Saturday, December 19, 2015

WHITE ESKIMO : KNUD RASMUSSEN'S FEARLESS JOURNEY INTO THE HEART OF THE ARCTIC
by Stephen R. Bown

When it comes to polar exploration, Knud Rasmussen stands out from all the others. Whereas Robert Peary, Richard Bird, Robert Falcon Scott, et al, were determined to investigate the Arctic geographically, Rasmussen was more interested in learning about the native people (Inuit). (He was fluent in Kalaallisut, a dialect of Greenland due to his mother's side of the family.) For thirty years he visited every known tribe that was then existing in this part of the world.They both loved and revered him. Rasmussen lived among them helping them hunt, harnessing dog sleds, building abodes, eating what they caught and shot and by doing so eventually earned their trust. They considered him one of them. His patience, enthusiasm, charm, and intelligence worked wonders and they opened their hearts to Rasmussen telling him about their lives, legends, songs, and poetry, which he diligently recorded. Of course, then he had to translate everything which he then wrote about. Rasmussen was a born storyteller and his writings were quite lyrical. The publishers ate it up. He was in high demand between his books and the lecture circuit.
Rasmussen's reputation has never diminished nor has he been supplanted by anyone else and he is still ranked as number one in being able to explain to the general public, through his writings, the core of Inuit life.
He was many things: an ethnographer, an anthropologist, a writer, an explorer, a filmmaker, and, most importantly, a dedicated friend.
White Eskimo is a fantastic biography of an incredible man. Author Stephen Bown is a superb writer, but then, again, he should be as he has written many other books on exploration. His "Note on Sources" is fascinating enough (especially with what he went through to get the Danish language translated) and must be read to understand what he wanted to achieve with understanding the kind of man Rasmussen was.
Apparently there have been no other biographies written in English about Rasmussen. The only ones that are available are in Danish. Luckily we have Bown who did us an inestimable service by his incredible research in bringing Rasmussen to our attention.
Very highly recommended.
 

Sunday, December 6, 2015

CLEMENTINE : THE LIFE OF MRS. WINSTON CHURCHILL
by Sonia Purnell 

What's that famous saying? Behind every great man is a great woman. Winston Churchill's wife, Clementine (her name was pronounced as if the last four letters in her name were written as "teen"), was way more than just an extension of him. For fifty-seven years, she stood by his side and was his adviser, supporter, and consultant. Clementine did so much for Winston. She was his greatest asset.
Winston trusted her completely and was completely dependent upon her. She boosted him up, guided him, and prevented him from making mistakes. Her role as the prime minister's wife went above and beyond any of America's First Ladies. Clementine made such an impression on world leaders that she was honored by both the British monarchy and the Soviet Union.
She was an incredible woman and Winston would have been nothing without her.
Clementine is an outstanding biography. The last time anything was written about her was forty years ago, a book by one of her daughters. Apparently that one had many things missing. Fortunately this current one by Sonia Purnell fills in the gaps and then some.
How Clementine was able to put up with such a self-absorbed, egotistical, vain, and compassionless man was something that she had to bear and suffered for it. Winston was very demanding and childish, yet Clementine was somehow able to rise above it and smooth things over. They loved each other very much. It was an incredible partnership.
It's about time that Clementine is now in the forefront where she belongs. 
Very highly recommended. 

