a child toward the end of the story thus seems neither triumphant nor foolhardy--just an event. If the story is at all optimistic, it is in the sense it leaves with us that crises are weathered as best they can be and that human life goes on, independently of our inability to predict the future.

I loved this. If you liked any of the usual books people read about the onset of severe mental illness (Darkness Visible, The Bell Jar, etc.) you should enjoy this as well.

No review is going to do justice to this incredible book by Elyn Saks, an academic dean, tenured law school and medical school professor, psychoanalysis student, and, not incidentally, a raving (at times of stress or change) schizophrenic. For readers who assume schizophrenics live out their lives, if we can really call their bare existences lives, shackled literally by physical restraints or zombie-d by antipsychotic drugs, always perched to incite violence against themselves or others, or slinking along building walls muttering about being god and killing people with their thoughts, this is a must-read book unlike any other in the field.

More amazing than the author's current positions in the academic and psychiatric world, the author has had "florid" schizophrenia starting when she was about 8 years old, although it didn't fully appear until she was studying at Oxford U. on a Marshall scholarship. She got her BA at Vanderbilt, graduating valedictorian, and after Oxford, got her law degree at Yale. This is no mediocre woman! Her vivid and precise descriptions of her hallucinations and psychotic breaks are like nothing I have ever read before. Her incredible ability to cover up "the voices" and disorganized thoughts to enable her to progress through life more successfully than most "normal" people, is unmatched, although change and stress will still make her rave like a maniac. It takes Ms. Saks almost 20 years of failures and forced hospital commitments to finally realize she needs to take medication for her entire life. But, unlike most people with schizophrenia one is likely to meet or read about, she was helped tremendously by psychoanalysis and talk therapy, treatments that have long been thought useless with such patients.

I have never before encountered such a book nor such a person as Elyn Saks. She leads an amazing and courageous life and has published numerous academic treatises about the forced institutionalization, restraint, and medication of the mentally ill. I know there is a lot more to come from this astonishing mind.

Reviewed by Deb Gross
on 07/13/2008

Elyn Saks attended Oxford University as a Marshall Scholar, graduated Yale Law School, and is now a chaired professor of law at the University of Southern California. Saks also suffers from schizophrenia. THE CENTER CANNOT HOLD is a deeply moving story of Saks's struggle to live a full life while dealing with the trials of a chronic mental illness.

Saks employs evocative prose throughout her memoir to bring the reader into her state of mind when the disease breaks through her defenses. Her description of the onset of her symptoms at the age of eight resonates: "I think I am dissolving. I feel - my mind feels - like a sand castle with all the sand sliding away in the receding surf."

A recurring theme in THE CENTER CANNOT HOLD is the author's love-hate relationship with the medication that keeps her functional but leaves her less than her "authentic self". She also does an outstanding job of laying out the prejudices those with mental illness face, particularly when seeking treatment for physical ailments.

THE CENTER CAN NOT HOLD is an inspiring story of a woman who fought the demons of her mind and the prejudices of society to achieve great personal and professional success.

4.5 Books

Schizophrenia will impair the mind to where a person cannot process information clearly. Elyn has pretigous degrees from prominent universities. I think she has done this through her cultural backgound while finding therapists that built a rapport to where she can seperate a world of hallucination and delusion to root into a life of success based on reality. Her memoirs where detailed enough to keep the reader in constant struggle for her sanity. She actully demonstates real auditory halluciantion and how they are countered. She does share with the reader the onset and how this can happen to anyone. I think it is the best book about closet material that most people never realized about recovery and potential for someone living with Schizophrenia.

"The Center Cannot Hold" by Elyn Saks, is well written by a brilliant woman, herself a mental health comsumer. As a bonus, it is easy to read. I highly recommend it.
My son has Schizophrenia and this book helped me to understand a lot of what he experiences but cannot or will not express to others. I immediately passed the book on to other parents whose child has this illness, to expend their understanding of what he lives with.
No, our loved persons with mental illness are not lazy, nor to they deliberately ignore us nor our requests of them. They are heroes for getting through the day. Their every day struggle with Schizophrenia is unbelievable. The side effects of meds often make waking up a major accomplishment.
The author shares in detail her experiences. She tells of the alternate approach to treatment she experienced in Great Britain, having been offered choices, to medicate or not, to be hospitalized or not. Throughout her life, she has engaged in ongoing psycho therapy.
In this country treatments are forced on the person which in many cases, diminishing his/her personhood, even it we think it is for his own good. She talks us through choices, meds or not, therapy or not.
Elyn Saks is the exception,

We often associate mental disorders with people who cannot function in life. Getting this insight from a person who is not only very intelligent but able to live a productive life provides the reader with a new outlook and understanding of this disruptive disorder. In addition it is well written and keeps your attention from beginning to end.

