How To Create Your Own Super Second Life; What Are You Going To Do With Your Extra 30 Years?

Average customer rating:

long on enthusiasm, short on explanation

Living LongerýLiving Better

The Road to Self-Discovery

Full of practical steps and suggestions...

Easy to Use, Thought-Provoking, Very Enjoyable

How To Create Your Own Super Second Life; What Are You Going To Do With Your Extra 30 Years?
Gordon Burgett
Manufacturer: Communication Unlimited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Retirement Planning | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0910167605

Book Description

You're going to live 30 years longer than your kin in 1900. How are you going to squeeze every last minute from that temporal windfall? How can you convert those "free" days into a joyous, purposeful, exciting "Super Second Life?"

Alas, that bonanza of extra life can be a bane if you don't plan ahead!

Most Americans have a vague sense that they should set aside some surplus cash now so they will be more comfortable later. And they know that puffing three packs a day or years of rampant inactivity rewarded with half gallons of Rocky Road before bed hint of a lesser bonanza.

But forgotten entirely is any positive, creative life plan that allows them to define their own "second life" dreams, then determine how and when they will make those dreams come true.

Gordon Burgett's How to Create Your Own Super Second Life: What Are You Going to Do With Your Extra 30 Years? to the rescue! In 240 fun-packed pages, the author helps the reader create their own future life map. His straightforward guide for singles (or couples) helps them (1) review where they are now: skills, money, and health; (2) create a "Dream List," (3) prioritize and time-peg those dreams, (4) put them into doable action steps, (5) factor in the resources they have to fund them, and (6) put their resulting Action Plan into motion!

The book is primarily designed to be used by those in the 40-60 age bracket, but is also an excellent life planning guide for either anybody younger saving for their future or for seniors at any age. Its 28 forms, charts, and worksheets make the planning easy and fun. And the website backup keeps the guide current and the information growing forever.

Gordon Burgett, at 61, is already into his "second life." With 18 books and 1,600+ articles in print, is he ready for the rocking chair? "Heavens no!" he retorts. "You can see my plans in the book. I'm just getting my second wind..." During his first wind, Burgett was an university dean, taught widely, directed a CARE program in Colombia and Ecuador, played minor league baseball, led a gold hunt on the Paushi-Yaco (Upper Amazon) River, and has spoken 100+ times annually for the past 15 years.

Customer Reviews:

long on enthusiasm, short on explanation.......2002-08-13

I became uncomfortable within the first 20 pages or so, mainly because he seemed to repeatedly say how great life was going to be without sex from now on (a sensitive subject for most of us mid-lifers, I think), but he failed to reassure me as to why. He just made some references about younger people being driven to reproduce, and that was not an issue for us now, and isn't that great. He then launched into a series of lists as part of an action plan for the future, but I still didn't feel "on board" with his point of view yet, and got frustrated very quickly. His book seems aimed at those who are willing to ride the wave of his enthusiasm without much questioning, and to jump right into planning and action. I found some of his writing to be composed of mixed metaphors and unclear paragraphs, which added to my feeling that this book had not been as well thought out as it could have been.

I'd noticed he made several references to Barbara Sher's "It's Only Too Late If You Don't Start Now." I decided to buy her book as well, and am getting much more out of it than this one. I find that Ms. Sher's book anticipates and thoroughly answers all of my questions and concerns about issues of age perception, biologically-based behavior at different life stages, sex, self worth and affirming one's unique gifts, and I'm only half way through.

2 days after receiving Ms. Sher's book, I threw this one away. If you want to understand what's happening at this time of your life, and come to feel really good about where you've been and where you're going, I recommend "It's Only Too Late If You Don't Start Now."

Living LongerýLiving Better.......2000-12-21

Retiring only lets you stop what you are doing; retiring is being unemployed. Turning 65 is not the goal; it is an opportunity to do what you have always wanted to do. Reminding us that people are living far longer than they used to, Burgett helps us plan for the future.

Utilizing lists, forms and worksheets, Burgett helps us assess our assets and liabilities. He asks us to take stock of our money, skills, things, health and friends. He shows us how to design a future to fit our individualized situation. Then he describes how to implement the plan. Now if he could just guarantee me another 30 years. . . :)

Gordon Burgett is the author of 18 books and more than 1,600 magazine articles. Through his writing and speaking, he has spent (the first half of) a lifetime helping others.

As a publisher, author of 113 books (including revisions and foreign-language editions) and over 500 magazine articles with some 40 years in the business, I find this guide to be just what I need at this time in my life. DanPoynter@ParaPublishing.com.

