Rot: An Imperial History Of The Irish Famine, Scanlan - B +

        "In 1844 or 1845, Phtophthora Infestans crossed the Atlantic." The fungus-like mold destroyed potatoes throughout Europe. In Ireland, at least a million died and a million and a half fled. "Ireland's population would continue to decline for nearly a hundred years."

        The British considered the Irish "listless, apathetic, and backward." They were inferior peoples. "The Irish poor suffered during the Great Famine as legacies of conquest and colonialism collided with a deep imperial faith in markets, commerce, and capitalism as the only remedies for social problems." 

        Even after the 1801 Act of Union, Ireland was no more than "an impoverished exploited agricultural district" akin to what Sicily was to the Romans. "On the eve of the famine, Ireland annually exported roughly 250,000 cattle, 90 million eggs, and enough grain to feed 2 million people in Britain." British policy makers confidently diagnosed that the inherent indolence of the Irish poor was the cause of their poverty, and "prescribed a greater exposure to market risks to treat the symptoms." The unwelcome blight struck in August, 1845 throughout Europe. But, nowhere else did it lead to famine and widespread death. PM Robert Peel's program to help the Irish was to support free trade allowing American corn to be imported to assist the poor, "and reform economic Irish life." Many of Britain's elites were "willing to find comfort in the possibility that mass death might cure Ireland's economic and political life." Relief Committees were established, managed by the Protestant Ascendancy, and with the goal of not giving away, but selling the corn to the Irish.  Because the crop failure the first summer was "incomplete and uneven" the death rate was not nearly as it would be in the ensuing two years. 

        The crop in 1846 was worse and "the winter of 1846-1847 saw rural Ireland become a hellscape, shocking and incomprehensible." Four hundred thousand died. "What 1847 shows is the poverty of early Victorian political imagination that could only see a solution to famine that depended on market principles and the disciplinary power of supply and demand." Help needed to be "parsimonious" to prevent the poor from becoming dependent on the government. Throughout Ireland, men, women, and children were dying by the thousands, their bodies left to rot to be eaten by rats or wild dogs. Disease, particularly typhus, compounded the problem. As news of the horror spread, nations around the world sent food and money in unprecedented amounts. The spring of 1847 saw a significant number of soup kitchens established, and they reduced the starvation deaths. After that summer, the famine became more localized and the death and deprivation continued in the poorer areas. London decided that the Irish famine was Ireland's problem and discontinued assistance from the central government.

         "With the return of the blight and the withdrawal of most government and charitable support for relief, mortality spiked in the poorest counties." As the famine began to wind down, the powers that be decided there were too many people trying to farm in a world where the landlords, with no discernible revenue for years, were losing farms to foreclosure. Eviction and emigration skyrocketed. In 1845, 93,000 left; seven years later the number was 400,000. Over the next six decades, six million more departed. "The Great Famine was a wound that gave shape to an idea of a nation."

          I read 'The Great Hunger' in the late 1960's. It was the first I learned about this topic and I came away with a youngster's shock at the horrors experienced by my ancestors. My great-grandfather, David Barry, was born during the famine in County Cork and came to NYC in the early 1850's. A while back, I read a few books that looked at this topic tangentially, and I was shocked to begin to understand the indifference of the British government. This history takes that shock to another level. It wasn't just the insistence on requiring market solutions, but the whole structure of Ireland's economy. It was a complete and total colonial exploitation, led by the Protestant Ascendancy,  that used Ireland's soil and people to produce the greatest amount of food for London at the lowest possible return for the landlords.  For the poor tenants, there were only enough potatoes to thrive - until there weren't. The Irish-American immigrant experience is a distant memory from the 19th century. The Irish hated the British, and I would agree that they had good cause. I vaguely remember my great-grand mother, born in Ballyshannon in 1864, and who, I was told, cheered the bombing of London in the two world wars.  A people stripped of their land, their religion and their language, did pretty well in the long run, particularly in the US.

 

One Piece, Vol. 1, Romance Dawn - Oda

                  Thanks to my almost 11 year old grandson Elliot for introducing me to a manga, a Japanese graphic novel. This story introduces Luffy, a boy wishing to become a pirate, who ingests the fruit of the gum-gum tree that allows his body to stretch like rubber. He recruits Koby and Zolo, whom he frees from the pirates who were going to execute Lolo. Together they take on Capt. Axe-Hand Morgan, the pirate leader. They defeat Morgan and pursue the One Piece, a gold treasure hidden by Gold Roger, 'King of the Pirates.' They team up with Nami, a young girl who robs from pirates and they continue their quest.

