Biography Books

This book was suggested as recommended reading in Daniel Pink's book "Whole new mind". I found it so inspiring that I had to purchase 3 copies; one for myself and two for friends. It gives perspective to life and why we are here.
It's incredible to read the insight of a man who lived through the horrors of Auschwitz and Dachau and is able to write about it with such clarity and wisdom. In particular his perspective as a psychologist living through this time is extremely insightful. I have suggested this book to a few people now; a definite for those needing stories of resilience.

From the perspective of a member in a culture consumed in the "existential vacuum", Frankl's experiences and logotheraphy discussion offers a call to action for those prepared to live a meaningful life. This book will change you.

What can a person expect of life in a concentration camp? Is there a chance you can find meaning in living that torture? This is a truly inspirational book that reminds you that not everything is lost, that you can find light in the most terrible conditions. It's not new age, it's a story of survival and hope.
The second part of the book is about logotherapy. Victor Frankl was the creator of this discipline and it basically addresses the question of meaning in people's lives.

I read this book regularly for inspiration. Frankl found a way to confront the greatest evil of the last century, which for him was very personal, and survive. In the midst of it he discovered that we most long for meaning in our lives, and so he developed a therapy that helps people search for it.

The beginning part of the book about life in the camps simply cannot be forgotten. And then, when he tries to make sense of it, ordinary readers realize that whatever they have suffered there is a way forward. Frankl used tragedy to help others. A person can't be more noble than that.

Lawrence J. Epstein, author of "At the Edge of a Dream: The Story of Jewish Immigrants on New York's Lower East Side."

The following summarizes the true meanings the author wants us to absorb.
There are three avenues to arrive at the meaning of life. 1) Creating a work or or doing a deed 2) Experiencing or encountering something added to your life i.e. finding love 3) facing a fate one cannot change. You then rise above oneself, rising above what is expected. One grows from the experience, and experiences positive change.
Experiencing and surviving suffering is something to be proud of... not something to be ashamed of. We all learn and grow from our experiences.

I have known for a long time that McCain was a hot head but not how he treated other people. The fact that he rarely votes against his party on issues is not new and we sure don't need four years more of this type of government. I just wonder why we couldn't get two candidates that would actually "change" anything.

As the cover aptly shows here is McCain embracing Bush and everything he stands for. McCain supporters have clearly shown that the truth is the last thing they want to hear. Important topics are ignored by these people while they spin a most dismal ticket trying hard to hide the holes in it. The McCain/Palin ticket will be a litmus test for the sanity of the American voter. Read this book if you want a clear picture of McCain. He has gotten plenty of mileage out of his service record but what about the fact that he is not suited to lead a troubled nation? We need more than spin.

This is about the worst garbage printed I have ever read! If you thought that the Swift Boat garbage written about Kerry or the Obama Nation book were bad....then save your money. It is obvious from start to finish the author is reflecting base talking points to garner news and earn $$ by selling his tales!

The book contrasts McCain's heavily airbrushed media-engineered image to facts, testimony and reports available in the public record that are not so favorable. There are no 'anonymous sources' as far as I can tell. All is well documented and, in fact, for anyone who's been around for the past 15-20 years, reading this book is more like a trip on the political memory lane. My own reaction was "yes, I DO remember that" - McCain's numerous 180's and than back on just about any important issue.

I am not going to cover the book's contents. All I can say is that it was a good read for me but I have a bias - I didn't think much of McCain before reading this book and I think a bit less of him after finishing it. Like I said, I was familiar with most of the events covered by the book but it was good to have them all in one place at this point in time where we are coming close to election day and McCain could become the next US president.

Good things about 'The Real McCain':

- well researched
- well sourced
- relevant to the current presidential race
- some humor
- not too long

Aspects that some may object to:

- not too many 'good' things (not balanced)
- the humor COULD be interpreted as 'sarcasm' by someone who had a favorable view of McCain
- the cover, while 'funny' is likely to turn away anyone who doesn't already agree that McCain is a bad person/politician
- the subtitle advertises the conclusion, something that should emerge from the process of reading the book
- the author does leave the impression (especially to current McCain supporters) that he is 'after McCain'

To conclude, this is a book worth reading in the second half of 2008 and will stay an important book for a while IF McCain wins the presidential election. If McCain loses, then McCain will quickly disappear from our public memories and this book will be as irrelevant and uninteresting as the accounts on Geraldine Ferraro or Bob Dole are today.