Monday, October 19, 2015

ZERO NIGHT : THE UNTOLD STORY OF WORLD WAR TWO'S GREATEST ESCAPE
by Mark Felton

It was supposed to occur in early September as both the conditions of the moon and the weather would have been favorable. But thanks to the new camp commandant, Oberst Brinkord, Oflag VI-B was going to be closed down. All of the prisoners would be divided up and sent off to different camps. For the next month, it seemed as if the Germans played games with when the actual leaving time would be.
August 30, 1942 ("ZERO NIGHT") forty-four Allied officers from Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom participated in the most daring escape of World War II. For five months scrupulous planning and covert training of Operation Olympia took place beforehand. Originally, they had attempted to dig their way out via tunnels, but the Germans always discovered them. So a new method was devised and wooden ladders were constructed and then concealed as bookshelves in the huts.
Four teams carried the scaling apparatus (each one eleven-feet-tall) and stormed the fences. Fifty other prisoners created a diversion. The officers had only three minutes to get up and over. Thirty-two men catapulted into freedom within the German countryside. 
There's very few accounts written of this escape, which makes it that much more thrilling to read.
Author Mark Felton is a British historian who specializes in writing about prisoner-of-war experiences and he doesn't let you down. The details that he includes on all the different characters, how the ladders were built and where the wood was procured from, and the discussions of the preparations keep you riveted.
If you enjoy reading about World War II escapes, Zero Night should do it for you. 
Recommended. 

Friday, September 18, 2015

DOCTOR TO THE RESISTANCE : THE HEROIC STORY  OF AN AMERICAN SURGEON AND HIS FAMILY IN OCCUPIED PARIS
by Hal Vaughan 

Dr. Sumner Waldron Jackson (originally from Maine) was the Medical Director of the American Hospital of Paris during World War II. Known as Dr. Jack, he was revered by both his staff and his patients. When Paris became occupied by the Nazis, he, his wife, Toquette, and their son, Phillip, could have left to return to the United States, but they didn't. Instead, they joined the French Resistance. At the age of fifteen, Phillip thought that it was all a "game."  His parents knew otherwise. If they were caught, they would be arrested, or deported, or worse. So Phillip delivered clandestine mail around Paris (he was fifteen at the time), his father hid men wanted by the SS in hospital beds, and their apartment at Foch Avenue was used as a courier center.
I first heard about Dr. Jackson from another book called Avenue of Spies by Alex Kershaw. There wasn't a whole lot of information on the doctor, plus it wasn't well-written, it was boring, and repetitive. While reading reviews on Amazon about Kershaw's book, a commentator mentioned Hal Vaughan's superior tale. As soon as I began reading it, I knew immediately that it was much better and much more interesting.
There have been many books written about World War II, but Doctor to the Resistance is quite fascinating as it goes into in-depth details about what Paris looked like and how it acted during the Occupation. On top of that, you have an American family that could have escaped but willingly joined the Resistance, because they knew that the Nazis would be defeated.
One of the most disturbing chapters in the book is called "SS Death Ships." These huge barges gathered up thousands of concentration camp prisoners as the allies were moving in. Lubeck Bay would become one of history's greatest maritime disasters. I never heard of this before in all of the hundreds of books that I have read about the Holocaust. 
Doctor to the Resistance is quite a story. Hal Vaughan certainly knows how to do impressive research, especially since he dug up information that hasn't been written anywhere else. Luckily for him and for us, he was able to interview Phillip, who had plenty of documents and photos.
A very good read.
Recommended. 

Monday, September 7, 2015

THE LOST TRIBE OF CONEY ISLAND : HEADHUNTERS, LUNA PARK, AND THE MAN WHO PULLED OFF THE SPECTACLE OF THE CENTURY
by Claire Prentice

The biggest attraction at Luna Park (part of Coney Island) in 1905 was the Bontoc Igorottes (mountain people). Fifty of them were brought to America from the Philippines by Truman K. Hunt. They were billed as "dog-eating,  head-hunting savages" and put on a show performing native dances, basket weaving, jewelry making, and other rituals. Millions of people came to see the Igorottes. In no time, they were a huge sensation and were written up in newspapers nationally and then globally.
Hunt became a rich man from them. But he was an opportunist and told tall tales about the tribespeople. Unfortunately, the press swallowed it hook, line, and sinker. He stretched the truth to  entertain the public. Underneath his so-called charming demeanor, though, was a dark side. Truman was greedy (he stole their wages), heartless (he treated them like slaves), and deceitful (constantly lying to the U.S. government).
The Igorottes were kind, just, honest, and dignified people. They originally had thought the world of Dr. Hunt. He was a former medical doctor who had met the tribe after the 1898 Spanish-American War had erupted. Hunt had lived among them, treating their ills, setting bones, and giving medications when needed. So when he decided to bring them over to America, they trusted him completely. They thought that he was their friend. Some friend indeed.
The Lost Tribe of Coney Island is both an absorbing and disturbing read. It's very well-written and definitely keeps your attention. What's really shameful and appalling is that human beings were exhibited like animals in a zoo and the public paid money to gawk at them. Eventually it became an embarrassing circumstance in the history of the United States and the relationship between them and the Filipinos.
The massive research that author Claire Prentice did to create such a book is very impressive. (You will find all of it in the Acknowledgments.) She visited over thirty libraries, many museums, historical societies, universities, archives; spoke with a military historian; learned from a curator about fashions at the beginning of the century; had legal questions answered by a School of Law, and many more people whose line of work helped Prentice compile all of her necessary information.
This is an incredible story that merits being told. It's an eye-opener because it makes you think who really is civilized and who is savage.
Very highly recommended.

