by D.F. Harrington ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 21, 2017
A remarkable peek into the ascendancy of the Nazi Party in Germany and the march to global conflict.
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A debut biography recounts a man’s perilous adventures during both world wars.
John Harrington grew up in the Australian Outback in Fremantle in the inaugural years of the 20th century. Since his father lived far away in Sydney and his mother was largely indifferent to his existence, John was raised by Cluba, an aboriginal woman for whom he had a son’s affection. He eventually moved to England for schooling and trained to be an engineer, but once World War I erupted, he joined the reserves and was assigned to the “Signal Section” of the Royal Field Artillery. He was sent to France and soon witnessed up close the carnage of war in Belgium. Badly wounded, he nearly lost his leg to amputation. John returned to England and held several jobs—including reporter and photographer for two newspapers—until he responded to a cryptic advertisement looking for a clerk with German language skills. He was hired as a passport clerk at the British Consulate in Berlin, an office that doubled as the headquarters for the secret service. There John was recruited for various espionage missions, including purloining technical drafts of the German Enigma machine, the famous cryptographic device. Later, during World War II, John worked unofficially for the Royal Air Force, aiding it in locating high-value bomb targets in Berlin. When John was reassigned to England, he was tasked with helping with the Ultra code-breaking machine. The exhilarating book is written by his daughter, D.F. Harrington, based on his oral stories. While the author’s prose lacks any literary quality, it’s dependably lucid, and the work is well-structured. But the principal virtue of the remembrance is the extraordinariness of John’s life—he managed to meet an eclectic cast of historically significant figures, including Harry Houdini, Alfred Hitchcock, and Joseph Goebbels. John nearly went on a date with Eva Braun. In addition, the powerful record provided of Germany’s descent into tyranny under Hitler, including the savage inhospitableness to Jews, is as disturbing as it is edifying.
A remarkable peek into the ascendancy of the Nazi Party in Germany and the march to global conflict.Pub Date: Nov. 21, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5255-1008-3
Page Count: 350
Publisher: FriesenPress
Review Posted Online: Feb. 5, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996
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
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by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955
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.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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