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Wright Thompson’s ‘The Barn’ chronicles the fight to preserve the memory of Emmett Till

Fourteen-year-old Till was murdered in a nondescript barn in the Mississippi Delta. But few know the barn still stands today, or fully understand its history. Thompson believes we should.
Fourteen-year-old Till was murdered in a nondescript barn in the Mississippi Delta. But few know the barn still stands today, or fully understand its history. Thompson believes we should.
NonfictionMemoir

Connie

With candor and humor, Connie Chung shares the highs and lows of her trailblazing career as a journalist in her invigorating memoir, Connie.
With candor and humor, Connie Chung shares the highs and lows of her trailblazing career as a journalist in her invigorating memoir, Connie.
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Biography

Another chapter of race and class

Review by bookpagedev

Few authors or journalists probe with more specificity and irony the dynamic of race and class than Lawrence Otis Graham (Member of the Club), who has devoted the bulk of his 13 books to this subject. His newest volume, The Senator and the Socialite, explores the issue in a different time and place, profiling the emergence of the Bruce family, whom Graham correctly touts as the nation’s first black dynasty. Indeed, it’s hard not to imagine a forthcoming Hollywood treatment for this 19th-century family whose social gatherings, international trips and even family births appeared in the society columns of such prominent newspapers as The New York Times and Washington Post during an era when these publications usually didn’t even have black janitorial staff, let alone writers and editors.

Graham crafts an entertaining, intriguing and sometimes amazing story of personal mobility and ambition as he traces Blanche Kelso Bruce’s rise from former Mississippi slave to a career serving under four Republican presidents. Bruce not only married well (his bride was the daughter of a wealthy black doctor), but also befriended the right people, from President Grant and Frederick Douglass to John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Booker T. Washington. The impressive rise of the couple leads to enormous wealth and status, with Bruce even having his name printed on U.S. currency through his appointment to a top Treasury Department post.

In the book’s later sections Graham documents a fall that is as staggering and unprecedented as the family’s initial climb to power and fame. The Bruces eventually not only lose material clout, but their reputation as well. Bruce’s grandson gets imprisoned for embezzlement in a trial whose proceedings make the O.J. Simpson, Michael Jackson and Robert Blake cases seem fair and orderly by comparison. His granddaughter makes a horrible, embarrassing personal decision, marrying an untalented black actor trying to pass as white.

Though he doesn’t ignore or tone down his descriptions of the devastating changes that affected the Bruce family during the 20th century, Graham takes care to fully evaluate their impact as social movers and shakers for decades. The author clearly views the Bruce family as an inspiration despite their later failings.

Unlike some other Graham books that occasionally veer into tabloid waters, The Senator and the Socialite provides thorough and solid historical detail, political analysis and cultural discussion. Without diluting the prose, downplaying the negatives or weakening the story, Graham presents a vital, previously underreported tale of glory, achievement and eventual disappointment. Ron Wynn writes for the Nashville City Paper and other publications.

Few authors or journalists probe with more specificity and irony the dynamic of race and class than Lawrence Otis Graham (Member of the Club), who has devoted the bulk of his 13 books to this subject. His newest volume, The Senator and the Socialite, explores the issue in a different time and place, profiling the […]
SportsLifestylesFilmArts & Culture

Killer gifts for guys

Review by Martin Brady

Real men the ones who like to read will welcome the arrival of The Annotated Godfather: The Complete Screenplay. Film historian Jenny M. Jones takes control of this project in marvelous fashion. We get the entire shooting script of the original film, plus deleted scenes, cool sidebars on how the film was adapted from the book, behind-the-scenes tidbits on cast and crew, continuity goofs and obvious bloopers, and a series of introductory essays that consider the enormous production undertaking. There are tons of screenshots and production stills here as well, which, along with the text, combine to make readers feel like they're almost experiencing the actual film. But what emerges most is the genius of Francis Ford Coppola, who comprehensively used both right- and left-brain functions to brilliantly bring the novel to life through a mix of canny screenwriting, zealous attention to endless details and a courageous approach to dealing with his bottom-line-conscious financial bosses and the powerful ensemble of players and creative talent under his reins.