The Road to Self-Discovery.......2000-01-14

Would you like to reinvent yourself but don't know where to begin?

Now there's a workbook to help you figure out what you really want in the rest of your life and how to make it happen.

"How to Create Your Own Super Second Life: What Are You Going to Do With Your Extra 30 Years?" is designed to give readers tools to identify their dreams and figure out how to turn them into reality.

Author Gordon Burgett, a California freelance writer, derives the book's subtitle from statistics. Average life expectancy, which was 48 years in 1900, now is 78.

In Burgett's perception, people at midlife now tend to latch on to one of three views of where to go from here:

(1) No view at all; let fate be the guide.

(2) A quest to prolong youth, which could work for a while.

(3) A vision of self in the driver's seat on a road headed for adventure.

The author makes a good case for the latter, then assists the reader in assessing what he or she has today. The next step is deciding what to take on the next journey and what to leave behind.

Answering this question is designed to jump-start the planning process: "If you had all the money, time and energy you needed and were free from outside constraints, what would you do in your extra 30 years?

The book then walks readers through such steps as compiling a dream list, putting dreams to a commitment test and sorting them by priority and time frame. Couples are urged to figure out what dreams they do and don't have in common and how to proceed from there. Twenty-eight work sheets and forms provide a detailed structure for the process. The last two steps are factoring in financial resources and creating an action plan.

The book also lists 200 activities (they include classes, volunteer work and creative pursuits) to consider when planning a second life.

"You're going to live the extra years anyway," Burgett says. "Why not fill them with joy, fun and purpose?"

Alas, he maintains, it won't just happen on its own.

Full of practical steps and suggestions..........1999-12-28

I first met Gordon Burgett when he was an administrator in the Cal State University system when he was extricating himself from the bureacracy. He was about 40, a husband and father, and determined to changes careers. I thought he was truly brave, ready to turn his back on a comfortable salary and a great retirement program to lecture and publish on his own.

He made his move. It was scary to behold, but stimulating, too. Burgett's inspiration later prompted me to start my own new career as a successful writer.

How to Create Your Own Super Second Life is Gordon Burgett. Follow this manual--packed with practical steps and suggestions--into the most satisfying time of your life, the precious years after "retirement."ÿ

Easy to Use, Thought-Provoking, Very Enjoyable.......1999-12-22

I saw myself in How to Create Your Own Super Second Life so clearly. I am in the Second Tier: 55+, and I am dealing with many of the issues you discuss. I enjoyed the quotes scattered throughout the book and your irreverent sense of humor in describing some of the facts and fiction about aging.

I found the exercises very useful. The super second life dream list was particularly poignant for me as I realized how long I have let my dreams stay inside without being realized. I am just now, at 57, starting to let go of the "shoulds" and am looking at the "wants" that I have put on the shelf for another time.

I also found the Money Worksheet very helpful in focusing in on how much I have and what I need to retire. I realized I had more than I thought, and that the things I would like to do in retirement do not cost that much.

Too sum it up, I found the book thought-provoking, easy-to-read, and a very good primer in giving myself permission to have a super second life, with the tools to make that happen. The personal, conversational tone of the book made it very enjoyable to read.

Book Description

In The Lincoln Enigma, Gabor Boritt invites renowned Lincoln scholars, and rising new voices, to take a look at much-debated aspects of Lincoln's life--including his possible gay relationships, his plan to send blacks back to Africa, and his high-handed treatment of the Constitution. Boritt explores Lincoln's proposals that looked to a lily-white America. Jean Baker marvels at Lincoln's loves and marriage. David Herbert Donald compares Lincoln and Jefferson Davis as Commanders-in-Chief. Douglas Wilson shows us the young Lincoln--not the strong leader of popular history, but a man who struggles to find his purpose. Gerald Prokopowicz searches for the military leader, William C. Harris for the peacemaker, and Robert Bruce meditates on Lincoln and death. In a final section Boritt and Harold Holzer offer a fascinating portfolio of Lincoln images in modern art. Acute and thought-provoking in their observations, this all-star cast of historians--including two Pulitzer and three Lincoln Prize winners--questions our assumptions of Lincoln, and provides a new vitality to our ongoing reflections on his life and legacy.

Customer Reviews:

Explore the Lincoln behind the image; but all too short.......2007-02-05

What were Lincoln's views on death, afterlife and religion? Did he really have a loveless marriage? Would things have been different if he and Jeff Davis had swapped places?

Speculative thought, and some answers, are to be found in this new volume, along with a wealth of perspective of Lincoln in artwork.

The reason I only four-starred this book is that the body copy of text, before the artwork appendices, is only about 160 pages. This book could have used at least 50, if not 100, pages of additional meat on his bones.

AND, this is LINCOLN! It's not like that would have been that hard to do.

to the guy below me..........2003-12-14

Reread your history, hun. Or at least try thinking about it from a different angle.

Great book, by the way.

Why should China not reduce Formosa to rubble........2001-06-13

The US is so protective of Formosa. Why should China not use the Lincoln example. The solution to an area wanting to secede is to reduce it to rubble cause the death of one million people, civilian and military, declare total war on both the military and civilian population. Once conquered, the cause of the war is to say that Formosa cannot be independent, is that Formosa is no longer a part of China. Install military dictators, take away the vote of most of the citizens and dictate that they must approve certain amendments to the constitution, even though they are not a part of China, before they can re-enter the union. During the conflict shred the constitution, lock up millions without benefit of trial, and close any news outlet that does not agree with the destruction of Formosa. Once the destruction of Formosa is over most certainly the victors write the history and within 100 years or less the current president of China will be considered one of the greatest presidents of China. So it takes Formosa 80 years to recover we will always know how evil they were for wanting to attain self determination.

Most certainly the Founders of this Republic seceeded from the British Empire. What was the diference?

Belonging to the Ages ..........2001-06-06

"Look at me and I'll tell you without blinkin' this southerner prefers Abraham Lincoln"

goes a rap at the start of this book, and it is aimed at those of like mind, southerner or not.

A warning - half the book consists of illustrations of Lincolniana so that this is one for the specialist. The Lincoln- seeker should read David Donald's excellent biography before opening this book.

That said, does this book tell us anything new about Lincoln? The answer is yes, without being final or definitive. I liked particularly the article on Lincoln and the Constitution, showing that he was not the 'dictator' of Copperhead legend, nor the conscious revolutionary of Garry Wills' 'Lincoln at Gettysburg'. However, did his actions not have revolutionary results?

The article on the Lincoln marriage I felt a bit limited, but also a good corrective to the image of Lincoln the hen-pecked husband trapped in a loveless union. 'Mary, Mary, we are elected!" he cried to his wife on arriving home that great day, showing the essential nature of the partnership between them. However, this essay does not use Mariah Vance's remininscences, though written very much later that the 1850s, which show Mary Todd Lincoln as addicted to paregoric (which contained opium) and subject to alternating fits of drugged lassitiude, and withdrawal-induced sickness. However, even the Vance memoirs (she was the Lincoln's servant) are not entirely negative on Mary Lincoln.

Other essays cover the Lincoln youth, his fascination with death, his status as war leader and finally his image in American art. The enigma is somewhat clarified but somehow the enigma, and the continuing fascination, remains.

First President appear on a Coin............2001-04-19

Attractively produced compilation with highest scholarship.... Boritt directs Lincoln studies at Center,(civil War) Gettysburg site. Has more than 60 pages illustrating portraiture of Lincoln, diverse forms. Mt.Rushmore,& tourist type statues- in NY, Abe greets girl who suggested he grow a beard. An 'abandoned' forlorn 62' statue stands at a closed campground,Charleston,IL. Best source for,trivia/folklore. More of same,short paperback,Gordon Leidner's collection,2001.

The Lincoln Enigma: The Changing Faces of an American Icon

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The Lincoln Enigma: The Changing Faces of an American Icon
Boritt
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OKRCIE

Book Description

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Salisbury spent six decades reporting in Russia, Asia, and the US. Hardened by years in the newspaper trenches, he writes about 25 unforgettable people who inspired his admiration--Robert Kennedy, Malcolm X, Nikita Krushchev, Roger Wilkins, Patricia King, and other lesser known heroes.

Customer Reviews:

Crisp & Readable look at heroes.......2006-03-07

Journalist Harrison Salisbury describes 25 people of courage whom he greatly admired. The book's revealing vignettes cover people from his native USA, plus China and Russia (Salisbury spent years in these countries), and they range from world statesmen to little known individuals. Deng Pufang devoted his life to helping the disabled after being left paralyzed during the excesses of the Cultural Revolution, while Soong Chingling took great risks to shelter "undesirables" during that same horrific event. Liu Binyan wrote prose that inspired many during his 22 years in Maoist prisons, while Solzhenitsyn angered the Kremlin with his writings about Soviet gulags. Among Americans honored are Bobby Kennedy, journalist Homer Bigart for risking his life at the front, and Roger Wilkins for overcoming a difficult youth and taking risks for civil rights. I question his choice of Nikita Khrushchev (for denouncing Stalin) and of Zhou En Lai (for moderating Mao's cruel excesses), and others may wonder why he neglected figures like Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, Gandhi, Martin Luther King, etc. Still, Salisbury has chosen many authentically heroic figures, describing their contributions in crisply readable detail.

Harrison Salisbury (1908-1993) was one of the top journalists of the 20th Century, winner of the 1955 Pulitzer Prize, and the author of more than 30 books on Russia, China, and the USA. This, his final book, appeared shortly after he passed away in 1993.

Unforgetable Heroes.......2002-01-04

The book Heroes Of My Time is an outstanding book containing twenty short biographies of people from the 20th century. The author of the book, Harrison E. Salsbury is a Pulitzer-Prize wining journalist who spent six decades writing for the New York Times. These people are all heroes for different reasons. Some people gave inspiration to others while some were leaders and still others risked their lives for strangers. We do not live in an age of heroes but the people written about in this book are unmistakable heroes. The stories of these heroes are unknown, uplifting, and inspirational.
The heroes in this book are not always the top newsmakers of the day. Some are men and women who are just as important but seldom recognized in the public eye. An example is three Russian street poets known as The Three who wrote very good poems about Russian politics. The political leaders of the day did not like the poems, but The Three continued to write and recite poems anyway. They are heroes because, even though they were being scorned and yelled at by the Russian leaders, they continued with their poetry and gave inspiration to many people. Brigid Temple Keogh is an example of another obscure hero. Brigid was a teacher in China, but she wasn't like her other Chinese colleagues. "She encouraged her students to argue with her (unthinkable for the solemn Chinese scholars)" (5). She was fired but she didn't give up and eventually found a new job at Yanan University. Yanan University was a run-down school at the end of a road. With houses were merely grim caves carved out of hills. Brigid did not lose her faith, though. This shows heroism because she worked hard after her life got tougher, and she helped lots of people by building new things for their town like a Language center. All of these people were relatively unknown and all obviously heroes.
The stories of these men and women are uplifting. Deng Pufang's story was particularly uplifting. Deng Pufang devoted his life to helping the disabled in China after he was tortured and then thrown out of a four story university window and left for dead. His fall left him paralyzed from the waist down. This shows extreme heroism because he could have spent the rest of his life feeling sorry for himself over all of the tragic things that happened to him but he didn't. Instead, he worked hard and got rights for the Chinese disabled, including equal rights in the work force and education. One other hero from the book whose story is uplifting is the story of Homer Bigart. Homer was one of the best newsmen of his day. What makes his story so special is he spent the majority of his life at war, constantly risking his life to let the rest of the world know what was happening. A lot of times, Homer took no more shelter or food then the troops. Homer showed his heroism by laying his life on the line for other people and not thinking of himself as above other people because he lived under same conditions as the soldiers. Both of these men's stories are examples of a heroes story being uplifting.
A third trait the heroes have in common is that they are all inspirational. Roger Wilkins is an example of a role model. Roger was a leader for the blacks during the Civil Rights movement. Roger was almost killed twice, but he kept fighting even though his life was always in danger. Roger Wilking is a hero for two reasons. The first is that he kept working even though he was constantly being threatened to stop. He is also a hero and a role model because, as a kid, he had a very tough childhood he grew up in a poor black town, and both his parents had expensive drug habits. Roger overcame this, however, and grew up to become a leader and help thousands of people. A second example of these heroes as role models is Soong Chingling. She housed run away communists during the Cultural Revolution of China. She is considered a hero because she put her life in danger every time she took in another communist but she housed them anyway. As you can see, in both the stories of Soong Chingling and Roger Wilkins the hero is inspirational.
In conclusion, the people portrayed in the book Heroes Of My Time are often unknown, uplifting, and are inspirational. All of these people are undoubtedly heroes. These are only some of the people addressed in the book there are many others whose stories are just as inspirational. The book is an outstanding piece of literature. It's very uplifting but you can also learn something about the worlds history from it.

Unforgetable Heroes.......2002-01-04

Cricketers of My Time: Heroes to Remember

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Cricketers of My Time: Heroes to Remember
E.W. Swanton
Manufacturer: Carlton/Andre Deutsch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

History of Sports | Miscellaneous | Sports | Subjects | Books

Cricket | Other Team Sports | Sports | Subjects | Books

General | Sports | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0233997466

Book Description

With such a wealth of material spanning the best years of British and international cricket, this book will be a tribute to not only those many fine cricketers celebrated in the text, but also to one of Britain's finest sports journalists.

My Travel Time Storybooks: Awesome Bible Heroes (Travel Time)

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My Travel Time Storybooks: Awesome Bible Heroes (Travel Time)

Manufacturer: Thomas Nelson
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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My Travel Time Storybooks: Awesome Bible Kids (Travel Time)

ASIN: 1400304458
Release Date: 2004-06-17

Book Description

A 48-page picture book and CD in one, Awesome Bible Heroes will go anywhere you go. This collection of stories, starring brave Bible heroes, will keep little ones -- and not-so-little ones -- listening and singing along for hours. Kids will be amazed as Moses parts the Red Sea, Joshua fights the battle of Jericho, Jesus performs miracle after miracle, and many other fantastic feats are performed by Bible heroes. Small enough to fit in your CD holder but large enough to entertain for hours, these stories are accompanied by songs performed by professional children singers and produced by Steven Elkins of Wonder Workshop.

The Daily Telegrapth Cricketers of My Time, Heroes to Remember

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The Daily Telegrapth Cricketers of My Time, Heroes to Remember
E W Swanton
Manufacturer: Andre Deutsch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OQBL80

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Nonprofit Lifecycles: Stage-Based Wisdom for Nonprofit Capacity
Susan Stevens, Ph.D. Kenny , and Susan Kenny Stevens
Manufacturer: Stagewise Enterprises Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Organizational Behavior | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Nonprofit Organizations & Charities | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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Nonprofit Boards That Work: The End of One-Size-Fits-All Governance

The Five Life Stages of Nonprofit Organizations: Where You Are, Where You're Going, and What to Expect When You Get There

Sustaining Nonprofit Performance: The Case for Capacity Building and the Evidence to Support It

Strategic Planning Workbook for Nonprofit Organizations, Revised and Updated

Strategic Planning for Nonprofit Organizations, Second Edition

ASIN: 0971730504

Book Description

Winner of the 2002 Terry McAdam Book Award for best new nonprofit book release in the past year.

NONPROFIT LIFECYCLES: Stage-based Wisdom for Nonprofit Capacity weighs in with a developmental perspective on nonprofit capacity and its relationship to increased organizational performance. Offering practical insights and thought-provoking case illustrations, this book presents seven nonprofit lifecycle stages and the predictable tasks, challenges, and inevitable growing pains that nonprofits encounter and can hope to master on the road to organizational sustainability.

More than ten thousand nonprofit and foundation officers have attended the Growing-Up Nonprofit TM seminars in which Susan Kenny Stevens originally introduced the hands-on wisdom of lifecycle theory. Now, as foundations and nonprofits seek to understand the principles of capacity and capacity-building activities, Stevens again showcases the lifecycle approach she pioneered more than two decades ago.

The lessons contained in Nonprofit Lifecycles are timeless. Learn for yourself the stage-based wisdom from this nationally-recognized expert on nonprofit capacity

Book Description

Selling your home isn't an overwhelming project; it just feels that way. You need a strategy. You need Stephen Pollan's Foolproof Guide to Selling Your Home.

How do you know you can trust your broker? How do you choose a price range? How do you negotiate a contract? And what about repainting, exterminating, sanitizing, and organizing? What do you do when? Stephen Pollan has the answers.

With this simple, streamlined plan, Pollan takes you by the hand and walks you through the whole process, from start to finish. Organized like a workbook, with tips, checklists, warnings, and encouragement to help you along, the Foolproof Guide tells you exactly what to do and what to say at every step, from placing an ad to dosing the deal.

All you have to do is follow Stephen Pollan through these pages. He knows what he's doing. By the time you reach the end of Stephen Pollan's Foolproof Guide to Selling Your Home, you will have sold your house for the best price and the least pain.

Book Description

Here is a fascinating portrait of Hollywood screenwriter Ivan Moffat, whose lonely, aristocratic childhood led to a precociously fashionable and sensual life in London’s High Bohemia in the late 1930s, service in director George Stevens’s World War II film documentary unit, and membership in Hollywood’s dazzling postwar expatriate community.

Moffat’s grandfather, Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree, was one of the most celebrated actors of his day, producing and starring in everything from Richard II to Pygmalion on the London stage and founding the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. His mother, Iris Tree, was a well-known poet-actress-adventuress whose circle included British bluebloods Nancy Cunard and Diana Cooper, and Bloomsburyites Carrington, Lytton Strachey, and Augustus John. Ivan’s photographer father, Curtis Moffat, came from a well-connected New York family, studied with Man Ray, and had an audacious showroom that focused on Moderne furniture and lighting, some of which he designed himself. But Ivan Moffat’s extraordinary pedigree was only the foundation upon which he built his own equally extraordinary and surprisingly active personal life, populated by the leading artists and personalities of his day—from Aldous Huxley and Dylan Thomas to Preston Sturges, Charlie Chaplin, Billy Wilder, and David Selznick.

In 1943 Moffat enlisted in the army and was assigned to Stevens’s unit, started by Eisenhower, which covered the last stage of World War II, from D-day to the fall of Berlin and the liberation of the concentration camps. After the war, Stevens invited Moffat to become an associate producer for his new Hollywood company. Moffat’s unofficial credits on the screenplays for A Place in the Sun and Shane and his co-writing credit on Giant led to a successful screenwriting career, and at the same time he became a leading social figure in Hollywood. Moffat had affairs with many women—from a waitress to a duchess, from a stripper to a movie star. The most serious affair of his life was probably with the
novelist Caroline Blackwood.

At the center of The Ivan Moffat File is the elegantly written autobiography that Moffat was working on at the time of his death in 2002, to which Gavin Lambert adds never-before-seen letters, interviews, and screenplays, as well as many anecdotes and his own memories of Moffat. The result is a re-creation of the life of this unique figure, flamboyant and mysterious.

Customer Reviews:

Admiration and Mystery.......2005-06-21

Moffat called his autobiography ABSOLUTE HEAVEN, from a phrase his parents often used when he, as a child, asked them what they had done the night before, in the glittering London social scene they inhabited. "Went to a party, darling. It was absolute heaven." Moffat wrote his memoirs out by hand in a series of notebooks, and one of them has disappeared, so the book takes an awfully big jump right at an exciting part, and we land down again ten years later. Gavin Lambert, the novelist and biographer, fills in the gaps in his own way. Lambert knew Moffat himself, and also interviewed many of the survivors: people who had known him from all walks of life.

If you have recently read THE OTHER CHEKHOV, the biography of acting coach Michael Chekhov, and you've been curious about Darlington Hall, the experimental British art and drama school at which Chekhov worked, you will find a lot more of it in ABSOLUTE HEAVEN, for Ivan Moffat was a student there, and very close to Beatrice Straight and her family (the patrons of the hall). I found Moffat's late in life passion for Caroline Blackwood very touching, and the realization at the end of his life that he was actually the father of Caroline's daughter Ivana is wonderfully told and imagined. Another fine section details his work with the Hollywood director George Stevens on the US Army filmmaking unit that travelled and filmed everything they could from D-Day to Auschwitz to Stalingrad. Talk about high adventure!

The mystery that remains is the unevenness of Moffat's artistic production. After the war, his work with Stevens on the scripts of GIANT, SHANE, and A PLACE IN THE SUN is exemplary, and Lambert mounts a welcome defense of THEY CAME TO CORDURA and the ill-fated BHOWANI JUNCTION that makes you want to see these pictures once again. And yet, at the end of the day, Moffat remains fairly opaque, as though his life had been led at such a clip there was no time for him really to make any sense out of it, especially in the painted bungalows of Hollywood and the traffic lights of the Sunset Strip. This isn't Gavin Lambert's masterpiece (that would probably be THE GOODBY PEOPLE) but in some ways it feels closer to autobiography than Lambert's own memoir pieces do. He is always a writer worth reading and one of the only living writers whose hand I would like to shake.

Average customer rating:

A exciting adventure

For the most part, doesn't avoid the controversy

Worthy foe for the white man

Interesting,clever,educational,easy to follow

Red Cloud: Warrior-Statesman of the Lakota Sioux (Oklahoma Western Biographies, 13)
Robert W. Larson
Manufacturer: University of Oklahoma Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Native American | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
General | World | History | Subjects | Books
General | United States | Historical | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0806131896

Amazon.com

Opponents of the "Warrior-Statesman of the Lakota Sioux" (as the subtitle dubs him) criticized Red Cloud (1822-1909) as duplicitous. In Robert Larson's sympathetic appraisal, Red Cloud's deliberate deceptiveness was part of a delaying tactic to sustain Lakota culture in an increasingly hostile environment. Eventually concluding that the white invaders could not be stopped, the fierce fighter became a wily negotiator who wrung some concessions from the U.S. government as he presided over his people's transition from nomadism to reservation life. It's a sad story, told with sensitive awareness of history's painful ambiguities.

Customer Reviews:

A exciting adventure.......2002-10-31

The book the Red Cloud is a really good book about the native american period. It talks about the history of one leader, Red Cloud. It talks about his life and his effect on the land and his people. He was a strong and couragous person. He stood up for what he believed in. He was kinda of like the the person in between, that is the person between the government and the tribes. Red Cloud did not favored the separation of people. He believed that we can coexist together. Red Cloud lived a long time for someone back then. This is a good book for educational purposes. It is a great tool for learning about the history of Native Americans. Even though this is an biography, it can still be a great learning experience for all.

For the most part, doesn't avoid the controversy.......2001-05-01

Along with Crazy Horse, Red Cloud is probably one of the best known
Native American leaders, at least by name. He is also probably the
most controversial. Some see him as a statesman and visionary
who,aware that war against the whites had become pointless, negotiated
in the best interests of his people. Others see him as self-serving
and vain, using white insistance on negotiating with "one true
chief" as a means to his own ends.

For the most part, Larson
weighs in on the side of statesman, but he doesn't fail to show the
other side too. He points out how Red Cloud would often make a point
of a small issue, that would benefit only him, at the expense of a
larger issue that affected his people. One example he uses is when,
on a trip to Washington in 1870, Red Cloud became sullen and withdrawn
until he was assured that his delegation would be given 17 horses to
for the trip from the train to the reservation. However, he largely
ignored the bigger and more important issue, of mining for gold in the
Black Hills.

Unfortunately, though, on the most controversial
issue, how much Red Cloud had to do with Crazy Horse's death, or at
least plans for his arrest, Larson is disappointingly vague. He does
acknowlege that Red Cloud was probably jealous of the younger leader.
Indeed, in the last chapter he notes that "...his role in this
tragic affair is probably the blackest mark against his name."
(p.302) Unfortunately, though, Larson doesn't cover the incident in
nearly enough detail. He implies that Crazy Horse truly was planning
to go back on the warpath, rather than fight the Nez Perce as
requested by Lieutenant Clark. He also makes no mention of any possible
misinterpretation of Crazy Horse's words by the less than reputable
interpreter Frank Grouard. Larson may have had good reason for
choosing to leave out some of this material. Certainly his list of
sources shows that the book is well-researched. Unfortunately, the
choice by the publisher, not to use footnotes in this particular
series makes it difficult to determine on what Larson bases his
assumptions.

On the whole, though, the book is well written, and
easy to follow. It is especially valuable for information about Red
Cloud's life before and after the Indian Wars, a period that is not
covered much in any history books. I can definitely recommend this as
a good introduction for those not familiar with the period, or for
those who simply want to know more about the role Red Cloud played in
those important times. However, I would follow it with a good
biography of Crazy Horse.

Worthy foe for the white man.......1999-11-01

Traditionally, stories of Indian leaders view them as temporarily dangerous nuisances the whites had to deal with during the reasonable and inevitable process of moving the Indians onto reservations. This book is part of a new approach of looking at what an Indian leader tried to achieve for his people and assessing how he went about it and how successful he was in meeting his own goals. There is much detail. Larson has been extremely thorough in his researches, and, though we do not really hear Red Cloud's voice, we respecfully watch him do what he had to do to further his people's best interests. He didn't wear a suit or tie or have an Ivy League degree, but Red Cloud functioned very well indeed in opposing an alien force. Anyone who thinks the earth may one day be invaded from outer space should study Red Cloud. Thank you, Oklahoma University Press.

Interesting,clever,educational,easy to follow.......1998-11-28

Red Cloud:Warrioir Statesman of the Lakota Souix is a really excellent biography. Larson does a great job of presenting all the informaton in an understandable and captivating way that really makes me want to learn more about Native American history. There is even a map/picture section in the middle of the biography that helps clarify any questions you may have while reading, as all the different battles and tribes might confuse you. Other than that temporary confusion, good job Mr. Larson

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Lakota Warrior
Joseph White Bull
Manufacturer: University of Nebraska Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Historical | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0803298064

Book Description

With his own words and images, Joseph White Bull tells of his memorable life and exploits as a Lakota warrior in the late nineteenth century. The son of a Miniconjou chief and nephew of Sitting Bull of the Hunkpapas, White Bull was an accomplished warrior. He participated in the Fetterman and Wagon-Box fights, and fought at the Little Big Horn, contending that he was the warrior who killed Custer.

Many years later, White Bull was persuaded to recount the outstanding events of his life. The result is this remarkable autobiography, consisting of text and drawings. In addition to relating White Bull’s accomplishments in war, the narrative includes events from his youth, details of Lakota culture, and an extended Lakota winter count.

This bilingual edition, originally published as The Warrior Who Killed Custer (Nebraska 1968), features White Bull’s story in its original Lakota, his drawings, and an English translation. The manuscript was translated and edited by James H. Howard, author of The Canadian Sioux (Nebraska 1984) and The Ponca Tribe (Nebraska 1995).

Black Robe Woman, Lakota Warrior:Being the Second Part of the Crazy Horse Chronicles (Crazy Horse Chronicles Trilogy) (Crazy Horse Chronicles, 2)

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A bittersweet, passionate, fulfilling story of love.
A book to heal the heart!

Black Robe Woman, Lakota Warrior:Being the Second Part of the Crazy Horse Chronicles (Crazy Horse Chronicles Trilogy) (Crazy Horse Chronicles, 2)
Richard Jepperson
Manufacturer: String of Beads Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Women | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Folklore & Mythology | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0967201217

Book Description

Open the creaking lid of a rusty-hinged old trunk and look inside to find a dusty frontier sketchbook. Blow away the dust and lift the cover to the first of the pages of time. As the image fills your eyes a voice fills your mind and a heart-wrenching story unfolds in vivid sketches and words as told by Crazy Horse. The first book of the Crazy Horse Chronicles Trilogy, The War of the Mormon Cow introduced the boy called Curly, who becomes Crazy Horse, and the girl called Little Mouse, who becomes Black Robe Woman. In Black Robe Woman, Lakota Warrior our story continues as Crazy Horse looks back to the time just after The War of the Mormon Cow. Black Robe Woman, Lakota Warrior is the second book of The Crazy Horse Chronicles Trilogy. Just one year after The War of the Mormon Cow Curly and Little Mouse are again caught up in the horrors of war as General Harney leads an overwhelming force, to "chastise the Indian." Through luck and heroic venture our heroes survive and grow to maturity against the backdrop of conflicts history dubs the "Indian Wars." Curly becomes Crazy Horse and Little Mouse becomes Black Robe Woman. Crazy Horse earns his name through glory in battle. Black Robe Woman takes her name as a symbol of heartbreak and suffering. She was a real person, as was Crazy Horse, and they were very much in love throughout their lives. It was destined to be a star-crossed love for they were faced with jealousies of clans and families and the struggle for prestige and power. Whether found in Shakespearean tragedy or Lakota villages, youthful love often suffers and falters under the rigors of societal pressures.

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A bittersweet, passionate, fulfilling story of love........2001-03-03

Part II of the "Crazy Horse Chronicles" continues to enthrall. This vivid retelling of the life of Curly, later to become Crazy Horse, explains the early transition to adulthood for Curly and Little Mouse, who become Crazy Horse and Black Robe Buffalo Woman. They grow to maturity during the "Indian Wars" and Crazy Horse earns his name through battle glory. His painful experience of betrayal by family of Little Mouse drives him to forsake his holy name to become "Worm," or One Who Returns to Mother Earth. The bittersweet story of the love of Crazy Horse and Black Robe Buffalo Woman is passionate and fierce and gentle at the same time. Readers will eagerly devour this latest in the series and impatiently await the third in the series.

Nancy Lorraine, Reviewer

A book to heal the heart!.......2001-02-09

Richard Jepperson capably and affirmatively expands his Crazy Horse Chronicles with this touching, tender, fierce, reader-friendly book containing articulate, poetic text and original, beautiful illustrations. There are really only two kinds of books. And they are not children's books and grownups' books but good books and bad books. Black Robe Woman, Lakota Warrior, is most definitely among the former. It's excellent for kids but it is by no means exclusively for them but for all readers of worthy literature. Here is a book you will read to your children and to yourself, not once but over and over again.

Ten Indian Historical Romances by Madeline Baker:(1) Apache Flame;(2) Cheyenne Surrender;(3) Comanche Flame;(4) First Love Wild Love;(5) Hawk's Woman;(6) Lacey's Way;(7) Lakota Renegade;(8) Prairie Heat;(9) Under A Prairie Moon;(10) Warrior's Lady (Set of 10)

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Ten Indian Historical Romances by Madeline Baker:(1) Apache Flame;(2) Cheyenne Surrender;(3) Comanche Flame;(4) First Love Wild Love;(5) Hawk's Woman;(6) Lacey's Way;(7) Lakota Renegade;(8) Prairie Heat;(9) Under A Prairie Moon;(10) Warrior's Lady (Set of 10)
Madeline Baker
Manufacturer: Various
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000VFS786

The Lakota warrior tradition: Three essays on Lakotas at war

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The Lakota warrior tradition: Three essays on Lakotas at war
William K Powers
Manufacturer: Lakota Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0006RXLMG

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