American history

Three books about different facets of U.S. history: Whiskey rebellion in the 1790s; Founding Fathers as gardeners; Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives at end of XIXth century.

The Whiskey Rebellion : George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and the frontier rebels who challenged America's newfound sovereignty by William Hogeland. Very detailed, painstakingly so. Did not read easily. Alas, Alexander Hamilton comes off looking none too well: ruthless, ambitious, power hungry, he was not beyond manipulation and using even his benefactor, George Washington. His great nemesis (one of many), Thomas Jefferson (himself no angel), seems to have disliked him intensely and opposed him at every possible turn. James Madison emerges as an enigma. GW himself looks fine; another instance of how lucky the young nation to have him, and not anyone else, in a position of power. Stopped at page 197.

Founding gardeners : the revolutionary generation, nature, and the shaping of the American nation . by Andrea Wulf. What a wonderful and unique idea. Indeed, Washington, Madison, Jefferson and Adams were devoted gardeners. The first three, Virginians all, were plantation owners, slave owners; Adams owned and worked his own small farm. Yet all shared a passion for trees and plants and shrubs. and all wanted to make gardens uniquely American, different than the English gardens popular in their day. The book drags. Wuld gives a historical narrative, to put in context the efforts and wonts of the Gardeners, yet the narrative sputters and stalls. Stopped at page 142.

Mr. Speaker! : the life and times of Thomas B. Reed, the man who broke the filibuster.by James Grant. Reed is one of the obscure figures in US history that actually played a significant role therein, during his time. Teddy Roosevelt was, at one point, his ardent supporter and admirer, before catapulting above Grant (and most everyone else) to become the accidental president. The book is far too detailed, reads stiff, and was a challenge to finish. As I was reading all three concurrently, I decided to finish the one that I was the furthest along, and had most interest, and, by default this was it.

Lost

Several days ago I came across an item in The Atlantic, The 14 biggest ideas of the year, and saw Kirn's name; on a whim, an instinct, I hyperlinked, as it were, looked for books by him, and found this one. What he wrote seemed insightful, and I figured, assumed, his book would be similarly so. Now that I have finished the book, I do not have the same opinion.

Kirn, Walter. (2009). Lost in the meritocracy: the undereducation of an overachiever. New York: Doubleday.

The theme of the book is how Kirn hustled the system: he wasn't so much book smart as street smart. Well, not exactly street, for this was no urban warrior. What he says he learned was how to butter up people and achieve high status in the world of the academy. So he aced his SAT, got into Princeton, and did so by telling people what they wanted to hear, using what used to be called $5 words (would they now be $10, $50, $100? adjusting for inflation and hedge funds), and irreducibly won laurels and star status.

Published the year Kirn turned 47, it quotes people and produces fine details of events that transpired 25, 30, even 43 years earlier. Along the way, he must have memorized enough to produce a readable book that purports to tell it as it was.

I am disappointed. In myself, for wasting my time. He has not stopped hustling. I am one of his latest dupes.

Matinee

Fun movie to watch, many familiar faces. Ebert gave it three and a half stars. "Matinee," a delightful comedy and one of the most charming movies in a long time, takes place exactly at a moment when that innocence may have ended.

Crossing Over

Interesting, a little flawed. Ebert gives it two and a half stars; about right. Yes, the film is "flawed" -- that prissy film critic's complaint. If you're looking for plausibility and resist manipulation, you'll object to it. But sometimes movies are intriguing, despite their faults, and you want to keep on watching. This one is like that.

Increment

Ignatius, David. (2009). The increment. New York: W.W. Norton.

A nuclear scientist with a conscientious objection to the regime ruling Iran pursuing a nuclear weapon contacts the CIA through its website. A virtual walkin, or VW, he comes to the attention of Harry Pappas, an agent with his own conscience who wants to stop the Administration from hurtling toward imposing an embargo on, and perhaps bombing, Iran.
     Ignatius writes a believable tale, an enjoyable what if?

One review in the Washington Post offers a compliment: It may lack fireworks, but it bears the hard weight of both political and personal history and recognizes the seriousness of what might come next.
One in the Guardian is a bit more reticent: well paced and suspenseful, and the attention to local detail (downtown Tehran is rendered as vividly as top-level CIA briefings) convincing enough to excuse the occasional stereotype.