"The Underground Railroad in the Adirondack Region" by Tom Calarco

In “The Underground Railroad in the Adirondack Region,” Tom Calarco painstakingly builds a weighty narrative of abolitionist fervor and illicit transportation of runaway slaves in Upstate New York in the 1830s, ‘40s, and ‘50s. It’s an illuminating and intriguing read.

Mr. Calarco shows how, against the backdrop of faith-based reform movements – suffrage, temperance, and abolition – the growth of abolitionist sentiment generated a very active clergy and legal community which helped runaways. He also recounts the additional hardships placed on coloreds – the accepted term at the time – which pervasive racial prejudice imposed.

I had never explored this subject before. Here are some of the aspects of the movement Mr. Calarco brought to light for me:

• The abolitionists were divided among themselves: various factions favored a “whatever means necessary” approach to immediate abolition, while others thought such militant talk was dangerous and counterproductive. They did agree, however, that abolition should be immediate and universal. 

• Abolitionists did not immediately split from the colonization movement (which favored relocation of blacks to Africa and support for their government there), but ultimately learned of the movement’s racial hatred and reactionary nature, and avowed their opposition. 
• One odd aspect of the movement: its adherents were quite slow to pursue political action to achieve its ends, but this is perhaps because of the very long odds they faced in that arena.

Along the way, we get an up-close view of the stiff-backed and uncompromising John Brown, some of whose opinions even Frederick Douglass found objectionable; the frightening practice of kidnapping, by which slave hunters abducted free blacks and sold them into slavery; the insights of the intuitive and charismatic Sojourner Truth.

Mr. Calarco tells us the Underground Railroad story of Upstate, particularly eastern, New York State has been omitted from the history texts; well, now there is no longer any excuse for that. Closely researched and engagingly told, Mr. Calarco’s work very ably fills the gap for those of us lucky enough pick it up. Recommended.

For publication info, see http://www.mcfarlandpub.com/

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"Shakespeare: the World as Stage" by Bill Bryson

A good basic compendium of what we know about the Bard. There isn't much, of course, but Bryson lays it all out in a straightforward and sometimes breezy way that always comes naturally to him. I found the sections on the economics of the theatre during Shakespeare's lifetime, and the regulations covering everything from sodomy to dress to how much it cost to go to a Catholic Mass, and the growth of medieval London, all to be very interesting. I wished for more in the section of words and phrases coined by the man. This is a good, short, one-stop shop for the basics on the Bard.

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"The Death of Adam: Essays on Modern Thought" by Marilynne Robinson

This book is next to impossible to rate: you want to alert readers to the loveliness of the prose, and I for one wanted to admire the logic and cogency of the arguments, for I love and cherish this writer. And yet ... the essays (the ones I read) are, as promised, contrarian in nature. Ms. Robinson objects to the lionization of Darwin, pointing out that he was an unabashed racist and eugenicist, and that his legacy is used as cover for callous and radically greedy economists and social scientists. She certainly does not question the fact of evolution, but objects to any requirement that the faithful should have to prove their God exists. She also objects to such presumption and insulting behavior in her graceful and radiant novel, "Gliead."

The reader interested in a unique take on modern beliefs and mores would be hard-pressed to do better than take up this collection of essays. I was not always persuaded that her didactic constructs fit her arguments. I was sometimes bewildered by juxtapositions, and felt that they arose from an angry, not necessarily studied, stance.

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"All for Love" by Dan Jacobson

In "All for Love" Dan Jacobson fleshes out the illicit affair carried on by Princess Louise of the Saxe-Coburgs (daughter of ghastly King Leopold of Belgium and married to a secondary prince of Austria-Hungary) and a jumped-up Croatian cavalryman who claimed a spurious nobility. The torrid affair elicited royal and societal disapproval, with all the weight such disapproval carries.

The story Jacobson weaves happened to real people, in turbulent late-19th and early- 20th century Europe. Jacobson uses primary sources - stories written by the lovers themselves - and adds his own reasoning and imagination to present the tale in novel form. Or he says he does. This construct doesn't really work for me. It never rises above the documentary form, in my opinion, and Jacobson is never very far from the surface, and often breaks through the narrative to address the reader directly.

