This superb book is a complex, multifaceted story that is part history, part legal analysis and part family memoir. The author is a noted British legal scholar. The unifying theme of the book is a city called Lemberg, Lvov, Lwow, and now, Lviv, in Ukraine. It saw a multitude of sovereignty and name changes in the last century. (Austro-Hungarian Empire; Russian Empire; Ukrainian Peoples Republic; Poland; German General Government of Poland; USSR; Ukraine). It was home to two legal theorists, Hersch Lauterpracht and Rafael Lempkin, who established the concepts of crimes against humanity and genocide. It was the city from which Hans Frank, Hitler's lawyer and leader of the General Government, made a speech about ridding Galicia of Jews; it also was the author's grandfather's place of birth and the city to which Sands was invited to lecture in 2010, prompting the journey that led to this book.
Leon Bucholtz, the author's grandfather, was born in Lemberg, Galicia in the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1904. Within days of the start of WWI, his older brother was killed and his father died soon thereafter. He, his mother and younger sister moved to Vienna where his older, married sister was raising a family. Although Leon lived into his 90's and Sands knew his grandfather reasonably well, Leon had never mentioned anything about his family life in Vienna. Leon married Rita in 1937 and they had a daughter a year later. Austria expelled the young family and they moved to Paris. They survived the war with papers forged by the underground. In Vienna, their remaining relatives were sent to Auschwitz and Lemberg's 3500 Jews were taken to the woods and shot in March, 1943.
Hersch Lauterpracht was born in Zolkiew, just outside Lemberg, in 1897. He attended Lemberg University, where he studied law. He was finishing his education as WWI ended and Galicia, along with much of what had been the Austro-Hungarian Empire, disintegrated. He began to study the rights of individuals within a state. He moved to Vienna and continued his education, before marrying and moving to London. He received multiple Doctorates from LSE and was appointed to a professorship at Cambridge just before the start of WWII. He was an internationally recognized legal theorist. He travelled to America, where he met with Attorney-General Robert Jackson and Associate Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter. He authored The Bill of Rights of Man and worked on the British War Crimes Committee. Lauterpracht's special area of interest was the individual as a victim and when Jackson was struggling to establish the framework for Nuremberg, Lauterpracht suggested the phrase 'crimes against humanity' as the basis of prosecuting Nazi atrocities. It was adopted, became part of the indictment and a precept of international law.
Rafael Lemkin was born in what is now Belarus in 1900. He also studied law at the same University in Lemberg. He became fascinated by the murder of the Armenians by the Turks in 1915-16. Upon graduation, he became a public prosecutor in Warsaw. When the war began, he fled north and east into the USSR, from which he managed to obtain a visa for Sweden. There he had access to and studied the legal documents, decrees and actions of the orderly Germans as they dehumanized the Jews and other untermenschen throughout Europe. He received an offer from Duke University and travelled to America via the USSR and the Pacific. He achieved some notoriety in Washington and coined the word 'genocide' in a 1943 publication. Both crimes against humanity and genocide were terms used in the final indictments at Nuremberg.
Hans Frank was born in 1900, met Hitler in 1925 and was appointed Bavarian Minister of Justice in 1933. He was part of the German legal system's relentless deprivation of human rights imposed upon many, but primarily the Jews. When Germany occupied Poland in 1939, the western areas were incorporated into the Reich and most of the country became part of Frank's General Government, which he described as a colony and its 11.5 million citizens as slaves. The governed territory expanded east after Barbarossa and 2.5 million of Europe's Jews were in his hands. After the Wannsee Conference, he welcomed the opportunity to host the final solution. Most of the major killing camps were in the General Government. When the Russians came in 1945, Frank fled to Bavaria, where he was captured by the Americans in May.
At Nuremberg, Lauterpracht was part of the British prosecution team. Frank was one of the men in the dock and declared himself not guilty. "The judges were presented with novel legal arguments and unparalleled, ghastly evidence." During the presentation of his defense, Hans Frank acknowledged a collective responsibility among the Reich's leadership. He and many of his colleagues were hung on Oct. 16, 1946.
The Nuremberg Trial led to the General Assembly of the UN taking action and furthering the creation of new international laws. It adopted The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. It also affirmed that crimes against humanity were part of international law. Two young men from an obscure school deep in eastern Europe became scholars and refugees in the west, where they had a lasting impact on the laws that govern mankind. Today, there is an International Court of Justice in the Hague and the ideas of Lauterpracht and Lemkin are acknowledged as universal standards of conduct.
The title refers to the street in Zolkiev where Lauterpracht grew up on one end and Sands' great-grandmother on the other.
12.27.2016
The Call of the Wild, Jack London
Thanks to my very special granddaughter, Eloise Fairchild, for letting me check this book out of her personal library. I suspect I last borrowed it from the Linden Boulevard branch of the Queensborough Public Library sometime in the late 1950's.