Sunday, August 23, 2015

THE SPY'S SON : THE TRUE STORY OF THE HIGHEST-RANKING CIA OFFICER EVER CONVICTED OF ESPIONAGE AND THE SON HE TRAINED TO SPY FOR RUSSIA
by Bryan Denson

Harold James "Jim" Nicholson was an exemplary case officer working for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). He was classy, wore three-piece suits, and loved his country. Jim (also known as Batman) was sent to different countries around the world operating against the Soviet Union. Although he rose in the ranks and was much admired, not so with his wife (his kids barely knew him as he was hardly ever home). That would change when Jim got divorced and his children ended up living with him in Virginia. He became a devoted father and a very attentive parent. They began to have this lavish lifestyle. Jim bought his kids expensive gifts. Where was this influx of extra cash coming from? Blame it on the Russians, although Jim was the one that walked into their embassy and offered his services. For two years, he sold secrets for quite a bit of money, handing over thousands of classified documents on other officers, which then destroyed their careers and put them in grave danger. Talk about betrayal. Eventually both the CIA and FBI joined forces to capture Jim.
Several years later, while incarcerated, he was at it again. He recruited his son, Nathan, to be his courier. Nathan adored his father and would do anything for him. Jim proceeded to show him some basic lessons in spycraft. Whenever Nathan visited his father, he smuggled messages out and met with Russian spies in three different countries. He actually thought he was doing the right thing. After all, his father told him that there was nothing illegal in his actions. Nathan never thought of the risk and what could happen to him.
The Spy's Son is one hell of a story. Author Bryan Denson spent five years putting everything together. He crafted a riveting tale. You come away absolutely despising Jim. He was a narcissist, had no remorse for what he had done, and ruined his family. Jim said that he loved his children, but what kind of father would intentionally put his son in harm's way, in a cunning deception?
If you enjoy spy stories, this book is one terrific read.
Highly recommended. 

Tuesday, July 14, 2015

STALIN'S DAUGHTER : THE EXTRAORDINARY AND TUMULTUOUS LIFE OF SVETLANA ALLILUYEVA
by Rosemary Sullivan 

It's not a good thing to be the offspring of a leader of a country, especially when that leader is a tyrant. You will never have a life and will be forever doomed. So it was with Svetlana Alliluyeva, the daughter of Stalin.
Svetlana spent her childhood inside the Kremlin protected from the horrors outside that her father inflicted upon the citizens of the Soviet Union. But she saw tragedy very early on. Her mother, Nadya, committed suicide when Svetlana was six and a half years old. Uncles and aunts were arrested on false charges and executed.
After Stalin died in 1953, Svetlana discovered how cruel her father really was and how far it went. But the cruelty did not stop. Her older brother was arrested and friends were sent to the gulag (forced-labor camps).
When Svetlana was forty-one, she defected to the United States leaving her two children behind. She could no longer stand the oppression and wanted her freedom. Unfortunately Svetlana could never really find home and lived in the West like a gypsy constantly moving from place to place. Her father's shadow loomed over her from which she was not able to escape.
Don't be scared by the size of this book. At 623 pages, Stalin's Daughter is quite hefty, but easy to read. Rosemary Sullivan is a terrific writer and the prose flows effortlessly. After The Table of Contents, there are two pages of Family Trees: maternal and paternal. As you get into the book, you can refer to these if the names start to drive you crazy. After the Acknowledgements are a List of Characters. You really don't need to look at them until you are finished reading the entire book, because they won't make any sense to you nor will you remember all of them until you are done.
Sullivan is a great biographer and through her immense research was able to deftly create a riveting portrait of a misunderstood, lonely, but valiant woman.
Very highly recommended. 