Footnote
If anyone is wondering why am I granting 4 stars to a book for which I listed a few 'negatives', my defensive explanation is: this is 'my' review. I tried to be objective and think of reasons why some readers may object to this book's contents or approach but 'my' own view is that it is a well-written, well-researched, fact-filled, relevant-in-2008 tome.

This kind of book comes out every election campaign. It's like Obama Nation, except there are no obvious lies and distortions.

The tonality is snipey and churlish, but most of the facts he cites appear to hold up. Unfortunately, like all these books, the author is mainly addressing people already determined not to vote for McCain. So for partisans, it's a fun read, but for anyone else it's hardly worth the time.

An interesting perspective on not just the poor cod but of all of the great creatures in the sea on which humankind has feasted over the centuries.

Cod is an engaging history of the fish that changed the world. As an eye opening adventure, cod takes the reader from low impact commercial fishing of ancient Europe to the destructive power of modern fisheries. Mark Kurlansky shows his creativity and skill as he brings to focus the plight of cod. The author further illustrates the ability of super consumers to deplete a previously perceived inexhaustible cod population. In this biography is shown the effect cod fishing has had on individual lives, nations and the world. The book keeps the reader thirsting for more. The main weakness of this book would be the abrupt ending to the enchanting tale. Cod is for historians and scientists alike. Fishermen and those that enjoy sea food will appreciate this book. Cod is a book that should be read and reread by everyone as a reminder of mankind's dependence upon and responsibility to conserve earth's diminishing supply of natural resources.

Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World is a fascinating picture of the influence that cod have had on civilization and that civilization has had on cod. From the beginnings with Basque fishermen producing salt cod, through the Cod Wars between England and Iceland, and including the moratorium on cod fishing off of Canada this excellent novel gives a historically accurate look at the world market, politics, and conservation efforts. The fact that overfishing has destroyed what once seemed a limitless resource is an abrupt awakening to irresponsible human behaviors and their true effects on nature and on the future. Kurlansky expertly gives a historically, environmentally, biologically, economically, and politically correct, yet easy to read, account of the history of cod fishing. This is an excellent book for anyone interested in any of the aforementioned fields, particularly those with an interest in conservation. I highly recommend this book for the enjoyable and educational experience it provides.

Mark Kurlansky has created a truly enjoyable, historical narrative of a fish that has influenced many aspects of world history. Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World, is a book that any food connoisseur, history buff, fisherman, or someone simply interested in fish, will appreciate.

The book's main strength is the integration of facets of history to support the idea of cod's impact on the world. Within are discussed the influences of cod on wars, discovery, settlement, technology, gastronomy, and the effects of the dwindling cod stock.

The tragic story epitomized by cod is masterfully told by Kurlansky. Until recently, the mindset of society made it impossible to fathom that such a prolific organism could ever be depleted. The book exposes a poignant message about the increasing problem of overexploitation of resources, which I believe was the author's inspiration.

The only weakness of Cod is that there is so much history included in this relatively small book that it is somewhat overwhelming. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book and have recommended it to others. After digesting Cod, one realizes that the codfish not only influenced diets and economies, but helped steer the course of world history.

Kurlansky takes the reader on a voyage from the beginning of the cod fishing industry through its almost complete collapse due to overfishing. He explores the effect of the industry on colonization of the New World, the Revolutionary War, slavery and more. This book was written first to show the important place cod has in the history of the world and second to warn of what can happen to natural resources if they are limitlessly exploited. This book was well written and easy to read, it was almost like reading a novel. Kurlansky added interest by including six hundred years of cod recipes, putting one at the beginning of every chapter and a section at the end of the book. A main strength of the book was that it covered a significant amount of history in very few pages. The only weakness of the book was that there were no endnotes or footnotes which left me unable to easily find the origin or support of information presented. My overall evaluation of this book is that is was very informative while still being enjoyable to read. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in natural history, ecology, fish, or conservation.

This is an exceptionally well-written book that tells an amazing story. Since other reviewers have given the details of the story, I will not rehash them. Suffice to say that Alex Kurzem's story is a good example of the terrible suffering innocent individuals have had to endure (a suffering that may even be worse than death itself) as a result of Nazi cruelty.

