The Busy Woman's Sewing Book
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Truly useful and unusual techniques
The Busy Woman's Sewing Book
Nancy Zieman , and Robbie Fanning
Manufacturer: Open Chain Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

GeneralGeneral | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
SewingSewing | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Nancy ZiemanNancy Zieman | Expert Advice | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0932086039

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Truly useful and unusual techniques.......1997-02-20

Wonderful book -- Nancy shows you not only a quicker way, but a better way to do a few time-eating sewing tasks. I use these techniques on virtually every garment I sew
The busy woman's sewing book: A guide to sewing a workable wardrobe with efficient, yet professional sewing techniques
Average customer rating: Not rated
    The busy woman's sewing book: A guide to sewing a workable wardrobe with efficient, yet professional sewing techniques
    Nancy Luedtke Zieman
    Manufacturer: Nancy's Notions
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Paperback

    GeneralGeneral | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
    ASIN: 0931071003
    The Busy Woman's Sewing Book & The Busy Woman's Fitting Book, 2 Books
    Average customer rating: Not rated
      The Busy Woman's Sewing Book & The Busy Woman's Fitting Book, 2 Books
      Nancy Zieman
      Manufacturer: Open Chain Publishing, Menlo Park, CA
      ProductGroup: Book
      Binding: Paperback

      Nancy ZiemanNancy Zieman | Expert Advice | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
      ASIN: B000O7X6A0

      Military Memoirs of a Confederate: A Critical Narrative
      Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
      • A must-read for serious students of the War
      • A Civil War Classic and powerful Memoir
      • Excellent
      • Very informative -- and very dry
      • A most honest,informative account of the Civil War
      Military Memoirs of a Confederate: A Critical Narrative
      Edward Porter Alexander
      Manufacturer: Da Capo
      ProductGroup: Book
      Binding: Paperback

      GeneralGeneral | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
      GeneralGeneral | Civil War | United States | Historical | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
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      1. Fighting for the Confederacy: The Personal Recollections of General Edward Porter Alexander Fighting for the Confederacy: The Personal Recollections of General Edward Porter Alexander
      2. From Manassas to Appomattox: General James Longstreet From Manassas to Appomattox: General James Longstreet
      3. At the Right Hand of Longstreet: Recollections of a Confederate Staff Officer At the Right Hand of Longstreet: Recollections of a Confederate Staff Officer
      4. Lee's Tarnished Lieutenant: James Longstreet and His Place in Southern History Lee's Tarnished Lieutenant: James Longstreet and His Place in Southern History
      5. Leaders of the Lost Cause: New Perspectives on the Confederate High Command Leaders of the Lost Cause: New Perspectives on the Confederate High Command

      ASIN: 030680509X

      Customer Reviews:

      5 out of 5 stars A must-read for serious students of the War .......2004-10-15

      General Alexander gives almost a blow-by-blow account of each major battle of the War Between the States, complete with Orders of Battle, casualty reports, and numbers of troops engaged. His excellent memory for detail makes for somewhat dry reading at times (if you're not looking for numbers), but remains a classic in War literature. A must-have for any library on the period

      5 out of 5 stars A Civil War Classic and powerful Memoir.......2003-09-22

      This book is the work of one of Lee's Lieutenants, General Edward Porter Alexander. Alexander was Longstreet's artillery commander for most of the Civil War. As such, he saw action in the Eastern Theater from 1st Manassas, through to the surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. After the war, he was encouraged by General Longstreet to write a history of his Corps. Unfortunately after completing most of the primary research, very few of the officers he contacted were willing to give him the first person authoritative accounts he wanted. What he instead was to write a memoir that almost 100 years later is still the model of historical writing.
      For historians the danger of memoirs is twofold. First, many authors have an axe to grind and will suffer from "selective memory" in retelling their experiences. Also, but less deliberately, we are all the leading stars of our lives (if you aren't you oughta be). Taking center stage, authors can appear to have a larger role in the subject than they should otherwise have. With General Alexander's book though, there is no romanticism of the "Lost Cause", nor hero worship of the Lee/Jackson pantheon. Alexander dispassionately relates the campaigns he saw, with insightful critiques of the leaders of both sides. He doesn't spare himself from criticism either; you don't often see that in a memoir.
      Anyone with a serious interest in Civil War campaigns should have this book in their library. However, if you are looking for a Confederate mea culpa, or a social history you should look elsewhere. Highly recommended.

