Terkel returns once again to his "oral history" format to investigate what he describes as "the deepening chasm [in today's American society] between the haves—and have-somewhats—and the have-nots." According to the author, the past decade has seen changes that have separated vast segments of that society and have even "cut off past from present." In examining this recent history, Terkel enlists the testimonies of farmers, politicians, antinuke activists, members of the Sanctuary Movement, academics, religious Fundamentalists, Wall Street fast-lane types, and the occasional dropout. Breaking the subject down into such headings as "School Days," "Family Farmer," "God," "Neighbors," Terkel compares and contrasts attitudes toward life in the US today. As can be expected, the contributions vary: some are nearly inarticulate, others a grabbag of accepted "truths" (i.e., cliche's). Many, however, are perceptive and, in the most compelling of them, deeply moving. Take, for example, the story told by Jean Gump, a grandmother, mother of 12, delegate to the 1972 Democratic Convention, and, most importantly, a member of the disarmament group Silo Plowshares. Mrs. Gump was arrested on Good Friday 1986 for infiltrating a missile site and disfiguring a Minute Mare silo. She tells her story with a palpable sense of commitment and occasional flashes of no-nonsense humor; for her act of dissent, she was sentenced to six years at a federal penitentiary. Nearly as engrossing are the reminiscences of a flight attendant whose pilot husband crosses the picket line in which his wife protests company policies. Like previous Terkel surveys, this leaves a great deal of chaff with the sociological wheat—but, because of the urgency and immediacy of its theme, it's one of the author's most successful offerings since The Good War.
Pub Date: Oct. 3, 1988
ISBN: 0517059959
Page Count: -
Publisher: Pantheon
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1988
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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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