DWD's Reviews

Racing can be tough... Published in 2007. This collection of 19 short stories center in and around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, especially the Indy 500. Just to tell you up front, I am a big fan of both mysteries and the Indy 500 (I've been to every 500 since 1986.) Most of the stories in Racing Can Be Murder are about 12-18 pages long and between the stories are little bits of information about the track or the Indy 500, including biographies and odd facts written by Wanda Lou Willis. The stories are of varying quality, which is to be expected with so many authors contributing to this volume. I was especially fond of "Race to the Rescue" by Andrea Smith, "One Cold Dish" by S.M. Harding, "The Early Bird" by Lucy Coyle Schilling, "Driven to Death" by Tamera Huber and "The Volunteers" by Tamera Phillips. In all of them, the feel of Indianapolis and its West Side was well-portrayed, but it was especi...

History in a more approachable format (for some) Originally published in 2011. Re-published in 2016 with additions. This is a review of the 2011 publication. All forms of media have their fans and detractors. History teachers (like me) often have mixed opinions about different formats. Movies show the viewer but often skip details or over-emphasize items in order to make the stories work better. Textbooks cover the basics but do it in a dry, boring manner. History books can tell the story with more detail, but give the topic to a bad writer and it is an impossible challenge to the reluctant reader. Audiobooks may help, but how many students will listen to a 13 hour history book? Historical fiction - it is a mixed bag, but has potential to keep the interest up and teach something along the way. The internet - it's literally all there - the good, the bad, the delusional. As a teacher, I have always espoused the theory that I have borrowed from Malcolm X - teach it "by any me...

GraphicAudio delivers the goods Published in 2008. Performed by 29 actors. Duration: 6 hours GraphicAudio promises "A Movie In Your Mind" and they come awfully close with 29 actors, special effects, music and a go-go-go plot. While not the best of the Justice League series that I have listened to, Superman: The Never-Ending Battle was still quite entertaining. Superman and the rest of the Justice League get caught up in a series of weather-related missions and about one-third of the way into the story the JLA begins to suspect that someone is manipulating the weather - summertime blizzards, ultra-thick fogs, record numbers of tornadoes, droughts and even worse abound. The questions, of course, are who is doing this and why are they doing it? The main characters in this mission are Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, The Martian Manhunter and the Atom who mostly sits in the satellite headquarters monitoring maps and analyzing data. Superman, th...

Short but pretty sweet Read by James Naughton and Dylan Baker Duration: about 1 hour, 30 minutes Published in 1999 by Simon and Schuster. These two stories are taken unabridged from a larger collection of Elmore Leonard short stories called The Tonto Woman and Other Western Stories . Both stories last about 45 minutes each. The entire package consists of one audio cassette lasting about one and one-half hours. They are read by veteran television actors James Naughton and Dylan Baker. I thought that "The Colonel's Lady" (she is taken captive as a result of an ambush) had a pretty good twist to it but was a bit slow. I would give it three stars. On the other hand, I enjoyed "No Man's Guns." In that story, a recently discharged member of the cavalry is framed for murder. I give the second story 5 stars. That makes an average of four stars. This audiobook can be found on Amazon.com here: The Colonel's Lady and No Man's Gun . Revi...

Interesting collection Published in 2004 by Konecky and Konecky Sir Edward Creasy published a book called Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World: from Marathon to Waterloo in 1851. His original work was expanded in 1964 by Lt. Col. Mitchell in order to create Twenty Decisive Battles of the World . In some cases, Mitchell corrected factual errors in Creasy's original work that came to light since it was first written. The main criteria for picking these twenty battles was that the battle had to have a lasting impact on the war it was a part of and also have a lasting impact on history. For example, the Confederate victory at the battle of Chancellorsville in the American Civil War was not chosen despite the fact that it was brilliantly fought by Robert E. Lee. The Confederacy went on to lose the war and the victory at Chancellorsville may have prolonged the war by a few months at most. On the other hand, Mitchell picked the Vicksburg campaign as a battle that was decisive in the...

