ERA Reviews

Unlike most other college textbooks, Spiegel's book treats the student of IR with respect and dignity. If it weren't for this work, my international relations coursework would have been a complete waste of time. Let's get Spiegel out there training his fellow colleagues on how to teach IR with passion and deep insight. Should be required reading in universities across the country and, indeed, the world.

In hir typical caustic fashion, Copernicus again takes on the likes of Rudy Giuliani (who?) who is upset over dung art and the family of Dale Earnhart, afraid of releasing autopsy pictures and shows why these souls are not necessarily role models. One of the best critiques on current events and lasting issues I've seen.

In the "Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era" James M. McPherson brings history alive. He sets the context for the War Between the States. He strikes an excellent balance between simply recounting the war itself and providing the reader with information on the politics, social fabric, and economics of the day.

While not a book for "serious" historians (let them read original sources), I found McPherson's effort perfectly tuned to the average reader interested in Civil War history. If this book doesn't make you want to learn more about this pivotal conflict, then nothing will.

Kudos to McPherson for making the Civil War easily accessible to the reading public.

Many books describe the battles and events of the Civil War. Other books are about the well-known people who played roles in this bloody and terrible war. But Battle Cry of Freedom helps you understand the reasons for the war, the pressures that led up to it. Like the art of Jacob Lawrence, which captures the horror of this period in American history, McPherson gives us a picture of the conflicting beliefs and values of the mid-ninteenth century that led a country to nearly split apart.

What an irony that the Yankees thought the war would be over soon! What a tragedy that Lincoln did not live to implement a more gentle reunion of North and South! In the pages of this book you feel the drama of those years and gain a better understanding of the flow of events that brought us to today. Was the Civil War about slavery? Was it about union? Was it about urban vs. rural? The answer is complex, and nothing makes it more understandable than this detailed, well-written look into those turbulent times.

This fine work is simply the best single volume history on the American Civil War ever written. Complete, thorough and very readable, this scholarly yet practical history is the best cause and effect analysis to date of the event which spawned the America that exists as we know it today. It is a most detailed account of the complete redefinition of what America was to stand for. Very compelling, you will want to read this excellent book two or three times.

John Byrne has taken a non fiction theme and turned it into a gripping page turner. Virtually everyone I know has read this book in one or two sittings. There is a bright future for him in thrillers!

Al Dunlap was so lionized by Wall Street that the market capitalization of Sunbeam went up by billions of dollars simply because of the announcement that he was taking charge. The subsequent fiasco is well documented. Byrne takes us behind the scenes and shows us what exactly happened, and when and why. Based on exhaustive interviews and examination of public and private records, the tale is both gripping and revealing.

Accounting norms were stretched to the point of outright fraud. Those who tried to sound alarms were silenced by various means ranging from firing to being bought off with options. Characters are finely drawn to the extent that you feel you know each one personally. Telling incidents reveal the essence of each player. During a major crisis, for example, Dunlap dispatches his major henchman to adjudicate a minor dispute with his club. The movers and shakers of business - Michael Price, Ron Perelman and others of that ilk - are shown to have poor judgment coupled with incredible arrogance, the same traits amply displayed by Dunlap. All have overwhelming greed. There are no heroes in this book.

The author documents that Dunlap's "successes" had much less substance than media accounts would lead you to believe. It was luck that prevented Scott Paper, for example, from being the first debacle. This is no hatchet job despite Dunlap's visceral hate for the author. The author does not reveal many damaging tidbits in this book which he has recounted elsewhere - such as the fact that Dunlap refused to contibute to the medical expenses of a niece suffering from cancer.

Far from being a "leader" or even "manager", Dunlap was a tyrant who preyed on the weak, fawned on the strong and endlessly feathered his nest. Media and Wall Street colluded in his successful-for-too-long image building. Byrne has the courage to point this out.

It is a sad commentary on our business culture that Dunlap flourished for so long despite so many people knowing what was really going on.

