Book Description
Anglos have been coming to Santa Fe for centuries, and early in the last century the city's beauty and exotic cultural mix became particularly attractive to artistic immigrants looking for freedom from the greed and competitiveness of mainstream American culture. By the late twentieth century, many New Mexicans felt, Santa Fe's unique charm was nearly overwhelmed by the evils that people had moved there to escape. The interviews collected in this book preserve the old Santa Fe, the one people are still looking for. The interviewees represent a cross-section of Santa Fe during the best of times: native Santa Feans, both Spanish American and Anglo, artists, immigrants, those who came by accident, those who came intending to stay, those who fought to preserve the older cultures' traditions and values. The author, unlike most journalists, has known the people he interviewed his entire life. Most of these men and women were old timers when the interviews took place, and many have since died. Most readers of this book will not remember the good times it evokes. But the lively stories told here will enthrall all Santa Feans and would-be Santa Feans, as well as visitors who can only dream of living in the City Different.
Interviewed in Turn Left at the Sleeping Dog are Amalia Sena Sánchez, Consuelo Bergere Mendenhall, Fray Angélico Chávez, Katherine “Peach” Mayer, Anita González Thomas, Josephine E. Baca, Chuck Barrows, Hazel Frederickson, Alice Henderson Rossin, Calla Hay, Letitia Evans Frank, Paul Frank, Tom and Doris Dozier, Samuel Adelo, Richard Bradford, J. I. Staley, Miranda Levy, Jerry West, Margaret Larsson, and Carol Smith. Interlaced with the interviews are comments from other Santa Feans: historian Myra Ellen Jenkins, cultural geographer J. B. Jackson, and anthropologist Oliver La Farge, the author's father.
The interviews collected in this book preserve the old Santa Fe, the one people are still looking for—representing a cross-section of Santa Fe during the best of times.
Book Description
Author Michael O'Brien authoritatively paints the consummate Paterno portrait, the result of more than ten years of work that included 137 interviews and study of 150 previously published works. Paperback includes an epilogue that reviews the 1998 season in which Paterno won his landmark 300th career victory.
Customer Reviews:
A well balanced look at Joe Paterno and the politics of college football........2006-04-18
For most sports fans, the name Joe Paterno is a familiar one. The images conjured up by the name may vary...some see a living god while others see a need for change. Regardless of your views, this book is informative and well balanced. As a loyal Penn State fan, I found this book to be well written and objective. The writing style is not too stuffy or "textbook" like, yet the author is able to remain insightful as well as entertaining. This book focuses on the work of Penn State football coach Joe Paterno during the 2004 season; the bulk of the story is a tale of the ups and downs that took place during that season. However, there is also a great deal of exposition when it comes to the privilige, politics, and power of Division I college football. In some sections of the story, Penn State University and the town of State College, PA become a unique world where attitudes can change like the seasons. What I found to be the most informative was the description of Paterno's interactions with the media.
Joe Paterno's life serves as an interesting character study. Mostly because of his actions and the way that he has oriented his life around the university and the athletic program. This book does not force its hand by telling you how to feel about Joe, instead it describes the situation and leaves you to draw your own conclusions. There is some obvious admiration for Paterno, but it does not reach the point of being one-sided.
I would recommend this book for all college football fans. If nothing else, this story serves as an informative piece about the "hidden" side of commercialization and college sports.
Great subject matter makes a great book........2001-06-08
I have always said that if I had a son worthy of playing big-time college football, I'd send him to Penn State to play for Joe Paterno. My thoughts haven't changed a whip since reading this book. Michael O'Brien does a wonderful job in detailing the life and philosophy of one of the most colorful and downright good people to ever live.
O'Brien pulls no punches. Paterno is brash, at times mean and expects a lot out of his players, but he is also a loving father figure to players and the student body. Paterno is no saint though. If you don't produce, you are in trouble... but isn't that the way of the world. His philosophy, richly detailed in a chapter on Patero's coaching style, should be copied by the Spurriers and the Sabans of the world.