Relentlessly paced Published in 2011 by G.P. Putnam's Sons The Elvis Cole/Joe Pike series continues with The Sentry . Technically, it is a Joe Pike novel, but as with most of the books in this series, you get a little bit of both. Joe Pike stumbles into a gang intimidation racket (the famed "give us money or your restaurant gets damaged" routine) in progress and, of course, the two fools actually attempt to fight Pike. When the police come to arrest the one assailant that Pike captures the victim refuses to cooperate with the police. Pike takes a protective interest in Dru, the niece of the owner who was beaten by the gang members before Pike's intervention. Dru and Joe share a nice moment over coffee and, for a moment, Joe's impenetrable emotional armor is actually penetrated. Joe takes a shine to Dru and gets involved and tries to protect her by taking steps to stop the ongoing harassment by the Latino gang. But, somewhere along the way things go awry. Th...

Published in 2006 by Sports Publishing Jack Arute's first Indy 500 was in 1969 as an 18-year-old spectator. His family owns a track in the Northeast and racing is in his blood. His dad passed down a love for the Indy 500 in particular. Arute turned that love into a long career covering racing.  In Jack Arute's Tales from Indy 500 , Arute only tells stories from 1969 to the present (2004 in the hardback version, 2005 in the paperback version). Nothing too complicated and a real fun read, especially if you want to re-live some of the more exciting, interesting and sad moments from the last 35 years or so. Jack Arute (center)  joking with Tony Kanaan I'd recommend the paperback version over the hardback since it has been expanded to include the 2005 race - the race where Danica Patrick became a household name. This is a quick read - I finished it in just one evening, but to be fair, I did read into the wee hours of the morning because the stories were that...

A different look at our most written-about  president Duration: 42 minutes Produced by Teaberry Tapes Everyone knows the facts about Lincoln - the 16th president, the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation, the Gettysburg Address, his assassination. But, do you really know Lincoln?  This CD offers a completely different look at the myth that the man has become by offering a look at his humorous side. Lincoln was a master storyteller and he often told his stories to prove a larger point. There are plenty of those types of stories on this CD.  Sometimes he just told stories to disarm an audience - the editor of this collection notes that Stephen Douglas feared the ability of Lincoln's homespun humor to win a crowd more than his arguments. Lincoln's stories were known to persuade juries and sometimes they were just for fun. His wife noted that Lincoln's sense of humor - his quick smile and laughing eyes were never present in his photographs - he always looked so sol...

Lord Byron as a vampire Performed by Richard E. Grant Duration: 3 hours Lord Byron (1788-1824) I picked up this audiobook version of Lord of the Dead: The Secret History of Byron because I very much enjoyed Holland's non-fiction book about the end of the Roman Republic, Rubicon: The Last Years of the Roman Republic . I am not particularly a fan of vampire books nor of Lord Byron (who I can believe was a vampire considering the level of his debauchery and self-absorption) but I decided to give Tom Holland another try and trust that he would make it interesting. The abridgment of the book contributed to my enjoyment, I am sure. There were many long stretches that were so bloated by flowery speeches, especially in the first hour or so of the audiobook, that I probably would have bailed on an unabridged version of the book. However, the last two hours were so interesting and so well-performed by Richard E. Grant that I had to bump the score up to 4 stars. The r...

Good, but not great Hillerman.  The Shiprock formation in New Mexico Originally published in 1996. Joe Leaphorn has just retired and Jim Chee continues his exploration into cross-cultural dating (and difficulties). Officer Bernadette Manuelito becomes a full-fledged character in the series. In fact, this may be the best characterization of her in the series. There are actually two mysteries in The Fallen Man . One is a cattle-rustling caper. The other is the long-dead body of a climber that is found on Shiprock (Rock With Wings). If you ask, "What's a shiprock?" than you haven't been to the Four Corners area since this giant exposed interior of a volcano dominates its local landscape like some sort of gothic tower created in the imagination of Stephen King. This is not Hillerman's best work, but it is enjoyable for any fans of Hillerman. This would not be a good one to start with if you have not read any of the series. I rate this book 4 st...

