Reviewed by Martin
Some books are nearly impossible to review. Such works have no wasted words and cannot be effectively summarized in the space available for any review. In fact, sometimes the explication of their contents cannot be done more concisely than the manner in which the author himself chose to arrange his words.
Richard Weaver’s The Ethics of Rhetoric is one such book.
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Reviewed by Martin
There is a good deal to think about in this book and what it has to say will challenge the modern Right as well as Left. The former, depending on his religious beliefs, may be more inclined to give it due consideration, despite it’s challenging propositions. The latter are the very people that Brownson warned about, and will no doubt dismiss it as a religious rant, despite the clarity of Brownson’s arguments.
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Reviewed by Marcia
Liberalism Unmasked could be an alternative title for Fred Siegel’s book. Siegel strips away the myth of benevolence cultivated by the left and exposes the egotism, snobbery, resentment and power seeking that are the constants of American liberalism. Siegel’s thesis is that Barack Obama’s liberalism is not rooted in Wilson progressivism or the New Deal but in post World War I intellectuals’ disdain for America. The author cuts the moral high ground from under the well-shod feet of contemporary liberals and their antecedents in the 1920s.
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Reviewed by Martin
A Treason of the Heart is an incredibly depressing book, the equivalent of Tom Wolfe’s Bonfire of the Vanities. Both books share the distinction of featuring characters with little, if any, redeeming value. At least Wolfe’s book is fiction. It is about British people who have taken up foreign causes - often in direct conflict with their own country.
It is an interesting book, but it isn’t a lot of fun to read.
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Reviewed by Marcia
This amazing book was printed in Spanish in 1930. An English translation became available in 1932 and the book has been continuously published ever since. This reviewer first read it so long ago that only the sketchiest recollections remained, but enough to realize its relevance today and to reread it.
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Reviewed by Marcia
In the introduction to Why We Won't Talk Honestly About Race, the author explains that his aim for writing the book was “to talk honestly about race,†to convey views, however legitimate or widely held, branded as racist by defenders of the status quo and banned from public discourse.
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Reviewed by Martin
The Last Patriot is novel by Brad Thor, and admittedly not the sort of book normally reviewed on WWTFT. That being said, there was a clever tie-in to some things that are regularly covered on WWTFT. For one, President Thomas Jefferson is weaved into the plot as is Captain Isaac Hull, the man famous for sinking HMS Guerriere early in the War of 1812.
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Reviewed by Marcia
The degradation of the culture has many causes and Hays touches on most of them. This reviewer would have liked elaboration, but the author set out to expose White Trash Normal and be funny at the same time and she succeeded on both counts, a daunting task well done. It’s a rare writer who can be humorous and trenchant at the same time.
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Reviewed by Martin
Stephen Budiansky’s Perilous Fight is a detailed exposition of just what the subtitle proclaims: America’s Intrepid War With Britain on the High Seas, 1812-1815. Intrepid, while a bold and colorful adjective, is exactly the right word. In using it, Budiansky is not only describing the early 19th century American fledgling navy, but also the scores of privateers under letters of marque that set out to plunder the British merchant marine. To understand what kind of men these were, you don’t have to go too far into Budiansky’s book.
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Reviewed by Marcia
David Lefer's new book is about how a group of unsung heroes saved the American Revolution.
The author’s thesis is that, contrary to popular perception, the American Revolution was wracked by bitter and often violent struggles between left and right. That is not an impression consistent with conventional histories of the nation’s founding.
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