Sunday, July 5, 2015

JONAS SALK : A LIFE
by Charlotte DeCroes Jacobs

Poliomyelitis (infantile paralysis) was the disease that every parent dreaded. There was no cure. In 1916, twenty-seven thousand people (mostly children under the age of five) were afflicted. It would take thirty-nine years before a vaccine would enter to prevent polio and end the suffering.
On April 12, 1955, the life of Jonas Salk changed forever. He was the man who created the vaccine and his announcement catapulted him into instant celebrity. It was never-ending. He was adored and adulated by the public. Salk was their hero.
The scientific community did not feel the same way. They snubbed him. In their eyes, he wasn't a real scientist, because no man of science puts himself out there to the public. They couldn't seem to get their heads around the fact that one man created something that could save lives.
Salk was not just involved with polio, but he also had a hand in a vaccine for influenza (he never received recognition) and did incredible work on AIDS.
Jonas Salk knew as a child that he would do something really noble. (His mother, after all, told him that he was destined for greatness.) This idealism would drive him even though his peers rejected him.
At 400 plus pages, this is one hefty book, but it's not plodding nor boring. Author Charlotte Jacobs is a great biographer and writes quite skillfully. There's plenty of details that in lesser hands could really bog down the information. She knows how to present the material in a pleasing way that is palatable to the layperson. As a physician herself and professor of medicine at Stanford University, Jacobs has the knowledge to portray Salk in all of his complexities showing who he really was.
Highly recommended. 

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

OFF THE RADAR : A FATHER'S SECRET, A MOTHER'S HEROISM, AND A SON'S QUEST
by Cyrus Copeland

Remember the year that sixty-six Americans were being held hostage in Iran's U.S. embassy? It was 1979. A revolution and Islamic fundamentalism commenced. The Americans were kept for 444 days. It made international news. What was not known, though, was that another American ended up being arrested for espionage.
Max Copeland was a quiet man who seemed more like a college administrator than a corporate executive. He worked for Westinghouse (they were no longer in the business of selling light bulbs) and they were a huge presence in Iran selling radar equipment to the Iranian Air Force. Max was caught by Revolutionary Guards and thrown into prison. The United States did nothing. He was put on trial. No lawyer took his case. The only one who could save him was Shahin, his Iranian wife.
Thirty-five years later, son Cyrus is going through a box of his father's files to see what he was really doing in Tehran and discovered a man that was way different than he had known.
Off the Radar is an absolutely brilliant book. The writing is tremendous. If you didn't know the history of Persia/Iran, it is all explained here along with the downfall of the Shah, his exiting, and the entrance of Khomeini. The family really went through quite an emotional upheaval, because they were two colliding cultures. Shahin, the matriarch of the family, was the rock as she tried to save her husband and used her wits, strength, and intelligence to go after the powers-that-be of Iran.
This is one stupendous, riveting, and exciting read.
Very highly recommended.



Thursday, June 18, 2015

A GOOD PLACE TO HIDE : HOW ONE FRENCH COMMUNITY SAVED THOUSANDS OF LIVES DURING WORLD WAR II
by Peter Grose

In the years between 1940 to 1944, an isolated French community selflessly saved 3,500 Jews from the Nazis. They risked their own lives to offer a safe haven, hospitality, and kindness. These incredible people were Huguenots, who at one time were anti-Semitic. That would change. The Huguenots broke away from the Catholic Church in 1530 and became Protestants. They grew by the millions. The Catholic Church was not too happy about this and fought them bitterly. So began the Wars of Religion. It wasn't until Napoleon arrived in 1804 that peace for the Huguenots was finally at hand. For over 200 years, they understood what it was like to be a persecuted minority. They learned how to survive, keep their wits about them, their heads down, and watch what they said. It was a match made in heaven for the Jews. They were among ordinary men and women who offered human decency.
A Good Place to Hide is an extraordinary tale. It is one of these feel-good stories that don't come around too often. The book is very well-written. Peter Grose did quite a bit of research including interviews with some of the people that were there.What started the ball rolling was a documentary called Weapons of the Spirit. (Check out the 4-minute excerpt from it on YouTube by Pierre Sauvage called "Le Chambon.") After watching this video, you will WANT to know what happened.
The story is quite moving, absorbing, and so inspiring. It's a terrific read and is not to be missed.
Highly recommended.