Read this book to understand what is going on behind the scenes in too many companies. Dunlap did not grow in a vacuum. END

After reading the excerpt of Chainsaw in Business Week magazine, I picked up a copy of this book with the hopes that it would be half as good as the material I had read in BW. Chainsaw isn't half as good. It's 100 times better. I don't know how Byrne got so many people to talk to him, but the stories in this book will make your hair rise. It is American business at its absolute worst: the greed, ego, hubris, and stupidity of a guy once hailed as a corporate leader is simply incredible. The author does a remarkable job of weaving together a powerful narrative that never hesitates to entertain, surprise and shock. My favorite story has to do with Dunlap's secret Palm Beach meeting with billionaire wheeler-dealer Ron Perelman. According to Byrne, Dunlap calls Ron a "pig" because he wants what Dunlap considers too much money for the camping equipment maker Coleman. "You know your company is a piece of shit," Dunlap yells. "You'll never see it worth thirty dollars a share in your lifetime. It's only worth twenty bucks and that is an early Christmas present." "It's Hanukkah," Perelman retorted. "Both rolled into one," roared Dunlap. After exchanging F-yous, Dunlap was told to calm down or he could have a heart attack. Crazy Al then let loose with this gem: "I don't get heart attacks. I give them, and I'm going to give you a heart attack!" The book is loaded with scenes like this one that will make you laugh at the insanity and chaos that occurred under Dunlap. Chainsaw is one great read!

If John Byrne's "Chainsaw" were a work of fiction, it would likely be considered unpublishable because its main character is so absurdely evil. Unfortunately -- especially for those who had to endure his wrath -- the story of Al Dunlap is all too true. Byrne's portrayal of Dunlap, who was hailed by Wall Street as a turaround genius before his leadership of Sunbeam ended in debacle, is that not of an admirable business leader, but of an hysterical, violent sociopath who, if his life had turned slightly differently, might well have ended up in prison, a mental hospital, or an early grave. "Chainsaw" paints a portrait of a man who was abusive -- mentally, emotionally and even physically -- to nearly everybody in his life, from his business associates to his family to the few whom he considered friends.

"Chainsaw" chronicles the rise and fall of "Chainsaw Al" Dunlap so compellingly that even those who wouldn't think to read a business book will be hooked. However, the book is in many ways fascinating the way that a car wreck is fascinating. The reader will marvel at the amount and intensity of abuse Dunlap hurls at even his closest friends and allies, the coldness with which he treats his family (he abandoned his son at age 2 and couldn't be bothered to attend the funerals of either of his parents), and the near-perverted bounds of his ego. In fact, as Sunbeam lurches toward collapse, his only apparent interest was in signing copies of his autobiography.

Defenders of Dunlap will say that he did the dirty work of downsizing and layoffs to save dying companies, sacrificing the needs of the few for the good of the many. And true, the modern business world is filled with harsh realities and tough decision-making. But Dunlap's approach to downsizing in "Chainsaw" teeters between indifference to those downsized and pure sadism. At points in the book, he actually seems to enjoy cutting jobs and closing factories (though he usually had others do the dirty deeds). As the author says, there is a business world between being tough and being cruel -- and Byrne leaves little doubt about where he places Dunlap. Worse, Dunlap's moves at Sunbeam didn't seem to have been done with any level of intelligence, other than to get Dunlap a quick win so he could cash out fast. The result was the near-total destruction of Sunbeam rather than long-term gains from short-term pain.

In "Chainsaw," Byrne stresses that either through fear, greed or naivetee, others enabled Dunlap. The way that each of these characters is drawn creates a fascinating if morbid portrait of a dysfunctional, cannibalistic organization revolving totally around Chainsaw Al.

Byrne is a terrific writer, and "Chainsaw" is a great read. My only quibble is that, since Byrne and Dunlap apparently have had great animosity toward each other, Byrne often sacrifices any attempt at objectivity. But perhaps objectivity isn't possible when chronicling such an extreme personality.

It's good to see "Chainsaw" returning to print in paperback. Now, in the era of Enron and WorldCom, Sept. 11 and the War on Terror reminding us what real toughness is all about, and with the Wall Street euphoria of the '90s in the rear-view mirror, its perspective is needed now more than ever...

It is good to sell the dream of freedom to Hong Kong people, but actually, no one knows if you can gain large sum of money after you invest your money and efforts in this company.
Also, there are many illegal companies, which are working as MLM structure, i.e. pyramid scheme. Those companies are rather people oriented than product oriented. Before they enter the company, they need to pay a large sum of entrance fees, and they earn bonus by referring the scheme to people, but not recruiting sales representatives to earn commissions by selling products. Very often, those companies easily wind up. Hong Kong people are mixing up the concepts of these companies with those legitimate MLM companies, such as, Amway, Nu Skin and Mary Kay. Therefore, most of the Hong Kong people are not faithful to the MLM companies as they are too risky for them to join.