      5 out of 5 stars Excellent.......2002-09-22

      I believe this to be the most accurate, and honest, first-hand account of the Army of Northern Virginia. After reading this book, your perception of certain battlefields will never be the same. Not only was Alexander a true soldier, but also a fine scholar.

      3 out of 5 stars Very informative -- and very dry.......2001-06-07

      This book, unlike Alexander's more recently discovered personal memoir, is only for the serious scholar. His account of strategy, tactics and troop movements is almost completely unleavened with anecdotes or personal reactions. I found it to be very dry, very hard to maintain interest in. That isn't to say it's not an important book -- it is, very much so. There are areas where Alexander's knowledge falters and he should not be taken as a sole source of information, but in general, this is a very detailed and worthwhile account by an intelligent participant. But recreational reading? Not on your life. I'd recommend the author's Fighting for the Confederacy instead.

      5 out of 5 stars A most honest,informative account of the Civil War.......2000-07-24

      Alexander's memoirs is perhaps the best of any officer from the North and South. His narrative is brutally honest when it comes to the strategies of the Army of Northern Virginia. He is also not shy when it comes to pointing out mistakes made, even when made by Lee, Jackson, and others of the high command. Alexander writes in a very clear, and understandable way. He starts out with his being on the West Coast when the Southern states begin to secede from the Union. When his home state leaves, he reports to Lt. McPherson, later to become an admired officer in the Union army, that he must go with his state.

      From here, Alexander gives his first-hand experience in nearly every battle fought in the Virginia vicinity, as well as Chickamauga in the west. You may also be surprised to find out that he writes in detail about the Army of the Potomac as well, giving its officers and strategies both praise and criticism. He always uses their reports, as well as the South's, when it comes to their accounts of the battle, and their casualty lists, giving credence and respect to both sides.

      Alexander was one of Lee's most valuable officers, and perhaps his best artillerist. He was a man Lee could not spare. Longstreet and Jackson both appreciated his great knowledge and value. This book will not disappoint you. Many historians have given great praise and due credit to Alexander's scholarly narrative. I highly recommend this book to any Civil War buff.
      Military memoirs of a Confederate [prospectus]: A critical narrative
      Average customer rating: Not rated
        Military memoirs of a Confederate [prospectus]: A critical narrative
        Edward Porter Alexander
        Manufacturer: Charles Scribner's Sons
        ProductGroup: Book
        Binding: Unknown Binding

        GeneralGeneral | Campaigns | Civil War | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
        ConfederacyConfederacy | Civil War | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
        ASIN: B0008AUB60

        The Voice of the Dawn: An Autohistory of the Abenaki Nation
        Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
        • A good place to (re)start! - Retrouver mes ancêtres!
        The Voice of the Dawn: An Autohistory of the Abenaki Nation
        Frederick Matthew Wiseman
        Manufacturer: UPNE
        ProductGroup: Book
        Binding: Paperback

        GeneralGeneral | Native American | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
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        2. Seven Eyes, Seven Legs: Supernatural Stories of the Abenaki Seven Eyes, Seven Legs: Supernatural Stories of the Abenaki
        3. Reclaiming the Ancestors: Decolonizing a Taken Prehistory of the Far Northeast (Wabanaki World) Reclaiming the Ancestors: Decolonizing a Taken Prehistory of the Far Northeast (Wabanaki World)
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        ASIN: 1584650591

        Book Description

        "[My] story is a sash woven of many strands of language. The first strand is the remembered wisdom of the Abenaki community. The second strand is our history and that of our relatives, written down by European, Native American, and Euroamerican observers. The third strand is what our Mother the Earth has revealed to us through the studies and writings of those who delve in her, the archaeologists and paleoecologists. The fourth strand is my own family history and its stories. The fifth strand is, of course, that which has come to me alone, stories which I create with my own beliefs and visions."