GIMME THE BALL
This one was overdue. After their previous (and fabulous) showcases for football and baseball, Sports Illustrated now gives us The Basketball Book. The format is gloriously similar: hundreds of astonishingly good color and black-and-white photos from the SI archive, interlaced with informative essays and profiles by topnotch journalists. The focus here, however, is a tad skewed, and up for criticism. Unlike the prior series entries, which focused only on the men's pro game, the coverage here includes the college game and also the WNBA. Nothing wrong with that in theory, but certainly the college game (both male and female) is deserving of its own volume, and here it gets overwhelmed by the imposing shadow of the NBA. Plus, the WNBA coverage smacks of tokenism, with only a handful of its major players represented.

On the plus side, there is something about basketball photography that seems even more dynamic than its sporting counterparts, possibly because the photographers can get so close to the action. The results are often breathtaking, both in style and historical importance: an overhead view of Shaquille O'Neal jamming one through the hoop; a coral-tinged portrait of a brooding Wilt Chamberlain (c. 1965); a dramatic shot of an outstretched Dennis Rodman lunging desperately for a loose ball; a delightful photo of basketball twins Tom and Dick Van Arsdale during their college playing days at Indiana; and movingly meditative facing-page glimpses of Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen looking like African gods. There's trick photography here as well for example, a multiple exposure of John Stockton all over the court at once, and a fascinatingly fun bi-fold center insert that lines up 29 of the great ones by height in descending order (ladies included), from Manute Bol (7'7 ) to Muggsy Bogues (5'3 ). The browsing extras are endless: decade-by-decade rundowns of the best players, college and pro; a declension of famous on-court strategies as devised by coaches from Nat Holman to Bobby Knight; and satisfying visual sidebars.

DETAILS MAKE THE MAN
Some of us guys may not dress as sharply as we'd like to, yet there's something to be learned by all in Details Men's Style Manual: The Ultimate Guide for Making Your Clothes Work for You. Daniel Peres and the editors of the award-winning Details magazine first offer some handy reminders about the rules of style, then run down a list of the classic items each guy should have (a classy overcoat, two white shirts, a simple black belt, etc.). The remainder of the coverage offers descriptions and attractive photos of contemporary clothing items, from shirts, pants and blazers to shoes, accessories and (yes) underwear. Thrown in along the way are tidbits of menswear history, regional considerations and tips on how to pack smartly. There's even a how-to on tying a bowtie, something most of us guys are clueless about.

Real men the ones who like to read will welcome the arrival of The Annotated Godfather: The Complete Screenplay. Film historian Jenny M. Jones takes control of this project in marvelous fashion. We get the entire shooting script of the original film, plus deleted scenes, cool sidebars on how the film was adapted from the […]
History

Hail to the chiefs

Review by Howard Shirley

The President's Table: Two Hundred Years of Dining and Diplomacy by Barry H. Landau may be the most unusually focused historical study one could encounter: It deals with a very specific aspect of American political development namely, how the presidents ate. The book offers a fascinating retrospective in words and pictures of state dinners, public celebrations and the ubiquitous campaign fundraisers, stretching from George Washington to George W. Bush. Recognized as the foremost expert on presidential dining, Landau has amassed a collection of invitations, menus and memorabilia relating to presidential dinners during all 43 administrations exceeding even the Smithsonian's records, which only date to William McKinley's beginnings in 1897. The photographs here are meticulous and numerous, depicting everything from silk menus to campaign mementos. Such an array of invitations, cards and envelopes (among other items) could seem overwhelming were it not for Landau's accompanying text, which helps place the images within the social, political and historical contexts of their eras. The result is an interesting examination of how an event as simple as a meal can swell in significance when the president is at the table and how those same dinners can have repercussions, for good or ill, that affect a nation.