Having been in Network Marketing for many years, I feel this book will help me and my downline to be even more successful. It is a great way to introduce others to MLM. Then you can present your company for them to evaluate.

Here is a fabulous quote from the book, describing how a true Wave 3 MLM company operates: "No longer do distributors need to stockpile their own inventory and keep track of all the paperwork. Gone are the days when each rank-and-file networker was expected to act as leader, mentor, public speaker, and champion motivator for his own downline. They simply direct customers to a toll-free 800 number. The company fulfills the order, credits the distributor for the sale, and spits out a computerized commission check at the end of the month."

That really helps people see the oppotunity in Wave 3 MLM!

This book is powerful, has clearly illustrated stories, and a proper description of terms and concepts that for a long time seemed to be cowering under the fist of illegal pyramids. MLM business in the next century will be understood and utilized. Companies like the Amway Corporation at $7 billion sales for the 97' fiscal year will be looked at anew and will continue to be pioneers in this economy. Those who learn to harness Network Marketing will be the leaders in the next century. Poe understands this revolution and is successful at helping us understand this marvelous new wave. Wave 3 will be a benchmark...

Having lived in Idaho only five years, I found Big Trouble to be an extremely interesting book. I actually live in the Coeur d'Alenes, in Wallace, only 10 miles from the Bunker Hill Concentrator in Wardner and about 6 miles from Burke, and, although I had heard of the mining wars, and a little about the Steunenburg assasination, I had no idea of the national attention this incident received, much less coming close to instigating a Socialist revolution. I learned a lot from reading this book. I will admit that the author does go off on tangents, which may seem annoying at first, but eventually, one gets to see the point, and they actually begin to become interesting. Lukas is giving a good overview of the period, so that we can fully experience the situation, and dive right in, along with Haywood, Borah, Darrow and McParland, and, in a sense, experience the trial with them. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in Idaho history!

It's a blockbuster of a book and I had to buy a book-holder for reading it in bed. It comes in a big package - over 750 pages in my trade-paperback edition.

And it's American History made fascinating. What a mini-series this would be. What a movie! Lukas did painstaking research, not only in the relevant areas but in minor side-events and personages...all the tidbits of curious information about major and minor players in this riveting event of history.

Then add suspense, ..........What more do you need? Do something nice for yourself. Read this wonderful story told with consummate skill and sensitivity.

Well, maybe not THE book, but when, for my first graduate course in history, I had to pick the work of history that most influenced my professional ambitions I picked Big Trouble, which I read in an undergrad U.S. Industrial History course. Big Trouble is a wonderful book and Lukas an amazing writer. I was interested all the way through the several hundred pages, which was not true for any of the other books I read in Industrial History, or in almost any other class ever.

What really struck me about Big Trouble, however, was what my professor passed out on the day we finished reading it: Luakas' obituary. He killed himself a few months before Big Trouble was published because, after winning two Pulitzers and a National Book Award, he felt that he had been a failure as a writer. I am sad that he did not live to write more.

I found this a good book, but not a great book. I did not enjoy it as much as the Franklin biography by Brands. He certainly had a compelling character to work with who lived in interesting times, and he didn't overdo the growing up pscyhological stuff, although there was some of that covered. Perhaps the biggest problem is that the subject's life was least glorious after he left the Presidency, when he was more jealous and irrational than he was before that.

I enjoyed reading this book!

I had read Henry Pringle's Pulitzer Prize-winning biography of TR written in 1931 and found it to be dated both in writing style and historical interpretation. Brands's 1990's update reveals little in the way of new data about this most interesting American, but it certainly brought to life in vivid detail a grand character the likes of which we shall not see again.

Brands correctly compared TR's successful effort to construct the Panama Canal to JFK's push to send a man to the moon. Historians can argue about which has had the more lasting practical impact. In the diplomatic game of hawks and doves, Roosevelt was the leading raptor of his generation. While president, TR stared down German Kaiser Wilhelm in a shrewd reassertion of the Monroe Doctrine during a crisis involving Venezuela. One wonders whether his "big stick" approach to international affairs and the particular influence he had on Germany might have changed the course of world history had he been elected in 1912, when he ran as a Progressive.

