Author: Jack
I retired in 2008 and so I have more time now to devote to several of my interests The blog here is mainly for my interests in some current events but may have the occasional rant on other subjects. I have also decided to keep my genealogy posts here instead of in a second blog (and so simplify my life a little).

Harmattan by Gavin Weston

Harmattan by Gavin Weston

About a month ago, I get an email. Gavin tells me he is an Irishman who has written a book from the point of view of a 12 year girl old growing up in Niger, West Africa. And that he has a website, http://www.gavinwestonbooks.com/ , which has further details on his book including an extract, reviews, an interview, and more.

I looked at the website and it did look interesting. I was 12 a long time ago but I never was a girl. And I have never lived in Niger. But the Irishman writing as a 12 year old girl from Niger sounded convincing to me in the short excerpt on the website. But I wasn’t sure if he could pull it off for the whole book. I think he did it. I decided to try the book and I’m glad I did. I enjoyed the book and learned quite a bit.

Several years back I read a novel about a culture that was foreign to me. It was written by a journalist who was asked in an interview why a novel rather than the reporting of facts. The answer was that sometimes the best way to convey the truth is a novel. This novel conveys a reality in ways that facts never could .

How many Nigeriens are poor, how poor are they, do they have access to adequate medical care or nutrition???? These questions and more can be answered and they are on the UNICEF fact sheet. The answers are that many are poor, so poor that over 60% get by on less than 1 US Dollar per day. Medical care is inadequate for many. One in 5 children die before their 5th birthday. Many of those who survive are malnourished. Almost half do not have access to clean water. But you still are missing the reality associated that faces people living with these facts.

Gavin Weston, the author of Harmattan, is working with FORWARD UK on the problem of child marriages . The facts are available there. You can also look at the UNICEF fact sheet cited above and see that over a third of the girls in Niger are married before they are 15. UNICEF-USA ups the number to 1 in 2 and says the Niger has the highest rate of child and forced marriages in the world. Maybe they used a slightly difference source of data or maybe they just rounded differently but the point is that we are talking about a very large number.

Harmattan puts a face on these numbers. It is a book well worth reading. I found myself drawn into the story quickly. My guess is that good writing may have played a role. The story seems to slow down a bit toward the middle (at least it seemed that way to me.) But if it slows down for you at this or other points, it is well worth finishing.

There are several books named Harmattan or that have Harmattan in the title. That surprised me since I had not even heard the word a month ago. But my point is not that I have a limited vocabulary. I just wanted to warn you so you get the right book. Look for the author’s name when you buy or better yet buy though my website (link above) or Gavin’s. The book is now available in the Kindle version and the physical book should be out soon.

The Last Storyteller: A Novel of Ireland  by Frank Delaney

The Last Storyteller: A Novel of Ireland by Frank Delaney

The Last Storyteller: A Novel of Ireland starts slowly but it builds and does that well until you are totally engrossed in the story and never quite sure where it is going.

When I first started reading this, I was not impressed. After 10 pages or so I looked toward the end and figured I had another 300+ pages to go and really thought I might want to just give up at that point. But I decided to try a few more pages and then a few more and soon I was sure I wanted to read it all. Now that I’m done, I’m glad I gave this book a chance.

A well-told story has a certain quality. This book does not seem similar at all to the book I earlier reviewed about the French philosopher and essayist (see Montaigne: How to Live ) but the Montaigne book came to mind when I started this review. But when you think about it good stories are like Montaigne’s essays in that they are about “how to live”. A good story is entertaining but has a larger point.

Frank Delaney is a master storyteller. And this is a story about a storyteller. A group of stories within a story or perhaps a story next to other stories. Maybe both. At any rate, a good story. The story takes place in the Ireland of the middle 1950s, a time of great change. The narrator Ben MacCarthy of the Irish Folklore Commission is trying to record the old culture before it disappears. An important part of that culture was the seanchai or traveling storyteller.

The story is complex. It includes Delaney’s retelling of several traditional Irish stories through characters in his book. These tales are well told and are a very enjoyable part of the book. The story is also a love story. You see, Ben lost his wife to a rather vile character many years back and his quest involves not only storytelling but recovering this lost love. And getting to know his children born after he lost his wife. It is a long story and Delaney tells it much better than I could, so I’ll leave it there.

Give “The Last Storyteller” a chance; I think you’ll not regret that.

The Irish Americans:  A History  by Jay P. Dolan

The Irish Americans: A History by Jay P. Dolan

The Irish Americans is one of those books that although written for the general reader is detailed enough and sufficiently referenced to be useful to those seeking more depth. I think over the years I have read quite a bit of Irish history and the history of Irish Americans because of my interest in Irish-American genealogy to be somewhat knowledgeable on the subjects. Yet I was not bored at all and found the book very interesting and informative.

