The Kennedy Men : 1901

Book Description

The renowned biographer and New York Times bestselling author of The Kennedy Women returns with this first volume in a multigenerational history that will forever change the way America views its most famous family ...

Customer Reviews:

Bad........2007-05-10

Didn't like it. Basically refers to President Kennedy and his time in office. Too boring.

Not bad.......2004-01-13

I give this book a borderline 3 - 4 stars. It isn't bad - it explored all of the Kennedy men adequately but none very extensively. Leamer does do a great job of explaining the relationships among the Kennedy men, especially the complicated relationship that Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. had with all of his children.

The author offers up stunning and excruciating details about Joe Kennedy Jr's. death, as well as Kathleen's death. These instances were painful to read, but very insightful about the patriarch's emotions.

I feel Leamer did concentrate a bit too much on JFK's sexual trysts, but that is a topic that no book on the Kennedys will neglect, so it's not really a complaint.

It would have been nice had the book ended in 1968 and not 1963. Another 100 pages would have given the reader much more great reading on RFK following the president's death and also his run for the presidency in 1968.

All in all, this is a good book for diehard Kennedy aficionados.

A Refreshing Change From the "Kennedy Myths".......2003-06-30

In the years since John F Kennedy was elected President two kinds of "Kennedy Myths" have developed. The positive one portrays John, Robert and Ted Kennedy as liberal "saints" committed to a progressive revolution in America. The negative one shows the Kennedys to be rapacious libertines who throw off all social conventions in their personal and political lives. Leamer's book transcends these over-simplistic views and covers the lives of patriarch Joseph P Kennedy and his four sons, bringing out the complexity of this unique group of people.

Those who hold a negative view of the Kennedys will find much material to confirm their beliefs. In truth, Joe Kennedy seems to be a man with almost no redeeming virtues, a virulent anti-Semite and pro-Nazi, greedy and miserly, manipulative man. The second generation of Kennedys learned not to ask where the family's money came from. Yet Joe Kennedy went on to implement needed reforms in the Security and Exchange commission to which he was appointed, supported the progressive FDR and became the most powerful Catholic in the US.

Similarly, JFK went on to be an incredibly reckless philanderer who possibly compromised the very security of the US with liasons with women involved with organized crime and possibly even East German intelligence, but at the same time, he inspired young people to volunteer for the Peace Corps and set American on course to landing on the Moon. RFK goes to work for family friend Senator Joe McCarthy and works with the Mafia in order to destablize Castro's regime in Cuba, but then also works vigorously against the same Mafia and institutionalized racial discrimination (and somehow escapes the taint of his association with McCarthy).

Leamer show that JFK and RFK were definitely not "soft liberals". JFK was the best friend the "military-industrial complex" ever had, pouring unprecedented amounts of money into defense and space projects. They supported a very tough anti-Communist policy in Cuba and Vietnam which almost led to nuclear war and did lead to the quagmire in Southeast Asia. One important point about the book is that Leamer does not demonize various "bad guys" from the positive Kennedy Myth, such as General Curtis Lemay and other military men from the Cuban Missile Crisis, FBI Director J Edgar Hoover who was friendly for many years with Joe Kennedy and showed great forebearance with the many indiscretions of his sons and had good reason to be concerned with JFK's behavior and finally Lyndon Johnson who loyally served the Kennedy Administration and yet was treated with contempt by RFK and many of JFK's advisors (although not by JFK himself).

Finally, the author has come to the same conclusion that other investigators have arrived at regarding JFK's assassination, namely, that it is very likely that the assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald was motivated, either with or without the knowledge of agents of Fidel Castro, to kill Kennedy in revenge for the Kennedys' attempt to kill him.

It is not easy to cover the lives of five different men in a singel book, and much had to be left out, but as an introduction to this remarkable tribe of American aristocracy, this book is indispensable.

not very good.......2003-06-15

I've read 64 biographys and it's one of the worse.
There are a few photos.
some informations are odd, because the author invents them.
buy not this book, but buy better book like a common good, the thirteen days, the kennedys and the fitzgerald, robert kennedy and his time...

Informative, appraochable style.......2002-05-30

I read The Kennedy Women a few years ago and found it to be one of the most impressive biographical works that I had ever encountered. I was most impressed with Leamer's ability to fully chart the lives of so many diverdse characters.

