Book Description
Here are more scathingly funny tales from the wild side! Laurie Notaro survived the debauched ride of her twenties and the bumpy road to matrimony. Now she’s ready to take on the thirtysomething years . . . and almost middle age has never been more hilarious.
Laurie is married, mortgaged, and now—miraculously—employed in the corporate world, discovering that bosses come in all shapes, sizes, and degrees of mental stability. After maxing out her last good credit card at Banana Republic, she’s dressed for success and ready to face the jungle: surviving feral, six-foot-plus Gretchen (“Three Thousand Faces of Eve”) before battling the overbearing, overstuffed (in way-too-small pants) new mom Suzzi, who ruthlessly cancels Laurie’s newspaper column and learns that payback can be a bitch. Laurie also explores the backstabbing world of preschoolers at a Halloween party, the X-rated madness of a family trip to Disneyland, and the pressure from her QVC-addicted mother and the rest of the world to reproduce. But while losing more friends to babies than to booze, she realizes there’s a plus side: at least for a couple of months she gets to be the thinner friend.
I Love Everybody (and Other Atrocious Lies) is Laurie Notaro at her deliciously quirky best. Can a woman prone to what her loved ones might term “meltdowns” (she considers them “Opportunities to Enlighten”) put a smile on her face and love everybody? Take a guess.
Customer Reviews:
HAHAHAHAHA AND MORE..................2007-09-19
I haven't laugh this hard in a long time.... I was having so much fun that I gave one to my daughter and she would called me late at night, just laughing and telling me which page to go to and it was a great bonding experience........It is awesome! thank you Laurie!
I love everything she writes - funny, quirky, will lift your spirits! .......2007-05-19
Although I feel compelled to note, right up front, that humor is tricky and what one person finds funny may not appeal to another, I still think this book is one that MOST readers will find laugh out loud funny. I love every book Notaro has written and they've found a permanent place on my bookshelf because they're guaranteed to lift my spirits on even the worst days.
Hers is the kind of humor that I'm tempted to call a combination of humor and self-help because I ALWAYS feel better about my life after reading about her misfortunes (but not guilty, because she is able to laugh at herself and, besides, her books sell well, so I figure any temporary humiliation is offset somewhat by that).
Notaro has a knack for being totally shameless about exposing life's various insults foisted upon her - and making normally dull subjects seem funny (everything from having kidney stones to finding herself traumatized and in a state of near nakedness, quite by accident, at Disneyland (yes, DISNEYLAND).
She is quick to point out her character flaws as well. She can be impatient, clumsy, drawn to the wrong type of boyfriends (until she found her husband) and prone to the most embarrassing experiences. Somehow this makes for a great read. I relate to her and I think a lot of others will.
I should note that this may fall into the type of book known as a "woman's book" and I'm not sure how many men will relate to this one. I hope I'm wrong about that.
Review from a loudmouth girl.......2007-05-16
Laurie Notaro is my hero. She has a great writing style. Her stories are hilarious. I suggest every woman who has ever struggled to fit in and do the right thing to read her books.
Very forced........2007-02-12
I purchased this book on a whim and was thoroughly disappointed (there goes my future spontaneous purchases!). Couldn't even get through it because it's attempts at humor were so flat, they were almost insulting. Thank God for target's return policy; I exchanged the book for Susan Gilman's 'Hypocrite...', which I thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend.
The Funny for the 30-something Crowd - Notaro Style.......2007-02-04
Older, but still an Idiot Girl, Notaro's "I Love Everybody" recounts snot bubbles, the trouble with email, and other minutia done in classic Notaro style.
Notaro is one of my absolute favorite authors. She never fails to make me laugh-out-loud. I highly recommend any of her books!
Book Description
A lesbian love triangle explodes into bloody murder....Richmond, Virginia, July 1997. A brick row-house in the city's gay Carytown district, home of 18-year-old Kelley "Turtle" Tibbs, legendary ringleader of the teenage lesbian scene. Walk inside and you'd be likely to find Melissa Etheridge blasting on the stereo, lots of beer, a clutch of shaven-headed young women-- and Turtle's tall possessive girlfriend, Tracy Bitner.Enter 18-year-old Stacey Hanna, a new roommate who moved east from Lynchburg and, from the beginning, openly carried a torch for Turtle. Stacey's attempts to drive a wedge between Turtle and Tracy backfired-- badly. And one night, Turtle, Tracy and two friends literally dragged Stacey to a wooded area and kicked, slashed, and stabbed her to death in a scene straight out of a horror movie.Was this a crime of passion-- a frenzy of the heart? Was it calculated retribution for disrupting a bond between two lovers? Or was it, as one of the girls told a detective, "just one of those times....when somebody had to die?" Learn the fascinating truth in a riveting story of obsession, betrayal, and murder....
Customer Reviews:
This was good, but needed more depth and definition.......2005-08-19
I read true crime books regularly. This book was interesting and although written well, needed more depth and definition as to who was who and not just she said he said. IT needed more depth because I think the writer went into detail about the actual violent acts themselves, however skimmed over other subjects in the book. I was disappointed in the way the gossip way of writing took over towards the end of the book. It was a good story but tapered off towards the end, almost as if the writer became disenchanted with this topic.