Friday, April 24, 2015

HE WANTED THE MOON : THE MADNESS AND MEDICAL GENIUS OF DR. PERRY BAIRD, AND HIS DAUGHTER'S QUEST TO KNOW HIM
by Mimi Baird with Eve Claxton

She never really knew her father. He was not around for most of her childhood. When Mimi Baird was six years old, he had stopped coming home. She would ask where he was. The answer was usually "away" or that he was "ill." Most of the time, all of her questions about her father went unanswered. The only time Mimi got to see him again was for a very short time in 1959 right before his death.
Many years later (1994), Mimi received a package on her doorstep. Inside was a manuscript: her father's memoirs. By organizing these stacks of papers in meaningful piles, she finally discovered what had happened to him all of those lost years.
Dr. Perry Baird was a well-known dermatologist in Boston back in the late 1920s and 1930s. He had a very busy practice and people flocked all over the world to see him. Early on in his profession, he became fascinated with the background of manic depression. He did experiments with other doctors, but by the time they were published, he began to suffer from it himself. Dr. Baird was institutionalized many times against his will, his medical license was revoked, and his family was told to forget about him.
"Echoes from a Dungeon Cell" presents a portrait of a man who was an observer of his own condition, living with a disease for which, at the time, there was no cure for. The manuscript shows both clear-headed thinking and manic deterioration. It must be the first time somebody who was afflicted with this disease was able to sit down and write about what went on.
He Wanted the Moon is an unforgettable fast read where you constantly shake your head in disbelief. From Dr. Baird's writings (you feel as if you're sitting in the same room with him, especially as he describes the brutal treatments he had) and what Mimi found out about her father (through her research and interviews), this book is truly amazing. What an eye-opener.
Highly recommended.

Friday, March 20, 2015

DEAD WAKE : THE LAST CROSSING OF THE LUSITANIA
by Erik Larson

According to the New York manager of the Cunard line, the Lusitania was the safest boat on the sea. She was also the fastest. No submarine could get near her. It was built to be speedy. With this in mind, this luxurious ocean liner took off from New York on May 1, 1915, carrying 1,959 passengers and crew and sailed to its destination of Liverpool. That morning, newspapers had written warnings from Germany that they should be careful as they would be sailing through a war zone. The passengers, though, were quite at ease. They put all of their trust in Captain William Thomas Turner who had already commandeered the Lusitania in previous voyages plus other ships. These passengers also assumed that they would be escorted through dangerous waters by the British Navy so there was nothing to fear or be anxious about.
Unfortunately, the Admiralty wasn't really that focused on the Lusitania to send escorts. But British intelligence was extremely interested in Walter Schwieger. He was the captain of Unterseeboot-20 and he had quite a record of torpedoing neutral boats. So without telling anybody, this particular unit of intelligence tracked Schwieger's U-boat. And Schwieger set his sights on the Lusitania.
Erik Larson is always the author that must be paid attention to. Every time one of his books is published, you have to grab it fast. Dead Wake is no exception. Larson is so dedicated to detail. His descriptions of both the outside and the inside of the Lusitania, the myriad of characters that were involved, what a submarine looks like within, the machinations of a torpedo, is riveting reading. Of course, there's the drama that draws you in and, of course, the tension.
There are no photographs in the book, but they are really not necessary. (You can always find them on the Internet.) Larson's writing keeps your attention constantly and it's a fast read (three days for me). There have been other books written about the Lusitania, but Larson discovered new information that has never been revealed before. The research was massive.
So, if you're a Larson fan, get a hold of this book. You won't be disappointed.
Highly recommended.

