History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star

Average customer rating:

NIKKI SIXX- AMAZING STORY OF RECOVERY
Outstanding!
Couldn't put it down....
Amazing piece of work from an amazing man.
Could not put it down

The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star
Nikki Sixx
Manufacturer: Pocket Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0743486285

Book Description

In one of the most unique memoirs of addiction ever published, Mötley Crüe's Nikki Sixx shares mesmerizing diary entries from the year he spiraled out of control in a haze of heroin and cocaine, presented alongside riveting commentary from people who were there at the time, and from Nikki himself.

When Mötley Crüe was at the height of its fame, there wasn't any drug Nikki Sixx wouldn't do. He spent days -- sometimes alone, sometimes with other addicts, friends, and lovers -- in a coke and heroin-fueled daze. The highs were high, and Nikki's journal entries reveal some euphoria and joy. But the lows were lower, often ending with Nikki in his closet, surrounded by drug paraphernalia and wrapped in paranoid delusions.

Here, Nikki shares those diary entries -- some poetic, some scatterbrained, some bizarre -- and reflects on that time. Joining him are Tommy Lee, Vince Neil, Mick Mars, Slash, Rick Nielsen, Bob Rock, and a host of ex-managers, ex-lovers, and more.

Brutally honest, utterly riveting, and shockingly moving, The Heroin Diaries follows Nikki during the year he plunged to rock bottom -- and his courageous decision to pick himself up and start living again.

Customer Reviews:

NIKKI SIXX- AMAZING STORY OF RECOVERY.......2007-10-04

Loved this book. Not only a cautionary tale, but a story of hope for even the most desperate. As disgusting as Nikki is during this time, you can't help but root for him. He's never arrogant and always accountable. Couldn't put the book down, loved every page.

Outstanding!.......2007-10-03

I was surprised by how good this book turned out to be. Usually when you find these types of books they are mediocre at best. I was moved by Nikki's diary. It gave me an insight into the rock star persona. No matter how much money and fame you have, it doesn't buy happiness. I consider this book a "must read"...

Couldn't put it down...........2007-10-02

When I heard that Sixx was putting out his diary as a book I couldn't wait to read it. It was more compelling than I imagined. All the private stuff from his life and the behind the scene descriptions of the GIRLS tour was amazing. I was and always will be a Crue fan. And now with Sixx giving us a glimpse into his tortured head, their songs,(for better or worse) have new meaning.

Amazing piece of work from an amazing man........2007-10-02

To tell you how good this book really is, the first day I got it, I only had a few minutes to read and read about 30 pages. The next day, I started reading the book and save for a few bathroom breaks, didn't stop until I had finished it. To say it is an emotional roller coaster is a *huge* understatement. After reading it, I am surprised, yet *so* thankful that we still have Nikki with us!

Could not put it down.......2007-09-30

After reading the Dirt, I knew what I was in for. I have been waiting for this book to come out since the idea of it was thrown around. The wait was worth it! From page to page we learn of Nikki's personal demons to his wild parties. The best part of this detailed novel is when Nikki goes to rehab and he says "F**K God and F88K you" as he jumps out of the window and starts to walk home to get his next fix. This novel has it all; humor, darkness, emotion, and many stories that only a true superhero could have survived. Pick it up today

Calling on the Composer: A Guide to European Composer Houses and Museums

Average customer rating:

A fabulous reference for music lovers who travel

Calling on the Composer: A Guide to European Composer Houses and Museums
Julie Anne Sadie , and Stanley Sadie
Manufacturer: Yale University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0300107501

Book Description

Across Europe, more than three hundred houses and museums commemorate the composers who lived and worked in them. In Calling on the Composer, two distinguished musicologists guide the musically curious traveler or reader to these sites and provide essential information on their content and significance.
Whether lakeside hut or moated castle, clock tower or cave, village school or fine town house, the physical context for musical genius and the artefacts of day-to-day existence have a powerful impact on how we perceive the figure behind the music we know and love. Julie and Stanley Sadie have journeyed to thirty-one countries to compile this unique travel companion and reference source. They offer practical information for the visitor, seasoned insights, and lively commentary. Richly illustrated and supported by thorough maps, the entries on individual composers trace their steps through the practicalities of life and reveal to us the context of creativity.