As Brands points out, Roosevelt himself was a historian of some note and served as President of the American Historical Association after leaving the presidency. The author quotes from a keynote address Roosevelt gave to one of the Association's meetings in which TR advocated for a romantic interpretation of history focussing on the qualities he idealized: principled bravery, heroism and moral certitude. Brands's account of TR's life pays homage to this approach, but is nevertheless even-handed. Roosevelt's personality eventually verged on being megalomaniacal; still, the story of the sickly, asmatic child molding himself through sheer determination into the great man he became is truly inspirational.

I found this book a pretty quick read despite it being over 800 pages.

This book is an engaging, well-crafted study of Teddy Roosevelt. I found the book very pleasant and informative reading. Despite the 800+ pages, it took only a brief time to finish the entire book. The author allows TR to shine through in his own words as well as a generally sparkling narrative.

One fascinating conclusion I drew from the book that TR was a man who became president about 10 years too early, then became an old(er) man with his glory days behind him. The last ten years of his life were spent twisting at windmills, bullying friend and foe alike while attempting to regain the power that he willingly gave up after 1909. Allowing a little bit of political opinion, one wonders if we will see similar behavior by the present White House occupant who also will leave a relatively young man. (Something to think about.)

Nonetheless, the book is a fine testament to TR's immense talents, ego and passion. TR was a great man, a great president, but not without his flaws.

absolutely aweful on the germans. those chapters on hegel, nietzche are pretty bad. the one on kant is OK but could have been 1st rate because he really knew kant in his younger days but seemed to have forgotten all about him by the time he wrote "history".

the chapters on the british philosophers are pretty good, but russell knew nothing about the middle ages. recent research has shown the so-called dark ages had made some pretty significant advances & contributions to logic & philosophy.

the chapters on greeks are what you would expect from an introductory text, but then there are many such books on the market.

russell had a chapter on william james but nothing on pierce, who is now generally regarded as the greatest US thinker, so it's a strange omission. he knew pragmatism but failed to give a very good account.

i am most disappoined with the last chapter on analytic philosophy, set theory & foundations of math. he was at the forefront of all these recent developments, and among the first to work on, at the turn of the 20th century, the philosophical significance of Weierstrass, Cantor and Dedekind, especially cantor.

But by the 1940s, he had dropped out of research in the latest math/philo advances. the advances & revolutions in math. logic -of which ruseel was one of its founders - later wittgenstein, godel, lowentheim-skolem theorem, transfinite set theory beyond cantor... had all passed him by. these developments & upheavals are as tumultuous as 20th century political history.

but strangely, russell paid no attention to these.

in sum, it's a great & aweful book only a great but infuriating thinker like russell could produce. but i think there are better intro texts to the subject.

Russell helped found the field of Logic. But unlike some of his colleagues (eg. Wittgenstein), Russell writes with the kind of clarity and erudition that is the envy of almost any writer. This "History" is the best of its kind; he covers every major philosopher from the beginning in a way that no other thinker could. I refer to the book on a regular basis, and it never fails to clear away any clouds of misunderstanding that Philosophy can often create.

An invaluable work for anyone, even the professional.

I was raised in places like Okeechobee, Florida, and Orlando when it was still largely agricultural. This book was my first introduction to the breadth and complexity of this beautiful civilization. It is a wonder. Russell shows how hard it was to learn how to think. He gives everything that matters in the development of thinking in the western world, at least up to the Twentieth Century. Russell's views of philosophy and the philosophers remain connected to the realities of everyday life. This book makes a great G*I*F*T for first-rate high school kids. Feeling that a kid is ready for Russell is a high compliment.

If you're reading this review, I'll assume you've come to realize how important this book is. Controversial, definitely, but worth reading. This particular edition is really nice. I haven't seen a book this cheap in a long time. For those who don't know, "The Prince" is a manuscipt written by Machiavelli to the Medici (I think) family in some province of Italy. It outlines the ways in which a ruler can maintain power by analyzing the actions of past rulers. It's short enough to keep you interested, and important enough to warrant buying this book.

Although the stated scope of the book (how rulers can maintain their position) is relatively narrow, the lessons of the book apply to a wide variety of situations. From business to politics, this book contains many of the essential lessons to succeed with power. While nobody should expect to learn how to stay in power after reading this book (this, of course, requires a great deal of experience), one can reasonably expect a good deal of insight into the way people think.

My *single* complaint about the book is that it is sometimes too dense to read casually. While not classifiable as an "intense" read, it falls somewhere between a historical textbook and an instruction manual.

