bookshelf

THE BIRTH OF THE NATION

Name: THE BIRTH OF THE NATION
Author: Arthur M. Schlesinger
ISBN: 0241017149

PORTRAIT OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ON THE EVE OF INDEPENDENCE

by Arthur M. Schlesinger ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 22, 1968

bookshelf

The author, who finished this book just before his death in 1965, was a Harvard professor of considerable stature as well as the father of Arthur, Jr. From a scholarly point of view, the book sidesteps the preludes to the domestic, democratic revolution which developed concurrently with the War of Independence; instead, Schlesinger merely claims that everyone took a class structure for granted. But then legislative struggles lie on the periphery of this study. It is a social history in its best and largest descriptions. Bundling, smuggling, coping with sewage and crime, the colonists seem as vital a bunch as we were brought up to believe. There is an adumbration of the darker side (Yankee slave-traders as well as Southern masters) and a few cliche-busters (only a minority formally belonged to any church). Yet it's principally the sweeter, lighter side—scant mention of the French and Indian Wars; a claim that the aristocracy was benign and unresented; little about taxes and governmental structures; and little inkling of the half-hearted support for the Spirit of '76. It's an utter delight to read; no substitute for classics like the Beards, Dorfman or Jameson, much less new, rigorous scholarship—but a worthy complement.

Pub Date: Oct. 22, 1968

ISBN: 0241017149

Page Count: -

Publisher: Knopf

Review Posted Online: May 22, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1968

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE DISUNITING OF AMERICA
by Arthur M. Schlesinger

- BOOK REVIEW
THE CYCLES OF AMERICAN HISTORY
by Arthur M. Schlesinger

- BOOK REVIEW
ROBERT KENNEDY AND HIS TIMES
by Arthur M. Schlesinger

bookshelf

NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

bookshelf

This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

bookshelf

TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

bookshelf

An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.