An intriguing book is Entertaining at the White House with Nancy Reagan, Peter Schifando and J. Jonathan Joseph's retrospective of the dinners and events hosted by the former president and first lady during their tenure in the executive mansion. The book is filled with photographs of monarchs, ministers, musicians and movie stars, as well as the elegantly arranged banquets that were created to entertain and honor them all. Entertaining at the White House also details the intricacies of protocol and diplomacy that go into planning, preparing and conducting even the simplest event, from deciding whom to invite (and whom not to), to honoring the cultural taboos of foreign dignitaries and their watching citizens back home. Surprisingly insightful, Schifando and Joseph's book is an alluring glimpse into the elegant and even risky world that combines diplomacy with dining.

ARCHIITECTURAL MEMORIES
Monuments: America's History in Art and Memory by Judith Dupre stands out from the other volumes here in both appearance and approach. Whereas the other books are concerned with the people, events and places of history, Monuments focuses not on the events, but on how we as a nation remember them. Duprea nd her editors have crafted an unusually striking book. The cover is made to look and feel like rough, textured stone from an ancient wall. Gaps in this wall reveal photos of monuments both familiar and obscure, inviting closer inspection the mark of any good monument.

Inside, the photos and graphical elements and even the text in places are presented in rich bronze tones, as though to echo the metal of a monument itself. Dupre's book follows a roughly chronological order, whether by a monument's historical significance or by the era of its inception, though one entry may cover a great swing of time, especially when that monument's story encompasses additions or restorations. Along the journey are side trips into details of note, or even unusual areas of recognition from a heroic dog to the almost anti-monument of a so-called potter's field, filled with the remains of the forgotten.

Although Dupre's text becomes heavy at times as she tries to define what are essentially visual and tactile experiences, when she deals with the events themselves and the process of the monuments' creation, her words are often fascinating and even moving. Reaching the end of Monuments doesn't feel like ending a journey, but the start of a desire to see for yourself what others thought should be remembered, and to discover what those remembrances evoke in you.

NO PLACE LIKE HOMES
Memorials, of course, seldom have any real attachment to the events and people being honored, save perhaps location. Far more significant in a historical sense are the actual items and places the men and women knew, used and loved none more so than the homes in which they lived and worked. Like a parade of homes, Houses of the Founding Fathers: The Men Who Made America and the Way They Lived by Hugh Howard, with photography by Roger Straus III, leads the reader on a grand tour of the houses and estates of America's founding citizens, both men and women. Filled with beautiful, detailed photographs, Houses of the Founding Fathers provides an engaging glimpse into the daily lives and aspirations of our nation's earliest leaders. Readers who appreciate architectural details, exquisite craftsmanship and elegant design will be engrossed by the lavish images, while those with a penchant for history will be equally intrigued by the stories, individuals and events that filled these magnificent homes. For both art and history, these homes are a pleasure to visit.

AMERICAN HISTORY 101
Time America: An Illustrated History by the editors of Time magazine is easily the most conventional of these five books, but no less interesting for that. The text is a readable and entertaining review of America's history from the days of Columbus' arrival to the current period. You won't come to this book for remarkable insights or in-depth research (and don't be surprised by the slight inaccuracies), but that's not the point. The words merely serve to complement the pictures, an engaging and often unusual cavalcade of images from all walks of American life, from the mundane to the momentous. Some scenes will be instantly familiar, some curiously strange and some refreshingly human, but all serve as delightful windows into our nation's past, well worth the viewing.

The President's Table: Two Hundred Years of Dining and Diplomacy by Barry H. Landau may be the most unusually focused historical study one could encounter: It deals with a very specific aspect of American political development namely, how the presidents ate. The book offers a fascinating retrospective in words and pictures of state dinners, public […]
Nature