The strong points here: we get knowing and compassionate protraits of flawed, spoiled, self-centered people, and follow their exploits to their logical ends: scandal, bankruptcy, fugitive flight, still more bankruptcy. At length we must take Louise and the cavalryman (Geza Mattachich by name) and their devotion at face value. Through desparate flight, imprisonment on both sides, his dalliances with other women, and all the notoriety attending, they never become estranged, never stop to wonder why they got together in the first place.

This is a diverting romp with two flawed and self-important lovers who remain true to each other.

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"The Friendly Jane Austen" by Natalie Tyler

This book gave me the pleasant surprise of exegesis of Miss Austen's work that was at least thought-provoking. We have additionally cute quizzes, lists and illustrations to go along with a decently-detailed biography of the great novelist.

This book refreshed my enthusiasm for Miss Austen's oeuvre, and made me want to return to it again. Serious or academic critics looking for new insights should probably look elsewhere.

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"Wedding of the Waters: the Erie Canal and the Making of a Great Nation" by Peter L. Bernstein

A superb, comprehensive, well-detailed history of the planning and building of the Erie Canal. Begun at a time (1817) when there was not one professional civil engineer in the U.S., the canal's proponents overcame Washington's indifference, immense physical challenges, and roiling New York State politics to build their water highway. By cutting nine tenths of the time and expense of moving goods from the Midwest to Atlantic seaports, the Canal made the economic development of the Ohio and Mississippi valleys possible. It also catapulted New York State into an eminent position in the Union, having abjured federal help; pushed New York City into world-class status; made Chicago the second-most important city in the U.S.; served as a model for federal funding of the Civil War; and vaulted America into the limelight as a world power. Not bad for a serviceable little ditch.

Bernstein weaves a fascinating tale of the indomitable political will it took to even sell the idea to the bond-buying public. The story includes the stunning ingenuity of the men responsible for the work, and it's all placed perfectly in the context of the canal-crazy era. This is wonderful - not to be missed.

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"General Washington's Christmas Farewell" by Stanley Weintraub

I was drawn to this book because it concentrates on a pivotal time in American history, and on one of my favorite characters in that history. The book illumines Washington's lionization at the conclusion of the War - he was already being called "The Father of his Country." Within these accolades, there is only the most tenuous and tentative indication that there will be a unified republic in the future. Perhaps that's as it should be.

The author tries in passing to give a flavor of the Christmas holiday of the time, but this seems an afterthought, added perhaps at the behest of an editor. The strongest feature of the story is the description of Mr. Washington's progress from Newburgh, New York, where the army is dissolved, to his Mt. Vernon home. People all along the way hail him and honor him, with the clamor rising and rising as he progresses.

This book relates the War's financial cost, and includes a gallery of the individuals who footed the bill for independence. I appreciated these things, but found myself looking for some germ that would indicate that a great, powerful nation was being born. It's not here.

This is a book whose only ambition is to relate Washington's physical journey home after the Revolution. It's specialized and specific, and unless you're directly interested in that three-month period in U.S. history, you might want to spend your time on something more generally appealing.

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"American Vertigo" by Bernard-Henri Levy

The Frenchman Bernard-Henri Levy looks at the U.S. through the eyes of a European: there is the bemusement over the flag fetish, when you see more than a hundred in just a couple of blocks in a New England town; America's undeniable belief in itself. So many of the new-fangled social and technological phenomena are very closely observed and thought-provokingly parsed.

Levy explores America's various approaches to international relations; it's a subject close to very many Europeans' hearts. He posits the following threads:

Jeffersonian: isolationist - wishes to avoid foreign entanglements
Jacksonian: the desire to respond to a foreign attack. It seems absurd, Levy writes, to attack Baghdad for the 9/11 attacks, but it's perfectly fit to attack Kabul.
Hamiltonians: these folk want to regulate international trade (cf Kuwait and the First Gulf War)
Wilsonians: hold the idea that the U.S. is accountable for world order and welfare.

