Review of "Human Interest Stories of the Three Days Battles at Gettysburg with Pictures"

Review of

Human Interest Stories of the Three Days Battles at Gettysburg with Pictures

Five out of five stars

 This book is one of the pamphlets that can be purchased at the Gettysburg Memorial site that explains the monuments, the organizational structure of the battlefield and the terrain that was most fought over. It is surprising to hear that despite all of the bombs and bullets that were flying around, there were almost no civilian casualties. It is ironic that this most costly of all American Wars was one of the most chivalrous ever fought.

 As is mentioned in the book, the Confederate goal was to launch an invasion of the Union states, demonstrate their power to take Union territory and force a negotiated end to the war. Thousands died in the mass charges that were a prelude to the even greater slaughter that took place in World War I. While neither side won a decisive victory, the Union won on points, for the Confederate forces were forced to retreat back to their territory.

 This book is a reminder that even though the men killed each other with abandon, they never thoroughly hated and demonized the opposition. Many families had men fighting on both sides and there were instances when soldiers that knew each other on the opposite sides would meet. Once instance is of two men courting the same woman. When you read accounts of the civil wars in Spain and Russia and how ruthless the two sides were to each other, it is clear from this book and others, that the American Civil War was different in many respects.

Review of "A Guy Goes Into A Bar," by Albert Tapper & Peter Press

Review of

A Guy Goes Into A Bar, by Albert Tapper & Peter Press, ISBN 156731418x

Five out of five stars

 The phrase, “A guy goes into a bar . . .” has got to be the most widely used lead-in to a joke and punch line. As the title implies, the jokes in this collection start with this phrase and use it to set the context. Most of the jokes involve alcohol consumption, but some of them are just about the social context and environment. Typical of books that are collections of jokes, there is a wide variety of quality, much of which is based on personal taste. Some have references to sex but are rather tame in the modern environment.

 If you are a fan of humor in general and the bar joke in particular, this collection will amuse you and maybe at times cause you to lose yourself in mirth.

Review of "The Other Coast: Road Rage in Beverly Hills," by Adrian Raeside

Review of

The Other Coast: Road Rage in Beverly Hills, by Adrian Raeside, ISBN 0740746685

Four out of five stars

Excellent cartoons that often satirize environmentalists

 Since I am a fan of the editorial, satirical cartoon, when I spotted this book in a used bookstore, I had to buy it. Before that, I had never heard of the strip. It features a short man (Toulose) that is an aspiring and failed writer and his wife (Vicky) that is much taller. Vicky is an avid environmentalist, yet her environmental actions often lead to more environmental damage than if she had not done them.

 I am a committed environmentalist, but I always perform carbon-cost research in order to determine the best course of action. One of my greatest frustrations is when I encounter someone that claims to be an environmentalist, but often will produce 20 pounds of carbon in order to save 10. Vicky reminded me of them.

 Many of the frustrations of life are expressed in a sideways and sometimes outsized manner. Everything from dropping a tree the wrong way to contacting an insurance agent when something goes wrong are the topics of specific strips. This is a fun book to read through, the kind that should be available when you have a few minutes to kill and need a distraction.

Review of "Oregon Trail: The Road to Destiny," a graphic novel by Frank Young and David Lasky

Review of

Oregon Trail: The Road to Destiny, a graphic novel by Frank Young and David Lasky ISBN 9781570616495

Five out of five stars

May not be pure history, but it is correct history

 This graphic novel presents history as it was for so many people that made the slightly over 2,000 mile journey from St. Louis, Missouri to Salem, Oregon. History refers to the path as the Oregon Trail and an estimated 350,000 people made the trek by wagon in search of land and a new life. So many wagons followed the same path that there are places where the ruts made by the wagon wheels are still visible today.

 This graphic novel is narrated by Rebecca Weston, and she is eleven years old when her father, John Weston, sold nearly all they owned to pay for the equipment the family needed to travel by wagon from St. Louis, Missouri to Salem, Oregon. John worked at a newspaper in Baltimore, Maryland before they made the trip, so they literally went from coast to coast. John had sent a printing press ahead by ship and his plan is to start his own newspaper in their new home.

 Aspects of their journey not commonly covered in the history are mentioned. Such as the fact that they could not start their journey until there was enough grass to provide fodder for the draft animals. Another fact mentioned here that I was unaware of until I crossed the state of Oregon is that most of the eastern part of the state is near waterless desert.