        So begins the first book about Abenaki history and culture written from the inside. Frederick Matthew Wiseman's extensive research and personal engagement breathe life into Voice of the Dawn, making it truly unique. Colin Calloway, Chair of Native American Studies at Dartmouth College, writes, "Going beyond all previous works on the Abenakis, Wiseman draws on family and community knowledge in a way that none of those authors could, speaks from an avowedly Abenaki perspective, and addresses aspects and issues ignored in other works. Moreover, no one that I know of has done as much work in locating and regathering items of Western Abenaki material culture. The quality and quantity of illustrations alone make this an attractive book, as well as a valuable visual record of change and persistence over time. As someone personally and pivotally involved in the Abenaki renaissance, Wiseman brings the story up to date without closing it."

        Customer Reviews:

        5 out of 5 stars A good place to (re)start! - Retrouver mes ancêtres!.......2003-11-25

        Un livre très bien structuré traçant de manière étonnemment efficace les grandes lignes de l'histoire et de la vie des abénaquis d'il y a 13 000 ans jusqu'à aujourd'hui. Tout y passe: la période pré-coloniale, les premiers contacts, les guerres et l'exile, la reconstruction et l'espoir en l'avenir. On retrouve également des appendices forts intéressants sur la toponymie, les herbes médicinales et sur les ressources éducatives disponibles (livres, musées, films, articles, etc.). Les notes bibliographiques et la bibliographie ouvrent la voie aux personnes qui souhaitent approfondir certains sujets plus précis. Vraiment, un excellent point de départ à toute recherche sur les abénaquis. La vie ayant malmené les liens que j'aurais pu entretenir avec mes ancêtres abénaquis, ce livre vient combler un vide important dans ma vie. Merci monsieur Wiseman!

        A very well structured book that draw concisely but so efficently the history and life of abenakis from 13 000 years ago to today. Everything's there : pre-colonial period, first (heavy) contacts with europeans, wars and exile, reconstruction and hope for the present and future. The appendix are also very interesting (place name, herbal medicine, educational resources) and the bibliographical notes and bibliography are a good place to find new paths to explore. For a clear and inspiring overview of who are the abenakis, this is the book to read! For me this book have been a second chance to learn more about my ancestors even if life (or should I say death) has cut the tread that linked me with them a generation ago. Thank you Mr. Wiseman!

        Heating (Heinemann Read and Learn)
        Average customer rating: Not rated
          Heating (Heinemann Read and Learn)
          Patricia Whitehouse
          Manufacturer: Heinemann
          ProductGroup: Book
          Binding: Library Binding

          ChemistryChemistry | Science, Nature & How It Works | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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          GeneralGeneral | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
          ASIN: 1403450986
          Science Experiments: Chemistry and Physics Book 1
          Average customer rating: Not rated
            Science Experiments: Chemistry and Physics Book 1
            Tammy K. Williams
            Manufacturer: Mark Twain Media
            ProductGroup: Book
            Binding: Paperback

            GeneralGeneral | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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            ASIN: 1580370748

            Beyond the Stillness and the Memories
            Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
            • If you've ever "been there"
            Beyond the Stillness and the Memories
            Jon M. Christenson
            Manufacturer: Word Association
            ProductGroup: Book
            Binding: Paperback

            GeneralGeneral | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
            GeneralGeneral | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
            ASIN: 1932205691

            Book Description

            Beginning in the early 1970's I wrote down my thoughts concerning the world around me. Eventually my words took the form of poetry. While serving as a United States Marine during the Vietnam War, I began to write my thoughts and feelings about my experiences. It seems that I came out of that war with a deep sense of loneliness. Sometimes I would get a feeling or a sudden chill. It was as if someone, or something, was touching me; with an ice cold hand right upon my heart.

            Through the years I have matured and come to appreciate life and myself especially. As I have learned to love myself, I was able then to love others. I Love My God, Family, and Country. I would do anything my Country asks of me. I am so proud to be an American.

            I was born into a very large family. I have nine brothers and three sisters. Only eight of my brothers are still living. Raymond, the oldest, was killed at the age of nineteen in a training accident. He was serving in the United States Marine Corps. Though I was only three years old at the time of his death, it seems that my life was changed because of him. I made the decision to enlist in the Marine Corps when I was eight years old. It was as though I needed to prove to myself and my family that I was going to be someone to be respected one day.

            The stories I have written are taken from my own life experiences and from stories that were told to me by other Marines and friends.