Two short stories about the dark side of human nature Published in 2010 by Simon and Schuster Audio.  Read by Craig Wasson and Mare Winningham Duration: 2 hours, 40 minutes Unabridged This audiobook is actually two short stories. The first and longest story is called "Blockade Billy" read by Craig Wasson, the second is "Morality" read by Mare Winningham. **** "Blockade Billy" is the reminiscences of a retired coach of the fictional New Jersey Titans, an American League baseball team. The coach is being interviewed by a man named "Mr. King." We never hear what Mr. King asks, only the story of a former player named "Blockade Billy" as told by this old coach who lives in a retirement home. Stephen King is at his descriptive best in this story as he re-creates the world of 1957, when baseball ruled the sports pages. At times, it is like listening to Bob Costas or George Will, both writers who can wax on eloquently about this golde...

A teacher's review Michael Gurian I found Boys and Girls Learn Differently: A Guide for Teachers and Parents to be a useful and fascinating introduction to the general strengths and weaknesses of males and females in the classroom. Some may laugh or poke fun at the relatively old ideas that Michael Gurian is presenting as new in the areas of male/female brain differences. These may be old ideas in the biology lab, but someone needs to walk over to the schools of education across the country and inform them because the 'tabula rasa' theory (the mind is a blank slate and gender differences are entirely a product of culture, not nature) is alive and still kicking hard. The only complaint I have is that Gurian refers a lot to seminars and ongoing experiments in school designs that will be helpful in teaching to the strengths and weaknesses of girls and boys. However, he comes up a bit short in providing concrete examples of how to help both boys and gi...

Surprisingly well-balanced approach to a controversial theory  Zheng He (1371-1433) I fully expected this DVD to be a whole-hearted film adaptation of the book without any criticism of the central thesis. If you are not aware of the thesis, British naval officer Gavin Menzies proposes that the gigantic Chinese "Star Fleet" not only explored the Indian Ocean and the coasts of Africa, India and Arabia, but also went around South Africa, into the Atlantic and eventually landed in the Caribbean, North America and South America. Menzies asserts that they went around Tierra Del Fuego, entered the Pacific and eventually returned to China, thus being the first the circumnavigate the globe. The DVD is very sketchy about the latter half of this trip (The Pacific Ocean leg). The first hour does a strong job of explaining why you may have never heard of Zheng He or his fleet. It also tells about the voyages that historians are confident that Zheng He complet...

Michener's take on South Africa James Michener (1907-1997) Michener's true epics are always worth the time to read. The Covenant is no exception. Michener's take on South Africa and its history is an honest attempt to give some perspective on one of the more complex histories that this history teacher has encountered. The book starts out strong (my edition was the two-volume hardback). The first volume was vintage Michener, but the second one dragged. Perhaps it was because the subject matter became more and more depressing. With the final 200 pages or so being about Apartheid, it's hard to find something to cheer about. In a way, Michener's book seems incomplete - he hints that Apartheid could no longer stand - he gives a prediction that it would end by about the year 2000. Turns out, he was just about right, but the book feels like it does not have a proper ending. If you are pondering a Michener book and have not read them all (person...

A nicely done personal history of a large, sad tale Published in 2008 by Random House Unfortunately, the only thing that 99.999% of the world associates with the word "Darfur" is death, hate and tragedy. Daoud Hari's small memoir,  The Translator: A Tribesman's Memoir of Darfur , reminds the reader that Darfur was once home to millions - a place of family, friends, play and work. That is the strongest asset of this short work - it puts a human face on a large tragedy. Written in simple, elegant English and with a wry sense of humor ("Most people like me, are tall - I am six feet - and are also a little thin because of all the walking, the hard work and the dieting that is one of the many advantages of poverty."[p. 108]), this book is an extension of Hari's way of fighting back against the forces that are destroying Darfur. Rather than taking up arms, Hari decided to expose Darfur to the world by escorting journalists from Chad into Darfu...