The coal industry takes its lumps

Review by bookpagedev

To Georgia residents, Savannah Electric billboards featuring white pelicans or cute frogs are a familiar sight. The message is clear: Savannah Electric and its parent, the Southern Company, are friends to nature and beauty. The truth, however, is a little more complex: Behind all that (relatively) cheap and reliable power is a string of coal processing plants which are anything but friendly to the environment. The hidden truth about coal the dangers to miners, health risks from air pollution and accumulating greenhouse gases is what Jeff Goodell is after in his groundbreaking book, Big Coal: The Dirty Secret Behind America’s Energy Future. Goodell explores not only the familiar risks black lung and collapsing mines but also those coal hazards that rarely make it into our collective unconscious: mountain-top removals that destroy nearby residential communities and uncontained carbon dioxide emissions that accelerate global warming. He also delves into the politics of coal and how this nearly invisible resource is also an invisible force in elections at every level; for example Goodell makes a convincing case that coal barons in West Virginia bought a historically democratic voting state for George W. Bush in the 2000 presidential election. Goodell specifically targets the Southern Company, which is a conspicuous player in state and national politics, spending more than $25 million in federal lobbying from 2001 to 2004. For comparison’s sake, Goodell notes that other comparable power companies, like American Electric, spent less than $5 million during the same period. Goodell also uncovers the real story behind Bush’s failure to curb carbon dioxide emissions, as he clearly promised to do while campaigning. Big Coal points an indicting finger at Vice President Dick Cheney who, Goodell speculates, did some behind-the-scenes finagling among prominent senators to keep America’s signature off the international Kyoto Treaty. But the picture Goodell paints is not one of inevitable disaster. The technology to process coal without releasing so much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is already available. It’s just a matter of admitting that short-term profit losses will be more than compensated by the health of our lungs and the lungs of the planet. Lynn Hamilton writes from Tybee Island, Georgia.

To Georgia residents, Savannah Electric billboards featuring white pelicans or cute frogs are a familiar sight. The message is clear: Savannah Electric and its parent, the Southern Company, are friends to nature and beauty. The truth, however, is a little more complex: Behind all that (relatively) cheap and reliable power is a string of coal […]

Finding Iris Chang

In this blend of biography and memoir, Kamen methodically probes Chang's internal and external worlds, while coolly documenting an experience of friendship, professional rivalry and the hardships of a writing life.
NonfictionEssays

Last of the bon vivants

Review by bookpagedev

George Plimpton’s The Man in the Flying Lawn Chair: And Other Excursions and Observations is not unlike its late author: erudite in manner, endearing in tone, an elegant anomaly in a world so often characterized by its lack of grace and charm. Edited by his widow, Sarah Dudley Plimpton, and published a year after his death, the book brings together the many articles and essays Plimpton wrote during his reign as the father of participatory journalism. As he writes in one of the later pieces, My Olympic Trials, Everyone must wonder wistfully if there isn’t something other than what they actually practice in their lives (playing in a yacht-club tennis tournament) at which they would be incredibly adept if they could only find out what it was. . . . If an idiot savant could sit down at a piano and suddenly bat out a Chopin Žtude, wasn’t the same sort of potential locked up somewhere in all of us? What’s intriguing about Plimpton is that he actually did seek out this unknown other, this something else. In true Walter Mitty fashion, he played Amateur Night at the Apollo, photographed Playboy playmates and stood on the pitcher’s mound at Yankee Stadium. In doing so, he led us all to believe that we the Everymen, the Underdogs of the world could live out our whims and our quiet fantasies, too.

Perhaps it is this sense of endless possibility that ensured Plimpton would never grow old. During my first year out of college I had the good fortune of earning an internship at Plimpton’s literary journal, The Paris Review. Parties were common occurrences and as I was young and living in New York City for the first time, I should have been the one to stay up well into the night dancing and socializing. Instead, it was more often the tall, gangly 70-year-old by the bar who had the energy, who, like some literary Pied Piper, led us all on to the next restaurant, the next club or late night game of pool. What I remember most about Plimpton, though, is the graciousness with which he treated everyone he met. Though possessed of a family lineage that included senators, tycoons and the first American poet, and though educated at such esteemed institutions as Harvard and Cambridge, Plimpton never resorted to arrogance or condescension. It is one reason why people were drawn to him, why he had more people claiming him as a best friend than he probably ever realized.