            My poetry is just the product of something that comes naturally. I get real strong feelings that sometimes wake me in the night and I need to write those feelings down. I write poetry about several different subjects: Love and Romance, Religious and Spiritual, and Patriotic.

            So many things and people have touched me in my life. Some have made me stronger. Some have taught me about love.

            Sometimes I stop and wonder where my poetry comes from. But I know deep inside that my God has blessed me with the abilities I have for writing.

            Customer Reviews:

            5 out of 5 stars If you've ever "been there".......2003-11-13

            If you have ever (or loved someone who has ever) experienced the comaraderie, the intimacy, the "rush", the horror, the fear, the loss, and the misery of war and it's aftermath on the human soul, then you will find something to relate to in this collection of poems and short stories. If you are or have ever been existing on the dark side of sadness and hopelessness, by reading this book and knowing the author has "been there" but now lives in the light of hope and is successfully in control of his life again, writing about it and willing to share it with the world, then you can know that reaching the bottom may not always mean you've reached the end. The poems start out with a sadness that is heartbreaking, but as you read on, they take on an uplifting spirit that lets you know he is winning his battle with the sadness that was consuming him and you can close the book at the end with a smile on your face. As you read, you can literally follow his climb out of the pit of depression. I read it from cover to cover at one sitting, but plan to sit down with it again and again. The poetic tributes to his family and comrades are especially touching. I recommend you read this book, but be prepared to spend a little time with it, because it is difficult to put down once you begin.

            German Eighty-Eight Gun in Combat: The Scourge of Allied Armor
            Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
            • Great Book on the 88mm Gun
            German Eighty-Eight Gun in Combat: The Scourge of Allied Armor
            Janusz Piekalkiewicz
            Manufacturer: Schiffer Publishing
            ProductGroup: Book
            Binding: Hardcover

            GeneralGeneral | Military | History | Subjects | Books
            Weapons & WarfareWeapons & Warfare | Military | History | Subjects | Books | Biological & Chemical | Control | Conventional | Nuclear
            GeneralGeneral | World | History | Subjects | Books
            Military ScienceMilitary Science | History | Subjects | Books
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            History of TechnologyHistory of Technology | Technology | Science | Subjects | Books
            ASIN: 0887403417

            Book Description

            This book by renowned World War II historian Janusz Piekalkiewicz presents the history of the famous German "88" in its ground combat role - a role it mastered. First used by the Legion Condor in Spain, the 88 was soon recongnized as a superb anti-aircraft weapon. When Rommel turned the 88's on British tanks in North Africa its anti-tank capabilities became legendary. Over 200 action and close-up photographs show the 88 gun throughout its us in the Second World War on all fronts. Janusz Piekalkiewicz (1925-1988) was a world-renowned author on many aspects of World War II history. Over 30 of his books are in print including BMW Motorcycles in World WarII, from Schiffer Military History. , 8 1/2" x 11"

            Customer Reviews:

            5 out of 5 stars Great Book on the 88mm Gun.......2000-08-02

            The book is a winner. It has numerous photographs of the 88mm in action and is in written in a very readable manner. It is not very detailed on first hand accounts but covers nicely the combat procedure, firing procedure, command positions, etc. There is also a short chapter on technical data that is also nicely done. Overall, this is a book for 88mm gun fans to get.

            The Populist Moment: A Short History of the Agrarian Revolt in America (Galaxy Books)
            Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
            • Major Work Relevant to Reuniting America Today
            • Populism was more then a rhetorical style....
            • The Last Great Mass Democratic Movement
            • A Short Review of the Populist Moment
            • Goodwyn created one of the three classics of populism
            The Populist Moment: A Short History of the Agrarian Revolt in America (Galaxy Books)
            Lawrence Goodwyn
            Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
            ProductGroup: Book
            Binding: Paperback

            GeneralGeneral | 19th Century | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
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            All TitlesAll Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
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            4. A Fierce Discontent: The Rise and Fall of the Progressive Movement in America, 1870-1920 A Fierce Discontent: The Rise and Fall of the Progressive Movement in America, 1870-1920
            5. The End Of Reform: New Deal Liberalism in Recession and War The End Of Reform: New Deal Liberalism in Recession and War

            ASIN: 0195024176

            Book Description

            This condensed version of Lawrence Goodwyn's Democratic Promise, the highly-acclaimed study on American Populism which the Civil Liberties Review called "a brilliant, comprehensive study," offers new political language designed to provide a fresh means of assessing both democracy and authoritarianism today.