Rings true to this classroom teacher Published in 2006 by Rodale Books. As a classroom teacher that first came into the profession at the height of the Reviving Ophelia type of research done by Mary Pipher. I have participated in classes, seminars and training sessions about how girls are being short-changed in the classroom and in our culture. It was not until I ran across some research I was doing in my Master's Degree program some 15 years later that my eyes were opened to a new possibility: the girls are, on the whole, doing just fine. The boys, on the other hand, are falling by the wayside in heart-cringing numbers. Go to any public school and you can just about guarantee that 7 or more of the top ten will be girls. Look at the special education numbers and 7 out of 10 will be boys. Dan Kindlon 's Alpha Girls: Understanding the New American Girl and How She Is Changing the World does not address what is going on with boys, but it does look at a relatively ...

Pretty good sci-fi movie I am not much of an anime fan, but I do like a good sci-fi show and Vexille was pretty good. The animation of everything that was non-human was fantastic (in my newbie-to-anime eyes). The metallic structures were perfect. The sunsets, explosions, splatters, etc. were wonderfully done. The human faces (and to some extent, the body movements) were not as good - but that is understandable. We humans spend so much time actively looking at faces and body language as compared to cars, sunsets and explosions, that the art cannot stand up to that type of detail. Anyway, the story is pretty strong, although you need to pay attention. Japan has sealed itself off from the world because the rest of the world has decided that cyborg technology is a danger to the human race. Japan has embraced this technology, however. The story is interesting, but sometimes they over-narrate and sometimes there's not enough narration. I got a bit confused when due to the ...

A fun read. Not real deep, but fun. Good vacation read for history buffs. Richard Brookhiser got the idea for What Would the Founders Do?: Our Questions, Their Answers from the questions from his audiences when he would give a public lecture on the founders. "Richard, what would the founding fathers have said about...(illegal immigration, marijuana, the war in Iraq, etc.)? So, he collected a number of those questions, did a little research and wrote this fun little book. Richard Brookhiser is the writer of the best overall biography of George Washington that I have read, Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington . This one is not the same quality, although I am giving them both the same score: 4 stars. Gouverneur Morris Why? A book of this sort is just different creature than a biography. By its very nature it is a series of starts and stops (the question and answer format). This inhibits the flow of the book in many ways, but does make it good for t...

A solid bit of historical fiction For this Hoosier reviewer, The Massacre at Fall Creek is most interesting since the places involved are no more than a 45 minute drive from my house. Jessamyn West  (1902-84) Jessamyn West does a great job of getting the "feel" of an 1824 frontier community - how small it was, how truly far away it was from "civilization" and how that isolation created a unique culture. The storyline is based on a real incident in which several white men from a community to the north of Pendleton, Indiana killed two families of Indians, including their children and stole their furs. Records from those days are "iffy" at best so West has to fill in a lot of blanks as she goes along. In fact, she even uses fake names for the white men involved, although it may be that in the 33 years since her book was written additional research has revealed the names of the men. Of course, the Indians were outraged at this treaty...

Strong, but not for those who are not well-versed in history   Originally published in 2007. Let me just note that Alister McGrath has taken on a large topic (Protestantism) in Christianity's Dangerous Idea and done about as well as one can in organizing the information and presenting it in a cogent and readable fashion. McGrath assumes that you already know a lot about history in general and about the last 500 years or so in particular. That is to be expected. If he had to explain every last detail this book it would have to have been 3,000 pages rather than the already hefty 478 pages of text plus 50+ pages of endnotes. If you are a person that has heard of the Huguenots, but are not sure if they are a native group in South Africa or a religious group in France, this book is not for you. This is not a complete history, either. It is an overview. If you are looking for a complete history of a particular denomination, you are likely to be disappointed. Some denom...