Nightshade, Connelly - B-

        After decades of the likes of Harry Bosch, Mickey Haller, and Renee Ballard, Connelly introduces Det. Stillwell (no first name), who has been punished by the LAPD, and banished to the substation on Catalina Island. Not much ever happens on Catalina, until one Memorial Day weekend, a body shows up in the harbor with an anchor weighing it down. The floater was a young woman recently fired from a prestigious private yacht club on the island. Stil works it, sometimes on his own and sometimes with folks 'overtown.' He creatively solves it and as always, we have a really great police procedural. But in terms of interesting characters, Stil ain't no Harry or Mickey.

Lethal Prey, Sandford - B

       This is an investigation that involves both Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers. They are tasked to look into a cold case, opened primarily because the victim's twin sister is well-connected and gives to the governor's campaign. Twenty years ago, pretty and flirtatious Doris Grandfelt was killed, apparently by a man she had just had sex with. Actually, she had been killed by the man's girlfriend. As the wealthy sister has offered a $5M reward, flocks of true crimers are all over town. As Davenport and Flowers dig into the matter, they learn that Doris was sidelining as an escort. They eventually focus on a complex and sophisticated killer and do their best to bring the murderer to justice. The author has been cranking out Lucas Davenport novels annually since 1989. They are always well-done police procedurals, with insights into the culture of Minnesota and generally a fun read.

The Fate of the Day: The War for America, Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston 1777-1780, Atkinson - A*

                This magnificent history continues in France in the winter of 1777. The king and government were more than willing to forward endless amounts of contraband to the Americans, as any revenge against the British was exhilarating. In the capital, Franklin lied, prevaricated, and hustled for any and all help for liberty, egalite and fraternite in the colonies. In Bordeaux, Lafayette and the Bavarian, de Kalb, were plotting to escape to America. The marquis, only nineteen and one of the richest men in France, left against his king's and family's wishes. Only his wife approved.

               By July 1, the British army of 8,000 men had travelled 400 miles from Quebec to just north of Ft. Ticonderoga, the first objective of Gen. John Burgoyne's plan that would be followed by Ft. Edward, and Albany. Gen. Arthur St. Clair opposed with 2,000 men. Within days of the first shot, the Americans retreated. By the end of the month, the British were at Ft. Edward.  It had taken three weeks to go 23 miles. Supply shortages and the rugged frontier were slowing Burgoyne down.  

               To the south in New York City, Gen. William Howe worried about the breadth of his responsibilities and the length of his 3,000 mile supply line. He decided to break the stalemate by sailing to Philadelphia, leaving Gen. Henry Clinton behind to defend the city, ignoring the propitious advance that Burgoyne was making. Clinton argued endlessly for an advance north to support Burgoyne. On the 23rd of July, 280 Royal Navy vessels set sail. Howe opted for the long route to the Chesapeake, rather than the Delaware River. Washington had no inkling of where the British were headed. In late August he found out, and marched the army south through Philadelphia and on to Wilmington.

               In upstate New York, "the Canada Army remained fifty miles north of Albany, struggling in this hostile land to build up sufficient strength for a final lunge down the Hudson." Burgoyne was suffering from a serious lack of supplies.  A sally to the east ended in a rout at Bennington. Relief from the west was beaten back at Ft. Stanwix.

              After a month at sea, the British landed on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. Washington's nineteen thousand men dug in at Brandywine Creek. Led by Gen. Charles Cornwallis, the British left outflanked the Americans. By dusk on Sept. 11, the Americans were in retreat. A British officer observed that Washington "beats us in running and nothing else." Two weeks later, the British entered the capital city. Twelve thousand Philadelphians had abandoned the city. Twice as many remained. Two weeks later, Washington attacked Cornwallis at Germantown. The Americans prevailed until they lost touch with their flanks in the dense and rocky forest.  

          In New York, Burgoyne wrote that he never anticipated "such a tract of country and hosts of foes without any cooperation" from Howe. After Burgoyne crossed on a temporary bridge which he then destroyed, a German general said "the Hudson has become the Rubicon." Burgoyne was approaching an army twice his, meticulously prepared by Gen. Horatio Gates, Gen. Benedict Arnold, and Col. Thaddeus Kosciusko. The lines were manned by experienced fighters, and skilled frontiersmen.  On Sept. 19, Burgoyne attacked. The battle was engaged at Freeman's Farm and fought all afternoon, on an 800 by 400 yard wheat field that changed hands six times. At day's end, the British held the farm. The British casualties were 566 men, the Americans a bit more than half that. It was a stalemate. On Oct. 3rd, Clinton sent forces north from Manhattan to assist Burgoyne. His men were stopped just south of Kingston. On Oct. 7, Burgoyne attacked at Bemus Heights on the American left. The day was soon lost. For the Americans, Benedict Arnold had carried the day as he had done the previous month.  Soon, the British were in full retreat. On Oct.17, they surrendered. America was triumphant and exultant. 