Buck, a 140-pound St. Bernard, was kidnapped and taken to the Yukon Territories, where he first experienced snow and was put in a harness. He quickly adapted to the cold northland and became the strongest dog in the pack. Buck becomes the leader of the pack after a vicious fight with the ill-tempered Spitz. After further adventures, Buck was rescued from some incompetent owners by Thornton, a man of the wilderness with an excellent understanding of dogs. While Thornton mines for gold, Buck begins to explore the forest and socializes with a local timber wolf. Eventually, Buck joins the wolves and answers the call of the wild.
The Call of the Wild was serialized in the Saturday Evening Post in 1903. It established London as a recognized writer and was thrice made into a movie. The fact that it is still in print over a century later is testament to its place in American literature.
Buck, a 140-pound St. Bernard, was kidnapped and taken to the Yukon Territories, where he first experienced snow and was put in a harness. He quickly adapted to the cold northland and became the strongest dog in the pack. Buck becomes the leader of the pack after a vicious fight with the ill-tempered Spitz. After further adventures, Buck was rescued from some incompetent owners by Thornton, a man of the wilderness with an excellent understanding of dogs. While Thornton mines for gold, Buck begins to explore the forest and socializes with a local timber wolf. Eventually, Buck joins the wolves and answers the call of the wild.
The Call of the Wild was serialized in the Saturday Evening Post in 1903. It established London as a recognized writer and was thrice made into a movie. The fact that it is still in print over a century later is testament to its place in American literature.
12.22.2016
Hitchcock, Ackroyd - B -
He was born in London in 1899, raised in a world of strict Catholicism and developed an abiding interest in the work of Edgar Alan Poe. His first job in the business was as an illustrator. Soon, he was a director. By his 30th birthday, he had moved on to talkies and was the "wunderkind of British cinema". At 40, he moved to Hollywood, where he achieved artistic and financial success. He worked initially for David O. Selznick, but prospered in the 50's and 60's as the studio system broke down and he could contract his services to whomever he wished. He wanted and usually achieved complete and total independence. As no one was particularly interested in 'Psycho', he wound up owning 60% and made $15m in 1960.
He, apparently, was as odd as his public image. Ackroyd is one of my favorite writers and here, he takes a bit of a leap trying to sort out and assess Hitch's odd, if not very odd, relationships with women. Ackroyd suggests it was a strict, sexually repressive Catholic bringing that led to an almost chaste marriage with career partner, Alma Reville, the mother of his only child, Patricia. He was obsessed with his leading ladies, particularly Ingrid Bergman and Grace Kelly. He was so intense with Tippi Hedren that he purportedly ruined her career for her refusal of his advances. He would fail any and all modern tests of harassment by endlessly focusing on sexual innuendo in the workplace. He sounds like a very weird, fat, asexual in appearance, little man, who happened to make some of the most memorable movies of the century. He died in 1980.
He, apparently, was as odd as his public image. Ackroyd is one of my favorite writers and here, he takes a bit of a leap trying to sort out and assess Hitch's odd, if not very odd, relationships with women. Ackroyd suggests it was a strict, sexually repressive Catholic bringing that led to an almost chaste marriage with career partner, Alma Reville, the mother of his only child, Patricia. He was obsessed with his leading ladies, particularly Ingrid Bergman and Grace Kelly. He was so intense with Tippi Hedren that he purportedly ruined her career for her refusal of his advances. He would fail any and all modern tests of harassment by endlessly focusing on sexual innuendo in the workplace. He sounds like a very weird, fat, asexual in appearance, little man, who happened to make some of the most memorable movies of the century. He died in 1980.
12.20.2016
The Boys In The Boat: Nine Americans And Their Epic Quest For Gold At The 1936 Olympics, Brown - B +
This multi-year bestseller (134 weeks and counting) is the story of the crew from the University of Washington that represented the US and won the Berlin Olympics in 1936. And the fact that our crew was the college team that won the trials and not an all-star team is an interesting takeaway from this book. (Today, an all-star team trains and competes together for years). The previous two Olympic golds were won by the University of California, Berkeley. They raced a-60-foot long, 24-inch-wide lightweight shell, with eight foot long oars, propelling a ton of weight for two miles. It may be the most demanding sport engaged in by man or woman. It is the equivalent of two back-to-back basketball games - in six minutes. It requires the exchange of oxygen at a rate comparable to a racing thoroughbred. "Pain is part and parcel of the deal."
