by George W. Bush ; illustrated by George W. Bush ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 20, 2021
A surprisingly satisfying tribute to the vigor that immigrants bring to the nation’s culture and economy.
The former president takes up brush and pen to portray nearly four dozen immigrants and highlight their contributions.
Bush’s latest book reveals a couple of things. One is that any discussion of immigration reform is likely to be difficult and even a little schizophrenic. The author argues for strongly enforced borders, a thorough reform of the immigration system, and “full assimilation of immigrants into the American economy and culture.” Another is that the former president has, like Dwight Eisenhower, become a serviceable painter in his retirement. The political point is the more important, though Bush protests that he withheld publication until the 2020 election had passed lest any of his subjects become political hostages. As well they might have: One of the immigrants is a Mexican man who arrived illegally as a teenager, worked as a mechanic and painter, and then founded a produce company that nets $60 million per year. Though he became a citizen along the way, that’s just the sort of thing to set a nativist’s blood boiling. Arnold Schwarzenegger, depicted with a horsey grin and an Uncle Sam top hat, subtly addresses those nativists: “I wish every American realized that being born here is the greatest opportunity. You don’t know how lucky you are. And because of that, it’s our duty to do everything in our power to leave a better America to the next generation.” Henry Kissinger and Madeleine Albright take their places alongside a North Korean refugee who works in Bush’s organization and an Iraqi interpreter who legally changed his name to Tony George Bush. A few of Bush’s subjects are of modest achievement, but many, including Dominican baseball star Albert Pujols and Swedish-born golf celebrity Annika Sörenstam, have made outsize marks. The author also includes a two-page flow chart that shows the impossibly complex ways (there are four of them) “to obtain a green card” in the U.S.
A surprisingly satisfying tribute to the vigor that immigrants bring to the nation’s culture and economy.Pub Date: April 20, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-13696-6
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2021
Share your opinion of this book
More by George W. Bush
BOOK REVIEW
Awards & Accolades
Likes
14
Our Verdict
GET IT
IndieBound Bestseller
by Steve Martin illustrated by Harry Bliss ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 17, 2020
A virtuoso performance and an ode to an undervalued medium created by two talented artists.
Awards & Accolades
Likes
14
Our Verdict
GET IT
IndieBound Bestseller
The veteran actor, comedian, and banjo player teams up with the acclaimed illustrator to create a unique book of cartoons that communicates their personalities.
Martin, also a prolific author, has always been intrigued by the cartoons strewn throughout the pages of the New Yorker. So when he was presented with the opportunity to work with Bliss, who has been a staff cartoonist at the magazine since 1997, he seized the moment. “The idea of a one-panel image with or without a caption mystified me,” he writes. “I felt like, yeah, sometimes I’m funny, but there are these other weird freaks who are actually funny.” Once the duo agreed to work together, they established their creative process, which consisted of working forward and backward: “Forwards was me conceiving of several cartoon images and captions, and Harry would select his favorites; backwards was Harry sending me sketched or fully drawn cartoons for dialogue or banners.” Sometimes, he writes, “the perfect joke occurs two seconds before deadline.” There are several cartoons depicting this method, including a humorous multipanel piece highlighting their first meeting called “They Meet,” in which Martin thinks to himself, “He’ll never be able to translate my delicate and finely honed droll notions.” In the next panel, Bliss thinks, “I’m sure he won’t understand that the comic art form is way more subtle than his blunt-force humor.” The team collaborated for a year and created 150 cartoons featuring an array of topics, “from dogs and cats to outer space and art museums.” A witty creation of a bovine family sitting down to a gourmet meal and one of Dumbo getting his comeuppance highlight the duo’s comedic talent. What also makes this project successful is the team’s keen understanding of human behavior as viewed through their unconventional comedic minds.
A virtuoso performance and an ode to an undervalued medium created by two talented artists.Pub Date: Nov. 17, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-250-26289-9
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Celadon Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2020
Share your opinion of this book
More by Steve Martin
BOOK REVIEW
by Steve Martin ; illustrated by Harry Bliss
BOOK REVIEW
by Steve Martin
BOOK REVIEW
by Steve Martin & illustrated by C.F. Payne
More About This Book
PERSPECTIVES
by Colum McCann with Diane Foley ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2024
A harrowing memoir of grief and love.
An indelible portrait of a mother’s courage.
Award-winning novelist McCann and Foley, mother of murdered journalist James Wright Foley (1973-2014), offer a powerful recounting of the unspeakable tragedy and its aftermath. In August 2014, after being held hostage for two years, Jim was beheaded by Islamic Group terrorists. He had been taken hostage once before, in Libya, but that time was released after 44 days. Undaunted, he went to Syria “determined to bear witness to the horrific bombings and gassings of innocent civilians by the Assad regime.” After he was taken hostage, the Foley family, to their deepening dismay, discovered that the U.S. refused unequivocally to negotiate for hostages’ release, and the Foleys were threatened with prosecution if they tried to raise ransom money on their own. Meanwhile, though, through “an incredibly circuitous route,” several European governments managed to free their own hostages. “They insinuated themselves carefully into the communications system,” the authors write, “got under the umbrella of the emails, and forged their own secret methods that included a network of agents and ambassadors and, yes, even spies.” Foley vents her anger toward the many government officials who claimed they were powerless to help. “The plain fact of the matter is that we don’t care as much for our aid workers or our volunteer ambulance drivers or our journalists as we do for our military,” the authors assert. Foley and her family founded the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation to advocate for the freedom of those taken hostage or detained abroad, and she takes hope from recent legislation, most recently by Biden’s executive order, in support of hostages. Hoping for “answers to help her in the wider work against hostage-taking,” Foley met with one of the terrorists involved in her son’s murder—unsettling encounters that bracket the striking narrative.
A harrowing memoir of grief and love.Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9798985882452
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Etruscan Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
Share your opinion of this book
More by Colum McCann
BOOK REVIEW
by Colum McCann
BOOK REVIEW
by Colum McCann
BOOK REVIEW
by Colum McCann
More About This Book
SEEN & HEARD
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.