Ten years ago, when Hentoff wrote Our Children Are Dying, he introduced Dr. Elliott Shapiro, a Harlem principal of exceptional decency and intelligence who nimbly circumvented the inanities of the New York City school system and welcomed the community into P.S. 119. Hentoff, a staunch public school advocate, continues to search out schools concerned with "the life of the child" and to report on individuals who manage, despite budget cutbacks and bureaucratic folly, to educate children in meaningful ways. Those featured include one teacher, two principals, a parent activist, ex-Chancellor Scribner, and Shapiro himself, now a graduate school professor. Observed and interviewed separately, they share certain crucial beliefs: the educability of all children and the need for parent involvement and professional accountability. Hentoff is a cautious reporter, no longer impressed by labels—too often "open-classroom" has meant "benign intellectual neglect"; he's interested in "replicable" set-ups, even traditional ones, that give children both skills and satisfaction, and accordingly he finds adult expectations more significant than teaching style. Preceding these accounts of particular schools is a chapter on corporal punishment, a practice upheld by the Supreme Court in 1975, which now faces—at long last—increasingly organized opposition around the country. Articulate, selective reporting.
Pub Date: March 1, 1977
ISBN: 0394409337
Page Count: 264
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: April 3, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1977
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...
Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.
The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.Pub Date: July 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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