Average customer rating:
- Interesting look at social policy.
- Must Read!!
- An immensely moving, informative, entertaining book
- More than a 'policy' book
- Did Welfare Reform Work?
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American Dream: Three Women, Ten Kids, and a Nation's Drive to End Welfare
Jason DeParle
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 General | Poverty | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Social Services & Welfare | Poverty | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0143034375 |
Amazon.com
More than a decade after presidential candidate Bill Clinton floated the idea of ending "welfare as we know it," the changes to the system have become so accepted and entrenched that it is difficult to remember the heated controversy surrounding the issue of reform. Jason DeParle, a social policy reporter for The New York Times, forcefully brings the subject to life in American Dream, a moving and informed examination of the challenges, complexities, successes, and failures involved in fixing our nation's ailing welfare system. Tracing the lives of three women and their children as legislative changes are pushed through Washington and the state of Wisconsin, DeParle puts an extraordinarily human face on a subject that is too often prone to ideological oversimplification. As DeParle adeptly shows, their story "of adversity variously overcome, compounded, or merely endured ... embodies the story of welfare writ large."
The three compelling women at the heart of DeParle's narrative are vastly different temperamentally, yet they share the abstract qualities of strength and endurance, as well as extended family ties. DeParle paints their portraits with respect and sensitivity, and he provides a marvelous family history that reveals how "the story of welfare" is painfully "tangled in the story of race." Our glimpse at these difficult lives and the forces that profoundly shape them inspire an equal measure of hope and disappointment, and a large measure of outrage. As these remarkably resilient women struggle to raise their families, corruption is exposed in the very offices charged with implementing the newly adopted reforms. DeParle accepts that removing nine million women and children from the welfare rolls represents enormous progress. However, he simultaneously recognizes that we are dismally failing to confront a consequence of welfare reform: a new class of working poor. --Silvana Tropea
Book Description
In this definitive work, two-time Pulitzer finalist Jason DeParle cuts between the mean streets of Milwaukee and the corridors of Washington to produce a masterpiece of literary journalism. At the heart of the story are three cousins whose different lives follow similar trajectories. Leaving welfare, Angie puts her heart in her work. Jewell bets on an imprisoned man. Opal guards a tragic secret that threatens her kids and her life. DeParle traces their family history back six generations to slavery and weaves poor people, politicians, reformers, and rogues into a spellbinding epic.
With a vivid sense of humanity, DeParle demonstrates that although we live in a country where anyone can make it, generation after generation some families don't. To read American Dream is to understand why.
Customer Reviews:
Interesting look at social policy........2007-09-07
I found this to be a page turner. The book is actual history that reads like fiction. There is a fair amount of repitition that bogged the story down a bit but I still recommend it.
Must Read!!.......2007-01-22
I have to read this book for my Social Welfare Policy class but I can't put it down! The writer is incredibly engaging even when talking about all the backstage drama surrounding the 1996 welfare bill, which I think is a huge accomplishment of and in itself. It is a great blend of legislative history making AND seeing the effects on the welfare recipients.
An immensely moving, informative, entertaining book.......2006-11-10
I really loved this book. Its a very quick read and its also extremely informative. You will learn so much about what its like to live in poverty in the US. It also details the history of welfare in America, how it was changed, and where it stands now. The book is no liberal propaganda either. The NY Times reporter who wrote the book comes to some very surprising, often conservative-leaning conclusions. You will be amazed at what he found and often moved to tears by the stories of the three women. An absolutely essential read.
More than a 'policy' book.......2006-10-20
A friend recommended this book. I picked it up, expecting it to be hard to read (public policy books usually are), but this was nothing like that because the author shapes the story around the lives of real people, including 3 women in Milwaukee who have been receiving public assistance. What amazed me, after reading the book, was how little changed in their lives even when 'welfare as we know it' ended. Two of them became steady workers, for the most part, but they were still poor, still struggling to buy food and pay the utilities, and still had troubles with the men in their lives.
Did Welfare Reform Work?.......2006-09-05
I still do not know. The women in the book seemed to find a way of providing for their kids when there was a welfare system or when there was not. When tragedy or personal irresponsibility struck one of these women somehow a freind or relation took up responsibilty for the kids. This is a realistice portrait of drugs, poverty, crime, and working the system in the ghetto. How much and what should we give the poor to take care of themselves and establish their independence--never-ending question. I also have to wonder after reading this if every man in the ghetto is a hustler or loser.