          As the year closed, many British officers were despairing of the fight in a continent where two key cities, Boston and Charleston, were separated by a thousand miles of hostile territory. It had taken the Royal Navy two months from the time the army reached Philadelphia to fight through multiple naval and ground acts of guerrilla warfare to join the army in the capital. Washington was just north in Valley Forge with 19,000 soldiers. Gen. Howe requested he be allowed to retire.

      In London, George III felt "rebellion posed the threat of mortal disorder" and "demonstrated intolerable contempt for a sovereign Parliament, as well as the sovereign himself." He could not fathom that the UK had prevailed against superior forces in the Seven Years War but could not vanquish such a minuscule opponent. Many ministers feared that the bad news from America would embolden France and Spain. Opposition in the Commons was rising.

      In Paris, the French were concerned about a British-American collusion leading to an attack on the French Caribbean possessions. The news of Saratoga reached Franklin on the 4th of December. Within two days, the king approved negotiations, and a month later, France recognized the new nation and the US had an ally.  At Valley Forge, the Continental Army survived a winter of desertions and a frightening lack of supplies. The news from France led to an explosion of national joy. When Gen. Clinton arrived in Philadelphia to replace Gen. Howe, he received orders from London to return the army to New York and prepare to fight the French and Spanish. He began a march through New Jersey. The Continentals harassed his rear and flanks until June 28th when the armies met at Monmouth Court House. The battle was a draw, and the British continued their march to New York. Washington headed to White Plains. After three years of war, Britain held New York City, and Narragansett Bay. 

      The French arrived in July, and at the end of the month  attacked Newport, which Clinton had recently reinforced. Ten British ships were scuttled, as the French entered the harbor. The ground attack consisted of French and American troops. When the British fleet appeared outside the harbor, the French withdrew to engage them at sea.  The fleets were scattered by such a fierce storm that both flagships were dismasted. When the French retired to Boston without returning to the fight in Newport, American morale suffered, and the British rallied. Fearing the return of the Royal Navy, the Americans withdrew. The British retained Newport. As the year drew to a close, the British sent forces south to the Caribbean, and to Savannah. They captured the Georgia capital in late December.

       The Spanish joined the French in the war against Britain in the Spring of 1778. In less than a year, the British had gone from "battling a noxious insurrection on the end of the earth to fighting a world war against two formidable adversaries." In New York, Clinton worried about being blamed for the loss of the war and complained endlessly to London about its failure to properly supply both materials and men. The year's strategy began in Hampton Roads, Virginia. A flotilla of twenty-eight ships and 2,500 men sailed from New York in May. The British plundered the area around Hampton Roads Bay for ten days essentially unopposed.   Clinton and Washington skirmished in the lower reaches of the Hudson River.  

      The English Channel saw a series of naval battles in August and September. The French had spent a fortune upgrading their navy and had thousands of men ready to invade England.  Nothing  came of their efforts. In the Caribbean, the French defeated the British Fleet at the Battle of Grenada, thus decimating much of Britain's sugar exports. The French money, men, and large naval presence in North America had made it impossible for Britain to recapture America.  Clinton abandoned Newport. Believing their success in Savannah could be replicated in Charleston, Clinton opted for a southern strategy.  The north was suffering its harshest winter in living memory when Clinton, with half of his army, sailed to Charleston arriving in February. They landed on the 9th, twenty-five miles south of Charleston. By the end of March, Britain had surrounded and blockaded Charleston. In early May, the garrison surrendered. The southern half of the US was unprotected. The United States suffered a significant strategic defeat in the war's fifth year. Clinton thought he had won the war. Much of Britain's elites never understood that the vast majority ofAmerican subjects of the Crown wanted the independence they demanded. Nor did they appear to understand that endlessly pillaging, marauding, and burning many US coastal enclaves endeared then to no one. Clinton left Charleston and 9,000 men under Cornwallis' command to march north in 1780. In London, George III could not see any advantage to letting the Americans go free. He believed most of his subjects were loyal. In his winter quarters, Washington received Lafayette, who had just returned from Versailles. France would not just send ships, but 6,000 soldiers as well. They would be placed under Washington's command.

