In August of 1968 Michener was asked to become a Presidential elector in his home state of Pennsylvania by the Democratic Chairman of his County. A loyal Democrat, he accepted. 'As the campaign wore on it became a real possibility that the election would prove inconclusive and that Wallace would be able to engineer a deal in the Electoral College whereby either Nixon or Humphrey would have been in his debt if the election were not to be sent to the House of Representatives. To prevent this, Michener and some other Democrats he knew were willing to vote Republican in the Electoral College. He relates this strategem to dramatize the utterly irrational processes of the Electoral College and the very real dangers he fears the country faces if the present system of electing the President is not abolished. He discusses the developments of the Electoral College and he analyzes the proposals set forth to change it. He is in favor of The Automatic Plan which is essentially what we have now minus the College though he would support, as a second choice, the direct popular vote. He thinks it is possible to accomplish the necessary changes before 1972 and his book is an urgent appeal to do so.
Pub Date: April 18, 1964
ISBN: 043627955X
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Sept. 30, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1969
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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