My family came from Ireland to New York. So I was particularly interested in the discussion of New York Irish. There was much I had read before but here is was put in the context of the larger Irish American experience. That is, I was more interested in the discussion of Irish American politics and so forth in New York but reading about the similarities and differences in Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia and other cities was valuable in putting it all in perspective.

Dr. Dolan is a scholar in the fields of Irish Americans and American Catholicism. He is a Professor Emeritus of History at Notre Dame. This book clearly benefits from his years of scholarship on immigration and ethnic studies (including 18 years teaching Irish American history).

This is a complicated story and Jay P. Dolan tells it well. The big Irish migration came with The Famine in Ireland and after. Most of these were Catholic and so the author’s background studying American Catholicism is extremely helpful in explaining how these immigrants fit into American society. The authors does not ignore non-Catholics or those who came before the great influx but discusses similarities and differences and the uneasy relationships among various groups. In a few generations the Irish have moved from one of the lowest rungs of the social ladder to move upward considerably.

Murder and Suicide in Broadway Hotel dateline 1887

Murder and Suicide in Broadway Hotel dateline 1887

I went to Green-wood Cemetery in Brooklyn to find the grave of my great great grandmother and instead found a stone that lead me to the story of a murder. And a potential tie between my Greers and members of the Peerage.

I was looking for the grave of my great great grandmother named Ruth Greer. I knew her son (actually a stepson, William Greer) was buried in Green-wood Cemetery in Brooklyn and so I looked there. They have an online database of burials which makes it easy to check.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a Ruth Greer buried there (section 4, lot 21072) about the time we thought our Ruth may have died. So that was the easy part. Continue reading “Murder and Suicide in Broadway Hotel dateline 1887”

Jon Huntsman and Too-Big-To-Fail Wall Street banks

Jon Huntsman and Too-Big-To-Fail Wall Street banks

Jon Huntsman has shown he is a candidate with a real shot at the nomination with his strong showing in the New Hampshire primary. Maybe now he will get the attention he deserves.

Mr. Huntsman has again addressed the issue of Too-Big-To-Fail Wall Street banks. He seems to be one of the very few politicians who is willing to take on Wall Street banks which threaten our country’s economy. I had written about this last month (see my post – Jon Huntsman and Too Big to Fail.

It would seem that many in the Republican and business communities are opposed to the regulation of financial institutions passed by Congress (Dodd-Frank) But if the government is responsible for the debts of the big banks, does it not make sense to regulate? Certainly, it can be argued whether Dodd-Frank got it right. But if there are no too big to fail institutions, a lighter regulatory hand is appropriate.

Immigration : why can’t we get it right?

Immigration : why can’t we get it right?

I’ve read at least 2 articles in the past few days on failures in our immigration system. Our immigration system does not work well. We seem unable to let people in in a timely manner and we ocassionally deport people people who should not be deported. Why can’t we get it right?

Trudy Rubin, a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer, wrote about our failure to let in Iraqi’s who helped the US and now face death because our system has failed them :
Shame on U.S.: Iraqi allies betrayed

President Obama is failing these folks. Would any of the candidates do better? They are quick to jump on other perceived failures but I’ve heard no mention of this or a suggestion that any of them would do better.

Then I read an interesting article in the Christian Science Monitor today: Deported teen returns to US. How many Americans are mistakenly banished?

This case certainly has aspects would make me assign partial blame to both the authorities and the teen (and family) but the larger question concerns safeguards against deporting U.S. citizens.

Black Echo by Michael Connelly or When Harry met Eleanor

Black Echo by Michael Connelly or When Harry met Eleanor

I’ve long been a fan of Michael Connelly’s books. I decided to read or re-read The Black Echo by Michael Connelly because it was the first of the Harry Bosch series which I have enjoyed over the years. It has been so long since I may have read it that I wasn’t sure if I read it or not, but after a few pages I knew that I had. I did not remember it well enough that I knew what was coming so I was surprised by most of the twists in the plot but at least parts of the story were familiar. I totally enjoyed this mystery and as a bonus Harry worked with Eleanor Wish who will feature in other books of the Harry Bosch series.

I do not wish to say too much about the plot or specifics about characters as I don’t want to spoil the surprises for that rare reader who has not yet discovered this series. But, in short, both Harry and Eleanor are very interesting characters and the story is well-told with a number of surprising twists. For me, it was a re-read and a very enjoyable experience. For someone new to the series, it may be a bit different but I can’t imagine not enjoying it. I think this would be a great introduction to the characters as well as a great story. If I was thinking about trying a Harry Bosch book because so many people love the series, I would probably start at the beginning with The Black Echo .