Friday, March 6, 2015

A FIFTY-YEAR SILENCE : LOVE, WAR, AND A RUINED HOUSE IN FRANCE
by Miranda Richmond Mouillot

Something happened between Anna and Armand in 1948 that led them to split up. They both had been Jewish refugees fleeing from the Nazis in France. Luckily for them they evaded being captured and sent to a concentration camp. They ended up in neutral Switzerland and got married in 1944. It didn't last too long. A few years later, Anna walked out on Armand with the typewriter and their two children. They never spoke to each other again, never saw each other, neither one of them remarried, and never told their family what caused their separation.
Author Miranda Richmond Mouillot, the granddaughter of Anna and Armand, puts on her detective hat and delves into letters, archives, and even her grandparents to get at the truth. It took her ten years to write it all down. The hardest part was dragging the memories out of her reticent, aging grandparents. He would fly into a rage at the mention of her name and she would change the subject.
It took an inordinate amount of patience, love, and fortitude for Mouillot to uncover their story.
A Fifty-Year Silence is a stunner of a memoir. Mouillot's writing is absolutely gorgeous. She's such a masterful storyteller that you can't lift your head up for a minute, because you're so involved. The way she reconstructs their difficult and painful lives through the calamity of the Holocaust is riveting.
By learning about what happened between her grandparents, Mouillot discovers her own inner strength.
Very highly recommended.

Sunday, February 22, 2015

BEYOND THE CALL : THE TRUE STORY OF ONE WORLD WAR II PILOT'S COVERT MISSION TO RESCUE POWS ON THE EASTERN FRONT
by Lee Trimble and Jeremy Dronfield

As World War II was coming to an end in 1944, thousands of Allied ex-POWs were liberated from prison camps set up by the Third Reich. They were let loose only to be abandoned with no food. The Soviets viewed them as cowards and traitors and thought they were all spies. Stalin refused to allow the United States to bring in planes, supplies, and teams to retrieve the POWs and evacuate them.
So a plan was conceived for an undercover rescue mission provided by The Office of Strategic Services (OSS). They chose an out-of-the-ways airfield in Ukraine called Poltava and used an American air force detachment that was stationed there. Of course, all of this was top secret. The man that was chosen to undertake this mission was Captain Robert Trimble, who was a bomber pilot.
Trimble was told something completely different by his Commanding Officer. He was supposed to salvage airplanes that had been severely damaged and fly them back to their original starting points.
Needless to say, Trimble was lied to just to get him over there. He had absolutely no covert training, but he decided to take on this monumental mission anyway.
Here we have one of those unsung, ordinary Americans who accomplished an over-the-top deed facing all kinds of adversity. He himself survived by sheer wit, courage, and bravery. Trimble was surrounded by danger every minute, but that didn't stop him. He would only feel satisfied if he could save as many POWs as was humanly possible.
Beyond the Call is a book that will keep you riveted. It will infuriate, make you cry, shudder, and also be awe-inspiring all at the same time. It's a fast read (two days) and just impossible to put down.
Lee Trimble and his siblings never knew about their father's war service in Russia. That part had been locked down inside of him for the rest of his life until he was close to death. Only then did he finally open up and relate those memories of that horrific time.
This is one hell of a story.
Highly recommended.