Some reviewers have said this book is unfair to the Latvian people and tarnishes the entire nation with the same brush. I beg to differ. I believe the author went out of his way to distinguish between those Latvians (police and troops) who committed war crimes and those Latvians who did not (such as the family that took in his father). Even with regard to Commander Lobe, whose soldiers did commit atrocities, the author is careful to indicate he can not say for certain that the commander participated in those war crimes although he may have.

It would have helped to set the stage for his story if the author had included a brief introductory chapter on the history of Latvia during World War II. Nazi Germany and the USSR divided Poland between themselves in 1939. Then, in the spring of 1940, with no pretext or justification, Stalin swallowed up the three Baltic republics of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. Naturally, the Latvians were outraged at this groundless conquest of their country and communization of their economy. Most Latvian Jews, however, were more willing to accommodate themselves to life under Soviet rule, even if it meant giving up personal property, because they felt they were now safe from the Nazis. In June 1941, however, Hitler broke his alliance with Stalin and turned on Russia. When the Nazis conquered Latvia, most Latvians saw them as liberators from the hated Russians, especially since they restored the Latvians' private property (that is, other than the Latvian Jews' property). One thing the Nazis did not restore, however, was Latvia's independence. The more thoughtful Latvians realized this. To them the Nazis may have been the lesser of the two evils, but they were still evil. Other Latvians, however, saw the Nazis as their friends, protectors and allies. This was unfortunate, and both the Latvians and the Latvian Jews ended up paying a terrible price. Close to 90 percent of all Latvian Jews were killed by the Nazis and those Latvians who made common cause with them. In addition, some Latvians even went into other countries (including Alex Kurzen's village in what is now Belarus) to help the Nazis commit their evil atrocities. Toward the end of the war, the USSR took over Latvia and annexed it. For the next 45 years the Latvians knew no freedom and the Soviets settled many Russians in their country, who live there to this day.

The Latvians should have at least tried to follow the example of the nearby Finns. The Russians also wanted to conquer Finland and as a result Finland allied itself with Nazi Germany. But the Finns fought only to regain the land Russia had taken from them and refused to participate in the Nazi invasion of Russia itself nor did they send troops to help the Nazis anywhere else. The Finns refused to harm their country's Jewish citizens nor would they turn them over to the Nazis, though Germany requested they do so many times.

As a result, the Russians grudgingly respected the Finns and did not see them as Nazi puppets or stooges. Finland therefore managed to maintain its freedom and democracy in the aftermath of World War II, though they had to remain neutral in the Cold War, so as not to offend their Russian neighbor.

The moral of the story: If a nation puts its trust in another nation to the extent that it willingly relinquishes its independence and willingly ceases to take responsibility for its actions, there will be a price to pay.

Without reciting all of the details, this is a must read for people interested in understanding the Holocaust.

This book is very interesting. I rate it a must read; however, it is very slow at the beginning.

I couldn't help but think while reading of what Alex witnessed and then the ensuing childhood being raised by Nazis, the story of Moses, a Hebrew who falls into the hands of the Pharoah's daughter. He too was raised by people who slaughtered and enslaved his people. Too bad Alex has not yet connected with his Old Testament roots. Moses became a great leader and great man by God leading the Jews out of Eqypt.

There are parallels than can be drawn.

In the United States most of the time when one reads World War II history it tends to focus on the Normandy Landings and lightning dash to Berlin the Pacific theater is generally ignored and so is the Italian campaign. The Soviets also had to do a large amount of the fighting they were both defenders of their homeland and agents of a tyrannical regime.

Then there were those people who were caught in the middle of it all like one Jewish Latvian survivor who was only 5 years old. Plucked from a firing line by a sympathetic sergeant and warned never to be seen naked this little boy resolves to survive in any way he can. He survived the war and had a family but he was racked by guilt at the manner in which he was saved for many years.

While there are some funny accounts over the course of the novel it is by no means meant to be humorous the two stories that stick with me the most is the account of the time Alex Kurzem (the mascot) went to the train station and was assigned to pass out chocolates to an unruly crowd to claim them; later he reasoned that all or most of those people were killed in an extermination camp. Then there was the time that the soliders he was traveling with used him as bait to attract village women with unpleasant results for the little mascot and the women.

One also admire the author Mark Kurzem who tracked down all of these loose ends partially out of a sense of curiosity and to give his family a sense of closure about the whole issue. It is a truly remarkable effort especially when you consider the unlikelihood that there would be enough people alive to put the sometimes spotty recollections of the father into any context.