 The story is a good one, mentioning the monotonous movement and food, occasionally relieved by trading with the friendly native Americans for fresh meat and vegetables. There is the almost inevitable death of some of the travelers from disease, for they did not always treat their water properly before drinking it. A few die from accidents.

 Despite the sadness and hardship, the family perseveres, and they establish their new home in Salem and publish a paper called the Guardian-Post. They live the dream that drove so many people to risk their lives and fortunes in a perilous trek halfway across the continent.

This book is an excellent way to introduce the facts of the Oregon trail to young people. While the precise events may not have taken place for a family named Weston, similar events took place in the lives of many families.

Review of "A Hero All His Life: A Memoir by the Mantle Family," by Merlyn, Mickey Jr., David, and Dan Mantle

Review of

A Hero All His Life: A Memoir by the Mantle Family, by Merlyn, Mickey Jr., David, and Dan Mantle ISBN 0060183632

Five out of five stars

The side of Mickey Mantle hidden for so long

 One of the most gifted athletes of his generation, the other side of Mickey Mantle was rarely mentioned until the bombshell book, “Ball Four” by Jim Bouton. For the first time, that book publicly revealed the drinking, womanizing, and partying until late hours by Mickey Mantle and his friends. In this book, his family reveals his absence from their world and how it affected them. Mickey, his wife and all four of their boys spent time in the Betty Ford Clinic to receive treatment for substance abuse.

 His wife Merlyn, Mickey Jr., David, and Dan Mantle all write sections about Mickey and their personal experiences with drugs and alcohol. It is a very frank expression of their lives and relationships with Mickey. In many ways they support what was a fundamental premise of the Bouton book, that as good as he was, Mantle possibly could have been the best of all time had he taken care of himself and drank less.

 If Mantle had not suffered the leg injury that hobbled him, it is likely that he would have been the best of all time, even with the drinking. When batting left-handed, he was once clocked at going from home to first in 3.1 seconds, the fastest time ever recorded. An amazing athlete, Mantle was correct when he said in a press conference to announce his medical condition that he is a role model on what not to do. Leading your children down a path of substance abuse is a tragic event, this book details this issue, even though the Mantle boys go to great lengths not to blame their father for their issues with chemical dependency.

Review of "Readers’ Favorite Graffiti," by Marina N. Haan, Richard B. Hammerstrom

Review of

Readers’ Favorite Graffiti, by Marina N. Haan, Richard B. Hammerstrom, ISBN 0960453423

Five out of five stars

 The premise of this book is that the contents were gleaned from bathroom stalls, nearly all were discovered somewhere in university buildings. They are short and often witty snippets, sometimes to the point of being hilarious. A wide variety of aspects of the human condition are covered, from being gay, to academic angst to just being frustrated and even mad at the world. In other words, a microcosm of human frailties and emotions.

 Since many were transcribed from bathroom walls, it is fitting that one of the best uses for this book is as bathroom reading. For it is easy to relax the mind and hence the digestive muscles by reading a few pages from this book, making the flow smoother and easier.

Review of "The Boys’ War: Confederate and Union Soldiers Talk About the Civil War," by Jim Murphy

Review of

The Boys’ War: Confederate and Union Soldiers Talk About the Civil War, by Jim Murphy ISBN 0395664128

Five out of five stars

A recognition that child soldiers is not a new thing

 The American Civil War was a brutal event, where Americans killed other Americans in large numbers. One largely ignored fact is that some of those in harms way were in their early teens. Some were as young as twelve. Officially, boys in that age range were not to carry weapons and fight, many were given assignments as musicians, specifically drummers. In the noise and chaos of battle, the sound of a drum could generally still be heard, so they were used to communicate messages to the troops. Of course, this required that the drummer be embedded in the fighting.

 This book contains the war memoirs of some of the boys on both sides of the fight. There were many reasons why these boys volunteered, most of which have not changed. The desire for excitement and adventure, a release from the labor and boredom of farm life and sometimes just to be contrary to their relatives and leave home. Like all others in the ranks, these boys experienced the brutality of war, where men were sliced and diced to pieces and some of them were killed.

 There have been many stories in the media about how modern warlords have used child soldiers in their battles against their enemies. This book is a reminder that this is not new and when the ranks needed to be filled out, the American armies did the same thing.