Levy contends that those who would label the US an evil empire know nothing about the country, or about evil, or about empires. He says America is neither of these. He writes that it's simply a big, powerful place that believes in itself, and sometimes this belief has come at the expense of its minorities. One further telling point I came across: the 9/11 attacks were timed and targeted to throw off Palestinian-Isreali progress. Pure and simple in his view. He anticipated the leadership role of Barack Obama back in the middle of the younger Bush's administration.

It's always interesting to me to see how our partners in the modern world see us. This is a very useful volume on that score.

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"John Adams" by David McCullough

This admiring, comprehensive biography is must reading for any student of the American Revolution, or anyone interested in American history at all. Also, it's the best biography I've ever read.

We follow Adams's career from his defense of the British soldiers in the Boston Massacre, to the two Continental Congresses, the wartime diplomatic missions, to his administration as his country's first-ever Vice President, and its second President. What the masterful David McCullough also gives us are the essential roles Adams played in bringing the country into being.

John Adams was vital to the selection of Washington to command the revolutionary army, to securing badly needed foreign funding during the war, along with Ben Franklin choosing Jefferson to draft the Declaration of Independence, and most impressive on an impressive list, the design of the three houses of government, the Legislative, the Judicial, and the Executive through the drafting of the Constitution.

We rightfully call Washington the Father of his Country. We need to find a distinguishing nickname for Adams, like the Godfather of his Country, or the cranky old Great-Uncle of his Country. Something.

I came away from the book with a very deep appreciation of Adams, obviously. So will you. This is must reading.

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"Charlemagne: Father of a Continent" by Alessandro Barbero

Europe's (and especially France's) progress from heterogenous collection of Roman colonies and antagonists to Charlemagne's empire at the beginning of the Middle Ages fascinates me. And so I was rather pleased that "Charlemagne - Father of a Continent" deals so exhaustively with the subject.

An original protector and spreader of the Faith, Charles the Great represented a return to security for a Church bereft for several hundred years of its all-powerful state partner. His scheme for forwarding the Church's interests depended on a relatively powerful and autonomous nobility which could afford to bring fighting men to Charlemagne's numerous campaigns.

Although he was crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 800, he despised the Pope who anointed him, and controlled his every move. It's unclear to this day whether he knew he would be crowned in that fashion, but I find it really hard to believe that such a thing could be planned without his knowledge and consent. However, he used church assets and lands for his own purposes, giving abbeys and revenues for loyal service, whether or not the servant was clergy.

A worthwhile read about an important individual - particularly given my interest in the epoch.

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"His Excellency: George Washington" by Joseph Ellis

This is my first introduction to Washington's motivation, his hopes and dreams as he led the rag-tag Continental Army against the strongest nation on earth. Washington was a fervent believer in the Enlightenment ideals of the rights of man, and led a nation to throw over its colonizer, and then with just as much conviction, retired to country life.

One of Washington's basic urges was to own and develop some trans-Appalachian land. To this end he worked for decades on a canal from what is now Tennessee and Kentucky to the Potomac River. He saw the Revolution not only as an assertion of liberty for him and his countrymen, but as a tremendous personal opportunity.

"His Excellency" takes us from Washington's early days as a suveyor (which made him familiar with the land west of Virginia), through his days as a colonial officer in the British Army (at whose hands his mistreatment made for a durable grievance). The Great Man's motivations and abilities come into high focus in this excellent, highly readable account. No less an expert than King George III said that if someone were to lead the American Colonies to freedom, and then retire without a thought to dynasty, he truly would be a great man. Yep. That's right.

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"Mornings on Horseback" by David McCullough

I hereby join the chorus in praise of David McCullough. He's great. The NY "Times" calls him "our best social historian," and I'll certainly go along with that.

In this book we get a closeup of "Teedy," as he was called by his family. In spite of a sickly, challenging childhood, TR grew up utterly indefatigable. His public life never swerved from the dictates of his conscience, and he changed America by running independently in 1912 (in the election that gave us Woodrow Wilson). The book points obliquely to a yearning to measure up to his over-achieving father, but Teddy's eventual accomplishment cannot be overstated.

I finished this book (which devotes only a handful of pages at the end to TR's Presidency, BTW) with a much fuller appreciation of that fellow whose rightful place is in Mt. Rushmore.

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