The prince" is an honest document ,but it is not single document in political history .Chanakya was a minister of Chandra Gupta. He wrote a book "ARTH SHASTER" like "THE PRINCE" for his king.This book is very notorious in civil societies.
I think the writers of these books were very honest and faithful to thier ideas.Machiavelli was very sincere with his country and he wanted to restore ex status of his great and historical country .He studied history and lives of great rulers ,and analysis their struggles ,indeed there was a bright background of his country and some rulers

Machiavelli,s approach was quite right ,and he adivesed his ideal ruler whith sincerity and honesty .His principles for ruling are unique like Roman laws

Advices of Chanakya and Machiavelli to thier rulers are same ,therfore i can say easily that they are correct due to their vast experiences

After Machiavelli all great rulers read this book and kept it behind their beds and acted upon its instructions .No one of them denied its principles and suggestions.

This book is historical document and will be read in every age by every great ruler

"The Prince" is one of the classics you cannot do without, if you want to understand the dynamics of power. Here, Machiavelli tells us how to achieve (and mantain) power.

This short book is profoundly innovative, because Machiavelli leaves aside everything that is not directly relevant to political theory, thus giving the opportunity for the birth of an autonomous political science. Previously, considerations of rigth and wrong were deeply connected with debates regarding power, the good prince or the perfect regime. After "The Prince" that wasn't necessarily true anymore.

Machiavelli believed that, in order to be able to study correctly political facts and events, he needed to get rid of the illusions that had clouded the vision of previous generations (for example, the possibility of eliminating evil). In that respect, he could be described as the first truly modern thinker.

Sheldon Wolin says that Machiavelli gave the new science of the art of ruling as an alternative to the old principle of legitimacy, promising that he could make "a new prince look old". In that respect, "The Prince" was groundbreaking...

There are many more ideas in "The Prince" you might find interesting, even if you don't agree with them. Strange as it may seem, this book is as relevant today as it was the day it was written. Of course, some parts of it are outdated, but others might help you to understand the way some leaders behave.

In my opinion, that is the main contribution of "The Prince". It helped giving political theory a new direction,yes, but it also allows us to understand a little better what is happening nowadays. I think that is the crucial mission of political books: help us to understand the world, in order to be able to improve it later.

My advise?: read it --> it is a classic that somehow has managed to maintain its edge :)

Historian David McCullough is a national treasure. The author of an excellent history of the building of a Panama Canal ("The Path Between the Seas") and a biography of former President Harry Truman ("Truman", my all-time favorite book), McCullough also wrote an excellent biography of President Theodore Roosevelt's early years.

Following close on the heels of Edmund Morris "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt", "Mornings on Horseback" looks at Roosevelt's formative years, when the man who would one day become one of America's greatest Presidents came of age. Though not quite the equal of Morris book, McCullough's is a somewhat more critical look at the extraordinary life the President led as a young man.

This is a book for those who want to know what made this President tick.

David McCullough is a masterful story teller and biographer of American icons. His book on Harry Truman is considered his best, but this look at the young Theodore Roosevelt is quite good. The major criticism of the book is that McCullough spends an inordinate amount of time on TR's parents, neither of whom are especially interesting. There is also an enormous amount of background material on the Oyster Bay wealthy clique, their customs, habits and privileged manners. This can get boring pretty quickly.

But the majority of the text is rightly devoted to TR, who is as fascinating a man who ever lived. It's all here: his ability to speak languages, his amazing memory, the fact he read a book every day, his passion for the outdoor life, his years at Harvard. His romances are here as well, including his early passion for eventual wife Edith, whom he threw over for his first wife, Alice.

The book ends after Alice's death and TR retreats for two years to emotionally heal in the Badlands. If you have an interest in TR, this is an essential, "must have" book. It does bog down in too many details early on, but the bulk of the book is excellent. Recommended!

This book offers something new to the history of Theodore Roosevelt:

The reader gets a close look at the environment and family life that shaped and molded this great leader.
After reading this book you will have new insight into seeing why T.R. acted as he did.
The author mentions in the preface that he was told by a relative of T.R. that the one thing all the other bigraphies and books on the Roosevelts lacked was seeing how the family was part of a clan - that this was indeed a huge influence on T.R. This book will show you what this means.
Mr. McCullough is a brilliant and entertaining author. This book will also be enjoyable for those of you who enjoyed him in the Presidents series on PBS.

Highly Recommended