Overall-A truly remarkable account and evidence of tremendous courage on the part of the father both as a child to survive all of that and to level with his family years later about what he had gone through.

There are many stories to come out of World War II, both told and untold, this is surely one of the most remarkable. It is a tale of survival but not without cost.

As a five-year-old boy Alex Kurzem saw his mother and father as well as neighbors shot by the Nazis. For some inexplicable reason his life was spared and he ran to hide in a dense Russian forest. Amazingly he did not freeze to death during the unrelenting cold but existed by searching for food and taking the clothes of dead soldiers.

When he is found by a group of Latvian SS soldiers they never imagine he is Jewish but believe he is Russian and more or less adopt him, making him a little corporal in the SS with his own uniform. Young Alex fears for his life, of course, and does as he is told, even to repeatedly watching repetitions of the same fate that befell his parents and starring in a Nazi propaganda film.

What price survival? What he has done will haunt Alex for the rest of his days. He is so troubled by his past that he does not even tell his wife and only later reveals his entire story to his son, the author of this memoir, Mark Kurzem.

The Mascot is not only a reminder of one of history's darkest times but testimony to the dramatic effects it may have on those who are not killed but sorely injured in their hearts and souls.

- Gail Cooke

I love this book and find it very educational. The author did a great job with the writing and research and the illustrator did a wonderful job with making the appearance attractive.

This is an excellent book to have on any shelf.

A reviewer below seems to be harboring some kind of hateful grudge against the author stating that it does not offer us women involved in science or chemistry. Yet the book itself offers us Mary Kies for "K" - the first woman to receive a patent, and on the same page other people like Stephanie Kwolek, the inventor of Kevlar (certainly a fine feat of chemical engineering). Other pages offer women from all walks of life, from businesspeople to writers to public figures of great import.

It's a shame that people see fit to dismiss authors and their works just because of who they marry and are not actually open minded enough to read the works before commenting.

But you the reader can see for yourself - I recommend you browse a few pages using the Amazon "Search Inside" feature (select "surprise me" in the book viewer to see an illustrated page from the book) and see what a terrific job the illustrator has done throughout in addition to the great range of women selected.

This is a wonderful book that will enchant young children as you read to them about our country's rich history of strong women. My 4 year old picks this book out for me to read to her along with Lynne Cheney's other books A is for America and our 50 states. I love to hear her chatter on about the states and how she remembers things that are there and people who live there and have lived there in the past.

When John Adams began considering what laws should be made, his wife Abigail wrote from the family farm: "I desire you would remember the ladies." A familiar line in American history, but here is the rest of it: "If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound to any laws by which we have no voice or representation."

Is it any wonder that Writer Lynne Cheney and illustrator Robin Preiss Glasser begin their alphabet Almanac of Amazing American Women with Abigail Adams? Cheney, herself the wife of a Vice President and accomplished children's writer, and Glasser, a former ballet soloist and professional children's illustrator, have jointly produced several books about Americana: Our 50 States: A Family Adventure Across America and America : A Patriotic Primer. This one about women throughout American history is dear to the hearts of both women.

Because Abigail is first in many ways, she gets a two-page spread filled to the edges of the pages with depictions of life on the Adams farm, which Abigail ran single-handedly while John helped found a country. Glasser's illustrations are a delight to the eye. A child could spend quite a while on each of these pages, just reveling in the details of the lively illustrations.

B is for Elizabeth Blackwell, the center figure and the first woman to earn a medical degree, with four other healers in the four corners, plus names of nine other written in the empty spaces. It is fun to follow the trails of words and count the extra names. There is a fabulous home-spun illustration representing Emily Dickinson, America's "greatest poet," along with names of other women poets tucked in here and there in the rose-entwined trellis lining all four sides.

F for First Ladies is another two-page spread with Glasser depicting each first lady on a teacup, teapot, sugar bowl, creamer. It is quite elegant and prettified. Barbara Bush is quoted: "Somewhere out in this audience may even be someone who will one day follow in my footsteps and preside over the White House as the president's spouse. I wish him well!"

And so the book goes. The P section is a fold out of four pages illustrating performers: Sarah Caldwell (conductor), Tina Turner, Maria Tallchief (ballerina), Gilda Radner, Mahalia Jackson, just to give a flavor of the names.