I eagerly awaited the Kennedy Men. If I had not read his previous work, this probably would have seemed better. I felt that the Kennedy Women had a broader scope dealing with a longer (and earlier!) time frame and more individuals. This started, really with Joe Kennedy and didn't focus on too many others. A very minor complaint, is that the Kennedy women had a comrehensive time line in the beginning. It would have been useful to include one here as well.

Otherwise, this is an extaordinarily well rearched volume. What I enjoyed most was the conversational approach taken by Leamer. It is a pleasure to read. I wish that the final chapter "Requiem for a President" was slightly more detailed, but this was a chance to learn not about invididuals, but about complex family relationships and bonds.

I am glad that I read it and look forward to volume 2!

Average customer rating:
Kennedy Men - 1901-1963 - Laws Of The Father
Laurence Leamer
Manufacturer: William Morrow & Co, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000KIPAUC

Book Description

When Tina Basich grabbed her rented snowboard and headed to the mountains in Lake Tahoe, snowboarding wasn't even considered a sport ... yet. It was the beginning, and could have easily gone the way of many other sports and become dominated by male-driven competition.

But not with Tina on the scene ...

Comments like "You're pretty good ... for a girl" only pushed her harder to be the best and to prove she was more than just a token player on the slopes. Representing for women everywhere, she became a snowboarding all-star, started her own signature board and clothing lines for women, founded Boarding for Breast Cancer, and followed her heart, which led her on the adventure of a lifetime.

This is her story.

Customer Reviews:

Pretty Good for a Girl is entertaining and humorous.......2007-09-01

I have never been snowboarding and I loved the book. The author is an accomplished snowboarder who tells her personal story in an entertaining, personal, and humorous way. At times the book reads as if the author is talking to you as a personal friend sharing her adventures. There are some very funny stories in the book. I highly recommend it.

Great.......2006-10-08

I read this after reading P3: Pipes, parks, and powder. At first, I thought of it as the girl version of Todd Richard's book (P3) and didn't want to read it. But I read it, it's not just for girls. Any boarder will enjoy it. Maybe the pink cover turns off guy readers, ha, ha.

cant right good.......2006-04-30

Having graduated college, I think I was too well educated to read this book. It was so, like, 7th graderish. This book isn't very well written. It jumps around a bit, leaving the reader confused. For example, Tina talks about how she got a car soon after getting her drivers license, but then mentions that she crashed it a year later. So after reading about how she crashed it, she continues talking about how she drove everywhere. Fortunately, you can tell that Tina starts to mature a little bit as a writer near the end of the book. The other problem that I had with this book is that she tries to make women seem more disadvantaged than they really are. While there are 10x less professional women snowboarders, there are 10x as many male snowboarders, so it all evens out. Women have been a big part of snowboarding since it's inception, so I am therefore not convinced of her adversity. She does get credit back, though, because of her participation in the Boarding for Breast Cancer program. Overall, I'd skip this book and read "Hawk: Occupation: Skateboarder" if you are into the "Action" sports books or "Swimming to Antarctica" if you want a women-pushing-the-sport type of book.

Beginner Snowboarder.......2005-02-26

This book is awesome. I opened it and finished it in its entirety in one sitting. It was such an exciting read. I just recently started snowboarding and am totally psyched about it. Tina's changes in life are definitely relatable. She is an inspiration to me because there are so many girls who side-track themselves due to heartbreaking, intellectually debased boys. I've seen it happen all too often and has happened to me as well. To stay focused on your own goals and not let life get in the way is so difficult. Guys seem to have no problem doing it, but she proved that girls can pull it together too.
oh yeah, the foo fighters suck.

Pretty Good for an Autobiography.......2004-02-10

I don't know anything about snowboarding and wasn't especially interested in it, but the title of this book caught my attention. God knows I heard "pretty good for a girl" often enough when I was growing up. Once I started Tina Basich's book, I was hooked.

She tells of growing up in a Sacramento suburb and going to an alternative school where art and music were stressed. Her parents kept the TV in a closet only to be brought out for special occasions, such as the Olympics. Basich and her younger brother entertained themselves by drawing, composing and playing music, staging shows, skateboarding, and reading. By the time she went to high school (a public high school), she was accomplished in a number of fields and her hero was Nadia Comaneci.