Book Description
Make it happen!
That's what shy secretary Eleanor Perrie was determined to do! She was fed up with Curry Matherson's treatment of her. His nontreatment, that is. Her tall, dark Texan boss -- the man who consumed her every thought -- barely even looked at her. It was a situation that called for drastic measures. It was a situation that called for . . . a makeover! Gone were the prim-and-proper outfits, the owlish glasses, the demure hairdo . . . Out came the stylish dresses, and down came the hair! Curry was stunned. Was this fabulous, sexy vision really Eleanor?
Customer Reviews:
Dream on..........2007-03-08
I realize this is one of Diana Palmer's older books, but the relationship between secretary Eleanor and ranch owner Curry bothered me. He was incredibly verbally abusive to her and she just took it and excused it. In the 2007 era the way Curry treated Eleanor would be verbally and emotionally abusive. So I guess based on that perspective I found myself asking myself why any woman in her sane mind would have stuck around to endure two weeks (her notice) of his actions. This was not what I would term a healthy relationship. I realize the author is getting from A to Z in the relationship in 200 plus pages, but puh-leez, can't we allow the female lead more dignity than to think so little of herself that she would put up with someone like this? But police, social workers and the like have been dealing with abused women and their refusal to leave an abusive relationship for decades--guess this is why Eleanor stayed. She loved him and was willing to endure his treatment of her.
Great read.......2007-02-14
I love Diana Palmer - she's a great author. Would recommend this book.
So-so.......2004-08-09
This is one of Palmer's tamer stories, so if you are looking for her usual taut sexual tension and loving consumation, you'll have to look elsewhere. Try "Lionhearted", "Evan" or "Lawless" instead.
Great Read.......2004-07-30
I loved this book, I started reading this one and couldn't put it down. I love when a book grabs me into the story and this one definitely did. I have reread this book many times, and have not gotten tired of it yet. :)
Couldn't put it down!.......2004-04-19
This was my first book by Diana Palmer and it will not be my last. I started reading Dream's End right before I was going to go to sleep a couple of night's ago and I couldn't stop reading until I was through! The story draws you in and keeps you hooked with every turn of the page. Palmer has a gift for telling stories that pulls you into the pages of her books. Right after I read this book, I went out the next day and bought 8 more Diana Palmer books.
Book Description
Once upon a time
there was a grown-up
looking for a book
with very short bedtime stories
for a kid who wouldn't go to sleep.
So the grown-up picked up this book
and read this flap
and took the book home
and read it out loud
and they both laughed
and fell fast asleep
fast.
Just like you.
The end.
Customer Reviews:
Kloske just told our secret.......2007-06-04
This book was a gift and now I am giving it to everyone I know with young children. Kloske has definitely been there--all those nights we parents cut out a few words from a story to get to sleep that much sooner--if the book weren't so funny, I'd feel like he told our secret. This book is hysterical. Our six year old gets the humor and the younger children love the stories. Now "are you asleep yet?" is a nighttime family catch phrase. It's well worth every penny.
Not what I was hoping for.......2007-02-09
I thought this would have short, cute fairy tales... instead I found "humorously" edited versions to abbreviate well-known fairy tales. Not really what I had in mind to read to the kids in the family. They didn't quite understand the humor.
fun for parents but not as fun for kids.......2007-01-17
I could totally relate to the underlying theme of this book so I bought it for our 4-year old because it sounded fun. While I can appreciate the humor, it doesn't keep his attention.
WONDERFUL! .......2007-01-09
This is such a charming, fun and happy book. My children (2 and 4) giggle all the through the book.
We love it so much, I have purchased more for gifts. So many wonderful bed time stories with such a clever twist!
Once Upon A Time.......2006-07-14
The shipping was prompt but the book was wrapped so tightly it was broken.
Book Description
I don't know how this happened
One day I'm snug in my loner existence at Carnegie Mansion School, and the next I'm tramping through the Scottish wilderness looking for my dad. Who's been kidnapped. Because of a feud that started in medieval times. Or something. Suffice it to say, I never paid too much attention because I thought the whole thing was some twisted figment of my dad's imagination.
Now my only company is a wannabe cop who just might be my superhero dream girl. And if I don't deliver some piece of mysterious "proof" to the kidnappers, my dad is toast. I've got my fair share of issues with my dad, but I don't really want to see him burned to a crisp.
