Blue Blood by Edward Conlon, Reviewed by Jerry Morris

An exceptional book about a "man in blue" in the Bronx.  Blue Blood was written and published before Blue Bloods appeared on television.  And although there are some similarities, the book and the tv show are two separate entities.  Most of the book was an enjoyable and enlightening read. I say "most" because the author didn't spare the pen in complaining about a certain unnamed few of his superiors.  But then again, the book is fact and not fiction.

One Righteous Man: Samuel Battle and the Shattering of the Color Line in New York By Arthur Browne Reviewed by Jerry Morris

Langston Hughes wrote Samuel Battle's biography, Battle of Harlem, more than fifty years ago.  It was about the life of the first black policeman in New York City.  But no one wanted to publish it.  So Battle had another friend revise the manuscript, and Eleanor Roosevelt wrote the Forward.  Still, no one wanted to publish it.

Now, Arthur Browne, who has probably written more about New York and prominent New Yorkers than anyone else, has gotten Beacon Press to publish his book on Samuel Battle.  Arthur Browne has taken the revised manuscript, interviewed Battle's surviving friends and relatives, researched more, even changed the title, and presented his book on Samuel Battle, not in color, but in black and white—and sometimes black versus white.  Because when you pull the shade up and look out the window on race relations in America, it's not a pretty picture.  I am, of course, referring to Black and White America as it was from the early 1900s to the 1950s.  Or am I?  There will be those who will adamantly refuse to read this book, yet will still sing God Bless America.  Are you one of them?

The Groaning Shelf And Other Instances of Book Love by Pradeep Sebastian Reviewed by Jerry Morris

Most American bibliophiles have missed the boat on reading The Groaning Shelf;  it was published by Hachette in India in 2010.   I recently traded duplicate copies of two books in my library for a copy inscribed to me by the author himself. And I'm glad I did!
   Pradeep Sebastian, author of Endpaper,  a column about books which appears in The Hindu, wrote The Groaning Shelf primarily for the bibliophile in India.  But bibliophily has an international flavor, as evidenced by the titles used in this book:  The Pleasures of Bibliophily,  The Browser's Ecstasy, Editions, A Gentle Madness, The Book Eaters, Writers, Ruined by Reading, Loved and Lost, and Bookstores—and those are just the titles of the sections!  Here are some of the titles of the 53 essays: Shelf Life, The Bookman, The Mystique of First Editions, For the Cover Alone, True Tales of Bibliomania, Marginalia (& Other Literary Curiosities), The Book Borrower, A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Library,  A Genius for Suspense, Reading in Bed, Lost Books, At the Museum of Books, The Ultimate Bookshop, and The Book in the Movie (extra kudos for the last one). Pradeep closes his book with an afterword about attending the New York Antiquarian Book Fair in 2010 and meeting Rebecca Rego Barry, editor of Fine Books & Collections, and Nicholas Basbanes, "the collector of collectors," at the book signing table.  In his inscription, Mr. Basbanes referred to Pradeep as "his colleague in India, and a fellow chronicler of the gentle madness."
  A small  number of copies of The Groaning Shelf are available online.  Several booksellers in the UK list Mr. Sebastian's book for $6 plus shipping.  Amazon has two copies listed for $255 each (not a misprint).  And Alibris currently has a copy listed for a whopping $435.90 plus shipping.  Hachette has an ebook version, which is available via Barnes and Noble's Book Nook for $12.99.
   In this bibliomaniac's opinion, Hachette would do well to have one of its American book publishing groups publish a hard copy of The Groaning Shelf —expressly for those American bibliophiles who prefer "book in hand."