Basich tells of discovering snowboarding, becoming a pro, losing a friend to breast cancer and organizing snowboarding events to raise money for cancer research and education, and having several close calls of her own on the slopes. She talks about competitions, travels, and romances. She has a easy-to-read conversational style and the book is filled with photos and drawings.

Snowboarders will enjoy the story of how she perfected the backside 720 over a 60-foot jump, as well as the descriptions of competitions and the name-dropping. And everyone who has heard (or said) the words "pretty good for a girl" will enjoy the success story of a focused young woman.

Book Description

This collection of 130 great songs is drawn from the best of the Warner Bros. film library. Titles include: America, America * Am I Blue * Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do) * As Time Goes By * Driving Miss Daisy * Evergreen * How Do You Keep the Music Playing? * I Only Have Eyes for You * Jeepers Creepers and more.

Dead of Night (Incubi Notturni) w/ And You Will Live In Terror (e tu vivrai nel terrore) double CD set

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Dead of Night (Incubi Notturni) w/ And You Will Live In Terror (e tu vivrai nel terrore) double CD set
Marco Locatelli; Mario Stefanoni; Roberto Curti; Al Festa
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000VZT33E

Product Description

Ultra-rare import from Italy covering horror films and especially dedicated to the memory of Italian Horror film directors Lucio Fulci and Mario Bava. Text is both in Italian and English. Included with the book is a 2-CD set that contains music from classic horror films performed by various artists. Films covered include: The Omen, The Devils, The Exorcist, The Beyond, Tenebrea, Alien, Poltegeist, Suspiria, Phenomena, Inferno, Mask of Satan, City of the Living Dead, and much more. Performers include: Morte Macabre, Nekropolis, Al Festa, Death SS, Goblin and many more.

Favorite Singalongs (Easy for all portable Keyboards, 63)

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Favorite Singalongs (Easy for all portable Keyboards, 63)
Easy Electronic Keyboard Music
Manufacturer: Hal Leonard Publishing Corp
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000TGWYPY

Product Description

This is a singalong music sheet book, with oldies such a anchors away, blue tail fly, dixie, little brown jug, school days, this old man and many many more.

Great Songs of the Movies: Piano/Vocal/Guitar Songbook (Great Songs)

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Great Songs of the Movies: Piano/Vocal/Guitar Songbook (Great Songs)

Manufacturer: Cherry Lane Music
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Songbooks | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1575609290

Book Description

Nearly 60 of the best songs popularized in the movies, including: Accidentally in Love * Alfie * Almost Paradise * Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do) * The Candy Man * Do You Know Where You're Going To? * Hopelessly Devoted to You * More (Ti Guardero Nel Cuore) * The Rainbow Connection * Somewhere in My Memory * Take My Breath Away (Love Theme) * Three Coins in the Fountain * (I've Had) the Time of My Life * Up Where We Belong * The Way We Were * and more.

Movie Soundtracks And Sound Effects (The Magic of Movies)

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Movie Soundtracks And Sound Effects (The Magic of Movies)
Geoffrey M. Horn
Manufacturer: Gareth Stevens Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

Careers | People & Places | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 9-12 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0836868390

Pop Hits from the Movies arranged by Richard Bradley

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Pop Hits from the Movies arranged by Richard Bradley

Manufacturer: Alfred Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0769292100

Book Description

Includes some of the best hits from movies such as You've Got Mail, Armageddon, My Best Friend's Wedding, Star Wars, Practical Magic, and more! This collection has something for everyone! Titles include: Anyone at All (You've Got Mail) * Bailamos (Wild Wild West) * Because You Loved Me (Up Close and Personal) * Faith of the Heart (Patch Adams) * How Do I Live (Con Air) * I Don't Want to Miss a Thing (Armageddon) * I Say a Little Prayer (My Best Friend's Wedding) * I Will Remember You (The Brothers McMullen) * The Prayer (Quest for Camelot) This Kiss (Practical Magic) * What a Wonderful World (Meet Joe Black) and many more!