Augusten Burroughs never ceases to amaze. This is by far my favorite book of his. The writing is terrific, the story is captivating. I couldn't put it down. The characters are so real, and even if alcohol isn't you thing, you can identify something in your life that has taken over and relate.

One of my favorite lines comes from a passage where he is describing an ex boyfriend of his. He says,

"He's like this incredibly beautiful Van Gogh painting with slashes all through it. True, it's a Van Gogh. But look at those slashes."

That line made me identify with someone in my own life and helped me realize that sometimes we have to let people go because no matter how much we love them, we cannot make them whole. It actually helped me set aside someone I had been unable to leave behind.

This book is a terrific read. Go out and pick it up. Don't get it from the library- bo buy it. You'll end up buying it anyway.

I read Running with Scissors and found it shocking, almost embarrassing and worried that people would be reading over my shoulder on the metro. But it was great and left me feeling shocked that someone could be raised that way and still turn out relatively normal. Dry was extremely witty, scary, sad, exciting, anger provoking, thought provoking, startling, comforting, and truly enjoyable to read. I found myself impatient for my subway ride home and not caring who might be reading over my shoulder. At the end of the read I decided to go purchase the rest of Augusten's memoirs because I just love his brand of humor and wit and sense of irony and sarcasm. He's, umm, dare I say it, addicting.

This book is much better than Running with Scissors, Augusten Burroughs' prequel to this book. Thankfully there weren't any graphic sex scenes but there seemed to be a realness about what he was saying. I enjoyed it.
I'm not saying it was my favorite book ever, but it wasn't bad.

The fact that I finished this book in one day *probably* indicates that I enjoyed it. Indeed, the only novels that I recall where I truly laughed my head off were from chick-lits, trivial as that may sound. But, really, Burroughs has managed to be disarmingly droll while being frightfully honest and self-deprecating. I can't attest if that's from being gay, the result of coming from a dysfunctional family, or perhaps from working in advertising (in New York, no less).

What made this story interesting for me was the way he narrated his excruciating battle with alcoholism, that even someone who doesn't suffer from that ailment can actually empathize with him. Definitely he refrained from being too long-winded about it, avoiding the pitfall of letting his story become boring or monotonous--his cracks about himself, his fellow addicts, down to the closet case that is his boss, openly drew chuckles from me. There was enough balance of falling into bouts of introspection as well as allowing the story to progress via the lively dialogues with the equally captivating secondary characters--the tragedy that is Pighead, the complexity and apparent exceptionality that is Foster, and the oddity namely Greer, among others. A guilty enjoyment for me as well was the encounter with the German advertising client who unwittingly provokes the imagination of Augusten to spout Nazi stereotypes.

Unexpected, though, was the striking insight into repressed emotions and the ability of a person to love another despite seemingly insurmountable flaws. Augusten's relationships perfectly capture what I think is a quintessentially urban tendency of people nowadays to tirelessly compensate for what they think they are missing in life. In a way, this novel shows how cheerless that condition is, and, at the same time, be unafraid of what is, after all, a price for being human.

Augusten's narration of what his childhood was, the blatant abandonment he experienced from his parents, the perversion done to him as a teenager, makes the reader in turns awed and morbidly fascinated with the man that he has become. There were times our protagonist was readily aware of his shortcomings--from keeping up with the AA meetings to juggling his relationships with Pighead and Foster--and if those weren't uncomfortable enough, the reader is also made cognizant of his glaring denials about how he was living his life, pre- and post-rehab.

I highly recommend this novel. Whether one is seeking an understanding of alcoholism, or simply in want of a refreshing, entertaining read--granted it's peeking into the "memoirs" of a self-confessed mess--this story will take you from laughs to sadness, hope to sorrow. (and back again). Without a doubt, this work proves that Burroughs is an Original.

This was a great book. Augusten Burroughs has such a great narrative style and you immediately feel like you know him, as if you're friends. I couldn't put it down and finished it in two days (would have in one if I didn't have to stop for meals and work!). Highly recommended!