Whistle Stop: How 31,00 Miles of Train Travel, 352 Speeches, And a Little Midwest Gumption Saved the Presidency of Harry Truman by Philip White Reviewed by Jerry Morris

   This book should be required reading for all those who failed to vote in the last election.  All told, over sixty-three percent of eligible voters never showed up at the polls last November—the worst voter turnout since World War II.
   Only thirty-seven percent of the voting population voted in the 1946 midterm election.  And the Republicans took control of both houses, stopped the New Deal in its tracks, and overrode Truman's veto no less than six times.  Moreover, all of the polsters predicted a Republican takeover of the White House in the 1948 election.  But President Truman had something to say about that, and say it he did, with the help of his newly-organized research team.
   President Truman didn't tell the people what they wanted to hear—he told them what they needed to hear—What the Do-Nothing Congress was doing for the rich and not doing for the people.  Day in and day out, Truman's research term provided him with the facts and the "local inside information" that directly affected the people he met and talked to on his whistle stops.  And the people listened.  And they showed up at the polls.  Fifty-three percent of the voting population voted in the 1948 election.  President Truman was re-elected.  And the Democrats took control of both houses.
   It remains to be seen what our Republican Congress does and doesn't do for the American people in the next two years.  And how many times, if any, they can override President Obama's veto.  They must, however, keep in mind that the handwriting is on the wall, so to speak: in Philip White's new book.
   Do nothing and Hillary will be in the White House.  And the Democrats will take control of both houses—provided they learn to tell the people what they need to hear.
   And if the people listen.
 

The Court-Martial of Paul Revere

Every American probably knows about the midnight ride of Paul Revere.  But how many Americans know about Paul Revere's actions – or rather, his inaction – during the Penobscot Expedition? I didn't.  And Michael M. Greenburg's book changed my opinion of Paul Revere.

Paul Revere was many things:  a patriot, a silversmith, an engraver, and a dentist.  But what he was not was a good soldier.  Several officers, including Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's grandfather, General Peleg Wadsworth, sought to bring charges up against Paul Revere, the most damning being Revere's refusal to obey orders during the Penobscot Fiasco.

I won't tell you about the Penobscot Expedition, what led to Paul Revere's court-martial, or how the court-martial ends.   Mr. Greenburg does an excellent job of detailing all of that. You'll just have to read his book to find out.

Johnny Evers A Baseball Life by Dennis Snelling. Reviewed by Jerry Morris

Read this book and you will get to know the man in the middle of the most famous double play combination in baseball history: Tinker to Evers to Chance.

Begin reading about a boy from Troy who became the man who can: the man who helped his teams win the World Series, not once, not twice, but three times.  And twice it was the Chicago Cubs who won the World Series.  And hell did not freeze over.

One of the best baseball books I've read this century!

A Second Book of Booksellers: Conversations with the Antiquarian Book Trade by Sheila Markham. Reviewed by Jerry Morris

I don't claim to be a connoisseur of books about books. But I am a collector of them, having over 1000 books about books in my library. And I enjoy reading and writing about them in my blogs. I also love recommending the very good ones. And Sheila Markham's book, A Second Book of Booksellers:  Conversations with the Antiquarian Book Trade, is second to none.

 If the title sounds familiar, it's because A Second Book of Booksellers is a sequel  to Sheila Markham's first book, A Book of Booksellers:  Conversations with the Antiquarian Book Trade,  first published in 2004 and reprinted in 2007.

The first book contains interviews of 50 booksellers conducted between 1991 and 2003.  These interviews first appeared in the Bookdealer.  Barry Shaw, the editor of the Bookdealer, wrote the Foreword to the first book.  The second book contains interviews of 31 booksellers conducted between 2007 and 2013.  The last ten interviews appeared in the Book Collector.  And Nicolas Barker, the editor of the Book Collector, wrote the Introduction to the second book.

Most of the booksellers interviewed in the two books are English, with two Americans and at least one Canadian also interviewed.   One of the English booksellers interviewed in the first book started his career with a book stall in the Portobello Road Market and ended up on Bond Street.   Another bookseller found Winston Churchill's manuscript notes for his World War II books on Portobello Road, yet kept his own military books in the basement of his bookstore with the rats.  One bookseller in the second book spent twenty years amassing the greatest Charles Darwin Collection ever.  Another bookseller was blind.  But that did not prevent him from buying and selling books — I love the title of that interview: "A Feeling for Books."  What I found most fascinating about all the interviews is that I learned first hand, from the horse's mouth,  so to speak, what effect the internet has had on the book trade in the last twenty years.  I like the viewpoint of one bookseller who said, "I cannot imagine a time when one of my clients will start to tremble and perspire holding in his hands a first electronic version of Don Quijote de la Mancha.  Rare and beautiful books will disappear only if beauty itself disappears from our existence."