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

RED NOTICE : A TRUE STORY OF HIGH FINANCE, MURDER, AND ONE MAN'S FIGHT FOR JUSTICE
by Bill Browder

Don't even think of doing any business with Russia, especially if you are a foreigner. It's just too dangerous. If you get on the wrong side of Putin, you could be issued a Red Notice, which is basically an international arrest warrant issued by Interpol. This is not the kind of thing you ever want to receive, because if you leave your native country and cross an international border, you could be arrested.
Bill Browder was the CEO and founder of Hermitage Capital Management. In 2000, the Hermitage Fund had been ranked as the best performing emerging-markets fund in the world. Browder was quite the maverick when it came to finance. After the Soviet Union broke up, Browder made a fortune because Russia had amazing investment opportunities. Working in Russia was exciting and adventurous until Browder exposed the corruption of the oligarchs. These men stole 39 percent of the country after the fall of communism and became instant billionaires. They owned many of the companies  that were traded on the Russian stock market and therefore robbed them senselessly. Putin was not all happy with Browder and threw him out of the country (his visa was revoked).
The offices of Browder and Hermitage in Moscow were raided due to trumped-up charges of tax evasion. While Browder was able to barely escape with his life, his tax lawyer was not so lucky. Sergei Magnitsky was arrested, jailed, tortured, and then beaten to death because he dared to tell the truth. It was time to fight back against the thuggery and Browder became Putin's number one enemy.
Red Notice is one hell of a story. Bill Browder's writing is an in-your-face style and it keeps you riveted. The book reads like a thriller and is a real page-turner.
Russia today is no different ruled by Putin than when it was ruled by Stalin. Lies, deceit, no respect for the individual nor his or her rights. People can be used by the state. Anyone can disappear. When you have a dictator in government that used to be in the KGB, always be prepared for the worst.
Highly recommended.

Monday, February 9, 2015

THE TRAIN TO CRYSTAL CITY : FDR'S SECRET PRISONER EXCHANGE PROGRAM AND AMERICA'S ONLY FAMILY INTERNMENT CAMP DURING WORLD WAR II
by Jan Jarboe Russell

While it is well known that America incarcerated 120,000 Japanese (forcibly evacuated) after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, what is most likely unknown is that Germans and Italians were also arrested and declared as "enemy aliens." These arrests extended beyond our borders. (Many of them came from Latin American countries.) Executive Order 9066, signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in 1942, permitted the secretary of war to capture and confine Japanese, Germans, and Italians. They could be held without charges or having had a trial and their homes and businesses were taken away from them.
Crystal City was a small, desert town in the south part of Texas. From 1942 to 1945, secret government trains brought civilians to this site, which became the only family internment camp during World War II. The official name was the Crystal City Enemy Detention Facility. Men, women, and children were confined here for an indeterminate amount of time. Most of these people were very loyal to the United States and could not comprehend why they had been taken from their homes. These internees were never told that they were part of a government prisoner exchange program. Americans that were being held in Japan and Germany would be switched with these so-called "dangerous" civilians. And whether they wanted to or not, many of these immigrants were repatriated (read deported) against their will to their original countries including their American-born children.
The Train to Crystal City is quite a disturbing book. Our illustrious government thought that we had spies in our midst and what better way to keep them all together would be behind barbed wire where they could be watched twenty-four hours a day. These poor people were kidnapped and held as pawns to be used as trade bait. It's really unfortunate that FDR listened to his military advisers.
This is quite an important read and will make your hair stand on end. Not to be missed.
Highly recommended.

Monday, February 2, 2015

THE UNDERTAKER'S DAUGHTER : A MEMOIR
by Kate Mayfield

"We've got a body." These four words were a constant within the Mayfield family. When you lived above a funeral home, you got used to death.
In 1959, Kate's father, Frank, moved everyone to Jubilee, Kentucky. This town was segregated and  nobody kept secrets, except the ones that were buried with them. Frank was an undertaker, the only other white one. Competition was fierce. But, Frank was a natty dresser. He always wanted to look his best. After all, he had to keep his reputation up. The people depended on him.
In those days, if somebody needed to go to the hospital or a doctor's office, they would call a funeral home. If you had an emergency, you knew who to contact. Consequently, telephones were installed in every room downstairs and upstairs. They rang all the time. It didn't matter the hour. When the death call came in, that was a sign for everybody in Kate's family to not make a sound and keep themselves invisible to what went on below. Silence was needed, because it meant respect.
Growing up in this kind of environment prepared Kate to celebrate both death and life.
The Undertaker's Daughter is truly wonderful storytelling. Kate's writing is beautiful. Her depictions of all the different characters, including her parents, linger in your mind throughout the entire book. She knows how to draw you in when describing a small, Southern town in the 1960s where racism is rampant and the community knows everybody's business.
I almost didn't want the book to end. It's a terrific read and keeps you absorbed.
Highly recommended.