One hundred and seventy-five young men tried out for the 1933 freshmen team. At the end of the fall semester, on Nov. 30, the crews were announced. They won their first real test in the annual May race against Cal and then went east and handily won the Intercollegiate Rowing Association regatta in June. The Washington freshmen boat was heralded around the country. As hard as it is to fathom, crew was one of the most followed sports in America. Every major paper covered the sport, and the big races were radio broadcast from coast to coast. A year later, they were the number one varsity boat, as sophomores, and beat Cal in the regatta on Cal's home waters. However, they were demoted to the j.v. boat for the IRA race, which was held every year in Poughkeepsie. Confounding their coach, they won handily and the varsity boat came in third. When the Washington varsity oarsmen turned out in the fall of 1935, Coach Ulbrickson told them it was every man for himself. He'd pick the 9 men for the varsity boat and he expected to take them to Berlin. They trained through a brutal, cold, wet, windy winter on the water. In March, the crew was selected; in April, they beat Cal; in June, they won the IRA at Poughkeepsie; and at Princeton in July, they won the trials. That evening, the American Olympic Committee told them they'd have to pay their own way; they had to raise $5,000 immediately or Penn, the second place finisher, would gladly go in their stead. The committeeman who advised them of this just happened to be the Chair of the Pennsylvania Athletic Association. The city of Seattle and the entire state raised the money quickly and they were on their way. In the preliminaries, they crushed all comers and broke the Olympic record. The Olympics being the Olympics, the European heads of the committee gave the Americans the worst lane, the one exposed to the most wind, and, in Ulbrickson's opinion, a two-length penalty. The only Olympic sport that garnered more world-wide attention than rowing was track and field. On August 14th, in front of Hitler and Leni Riefensthal's cameras, and millions of Americans listening on the radio, they got in their boat at about 6 PM. Their stroke oarsman was so ill they practically had to carry him. At 500 meters to the finish, they were a full length behind the Germans and Italians. In a photo-finish, their heart rates at an estimated 200 beats per minute, they won by .6 seconds. They were undefeated and never lost a race. All nine and their coach are in Rowing's hall of fame.
They rowed the 'Husky Clipper' every ten years at a reunion, and for the last time in 1986. Today, the boat hangs in a shell house on campus and every year, the freshman crew orientation takes place just below it.
The story of the boat is interspersed with the personal story of Joe Rantz, the #7 oarsman. It was not an easy ride from Spokane to fame. Born in 1914, he lost his mother at three and was let out by his father at 10 in the hardscrabble town of Squim. He pretty much looked after himself from that point on. He stayed where he could, worked for nickels and dimes, learned many useful skills in small town Washington, and was smart enough to go to the University. During his college years, he lived in the basement of the YMCA where he was a janitor. One summer, he handled a sledgehammer, hanging in a harness dangling over a precipice for 75 cents an hour, to help build the Grand Coulee Dam. Later in life, he used his engineering degree at Boeing for 35 years.
As is always the case with those of that generation, one is struck by their gracious, steadfast approach to depression, war and life's many challenges. Many thanks to Dr. George Todd for sending this excellent book to me for Christmas.
One hundred and seventy-five young men tried out for the 1933 freshmen team. At the end of the fall semester, on Nov. 30, the crews were announced. They won their first real test in the annual May race against Cal and then went east and handily won the Intercollegiate Rowing Association regatta in June. The Washington freshmen boat was heralded around the country. As hard as it is to fathom, crew was one of the most followed sports in America. Every major paper covered the sport, and the big races were radio broadcast from coast to coast. A year later, they were the number one varsity boat, as sophomores, and beat Cal in the regatta on Cal's home waters. However, they were demoted to the j.v. boat for the IRA race, which was held every year in Poughkeepsie. Confounding their coach, they won handily and the varsity boat came in third. When the Washington varsity oarsmen turned out in the fall of 1935, Coach Ulbrickson told them it was every man for himself. He'd pick the 9 men for the varsity boat and he expected to take them to Berlin. They trained through a brutal, cold, wet, windy winter on the water. In March, the crew was selected; in April, they beat Cal; in June, they won the IRA at Poughkeepsie; and at Princeton in July, they won the trials. That evening, the American Olympic Committee told them they'd have to pay their own way; they had to raise $5,000 immediately or Penn, the second place finisher, would gladly go in their stead. The committeeman who advised them of this just happened to be the Chair of the Pennsylvania Athletic Association. The city of Seattle and the entire state raised the money quickly and they were on their way. In the preliminaries, they crushed all comers and broke the Olympic record. The Olympics being the Olympics, the European heads of the committee gave the Americans the worst lane, the one exposed to the most wind, and, in Ulbrickson's opinion, a two-length penalty. The only Olympic sport that garnered more world-wide attention than rowing was track and field. On August 14th, in front of Hitler and Leni Riefensthal's cameras, and millions of Americans listening on the radio, they got in their boat at about 6 PM. Their stroke oarsman was so ill they practically had to carry him. At 500 meters to the finish, they were a full length behind the Germans and Italians. In a photo-finish, their heart rates at an estimated 200 beats per minute, they won by .6 seconds. They were undefeated and never lost a race. All nine and their coach are in Rowing's hall of fame.
They rowed the 'Husky Clipper' every ten years at a reunion, and for the last time in 1986. Today, the boat hangs in a shell house on campus and every year, the freshman crew orientation takes place just below it.
The story of the boat is interspersed with the personal story of Joe Rantz, the #7 oarsman. It was not an easy ride from Spokane to fame. Born in 1914, he lost his mother at three and was let out by his father at 10 in the hardscrabble town of Squim. He pretty much looked after himself from that point on. He stayed where he could, worked for nickels and dimes, learned many useful skills in small town Washington, and was smart enough to go to the University. During his college years, he lived in the basement of the YMCA where he was a janitor. One summer, he handled a sledgehammer, hanging in a harness dangling over a precipice for 75 cents an hour, to help build the Grand Coulee Dam. Later in life, he used his engineering degree at Boeing for 35 years.
