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Review Date: 7/3/2020
A concise biography of the inventor for school-age children which provides useful basic information about his life & influence. Doesn't mention Bell's controversial opinions on deaf sign language.
Review Date: 6/25/2012
I did not find it believable that a girl between 10-12 years old in the 1930s would think/act as she does. Also many of the characters were stereotypes.
Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West
Author:
Book Type: Paperback
18
Author:
Book Type: Paperback
18
Review Date: 9/30/2015
This is an absorbing detailed book which reminds us of the human cost of Communist ideology. North Korea may currently be the most extreme manifestation of what Communism leads to but all communist societies were cruel and nightmarish places to live in to one degree or another.
Review Date: 2/4/2016
This ISBN is a paperback book.
Review Date: 7/16/2013
A fun crossword puzzle book in which the clues are all about Jewish culture, religion, history, and individuals etc. Every page also has amusing, pithy, and/or profound sayings which adds to the enjoyment of doing the puzzles. Has the solutions at the back of the book.
Mind of My Own: The Woman Who Was Known As "Eve" Tells the Story of Her Triumph over Multiple Personality Disorder
Author:
Book Type: Hardcover
2
Author:
Book Type: Hardcover
2
Review Date: 10/7/2012
Very interesting book especially because it is so detailed.
Review Date: 5/23/2024
Expected a story with more depth. Was amazed at the shallowness of the author despite the large number of books she claims to have read.
An example of the shallowness is seen (pg. 207) in the section about the book "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" - she writes of how she was unable to stop crying, dampening many tissues, while reading it on an airplane (she constantly boasts of her extensive traveling) & how this attracted the attention of 2 passengers & the flight attendant. However, a more sophisticated, less adolescent, review of the book, which is to be expected from a lifelong book-lover & book-reviewer, would have noted those more problematic aspects of the novel such as the many stereotyped characters & the sentimentalized portrait of political corruption.
An example of her surprising ignorance about certain classics is seen (pg. 193) where she quotes J.G. Ballard's quote about how he was affected as a child when reading the "childhood tales" such as "Treasure Island" & "Robinson Crusoe" & how this shows the "power of children's literature". If Ms. Paul had actually read these 2 classics, she would have also noted that although there have been many adaptations for children, they are NOT REALLY children's books - they are great classic literature for adults.
Much of the book is "virtue-signaling" of her political opinions & lifestyle - one example is her uncritical gushing about The New York Times newspaper, her then-employer (pg. 203).
Lastly, she shows she can be quite spiteful when it comes to the Acknowledgments page: she never mentions her mother on the Acknowledgments page despite noting her mother's help in several chapters in the book. She acknowledges the help from her current mother-in-law, old friends, her late father, her brother Roger, "my family", her current husband & children (all, except for her current mother-in-law, also mentioned in various chapters of the book) BUT NOT her mother. Not very nice.
These are just a few of the reasons for giving a rating of only 1 star.
An example of the shallowness is seen (pg. 207) in the section about the book "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" - she writes of how she was unable to stop crying, dampening many tissues, while reading it on an airplane (she constantly boasts of her extensive traveling) & how this attracted the attention of 2 passengers & the flight attendant. However, a more sophisticated, less adolescent, review of the book, which is to be expected from a lifelong book-lover & book-reviewer, would have noted those more problematic aspects of the novel such as the many stereotyped characters & the sentimentalized portrait of political corruption.
An example of her surprising ignorance about certain classics is seen (pg. 193) where she quotes J.G. Ballard's quote about how he was affected as a child when reading the "childhood tales" such as "Treasure Island" & "Robinson Crusoe" & how this shows the "power of children's literature". If Ms. Paul had actually read these 2 classics, she would have also noted that although there have been many adaptations for children, they are NOT REALLY children's books - they are great classic literature for adults.
Much of the book is "virtue-signaling" of her political opinions & lifestyle - one example is her uncritical gushing about The New York Times newspaper, her then-employer (pg. 203).
Lastly, she shows she can be quite spiteful when it comes to the Acknowledgments page: she never mentions her mother on the Acknowledgments page despite noting her mother's help in several chapters in the book. She acknowledges the help from her current mother-in-law, old friends, her late father, her brother Roger, "my family", her current husband & children (all, except for her current mother-in-law, also mentioned in various chapters of the book) BUT NOT her mother. Not very nice.
These are just a few of the reasons for giving a rating of only 1 star.
Review Date: 10/18/2012
A very personal,compelling, and detailed account of the Patty Hearst kidnapping in 1974 from the point-of-view of her fiance at the time who was beaten by the kidnappers. It is a historical document, too, in that it records so many aspects of what happened.
Review Date: 10/11/2015
Though brief, it's a very interesting book about these Shakers of Kentucky - their beliefs, their lifestyles, their work ethic,their accomplishments, and also their problems and failures.
Review Date: 8/13/2012
Very useful for looking up Hawaiian words which I might come across in my reading
Review Date: 1/13/2018
Didn't like the book at all, there's no genuine emotions only "politically correct" ones.
Review Date: 12/31/2021
Although a well done Audiobook abridgement, nicely read by Michael Beck, the story itself is filled with cardboard stereotyped characters, unsubstantiated partisan political opinions, and bad dialogue in many chapters masquerading as (poor) imitations of Hemingway. And the "happily ever after" ending was over-the-top and not believable at all.
Review Date: 1/10/2013
Hardcover book. Nice story.
Review Date: 7/19/2015
The cover of the book quotes the Anniston Star newspaper's review that the book is "honest and deeply moving" and this, in a nutshell, is my opinion, too.
Review Date: 7/27/2014
This book is an academic study of the subject of the Library in Alexandria and also has some information about other ancient libraries. The audience for this book is those who specialize in the study of ancient history.
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