Ted Sorensen's 2008 Convention Speech
Tuesday, August 26, 2008 at 03:20 PM

"In my more than 50 years of national conventions, this is one of the most important. Our 8 year national nightmare of mendacity, mediocrity and economic misery--with millions of Americans losing their jobs, their savings, their homes and their hopes--will soon end with the election of Barack Obama.

I have long dreamed that our party would produce another president matching John F. Kennedy's intellect and integrity, his capacity to inspire justice at home and peace around the world--and this week my dream is coming true. Once in a lifetime, said the poet, hope and history meet in one extraordinary man and movement--I thank the good Lord that I've lived long enough to meet and help such men twice in my lifetime, John Kennedy and Barack Obama.

Kennedy at 43 proved that age matters in the White House. His energy, appeal to other young world leaders, calm under pressure and openness to new thinking, well served our nation. Denounced as a candidate for lacking executive experience, he displayed sound judgment in leading a successful nationwide campaign, choosing a top-notch team, negotiating with difficult leaders, and out-organizing and out-th inking his adversaries--just as he would as president, particularly when, with prudence and courage, he induced the Soviets to withdraw their nuclear missiles from Cuba without the U.S. firing a shot; and the world gave thanks that the more experienced Richard Nixon had lost that close election.

In 1960, Kennedy, like Obama today, facing a Republican tied to a failed past, looked to a future of new ideas and opportunities. As president, he did not send the Marine Corps to preserve America's oil supplies, he sent the Peace Corps to preserve America's global standing. Confronting a Soviet military advantage in space, he made all Americans proud by literally reaching for the moon.

Today, we need new leadership. We have lost our way, lost the respect of our allies, lost the confidence of our investors and consumers. Are we to be the first generation of Americans to leave to our children a country in worse condition than we received it?

In short: this year, my friends, the fates will try us; erase all trace of fear and bias; we have the man we need at last to embrace the future, not the past, and to dispel eight years of pain and shame. Barack Obama is his name! Call the roll!"

A fascinating look at a fascinating time from a unique perspective, Ted Sorenson. Sorenson's own words & voice inflections are preserved for future generations. Anyone interested in the Kennedy Presidential era should add this to their collection. A must!

Should fairly obscure and relatively little known people write autobiographies? Answers to this question will vary, of course, but if the person's name is Theodore C. Sorensen, my answer would be 'definitely'. Indeed, Sorensen is one of several persons I identified several years ago in a category I labelled "I hope he writes and I can read his life story". [In case anyone is interested, the other two were/are musicians: Frederick Fennell (1914-2004) and Mitch Miller (1911- ).]

Ted Sorensen is one of those figures who essentially went from nowhere to become one of the closest aides to President John F. Kennedy. Readers of this memoir will be most interested in Sorensen's life between 1953 and Novemeber 22, 1963, during which he served as one of JFK's closest advisers ("Special Counsel" was his official title from 1961 to 1963) and his top speech writer.

There are many ideas a reviewer of this book could comment on. I will mention a few that especially interested me.

So, according to Sorensen, the following are accurate:
-- JFK was the person who conceived and was the main writer of his famous "Profiles in Courage" book, though he did receive lots of assistance from Sorensen.
--Kennedy "showed no courage" in avoiding voting on the censure of Senator Joe McCarthy during the 1950s.
--JFK did err (in accepting assurance of success from CIA leaders) in the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, but he recovered, learned from his experience, and was brilliant during the Cuban Missile Crisis, especially in triumphing over his hawkish associates.
--Kennedy took greater initiative in civil rights than any of the presidents before him.
--We really don't know what JFK would have done with respect to US involvement in Vietnam.

Here are a few additional revelations. Sorensen was responsible for the faux pas JFK made in his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech in Berlin. The Kennedys and Lyndon Johnson really did not get along well, and JFK thought LBJ was just about useless as Vice President. There was much friction between Sorensen and JFK associates/advisers Ken O'Donnell and Richard Goodwin.

Regarding the JFK assassination, Sorensen was, along with many of JFK's close associates, too shocked and numbed by his death to give much thought to the question of who did it. But over the decades Sorensen has come around to accepting what most of the American people have believed: more persons than Lee Oswald were involved in this unsolved and unpunished crime.

The epilogue is extremely useful as a concise summary of Sorensen's view of JFK's strengths, weaknesses, triumphs, failures -- both personal and as a public figure. If one does not read all 530 pages of the book, at least read this epilogue.