Anyway, you in?
This is not the first time I've been wrong about something.
Customer Reviews:
Unexpectedly Amusing.......2007-06-14
Drawing a Blank by Daniel Ehrenhaft is a surprisingly enjoyable read. The main character, Carlton Dunne the IV, is an introverted graphic artist. Carlton has drawn forever as a way to escape the world around him. His eccentric father, Carlton Dunne the III, is obsessed with a legendary family fued that dates back to 13th century Scotland. This fast-paced read combines all the elements of a good book. The intriguing mystery surrounding his father's kidnapping, the fictional fued whose proof of existance appears in unexpected places, and Carlton's psychotic but fun partner makes this book all that more delightful. The comics dispersed throughout this book add more pleasure and wit to this novel than the text alone. The humor, intrigue, and charm of this novel will enchant readers from the first page to the final picture, anyone will enjoy Drawing a Blank.
it has cartoons!.......2007-05-27
This book has a lot going for it. The story (as the full title explains) follows Carlton Dunne IV as he tries to rescue his father who is embroiled in an age-old family feud with another Scottish clan. In the process, Carlton runs away from his boarding school, visits the comic con from hell, meets a crazy girl who wants to be on "Cops" and continues working on his comic strip that runs in a local paper. As you might have guessed, Carlton wears many hats.
The story is exciting and includes comic strips between chapters throughout the novel. Carlton is also a really fun character, likeably neurotic he brings to mind the protagonist of the Wessex Papers--a trilogy that Ehrenhaft wrote under the pen name of Daniel Parker.
Although the book is a significant length, the chapters are short--averaging about three pages at a run. This is good because you can read them quickly. On the other hand, Ehrenhaft's preference to end chapters on a cliff hanger becomes redundant after the eightieth time.
The story takes a while to get to the action, a fact Carlton himself acknowledges early on, but the time is well-spent introducing memorable characters and explaining Carlton's personal history.
A definite must read for any comic fans :)
An ok beggining to a real good book.......2007-04-12
Drawing a Blank was about how this young, cartoon aritist goes on this journey to Scotland because his father was kidnapped. Hid Dad's family has gone way back with this rival clan about how their two families fought for Agricola's Dagger. Carlton also met the love of his life throughout his journey.
My favorite part of the book was when Carlton went to Comic Expo in place of his father. Carlton wrote comics for this newspaper and said that his Dad made them. Carlton's Dad had no clue about writing comics and his boss invited him to Comic Expo. Carlotn went in his place and saw some very interesting people. I think it was funny because his Dad had no clue about Carlton's job writing comics. Overall that was my favorite part in the book.
I deffinetly recommend this book. I thought this book was really good. The beginning of it wasn't that good but the end was awesome. The beginning was kind of boring but the end sure wasn't. This book showed me that nothing is impossible. Carlton Solved a Mystery, Ended a Feud, and Landed the Girl of his Dreams all in one adventure. He wasn't even one of the popular kids, he was just a kid at a private school that sat in his dorm and created comics. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a funny book with a great storyline and message.
Courtesy of Teens Read Too.......2006-11-02
How does one describe Carlton Dunne IV? Here's how I think he would describe himself:
*Comic book geek
*Trust fund kid
*Loner
*Incapable of being attentive or focused
*Afraid of people
*VERY afraid of female people
*Non-adventurous
*Off-spring of a nutcase
Unfortunately, his dad might not be crazy. Carlton's grown up hearing about some ridiculous, centuries-old feud with some guy in Scotland. He's always just assumed it was his father's insanity, but now his dad is missing, and Carlton's getting really weird phone calls. So, the guy who's scared of people is about to be forced to deal with a whole bunch of them that he's never met before. One of those people might be a dangerous lunatic who is holding his father hostage, one of them is definitely the prettiest girl Carlton's ever seen, and he's also about to have the adventure of a lifetime.
Let me start by confessing I'm not a comic book fan. When I opened the book and I saw a comic strip, I groaned out loud. See, one of Carlton's quirks, of which there are quite a few, is that he draws comic strips when he's unhappy or uncomfortable. He kind of re-draws his circumstances. But I made myself sit down and start reading. Carlton also makes random comments in footnote form. I like random comments, and that's what I always thought footnotes should be used for anyway, so the book started to grow on me. A lot of the footnotes actually contain useful and interesting information, as well. He also continuously gives birth and death dates, which I didn't quite get, but still found amusing. I really started to like Carlton, and his book. By the end I had laughed out loud, in public no less, quite a few times. And I'm not saying I'm ready to go to ComicCon or anything, but I have a newfound appreciation for comics.
Reviewed by: Carrie Spellman
Fun read!.......2006-05-02
Subtitled: Drawing a Blank: Or How I tried to Solve a Mystery, End a
Feud, and Land the Girl of My Dreams
Told through the eyes of 17-year-old Carleton Duane (the IV), the story takes us from a boarding school in upstate Connecticut, to New York City, to Scotland.
Carleton is a rather reserved teen who has been sent to a ritzy boarding school. He is artistic and spends time in class doodling and drawing his comics (which are printed in the local paper under his father's name--whom the editor to believes he is).
Carleton's life is thrown into chaos when he receives a late night phone call from Scotland telling him that his father has been kidnapped, and the only way to free him is to bring the "proof" of this age-old feud between two Scottish clans. The problem: Carleton believes his father was nuts, that the feud was made up. He has no idea what the "proof" required is. What follows is a wacky tale of Carleton's travels to try and rescue his father.
Carleton sneaks out of school to go home to New York City, usetting off a panic about his disappearance. His apartment was ransacked by someone else looking for the "proof" his mysterious caller had mentioned. A very strange last will and testament written by his father years earlier (which refers to the feud but does not explain it at all) was in his father's desk drawer usually kept locked. He flies to Scotland, and is almost run over by a van. A girl, who might not be what or whom she seems to be, rescues him.
Author Daniel Ehrenhaft and artist Trevor Ristow have collaborated to make an intently humorous story. Ehrenhaft's delightful tale is punctuated with Ristow's drawings that illustrate how Carleton looses himself in his drawing and uses his comics to explore his emotions at the time of drawing. While not a graphic novel, but fiction with inserted illustrated comic pages scattered throughout the book, it might also interest fans of the graphic novel genre.
Armchair Interviews says: Readers will have a fun time reading about Carleton's travels; finding out how he manages to solve the kidnapping mystery; end a feud that has lasted generations; and find the time to meet the girl of his
dreams.
Book Description
AS SEEN ON 48 HOURS -- AN EXPLOSIVE ACCOUNT OF LETHAL GREED AND TWISTED DESIRE, FROM THE FILES OF AMERICA'S #1 TRUE CRIME WRITER, ANN RULE
They were best friends, four talented and charismatic young men who lived charmed lives among the evergreens of Washington state: Kevin, the artist; Steve, the sculptor; Scott, the nature lover and unabashed ladies' man; and Mark, the musician and poet. With their stunning good looks, whip-sharp minds, athletic bodies -- and no lack of women who adored them -- none of them seemed slated for disaster.
But few knew the reality behind the leafy screen that surrounded Seven Cedars, Scott's woodland dream home -- a tree house equipped with every luxury. From this idyllic enclave, some of these trusted friends would become the quarry for a vigilant Seattle police detective and an FBI special agent, who unmasked clues to disturbing secrets that spawned murder, suicide, million-dollar bank robberies, drug-dealing, and heartbreaking betrayal. When the end came in a violent stand-off, the ringleader of the foursome -- the fugitive dubbed "Hollywood" for his ingenious disguises and flawless getaways; the persuasive talker who turned his friends into accomplices -- faced a final chapter no one could have predicted. In a blast of automatic gunfire, the highest and lowest motives of the human heart were, at last, revealed.
Along with four other true-crime tales, The End of the Dream is a masterful and compelling tour of the criminal mind from Ann Rule.
Customer Reviews:
The End of the Dream.......2007-06-27
I couldn't put this book down as I couldn't wait to find out what happened next and whose life Scott was going touch - be it in a good or bad way. I got really caught up in the brothers' story as well and felt compassion for them, even though one was an accompliace to Scott's bank robbing frenzy. A really interesting read.
Some new ideas about this lovey dovey book........2007-06-15
I found "The End of the Dream" to be one of Ann Rule's least interesting stories, because she dragged out a 25-page biography into a bloated 432-page sob story about a golden boy who done wrong.
Ann Rule, a former policewoman usually writes compassionately about crime victims, but this time she is half in love with the perp. She says, "As an author who never knew him, I found myself delaying the time when I had to write the end of Scott Scurlock's story...I didn't want him to die."
She certainly succeeded in her delaying tactics, but whether her readers will want to follow her to the end on Thanksgiving Day, 1996---speaking for myself, I can't believe I read the whole thing.
Some of the delaying tactics Rule used:
* Interviewed everyone who came into contact with Scott, and told their life stories, too.
* Included the biographies of the policeman and FBI agent who were instrumental in putting a stop to Scott's string of bank robberies.
* Interviewed the policemen's wives and colleagues, bank tellers, etc.
* Repeated herself over and over again about how beautiful and strong Scott was, how proud he was of his body, and how he could have been a movie star if only he had applied himself. There's a nude photo of Scott doing press-ups in a chair. You can judge for yourself.
Oh well, this book also includes three more cases from the author's early days as a true crime writer: "The Peeping Tom;" "The Girl Who Fell in Love with Her Killer;" and "The Least Likely Suspect." They at least are worth reading.
Never-Fail Rule does it again!.......2007-04-04
You can rely upon Ann Rule as surely as anything in this world...she always comes thru. Makes you see the victim(s), the criminals, and most particularly the investigators as clearly as your closest friend. Her books are engrossing, real and you come away fully satisfied with all your questions answered. What more could one ask of an author?
Scott Had It Made!.......2006-11-12
Scott Scurlock lived a good life in a treehouse in Olympia, Washington, as a handsome young man who had hair like Charles Manson. It was an architectural marvel, like a real cabin in the sky. He loved to stand atop a mountain where he felt close to God. When I went to Oneida, I felt that I could reach up and touch the sky, that it was the closest thing to Heaven on earth. But Scott was a playboy who lived the drug style of life and didn't have time to think about Heaven and Hell.
His name was in the papers constantly but the only clipping he saved was the feature showing the interior of his fabulous treehouse. He ived the good life, for a while. But he made headlines again on November 30, 1996, in The Seattle Times as the Hollywood bank robber. He was handsome enough to be an actor, that's true. He's had it made in the late'80s and early '90s with good friends like Scott, Mark and Steve (the later two were fathers of daughters) whom he rooked into a world of crime.
Scott was the perrential male who didn't want to grow up -- the the fellows in the move, 'Without A Paddle" also involving a spectacular tree house. Unlike most who chose Peter Pan, Scott pretended to be Robin Hood and had the illustration of said bandit tacked up over his bed in the treehouse.
Ann Rule is a master at explaining the intracicies of real crime in a manner which reads like fiction and is easy to understand. I have endorsed many of her real-crime books. This one also included 'An Unlikely Suspect,' 'The Girl Who Fell in Love with her Killer' and 'The Peeping Tom.' None of us are safe anymore for average or unstanding-looking males. And yet, there are women just as evil. She is the best storyteller to inform us of the most accomplished.
Engrossing,hard to put down!!.......2006-10-20
I first heard of this story watching the Court TV? Channel. It was hosted by Bill Kurtis of Investigative Reports fame. After hearing the entire story I was prompted to read what I did not learn in the two-hour segment Court TV presented me with. Here was a man so 'caught up' in having a lavish lifestyle that he successfully robbed banks, pocketing an estimated 2.5 million dollars! The story was so well-written that the characters literally come to life. I highly recommend this book.
Amazon.com
The most scrupulous of the recent spate of books on the Titanic disaster, Wyn Craig Wade's book relies on survivors' accounts to establish some startling facts, including that almost two-thirds of the first-class passengers survived while only a quarter of the steerage passengers made it to safety. And that those in the lifeboats chose to ignore the piteous cries of passengers in the water, almost all of whom perished. This chilling account demonstrates that the Titanic's sinking was in many ways entirely avoidable.
Customer Reviews:
Fills A Gap in the Titanic Literature.......2002-12-01
The major emphasis of the book is the United States Senate investigation into the wreck of the R.M.S. Titanic and focuses on the efforts of Senator William Alden Smith (R-Mich.), who chaired the investigative subcommittee. The book describes the thoroughness and determination of Senator Smith as he conducted the investigation and goes to great lengths to demonstrate that the United States investigation was equal to or better than the one conducted in the United Kingdom.
The major flaw in the book is its attempt to do double duty as a biography of Senator Smith. The book also contains minor factual errors that could have been weeded out by more careful proof-reading.
US Senate inquiry into Titanic sinking.......2000-05-27
This book provides an excellent review of the Titanic sinking, with the main focus being the U.S. Senate inquiry into the disaster led by Senator Smith of Michigan. There is general background information on the Titanic itself, passengers, etc, however most of the information presented is based on the Senate inquiry. Actual selected transcripts of witnesses are reproduced, and one gets the flavor of this inquiry (the entire transcript is much too long for one book) and the times it was performed in. This book presents quite a lot of information and background, especially on the times and the social climate in which this disaster took place. The social impact of the disaster is also examined by the Author in some depth. This book is a must have for all who are interested in this subject, however keeping in mind that the main focus is the U.S. Senate inquiry. Readers who are interested in other aspects would enjoy, Walter Lord's "A Night to Remember" "The Night Lives On", and Dr Robert Ballard's book on the search for the Titanic. There are also reprints of books written by Titanic surviors also available. Again, an interesting book on the times, social climate, and Senate inquiry that will probably inspire further reading on this subject.
Biased but excellent.......2000-04-27
Years ago, this was the first Titanic book I ever read, and it had an incredible influence on me. End of a Dream is a wonderfully-researched, wonderfully-written account of the aftermath, a fascinating subject given only a few pages in every other Titanic book I know of. However, it does have its flaws. I don't believe that Wade gives too much credit to Senator Smith, but I do think that in promoting his hero's place in history, he neglects some aspects of the story. For example, he pays too little attention to an area of the inquiry that raised many voices in 1912 -the question of whether news of the disaster had been covered up- as well as Philip Franklin, the major figure in that controversy. Franklin played a part in the inquiry almost as great as that of his employer Ismay, but he is a made minor figure in Wade's drama, as well as a rather ridiculous one. (He also gets his first name misspelled.) I don't mean to be over-critical of Wade, whose book was a landmark in Titanic study and remains one of the two best works on the subject today, but I do think that in order to increase the light shining on Smith he may have dimmed those shining on the equally interesting people around him. His book could have also benefited from a more appropriate title and cover blurb.
Excellent Reading.......2000-02-03
There is much information about this terrible tragedy now known due to the discovery of the Titanic and the new film.Most of this book revolves around what happened after the ship sank. William Alden Smith,a Senator from Michigan took much of the responsibility to find out exactly what happened that awful night.This is a lot of this book's content. We thank this great man for his efforts and worth reading.Mr Wade did a wonderful job.(VLS)
R/M.S. TITANIC.......2000-01-18
I have the original first editoin of this book. I have never been introduced to Wyn Craig Wade,but I have seen him in "TITANIC The Death Of A Dream" Also :Titanic The Legend Lives On" this book was first published in 1979 it is a very good book on R.M.S. Titanic. It is a must for every person's library of Titanic. I have 22 books on Titanic and I rate this very high. I have been offerd $100 ofr it and I won't sell it. Harry Love
Book Description
Dreams and Dead Ends provides a compelling history of the twentieth-century American gangster film. Beginning with Little Caesar (1930) and ending with Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead (1995), Jack Shadoian adroitly analyzes twenty notable examples of the crime film genre. Moving chronologically through nearly seven decades, this volume offers illuminating readings of a select group of the classic films--including The Public Enemy, D.O.A., Bonnie and Clyde, and The Godfather--that best define and represent each period in the development of the American crime film. Richly illustrated with more than seventy film stills, Dreams and Dead Ends details the evolution of the genre through insightful and precise considerations of cinematography, characterization, and narrative style. This updated edition includes new readings of three additional movies--Once Upon a Time in America, Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead, and Criss Cross--and brings this clear and lively discussion of the history of the gangster film to the end of the twentieth century.
Customer Reviews:
'Top of the world, Ma!' The ultimate gangster/film noir book.......2003-01-16
This is the essential gangster movie, film noir text.
Scholars and enthusiasts of the film world have been waiting for
this reissue for ages, and finally, it's here.
Shadoian's comprehensive knowledge of film
history and his academic acumen are elegantly
showcased by his witty, well-turned writing,
making this text indispensable in the classroom,
in the personal library and on the coffee table. A
must for anyone with a even passing interest in
the femme fatale, the disenchanted ..., the
moody canted shadows and rain-slicked streets
steeped in shadows and blood. Keep this book handy by
the TV/VCR/DVD player.
This book is the quintessential film noir text........1999-08-27
An incredibly intelligent book. Jack Shadoian knows his field with astonishing depth and bredth. Using his characteristically witty and well-turned style, Shadoian illuminates the historical and social milieu from which these famous films sprouted. I recommend Dreams and Dead Ends as de rigeur for any film scholar.
Book Description
Arguably no other author has inspired more musicians than has Howard Phillips Lovecraft. Here, for the first time, is a book documenting the music inspired by the works of this literary genius, with insights provided by the artists. The book features a foreword by H. P. Lovecraft expert S. T. Joshi and cover artwork by Joseph Vargo.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent for Lovecraft or music lovers alike.......2006-10-28
The Strange Sound of Cthulhu starts with an introduction to Lovecraft's life. This provides good background for readers who are there for the musical aspect and unfamiliar with his writing. It is strait-forward, giving just the information needed to understand how he could still have an impact on music today, almost seventy years after his death.
The rest of the book is broken down into the musical genres he inspired. From psychedelic rock to country, groups little heard of all the way to big names, such as Black Sabbath and Metallica, have attributed some of their inspiration to Lovecraft.
Hill analyzes the songs--and even group names--that have roots in the literature of Lovecraft. The book compares lyrics with Lovecraft prose, and touches on music rumored to have Lovecraft ties. He gives details of each song, and in many cases, interviews with the artists behind the music. They discuss how their music ties in with Lovecraft, how they were introduced to his writing, and even their favorite Lovecraft tale.
Though the idea of seeing the music described in words may sound dull to some, Joshi was correct in the forward when he said, "Gary has that rarest of skills among music critics: the ability to describe a song, whether vocal or instrumental, in such a way that readers seem to hear it running through their heads."
Though Hill claims that the book is in no way exhaustive on the subject, it is as close to being exhaustive as it can get. It is designed to snare the readers that are there for the music to start reading Lovecraft, and the readers there for Lovecraft to look out for the music. I found myself getting out my old music to listen for what Hill describes.
Book Description
Second, revised edition.
Michael Ortiz Hill looks closely into one hundred end-of-world dreams and uncovers the myths ruling our fears and hopes.
In his foreword to this new edition, Ortiz Hill calls September 11, 2001 "the blade of initiation, dividing who we were from who we are called to be . . . I invite the reader to the wilderness, to the beginning of the apocalyptic rite of passage . . . I offer this book with a single caveat: Beware the seduction of the image, mine and others, for the myth of apocalypse seeks to enthrall us into an epic fiction with very real consequences. Beware the fascination with what is larger than life, this vulgar Passion Play that would crucify the world."
Customer Reviews:
Deep, insightful, fresh, satisfying.......1999-06-23
Starts by describing the nuclear bombs of WWII, from an experiential viewpoint. There are quotes from physicists I haven't seen elsewhere. They were changed, and they knew the world had changed. After this dramatic introduction, the author describes, with dreams fragments as examples, several stages of apocalypse, tying together the personal-scale experiences and the archetypical end of the world symbolized by the Bomb. This is no trivial book where the author just threw some related ideas together; Michael Ortiz Hill has skillfully related ideas that, to me, seem to be from different worlds. One very minor gripe is the lack of an index, but there is a topical dream image glossary, very fun to browse, and I'm not sure this book would benefit much from a regular index. Like movies, some of which are entertaining but you forget as soon as you walk out of the theater, and others make you think about life for some time afterward, books can be fleeting or lasting. Dreaming the End of the World was one of the most satisfying, enlightening, food-for-thought books I've ever read, and it's good for a second -- or third -- reading.
Customer Reviews:
Great End of the Road for Western Civ........2005-12-08
This book provides an excellent excuse for exploring what was probably the last, or one of the last, places the existentialists and pseudo-existentialists of the world could ply their trade. Heck, Algiers is just around the corner and Camus was there, wasn't he? And all of those folks with money and "name" to keep tabs on. Ms. Green both buys into the hype and sees through it, so that you can't put the book down, even when sanity calls.
Tangier's unelected, though graciously accepting, ambassador was Paul Bowles, an ove writer and stoner who couldn't help but take himself much too seriously. (Gertrude Stein probably threatened to beat him up if he didn't.) Bowles is ultimately strange enough to be likable though, as well as insightful on the plight of "society existentialists." A REAL existentialist would have gone off and never have been heard from again, but not Mr. Bowles.