     The author is probably my favorite historian and I do hope it doesn't take six years to publish the next book. I am beginning to finally appreciate that, although in American history teachings this war is portrayed as a dynamic victory over the empire, it really was much more like the post-WWII era when in the colonies of the European nations fought guerrilla wars of independence. 

 

   

The Last Tsar: The Abdication Of NIcholas II And The Fall Of The Romanovs, Hasegawa - B+

                "The end of the monarchy was not a  preordained, inevitable conclusion, but rather a contingent process and where, had alternative options been taken, events would have followed a different trajectory." The empire entered the new century led by a man who was "the most ill-equipped and inadequate ruler in all of Europe." He was not prepared to be tsar, but was stubbornly committed to maintaining and passing on the Romanov autocracy. The Tsarevich, Alexi, was born in 1904. The royal couple kept their son's hemophilia a secret and withdrew further into themselves. Within a year, they welcomed Rasputin into their lives. In 1914, Nicholas acceded to his ministers' advice as the empire slipped into war. 

                Completely inadequate, the army lost 1,500,000 men by year's end. There would be occasional victories against the Austrians, but not the Germans. The people blamed the losses on the tsar, and the traditional connection between the people and their emperor unraveled. In the summer of 1915, Nicholas took two steps that sealed his fate. He left Petrograd to assume the supreme command at the front, and he dismissed the Duma, which had been working toward establishing a war government of national unity. In each situation, it was his increasingly domineering wife under the influence of Rasputin who pushed him to act. The ensuing year-and-a-half saw constant turmoil. The naive and unaware royal couple were now despised by the public. On Dec. 17, 1916, Rasputin was murdered. Revolution and dynastic collapse were in the air, and almost the entirety of the Romanov family begged Nicholas to establish a government of confidence, while Alexandra scolded them to remember that Nicholas was an autocrat by the grace of God. Nicholas was incapable of compromise, as he believed it was contrary to his sacred obligation to God. In late February, massive demonstrations rocked Petrograd. The security forces struck back, killing two hundred. On the 27th, soldiers mutinied in the capital. Nicolas decided to return to the city from the front, and the Duma Committee began to takeover the city. The revolution was at hand. Ministers were fleeing and important posts were abandoned. Nicholas countered with martial law, and left for the city at 5 on the 28th.

                  Throughout the day, the imperial train received telegrams outlining the collapse of order in Petrograd, where the insurgents controlled the entire city, and most importantly, the phone lines and the railways. Tsarskoe Selo was the tsar's objective, but the insurgents diverted his train. Meanwhile, the Duma was hoping to arrange Nicholas's abdication in an attempt to save the monarchy, not overthrow it. When Nicholas arrived at Plesko station late on March 1, there was no one there to meet him. Out of touch for two days, he learned that the revolution had spread to Moscow, the Baltic Fleet, and that the army command had recognized the Duma. Nicholas agreed to allow the Duma to form a responsible ministry, i.e. a constitutional monarchy. The following day, the army asked him to abdicate and he agreed to do so.  Fearing being separated from his son, Nicholas abdicated for both he and Alexi in favor of his brother Mikhail. 

             On March 3rd, 1917, 304 years of Romanov rule ended when Mikhail refused the throne. Russia was in disarray. Those trying to create some sense of legal continuity in the government were flailing. Amidst the confusion, the Provisional Government, so called even though it was appointed by the Duma yet under the Fundamental Law only the Tsar could appoint such a government,  announced it was succeeding to the powers of the monarchy.  On March 7th, Nicholas and Alexandra were placed under house arrest. 

          "The one most to blame for the sputtering finale of the three hundred year regime is Nicholas himself - through intransigence, inaction, weakness, stupidity, and, oddly enough, fatherly love.""Each member of the Romanovs suffered a tragic end of one kind or another, some in brutal murders by the Bolsheviks and others fleeing Russia with torturous difficulties."

             This book is extremely well done and recommended to anyone who reads 20th century history. The efforts and innumerable attempts to arrange a constitutional monarchy were unknown to me. The Russian Revolution was probably the pivotal event of the century. The German, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires all collapsed at the end of the Great War. Many of the problems that followed in Germany and the Middle East were attributable to the Paris Peace Conference's failures. All of Russia's problems were of their own creation. Nicholas's lack of intelligence and backbone, exacerbated by Alexandra's obsessions, ended Romanov rule. The consequences to his family and country were fatal. The consequence for the world was seven decades of Bolshevik terror. All in all, an unmitigated tragedy.