Customer Reviews:

A fabulous reference for music lovers who travel.......2007-09-18

Since I obtained this book I have traveled to Europe several times and each time I used this book to find composer sites. The information in this book is right on! I always find the book to be relevant and accurate when I visit a location discussed in the book. Many times I have found composer locations in various cities that I would have never known about if I did not have this book. The book's organization is outstanding. It is fun to read this book!

Average customer rating:

Good travel read.
Music Lover
A good read
Quite an interesting and well presented account of Bali
Hooked!

A House in Bali
Colin McPhee
Manufacturer: Periplus Editions
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 9625936297

Book Description

In the 1930s a young American composer heard some gramophone records of Balinese gamelan music- the clear metallic music of the land that forever changed his life. Writer Colin McPhee lived for the day when he could travel and study the beautiful island, its people, culture, and music. His classic text written in the 1940s remains the only literary narrative of the island by a classically trained musician, and this unique perspective allowed him to immerse himself in the people, and music of his beloved Bali. McPhee's work is a landmark look at Bali's distinctive gamelan tradition, now available again more than 50 years after it was written. Colin McPhee left Bali in 1938 as the threat of World War loomed over the Pacific.

Customer Reviews:

Good travel read........2007-07-07

I'm heading to Bali this month and this book provided a great intro to the customs and nature of this island. I'm even more excited to get there after reading it.

Music Lover.......2004-09-23

I first heard Gamelan was coming out of the oldest temple on the Island of Bali, near Ubud, and was reading this book at the time. I purchased the book at the Jakarta airport and was hooked by the first paragraph. I think that this is a wonderful, insight into the island, the music, it's people and culture. If you have a love for exotic music and or artform, this historical work is a captivating read. My only regret is that Colin McPhee never went back to his beloved Bali.

A good read.......2003-08-24

I am Balinese and live in Ubud, about 10 minutes walk from where Colin McPhee stayed, when he came to Bali in 1931. My aunt worked for him.

He heard a record of gamelan music in New York and couldn't wait to get to Bali to listen to the real thing.

He stayed in Bali for almost 8 years and set about documenting gamelan music. Much of his research was carried out in a village near Ubud where my Villas are. There are still old people in the village who remember him.

His book is beautifully written and tells stories of his adventures and life in the village and his encounters with the local Balinese. It's not necessary to understand technical music matters to enjoy this book - it is totally accessible.

Highly recommended.

Quite an interesting and well presented account of Bali.......2002-08-09

It's a very interesting book in regards to what I have actually read. It seems to have accounts on Balinese culture. I found it enjoyable and interesting to read because it not only talks about Balinese culture but about the conflict and clashes within the village like the little dancer named Sampih and his dance teacher Nyoman Kaler.

Colin McPhee conveys many interesting things like when bad luck happened in his home in Sayan and how they had to do a purification ceremony in regards to dispel the demons, witches and evil spirits. His wanderings in Bali to record music and study their music like the rare gamelan angklung and gamelan selonding from Tenganan who were the Bali Aga. Colin McPhee was drawn to the scintallinating sounds and metallic shimmer from the gamelan. At times there are humours accounts of what goes on between him and his friends that happen in the village or when they are touring around Bali. I found it enjoyable because, he seemed to have fitted in well with the Balinese people without too much problems compared with other writers before them spoke of barbarity and the animal like behaviour of the Balinese at certain functions. He writes with passion about what goes on and how things have changed with the colonial rule of the Dutch. The loss of autonomy by the Rajas who were reduced to poverty at times and how their obessions with cockfighting led to their ruin. Yet in times of despair and hardship they are always humble to him.

Overall the book contains a few photographs of his friends and colleagues. I found it wonderful and intriguing and as well as captiviting at times which he covers so many topics like the temple functions like Galungan, Wayang Kulit (Shadow Plays), the music club etc... This book you will grow to love like the book written by Miguel Corrovabias "Island of Bali".

Hooked!.......2002-05-20

Ever since I visited Bali in 1997, I've been hooked on anything Bali--gamelan music, the wayang puppets, the masks, the smell of kretek ( I don't smoke) and incense, frangipani flowers,... even the sputtering sound of motorcycles! I got my hands on all the National Geographic issues on Bali I could lay my hands on in second-hand bookshops .