I haven't read any other O'Brien books, but I definitely will be looking for them on my next trip to the book store. This book is a quick read, but it makes you feel good about the world again when you realize that there are still people like Paterno out there that don't compromise themselves for money and fame.
Now I just wish O'Brien would write a book on Coach K because if I had a son that was good at hoops I'd send him to Duke.
Don't Buy This One if you Own Other Paterno Books.......2000-09-01
If I had bought this book first, I probably would have been happy with the book. But as an owner of four other books relating to Coach Paterno I found this one to be a repeat of the other writings. I really learned nothing new from this book at all. Maybe I expected too much or maybe Paterno's story has already been told.
Take that, Beano Cook!.......2000-06-30
There are a lot of biographies out there written by people who assume that simple fame warrants public interest. This is not one of them, because Joe Paterno is a truly fascinating man. Success and prestige don't often go hand in hand, but somehow Joe has made it work, and is the reason that Penn State isn't just another big-money school trying to win football games on the backs of exploited kids. If how he does that in this day and age isn't intriguing, I don't know what is. For anyone who has ever turned on a Saturday football game and wondered what possesses the guy in the nerdy rolled-up pants and coke-bottle glasses to keep going, then you have a valid question which this book can answer in a way that will captivate you, page after page. For once, we have a book about football that isn't about football at all--it's about what an extraordinary person can do to a little agricultural school to put a tiny college town on the map in the greatest way possible.
Put a thermometer to the JoePa sentiments in State College and you may be surprised that a fervent admiration that pervades the town, and for good reason. Hey, there has to be some reason we would like a guy enough to make a bean bag doll out of him...give him his own ice cream flavor (Peachy Paterno)...and put his face on mugs...and golf balls. ("Guaranteed to go up the middle three out of four times.") And there has to be something about a guy who would give up a $1.4 million coaching contract with the Boston Patriots to keep a $35,000 job in Happy Valley. The fact is, the guy has integrity that borders on insanity, and that makes him interesting as heck.
On a final note, this is a dangerous book in that it will feed an obsession born of fandom. Be careful with this book. I have a friend, the daughter of Penn State's president, and every year she obliges me by hand-delivering a batch of Santa Joe cookies to the Paternos at the bowl games. Make sure you don't go as far over the edge as I did.
Take that, Beano Cook!.......2000-06-30
There are a lot of biographies out there written by people who assume that simple fame warrants public interest. This is not one of them, because Joe Paterno is a truly fascinating man. Success and prestige don't often go hand in hand, but somehow Joe has made it work, and is the reason that Penn State isn't just another big-money school trying to win football games on the backs of exploited kids. If how he does that in this day and age isn't intriguing, I don't know what is. For anyone who has ever turned on a Saturday football game and wondered what possesses the guy in the nerdy rolled-up pants and coke-bottle glasses to keep going, then you have a valid question which this book can answer in a way that will captivate you, page after page. For once, we have a book about football that isn't about football at all--it's about what an extraordinary person can do to a little agricultural school to put a tiny college town on the map in the greatest way possible.
Put a thermometer to the JoePa sentiments in State College and you may be surprised that a fervent admiration that pervades the town, and for good reason. Hey, there has to be some reason we would like a guy enough to make a bean bag doll out of him...give him his own ice cream flavor (Peachy Paterno)...and put his face on mugs...and golf balls. ("Guaranteed to go up the middle three out of four times.") ...The fact is, the guy has integrity that borders on insanity, and that makes him interesting as heck.
On a final note, this is a dangerous book in that it will feed an obsession born of fandom. Be careful with this book. I have a friend, the daughter of Penn State's president, and every year she obliges me by hand-delivering a batch of Santa Joe cookies to the Paternos at the bowl games. Make sure you don't go as far over the edge as I did.
