Category: Goodreads Reviews

author: Jean H. Baker
name: Elaine
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2004
rating: 4
read at: 2008/11/17
date added: 2013/03/05
shelves: history, non-fiction
review:
I picked this up after reading a blog entry that claimed that Bush couldn’t be called the worst president ever as long as there was Buchanan.

And I think the guy had a point, although it may be that only the existence of the slavery problem made that so. (Ie, a problem so huge that it was already tearing the country in two before Buchanan ever got there; except for 9/11, Bush seems to have manufactured all this sh*t himself.)

Because otherwise, the failings of the 2 administrations feel quite similar. In particular, a blind devotion to a particular ideology and to particular advisers. (Neocons = Southerners?)

Sometimes he seems to have acted beyond his own perceived limitations (in re: Kansas — the section on the statehood battle was fascinating), and in other moments chosen not to act and let let things get substantially worse, esp with the situation in South Carolina after the 1860 election.

Apparently the usual judgment is that he dithered, but this author thinks it was more deliberate than that, a choice not to act because his sympathies were essentially traitorous. (Holy moly!) She makes a decent case, I think, highlighting his behavior throughout his life in public service. It’s one of those stories that almost automatically draws out the “what if.” And it’s a sad, sad story, ultimately, both for Buchanan himself and for our country.

The book is also a very quick and lively read! Well worth a couple of afternoons.

author: Jean H. Baker
name: Elaine
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2004
rating: 4
read at: 2008/11/17
date added: 2013/03/05
shelves: history, non-fiction
review:
I picked this up after reading a blog entry that claimed that Bush couldn’t be called the worst president ever as long as there was Buchanan.

And I think the guy had a point, although it may be that only the existence of the slavery problem made that so. (Ie, a problem so huge that it was already tearing the country in two before Buchanan ever got there; except for 9/11, Bush seems to have manufactured all this sh*t himself.)

Because otherwise, the failings of the 2 administrations feel quite similar. In particular, a blind devotion to a particular ideology and to particular advisers. (Neocons = Southerners?)

Sometimes he seems to have acted beyond his own perceived limitations (in re: Kansas — the section on the statehood battle was fascinating), and in other moments chosen not to act and let let things get substantially worse, esp with the situation in South Carolina after the 1860 election.

Apparently the usual judgment is that he dithered, but this author thinks it was more deliberate than that, a choice not to act because his sympathies were essentially traitorous. (Holy moly!) She makes a decent case, I think, highlighting his behavior throughout his life in public service. It’s one of those stories that almost automatically draws out the “what if.” And it’s a sad, sad story, ultimately, both for Buchanan himself and for our country.

The book is also a very quick and lively read! Well worth a couple of afternoons.

author: Richard W. Wrangham
name: Elaine
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2009
rating: 3
read at: 2010/04/25
date added: 2013/03/03
shelves: history, non-fiction, psychology, science, sociology, health
review:
Review of the evidence for cooking as an important part of our evolution, looking at the fossil record, the habits and physiology of other primates, and the practices of modern hunter-gatherer groups.

He spends a chapter taking down the raw-foodist movement, mostly based on a German study, before getting into the evidence for cooking in our evolution. Most of that study’s participants were at a chronic energy deficit, and a number of the women suffered from amenorrhea…and they had access to all the foodstuffs and processing devices of the modern world!

The physiology bits were fascinating: the trade-off between energy use in the gut and energy use in the brain, the differing jaw and teeth formations.

There’s quite a bit of just-so-story of the kind that one often finds with evolutionary psychology & biology, but it seems more carefully constructed than some. The chapter(s) on cooking and the evolution of the pair-bond relationship are troubling but hard to refute, at least by me. (Cooking leading pretty much directly to patriarchy. Damn.)

I could have used some graphics, both to show the actual differences, and to keep track of the timeline. I often had to jump back to remember which groups were which, and who might have evolved what when.

But definitely interesting nonetheless.

author: Richard W. Wrangham
name: Elaine
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2009
rating: 3
read at: 2010/04/25
date added: 2013/03/03
shelves: history, non-fiction, psychology, science, sociology, health
review:
Review of the evidence for cooking as an important part of our evolution, looking at the fossil record, the habits and physiology of other primates, and the practices of modern hunter-gatherer groups.

He spends a chapter taking down the raw-foodist movement, mostly based on a German study, before getting into the evidence for cooking in our evolution. Most of that study’s participants were at a chronic energy deficit, and a number of the women suffered from amenorrhea…and they had access to all the foodstuffs and processing devices of the modern world!

The physiology bits were fascinating: the trade-off between energy use in the gut and energy use in the brain, the differing jaw and teeth formations.

There’s quite a bit of just-so-story of the kind that one often finds with evolutionary psychology & biology, but it seems more carefully constructed than some. The chapter(s) on cooking and the evolution of the pair-bond relationship are troubling but hard to refute, at least by me. (Cooking leading pretty much directly to patriarchy. Damn.)

I could have used some graphics, both to show the actual differences, and to keep track of the timeline. I often had to jump back to remember which groups were which, and who might have evolved what when.

