Book Beginnings: The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Presidents

Please join me every Friday to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires.  Please remember to include the title of the book and the author.

Leave a link to your post.  If you don't have a blog, but want to participate, please leave a comment with your Book Beginning.



MY BOOK BEGINNING

The Founding Fathers would be appalled by the modern presidency.

-- The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Presidents: From Wilson to Obama by Steven F. Hayward.

This is exactly what I need for a refresher course on 20th+ Century Presidents. Hayward is as witty and irreverent as ever. And he gets right to the point with his system of grading US Presidents on how strictly they adhered to their oath to uphold the Constitution.  I'm learning while I'm laughing.

Opening Sentence: A Month of Sundays

Forgive me my denomination and my town; I am a Christian minister and an American.

A Month of Sundays by John Updike.

This rather coy beginning is understandable when the narrator, the Reverend Tom Marshfield, goes on to explain that he is spending a month in a rest home of sorts for disgraced clergy.   The novel takes the form of his daily journal entries describing, for the most part, his sexual exploits with the women in his congregation.

Teaser Tuesday: Understanding the Abuse of Adults

Quite often, by the time the relationship becomes sexualized, the victim is already deeply immersed; she has already heavily invested her heart in the relationship.  Many victims/survivors consider the religious leader to be a close friend; others have fallen in love with him/her, believing that s/he is "the one and only."

--  Understanding the Abuse of Adults by Catholic Clergy and Religious by Kathryn R, Byrne.

This book is a very well-written, accessible, and thoughtful discussion about a problem traditionally ignored.  It is a very good book.

Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by Should Be Reading, where you can find the official rules for this weekly event. 

Mailbox Monday

Thanks for joining me for Mailbox Monday! MM was created by Marcia at A girl and her books (fka The Printed Page), who graciously hosted it for a long, long time, before turning it into a touring meme (details here).

This month, Mailbox Monday moves north, to somewhere near Quebec, where Cindy at Cindy's Love of Books is hosting.  Please stop by to visit her blog and join in the fun.

I got two quirky but cool books from OSU Press last week.   I love how they publish some offbeat stuff.



The Wet Engine: Exploring Mad Wild Miracle of Heart by Brian Doyle.




Wild Delicate Seconds: 29 Wildlife Encounters by Charles Finn.

Review: The World of Herb Caen

Herb Caen was San Francisco's legendary newspaper columnist. Barnaby Conrad describes Caen's prodigious work product in his introduction to The World of Herb Caen: San Francisco 1938 – 1997:

For almost six decades staring on July 5, 1938 – and except for yearly vacations and a 3 ½-year stint in the Army Air Force during World War II – Herb's column appeared, appeared, sparkling and infallible, to entertain and enlighten San Franciscans half a dozen times each and every week. In a typical year, he dropped 6,768 names, got 45,000 letters, 24,000 phone calls. If laid end to end, his columns would stretch 5.6 miles, from the Ferry Building to the Golden Gate Bridge. . . . It is an astounding and unduplicated feat, by far the longest-running newspaper column in the country.

Conrad – an author, restaurateur, and longtime friend of Caen's – compiled samples of Caen's columns, snippets from dozens of others, photos, and anecdotes about San Francisco's favorite newspaper man. The book is pure delight for Caen fans or any lover of "Baghdad by the Bay."

One of the best parts is seeing collected many of the "Herbisms" Caen invented, many of which have become common lingo in and out of San Francisco. He coined "beatnik," "glitterati," and "Berserkeley," for example. And all San Franciscans recognize "The Washbag" (Washington Square Bar & Grill) and "Da Mayor" (Willie Brown), among others. Some of Caen's clever word plays haven't stuck, but are still entertaining, like "the car-strangled spanner" for the Bay Bridge or "Skid Rogues" for the panhandlers on Market Street.

The only drawback to the book is that it is too short at only 126 (oversized) pages, many crammed with photographs of Caen, celebrities, and city scenes. Perhaps if it had been organized by decade instead of its four thematic chapters, it could have included more from Caen's own columns. As it is, it is funny and charming and leaves the reader wanting to spend more time in Herb Caen's world.

OTHER REVIEWS

If you would like your review of this book listed here, please leave a comment with a link and I will add it.

NOTES

This counts as one of my books for the Mt. TBR and Off the Shelf challenges.