Book Description
The Art of The Polar Express celebrates the transformation of Chris Van Allsburg's celebrated children's book The Polar Express into a full-length, animated feature film through a fascinating collection of concept art, production storyboards, and computer-generated renderings. Production designer Doug Chiang shares his original, never-before-seen artwork that evolved into the final motion picture. Weaving these pieces together are candid interviews with the star-studded cast and crew, including Robert Zemeckis and his team of filmmaking visionaries, that deliver rare insight into the film as they divulge the secrets behind their creative process.
Customer Reviews:
waste of time and money.......2007-01-17
Picking up and opening this book is a clolossal waste of time. Buying it is a colossal waste of money. If I had been able to rate this with a zero instead of one star, I would have. This book is nothing more than an advertisement for a movie. I do not know how anyone could possibly be interested in "artwork" from a computer-generated movie. Sad and pathetic.
Fantastic!.......2007-01-10
This book is amazing. Even though if the story isn't that great to you, just looking at the pictures is fantastic.
Beautiful Book & Movie.......2005-11-23
I disagree with the other reviewer, because I thought this book was very worthwhile and mine was in fine shape. The pictures are breathtaking and it gives you a nice insight into how they made the movie. It's meant to be a coffee table book and one that you look at from time to time. It certainly will put you in the Christmas spirit.
I sent this book back to Amazon for a refund.......2005-11-13
Although the content of the book is breathtaking, the book itself is very poorly constructed. When I received my copy, the glue keeping the spine together was clearly visible and beginning to separate. The continuity necessary when a single picture took both the left and right pages was completely destroyed by this pernicious affect. In the book I received from Amazon I could see the threads that held the pages to the binding. This is not an isolated incident. The copies sold at Barnes and Noble exhibited the same level of cheap construction.
What is wrong with the publisher of this book? Are they completely insane? This is a great story with beautiful Christmas imagery that is more deserving than the debasement it suffered at the hands of an administrator trying to save a buck. Shame on you!!!
Product Description
This resource is directly related to its literature equivalent and filled with a variety of cross-curricular lessons to do before, during, and after reading the book. This reproducible book includes sample plans, author information, vocabulary building ideas, and cross-curriculum activities.
Book Description
The perfect movie souvenir, this lushly illustrated book includes fun facts, holiday projects, songs, and games.
Customer Reviews:
Certainly not what we expected.......2007-01-10
My children and I are all fans of The Polar Express book and we did enjoy the movie as well. My youngest son, for whom I purchased this book, came to me with his 'review' before I had to ask... and then we gave the book away. Unfortunately, the book was not worth the money we paid for it, and even if it had been free, we would have not enjoyed it. This book is truly `the beginning', only telling the very first part of the story. While it is a Early Reader, it just wasn't interesting or enjoyable for my `beginning reader' to read, especially since we have the original book and the movie. Perhaps if it were sold in a set with other books that continue the story, it would be more enjoyable..
not what i expected.......2006-04-04
we love the movie and the original book so we were disappointed to find that this reader was so short. where's the rest of the beautiful story???
Not much depth.......2006-03-18
I was a little disappointed. This book doesn't go into a lot of detail and depth like the other Polar Express books I've read. Quite boring!
THE JOURNEY BEGINS.......2005-07-08
I bought this book for my granddaughter who has just learned to read. She was excited to be able to read a portion of the book that has always been read to her on xmas eve since she was born. I wish it had been longer and it may have been a little too easy for her. She is in the first grade.
"The Journey Begins..." Where's the Journey?.......2005-03-28
I must agree totally with Shannon. Very boring book. I bought this book assuming that there would be a series of books that cover "the Journey" all the way to the end, but nothing yet. As a stand alone book, terrible. As a beginning of a series, there is potiential.
GIVE US THE SERIES!!!
Book Description
Music by Julius Eichberg, Libretto by Benjamin E. Woolf
Average customer rating:
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Repiecing the Past: Patterns for 12 Quilts from the Collection of Sara Rhodes Dillow
Sara Rhodes Dillow
Manufacturer: Martingale & Co Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1564771296 |
Book Description
Built on a highly proven test-prep model, this new guide fully prepares users to pass the Series 7 Exam as well as excel in the seven critical functions of a registered representative. Unlike other test-prep materials available, this guide is structured around the seven critical functions of the registered representative - exactly how the Series 7 Exam is organized -leading to increased success in passing the exam. Exam Preparation book with Drill & Practice CD-ROM also available (0-324-22444-3).