When I found this book, I was almost certain I wasn't going to be disappointed. I was right. Consider, for instance, the blurb at the back of the book: "The graveryard, moreover, was a natural meeeting-place for witches and sorcerers, for every village had its suspects, owneres of books of spells that enabled the reader to change himself into a leyak--a ball of fire, a giant rat, or even a riderless motor cycle that travelled backwards. In this magic state sorcerers were indeed dangerous; they could send a man out of his wits or bring him to a lingering death."

Book Description

These are the personal memories of an elderly man who, as a child was closely acquainted with Beethoven. Gerhard von Breuning, the son of one of Beethoven’s oldest friends, was favorite of the ageing composer, who delighted in the boy’s frequent visits. This first-hand account provides us with telling details about Beethoven’s daily life, his personality, and his relationships with family and friends. It is as a clear-eyed witness of Beethoven’s final illness that Breuning is particularly compelling, providing graphic reports on the atmostphere of the sick-room, the course of the medical treatment and Beethoven’s death throes after he despaired both of his doctor and of his life and, muttering ‘Oh, that ass!’, turned his face to the wall. This is the first ever English translation of a fascinating document. The Beethoven scholar, Maynard Solomon, has provided many explanatory notes as well as a full and informative introduction. A permanent contribution to the Beethoven literature, this book provides a sensitive and unique insight into the life of the composer during his later years.

Customer Reviews:

A wonderful little book!.......2007-06-04

The previous reviewer did an excellent job in describing this book but I must give the book five stars. There is not much more I can add. The book is written in a delightful, honest, sensitive, and engrossing manner. What the previous reviewer wrote is true. Gerhard did come to address Beethoven in a familiar rather than a more formal manner. And Beethoven nicknamed the boy "Trouserbutton" as their close and loving relationship developed. Beethoven is shown as the man rather than the sometimes difficult genius we read about. What a gift Gerhard von Breuning has given us in recording his memories for later generations!
One thing I must comment on is how Beethoven is described to have faced impending death with grace and dignity. Beethoven had to have been in incredible pain during those last months. Not only did Beethoven suffer greatly from his disease but horrible bedsores were discovered when Beethoven's body was moved after his death. Yet it is recorded that he rarely complained.
I cannot imagine anyone not thoroughly enjoying this book. This is a book that I will keep in my personal library for a very long time.

REMEMBERING BEETHOVEN........1999-07-29

By its nature, what's most obvious can easily escape our attention, so it may be worth noting that Beethoven's era is beyond the recall of any living person. Theoretically, there might now be some living centenarian whose grandfather could have known him, or at least been in his presence and spoken with him - but this is conceptual, and though conjecture is fruitless it's still fascinating. We can't talk with Beethoven or his intimates, none of whom lived into the 20th century - but here one of them operatively speaks to us, if not literally then surely effectively.

Edited by Maynard Solomon and translated for the first time from the original German by him and Henry Mins, the book FROM THE HOUSE OF THE BLACK SPANIARD - REMEMBRANCES OF BEETHOVEN FROM MY YOUTH was authored by Dr. Gerhard von Breuning and first published in Vienna in 1874.

The title is fitting. As a 12-year-old, the author (whose father was a close friend of the composer) was privy to Beethoven's inner circle and played a small but important role in the composer's daily existence during the last year and a half of his life. He helped him in various ways by assisting with his correspondence, running special errands, helping him keep order in his dwelling, and doing what he could during Beethoven's last illness. The boy eventually developed for the composer a feeling approaching worship. Beethoven reciprocated this devotion by guiding some of the boy's musical education. When the young Gerhard eventually asked the older man's permission to address him with the familiar Du (rather than the formal Sie), the boy was overjoyed when Beethoven consented.

Dr. Solomon says in the book's introduction, "Like many children, Gerhard was a keen observer of small details..." This boy, who became a respected Viennese physician, evidently was the early 19th-century counterpart of today's "kid who doesn't miss a thing" (even pinpointing in his book such details as the exact location and number of windows of Beethoven's street-facing top floor apartment). His precision was fortunate and significant for posterity: it extended even to the minutest specifics about Beethoven's dwelling, personality and character, mood swings, daily conversations about his circumstances, personal preferences and other matters now irretrievably beyond our reach and forever lost. Often even the smallest details, about any subject, can be keys to opening large doors behind which are answers to some important questions. Beethoven's life was dramatic enough without the need for embellishment a-la-Hollywood, and von Breuning illuminates his subject from the real-world viewpoint.