Average customer rating:

SOUNDTRACK the music of the movies
Evans MArk.
Manufacturer: Da Capo Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OSL0T8

Average customer rating:

Soundtrack: The Music Of The Movies
Mark Evans
Manufacturer: Hopkinson & Blake
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000PRWJ84

Soundtrack: The music of the movies (Cinema studies series)

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Soundtrack: The music of the movies (Cinema studies series)
Mark Evans
Manufacturer: Hopkinson and Blake
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0911974202

VideoHound's Soundtracks : Music from the Movies, Broadway and Television (Videohound (Series)

Average customer rating:

A large but overall mediocre and disappointing guide.

VideoHound's Soundtracks : Music from the Movies, Broadway and Television (Videohound (Series)

Manufacturer: Visible Ink Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Guides & Reviews | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

General | Television | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Amazon.com

The most detailed and, in many respects, the finest volume in the VideoHound series of guidebooks, VideoHound's Soundtracks is essential for music lovers. It is a comprehensive reference to movie and television soundtracks as well as to albums made from Broadway and movie musicals. Each entry is accompanied by thoughtful and trenchant commentary, a full list of credits, and the title and performer of each cut on the album. As is customary in the VideoHound series, the recordings are rated from "five bones" to "WOOF!"

VideoHound's Soundtracks also contains indices organized by album title, composer, producer, orchestrator, conductor, performer, and song title. In the back of the book you'll find a compact disc sampler titled "The Best Soundtracks in Show Business!!!" which contains music from recent films such as The Rock, Donnie Brasco, Ransom, and Mother.

Customer Reviews:

A large but overall mediocre and disappointing guide........1998-10-15

I'm a huge fan of the Videohound books as well as movie soundtracks so when I read about this book I was pretty excited. But alas, I found this book to be the least satisfying of all their books. MANY notable and popular soundtracks are not reviewed. And I found the music compiliation section uninteresting. They could have easily filled that space with more movie soundtracks! The "free" cd is ok but unfortunately I had every soundtrack featured, but nonetheless, it was fun to listen to all the songs together. Buyer beware: This can be unsatisfactory if you're used to VH's usual high quality.

Book Description

Community songbook. Titles include: Old Dog Tray * Oh! Susanna * Beautiful Dreamer * Camptown Races * Laura Lee * Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair. 96 Pages.

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Stephen Foster Immortal Melodies
Stephen Foster
Manufacturer: ROBBINS MUSIC CORPORATION
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000TXFE72

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Stephen Foster: Immortal Melodies
Hugo Frey
Manufacturer: Robbins Music
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000H42BJM

Average customer rating:

Stephen Foster: Immortal Melodies
Stephen; Frey, Hugo (editor) Foster
Manufacturer: Robbins Music Corp.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000KS9MVK

Victor Herbert Immortal Melodies (The Play Now Library for All Organs No. 7, Easy to Play)

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Victor Herbert Immortal Melodies (The Play Now Library for All Organs No. 7, Easy to Play)
Victor Herbert
Manufacturer: M. Witmark & Sons
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000M52XVM

Product Description

Kiss in the Dark, Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life, Thine Alone, Kiss Me Again, Italian Street Song, March of the Toys, Indian Summer, I'm Falling in Love with someone, Tramp tramp tramp, Moonbeams and many more............

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Stephen Foster Immortal Melodies
Hugo Fray
Manufacturer: Robbins Music Corp
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000RI3DZE

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BATSFORD CHESS OPENINGS 2
GARRY KASPAROV
Manufacturer: BATSFORD
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000S6X3UA

Average customer rating:

Good reference - Excellent Format

Good For Starting Out

BCO2 is out of date

Batsford Chess Openings 2 (Batsford Chess Library)
Garry Kasparov , and Raymond Keene
Manufacturer: Henry Holt & Co (P)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Chess | Board Games | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
General | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0805034099

Customer Reviews:

Good reference - Excellent Format.......2003-05-07

An openings book is always a gamble because the moment you buy it, it is already out-dated. So why even bother buying this old book? Because it contains knowledge that remains current! However, as with ANY other openings book: Use a database to check your analyses and, why not?, a chess engine. As a reference book this is just as good as NCO or MCO but it is not intended to be an all inclussive treatise (at most it will show you what's played in this or that opening...)

I still go back to this book to check variations or learn about obscure things I face from time to time. All in all BCO's still serves me well.