As is always the case with those of that generation, one is struck by their gracious, steadfast approach to depression, war and life's many challenges. Many thanks to Dr. George Todd for sending this excellent book to me for Christmas.
12.18.2016
Revolution on the Hudson: New York City and the Hudson River Valley in the War of America Independence, Daughan - B+
This book is an excellent military history of the Revolution. The author's opening comments are that the British plan to sever the colonies by conquering the Hudson Valley, thus isolating New England, was flawed. Everyone fighting the war, and historians right up through Admiral Mahan a hundred years later, also agreed with British strategy. The flaw is the distance between New York and Canada and the length of the NE coastline. It was much more than the Royal Navy could have blockaded. I've always thought that the concept made no sense for the same reason. Montreal is 375 miles from NYC, and Quebec City, where the British were actually headquartered, was another 100 plus miles further east. It's brutally cold in the winter, and at the time, the whole distance was wilderness.
Fed up with the colonist's many and varied successful acts of insurrection in 1775, including Lexington and Concord, and Bunker Hill, George III and his first Minister, Lord North, declared war on the colonies. On June 30, 1776, a hundred and ten British vessels arrived in NY harbor. Hundreds more were to follow. The British expected meaningful support from loyalists throughout the NY region and in the deep south. The eventual lack of loyalist support doomed the Hudson River strategy. The navy would have needed collaborators to effectively hold the lengthy distance to Albany. They would never receive any help. However, the British did get off to a spectacular start by invading Brooklyn, defeating the Americans and trapping Washington in Brooklyn Heights in late August. With the East River patrolled behind the Americans, the British ground commander, General Howe, thought he had the war won. Howe's brother and overall commander, Lord Admiral Howe, also thought it was over and didn't patrol the river. Washington and 9500 men, their equipment and horses, escaped across the river in one night. Two months later, they abandoned Manhattan, fled to Westchester and eventually, New Jersey. Further north, the British couldn't even make it to Lake Champlain from Canada.There would be no severing of the colonies in 1776.
For the new year, London directed the Howe's to capture Philadelphia by land, force the Delaware River and then meet General Burgoyne, who would descend from Canada. When Howe learned that Burgoyne had already passed Ft. Ticonderoga and was less than 100 miles from Albany in early July, he headed to Philadelphia by sea. Washington confronted Howe at Brandywine Creek in Delaware. Howe won, but Washington again escaped. The British entered the capital on Sept. 26. Meanwhile, Burgoyne was stalled in New York as the American forces grew and grew. He was stopped at Bennington, crossed to the west side of the Hudson at Saratoga, and engaged an army under Horatio Gates, winning the first round but losing the second. In October, Burgoyne surrendered. Both of the Howe's resigned. Seventeen seventy-seven was another failure for the British.
At that point, the French entered the war on the side of the Americans, leading the King to order the army to withdraw from Philadelphia and return to New York. America was now secondary to saving the lucrative sugar colonies of the Indies from the French. "London was once again expecting the theatre commander to reclaim the colonies without providing the necessary troops or naval support." It was a year of moves, counter- moves, marches and almosts, but nothing strategic came to pass. By the end of 1778, both the British and French navies were in the Indies.
Desultory activity was the case again in 1779 as the British took Savannah and eyed Charleston, which was handed to them in early 1780 by equally incompetent army and navy officers. Charleston, however, was not the beginning of the King's new southern strategy. Cornwallis floundered, incited the south to guerrilla warfare, and marched his shrinking forces into Virginia in 1781. Although reinforced, Cornwallis had no real plan or strategy and allowed himself to be trapped at Yorktown. The French had fought a British relief force to a standstill off Cape Henry, Virginia, assuring that there was no saving Cornwallis. The Yorktown surrender came on Oct.19, 1881. The British would no longer take offensive actions in America. They hoped for peace without independence. The Americans would not stay in the empire. The Treaty of Paris granted America full independence and generous borders.
For NY, home to the British occupation and a Tory stronghold, it was a bitter blow. Tens of thousands dispossessed Tories left for Canada. Evacuation Day came on Nov. 25, 1783. It was celebrated in NY until 1916.
The outlines of this story are familiar to all of us; Lexington and Concord, Bunker Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Trenton, Saratoga and Yorktown. And therein lies an issue. Much went on in the beginning of the American Revolution and not much in the four years after 1777. The indifferent lack of support Congress and the states gave to Washington was appalling. It's a wonder he and the army didn't march on Philadelphia and toss them out. We 'Remember LaFayette', but seldom do American books state that without the French navy and vast amount of funds, it would have been much harder, if not impossible, to thwart the British. The whole British strategy appears ridiculous. How an army and navy stationed in NY were to be moving up and down thousands of miles of coast in the age of sail makes one wonder if they had maps in London. Add to the indifferent strategy, unenthusiastic and incompetent commanders, the worst being Gen. Henry Clinton, the man who succeeded Gen. Howe. I had known that the British were cruel to the prisoners, but not as depraved as they were. Of 30,000 men held in NY, fully 18,000 died of abuse and starvation. Only 7,000 continentals were killed in combat. The war was unnecessary and inflicted on both countries because of George III's stubbornness. The British were incompetent, dismissive, arrogant, cruel and deserved to lose the war and the colonies. Funny that we all appreciate the language, literature, culture and legal system as much as we do. Great book.