Other letters: Trailblazers, W for Edith Wharton and women writers, X marks the ballot, Z for Babe Didrikson Zaharias and other strong women, N for Louise Nevelson and other creators of beautiful things, and K for Mary Kies and other inventors and entrepeneurs.

If you cannot tell I think this is an absolutely fabulous book for children, then I did not gush enough. Oh, in case you didn't know, in 1924 Gertrude Muller started a company to market the potty seat she had invented. Glasser's illustration is too precious.

Very highly recommended for all ages.

A is for Abigail An Almanac of Amazing American Women. This book is well constructed (dust jacket, binding, and pages very sturdy). It has many colorful illustrations. It also gives information on American women who, although they made important contributions to society, are very seldom mentioned in today's history books.

Totally hysterical. I love it.
I'd marry Lewis Black if I could meet him.
I'd live an extra 20 years just from the benefits of his humor.

Lewis Black has a self described "potty mouth" and he uses it in this audio book. I'm not offended by the religious humor - that is what I expected but I think I would have enjoyed the reading more if someone else had performed it or if he had skipped the worst of the profanity. I've not heard anything by him before so I didn't know what to expect except when I'd seen on Larry King. I must say that I laughed a lot at his description of many TV Evangelists! And he did have one religion he liked - you have to listen to find out which one.

Me of Little Faith
I was disapointed. Louis Black is alot more funny in person than in writing. He should stick to what he knows best
pete jeffer

This just wasn't a very good book. I hope that whoever ghost wrote it didn't get paid very much. Mr. Black can be a stunningly funny comic and the material was just begging to be nailed but this attempt was sadly off. It was neither irreverent enough to be funny nor well thought out enough to be interesting. It really felt like a series of twenty second bits that he tried out in the shower over successive days and found to be too lame for his show. There were a few guffaws but for the most part i had to fight my way through the drivel to gratefully reach the end and realize that i had just invested 90 minutes of my life in what Mr. Black would call a pile of f*%&*in crap...on plain dry toast.

Lewis Black ,his intelligence and humor make a serious subject laughable. If you've seen him on TV or in concert, you can see him speaking his "wisdom" and making his frustrating faces. A winner!!

This book really spoke to me. I've worked in cube farms and white collar corporate offices since I was 17, 95% of the time wishing that I was anywhere else. The author put what I was thinking and feeling into words much more clear then I could have and really made me think about my career choices, and gave me a lot of laughs on the way.

Much like his blog, there were moments where it was long winded - but I thought it was more then funny enough to make up for it and still be one of my favorite books this year.

Half-memoir, half-gonzo, Happy Hour Is For Amateurs is greater than the sum of its autobiographical parts. Ultimately, the book is a morality play; the deadly sins are sacrificing happiness for a paycheck and perpetuating the status quo in a morally bankrupt industry.

Some readers may object to the author's profanity and depiction of drug and alcohol use--of course, some readers call Mark Twain "racist" and Aldous Huxley "immoral." In other words, if you have a weak constitution or delicate sensibilities, this book probably isn't for you.

This book is for: (1) every worker who's ever felt like a cog or an itinerant, (2) every person who thinks, "this is as good as it gets for me," and (3) anyone who enjoys funny, insightful writing on topics most people can relate to. From the book: "There's an accidental wisdom in following. Letting something else define you narrows the decisions you have to make. It gives you parameters, a track to follow and a holiday from all the angst that comes with carving your own path." `Following' is exactly what some people need--this book is for everyone else.

Happy Hour Is For Amateurs is not a book about being a lawyer, it's a book about being unsatisfied with what you do. (Though it's completely, depressingly accurate if you want to know what the actual practice of law is like for the majority of attorneys.) It's about settling and the push-pull of childhood dreams--and adult dreams--against the weight of responsibility and expectations. Philalawyer escaped, and most of us haven't, a fact sure to generate equal measures of envy and hostility. Either way, this book is compulsory reading for every disaffected office monkey, every fungible bureaucrat.

The writing is always serviceable and frequently soars. Some readers may quibble with the non-linear style--but this isn't a novel, and each chapter contributes something important on the way to understanding the overall ethic of the author. The momentum slows very occasionally, but the humor underlying each vignette is more than enough to
excuse the occasional digression.