An interesting story, needs editing, and writing.......2005-03-09
Probably a quickie true crime book that I would have passed over if it had not been for the Richmond connection to may home state.
I think the author did some decent reporting, but she more often than not presented the story in a rather flat fashion. She missed many opportunities for emotion and facts to give us background on the women involved in the story.
Also there were some glaring typos in the edition I had that should have been caught by the editor.
Totally Disenchanted and Disappointed.......2002-09-08
I only read true crime stories; I am still in the process of reading this book and have to force myself NOT to put it somewhere and go on to another one. I feel that the author did not tell the story as in the fashion of other good authors. There are incomplete sentences that make one have to reread the sentence to get the jist of that emotion. I, for one, feel that this book is not anywhere near or close to the other crime stories that I read. I would have to read another book by Miss Chew before giving a true explanation of her work. I have read the other reviews which tend to say the opposite of what I say but people are different. I would NOT recommend this book to anyone that I know.
It was interesting.........2002-01-11
It was a really interesting story... kind of haunting. It's amazing to know the truth behind stories like that.. it's almost unreal how evil people can really be. But the author covered it well, and it was a good book.
It Was Just One Of Those Nights..........2001-08-15
Stacey Hanna was eighteen when she moved to Virginia and into the young lesbian scene. She immediately picked up the torch for Kelley "Turtle" Tibbs, infuriating Turtle's close friends and her girlfriend Tracy. One night the triangle of love and obsession explodes into what can only be described as a "wilding" - hours of abduction, indecision, torture and eventual murder of one young woman by a gang of her female peers. The confessions, the court cases, and the subsequent "where are they now" sections of the book were probably the easiest to read - by the time you got to them, you had finally figured out who all the players were and how they related. The story is more than frightening. The introduction of each character and her eventual unraveling quickly becomes intertwined with another and then another. In a short time the reader has to keep checking back to the beginning to connect who is who, in love with which girl, dated which other girl, and which ones actually were there on the night in question. The book is, in some form, and excellent character study and a detailed description how quickly young love turns to hate. I was also intrigued by the detailing of the humiliation some of the girls took from lovers and each other and yet never seriously considered leaving the relationships. I just wished it had come with a score card so I could have kept it all straight.
Book Description
Travel writer Claire Spencer doesn't believe in fate, much less any part of that fairy tale, happy ending, love at first sight stuff. Especially not for Amazon-sized women like her. So when Jack, the sexy man who sits next to her on a flight from New York to London, asks her out, Claire figures there has to be a catch. Is he blind? Sleazy? On the rebound? But she decides to accept, and finds herself smitten and a little frightened at how happy she is with how fast things are moving.
While in London (on assignment for Sassy Seniors! magazine), Claire is also looking forward to seeing her best friend, Maddy, one of those impossibly gorgeous, if-I-didn't-love-her-I'd-hate-her women who's got everything in the world going for her--except that, for the first time in her trouble-free life, Maddy has just been dumped...by Jack. Claire's finally met what seems to be the perfect guy, and now the only way she can have him is by betraying her best friend. It's almost enough to make Claire believe in Fate, but if Fate does exist, it seems intent on screwing her over.
Download Description
Travel writer Claire Spencer doesn't believe in fate, much less any part of that fairy tale, happy ending, love at first sight stuff. Especially not for Amazon-sized women like her. So when Jack, the sexy man who sits next to her on a flight from New York to London, asks her out, Claire figures there has to be a catch. Is he blind? Sleazy? On the rebound? But she decides to accept, and finds herself smitten and a little frightened at how happy she is with how fast things are moving.
While in London (on assignment for Sassy Seniors! magazine), Claire is also looking forward to seeing her best friend, Maddy, one of those impossibly gorgeous, if-I-didn't-love-her-I'd-hate-her women who's got everything in the world going for her—except that, for the first time in her trouble-free life, Maddy has just been dumped—by Jack. Claire's finally met what seems to be the perfect guy, and now the only way she can have him is by betraying her best friend. It's almost enough to make Claire believe in Fate, but if Fate does exist, it seems intent on screwing her over.
Customer Reviews:
3 1/2 stars.......2007-08-08
True Love (and other Lies) is a cute, fluff story. I read it while being laid up after knee surgery- it's great light reading for when you're brain's not functioning that well... The plot reminded me of Kinsella's Can You Keep a Secret. Claire meets Jack on a flight to London, and sparks fly (just like Kate and Jack in CYKaS). The plot is very predictable but still light, fluffy fun. I liked Claire; she was a relatable and likeable heroine. I liked Max, her quirky next-door neighbor, best friend. Like a Kinsella read, there were multiple f-s and the love scenes were pretty low-key, low smut. Nothing too detailed or embarrassing...
Though not an outstanding read, it worked for my circumstances. It would a good light read for a long car trip, plane ride, or a trip to the beach. I'm interested to find another by Ms. Gaskell that would be as good or a better read. Any recommendations for which book to read next, let me know! Pushing 30 looks the most intriguing...
A feel good story with real emotional pull!.......2007-01-16
I know some people decry this kind of book, but I think the world needs more books like this. I read chick lit for fun. My job is so serious and demanding that when I have time to read, sometimes I just need light fiction, something to read on the train and completely escape both work and the problems, and the messy solutions of the world. This book was IDEAL for me this week!