I believe the book justified my hopes expressed in the first paragraph of this review. The writing is superb, for the most part candid, and full of humor. If the 1950s and and 1960s interest you at all, this is a book to investigate.
Tim Koerner
August 2008

A thoroughly enjoyable read if you are interested in the JFK era. Sorensen loved (in the most genuinely platonic sense) his hero Kennedy. While some of his praise for the assassinated President borders on cloying, the overall book is an excellent read. As a keynote speaker, (I reference the Kennedy brand in a jaundiced manner in Why Ireland Never Invaded America) I have a deep and abiding fascination for great wordsmiths and by any standards President Kennedy's Counselor is a great speech writer.

The author shows us how he and Kennedy wrote some of their great speeches. He is extraordinarily self-effacing in terms of his own contribution to Kennedy's work. This is most obvious when discussing Profiles in Courage where despite all evidence to the contrary, he still maintains Kennedy was the sole author of the book because it was his (Kennedy's) ideas and direction that produced the book. Maybe so, but there is not another person alive today who would not at least claim co-authorship if he or she were to contribute as much as Sorensen did.

He would never claim to be objective about JFK, which I accept, but this lack of serious objectivity stretches to almost anyone bearing a Kennedy name as he provides brief commentary on RFK, Ted and Jackie Kennedy.

As with most Kennedy fans, he suggests his boss would have kept the US out of Vietnam. Who knows? But the facts are that the domino strategy ruled American policy at that time, the people who convinced LBJ to get more involved in Vietnam were not dissimilar to Kennedy's team e.g. Robert McNamara, and North Vietnam would never have settled for anything less than a unified country in order to finish a war it believed was a war of independence.

Proof that opposites attract find evidence in the Kennedy / Sorensen relationship. To put it gently, Sorenson comes across as intense, boring and not particularly popular as he jealously guarded his extremely productive relationship with Kennedy. One could query how Sorensen was so effective given the level of apparent adulation that comes across in the book, but he was. He was hugely effective and a man whom Nixon, LBJ and others wished was on their side to advise them.

Even though he comes across generally as dry, he does have a wicked sense of humor and recounts some very humorous anecdotes about his time in Washington.

I skimmed his early life and was tempted to leave the book once he was finished with JFK. I'm glad I did not. One of the most fascinating chapters relates to his nomination for Director of CIA. The bottom line is that Jimmy Carter had not done his homework before nominating Sorensen. The nasty world of politics halted the nomination because Sorensen was a conscientious objector. This riveting chapter shows the dirtier side of politics and some of the blatant hypocrisy that pervades Washington.

Overall, a top class read. Buy it.