Fed up with the colonist's many and varied successful acts of insurrection in 1775, including Lexington and Concord, and Bunker Hill, George III and his first Minister, Lord North, declared war on the colonies. On June 30, 1776, a hundred and ten British vessels arrived in NY harbor. Hundreds more were to follow. The British expected meaningful support from loyalists throughout the NY region and in the deep south. The eventual lack of loyalist support doomed the Hudson River strategy. The navy would have needed collaborators to effectively hold the lengthy distance to Albany. They would never receive any help. However, the British did get off to a spectacular start by invading Brooklyn, defeating the Americans and trapping Washington in Brooklyn Heights in late August. With the East River patrolled behind the Americans, the British ground commander, General Howe, thought he had the war won. Howe's brother and overall commander, Lord Admiral Howe, also thought it was over and didn't patrol the river. Washington and 9500 men, their equipment and horses, escaped across the river in one night. Two months later, they abandoned Manhattan, fled to Westchester and eventually, New Jersey. Further north, the British couldn't even make it to Lake Champlain from Canada.There would be no severing of the colonies in 1776.
For the new year, London directed the Howe's to capture Philadelphia by land, force the Delaware River and then meet General Burgoyne, who would descend from Canada. When Howe learned that Burgoyne had already passed Ft. Ticonderoga and was less than 100 miles from Albany in early July, he headed to Philadelphia by sea. Washington confronted Howe at Brandywine Creek in Delaware. Howe won, but Washington again escaped. The British entered the capital on Sept. 26. Meanwhile, Burgoyne was stalled in New York as the American forces grew and grew. He was stopped at Bennington, crossed to the west side of the Hudson at Saratoga, and engaged an army under Horatio Gates, winning the first round but losing the second. In October, Burgoyne surrendered. Both of the Howe's resigned. Seventeen seventy-seven was another failure for the British.
At that point, the French entered the war on the side of the Americans, leading the King to order the army to withdraw from Philadelphia and return to New York. America was now secondary to saving the lucrative sugar colonies of the Indies from the French. "London was once again expecting the theatre commander to reclaim the colonies without providing the necessary troops or naval support." It was a year of moves, counter- moves, marches and almosts, but nothing strategic came to pass. By the end of 1778, both the British and French navies were in the Indies.
Desultory activity was the case again in 1779 as the British took Savannah and eyed Charleston, which was handed to them in early 1780 by equally incompetent army and navy officers. Charleston, however, was not the beginning of the King's new southern strategy. Cornwallis floundered, incited the south to guerrilla warfare, and marched his shrinking forces into Virginia in 1781. Although reinforced, Cornwallis had no real plan or strategy and allowed himself to be trapped at Yorktown. The French had fought a British relief force to a standstill off Cape Henry, Virginia, assuring that there was no saving Cornwallis. The Yorktown surrender came on Oct.19, 1881. The British would no longer take offensive actions in America. They hoped for peace without independence. The Americans would not stay in the empire. The Treaty of Paris granted America full independence and generous borders.
For NY, home to the British occupation and a Tory stronghold, it was a bitter blow. Tens of thousands dispossessed Tories left for Canada. Evacuation Day came on Nov. 25, 1783. It was celebrated in NY until 1916.
The outlines of this story are familiar to all of us; Lexington and Concord, Bunker Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Trenton, Saratoga and Yorktown. And therein lies an issue. Much went on in the beginning of the American Revolution and not much in the four years after 1777. The indifferent lack of support Congress and the states gave to Washington was appalling. It's a wonder he and the army didn't march on Philadelphia and toss them out. We 'Remember LaFayette', but seldom do American books state that without the French navy and vast amount of funds, it would have been much harder, if not impossible, to thwart the British. The whole British strategy appears ridiculous. How an army and navy stationed in NY were to be moving up and down thousands of miles of coast in the age of sail makes one wonder if they had maps in London. Add to the indifferent strategy, unenthusiastic and incompetent commanders, the worst being Gen. Henry Clinton, the man who succeeded Gen. Howe. I had known that the British were cruel to the prisoners, but not as depraved as they were. Of 30,000 men held in NY, fully 18,000 died of abuse and starvation. Only 7,000 continentals were killed in combat. The war was unnecessary and inflicted on both countries because of George III's stubbornness. The British were incompetent, dismissive, arrogant, cruel and deserved to lose the war and the colonies. Funny that we all appreciate the language, literature, culture and legal system as much as we do. Great book.
12.16.2016
Mission: Jimmy Stewart and the Fight for Europe, Matzen - B +
Jimmy Stewart grew up in mildly prosperous circumstances in a smalltown in western Pennsylvania. On both sides of his family, the men had fought in all of America's wars back to the Revolution. The other abiding influence in his life was a total and absolute fascination with flight. He graduated from Princeton at 24 in 1932 and tried his hand on Broadway. Two years later, the 6'4", 135-pound Stewart was off to Hollywood with an MGM contract. He was a prodigious ladies man from day one, and soon was a full-blown movie star. In March of 1941, just after winning an Oscar, he pushed to be drafted when his number came up and he had been deferred because of his weight. Once in, he had to fight for pilot training because of his age. He was a training officer for over a year and finally, made it to England in late 1943.
