Writing entertainingly and casually, Robinson tells tales out of school that are guaranteed to tick off his fellow...
Water-bottle gossip mixes with big-picture philosophizing in this sharp memoir by a Republican Party stalwart—and onetime insider.
Robinson (Snapshots From Hell, 1994), one of the young conservatives who gave Dartmouth administrators fits in the early 1980s and went on to serve as a speechwriter for Ronald Reagan and George Bush, is as faithful a Republican as they come. He defends his choice of political persuasions on many grounds: his was, after all, the party of Lincoln, the party of federalism and industrial democracy, the party that he believes best honors the American desire to be left alone to grow rich, fat, and happy. That said, Robinson finds much for which to fault his partisans: "It is easy," he writes, "to find the Republican Party absurd. . . . At times I find myself imaging that the GOP represents the past, its members the last remnants of an America that was once overwhelmingly white and Protestant." Likening his passion for the GOP to a love affair with a slightly dangerous, slightly daft woman—perhaps a silly conceit, but one that works just fine for his purposes—Robinson writes openly of his fellow believers' hidebound sexist and racist tendencies ("The GOP has done almost nothing to appeal to African-Americans or single women, while its efforts to deal with the growing Hispanic population have so far proven perverse"), exposing major flaws of belief and practice on every page. But his gadfly criticism notwithstanding, Robinson argues that the GOP is in every respect preferable to the chief alternative, and he plumps for George W. Bush while acknowledging the attractiveness of John McCain (who, for the Republican Old Guard, appears to be more dangerous than any Democrat).
Writing entertainingly and casually, Robinson tells tales out of school that are guaranteed to tick off his fellow Republicans and delight their foes in this election year. But make no mistake, he's hanging on to his party card.Pub Date: Aug. 18, 2000
ISBN: 0-446-52665-7
Page Count: 288
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2000
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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