I would guess that the new reader would be fine jumping into the series with any book that sounds interesting to him or her. Michael Connelly does work enough background of the characters into each book that I’ve read that the new reader should be able to enjoy the stories. But it is interesting to start at the beginning and watch a character develop and age. In The Black Echo Harry is close to 40 but in the later books he is at an age when lots of us are retired.

Michael Connelly has written quite a few books and I have enjoyed all of those I’ve read. If you are interested in learning more about this author you might want to check out Michael Connelly’s Amazon page.

On an unrelated note, I just wanted to add that I started reading this book on my Kindle. I had borrowed it from the county library and I’m not quite sure how borrowing ebooks works. But when it was ready (and there was a waiting list), it was sent to my Kindle by Wi-Fi and through my Amazon account. I did enjoy reading the book on the Kindle and my only gripe was that the loan period was one week which included Christmas Eve and Christmas day. Since I hadn’t finished by the end of the week and the book on my Kindle disappeared, I borrowed the actual book from the library to finish the story.

Nook Simple Touch and excessive legal agreement

Nook Simple Touch and excessive legal agreement

I recently bought a Nook Simple Touch as a present. I have a Kindle and like e-reading sometimes and I thought this would be better for at least 2 reasons. One is I thought the touch screen navigation would be easier than the Kindle interface. Second I thought borrowing a library book would be simpler. From what I’ve read, with the Nook you just borrow the book from the library. With the Kindle you need both to borrow the book and have Amazon reformat it .

However, the first step in activating the Nook Simple Touch is agreeing to a 178 page legal agreement. I decided this is the type present I’d rather not give. I returned the Nook.

My question to Barnes and Noble:
Don’t you think this is a bit excessive?

A second question for anybody:
Has anybody actually read the whole agreement?

Common Sense Regulation

Common Sense Regulation

There was a very interesting article in today’s Wall Street Journal on Common Sense Regulation. I’m not sure we are ready for common sense but it is certainly an idea worth thinking about. Since not everyone gets the Wall Street Journal and they have been known to sometimes put interesting articles on their website behind a pay-wall, I thought it would be good here to cite an extended online version of that article.

In the financial sector, it certainly could be combined the Jon Huntsman’s ideas on Too Big to Fail and the repeal of Dodd-Frank which were recently highlighted here.

The idea to simplify regulations while still regulating is an interesting idea. The author gives several examples of over complex regulations and how they could be simplified. The discussion anticipates many objections. This is a good starting point for further discussions.

Jon Huntsman and Too Big to Fail

Jon Huntsman and Too Big to Fail

I was very pleased to read Jon Huntsman’s plan on financial reform . Two aspects of it especially struck me.

First, it never made any sense to me to have financial institutions so large that they would be considered too big to fail. That is they are so large that if they were to fail the entire US economy would be in danger. Indeed, I had writen about this over 2 years ago.. Jon Huntsman presents a plan to eliminate this risk by the simplest means possible: not have too big to fail institutions.

Second, he proposes the repeal of Dodd-Frank. This was our government’s regulatory response to the 2008 crisis. I read quite a few newspapers (including both the NY Times and the Wall Street Journal) and I know this regulatory reform is opposed by many in the business community but it seems to me if the goverment is ultimately reponsible for the debts of the big banks, there is a need for extensive regulation. It is an arguable point whether Dodd-Frank got it right. But if there are no too big to fail institutions, a lighter regulatory hand is appropriate.

There are several other aspects to Jon Huntsman’s plan but I just wanted to highlight these. Although Jon Huntsman is way back in the pack seeking the GOP nomination for President, he may be the most qualified and thoughtful in the group.

“Your Medical Mind: How to Decide What Is Right for You” reposted

“Your Medical Mind: How to Decide What Is Right for You” reposted

I am reposting this review because I think this would make an ideal present. Just about everyone will face medical choices and this is a valuable guide to deciding what a good choice for the individual. I have this on my bookshelf and think many of us would benefit from this one.

We are all different. Modern medicine gives us many choices and many are based on probabilities of desired or undesired outcomes. And there is often an abundance of information and/or conflicting information. So, the question is “how do we decide?”

Drs. Groopman and Hartzband take on this question in “Your Medical Mind: How to Decide What Is Right for You” in a very interesting and informative manner. They interview a wide variety of patients dealing with various medical issues ranging from high cholesterol to cancer to end of life. They discuss various biases and how statistics and various narratives (stories of other patients) can either be used to mislead or educate.

Quite often there is no one best choice for everyone and no one best doctor for everyone. This very helpful guide to find the right choices for you . This book is full of good advice for both those facing a medical problem and thinking about their choices in doctors.