                 

The Mail Man, Welsh-Huggins - B+

               This book introduces freelance delivery man, Mercury Carter. He is slight and not very tall, yet is as lethal one-on-one as Jack NMI Reacher, with the deductive skills of Sherlock Holmes. Intent on delivering a package, as that is his job, he winds up in the middle of multiple off the wall plots, saves the day and a lot of people. A flat out must read page turner.

The Day of Atonement, Liss - B

              In 1755, Sebastian Foxx arrives in Lisbon from London. The authorities question his intention, which is to use a recent inheritance to join the Factory, a loose collection of traders. He further assures them that he is actually a closeted Catholic. None of this is true. He is a Portuguese Jew whose parents were sucked up in the Inquisition a decade earlier and he is back to seek revenge. He is in Lisbon to kill the priest who jailed his parents. During his decade in London, he had lived with and worked for Benjamin Weaver, who is the city's most successful Jewish 'thieftaker,' a private detective who takes on assignments to find bad people.  As such, Weaver is very skilled with his hands and weapons, and so is Foxx. 

             Once settled into the city, he is approached by the Inquisition to act as an informer at the Factory. He readily agrees. He also assures the man who had saved his life a decade ago that he will help him escape Lisbon. His plan involves borrowing money under false pretenses and then using it to steal a fortune from the man who cheated his father ten years ago. Everything possible goes sideways until the city collapses in a massive earthquake, freeing Foxx from the Inquistors who had captured him. He leads those relying on him out of the rubble and off to England.

          The author is superb and has a long history of putting together deeply-researched historical novels set in the 18th century. This too is great on the backstory of the Inquisition in Portugal, but I am afraid, that this time, the plot dives a bit after a very good start.

           

Our Dollar, Your Problem: An Insider's View of Seven Turbulent Decades of Global Finanace, and the Road Ahead, Rogoff - Inc.

              The US dollar has been the world's "dominant currency" for over a century.  This position of dominance is seen in the pricing of commodities, international bonds, and just about all world-wide shipping. It has provided a meaningful boost to the US's wealth and security. Many economists thought the Soviets would challenge the US's primacy, but they obviously failed. Japan and the yen seemed assured of passing the US in the 1980's as their export driven economy boomed. In 1985, the US and Europe "bludgeoned Japan" to raise the value of the yen. The ensuing exchange rate appreciation, along with a declining birth rate, and the growth of other Asian economies led to a financial crisis asset bubble and recession that Japan has not recovered from in three decades. The unification of the European currencies was "the most remarkable example of regional macroeconomic policy coordination in modern history." In hindsight, it appears to have put a damper on growth, and although the Euro still has potential, it only prices trade within the EU. The four decade rise of China has changed the world, and will continue to do so for decades. At the moment, many see the remnibi as a bona-fide challenger to the dollar. Nonetheless, China is struggling in its quest to overtake the US because of a 'baby bust' and more importantly, a potential housing/real estate bubble. Just about all post-war financial crises have been caused by a housing bubble that eventually led to a recession. 

                 Over the years the dollar's endurance is attributable to the strength of the American economic system and the Federal Reserve's ability to act independently. Luck has also been a factor, as a great many of our competitors have made mistakes. For example, the Euro might be competitive had not France insisted on including Greece in the union.  The greatest danger to the dollars supremacy is, of course, internal. Our rising debt cannot be sustained, and will lead to inflation and financial crises around the world. "If runaway US debt policy continues to crash up against higher real interest rates and geopolitical instability, and if the political pressures constrain the Federal Reserve's ability to consistently tame inflation, it will be everyone's problem."

              I couldn't even read half the book, as the 'Dismal Science' is particularly dismal here. That said, I have read Rogoff in the paast and find him interesting and insightful. Since I agree that our cascading debt is a massive threat to the our prosperity, I think this is genius.

             

The Requisitions, Lopez-Barrantes, B+

              This novel about the Lodz Ghetto is a fascinating mixture of storytelling accompanied by thoughtful considerations and precise historical teachings. It is an excellent presentation of the horrors of the ghettos. Viktor is an elite, a professor who never knew his two Jewish grand parents, is half-Austrian, and proficient in both German and Polish. He is a known leftist who seems to stay away from trouble, and has potential usefulness to the occupiers as a translator. After a brutal Gestapo beating the first winter, he has survived for two years as an interpreter and statistician  for the Judenrat. The price he pays to survive is the daily participation in Jews condemning other Jews to death. On the night before the unannounced liquidation of the ghetto, the lives of Viktor,  a German women he had a brief flirtation with years ago, a German policeman, and a Jewish family hiding in the countryside come together in a dramatic unexplored denouement.