Customer Reviews:
Very Helpful.......2007-08-03
I passed this exam after studying with only this book. There were a few errors in it, and some of the information is slightly out-of-date (e.g., the IRA contribution limits listed are a few years out of date). Overall, however, I found it to be very useful and well-organized.
Pretty good guide, not great.......2007-01-23
This guide provided me with a lot of useful information, however, there are some things on the test that could not be answered from this guide. I really like how options and bonds are documented. However, I did not like how market regulations and account set-ups are documented. Good luck if you're testing!
Errors on test exams.......2007-01-18
Generally good book, but be careful of errors. There are a number of errors in the text and in exam questions, for instance question 224 (exam 1), answer given is A, but correct answer is C by its own description.
I hope this wasn't a real test at one point.....
Errors in text as well.....
Example: Stop Limit Orders become Limit orders, not stop orders. i.e. will never become market orders....See SEC definition.
A head above.......2007-01-02
I used this book as a supplement to an online course, to fill gaps and to obtain a different prospective on the subject matter. I loved that it has no "water" in it, rather it is straight to the point, reducing study time, with great "Exam Topic" alerts and an excellent post-chapter summaries, which I used for the "morning of", last minute refresher. The books has good graphics, charts, appropriately used highlights (for good layout and text flow), making studying a breeze. I passed after 20 days of studying with 89% (possibility of attaining the same result is not implied or guaranteed hereby :) .)
Good Study Guide.......2006-03-28
This book was very helpful in preparing for the Series 7. My employer is providing a more detailed and comprehensive study program, but this book was a very nice additional prep guide. It covers the material that will be tested, has practice exams, and helpful tips for the test itself. I'm glad I bought it.
Book Description
Robert Dallek's brilliant two-volume biography of Lyndon Johnson has received an avalanche of praise. Michael Beschloss, in The Los Angeles Times, said that it "succeeds brilliantly." The New York Times called it "rock solid" and The Washington Post hailed it as "invaluable." And Sidney Blumenthal in The Boston Globe wrote that it was "dense with astonishing incidents." Now Dallek has condensed his two-volume masterpiece into what is surely the finest one-volume biography of Johnson available. Based on years of research in over 450 manuscript collections and oral histories, as well as numerous personal interviews, this biography follows Johnson, the "human dynamo," from the Texas hill country to the White House. We see LBJ, in the House and the Senate, whirl his way through sixteen- and eighteen-hour days, talking, urging, demanding, reaching for influence and power, in an uncommonly successful congressional career. Then, in the White House, we see Johnson as the visionary leader who worked his will on Congress like no president before or since, enacting a range of crucial legislation, from Medicare and environmental protection to the most significant advances in civil rights for black Americans ever achieved. And we see the depth of Johnson's private anguish as he became increasingly ensnared in Vietnam. In these pages Johnson emerges as a man of towering intensity and anguished insecurity, of grandiose ambition and grave self-doubt, a man who was brilliant, crude, intimidating, compassionate, overbearing, driven: "A tornado in pants." Gracefully written and delicately balanced, this singular biography reveals both the greatness and the tangled complexities of one of the most extravagant characters ever to step onto the presidential stage.
Customer Reviews:
Worth Repeating: Best one volume bio of LBJ.......2007-04-11
Given the complexity of both the man and the times he lived in I would have thought that a one volume biography of Lyndon Johnson was impossible. While certain sacrifices are made, for example the LBJ's relationships with his contemporaries are often glossed over, the book does its job and portrays the basics of who LBJ was. Dallek also does a good job at describing the master politician that LBJ was and how that helped him craft one of the most assertive and successful legislative agenda's in American history. Lastly, he explains how LBJ's obession with Vietnam ultimately lead to his downfall. A very interesting book and a strong must read for people interested in 20th century history.
read.......2006-11-10
I have not had a chance to read this book yet. Please check back with me later.