But definitely interesting nonetheless.

author: Richard W. Wrangham
name: Elaine
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2009
rating: 3
read at: 2010/04/25
date added: 2013/03/03
shelves: history, non-fiction, psychology, science, sociology, health
review:
Review of the evidence for cooking as an important part of our evolution, looking at the fossil record, the habits and physiology of other primates, and the practices of modern hunter-gatherer groups.

He spends a chapter taking down the raw-foodist movement, mostly based on a German study, before getting into the evidence for cooking in our evolution. Most of that study’s participants were at a chronic energy deficit, and a number of the women suffered from amenorrhea…and they had access to all the foodstuffs and processing devices of the modern world!

The physiology bits were fascinating: the trade-off between energy use in the gut and energy use in the brain, the differing jaw and teeth formations.

There’s quite a bit of just-so-story of the kind that one often finds with evolutionary psychology & biology, but it seems more carefully constructed than some. The chapter(s) on cooking and the evolution of the pair-bond relationship are troubling but hard to refute, at least by me. (Cooking leading pretty much directly to patriarchy. Damn.)

I could have used some graphics, both to show the actual differences, and to keep track of the timeline. I often had to jump back to remember which groups were which, and who might have evolved what when.

But definitely interesting nonetheless.

author: Lorraine Massey
name: Elaine
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2001
rating: 3
read at: 2011/08/19
date added: 2013/02/14
shelves: non-fiction, self-help, health, own
review:
I’ve been letting my hair grow out, and I’m trying to treat it right; snapped this book up when I saw it at the library. Mostly skimmed, might take another read-through before I take it back, to try some of the “recipes” for hair stuff or hairdos. Basically, I should be treating my (wavy) hair like one of my wool sweaters. 🙂 After a couple of days experimenting, I’m liking the way my hair looks/feels so far.

The writing tone is not particularly to my tastes, although at least most of the directions and photography are fairly clear. I also wish there was more information on kinds of haircuts that look good on different kinds of hair.

There’s a companion CD, which I haven’t yet looked at.

edit: purchased the earlier edition of this book (used) summer 2012.

author: Lorraine Massey
name: Elaine
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2001
rating: 3
read at: 2011/08/19
date added: 2013/02/14
shelves: non-fiction, self-help, health, own
review:
I’ve been letting my hair grow out, and I’m trying to treat it right; snapped this book up when I saw it at the library. Mostly skimmed, might take another read-through before I take it back, to try some of the “recipes” for hair stuff or hairdos. Basically, I should be treating my (wavy) hair like one of my wool sweaters. 🙂 After a couple of days experimenting, I’m liking the way my hair looks/feels so far.

The writing tone is not particularly to my tastes, although at least most of the directions and photography are fairly clear. I also wish there was more information on kinds of haircuts that look good on different kinds of hair.

There’s a companion CD, which I haven’t yet looked at.

edit: purchased the earlier edition of this book (used) summer 2012.

author: Lorraine Massey
name: Elaine
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2001
rating: 3
read at: 2011/08/19
date added: 2013/02/14
shelves: non-fiction, self-help, health, own
review:
I’ve been letting my hair grow out, and I’m trying to treat it right; snapped this book up when I saw it at the library. Mostly skimmed, might take another read-through before I take it back, to try some of the “recipes” for hair stuff or hairdos. Basically, I should be treating my (wavy) hair like one of my wool sweaters. 🙂 After a couple of days experimenting, I’m liking the way my hair looks/feels so far.

The writing tone is not particularly to my tastes, although at least most of the directions and photography are fairly clear. I also wish there was more information on kinds of haircuts that look good on different kinds of hair.

There’s a companion CD, which I haven’t yet looked at.

edit: purchased the earlier edition of this book (used) summer 2012.

author: Lorraine Massey
name: Elaine
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2001
rating: 3
read at: 2011/08/19
date added: 2013/02/14
shelves: non-fiction, self-help, health, own
review:
I’ve been letting my hair grow out, and I’m trying to treat it right; snapped this book up when I saw it at the library. Mostly skimmed, might take another read-through before I take it back, to try some of the “recipes” for hair stuff or hairdos. Basically, I should be treating my (wavy) hair like one of my wool sweaters. 🙂 After a couple of days experimenting, I’m liking the way my hair looks/feels so far.

The writing tone is not particularly to my tastes, although at least most of the directions and photography are fairly clear. I also wish there was more information on kinds of haircuts that look good on different kinds of hair.

There’s a companion CD, which I haven’t yet looked at.

edit: purchased the earlier edition of this book (used) summer 2012.

author: Lorraine Massey
name: Elaine
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2001
rating: 3
read at: 2011/08/19
date added: 2013/02/14
shelves: non-fiction, self-help, health, own
review:
I’ve been letting my hair grow out, and I’m trying to treat it right; snapped this book up when I saw it at the library. Mostly skimmed, might take another read-through before I take it back, to try some of the “recipes” for hair stuff or hairdos. Basically, I should be treating my (wavy) hair like one of my wool sweaters. 🙂 After a couple of days experimenting, I’m liking the way my hair looks/feels so far.

The writing tone is not particularly to my tastes, although at least most of the directions and photography are fairly clear. I also wish there was more information on kinds of haircuts that look good on different kinds of hair.

There’s a companion CD, which I haven’t yet looked at.

edit: purchased the earlier edition of this book (used) summer 2012.