What I like the most is its impecable format. Any variation you wish to find can be found efficiently and the evaluations at the end of the lines are fair.

Is it worth buying the book? Yes, if you don't mind it being outadated... See, some lines that are no longer fashionable are not included in the so up-to-date manuals and what if those are your bread and butter? This happens with BCO's in my case... And, since I check it with databases I don't see a problem with BCO.

Good For Starting Out.......2000-08-20

Published in 1989. Authored by Garry Kasparov and Raymond Keene. Certainly not the most up to date material on the wide variety of openings it covers, but it does explain each opening rather well. Over 400 pages with a good Index at the back. I have referenced this book dozens of times and have found it very helpful. Contains several variations for all the main openings.

BCO2 is out of date.......1998-08-28

The game references in BCO2 are from the late 1980's. In an age when opening theory seems to change weekly, one cannot afford to rely on old news to prepare for an opening repertoire. Keep your old BCOs -- they contain interesting ideas that will be deleted from future editions, but if you must buy it, don't pay too much for it.

Average customer rating:

Enough (& MORE) for the Tournament PLAYER

BCO2 Batsford Chess Openings 2
Raymond Keene , and Garry Kasparov
Manufacturer: B.T. Batsford Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0713460997

Book Description

"...undoubtedly the best single volume openings encyclopedia currently available." --Chess Magazine

Includes 140 diagrams.

Customer Reviews:

Enough (& MORE) for the Tournament PLAYER.......2000-05-16

Any Chess Player wants to get a strong background and improve his/her openings repertoire should buy this book. Anyhow its a nice companion for the tournament player. Recommended

Book Description

Games to Jumpstart workplace creativity. Dr. Robert Epstein's Creativity Games for Trainers arms you with 30 innovative, entertaining games guaranteed to enhance creativity in any organizational setting. Use them to develop creativity workshops or to breathe life into any training sessions. Each ready-to-use activity comes complete with lists of required and optional materials, time recommendations, reproducible handouts, follow-up discussion questions, and other essential information. You'll also find simple instructions for customizing exercises to different settings. . .data collection forms to help measure and track success. . .special ``challenge exercises'' that help participants develop their own games. . .and unique ``application exercises'' to assist users in promoting creativity on their own.

Customer Reviews:

uninspired, dry and clinical.......2007-07-16

A book about creativity, that lacks spark and "creativity" - it's too dry and clinical to be an enjoyable read and the exercises are uninspired. This material is dispassionate and lacks the flame it promises to ignite in others. As much as I admire the author's 15 years of clinical research, this book fall short in it's execution.

Excellent.......2004-02-06

I've used Epstein's book together with Michalko's "Thinkertoys," in my creative thinking seminars with great success. You can't fail with these two books.

A different approach.......2001-02-12

This book focuses on the stimuli (inputs/old ideas) and effective capaturing of responses (outputs/creative ideas) vs most other books about creativity focus on the thinking process, like mindmapping, six hats, thinking toys, etc. Thus, it directs to a total different path of how we build an environment to boost creativity. My analogy is no matter what thinking process you introduce, a group of housewives cannot invent a racket to reach the moon (don't get me wrong, I highly respect housewives for their contribution to families). It's the relevancy and variety of the inputs that matters.

I guess the author is a behaviourist who see thinking process as black box, i.e. non-observable and non-measurable. Thus, he only concentrates on the observable and measurable stimuli and responses.

I am a trainer for creativity for my company. I find this book very useful. The only complaint is that not all the games are up to my personal standard: able to demonstrate the theory AND able to energize the participants.

All in all, I highly recommand this book. You will see creativity in a different angle.

Realy Improving.......2000-03-27

Creativity Games for Trainers was realy useful for me because it its change my life and i realy feel of the creativity on me. I approached my job with new inspiration after I started taking time-outs with myself. I highly recommend this book.

Creativity Games for Trainers: A Handbook of Group Activities for Jumpstarting Workplace Creativity (McGraw-Hill Training Series)

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Creativity Games for Trainers: A Handbook of Group Activities for Jumpstarting Workplace Creativity (McGraw-Hill Training Series)
Robert Epstein
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill 1995
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Workplace | Organizational Behavior | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000MCNLOI

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