Lyndon Johnson, President During a Difficult Decade.......2005-07-30
Lyndon B. Johnson will be remembered as President for his passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and also for his unwillingness to become the first president to lose a war. A career in politics will invariably lead one to people you dislike and Lyndon had his share of those, notably Bobby Kennedy. Johnson was a very down to earth individual, some would say crude, in his manner of speech to others, but he was a tireless worker in the area of Civil Rights in which he was successful, and in regard to the Vietnam war which wore him down to the extent that he chose not to run for a second term in 1968. His reason for not more actively bombing North Vietnam and escalating the war in that regard was his fear of China and Russia entering the conflict. It so happened that it was he who was president when the war reached the stalemate stage, but chances are anyone else would have adopted the same policy as he did. However, his stubborness in not having his presidency tarnished with a defeat in the war ultimately wore him down with him leaving office with an escalated war beyond his control. Our history is littered with presidents whose names are barely remembered, but Lyndon Baines Johnson will always be remembered, mostly for the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which brought the southern states in line with the rest of the nation regarding an integrated society and for a fruitless war fought over an erroneous domino theory in which one successive country after another will fall to communism if one of them does. The book is nearly 400 pages long, but it is a read well worth your time.
Best Single Volume Biography of LBJ.......2004-10-01
Robert Dallek has abriged his two volume set (nearly 1,500 pages) down to 400+ pages. Mr. Dallek is a solid writer and researcher. His biography will give you a sense of LBJ as a person and a politican, his accomplishments and his life & times. This will remain as the best single-volume biography available to the reader. So if reading just one book on LBJ is your goal, then this is your book.
Having said that, I wish to encourage the reader to explore either Mr. Dallek's original set or the never-ending magnum opus of Robert Caro (three volunes and over 2,700 pages so far). For better or for worse, LBJ was second only to FDR for his domination and impact upon the American political scene in a 40 year career that stretched from the 1930's to the 1960's. LBJ had an outsized personality and ambitions that was his strength and, ultimately, his weakness. Although Mr. Dallek does a excellent job in condensing his prior work, no single volume can ever do justice to the life of LBJ.
Personally, I prefer Robert Caro's massive, and sometimes, exhaustive work (his current three books only cover LBJ up to 1960, the same time period for Mr. Dallek's original first volume). Mr. Caro is a wonderful storyteller (somewhat akin to William Manchester) and you are swept away in his epic tale of LBJ. In deciding what to read, it really comes down to how much time and how much interest the reader has in the life of Lyndon Baines Johnson.
Great Biography.......2004-05-18
This is the best book out there on LBJ. Dallek covers his entire life from start to finish. Lyndon Johnson was a towering and caring man. This book really tells his story.
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Lyndon Johnson Remembered: An Intimate Portrait of a Presidency
Thomas W. Cowger
Manufacturer: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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Johnson, Lyndon
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ASIN: 0742527980 |
Book Description
In Lyndon Johnson Remembered: An Intimate Portrait of a Presidency Thomas W. Cowger and Sherwin J. Markman bring together essays by Johnson administration insiders reflecting on his personality, domestic agenda, and legacy.
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Lyndon Johnson: The Tragic Self, a Psychohistorical Portrait
Hyman L. Muslin , and
Thomas H. Jobe
Manufacturer: Insight Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0306437635 |
Book Description
A highly illustrated overview of ingenious technological innovations, from the eight-man rail bikes of the Boer War to the Vietnam War's heavy duty transport models. 100 photographs.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent book!.......2001-03-13
Great study on a very neglected topic. Text is supplemented with some great photos. I hope a volume two will come out someday!
An easy read.......1999-12-01
Very well written, lots of historical photos. A pleasure to read
Informative and fascinating.......1999-05-25
Detailed text and amazing photos show the use of bicycles by armies ranging from the Civil War to Vietnam to Yugoslavia.