I really liked Claire Spencer, and her friends and family, and even when the plot took some rather strange turns, I was laughing and rooting for Claire and Jack the whole way. IAnd I was ready to cry and sulk with her too. Most of all, I love finishing a book and wishing that I had someone like the main character in my circle of friends. I think that Whitney Gaskell created a very lovable and memorable character in Claire Spencer.
You will actually LOL!.......2005-10-15
I didn't think Gaskell could get better as after I read her first book (Pushing 30), she went to the top of my favorite authors list next to Evanovich. But she did! Maybe it's that I can relate to Claire better or that Claire has too many LOL moments that kept me reading until 2am. Either way, Gaskell did not dissapoint... great read that you won't be able to put down. Chic lit at its best. :)
Tempting fate and long-standing friendship.......2005-09-19
NY-based travel writer Claire is bored with her life. Her last significant romance ended with him leaving the country to get away from her. When she is seated next to a sexy stranger on a flight to London, they hit it off and arrange to hook up after he ends his current unsatisfying relationship. Not expecting to ever see him again, she is surprised when he calls and arranges to show her around London.
Imagine her surprise when she discovers that her new man, Jack is Jack Harrison, the man that just dumped her best friend Maddy (though Maddy refers to him only as "Harrison"). It wouldn't be so bad - after all, she did not know who he was, except that Maddy is obsessed with getting back with Jack, while Claire might just be falling in love.
They continue to have a trans-Atlantic romance, and Claire never gets around to telling Maddy about it, even though she knows that Maddy is threatening to hire a private detective.
Claire suffers from self-esteem issues and can never really understand why Jack wants her. She is suspicious of his intentions, and it does not help when those closest to her feed into her ego problems. Will she tempt fate and allow herself to fall for the man who seemed to be born to love her? Is Jack a good guy or a bad guy?
Gaskell follows up her excellent debut with a charming story about two unlikely but perfectly suited people fated to find each other despite the odds.
CORNY BUT DECENT.......2005-09-01
This book reads like a romantic comedy. The lead character is okay but the fat jokes and references got old and over-used. She didn't have much else to her or her identity besides being large. I found that sad. Plus it seemed like in other people's eyes she was an attractive woman so it seemed overdone. Also, all of the pop-culture references I found annoying.
The story line I predicted from the very begining and I'm sure many others did too. There really was no "Surprise" oh my god- as I think the Maddie-Jack-Harrison thing was supposed to be. Maddie was a horrible character (selfish, bad friend, dramatic) and I thought she was a bad part of the story. Jack was a little lame to me and his super sped-up affection and persistence was unrealistic. As knight-in-shining-armor, he fell short. The Sassy Seniors (lead character's job) was great, I personally liked that and thought it was clever and amusing.
The ending was corny & predictable. If you like this type of story (or a corny romantic comedy movie) then you will love it and think it's great. But if you enjoy a better storyline, more well-written, and better characters read "Good In Bed" it also has a larger woman lead-character but is MUCH better.
Book Description
In perhaps the most profound character portrait she has ever drawn, America's bestselling true-crime writer, Ann Rule, asks, Can the female really be deadlier than the male? In Heart Full of Lies, she answers that question in one of her most intriguing tales ever -- a riveting story of seduction, betrayal, and murder.
Liysa and Chris Northon seemed the epitome of idyllic lovers when they married on a moonlit beach in Hawaii. Their friends admired the romantic couple: Chris -- tall, athletic, handsome with a thatch of blond hair, a pilot for Hawaiian Airlines -- and Liysa -- attractive, charismatic, seductive, an acclaimed surf photographer, with a tanned, perfect body. Their son, Bjorn, looked just like his dad, and they were raising Liysa's son by a previous marriage. They had beautiful homes on the mainland and in Hawaii.
But it wasn't long before Chris saw a side of Liysa that he hadn't glimpsed before. Nothing was quite enough for her -- she wanted more money, more property, and a future that included fame as a Hollywood screenwriter. She complained to her closest friends that her husband was a heavy drinker who beat her. The marriage seemed to be unraveling, but Chris struggled to hold it together, afraid he'd be separated from Bjorn and from Liysa's son, Papako. And then the worst happened.
On a sunny morning in October 2000, Chris Northon lay dead in a sleeping bag at a campsite beside a pristine river, while his wife drove four hours to a friend's house, sobbing inconsolably. She appeared to have been beaten, and had a black eye and bruises on her knee. Was Chris's death a tragic accident or a deliberate homicide? Was Liysa involved? Questions arose that made Oregon State detectives suspicious, yet her family and friends stood staunchly by her, incredulous that anybody would ask such questions.
Ann Rule became involved with the mystery of Chris's death when one of his fellow pilots at Hawaiian Airlines contacted her, and only later did she learn that the ranking Oregon State Police investigator had thought of her to tell this bizarre story. A book that leads the reader from Hawaii to the Northwest to Hollywood, Heart Full of Lies is an extraordinary character study as well as a brilliant investigative report that will keep you enthralled to the very last page.
Download Description
In perhaps the most profound character portrait she has ever drawn, America's bestselling true-crime writer, Ann Rule, asks, Can the female really be deadlier than the male? In Heart Full of Lies, she answers that question in one of her most intriguing tales ever--a riveting story of seduction, betrayal, and murder. Liysa and Chris Northon seemed the epitome of idyllic lovers when they married on a moonlit beach in Hawaii. Their friends admired the romantic couple: Chris--tall, athletic, handsome with a thatch of blond hair, a pilot for Hawaiian Airlines -- and Liysa -- attractive, charismatic, seductive, an acclaimed surf photographer, with a tanned, perfect body. Their son, Bjorn, looked just like his dad, and they were raising Liysa's son by a previous marriage. They had beautiful homes on the mainland and in Hawaii. But it wasn't long before Chris saw a side of Liysa that he hadn't glimpsed before. Nothing was quite enough for her -- she wanted more money, more property, and a future that included fame as a Hollywood screenwriter. She complained to her closest friends that her husband was a heavy drinker who beat her. The marriage seemed to be unraveling, but Chris struggled to hold it together, afraid he'd be separated from Bjorn and from Liysa's son, Papako. And then the worst happened. On a sunny morning in October 2000, Chris Northon lay dead in a sleeping bag at a campsite beside a pristine river, while his wife drove four hours to a friend's house, sobbing inconsolably. She appeared to have been beaten, and had a black eye and bruises on her knee. Was Chris's death a tragic accident or a deliberate homicide? Was Liysa involved? Questions arose that made Oregon State detectives suspicious, yet her family and friends stood staunchly by her, incredulous that anybody would ask such questions.
Customer Reviews:
Very readable.......2007-10-05
While I would agree its not one of Ann's best works, I still found it gripping and real page-turner. This sort of stroies almost enough to make you afraid of getting involved with anyone.
Also, while it's always good advice to keep an open mind and not blindly believe everything you read, I'd say the facts in Liysa's case pretty much speak for themselves. I could start telling everyone I know that my neighbor is stealing my underwear, but unless I have this little thing called 'evidence', I'm not going to get very far with my accusations. I'm terribly sympathetic to the plight of abused spouses, but this womans claims simply stretch credibility to the breaking point. Its only a shame the judge didn't give her a longer sentence.
a manipulative murderess and her hapless hubby..........2007-09-29
It is seemingly rare, and therefore perhaps most interesting, when it is a woman/wife is the "bad guy" of the story. So often men are portrayed of brutal, mean and uncaring. However in 'Heart Full of Lies' we see that sometimes men are complete suckers and women can manipulate, lie and even resort to physical violence when they don't get what they want. When such a story is told by Ann Rule it clearly becomes an engrossing read.
In 'Heart Full of Lies' we have a young, beautiful and talented woman who thinks she can convince the world her husband is monster. For years she spins a web of deceit, and is generally successful in her efforts. Quite remarkably, it seems that all this negative energy is spurned on by not one single motive (eg, greed, jealousy) but rather by spitefulness and, no doubt, mental illness. Her husband remained remarkably tolerant of his tormentor until the very end. An unconventional marriage to say the least!
Bottom line: Ann Rule worked hard to create a balanced view of a very complicated woman and her uncomplicated yet doomed husband. Recommended.
12 Years is An Outrage!.......2007-06-23
Ann Rule is the kind of writer that could liven up a telephone book if given the opportunity. She is one of my favorite authors around even though she is mostly non-fiction. This story of a very troubled woman, Liysa Dewitt Northon who married three times and was the mother of two sons. Sadly, nothing was ever enough for her. She yearned for more than just two homes in Oregon and Hawaii. She could make her high school friends cringe with envy but there is no happy ending here. She murdered Chris Northon, a pilot with Hawaiian Airlines who had a stellar record, and claimed that he was abusive which was unfounded. Aside, Liysa was quite a talker who believed her own lies after awhile. I don't know what personality disorder she has but she is still irritating and controlling even from behind an Oregon State Prison where she is serving a 12 year sentence on manslaughter for killing her husband who was drugged and shot in his sleeping bag. She claimed it was self-defense and the murder occurred in one of Oregon's isolated mountain areas perfect for those who can commit a crime without being caught. But she runs to a friend's house and tells a story full of inaccuracies and lies but she does know the difference between truth and fiction, obviously not. Rule makes the story which would not be that interesting overall into being there in the marriage and their troubled life. Liysa was a desperate woman who wanted more than any of her husbands could give her. She had this hunger for land but loved the ocean and loved Hawaii. She wanted two homes and got it. She wanted a good husband and got him. Then when it wasn't enough to fill her, she shot him rather than divorce him. I think 12 years of a sentence for manslaughter is to light especially in this case.
Read it........2007-06-04
I had read the reviews before reading this book and I admit, I was concerned that Ann was biased as I poured through the first half of this book. However, once I got towards the middle, end, and once I read the afterward, my concerns floundered. Liysa is a phsyco who should have gone to prison for the rest of her life for what she did to ruin and end her husband's life and how she subsequently affected the lives of everyone who knew both her and her husband. Ann says Liysa wants a new trial. I hope she gets one and this time is convicted of first degree murder and spends another 25 plus years in prison. If that doesn't happen, I sincerely hope she receives some sort of psychological help while behind bars for her mental problems, before she is among the free again. Anyone who believes her claims of domestic abuse needs to think about the fact that she had multiple opportunities to get help, if not from domestic violence shelters, from one of her many friends who believed her at the time, and she chose not to. Not only that, there are many, many more instances of women who really are abused who do not resort to drugging their abusers and killing them as they lie in a helpless, drug induced slumber. Ann reported that most all of Liysa's former friends and her exhusband admit that she was the one with the problems in the marraige, not her dead husband. It is a shame that people like Liysa get away with fabricating domestic violence claims. I hope her actions do not make it more difficult for women who really are abuse victims to be believed.
I recommend you to read it and make your own judgement. It is an absorbing, fast read.
Biased? Please.......2007-02-27
Anyone who thinks this book is biased is related to that nutjob Liysa. If it seemed biased it was because she was so obviously guilty. She hopped from one man to the next, using everyone she met. The portrait of an abuser does not fit her poor husband she killed and I don't buy it for a second. What a psycho!!
Book Description
It was the golden age of eBay. Optimistic bidders went online to the world's largest flea market in droves, ready to spend cash on everything from garden gnomes to Mercedes convertibles. Among them were art collectors willing to spend big money on unseen paintings, hoping to buy valuable pieces of art at below-market prices. EBay also attracted the occasional con artist unable to resist the temptation of abusing a system that prided itself on being "based on trust." Kenneth Walton -- once a lawyer bound by the ethics of his profession to uphold the law -- was seduced by just such a con artist and, eventually, became one himself.
Ripped from the headlines of the New York Times, the first newspaper to break the story, Fake describes Walton's innocent beginnings as an online art-trading hobbyist and details the downward spiral of greed that ultimately led to his federal felony conviction. What started out as a satisfying exercise in reselling thrift store paintings for a profit in order to pay back student loans and mounting credit card debt soon became a fierce addiction to the subtle deception of luring unsuspecting bidders into overpaying for paintings of questionable origins.
In a landscape peopled with colorful eccentrics hoping to score museum-quality paintings at bargain prices, Walton entered into a partnership with Ken Fetterman, an unslick (yet somehow very effective) con man. Over the course of eighteen months they managed to take in hundreds of thousands of dollars by selling forged paintings and bidding on their own auctions to drive up the prices. When their deception was discovered and made international headlines, Walton found himself stalked by reporters and federal agents while Fetterman went on the lam, sparking a nationwide FBI manhunt. His elaborate game of cat and mouse lasted nearly three years, until the feds caught up with him after a routine traffic violation and brought him to justice.
In this sensational story of the seductive power of greed, Kenneth Walton breaks his silence for the first time and, in his own words, details the international scandal that forever changed the way eBay does business.
Customer Reviews:
something for everyone.......2007-07-09
My son picked "Fake" for our mother/son book club. The boys are sixteen; the mothers work in a variety of professional fields. No one was bored. Everyone finished the book, which is unusual. Discussion was lively and wide-ranging, even with the author present. I asked and he came!
Part of the charm of the book, the story and the man derives from our inherent hope that people can grow by surviving adversity, even self-made, or perhaps, especially self-made. Walton gives readers an engaging look at the California art scene and ebay, while allowing us to watch him decide what he will do next.
If he writes another book, I'll definitely read it.
So many lessons in one book.... where to start?.......2006-10-27
I am a high end art collector at major auctions and have looked at ebay items up for sell. So many are obviously fakes that I have written to a couple of power sellers. They immediately threatened to sue me.
However, that is not why I am writing this review. This is a story of someone who knew nothing about art but was slowly engulfed in a new world where profit opportunity was high and old rules no longer applied. The individual involved acted like a major corporation in slowly bending the rules until they no longer believed the old rules or thought they could not possible be caught.
I think the story should be read by every corporate executive in America. It shows how easy it is to justify going 65 in a 55 zone and then occasionally speeding up to 85 when you think no one cares that you are going over the speed limit.
It is also an inspirational tale. I am very impressed with the author and how he changed his life around.
I would also recommend this book to anyone buying or selling on ebay. It is unbelievable how some of the items are marketed there. Ebay is not incented to police it to the degree they should. Buyer beware. At least for sure, I can tell you the art is not what you think it is!
This is a fast read .. get it.
Tells of a hobby gone wrong and packs in all the detail and excitement of a true adventure read.......2006-08-16
In the early heyday of ebay bidders flooded the site willing to buy nearly everything - among them art collectors who hoped to buy bargains and rarities from less educated listers. FAKE describes the actions of one Kenneth Walton, a lawyer who was not only seduced by an online con artist, but who become one himself. From his initial hobby as an online art-trading hobbyist to his entry into a world of fraud and selling fakes which would lead to a federal felony conviction, FAKE: HOW ONE MAN'S CON GAME CREATED AN INTERNATIONAL SCANDAL AND TRIGGERED A NATIONWIDE FBI HUNT tells of a hobby gone wrong and packs in all the detail and excitement of a true adventure read.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
Fake: Forgery, Lies, & eBay.......2006-07-31
This is a must read.
Man! What a powerful, gripping tale of eBay manipulation in the early days. Walton shares an intimate, personal saga of eBay success and his resulting downfall.
I was reading Feinstein's Last Dance when I decided to read the first chapter of Walton's book. 4 1/2 hours later, I went back to Feinstein.
Kudos to Ken Walton!
JJ
Franklin, Tennessee
Good reading of the life of a small time white collar crimminal.......2006-07-08
8 July 2006:
Basically, I read this book in one day. It describes the exploits of Ken Walton, how he was able to sell art on eBay using dishonest means that were not policed by eBay. The addiction eventually lured him to forge one art work, and it is this piece that he did well to market it in the best possible light and resulted in a bidding war that caught the nation's attention. Therein lies his problems, because the winning bid was so much higher than other stuff he sold in the past, the media attention eventually shone the light on his other activities that he would have preferred to keep quite.
I am not a art person, so all the names and styles of art he wrote about in the book are a mystery to me. However, I do participate in eBay every once and a while, and that alone made the book an interesting read. The book casts FBI agents involved in better light than most other books, even though it is written from the point of view of a person who is being prosecuted, perhaps because the author was doing everything in his power to avoid jail time. Other impressions I get is how vindictive eBay can be, and how persistent reporters are in their quest to write a story. And, I am also impressed that he still manage to milk some non-trivial amount money out of his software company - but his software appeared to be a good one. The Internet Revolution does really support a lot of businesses.
Overall, this is a good book written from a personal first-person experience. Once read, though, I think I will forget most of it in a few years' time.
Book Description
The true story of the biggest and most complicated intelligence operation in the history of warfare. (SEE QUOTE.)
Customer Reviews:
The book now reissued - retitled, and is it the same?.......2005-02-16
The new and warranted reinterest in World War II, and D-Day specifically has given this book new life. What I am wondering is whether or not the content has been changed, Not an easy read back in 1975 when Anthony Cave Brown first slogged through the newly declassified material which help to make this book fascinating, I am tempted to wager that some things have been re-written. Only a guess of course. This could also be a good thing, as in the case of Pearl Harbor, where after 1995 declassification documents were used to prove ("Day Of Deceit by Mr. Stinnett) that the attack was not, in fact, a complete suprise. Seeing that the original was out-of-print I suppose that this is a welcome development to have a new edition, retitled or no. 30 years is a good long time - and perhaps more information is included while staying true to the "old" edition.
Truth, in this case, is more than stranger than fiction.......2003-09-03
"Bodyguard Of Lies" is one of the most compelling and important reads out there. Lovers of Clancy novels should put them away for a year and concentrate on some of the most real bizarre, yet important, machinations of espionage and counter-espionage ever created and implemented. What gives this phenomenal work its incredible allure is the knowledge that these creations of historical intelligence import occored only a little more than a half-decade ago. The book takes its title from Winston Churchill's remark regarding the crucial role of good intelligence, where he stated, "In war-time, truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies." Using for his research information that had only been de-classified the previous year (1975), Anthony Cave Brown takes us through the minefield that was "Ultra", the Allies means of reading the secret ciphers of the Third Reich. "Ultra" was of such devastating importance that the entire city of Coventry was sacrificed in order to keep secret the fact that the Allies had, early on in the war, broken the German "Enigma" ciphers. This top secret cipher would time and time again put vital information directly into the hands of the Allies. It is safe to say that "Ultra" may have been the difference between victory and defeat. Brown also details what can only be referred to as the most convoluted espionage and counter-espionage schemes that only the minds of men at war for the highest stakes ever perceived could conceive of. In one instance, a false 'cadaver' was planted in an apparant shipwreck, replete with false identity papers, false obituary, false love letters, fake funeral, and, more importantly, false maps and information intended to persuade the enemy that they had stumbled upon ACTUAL information, and act accordingly. Brown relates other tales - some quite unsavory on both sides - for instance, Allied baiting of French resistance in order to convince the enemy of the plausibility of invasion (or non-invasion, as the case warrented) at a given place or time. Agents were sometimes dropped into situations where their 'handlers' knew that cover had been blown or compromised...all done to keep a certain game afloat or a certain secret intact. Perhaps the most interesting revelations, for me, in the book came from the 'dangling' of certain German Generals and Intelligence officials who were not simply sympathetic to the Allies, but in many cases actually working against Hitler and taking incredible, traitorous risks to help defeat him (the Schwarze Kapelle, or, in English, the Black Orchestra). Abwehr head Wilhelm Canaris is studied in depth, and his behavior, not to mention his persona alone may be one of the deepest level secrets of the Second World War. Churchill is again quoted at the start of the section on 'Special Means', "In the high ranges of Secret Service work the actual facts in many cases were in every respect equal to the most fantastic inventions of romance and melodrama. Tangle within tangle, plot and counter-plot, ruse and treachery, cross and double-cross, true agent, false agent, double agent...were interwoven in many a texture so intricate as to be incredible and yet true. The Chief and the High Officers of the Secret Service revelled in these subterranean labyrinths, and pursued their task with cold and silent passion." This book will leave you relieved that men like Churchill, Sir Stewart Menzies, Alan Turing and the like were on the side of the Allies. The book may also leave some disturbed concerning what deep levels of intregue - double, triple, even quadruple-cross - can be invoked when men, and women, are convinced that they are fighting on the side of right against what they are sure is the side of wrong.
Incredible, but true.......2003-06-27
An accumulation of some of the most stimulating and exhaustively-researched details on the intel and counter-intel during WWII, particualrly surrounding D-Day. Truly amazing events chronicled extremely well; even after these many years since the book was first published, Cove-Brown's work stands out.
The book on intelligence operations during World War II.......2002-09-26
This is an extremely detailed book on Allied (mainly British) deception operations during World War II. While it was written in 1976 it still hold up well, though some new information on the role of GCHQ and signals intelligence has been released since 1976. I am still amazed at the scope of operations the British ran during World War II. A very well written book, though it is by know means a quick read. It took me almost a month to get through it. If you are keenly interested in intelligence operations try to track down this book.
Bodyguard of Lies.......2002-09-17
One of the most fascinating behind-the-scenes stories of how the fate of World War II hung in the balance which was tipped ultimately by seemingly inconsequential actions. A real page turner of little known facts..................................the reader will have a hard time setting it down
Book Description
As a reward for testimony that helped to convict over one hundred criminals, career felon George "Bud" Taylor was put into the Federal Witness Security Program (WITSEC). This is his shocking, fist-person account of a federally sanctioned bureaucratic monster running amok as it provides the scum of the earth with proection, privelege... and, sometimes, a new license to rob, rape, and kill.
Customer Reviews:
THE LIARS COLONY.......2003-11-01
I think you'll agree in this book that these "snitches" should have wound up in ditches!One who goes by the name "squeegie" (his picture is in the book)...BIG LIAR!He simply wanted to be in the fed protection program so he made up this elaborate story about a friend of mine and testified in court that got my friend "the chair".He is a MURDERER,if you ask me.People like this always wind up back stabbing when their heads are on the chopping board,as my now "sentenced to die" friend says.No telling how many innocent folks he has killed and will kill.Pretty good book though if you like fiction.
LIARS CLUB.......1999-01-11
Although the stories of other inmates were extremly interesting, I cannot help getting the impression that Mr. Taylor was lieing about his own accounts. He periodically put other inmates down saying they were not strong, cool, or street wise as he was, yet everyone else seem to have a better deal than he did. My oppinion of Taylor is, assuming all the stories are true in his book, that he is bitter and is putting down the system that probably saved his life. Even though no one knows for sure, I classify this book fiction. Sorry.
Book Description
Some true lies of a drama queen:
My name is Elle Medina.
(Absolutely true!)
I'm a professional psychic.
(Completely accurate. Except for the "professional" part . . . and the "psychic" part.)
I'm planning my best friend's wedding.
(Maya only thinks she's planning it.)
I'm a serious journalist.
(I cover crystal therapy for the local weekly rag.)
I live with my boyfriend, Merrick.
(I'm pretty sure he's still my boyfriend.)
She may be lovely and talented but Elle Medina's phone psychic business is sputtering, her boyfriend thinks she's attending graduate school (not exactly) and she's about to ruin her best friend's wedding. Things can't get worse. Can they?
Of course they can. (For example, her little striptease is currently playing on the Internet.)
Join Elle as she seeks out the culprit responsible for her unexpected unclothes star turn, strenuously avoids higher learning and discovers that coming of age is not a destination, but a journey . . . and she's having a hard time staying on the road.
Customer Reviews:
Fun, easy read and likeable characters.......2007-03-21
Loved this sequel to Tales of a Drama Queen. I couldn't wait to read this one. Lee Nichols is so easy to read because she makes you laugh and creates likable characters that you want to root for. I wish there were more to these two sequels!
Pick up both copies if you are looking for a good summer book, or a good read while at work! You wont want to put it down, I promise!
Pure entertainment.......2006-10-09
Both of Lee Nichols Drama Queen books are a lot fun. Light and fluffy with a great spacy main character. I love the silly drama, the crazy mishaps and of course the happy endings. The quirkiness of these novels is what makes them so great.
Great Beach Reading.......2006-07-24
I bought this for some light beach reading and absolutely LOVED it. I haven't read the first (store didn't have it) but it didn't matter. Easy to pick up on the plot. I will definitely be getting the first in series.
True Lies Of A Drama Queen .......2006-07-24
I loved it! The main character was great!
Chick Lit.......2006-06-15
I'm a big fan of Lee Nichols and love the fact that she's based 3 books in Santa Barbara, CA (where I am). I loved this story, which is a sequel to 'Tales of a Drama Queen'. Elle is a funny character and I can relate to her in a lot of ways. However, the thing which got on my nerves was how Goleta kept being put down throughout the book and was portrayed to be some slimey gross place. Since I live in the area, and grew up in Goleta, I know this isn't the case. I'd at least have expected things to be told how they are, even though this is a work of fiction.
Average customer rating:
- Not for children, but recomended for other reasons.
- Not as gripping as the adult account
- True Lies
- A Great Book
- I LOVED THIS BOOK
|
The Big Lie: A True Story
Isabella Leitner
Manufacturer: Scholastic Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: School & Library Binding
 General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Jewish | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Europe | History & Historical Fiction | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
General | History & Historical Fiction | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
General | Ages 9-12 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Holocaust | Jewish | World | History | Subjects | Books
Holocaust | History & Historical Fiction | Teens | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:
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Isabella: From Auschwitz to Freedom
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The Cage
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Four Perfect Pebbles: : A Holocaust Story
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Erika's Story
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Terrible Things: An Allegory of the Holocaust
ASIN: 0590455699 |
Customer Reviews:
Not for children, but recomended for other reasons........2006-03-07
I read this book in 1992, as a third grader when it was first published. I will state what other reviewers have...this book is NOT suitable for children under the age of 12. It gave me nightmares and for years, I had been terrified of taking showers probably since the gas chambers as described in this book sound like the shower stalls that we use each and every day, something that would scare a young child. No child should have to go through being that terrified due to reading a book marketed for children.
On the other hand, the information in this book combined with that in Mrs. Leitner's other books forms an interesting true story of a family trapped during the Holocaust in Hungary. I recommend this book soley for that reason alone.
Not as gripping as the adult account.......2004-07-09
I got this book because I was interested in the childrens' version of the most haunting book I've ever read. It's unfair to compare this with the longer adult memoirs, but many things which make Isabella's adult memoirs so unforgettable and haunting are missing here. On the one hand, here the story starts on 20 March 1944, the day after Hungary is invaded by the Nazis, and the adult version begins on 28 May 1944, Isabella's birthday, the day before they're deported. So here we get to find out about what life was like for the Katz family under Nazi occupation, their move into the ghetto, and some of their neighbours who were thrown into the ghetto with them. We didn't get any of that information in the adult version. Though surprisingly there are some graphic things in here which were left out of the adult version, things which might give the intended audience, children, nightmares. We get much more detail here about the death train and their march towards it, for example, and how one night Mengele shot at Isabella and her three remaning sisters but missed in the dark. The adult version also never mentions how at first Isabella's two older sisters had to hold her nose and force the soup down her throat in the camp, since it looked and smelt terrible and she didn't want to eat it. And what was originally 'Saving the Fragments,' the three sisters' journey from liberation to America, barely gets any coverage in here. That book, later parts two and three of the combination of the two books, is a wonderful account of their return to life, their delight in how the Nazis didn't snuff out all love, hope, and life. The childrens' version also doesn't tell how they were joined in the house they escaped to by three Polish women, and they hid there for three days before the Russians liberated them; they weren't liberated right away after they ran into the house and began eating.
With only 79 pages of large print (including an afterward on the history behind the story), this doesn't come even close to conveying what the adult account does. Here I barely get any sense of the incredible bond of love, loyalty, and survival shared by the four, later three, sisters. It becomes merely another Holocaust account, supposedly watered down for children but also including some details which other reviewers have agreed aren't age-appropriate for someone of the intended audience. Some of the things that happen in the adult book are also changed here, probably to make children feel more comfortable-in the adult version, Isabella and her sister Chicha lose sight of the other members of their family when the cattle car opens, too busy looking for their cigarettes, and don't see or speak to their mother or youngest sister ever again. They don't find their other two sisters till they've had their heads shaved already. And from reading the adult book, we know it's possible the baby sister was burnt alive instead of gassed with the mother.
There are better and more age-appropriate books to start with for children, if they must read about this at all before the age of ten, but it still gets the Katz sisters' story across, even in a watered-down and edited format.
True Lies.......2002-05-07
The Big Lie explores the lies told by the Nazis and their takeover of Poland and Hungary. A biographical story of (at the time) a young woman thrown into cattle cars and taken to Auschwitz, this book gives a chilling look at the atrocities done to the Jewish people during the Jewish Holocaust. However, most adults have heard all of this before. There are better books on the subject out there and this one failed to have any sort of a personal grab. Because the girl was older than Anne Frank was, most children will not be able to identify with her as much. I don't want to be offensive in saying this either, but... it does tend to portray Jews as victims throughout - and the ONLY victims of such treatment, which is not true.
The subject material may be too much for younger readers. Despite the short length of the book, which can be deceiving when deciding on its difficulty, I would not suggest this book be used with children younger than 6th grade due to its graphic depictions. Children younger than that would most likely not be able to treat the story in a serious enough fashion that it deserves.
Why 4 stars?:
The book is graphic, and short. It should not be used with children in the elementary grades despite its appealing length. The story fails to grab the reader in a significant and so becomes just another retelling of a familiar account.
A Great Book.......2002-03-07
This story takes place in the Holocaust in Germany. This story is in the 1940's. At the beginning of the story, Nazi's gave strict orders to the Jews like every Jew has to be inside at 7:00PM. At the middle of the story, the Nazi's took all the Jews to a camp. The main characters in the story are Potyo, Chicha, Regina, and Isabella.
I thought this was a good book. I thought this was a good book because it makes you feel like you are in the Holocaust. This book has real people because it was a true story.
This book makes you feel like you are in the Holocaust because it is writen in first person. This book will make you depressed or saddened because Isabella Leitner was actually in the Holocaust.
I LOVED THIS BOOK.......1999-03-12
To tell you the truth this was my favorite book i have ever read. Being a jew myself i could relate to some of the book
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