I liked this book a lot. I bought it to keep on my bookshelf as I am sure I will face some of the issues they discuss here over the coming years. I particularly liked the extensive notes and bibliography. I highly recommend this book.

Buy American Gifts and Support American Art

Buy American Gifts and Support American Art

The past few nights on the TV news there have been a series of reports called Made in America. A major point of these reports is that if we spent just a part of what we spend on gifts this year on goods made in America, we would create thousands of jobs in America.

This got me to thinking about my brother and his family business. They sell made in America art online and works by a large number of artists. The business is Best American Arts and the website is http://www.bestamericanarts.com/. Items include jewelry, various items of home decor, ceramics, fiber,glass, leather, metal, and wood. All of these are handcrafted in America. And shipping is free within the United States.

So if you think you might be interested in giving some American art this year, check out http://www.bestamericanarts.com/. And I’ve saved even more good news for last. Because his brother Jack sent you, there is a discount. Just use the code JackReidy at checkout and the discount will be applied. (No spaces in the discount code.)

Let’s buy at least 1 American gift this year. The recepient will love the quality of the artwork and the United States economy will benefit. Support American art and this family business.

Destiny of the Republic By Candice Millard

Destiny of the Republic By Candice Millard

Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President
By Candice Millard

I had read a book about President Cleveland and in a discussion of medical care, the shoddy medical care of President Garfield which resulted in his death was mentioned. By chance I ran across a favorable review of Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard and figured I would like to learn more about this. So I requested the book for my local library and waited. (If you are looking for a new book it is much quicker to just buy it.)

Other than a brief mention of President Garfield in high school history and the book mentioned above, I knew little about this President. Millard’s book was wonderful way to fill in that gap. Millard tell the fascinating story of his rise from abject poverty to the presidency, his assassination by a mad man, and the medical care that killed him.

This is not a complete biography of James Garfield. His life before his brief presidency is well told. It is clear that he was an extraordinary man and his assassination only a few months after inauguration was a great loss to the country. The assassin Charles Guiteau is vividly portrayed as he gets closer to the President. As in River of Doubt , you know how this story is going to end but Millard adds considerable suspense while telling this story.

Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard is a fascinating account of that era and the sadly short presidency of James Garfield.

Your Medical Mind: How to Decide What Is Right for You by Jerome Groopman, M.D., and Pamela Hartzband, M.D

Your Medical Mind: How to Decide What Is Right for You by Jerome Groopman, M.D., and Pamela Hartzband, M.D

We are all different. Modern medicine gives us many choices and many are based on probabilities of desired or undesired outcomes. And there is often an abundance of information and/or conflicting information. So, the question is “how do we decide?”

Drs. Groopman and Hartzband take on this question in “Your Medical Mind: How to Decide What Is Right for You” in a very interesting and informative manner. They interview a wide variety of patients dealing with various medical issues ranging from high cholesterol to cancer to end of life. They discuss various biases and how statistics and various narratives (stories of other patients) can either be used to mislead or educate.

Quite often there is no one best choice for everyone and no one best doctor for everyone. This very helpful guide to find the right choices for you . This book is full of good advice for both those facing a medical problem and thinking about their choices in doctors.

I liked this book a lot. I bought it to keep on my bookshelf as I am sure I will face some of the issues they discuss here over the coming years. I particularly liked the extensive notes and bibliography. I highly recommend this book.

River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard

River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard

I enjoyed The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard. It thought it might be interesting as I enjoy reading about little known historical events but this book was much more.

The trip started out as a sort of photo-op adventure tour in the wilds of South America to occupy and satisfy former President Theodore Roosevelt after he lost his attempt as a third party candidate to oust President Taft in 1912. For those unfamiliar with the election: Wilson (the Democratic nominee) won; Roosevelt came in second; and Taft (the Republican nominee ) came in third.

Before starting this adventure tour, Roosevelt journeyed to South America and was convinced to make this a real journey of exploration. In partnership with a Brazilian officer, Roosevelt led a small group of men on this hazardous expedition. This small group included Theodore Roosevelt’s son Kermit. Both Theodore and Kermit Roosevelt were ill during the journey and risked their lives as they shared the hardships and work with the rest of the group. In fact, the former President came very close to death.

It amazed me that although I knew both Roosevelts would survive the trip, there was a very real sense of suspense during the river journey. I believe this is due to Candice Millard’s superb writing skills.

My backstory here is that I found this book accidentally. I had just finished a book about President Cleveland and in a discussion of medical care, the shoddy medical care of President Garfield which resulted in his death was mentioned. I saw an excellent review of a recent book by Candice Millard on James Garfield and while I was requesting that one from the library noticed she had published The River of Doubt a few years back. I requested both books but the older one came in first so I read it and was very pleased with it. So now I am looking forward to reading Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President when I get my copy from the library.