Kiel was the target on his first mission on Dec.13, 1943. As the squadron commander, Stewart flew in the co-pilot seat on the eight-hour round trip missions. They went up every second or third day on flights that were frightening, freezing and totally exhausting. He had to write the 'letters home' to the families of his men when a plane went down. The planes themselves were capable of falling out of the sky for no apparent reason and were considered extremely difficult to fly. Indeed, the word 'wrestle' is frequently used to describe handling the B-24. Throughout the first four months of 1944, the Luftwaffe was still wreaking havoc on the British and American invaders. Getting to 25 missions was still considered unlikely. Stewart had 10 missions by February. One of the things that rattled him was his role in 'The Mortal Storm', the film that led to MGM being banned in Germany. If he were ever captured, they would have a filed day in the propaganda ministry. He was considered very good, cool, calm, collected and 'lucky' in his role as a squadron leader. His superiors concerned about his 'visibility', even though he kept his head down eschewed the press and any publicity. He was promoted to group ops officer in a different group and was now on the ground a bit more often. By mid-summer, now Lt. Col. Stewart was again promoted and flying became less frequently. The Luftwaffe was pretty much gone at this stage and the summer weather made flying slightly easier. On March 21, 1945, Col. Stewart flew for the last time as Wing Commander. The op was a close-run thing as they were bombing the field where the Germans had their jet fighter planes. and when it was over, Stewart was spent. Hap Arnold told him he needn't fly any more and he welcomed the respite. On August 1, he stepped off the HMS Queen Mary in NY harbor. His war was over.
"He was thirty-seven, looked fifty and his career as a Hollywood romantic figure was over." He returned to LA, but was completely at sea; stressed out, feeling as if it all was unimportant, yet he needed to work. Equally at a loss for what to do with himself was former Army Col. Frank Capra. He approached Stewart with a movie based on a short story called 'The Greatest Gift.' Running down the street in a very hot Encino, California in June of 1946 yelling "Merry Christmas, Bedford Falls", Jimmy Stewart knew he could carry on.
I have always liked Jimmy Stewart. Probably my earliest recollection of him is as Charles Lindbergh. I remember reading in his obituary in 1997 that as a nine-year-old, he lay in bed in Indiana, Pennsylvania listening to the reports of Lucky Lindy. I thought how serendipitous. On a Friday night in the late 70's, stressed out after a hard week and with my family asleep, I came upon 'It's A Wonderful Life'. This was before it had made its legendary comeback. I was mesmerized and felt as if I had stumbled upon one of the finest movies I had ever seen. I still love the film. I knew Stewart had flown in the war. I didn't know just how hard he had fought. In truth, anyone who flew over Europe in a B -17 or a B-24 had a hard war. The planes were rudimentary, the conditions were horrible and with flak and enemy fighters all around, death was capricious, random and very near each and every day. God bless the 'Greatest Generation'.
Kiel was the target on his first mission on Dec.13, 1943. As the squadron commander, Stewart flew in the co-pilot seat on the eight-hour round trip missions. They went up every second or third day on flights that were frightening, freezing and totally exhausting. He had to write the 'letters home' to the families of his men when a plane went down. The planes themselves were capable of falling out of the sky for no apparent reason and were considered extremely difficult to fly. Indeed, the word 'wrestle' is frequently used to describe handling the B-24. Throughout the first four months of 1944, the Luftwaffe was still wreaking havoc on the British and American invaders. Getting to 25 missions was still considered unlikely. Stewart had 10 missions by February. One of the things that rattled him was his role in 'The Mortal Storm', the film that led to MGM being banned in Germany. If he were ever captured, they would have a filed day in the propaganda ministry. He was considered very good, cool, calm, collected and 'lucky' in his role as a squadron leader. His superiors concerned about his 'visibility', even though he kept his head down eschewed the press and any publicity. He was promoted to group ops officer in a different group and was now on the ground a bit more often. By mid-summer, now Lt. Col. Stewart was again promoted and flying became less frequently. The Luftwaffe was pretty much gone at this stage and the summer weather made flying slightly easier. On March 21, 1945, Col. Stewart flew for the last time as Wing Commander. The op was a close-run thing as they were bombing the field where the Germans had their jet fighter planes. and when it was over, Stewart was spent. Hap Arnold told him he needn't fly any more and he welcomed the respite. On August 1, he stepped off the HMS Queen Mary in NY harbor. His war was over.
"He was thirty-seven, looked fifty and his career as a Hollywood romantic figure was over." He returned to LA, but was completely at sea; stressed out, feeling as if it all was unimportant, yet he needed to work. Equally at a loss for what to do with himself was former Army Col. Frank Capra. He approached Stewart with a movie based on a short story called 'The Greatest Gift.' Running down the street in a very hot Encino, California in June of 1946 yelling "Merry Christmas, Bedford Falls", Jimmy Stewart knew he could carry on.