Now I enjoyed reading both books.   And I recommend you buy both of them.  But don't just take my word for it.  Go to her website, Sheila-Markham.com, and click on "The Interviews."  While there, you can read over forty interviews online that were not printed in her two books.  By then, you will want to read more.  But I would not wait too long. . . .

A Second Book of Booksellers  is available from either Amazon.co.uk or from Sheila Markham's website. And Sheila says PayPal is fine!

Are Libraries Obsolete? An Argument For Relevance in the Digital Age

Are Libraries Obsolete?  An Argument for Relevance in the Digital Age
by Mark Y. Herring
Reviewed by Jerry Morris

Terrific title. Terrible format.

By the title alone, I thought this book would serve as a wake-up call for librarians, educators, and leaders of our country to save our libraries. But I had a hard time staying awake while reading the first 122 pages.

In 2001, the author wrote a piece titled, "10 Reasons Why the Internet Is No Substitute For a Library." And he spends the first 122 pages of this book "ferreting out" whether what he said in 2001 is still true. Who cares what he said about libraries in the past? Readers want to know what he says about the future of libraries.

The very last chapter of this book, Chapter 14, beginning on page 187, is titled, "Are Libraries Obsolete After All? Two Scenarios." In this chapter, the author looks into the future, and shows us two worlds: one where libraries are obsolete, and librarians are as extinct as dinosaurs; and another where libraries are still around, and librarians find ways to use the information highway as a tool to provide knowledge for their students and customers. 

The very last chapter of this book, Chapter 14, should have been the first chapter of the book.  And I recommend readers begin reading this book on page 187, "Are Libraries Obsolete After All?  Two Scenarios." Only then can the rest of the book make sense. If one chooses to begin reading on page 1, I fear the reader will find the first 122 pages to be "too much information." But if one chooses to begin reading on page 187, the reader will find the first 122 pages to be "well-found knowledge."

A Most Heavenly Review?

Things have gone to hell in a hand basket up here. And She is pissed. New York Yankee fans are fighting amongst each other over that darn book, The 50 Greatest Players in New York Yankees History.

It all started out peacefully with Yankee fans  preaching about glowing deeds Yankee players from their respective generations accomplished. But then it turned to nasty words –– words we don't usually hear up here –– about the has-beens and upstarts with undeserved better rankings than the players of their own generations. To top it off, some of the Yankee fans managed to get their favorite players riled up. And that made the angels nervous because they had seen what pride hath wrought up here before.

I tell you, She is threatening to send the whole bunch to Purgatory, fans and players alike. And as for that all-knowing author, Robert H. Cohen –– God rest his soul –– I hope he knows there will be a proverbial lightning bolt heading his way in the near future.

All was well when an early review copy of that darn book somehow made its way up here. Yankee fans from all generations had no qualms at all with Cohen's first four picks: Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, and Mickey Mantle. There were a number of rumblings concerning the placement of the next five: Yogi Berra, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Bill Dickey, and Whitey Ford. But a great multitude of Yankee fans went through our holy roof when it was announced that Cohen selected Don Mattingly as the tenth greatest player in New York Yankees history.

Thank God for no-nonsense gun laws up here, or we would have had a bloody war on our holy hands. No-nonsense gun laws? Simple. It means "no guns, period"(.)

The bickering over Mattingly got so bad that She commanded me to mediate the mess. I chose two of the most vociferous Yankee fans: one from Generation X, and the other from Generation Y. I set up two pulpits. And then I said, "Let the debate begin."

Says the Generation X Fan:

Don Mattingly? Really? Bull Donkey...

(Note from me:  Much stronger words were used, but we don't record such words up here).

How many home runs did he hit in a World Series game? None. Umm... how many World Series games did he play in? None. Yes, he is "number ten," all right.