If you think the current world is a mess, reading Ms. Green's book will at least give you some contextual insights. On the surface, Tangier presents a picture of utter decadence, replete with the kinds of things that drive head coaches and parents crazy. But if you go on to read more about the North African context, especially using Bowles as your guide, a heady mixture of camp chronicles will emerge that greatly overshadows the issue of original sin. Tangier is the southernmost tip of Europe, it's architecture and topography perfectly suited to a stoner/blowhard assemblage of dukes, princesses, heirs and addicts, the kind of people who would have Key West towed by barge over to North Africa if they could, just in case they run out of gossip.
Here's the scenario as I see it: A bunch of wackos need to put some space between themselves and the normies so they can go to their own dinner parties and talk about their own weather. Paris it too crowded and foggy, so they book a room with a view of the harbor in Tangier and proceed to go further nuts. And that's about it, I guess.
The book is only partially about Bowles and really focuses on the excesses of the three ring circus that was Tangier. The head clown is Bill Burroughs, of course, a non-action, mainline writer who took , while up his hotel room with one of his guns, while throwing pages of his manuscript for "Naked Lunch" on the floor for mice to poop on and Ginsberg and Keroauc to later compile into a book. (And he wants to know, "Where's my Arab boy?") Keroauc should have made him do it, I tell you. So you keep going back to Bowles for some sanity and all you get is more insight into the insanity. Ms. Green is equally devious methinks, as she keeps throwing you tidbit after tidbit like you're some trained seal at the aquarium.
If anything, Bowles was a practical existentialist, one who instinctively followed a path away from the modern world into one inhabited by magic and magicians, and enough to keep you interested. The Moroccans perform vicariously for Bowles and Bowles performs vicariously for the West. Though the circus act got to be a bit wild at times, Bowles was quite a juggler, and, living on the cheap, he was able to control minds on a shoestring. And so it all worked out. There is no salvation in this world -- only diversions, armchair damnations, pulp fictions peddled as classics, intrigues better left on the drawing board, luggage to nowhere, extensive recollections of events, Burroughs, Capote - some of it tape-recorded by Bowles himself - enough to make you gag and chuck up some of your precious majoun.
Ms. Green's book will fascinate you, though. I can recommend at least two other Bowles books: "Their Heads Are Green and Their Hands Are Blue" and "Conversations with Paul Bowles." I also have just ordered "Paul Bowles, Magic and Morocco." The Taschen book, "Morrocan Interiors," also lets you see some of the scenery and architecture and you can better understand how tailored the place is to being loaded and artsy. A veritable San Miguel de Allende on the beach.
Despite the insane frivolities chronicled in Ms. Green's book, and there are many, they ultimately are products of sick Westerners trying to get "out" by indulging themselves in something "exotic." A much more interesting world than the one we currently inhabit methinks.
This book will take you on an unattended amusement ride you may wish at some point to get off of. Tough: you paid, you're strapped in, you're dispensable. You'll just have to jump off mate and hope for the best. Then, you can get back on later, which you will. Anywhere in the book should do.
Paul's place.......2001-10-17
This isn't a strict literary biography of any of the individual authors that gathered for a time in Morocco, rather its a portrait of the night life (mostly) that all the celebrities literary and otherwise took part in while there. Its better than you might think though. Coming to this book for its literary interest is not a waste of time. There is an interesting segment about Brion Gysin and his club where the mountain musicians performed(would love to have seen that). But there is an awful lot of socialites up to no good ... too. Who gives a ... about Barbara Hutton? The interesting aspect of that though is that it shows the decadent westerners living it up in the lap of poverty. Artists go to places for different reasons than Mick Jagger(no offense Mick) does after all. It is the artists that make a place hip for the work they do while there. This book is in a way perhaps unconsciously an example of how hip gathers parasites and then the parasites take over,and after that happens the place becomes too expensive and too congested and too self-consciously hip for the real artists and they move on. This is Vanity Fair,the magazine, both the good and the bad(they have on occasion done a good literary piece). It is an entertaining read at least and loaded with good glossy black and white pictures and we all like a little decadence now and then, the parties are kinda cool. A good photo album with snapshot portraits of all the players but for the deeper story(you know the stories about the ones that actually wrote a book or two) read the bios of the individual artists.
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