Lawyers, in particular, will nod their heads in agreement or sympathy throughout Philalawyer's book. Equity partners in big law firms might not get it, and associates on the same track will probably ignore it. The rest of us will say, "Thank you," and buy him a drink.

I hate to piggyback on another review, but Charles B Fehr really nails this book. Those who dislike it seem to be expecting a book about the legal profession, when in fact it's simply about him. He just happens to be stuck in the legal profession, but one could easily swap in investment banking or any other office job and have the same experience. Anyone who has ever worked in an office can identify with the characters that drive him nuts, just as any of us who are creative, independent, and adventurous can identify with his desire to make every moment outside the office count. He mentions a 3-to-1 ratio of hours spent working to hours free on the weekend and the need to make those weekend hours "superhours" - so that they count triple. We should all live like that.

The beauty of this book is that you don't have to approve of his lifestyle decisions - drugs, boozing, promiscuous sex, etc - to enjoy the stories and come to like him (and even identify with him) in the end. He is a strong writer and a superb storyteller and the book is a great read from start to finish. Those of us who are Ten Percenters as he describes in an early chapter will absolutely love the book, but there's enough there for the other ninety percent to enjoy it as well.

As an attorney myself, this book is perhaps the most tragically hysterical piece of literature I've ever encountered. Witty, refreshingly honest, and laugh-out-loud funny, this book is a must read.

Philadelphia Lawyers takes an irredeemable profession, chock full of irredeemable human beings, and finds something redeemable buried beneath it all -- a rip roaring book. My only hope is that this book is successful enough that he will never have to practice again. Cheers,

From the time I was a kid my parents said law might be a good career choice for me. I wanted to be a professional soccer player at the time, but you might as well have a backup plan. Naturally it seemed like a good choice because I loved to argue. And why not, I was good at it. It wasn't until I was a little bit older when I looked around at my friend's parents who were lawyers, former lawyers-turned-professors, and realized that not many of them enjoyed the job. And if they didn't, how would I?

Happy Hour Is For Amateurs gives a great account of exactly what is wrong with the profession. Philadelphia Lawyer explains exactly the type of people that you will meet on your journey through "the world's worst profession." Billable hours, awful partners, golden handcuffs. The writer takes you on a journey with his life as the guide.

Where Philadelphia Lawyer truly shines in this book though is in his absolutely astute observational ability. He picks up on societal cues, work culture, nuances, and interesting subtleties about everyday life. And when you sit down and think about it you realize how right Philadelphia Lawyer is. He sees the world with a focused lens for deconstruction and explanation.

Whether the writer is talking about life in college, the terrible age of 26, or working in that career you loathe going to, his assertions are always clever and correct. An amazing gift in my opinion.

Ten years is a long time in a career as soul-breaking as law, but if there is one thing Philadelphia Lawyer cemented in my mind. It is that I am truly glad I did not take the gentle advice of my parents and start a career in law. If this book is an indicator of what might happen to a person trapped, I wonder what would have happened to me?

Early readers, slightly advanced readers, this fairly short book is interesting and informative. If your kid needs to grasp history a little better, this is a book to look at. It's done in a way that kids enjoy and actually pay attention to. Worth the money, easily.

Hi!:) This book is nice and informative without being too long and boring. It will most likely appeal to children around 5 or 6 through about 9 or 10. After that, they may want to read another, more in depth biography about this remarkable and fearless sailor and explorer.
The illustrations are realistic and well done.
I, as a parent, felt that the ending was a bit weak, but children will certainly gain a better understanding and clearer picture of the explorer, and his sacrifices, upon reading this book. Wording is simple and uncomplicated. A step 2 book.
Good information, good book!~

I really enjoyed this book. I could not put it down. I found it to be a very honest, emotional, and raw account of her life. I am just amazed at how she could overcome all of the things that she went through. Her story could certainly become a best selling movie!! The best book I read in a long time.

This book was so intresting from page 1. Cupcakes' life is amazing to me and I find it beautiful that was able to survive and find peace in her life. She deserves it after all the crap she went through.

I have to say, the cover of this book is what caught my eye at the store. Bright, in your face, and cheesy. But the inside, was filet mignon. It was AMAZING. I could not put it down. I missed nights of sleep, saying to myself, "go to bed after this next chapter" and yet at the end of each, I could not help myself from going to the next.
Bravo Cupcake, you have written an amazing book. It was a fantastic story, moving , inspiring, and worthy of becoming a movie. The best part is, it is such an easy read.
I will be reading it again soon.

