by Gerald Karey ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 15, 2014
Many readers will find something to like in this grab bag but also much to skim or pass over.
The collected essays/blog posts of a retired journalist, reflecting upon America and its quirks, foibles, and disasters.
Debut author Karey presents readers a mixed bag of essays from his titular blog. It begins with the emigration of his Jewish grandmother from Russian-controlled Polish territory to the United States about a century ago and concludes with his reflections on recent events, such as what he sees as oil companies’ degradation of the American environment. In between, he tackles a motley assortment of subjects, including travel, sports, politics, global warming, singing cowboys, religion, and guns. He attacks the National Rifle Association and America’s culture of gun violence, scolds conservative icons such as political commentator Bill O’Reilly and former U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, and takes stands for Israel and against anti-Semitism. The collection also includes essays on nonpolitical aspects of American culture interspersed with photos showing members of Karey’s family and their friends as well as ephemera, such as a threatening letter the author’s father received from the U.S. government during the anti-communism hysteria of the early 1950s. He winds up the book with a baker’s dozen of miscellaneous essays dealing with everything from the month of November to apples, rabbits, French actor Gérard Depardieu, and Russia. The author is at his best when he uses easygoing humor to examine the unsung, the overlooked, and the obscure, such as a baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals who got only one at-bat in the major leagues and struck out. Some of Karey’s analytical journalism is powerful and on-target, too, such as his attack on the former chief executive officer of British Petroleum, John Browne, who he says was responsible for his company’s disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. But Karey’s takes on many other issues aren’t particularly enlightening, such as his characterizations of O’Reilly as a “blowhard,” for instance, and Bachmann as “a dark stain on the body politic.” Although he doesn’t include the dates of his blog posts, it’s clear that many have since gone stale; few readers may care about the fiscal cliff, for instance. Such are the perils of blogs, which, in their way, are even more ephemeral than print journalism. Still, Karey writes well enough, and his heart’s in the right place.
Many readers will find something to like in this grab bag but also much to skim or pass over.Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-937650-44-5
Page Count: 414
Publisher: Small Batch Books
Review Posted Online: June 27, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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by William Strunk & E.B. White ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 15, 1972
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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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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