            Customer Reviews:

            5 out of 5 stars Major Work Relevant to Reuniting America Today.......2007-06-27

            I was moved, impressed, and inspired by this book. There are a couple of other reviews that do excellent jobs of summarizing, so I will try to limit my ten pages of notes to a few highlights, and some other books that I believe can help the 3 out of 5 Americans that want "none of those now running." The Republican and Democratic parties have sold out (this is best documented in Running on Empty: How the Democratic and Republican Parties Are Bankrupting Our Future and What Americans Can Do About It) and it is time we restored the Constitution and demanded Electoral Reform to restore We the People as sovereign.

            Written in 1978, this book could not have come to me, and others in the transpartisan movement, at a better time.

            The author opens with very helpful overviews of how a mass culture, a mass indoctrination, if you will, is a much cheaper and easier way to keep the mass docile, than a forced or fascist solution. He reminds me of Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media.

            He then moves to the manner in which industrialization eroded democracy, making it a poor facade. I am reminded of Manufacture of Evil: Ethics, Evolution, and the Industrial System

            He then stresses how in a damaged or constrained democracy, public resignation and private escapism are the dominant features of the mass public.

            He then moves into an overview of the agrarian-based populist movement that was crushed by the railroads, Pinkerton's as an illegal army, and the banks, with the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 being the consummation of the banking victory over the people.

            He notes that mass protest requires a higher order of culture, education, and achievement, especially in harmonization of disparate nodes. He identifies four steps within which the third is clearly of vital importance:

            1. Autonomous institution emerges as a hub
            2. Recruiting of masses takes place
            3. Educating of masses takes place (40,000 "lecturers")
            4. Politicization of the masses actualizes their power to good effect.

            The author does a superb job of stressing the importance of internal communication, and says that IF this can be achieved, THEN a new plateau of social responsibility is possible. He calls this plateau of cooperative and democratic conduct "the movement culture."

            The populists achieved a "sense of somebodyness." I am reminded of All Rise: Somebodies, Nobodies, and the Politics of Dignity (Bk Currents) as well as Society's Breakthrough!: Releasing Essential Wisdom and Virtue in All the People.

            He examines the Civil War and concludes that it changed everything--it fragmented the nation into sectarian, religious, and racial prejudices. Latter in the book he examines the pernicious effects of white supremacy, which ultimately undid the potential collaboration among poor whites, poor blacks, and poor Catholics factory workers in the Northeast.

            The populists tried to break free of the railroads and banks that conspired to keep them in debt forever. Among their brilliant leaders, one stood out, conceptualizing both a large scale credit cooperative (i.e. public ownership of the essentials of society including food, water, energy, and communications), and a sub-treasury that would ensure that natural resources were applied to the needs of the people and not to squatter or absentee landlords.

            The seven "demands" of the populists, ultimately crushed by the banks:

            1) Abolishment of banks, issuance of government tender
            2) Government ownership of the means of communication & transportation
            3) Prohibition of alien ownership of USA land
            4) Free and unlimited coinage in silver
            5) Equitable taxation among classes
            6) Fractional paper currency
            7) Government economy

            The populists opposed "organized capital", emphasized living issues over dead or archaic contracts, and tried to establish their own newspapers because they understood that the mainstream media had been co-opted by the railroads and the banks.

            The following quote on page 168, from the year 1892, is eerily relevant to today:

            "The people are demoralized. ...The newspapers are subsidized or muzzled; public opinion silenced; business prostrate; our homes covered with mortgages; labor impoverished; and the land concentrated in the hands of capitalists. The urban workmen are denied the right of organization for self-protection; imported pauperized labor beats down our own wages; a hireling standing army (Pinkerton's), unrecognized by our laws, is established to shoot them down; and they are rapidly disintegrating to European conditions. The fruits of the toil of millions are boldly stolen to build up colossal fortunes, unprecedented, while their possessors despise the republic and endanger liberty."