For the first 250 pages this was the best memoir I have ever read. I touted it to all of my friends, neighbors, and anyone who would listen. When I got to the last 200 pages, however, I was bored by the writing style which seemed (forgive me) lazy.

Overall, however, Ms. Brown's story is absolutely incredible and she should be commended for getting through adversity that would have killed anyone else. I loved the way she wrote so candidly.

The only reason I didnt give this book five stars is because it went on a bit too long. Towards the end, it seemed to drag a bit. Overall, the book was incredibly interesting and the author's life was astonishing and seemed unbelievable at times. Its not that I think the stories are made up, but I had no idea that people could be functional and abuse drugs in the way the author abused drugs. She certaInly knows how to tell a story. This author proves that, in life, absolutely anything is possible. I think she is awfully brave to tell her story without holding anything back, in spite of the fact that she works at one of those prestigious, snooty law firms.

After surviving a miserable childhood in Ireland and making his way to New York City as a young man, Frank McCourt shares anecdotes about his next 30 years -- teaching high school and community college English classes.

McCourt's somewhat unconventional teaching style, he readily admits, didn't reach everyone or even succeed as often as he would have liked. Yet many of his classes, filled with students from poverty-stricken and hopeless homes, found real enthusiasm and understanding through such lessons as writing excuse notes for their own teachers, for setting recipes to music, and setting up impromptu ethnic feasts in the park.

As no section of any person's life can possibly be extricated from all others, readers will find some familiar tidbits first mentioned in AA and 'Tis. This is, in my opinion, just light enough to establish familiarity with previous material; it is certainly not a recycling of the first two books.

As always, McCourt is honest and humorous, giving readers a glimpse into the world that was and is uniquely his.

Hey everyone! I just wanted to let you know there is a GREAT event coming up almost a week away in New York City. The American Place Theatre's Festival: Literature to Life is performing a theatrical adaptation of TEACHER MAN by Frank McCourt on September 21st, 2008. Don't miss out on this wonderful opportunity to see this moving piece of literature come to life. Here's the information and can't wait to see you there!

[...]

I don't believe there can be much more to be said about the Charms of Frank McCourt. Even when he is divulging his shortcomings, his wit and bare-knuckled honesty draw you in.

"Teacher Man" is, to me, quite different than his previous two works, but completely enjoyable down to the last tale. I think it makes a great gift to every teacher who has ever struggled with their profession and the demise of their idealistic vision. It stands out as a shining beacon that you don't have to be "perfect" to make a life changing difference in the lives of a student.

A fellow teacher and friend recommended this book to me; I had never heard of it previously, surprisingly. I knew I would like it just by looking at the cover and first few pages: Frank McCourt's sense of humor and finesse with teaching really shows through with two photographs there especially. He takes the reader easily through the span of his teaching career with a string of hilarious anecdotes and shares invaluable, yet typical, insight along the way. McCourt really refreshed my sense of what teaching was, is , and can be along with putting teaching situations and education in perspective. As a teacher of high school Language Arts, I often wonder whether or not it's me, the kids, or both. Whether he intends to or not, McCourt reassures educators like me that educating youth is an ongoing, if not sometimes stifling, doubting, and frustrating struggle. Kids have always been kids, so to speak, and the best teachers have always been just that too. A true reality check for public school systems in a time of No Child Left Behind. It does a stunning and long-lasting job of reminding us that making kids think is what we yearn for and that, sometimes, we realize that yearning, in spite of ourselves. Thanks Mr. McCourt for revitalizing a part of me that had been a bit bogged down!

I am puzzled by this book. The first paragraph stated McCourt's pride over having made something of himself after a terrible childhood. He then proceeds to tell the story of his teaching as part of this. He admits himself that he felt like a fraud much of the time. I can see why! Most of the anecdotes cover stories of his childhood and he admits to not having control over the students. (He seems to waver between intense pride and self loathing.) Although I enjoyed many of his anecdotes(the assignments to write a suicide note, a excuse note to God from Eve, and reading recipes to music), I spent a lot of time wondering how he could have been a wonderful teacher and had kids flocking to the classroom. I must assume that there is something key to McCourt's charming classroom manner that he left out.