Edwards, a Goldwater campaign veteran and professor of politics at the Catholic University of America, offers an anecdote- rich portrait of the intellectual and practical godfather of modern American conservatism. Barry Goldwater is perhaps best known for proclaiming, ``Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice.'' Edwards details Goldwater's beginnings as an executive in his family's Arizona- based chain of department stores, portraying a man who succeeded early in Arizona politics because, as he recalled, ``I can call ten thousand people in this state by their first name.'' The author chronicles Goldwater's rise to national prominence as an exponent of a limited federal government that does not attempt to legislate morality, a stance that would put him at odds with the Christian Right late in his career. Of special value is Edwards's detailed account of the 1964 presidential campaign, which was famous for disinformation and mudslinging (Goldwater himself remarked, ``If I didn't know Goldwater in 1964 and had to depend on the press, I'd have voted against the son of a bitch myself''). Edwards shows how Goldwater's landslide loss galvanized conservatives to move the Republican Party rightward to field the successful candidates Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan, but the author is too quick to attribute such dubious later experiments as supply-side economics to the more fiscally sensible Arizonan. Happily, Edwards captures something of Goldwater the man, a feisty character unafraid to speak his piecethe Goldwater who dismissed fellow conservative Ronald Reagan as ``just an actor'' and invited a former-supporter- turned-antiwar-activist to come see him despite the protestations of his congressional aides, saying, ``Piss on them. You're my friend.'' Required reading for Goldwater aficionados, and useful for students of contemporary American politics of whatever stripe. (8 pages b&w photos)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1995
ISBN: 0-89526-471-4
Page Count: 576
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1995
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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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