            Wow. I am reminded of virtually every book I have read in the past four years on unilateral militarism, virtual colonialism, and predatory immoral capitalism. Just a couple can be mentioned here:

            The Soul of Capitalism: Opening Paths to a Moral Economy
            Crossing the Rubicon: The Decline of the American Empire at the End of the Age of Oil
            The Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic (The American Empire Project)
            The Global Class War: How America's Bipartisan Elite Lost Our Future - and What It Will Take to Win It Back
            The Working Poor: Invisible in America

            The author draws the book to a close by observing four trends that spelled the demise of the populist movement:

            1. Banishment of "financial issue" from public debate
            2. Corporate mergers (and one could add, corporate "personality")
            3. Decline of public participation in democracy
            4. Corporate domination of mass communications

            He identifies three persistent flaws in the existing American economy:

            1. Land ownership permitting alien, absentee, and predatory landlords
            2. Basic financial structure that imposes debt rather than credit
            3. Corporate centralization

            He stresses that populism is not socialism, but rather a democratic promise emergent. He is optemistic that lessons from the populist failure could be used by farmers, laborers, and others to do a mass insurgency, to "work together to be free individually."

            If we are to defeat the current corrupt Republican and Democratic parties, we must do so in a transpartisan fashion: a third party must be based on the disaffected from both of the corrupt "main parties" while attracting back to the debate and the electoral process the lapsed voters and the new voters. I think we can do that for 2008.

            5 out of 5 stars Populism was more then a rhetorical style...........2005-06-26

            Most college kids in the 70's were force-fed RICHARD HOFSTADTER's book, The Age of Reform, which ridiculed populism.
            But having grown up the son of a immigrant farm boy and county agent, my view of the midwestern populism and farm culture was much much different.

            So Goodwyn's book was a welcome documentation of what I had known all along--that populism was a uniquely American movement, and the spirit of the frontier was never rugged individualism, but community.

            The Farmer-Laborer Alliances of the late 19th Century, and the People's Party that resulted, always referred to their reform movement as 'cooperation', and quoted Thomas Jefferson, and the founding fathers. In this context, populism was uniquely American. It was a struggle between democratic capitalism vs. speculative and monopoly capitalism.

            Real populism was about creating cooperative systems to consolidate farmer's economic power in competition with the railroads and the banks. It was the alternative to the disasterous crop-lien system of the rural south that turned so many of Jefferson's yoeman farmers into destitute sharecroppers, that forced them out of their homes to settle the western plains.

            Goodwyn's book debunks the idea the William Jennings Bryan's "Cross of Gold" speech was the defining highpoint of populism, when in fact it was it's destruction. Goodwyn points out that free silver was never more then a shadow movement of an immensely popular political movement.

            Goodwyn also debunks the later-day revisionists like Michael Kazin's book, author of The Populist Persuasion, that populism was a style of rhetoric than a coherent set of political ideas or reforms.

            While the People's Party was co-opted and destroyed by the Democrat Party, most of the reforms advocated by the populists came to pass in the 1930's with the agricultural reforms of the 1930's. Things like the rural electrification, the regulation of the railroads, the Farm Credit Administration, and the federal reserve all grew out the original populist ideas. Because of the populist complaints, eventually government intervention in the grain and other food commodies marketplace was recognized as the means of democraticizing and strengthing the market system, stablizing the food supply, and strengthening the market system.

            But most importantly, the dignity of the common man against the rich and powerful urban elite entered American political discourse.

            This is an important book, and a welcome understanding of perhaps the most successful movement by common folks to control their own destiny.

            5 out of 5 stars The Last Great Mass Democratic Movement.......2003-12-20

            Seldom in our nation's history have there been widespread, grass-roots challenges to the economic and political system. According to the author, the agrarian movement of the late 1880s, otherwise known as Populism, was in fact the last such great challenge. Beyond the history of the movement, the author is much concerned with the implications for future democratic movements.