His book takes its name from the building, the Schwarzspanierhaus (House of the Black Spaniard) - Beethoven's last residence, and where he died on Monday, March 26, 1827. In Vienna today, the site of the house (demolished ca.1904) is Schwarzspanierstrasse 15, marked with a memorial plaque and the characteristic red and white Austrian banner. In his day the address was 200 Alsergrund am Glacis. Because of its Beethoven connection the street was later renamed Schwarzspanierstrasse: the composer's swarthy complexion in his youth prompted some to call him The Black Spaniard - which in turn might have been what induced a few revisionist claims in our day that the composer was negro.

When Gerhard von Breuning died in 1892 he was the last survivor of those who had personally known Beethoven. Though his accounts were written late in life, he was there to witness the events of the composer's last years. This gives us not only a more immediate picture, but perhaps more importantly, bottom-line details which shed a bright light on what transpired more than a century and a half ago. This proximity gives special value to accounts like these.

Among the book's photographs are Beethoven's desk, the entrance hall and main door to the very apartment he occupied in the Schwarzspanierhaus, the building's exterior, an intriguiging floor plan of the actual dwelling, and Gerhard von Breuning himself in old age.

Perhaps the most compelling illustration is a superb photograph of Beethoven's life-mask, made by Franz Klein in 1812. It's compelling because it offers a literal glimpse into the past: Beethoven lived before the advent of photography, but this life mask represents him effectively as he looked at 42 and gives us the most accurate rendering we have of his physical features. Artists might disagree - but this illustration, by its very immediacy, seems to enlarge and strengthen the links in the chain that binds us to our own musical history.

Von Breuning's reports range from the humorous and fascinating - about Beethoven's fondness for puns and sarcasm - to the exasperating and even heartbreaking: Gerhard was devastated when as a young adult the numerous handwritten notes he had received from Beethoven were inadvertently discarded by a servant who thought they were trash.

This book is for those who want to know about Beethoven from someone who truly knew him. Historians compile and present an amalgam of data; author von Breuning via editor Solomon takes us into a courtroom and displays primary evidence unsullied by the traditional legendary gloss, the ghosts of myth, and the passage of more than 17 decades. Though no-one's memory is infallible, he still places before us, devoid of cosmetic veneer, the raw material from which we can experience our own reactions, form our own opinions, and draw our own conclusions.

The editor of this work has prepared a book that can be read and enjoyed by both reader and scholar. It's content is authentic, not synthetic - a treasury of material taken from a primary source: someone who literally knew Beethoven and who reports from this distinctive perspective. There are few if any substitutes for accounts like these, and a more superlative book of this type would be hard to imagine.

There's no other book quite like it so its singularity makes it quite special. About Beethoven there are countless tomes, perhaps more than about any other composer, but this book provides something rather unique, which adds to its value: a compendium of fascinating details that would be difficult, if not altogether impossible, to find in any other single volume. The book is, in a word, superb and for both the reader and researcher can be enjoyable, even fascinating and, perhaps more importantly, enlightening reading.

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Somewhere in the middle of this blunt autobiography, Merle Haggard talks about the "art called country music" and describes it astutely as "emotion set to rhythm." "A song was an excuse," he writes, "to sing some of the sentimental things." Perhaps it's not surprising, then, that when Haggard attempts the unsung word he's oddly terse, dry, and emotionless--despite his roaring successes and multiple misfortunes. Haggard is nothing if not frank, although his candid storytelling often becomes sensationalistic. For example, his five-year coke orgy during the late '70s and early '80s warrants the opening chapter of an otherwise chronological tale. The death of his father when Haggard was 9 is clearly the defining moment of his life, yet we have to get past his wet T-shirt phase before we hear about it.

Haggard spends well more than half the book recounting his early-life travails--revolving-door stays in institutions, halls, reform schools, jails, and prisons of every sort. His misspent-youth stories are enthralling in a certain way, but he seems to tell them from the perspective of either a child who doesn't understand what's happening or an elder who has the benefit of experience--never from the perspective of a man going through these horrors at the time. He even writes on a number of occasions that he looks at his younger self as a completely different person, which may explain why his accounts often lack emotional depth. He recalls (often crudely) his numerous fights, drunken escapades, sexual conquests (stories about wanting to "get into her pants"), and many other sordid details (must we hear the story about his steel player farting during a show?) to the point that what gets short shrift, unfortunately, is his brilliant music. In a way, though, a memoir like this makes perfect sense because Haggard has never pulled any punches. And while the book doesn't offer many of his own insights, it certainly presents a clear picture of his remarkable life, which allows readers to draw their own conclusions about his personality and his music. Perhaps we should be thankful Haggard saves his emotions for his songs--they always make for thrilling listening. --Marc Greilsamer

Book Description

Country music's award-winning and best-selling recording artist, Merle Haggard, brings us his long-awaited new autobiography, Merle Haggard's My House of Memories--a riveting account of Haggard's extremely turbulent and successful life. Picking up where his 1982 autobiography, Sing Me Back Home, left off, Haggard recounts his earliest childhood memories, revealing previously untold stories about his birth and troubled upbringing in a converted railroad boxcar. He recalls the innocence of the 1950s, when a boy could safely ride the rails with hobos and share their transient camps. He talks about his father's death when Merle was nine and how his childish disobedience soon erupted into full-blown delinquency.

In a thrilling narrative, he takes us on several high speed getaways from the California law and straight inside the state's homes for the criminally delinquent. On his nineteenth birthday, we follow him inside San Quentin and read a chilling account about a cellmate who begs Merle to join him in an escape that ultimately ends with the man's death. Haggard also recalls his befriending of Caryl Chessman, the notorious 1950s serial rapist, and the time they shared before Chessman's execution.

Having lived a life marked by violence, gambling, and drugs, Merle shares the lessons he learned and how he continues to pay for decades of reckless living. He discloses that after earning more than a hundred million dollars, he's virtually broke. Merle reflects on how he felt at that bittersweet hour seven years ago, as he stood at his wife's bedside during the delivery of their son--and was served bankruptcy papers. And he recalls his family's move into a house so decayed that cattle literally roamed inside. He still lives there, amid improvements, today.

Haggard relives the painful memory of the death of his mother, who a year earlier, unbeknownst to him, had written her life story in longhand. He reveals his astonishment at learning of her 1906 covered-wagon journey at age four, from Arkansas to Oklahoma, and of how she had to live underground in an earthen dugout. Merle had never known of his mother's life in the Southwest and the fears and hardships she faced.

As one of the industry's most respected artists, Merle Haggard still makes music for music's sake and does it with the enthusiasm of an apprentice. He plays several hours a day, every day, on and off the stage and speaks of the emotional salvation the eight notes of the music scale afford him.

My House of Memories captures the triumph of the human spirit through the power of persistence, through the power of love he finally discovered during his fifth marriage, and through the unsurpassed the joy of reentering fatherhood at age fifty-four. It is an exciting and moving account of the tumultuous life of a songwriter, singer, guitarist, and arranger whose words have earned him international renown as the poet of the common man.

Customer Reviews:

Somewhat entertaining, somewhat annoying.......2007-03-17

Merle Haggard admits in the preface that prose is not his strong suit; based on this book, the same can be said of professional writer Tom Carter. Yet leaving grammar and flow aside, this book tells some interesting and occasionally funny stories about one of the greatest singers and writers of country songs, and is worth reading for any fan.

The "annoying" part is of course subjective, but here is an example where Hag explains in two short paragraphs his decision to home school his children:

"Some folks contend that I'll be shielding my kids from the real world with home schooling. Nonsense. My kids have all their adult lives for the real world. They'll prepare for it in a controlled world--a world controlled by love.
"And Theresa and I love to see their personalities unfold without the influence of other youngsters. My kids have their own identities, not some other child's. The fall of 1999 will mark Ben's entry into first grade, Jenessa's into fourth."

You be the judge.

Good... but still waiting for a definitive bio.......2006-04-01

If you're a fan, of course you have to read this. It's great fun. But you'll be highly aware throughout that there's a crying need for a really thorough and thoughtful Haggard biography, and that maybe Hag is not the greatest analyist of his own life, at least in book form.

One book you may be interested in is "Rednecks & Bluenecks: The Politics of Country Music," published just a few months ago. There is an extensive interview with Haggard in there about his political beliefs and attitudes, which have of course tended to seem all over the map over the years. He gets off some real zingers. The last chapter is all about Haggard and Cash, trying to figure both of their conflicted personas out. The book also gets into the Dixie Chicks vs. Toby Keith, the development of outlaw country and alt-country, the history of anti-protester protest songs (like "Fightin' Side of Me"), and so on, with interviews with most of today's top country stars and a few key old-timers.

Entertaining.......2005-01-26

If you are a fan of Merle Haggard, you owe it to yourself to read this book.

Still love the music.......2002-08-29

This is possibly the worst book Ive ever read. The book is done in seventh grade grammer about a not too bright person. It has very little to say about anything other than His rambling thru life from one scrape to another due to inmaturity and bad judgement. Merle mentions He was taken advantage of by Managers, friends, record producers, etc; Well......... I think He was taken for another ride by the author of this book! But.... still love the music !

Entertaining and revealing story.......2002-06-13

I enjoyed reading this book about a singer whose music I've always loved. Tom Carter did a good job with the chatty style, and I liked Merle's humor and honesty and humility. I highly recommend the book.

My 33 Years Inside the House of Cash: A Special Tribute to My Closest Friends : Johnny, June, and Mother Maybelle

Average customer rating:

Thank You
Thank you Peggy for a heartwarming tribute. Loved your book.
Wonderful book for fans of Johnny Cash and June Carter
All she was after is fame and glory
Don't Believe The Low Rating!

My 33 Years Inside the House of Cash: A Special Tribute to My Closest Friends : Johnny, June, and Mother Maybelle
Peggy Knight
Manufacturer: Premium Press America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1887654925

Customer Reviews:

Thank You.......2007-08-26

I for one enjoyed this book a lot ! I did not feel she was putting any one down and it was just the way she saw things. She had to be doing something right to last with them for thirty three years. Only John carter knows why he felt she had to be let go and I don't fault him for that either. I just really enjoyed the little inside story's that only she could tell. It was a lot better read than" I Was there When It Happened" I think any Cash-Carter fan would enjoy this book and hope life goes well for Peggy Knight. Marcia

Thank you Peggy for a heartwarming tribute. Loved your book........2006-12-21

I think both E. Northrop's and Marcella Jessup's one-star ratings of this book are way off base, and they both miss the point entirely of what this book is all about. I found Peggy's story heartwarming and spiritual, and the negative criticisms of those two morons really makes my blood boil, especially the disgusting comment about Peggy wanting all the money. That reviewer should not judge other people by her own rotten set of standards. Obviously, there's not much substance to either of these idiots, and clearly each one has the mentality of a grape. I believe every word Peggy says. She is a good person. If she were not, John would have fired her years ago. But she was there for 33 years. She loved John and June, and they loved her. The person who triggered her termination was John Carter, and nobody else. And I have my own thoughts about that one. As for all the children of Cash/Carter, I do not feel there is any animosity written here about any of them, only the truth. And sometimes the truth is not pretty. But the truth IS the truth, so I say to those two reviewers, GET REAL. I deeply felt Peggy's pain in her final chapters, and haven't stopped crying since I read her book. Thank you, Peggy, for sharing your personal stories with us. Your book is a treasure.

Wonderful book for fans of Johnny Cash and June Carter.......2006-06-09

If you are Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash fans you will enjoy this book. I was a fan before, but after finishing this book I am an even bigger fan. Wonderful contributions were made by these two and their family from beginning to end. I do not understand the negative reviews I had previously read. As the saying goes, "One person's rags may be another's treasure. What one may perceive as oddities and quirks, another may consider the most loving colorful character traits. I feel this is how the author saw these people and loved them.
The book is an easy read. I finished it in two enjoyable days.

All she was after is fame and glory.......2006-04-15

I can't understand how someone who lived with the Cash's 33 yrs.and put down just about everyone, except June, Johnny, Maybelle and expecially herself. You would think she was the queen of sheba. The book is more about her then the Cash family. I detected she didn't like the kids at all. All she could brag about was the money they would give her or prized posessions. How they bought her stuff all the time. I could see why John Carter Cash wanted her out of the house. She probably expected to get the whole Cash fortune.