I have always liked Jimmy Stewart. Probably my earliest recollection of him is as Charles Lindbergh. I remember reading in his obituary in 1997 that as a nine-year-old, he lay in bed in Indiana, Pennsylvania listening to the reports of Lucky Lindy. I thought how serendipitous. On a Friday night in the late 70's, stressed out after a hard week and with my family asleep, I came upon 'It's A Wonderful Life'. This was before it had made its legendary comeback. I was mesmerized and felt as if I had stumbled upon one of the finest movies I had ever seen. I still love the film. I knew Stewart had flown in the war. I didn't know just how hard he had fought. In truth, anyone who flew over Europe in a B -17 or a B-24 had a hard war. The planes were rudimentary, the conditions were horrible and with flak and enemy fighters all around, death was capricious, random and very near each and every day. God bless the 'Greatest Generation'.
A Rage For Order: The Middle East in Turmoil, Worth - C +
This book is on many year-end must-read lists, perhaps because it handles the Arab Spring succinctly (i.e. in 222 pages). As much as I love brevity, I am not convinced that it is worth the kudos it has received. The author suggests that the events of the Arab Spring were not a beginning. They were simply the end of the strongman era that had dominated the middle east since the end of WW2. Within days of the self-immolation suicide of the Tunisian street vendor, Mohamed Bouazizi, the Tunisian dictator, Ben Ali, fled. Within a week, the Mubarak regime was on the rocks. On the eighteenth day of the protests, Mubarak resigned. The members of the Muslim Brotherhood were let out of jail, organized and began their plan to win an election. In Libya, Benghazi erupted and Qaddafi was on the run. His counter moves were met with an Arab League-approved NATO no-fly zone. After a nasty civil war, Qaddafi was murdered by the rebels. Unlike Tunisia and Egypt, Libya continued to drift as warlords controlled different parts of the country.
The push back against Syrian strongman Assad quickly turned into Sunni v. Shia (Assad and his ruling clique are Alawites, a Shia sect), and has been going downhill since the spring of 2011. It descended into extreme violence in a Rubik's cube chaos of Iranians, Hezbollah, Kurds, and zealots from around the world all fighting each other on behalf of distant powers and different local factions.
"Most Arab dictators have been corrupt and manipulative, but Yemen's ruler, Ali Abdullah Saleh, brought these traits to a whole new level of cynicism and mastery." Yemen was barely a step up from medieval tribalism. Al-Qaeda emerged from the disarray. Yemen too, quickly descended into a Shia-Sunni proxy war.
The most powerful, largest and coherent civilian entity in Egypt was the Muslim Brotherhood. Organized in the post WW2 era, suppressed for decades and easy victors in the elections less than a year after Mubarak's ouster. They overplayed their Islamist hand, added a touch of authoritarianism, and the following year there was a 'second revolution'. With broad based support, the military ousted Mohamed Morsi and took over. Abdel Sisi, a former intelligence chief, was in charge as much as Nasser, Sadat or Mubarak had ever been. Egypt had reverted to form.
ISIS came about when the US left Iraq and the Shiite President al-Maliki purged the Sunni from leadership positions. They made the strategic decision to go 'savage' in an effort to eliminate all opposition. ISIS proclaimed a new Caliphate and drew fighters from around the world into a never-never land between Syria and Iraq.
Only in Tunisia, the least Arabic and most European of the states in N. Africa, did the center hold. The Islamists and secularists agreed on a constitution and a sharing of power. Each side was led by a very old man and the question is whether the peace can hold.
This is an adequate book. The author spends way too much, indeed, almost all of his time, on stories of a few different families in each country. Yes, it is a way of telling of the depths of despair and terrible experiences that are part and parcel of religious civil wars, but it's hardly great exposition or analysis. Indeed, I don't think the book accomplishes its stated objective of reporting the consequences of the Spring. There are 3 pages in the second half of the book that mention Yemen, and then a few comments in the epilogue about the Saudi invasion. The long section on Syria is only about one jihadist who changed his mind and returned home to Jordan. Again in the epilogue, he tackles the current mess involving a US-led coalition bombing ISIS and the Russians on the ground supporting Assad.
The people of the Middle East sought citizenship and a future. "But they ran headlong into the seventh century..." This feels very much like a slapdash effort. Indeed, I am reminded that in the prologue, Worth points out that much of the book is previous pieces from the Times.
The push back against Syrian strongman Assad quickly turned into Sunni v. Shia (Assad and his ruling clique are Alawites, a Shia sect), and has been going downhill since the spring of 2011. It descended into extreme violence in a Rubik's cube chaos of Iranians, Hezbollah, Kurds, and zealots from around the world all fighting each other on behalf of distant powers and different local factions.
"Most Arab dictators have been corrupt and manipulative, but Yemen's ruler, Ali Abdullah Saleh, brought these traits to a whole new level of cynicism and mastery." Yemen was barely a step up from medieval tribalism. Al-Qaeda emerged from the disarray. Yemen too, quickly descended into a Shia-Sunni proxy war.