            The small farmers in western Texas in the 1880s recognized that the economic cards were stacked against them. The crop lien system and the "furnishing" merchant, the exorbitant prices paid for goods combined with low prices paid for cash crops, and the price gouging of railroads - all of these inspired some farmers to begin forming local alliances that would try to use cooperative methods to bypass those powerful interests that placed farmers in economic thralldom. Lecturers that spread across the South, and even westward and northward, drew upon close-knit farming community ties to eventually establish some 40,000 "sub-alliances" involving two million people, all finally part of a National Farmers Alliance. Through local trade stores, warehouses, and state exchanges, these sub-alliances attempted to buy and sell in bulk. But these efforts met with varying and limited success. Banking interests, grain elevator operators, and stockyards, among others, refused to deal with these farming groups, to accept their notes based on their cash crops and land.

            It is hardly surprising, given their radical critique of economic interests, that agrarian organizers would turn to political action to seek redress for farmer grievances. Yet the turn to politics was a highly complicating development for agrarian reform. The agrarian platform was highly radical for the times involving such issues as land reform, labor rights, government ownership and control of transportation and communication, and banking and currency reform with the elimination of the gold standard. But the hold of generational allegiances to the Democratic and Republican parties prevented many farmers from shifting to independent politics despite the fact that their traditional parties were resolutely opposed to many of the farmers' measures. Attempts at reform through the traditional parties were met by cooptation and demagoguery.

            The People's Party was formed at Omaha in July, 1892. The party's platform was the agrarian platform containing not only the National Alliance's sub-treasury plan, which was a plan for the issuance of greenbacks, but also calling for the free coinage of silver, both planks having the effect of increasing the money supply. Electoral success was limited. The Democratic Party through coopting of the silver issue and flagrant electoral fraud was able to defeat the Populists throughout the South, where they had their greatest support. In 1896 the People's Party through pre-convention intrigue actually nominated a staunch silver Democrat, William Jennings Bryan, for president, thus essentially ending the Populist movement. According to the author, Populism had become a "shadow" movement, a mere shell of its former orientation.

            For the author, democratic mass movements that take issue with core aspects of society face almost insurmountable odds. In the first place, there are the assumptions that the "system" works, that the system contains mechanisms for continual progress and for overcoming problems. In fact, there exists an entire school of thought among historians that contends that the Populists were cranks unwilling to accept social progress and sought only to maintain an antiquated way of life. That school of thought is most closely associated with historian Richard Hofstadter. However, the author finds that the Populists' grievances were real enough while admitting the difficulties of overcoming the received culture. In addition, the author contends that the hierarchical nature of social structures and the accompanying deferential behavior make independent thought and action exceedingly difficult.

            Genuine mass movements cannot be top-down driven. The formation of a mass movement that can achieve political viability must proceed from the ground up. Key to any such movement is the establishment of an independent institution that through the participation of its members develops an ideology and strategy that counters prevailing authority. The counter organization must educate and recruit new adherents. The agrarian movement was based on the sub-alliances and their cooperative ventures and achieved extensive recruitment and education through a lecturing system. The politicization step is often difficult to take and sustain because member activism takes on an indirect element in that it is geared to electoral success allowing party elites to then fully engage in the governmental process. Populism was ultimately unable to successfully take the political step.

            The author suggests that the failures of Populism essentially defined the boundaries of the possible in fundamentally changing basic structures of American culture. First Progressivism and then liberalism all operated on a basis of incremental reform. In other words, the system works. The policies forming the Federal Reserve, allowing the constant rise of farm tenantry, and permitting the continued centralization and rise in influence of corporations all rejected or minimized the scope of the Populist program.

            This book is a short form of the author's complete work, "The Democratic Promise." At times the book takes on the feel of an overview. For example, it would have been interesting to see far more details concerning the actually workings of the various cooperative efforts at the sub-alliance level. And following the twin threads of the Alliance and the People's Party across many states and conventions over a ten year period can be a little sketchy.

            The author's insights into forming mass democratic movements and mounting cultural challenges are outstanding. Those insights add to the understanding of Populism. It should give anyone pause when considering the ability of modern movements to impact the status quo.

            4 out of 5 stars A Short Review of the Populist Moment.......2000-02-19

            Obviously influenced by the New Social history and the Sixties' social movements, Lawrence Goodwyn attempts a major reinterpretation of the Populist movement in The Populist Moment, an abridged version of his epic Democratic Promise: The Populist Movement in America. Although Goodwyn's main project is a redefinition of Populism and stress on the movement's culture, he also provides a theory for social action that serves as the narrative structure for his history and a useful philosophy in itself. Placing the origins of Populism in Texas and conceptualizing the Farmers' Alliance as the movement's ideological core, Goodwyn's analysis marginalizes the Fusionists and Free Silverites, providing a powerful reinterpretation and the main strength of the book. However, by stressing these aspects of the movement, Goodwyn fails to take in the whole of Populism in all its disparate manifestations.