As a writer, Plimpton’s strength lay in his subtlety. To be funny, you don’t always have to be obvious and when you’re writing about an adult film convention ( In the Playpen of the Damned ) or a wildlife documentary filmmaker and his succession of near-death experiences ( The Man Who Was Eaten Alive ), you don’t need a heavy hand. He may have been a participatory journalist, but he knew how to pull back and let a story tell itself. In his world, celebrities and eccentrics were part of a larger tableau, an ongoing narrative that never lost its wonder. When, after one long night with Hunter S. Thompson, Plimpton thinks back to the circus-like atmosphere, he remembers a story Thompson told him and writes, And as I weaved home on my bicycle not long before dawn, I thought, Oh, Hunter, write that one, and a lot more. It was in the cramped and tiny Paris Review offices that Plimpton used to store his bicycle. Hung high from the ceiling, it hovered over the heads of the staff, looking perfectly at home next to such accoutrements as a lion tamer’s chair, a stuffed bird, a framed letter from the prime minister of France. He rode it often and when out walking in the neighborhood it was entirely possible that one might catch sight of him his clothes a bit rumpled, his white hair flying about his face as he ever so slightly teetered off down the street. It was an anxiety-inducing visual as he often appeared on the verge of falling into the busy New York traffic. In true Plimpton fashion though, he had it all under control, and much like The Man in the Flying Lawn Chair, every part was perfectly balanced and of course, full of endless charm.

Lacey Galbraith is a writer in Nashville.

George Plimpton’s The Man in the Flying Lawn Chair: And Other Excursions and Observations is not unlike its late author: erudite in manner, endearing in tone, an elegant anomaly in a world so often characterized by its lack of grace and charm. Edited by his widow, Sarah Dudley Plimpton, and published a year after his […]
Biography

Guests of Stalin

Review by bookpagedev

In 1932, 11-year-old Margaret Werner arrived in the Soviet Union with her parents Carl and Elisabeth. Faced with the choice of eking out a living in Depression-era Detroit or taking a temporary one-year assignment to work for Ford Motor Company’s new manufacturing plant in Gorky, outside of Moscow, Carl had chosen the latter. The decision proved to be disastrous. Carl was arrested in 1936 by the secret police and never heard from again, leaving his wife and daughter impoverished and struggling to survive. Seven years later, Margaret was arrested for espionage and sentenced to 10 years of hard labor. It would be three painful decades before she was able to come home to the United States.

Margaret’s son Karl Tobien tells her improbable story in Dancing Under the Red Star, maintaining his mother’s 17-year-old voice throughout the book. Tobien describes the unimaginable deprivations, malnutrition and cruelty suffered in Siberian labor camps; the larger context of World War II and the Cold War are hinted at only broadly. (Curiously absent is any discussion of what if anything Ford or the U.S. government did to secure the return of the Werner family.) At its crux, this is Margaret’s story, a prison memoir of survival and faith and undiminished optimism. During her years in the Gulag, Margaret becomes a member of a prison dance troop and finds miracles in the everyday ability to carry on. After her release, Margaret marries a German POW she had met during her internment. Finally allowed to leave for East Germany, the pair, along with their baby son and Elisabeth, takes the opportunity to make an inspired escape to West Germany, and ultimately back to America. Margaret Werner is the only American woman to survive Stalin’s Gulag. Her life, randomly caught in the brutal Soviet regime, is at turns bleak and horrifying. However, it is also a testament to one woman’s unshakable courage and faith. Stacy Perman is a journalist in New York and the author of Spies Inc.: Business Innovation from Israel’s Masters of Espionage (Financial Times/Prentice Hall).

 

In 1932, 11-year-old Margaret Werner arrived in the Soviet Union with her parents Carl and Elisabeth. Faced with the choice of eking out a living in Depression-era Detroit or taking a temporary one-year assignment to work for Ford Motor Company’s new manufacturing plant in Gorky, outside of Moscow, Carl had chosen the latter. The decision […]

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