Book Description
Does it matter when politicians ignore the promises they made and the preferences of their constituents? If politicians want to be reelected or see their party reelected at the end of their term, why would they impose unpopular policies? Susan Stokes explores these questions by developing a model of policy switches and then testing it with statistical and qualitative data from Latin American elections over the past two decades. She concludes that politicians may change policies because unpopular policies are best for constituents and hence also will best serve their own political ambitions.
Download Description
Sometimes politicians run for office promising one set of policies, and if they win, switch to very different ones. Latin American presidents in recent years have frequently run promising to avoid pro-market reforms and harsh economic adjustment, then win and transform immediately into enthusiastic market reformers. Does it matter when politicians ignore the promises they made and the preferences of their constituents? If politicians want to be reelected or see their party reelected at the end of their term, why would they impose unpopular policies? Susan Stokes develops a model of policy switches and tests it with statistical and qualitative data from Latin American elections over the last two decades. She concludes that politicians may change policies because unpopular policies are best for constituents and best serve their own political ambitions. Nevertheless, even though good representatives sometimes switch policies, abrupt change tends to erode the quality of democracy.
Customer Reviews:
Why do betrayal of campaign promises occur?.......2004-04-23
Normative theories of democracy affirm that one of the most important advantages of such a regime is its responsiveness to citizens' preferences. Economic theories of democracy also predict that politicians have incentives to answer the median voter's concerns due to the electoral competition for power. However, the empirical evidence around the world shows that democratically-elected governments sometimes violate their own campaign promises. That is, once in power, after have been offering a specific platform that satisfies most of the electorate, the new elected authorities decide to implement a different set of policies. This book explains under what circumstances such a betrayal of mandates occurs and with what consequences.
Stokes takes into account forty-two presidential elections in Latin America from 1982 to 1995 and focuses her analysis on the twelve cases where a dramatic change of policy took place. She uses statistical tools to test different hypotheses about the main determinants of policy switches. Her most surprising conclusion is that "governments that want nothing more than to promote the welfare of their constituents may sometimes not only renege on campaign pronouncements, they may in fact dissimulate in campaigns and then switch to unpopular policies" (p. 5). By defining political representation as the behavior of politicians aiming to maximize the welfare of their constituents, Stokes challenges scholars that explain policy switches as the attempt of rent-seekers to take advantage of the asymmetry of information between the voters (principal) and the office holders (agents). This latter approach would support the skeptical view of market-oriented reforms as policies that favor the interests of the rich. But she argues that "neoliberalism by surprise" is the result of a dissimulation- strategy that aims to solve the problem of conflicting beliefs between politicians and voters. What she calls "efficiency-oriented" policies (i.e. liberalization) are unpopular for voters because they do not have enough information about the benefits of such policies. Thus, politicians propose "security-oriented" policies (i.e. protectionist) to get into office and then switch.
The central argument of this book is that voters care about economic performance and not too much about policies. It stresses the role of beliefs and uncertainty in shaping politicians and voters behavior. For instance, the author claims that "politicians' choices of economic policy are shaped by ideology and technical beliefs, as well as by the desire to win votes" (p. 56). Taking into account the conflicting beliefs of politicians and voters, her theoretical discussion about the tensions between the idea of popular mandates and the independence of representatives does not exclude the possibility of a government that decides to violate mandates to govern well because has more knowledge and information than its constituents, and expects that at the end of the day they will adjudicate according to the economic outcomes. It implies that the electorate hardly knows which might be the appropriate policies due to its lack of information about the real situation of the economy and the actual effect of a specific set of policies.