            Before proceeding to the history of Populism, Goodwyn begins his book by introducing his "sequential process of democratic movement-building:" forming, recruiting, educating, and politicizing. (xviii) It is this theory of building and maintaining a movement culture, which provides the outline for Goodwyn's history. For Goodwyn, the movement successfully formed, recruited, and educated a large body of supporters. However, in politicizing, the movement failed to maintain its educational program and cooperative institutions, thereby opening the way for Silverites and Fusionists while losing its movement culture that attracted and held the base supporters.

            Throughout the book Goodwyn centers Populism in the Farmers' Alliance of Texas and sees Charles Macune and William Lamb as the movement's unofficial leaders. In response to increasing poverty, drastically reduced farm prices, and, most importantly, the centralization of power and resources, the Farmers' Alliance sprung forth from communities in central Texas as a way for tenants, sharecroppers, and small farmers to educate themselves about politics, economics, and agriculture. Building membership and loyalty through cooperatives stores and the joint marketing of crops, the Alliance expanded across the South and Midwest through a phalanx of itinerant lecturers spreading the group's message. As their cooperatives fell victim to the ongoing economic recession, Charles Macune developed a federal sub-treasury plan that would create a fiat currency for farmers, essentially issuing greenbacks as loans backed by the harvest. While the sub-treasury never came to fruition, Goodwyn defines true Populists as unaligned supporters of the plan and members of the Farmers' Alliance. Consequently for Goodwyn, everyone else falls under the 'shadow' movement of Silverites and Fusionists. With this conception of Populism, Goodwyn locates the movement's demise not in the failure of Bryan's campaign, but in the People's Party support of the free silver Democratic ticket.

            Goodwyn attempts a major reinterpretation of the Populist movement and largely succeeds by marginalizing the 'shadow' movement. Furthermore, his detailed analysis of Populism's development posits a truly democratic movement of common folk united by a shared set of concerns. By tying the rise and fall of Populism to his movement theory, Goodwyn provides a tremendously useful framework for understanding the broad implications, successes, and failures of the movement. While his reinterpretation can not be overemphasized, his book falls short by not paying more attention to the 'shadow' movement in the West and Midwest. The 'shadow' movement of free silver and fusion was an important and influential component of Populism; by not giving it attention, Goodwyn tells only half the story. Finally, Goodwyn's analysis of Populism could have benefited from talking more about race. Despite the connection with the Colored Farmers' Alliance, at its heart, Populism was based on white supremacy, deeply problematizing Goodwyn's eulogy of Populism as the last truly democratic American social movement.

            5 out of 5 stars Goodwyn created one of the three classics of populism.......1999-02-06

            In a very thorough manner, Mr. Goodwyn covers the history of the populist movement thru its years as the farmers' alliance and the Peoples' Party! The leading people, the main party newspapers,the conventions, experiments and actions of this great movement are covered in this excellent book! Put this powerfully written book next to the classics by Hicks and McMath! A must have!
            The Populist Moment: A Short History of the Agrarian Revolt in America
            Average customer rating: Not rated
              The Populist Moment: A Short History of the Agrarian Revolt in America
              Lawrence Goodwyn
              Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
              ProductGroup: Book
              Binding: Paperback
              ASIN: B000OK4O3K
              The Populist Moment: A Short History of the Agrarian Revolt in America
              Average customer rating: Not rated
                The Populist Moment: A Short History of the Agrarian Revolt in America
                Lawrence Goodwyn
                Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
                ProductGroup: Book
                Binding: Paperback
                ASIN: B000OK2NHE

                Encyclopedia of Big Game Animals in Africa: With Their Trophies
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                  Encyclopedia of Big Game Animals in Africa: With Their Trophies
                  Pierre Fiorenza
                  Manufacturer: Larousse & Co.
                  ProductGroup: Book
                  Binding: Hardcover

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