The most powerful, largest and coherent civilian entity in Egypt was the Muslim Brotherhood. Organized in the post WW2 era, suppressed for decades and easy victors in the elections less than a year after Mubarak's ouster. They overplayed their Islamist hand, added a touch of authoritarianism, and the following year there was a 'second revolution'. With broad based support, the military ousted Mohamed Morsi and took over. Abdel Sisi, a former intelligence chief, was in charge as much as Nasser, Sadat or Mubarak had ever been. Egypt had reverted to form.
ISIS came about when the US left Iraq and the Shiite President al-Maliki purged the Sunni from leadership positions. They made the strategic decision to go 'savage' in an effort to eliminate all opposition. ISIS proclaimed a new Caliphate and drew fighters from around the world into a never-never land between Syria and Iraq.
Only in Tunisia, the least Arabic and most European of the states in N. Africa, did the center hold. The Islamists and secularists agreed on a constitution and a sharing of power. Each side was led by a very old man and the question is whether the peace can hold.
This is an adequate book. The author spends way too much, indeed, almost all of his time, on stories of a few different families in each country. Yes, it is a way of telling of the depths of despair and terrible experiences that are part and parcel of religious civil wars, but it's hardly great exposition or analysis. Indeed, I don't think the book accomplishes its stated objective of reporting the consequences of the Spring. There are 3 pages in the second half of the book that mention Yemen, and then a few comments in the epilogue about the Saudi invasion. The long section on Syria is only about one jihadist who changed his mind and returned home to Jordan. Again in the epilogue, he tackles the current mess involving a US-led coalition bombing ISIS and the Russians on the ground supporting Assad.
The people of the Middle East sought citizenship and a future. "But they ran headlong into the seventh century..." This feels very much like a slapdash effort. Indeed, I am reminded that in the prologue, Worth points out that much of the book is previous pieces from the Times.
The Infidel Stain, Carter - B
This is the second book in a series about Captain William Avery and his colleague, Jeremiah Blake. Earlier, we saw them in Calcutta, in a novel that painted a vivid picture of the British East India Company in its waning days about a decade before direct rule, the era known as the Raj. It is now a few years later in London in the early 1840's, and they are engaged by Lord Allington, a noted philanthropist, to conduct an inquiry into the suspicious deaths of two printers engaged in some 19th century pornography. The background to the inquiry is the struggle between the landed gentry, the nascent manufacturers, and the rural and urban poor. Britain had enacted some reforms in 1832, but they hardly deserved to be called democratic as still less than 1 in 20 men could vote.
In the capital, as opposed to the plains of India, Jemmy Blake appears more and more like Sherlock Holmes. He has an indulgent landlady, dresses haphazardly, has all sorts of street connections, can sort out any problem, is inclined to disguises, and a rather serious opium habit. Avery is not handy with his words, but he is quick with his fists in a rougher era in London, and is about as slow as Dr. Watson ever was. In the end, the murder mysteries are resolved in a manner I would best characterize as indifferent. The import takeaway is on the Chartist movement. They submitted 3.3 million signatures to Parliament in an attempt to expand suffrage. The toffs ignored them.
In the capital, as opposed to the plains of India, Jemmy Blake appears more and more like Sherlock Holmes. He has an indulgent landlady, dresses haphazardly, has all sorts of street connections, can sort out any problem, is inclined to disguises, and a rather serious opium habit. Avery is not handy with his words, but he is quick with his fists in a rougher era in London, and is about as slow as Dr. Watson ever was. In the end, the murder mysteries are resolved in a manner I would best characterize as indifferent. The import takeaway is on the Chartist movement. They submitted 3.3 million signatures to Parliament in an attempt to expand suffrage. The toffs ignored them.
Exposure, Dunmore - B
This is a fascinating novel set in 1960 in London. If I had to pick a word to describe it, it would be 'anxious'. Giles is an aging functionary at the Admiralty office who spies for the Soviets. One night, he falls down the stairs at home after taking photos of a top secret file. He's drunk, badly hurt, and terribly anxious about that file, now in his study and not at work. He calls Simon, a lackluster underling who dutifully goes and picks up the file and gets very worried. Simon doesn't know what to do. His wife finds the file, buries it in the backyard, and now spends all of her time fretting about her future and that of her three children, as Simon has been dragged off to gaol. Giles' boss is desperate to find the file. It is clear that Simon has been framed, but there's no way for him to prove it. Things work out in the end in an unlikely and barely believable sequence of events. At least though, they work out the way they should.
12.08.2016
City Of Secrets, O'Nan - B +
This is a superb, brief, historical novel set in post-war Jerusalem. Our lead character is Brand, a Latvian Jew who had somehow survived, and is now a taxi driver and a member of Haganah. "He wasn't weak enough to kill himself, but wasn't strong enough to stop wanting to." Throughout Palestine, the Jews waged a relentless, guerrilla war of terror against the British. Brand, who lost his wife, parents and siblings during the Holocaust loses his lover during the Irgun bombing of the King David Hotel. He's seen enough of war and violence. He leaves Jerusalem and heads to Haifa, where he can ship out, as his merchant seaman's paper are actually in order.
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