Rebuts Generation Y Fan:

Why? Why did Cohen select Don Mattingly? Because Mattingly is the greatest player in New York Yankees history who never played in a World Series! Moreover, Mattingly holds the Major-League record for most home runs over an eight-game stretch –– ten of them he hit!

Retorts Generation X Fan:

Ten home runs? Wow! Roger Maris hit 61 home runs and where is he on Cohen's list? Number 22. Number 22? Are you kidding me?

(Note from me: "Kidding" is not the precise word Generation X Fan used, but it does end in "ing.").

Are you sure you're not related to Mattingly? Maybe Cohen is related to Mattingly?

At this point in the debate, Generation X Fan asks me to check the Book of Deeds online to see if either Cohen or Generation Y Fan is related to Mattingly. I have the results in two seconds: "Neither Cohen or Generation Y Fan is related to Mattingy," I reply.

Says Generation X Fan:

I am troubled with Cohen's interpretation of what really went on in 1961. That's not how I remember it. And I lived it. If I may, Pete, can I read a portion from Cohen's book which really disturbs me?

I nod my head. The multitude of Yankee fans grows noisier. Could this matter be the proverbial nail on the head?

Generation X Fan reads from pages 115 and 116 of Cohen's book:

...The feelings of the fans toward Mantle and Maris gradually intensified the following year, as the two sluggers drew closer and closer to Babe Ruth's single-season home run record. Since the mark was held by a Yankee, New York fans felt that Mantle should be the one to break it. Furthermore, many people believed that Maris's .269 batting average made him unworthy of eclipsing the great Ruth's long-standing record. The fans subsequently cast Maris as an outsider and a usurper, and nothing he might have done from that point on would have been good enough to please them.
Displaying their indifference toward Maris, fewer than 15,000 fans showed up at Yankee Stadium on the season's final day to see the slugger establish a single-season record....

Generation X Fan clears his throat and continues:

I was fourteen years old that year. Injury-wearied Mantle was the favorite, and he valiantly tried to keep pace with Maris, but he eventually ended up in the hospital in September. I kept track of their home run race by attending games, watching games on TV, listening to games on the radio, and reading about the home run race in the newspapers. Maris gradually developed a toxic relationship with the press, but the majority of the fans still respected him. And in late September, Maris was our only hope. We were still rooting for him to break Ruth's record. Speaking of rooting for him, I was at that game. I saw Roger Maris break Babe Ruth's record. I tell you, it felt like there were more than 15,000 fans in the stands. Could you please check on that Pete?

I check and respond:

Roger Maris yesterday became the first major league player in history to hit more than 60 home runs in a season.
The 27-year-old Yankee outfielder hit his sixty-first at the stadium before a roaring crowd of 23,154 in the Bombers' final game of the regular campaign.

Generation X Fan smiles and says, "I'm glad The Book of Deeds has got it right."

To which I reply:

Actually, that's from the front page of The New York Times, the Oct. 2, 1961 issue. As for the fans cheering, films captured of that momentous moment show fans giving Maris a standing ovation.

At this point in the debate, with the record set straight, God had seen and heard enough. In two nanoseconds flat, She implanted the thought in the brains of Yankee fans and players alike that all Yankee players were equal to each other in Her eyes. And those were the only eyes that counted up here.

As for Cohen, God relented. She cancelled the lightning strike. She figured he would get enough static from the Yankee fans still on earth. God knows who the greatest players in New York Yankees history are!

A Former Owner's Review of the Poems and Plays of Robert Browning

What makes us buy certain books?

Usually, it's because we want to read it, and want a copy of it in our library.

In a local thrift store, for fifty cents, I bought the book displayed below, solely because of the review written on the ffep by a former owner, possibly, Osborne Griggs, Beta House, Beloit College, Wisconsin. Mr. Griggs was on the college's football team and graduated in 1936.

The book itself is in sad shape. The cloth on the spine is gone, and I want to wash my hands every time I touch what  is left of the book.

But I just had to have this book because of the former owner's review: