Mostly insightful essays that often preach to the choir.
A timely collection of informed voices on fascism.
Once upon a time, a flamboyant political novice burst onto the scene. Extolling patriotism and so-called traditional values, he denounced liberalism. Though few establishment figures took him seriously, suddenly, he was the nation’s leader, and scholars still debate how it happened. That was Benito Mussolini. Many Americans forget that he was a no-nonsense autocrat who sought to make Italy great again. Perhaps his greatest legacy is his Fascist party’s name, embodied by a host of current strongmen leaders, including, of course, Donald Trump. In this collection, scholars and journalists offer highly opinionated essays, curated by Steinmetz-Jenkins, a professor of history and social theory at Wesleyan. The editor begins with an excerpt from Sinclair Lewis’ 1935 novel, It Can’t Happen Here, which satirizes proto-fascist movements in 1930s America. Then he moves on to Reinhold Niebuhr, followed by Leon Trotsky’s 1940 Marxian treatise. Among the more turgid contributions, his analyses of Nazi appeal and capitalist weakness have not been borne out, but he hits the mark in his argument that the absence of a labor party makes revolution unlikely. Novelist Umberto Eco is the most entertaining. In 1942, the young author won a national award for an essay on Mussolini. He explains that, as the first right-wing dictatorship to take over a European country, fascism established the folklore, rhetoric, brutality, and even the fashion. Mussolini himself had no true philosophy (like Trump), but Eco’s wry description of the features of typical “Ur-Fascism” may lead some readers to skip the remaining pieces, which mix academic analysis and polemic and conclude that Trump may be a fascist (or not) and that his followers accept some of its features. Other contributors include Samuel Moyn, Robin D.G. Kelley, and Pankaj Mishra.
Mostly insightful essays that often preach to the choir.Pub Date: March 19, 2024
ISBN: 9781324074397
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Norton
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
Dogged original research and superb narrative skills come together in this gripping account of pitiless evil.
Greed, depravity, and serial murder in 1920s Oklahoma.
During that time, enrolled members of the Osage Indian nation were among the wealthiest people per capita in the world. The rich oil fields beneath their reservation brought millions of dollars into the tribe annually, distributed to tribal members holding "headrights" that could not be bought or sold but only inherited. This vast wealth attracted the attention of unscrupulous whites who found ways to divert it to themselves by marrying Osage women or by having Osage declared legally incompetent so the whites could fleece them through the administration of their estates. For some, however, these deceptive tactics were not enough, and a plague of violent death—by shooting, poison, orchestrated automobile accident, and bombing—began to decimate the Osage in what they came to call the "Reign of Terror." Corrupt and incompetent law enforcement and judicial systems ensured that the perpetrators were never found or punished until the young J. Edgar Hoover saw cracking these cases as a means of burnishing the reputation of the newly professionalized FBI. Bestselling New Yorker staff writer Grann (The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness, and Obsession, 2010, etc.) follows Special Agent Tom White and his assistants as they track the killers of one extended Osage family through a closed local culture of greed, bigotry, and lies in pursuit of protection for the survivors and justice for the dead. But he doesn't stop there; relying almost entirely on primary and unpublished sources, the author goes on to expose a web of conspiracy and corruption that extended far wider than even the FBI ever suspected. This page-turner surges forward with the pacing of a true-crime thriller, elevated by Grann's crisp and evocative prose and enhanced by dozens of period photographs.
Dogged original research and superb narrative skills come together in this gripping account of pitiless evil.Pub Date: April 18, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-385-53424-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2017
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.
Documenting perilous times.
In his most recent behind-the-scenes account of political power and how it is wielded, Woodward synthesizes several narrative strands, from the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel to the 2024 presidential campaign. Woodward’s clear, gripping storytelling benefits from his legendary access to prominent figures and a structure of propulsive chapters. The run-up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is tense (if occasionally repetitive), as a cast of geopolitical insiders try to divine Vladimir Putin’s intent: “Doubt among allies, the public and among Ukrainians meant valuable time and space for Putin to maneuver.” Against this backdrop, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham implores Donald Trump to run again, notwithstanding the former president’s denial of his 2020 defeat. This provides unwelcome distraction for President Biden, portrayed as a thoughtful, compassionate lifetime politico who could not outrace time, as demonstrated in the June 2024 debate. Throughout, Trump’s prevarications and his supporters’ cynicism provide an unsettling counterpoint to warnings provided by everyone from former Joint Chief of Staff Mark Milley to Vice President Kamala Harris, who calls a second Trump term a likely “death knell for American democracy.” The author’s ambitious scope shows him at the top of his capabilities. He concludes with these unsettling words: “Based on my reporting, Trump’s language and conduct has at times presented risks to national security—both during his presidency and afterward.”
An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2024
ISBN: 9781668052273
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2024
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