Timothy

1968 was like an ongoing nightmare. Vietnam, assassinations, LBJ's decision to withdraw from the Democratic nomination process, riots in Chicago; there weren't a lot of slow news days. It may seem odd to say, but I don't think that the true horror and sinister aspect of Martin's assassination has ever been effectively documented. So many terrible things happened that year that the details of this story were lost.This book changes all that Hampton Sides has brilliantly captured the paranoia of the period where this gentle and visionary man was persecuted, stalked and murdered.
This is a great book on many levels. For me, it's a reminder of how much we all lost. This was a good man.

If they give awards to the readers of audiobooks, Phil Gigante deserves one for this. This comprehensive collection of HST's work for Rolling Stone could be a bit ponderous with a less talented reader.Thompson's quirky brilliance and humour are beautifully captured in this presentation. It's a shame we don't have political commentary like this anymore.

I was very disappointed by this book. It has the tone and style of an Army recruiting film that might be shown to high school kids. I don't intend this to be a criticism of the Rangers rather, it's a comment on a style of writing that belongs in a Valentine's Day card.

Start over again.

The preface and introduction are nothing more than cheerleading.

The Unforgiving Minute is a more engaging and thoughtful book on the same subject.

For anyone interested in the development of American music in the 20th century, this book is essential reading. John Hammond was a big-hearted, opinionated and fearless advocate for musicians and for the civil rights movement. What this book makes very clear is that Hammond was in the business for the music and the musicians, not for personal gain. Mind you, as a direct descendant of Cornelius Vanderbilt he had the resources to make that choice. The portraits of some of Hammond's discoveries, Billie Holliday, Bennie Goodman and Bruce Springsteen, are excellent. One negative; there's some awkward audio editing on the recording. Not a big issue though.

I'm really stunned at how good this book is. It shouldn't be a surprise that Keith Richard is such a great story teller; after all that's what songwriting is. His portrayal of growing up in post war London is vivid and visceral; Dickens in a ducktail hair-do. In spite of his hair raising lifestyle he comes off as a bright, perceptive and very funny guy. Not for the faint of heart, this is a fabulous, adult -sized slice of life.

This is a really fine book. Having read Boyden's previous book, Three Day Road, I wondered how the narrator would handle the "Cree English' dialogue that makes Boyden's writing so authentic. He got it right, in my opinion.
Both of his books have changed, forever, my understanding of the impact of European settlement on First Nation's people, without feeling that I was being preached to. Joseph Boyden is one talented writer.

I agree with the previous reviewer. Great book lousy sound.
I've listened to the Taylor Branch trilogy about King and regard it as the most balanced telling of one of America's most important stories. I was inspired by the courage of so many, mostly unknown, people. Black, white, old, young, Jewish, Christian etc. etc. I'm not an American and I'm not a person of color, but the story of the US civil rights movement and the capacity of the USA to grow and change, makes me glad to have you guys as neighbours.

I took a chance on this book because, in spite of studying three or four of his plays in high school, I knew almost nothing about Shakespeare or his world. The author's depiction of the social, political and cultural landscape of Elizabethan England may be highly speculative as other reviewers have noted, but I found it interesting and credible. The notion that 15th century political elites were paranoid about the entertaiment industry shows that some things never change. It's easy to picture Shakespeare walking the fine line between political correctness and wicked satire.
The book is beautifully written and read. It's a little deep in places but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

James Carroll will make a lot of people uncomfortable with this book. His portrait of the Pentagon is not flattering. However, the scope of the story is wide, thorough and told from a unique perspective; that of a boy growing up in a military family that was intimately connected to America's military establishment. Carroll's portrait of Curtis Lemay is revealing and surprisingly sympathetic. To me, this is one of the strengths of the book; the Pentagon is shown as a collection of people, torn by myriad forces and loyalties. As a Canadian, I've always been curious about the enormous impact that mandatory military service has had on many generations of Americans. Despite my liberal leanings and a mistrust of things military, I've always been impressed by the fierce loyalty that our American friends display towards their troops. This book beautifully describes the military culture, warts and all. You could build an American history course around this book.