I am an Irish Catholic, born six months prior to JFK's murder; the admiration for JFK as lost leader has been a backround to my life, and is deeply felt in my society. I have been thrilled on the speeches - `A man on the moon this decade' represents, for me, the it audacity, ambition and directness that I associate with the USA -so I am up for the whole Camelot ticket. I admire what Ted Kennedy has done for the Irish Peace process, and am willing to go along with the Obama endorsement. So I bought this book looking for an insight into JFK's character and the philosophy that backed it up. It gave me neither.
What I had previous known about Ted Sorensen was limited, though I knew he played some part in writing the speeches. In fact it turns out that he was JFK's right hand man for most of the 1950's and special counsel to the President during the Kennedy presidency. However I must admit that when I started the book, I skipped straight to the second section which describes the time that Sorensen started to work with Kennedy, guiltily, I later returned to the first section for the sake of completeness. One of things that struck me about the narrative is Sorensen's complete sublimation of his personality to Kennedy his statement that his role in the speeches and in writing Profiles in Courage, were to express Kennedy's own thoughts, because he, Sorensen, had come to know them so well. I found this a bit creepy.
Another source of guilt for me is the fact, mentioned in the Epilogue, that Sorensen is dictating this book ( to Obama's speechwriter, if I'm not mistaken) having had a stroke in 2001, leaving him with blurred vision, unable to read or write clearly. For a man who is so clearly well read, whose profession and interest centre around reading and writing, this must be devastating. Sorensen has shown remarkable fortitude to deal with this cruel blow.
Despite the above, I didn't enjoy the book. I felt that the view of Kennedy was too deferential, only grudgingly admitting that JFK had any faults, acknowledging only those weaknesses which are now public knowledge - womanizing, the pressure on the New York Times to remove their Vietnam correspondent - " I know of no other instance where he made such a request to another newspaper". Sorensen tells how high-minded Kennedy was in pursuit of policy matters, even to the point of political disadvantage. This to me just did not seem realistic, I do think he showed great courage is tackling the Civil Rights issues associated with desegregating the Southern School system - however I also think its realistic to say that he came to this issue quite late. Even Lincoln came late to Emancipation. His handling of the Big of Pigs was hesitant, of the Missile Crisis was deft. So I think its ok to say that he learned on the job.
At the same time as JFK is venerated, almost held in aspic, I felt a curious lack of human detail. What made him such a leader? There are flashes of his winning humour - to overcome rumours that his millionaire father was funding his campaign (which was true) JFK read out, at a press gathering, a (false) telegram from his father saying " don't buy one more vote than necessary, I'm damned if I'll pay for a landslide". But what attracted such a talented team, how did JFK overcome his relative youth, his privileged backround and administrative inexperience to become such a courageous leader? There really isn't much clue in this book, I'm afraid.
Sorensen's own view of the team and his role in it is too rosy also. He seems to be surprised to find out that Ken O'Donnell, another Kennedy advisor ( Played by Kevin Costner in the movie Thirteen Days) disliked Sorensen intensely. Indeed Sorensen seems to have been unaware of personal animosity and tension within the Kennedy team at all. I think this is unbelievable, tensions among ambitious people under pressure is inevitable. It is incredible to me that Sorensen won't acknowledge its existence. He quotes a Boston Globe editorial (from 1977) which describes Sorensen as " never a well-loved man with his icy brilliance and his hard eye for competence". Why not own up to this? His contempt for President Johnson is just beneath the polite surface, he quotes Jackie's comments on the references to LBJ in Sorenesen's biography of Kennedy "You must know - as well or better than I - his [JFK's] steadily diminishing opinion of him[LBJ]...", the book would be better if we got more of this flesh and blood feel of what it was like to live through the interaction of these characters. There is, however, a classic anecdote which summarises Sorensens view of the contrast between JFK and LBJ - JFK's speech's would quote and reference all manner of classical sources, but when LBJ received a draught speech referencing a quote from Socrates, he crossed out the ancients name and replaced it with `my granddaddy', you can almost see Sorensens nose wrinkle.
Sorensen practised law in New York after leaving government service, occasionally being drawn back into the political life, once tragically with Robert Kennedy, once, sourly, as a potential Carter appointee to the CIA. His candidateship ran into rough water in the Senate, and he was very bruised by fellow Demoncrats and abandoned by Carter. His stories about his international law practice left me a bit cold - He helps found the South Africa Feed Election (SAFE) fund to help South Africa get ready for its first election after Nelson Mandela's release. Anthony O'Reilly is the co-chair of SAFE and Sorensen tells of explaining the work of SAFE to Mandela while flying back to New York from O'Reilly's estate in the Bahamas, on O'Reilly's private plane. Anthony O'Reilly is one of Ireland's richest men, formerly CEO of Heinz, he is a media-magnate who has developed significant media businesses in the new South Africa.
He mentions working to develop a pipeline in Panama in 1976, the agreement was worked out between General Torrijos, Panama's leader (unelected) at the time and the company's president Harold Bernstein. Sorensen takes some pride is stating that thirty years later he returned to renegotiate the deal between Torrijo's son, Martin, then President of Panama and Jay Bernstein, president of the company. I think the feel of the elite going about their business makes me quite uncomfortable.
In truth there are many fine attributes to the book, Sorensens loyalty is evident, his eloquence is breathtaking, his advice on speechwriting and the US political process is acute. I think what I disappointed me most is the absence of a clear political philosophy. His loyalty to and admiration of Kennedy are commendable, his loathing of the current administration is palpable. He is very comfortable with a president who knows the limits of the feasible, even for a superpower. But I can't discern an overachieving philosophy that will guide those who wish to follow his hero's footsteps. Conservatives have fashioned a credible philosophy around Liberty - which justifies a belief in small government, looser regulation, lower taxation, it is also (at a stretch) used to justify the Iraq invasion. It is most exposed on issues of personal morality. Progressives (or Liberals or whatever) don't seem to me to have a comprehensive set of beliefs - presumably it could be fashioned around Equality - though US policy in regard to Healthcare, Infrastructure and International Co-operation definitely needs some work. I don't get that some this book.