The book contains valuable information about citizens' preferences, candidates' promises, and governments' performance. It is an analytic effort based on impressive data collection. The first chapter is an introduction to the research question. Chapter two describes the Latin American cases of consistent politicians, as well as the cases of vague campaigns and policy switches. The third chapter summarizes the plausible explanations of early policy switches. Chapter four analyses the impact of political parties on representative democracy. In chapter five the author explains why in most of the cases citizens support and reward the violation of mandates. Stokes concludes that politicians who switch to "unpopular" policies may be reelected, as long as outcomes are satisfactorily beneficial, as in the cases of Menem in Argentina and Fujimori in Peru, because voters will "make general ex post judgments about how incumbents have performed over a range of actions and policies" (p. 153). In chapter six, she examines in detail the principles of unconstrained representatives and why campaign pronouncements are still important for both politicians and voters. The final chapter is a summary of the central findings about causes and implications of mandate violation: under certain conditions, such as competitive elections and young political parties, "campaign messages will sometimes fail to predict policy in any democracy" (p. 188), and voters will not necessarily punished policy switchers because they will pay more attention to policy outcomes. Stokes also proposes important questions for further research: How politicians' arguments shape voters' opinions and beliefs? And, how to explain the origin and evolution of politicians' beliefs and ideology?
A shortcoming of this book is that starts with a sample of 42 cases and ends up analyzing only 3 cases. In fact, as Stokes recognizes, policy switches are anomalies (29 percent of the cases of the sample) while consistency is the rule (64 percent). If it is true that efficiency-oriented policies were unpopular, then another interesting research question is why in 17 cases (40 percent of the sample) the pro-market reforms were a successful campaign offer. Thus, the initial puzzle of "neoliberalism by surprise" should be replaced by the more accurate phrase of "neoliberalism by consent". From a different perspective, if security-oriented policies were inappropriate for voters' welfare and for the prospects of politicians' reelection, then why in 10 cases (24 percent) did politicians decide to obey the popular mandate?
This is definitively an interesting book that will be useful for graduate students who are trying to obtain a better understanding of the broad set of explanatory arguments about the economic policies implemented in Latin America during the 1980s and 1990s. It is also a good example of how to combine theory and statistics, in a comparative perspective, to shed light on a relevant question.
Book Description
Social commentator and preeminent Western historian Bernard DeVoto vigorously defended public lands in the West against commercial interests. At his death in 1955, DeVoto had won both the Pulitzer and Bancroft prizes. But he was most famous for his eloquent writing that advocated conservation of America's prairies, rangeland, forests, mountains, canyons, and deserts.DeVoto's West: Essays on History, Conservation, and the Public Good showcases the complexity, depth, and breadth of DeVoto's thinking. Editor Edward K. Muller introduces these twenty-two essays (many of which originally appeared in Harper?s renowned column The Easy Chair) that passionately and coherently advocate federal control for vast tracts of public land. DeVoto addressed many issues, including the plundering of resources by absentee eastern corporations, Westerners? conflicted relationship to exploitation, and the degradation of the national parks. He believed that conservation of natural resources in the West required government control of public lands against livestock associations, timber interests, and their congressional allies who plotted the privatization of the national forests and the extraction of resources in the national parks. DeVoto's West collects the best of DeVoto's conservation pieces for the first time. It will introduce a new generation to prose that has retained its relevance and remains a remarkably current and timely argument for protecting public lands.Bernard DeVoto was born in Ogden, Utah, in 1897. He spent his adult life in the East, first teaching English at Northwestern University, Chicago, then living in New York, and finally settling in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He is the subject of an acclaimed biography, The Uneasy Chair, by Wallace Stegner.Edward K. Muller is a professor of history and director of the Urban Studies Program at the University of Pittsburgh. He has written widely on the historical geography of American cities and is co-editor of The Atlas of Pennsylvania and North-America: the Historical Geography of a Changing Continent (second edition).
Customer Reviews:
conservation of the west.......2007-01-03
DeVoto was passionate about the West in which he grew up and his occasional writings such as these reflect his passion, as his objective and better known American history writings could not. His essays are essential to any comprehensive understanding of the history of the West and to the need for conservation as an active and abiding commitment. His views also importantly reflect changing perspectives on the whole matter.
This is a superior volume to the edition from Yale U Press which includes the fragmentary and unpublished and indeed certainly unfinished manuscript DeVoto wrote called The Western Paradox. Had a trusted colleague actually edited this ms after DeVoto's sudden death and then prepared it for publication, it would be a different matter.
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