Don't Believe The Low Rating!.......2006-04-07

I bought this book at a used bookstore and when I started reading it, I couldn't put it down for two days, until I eventually finished it. I highly disagree with the person who rated this book one star. I think that Peggy Knight showed enormous respect for Mother Maybelle, June, and Johnny. She talked about how good they were. How they were always willing to talk to fans and how they never wanted to see anyone hurting (physically or for money). She tells some great stories and I read things in here that I would never have read otherwise. One being that June loved to drive her cars fast (130 mph!) This is a great book. I've read several books on Johnny and June, and this one is one of, if not, the best.

Crowded House: The Illustrated Biography

Average customer rating:

Crowded House: The Illustrated Biography
Chris Twomey , and Kerry Doole
Manufacturer: Omnibus Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 071194816X

Louis Armstrong: The Offstage Story of Satchmo

Average customer rating:

The Coolest Dude Who Ever Lived
Great Book!
A great gift for any Louis Armstrong fan

Louis Armstrong: The Offstage Story of Satchmo
Michael Cogswell
Manufacturer: Collectors Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1888054816

Book Description

One of the most celebrated and beloved jazz musicians, trumpeter and vocalist Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong (1901-1971), had hit recordings for 50 years, appeared in more than 30 motion pictures, and performed all over the world. His music is still heard everywhere today, yet few people know of his life outside the spotlight. After the death of Armstrong's wife, Lucille, in 1983, archivists were astonished to find that their Queens, New York, house held a treasure trove of home-recorded reel-to-reel tapes, photographs, scrapbooks, papers, gold-plated trumpets, and more. These materials have been preserved in the Louis Armstrong Archives at Queens College while the Armstrong house undergoes renovation before opening as a national historic museum in the fall of 2003. LOUIS ARMSTRONG: THE OFFSTAGE Story OF SATCHMO is the official guide to the stunning collection of the Louis Armstrong House & Archive. It includes a wealth of original autobiographical manuscripts, candid photos, and transcripts from the musician's private recordings—published here for the first time.

Customer Reviews:

The Coolest Dude Who Ever Lived.......2007-05-02

This is a wonderful book about a spectacular talent who brought an immeasurable amount of joy to the world. Looking through the hundreds of photos of Louis, one can't help but be charmed by Louis's infectious beaming smile. Reading through the book, I just kept thinking that Louis might have been the coolest person who ever lived. I wish I could have met him, let alone heard him play.

Great Book!.......2003-12-16

You will love this book. A ton of rare high quality photographs right from his and wife lucille's private picture albums and scrapbooks. Good writing too in the book that will hold the reader's interest. I agree with the other reviewer in that it makes you want to check out the actual house he once lived in that is open to all fans as a museum.

A great gift for any Louis Armstrong fan.......2003-11-25

This is a wonderful coffee table book, perfect for paging through while listening to your favorite Louis Armstrong recordings. The photographs include include wonderful candid shots of Louis both on and offstage (despite the title). The book also has some great anecdotal material regarding Louis' life and work. Perusing this book has made me look forward to visiting the newly opened Armstrong House museum in Queens the next time I get back to NYC. A real treasure for the fan of Armstrong's music.

Sinatra: The Life (Random House Large Print (Paper))

Average customer rating:

Sinatra: All about MUSIC, MOLLS, MOB and MEMORIES. He did it his way and he didn't care what anyone else thought about it!
Mob and Sex
Doing Things "His Way"
This book is a disgrace
drinking, sex and the mob, not enough about the art

Sinatra: The Life (Random House Large Print (Paper))
Anthony Summers , and Robbyn Swan
Manufacturer: Random House Large Print
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0375435492
Release Date: 2005-05-17

Book Description

Packed with revelations, this is the first complete account of a career built on raw talent, sheer willpower--and criminal connections. Anthony Summers--bestselling author of Goddess: The Secret Lives of Marilyn Monroe--and Robbyn Swan unveil stunning new information about Sinatra’s links to the Mafia, his crowded love life and his tangled relationships with U.S. presidents. Exclusive breakthroughs include the discovery of how the Mafia connection began--in a remote Sicilian village--and moving interviews with his lovers. Never-before-published conversations with Ava Gardner get to the core of the tragic passion that dominated his life, came close to destroying him, and made his best work heartbreakingly personal. Sinatra delivers the full life story of a complex, flawed genius.

From the Trade Paperback edition.

Customer Reviews:

Sinatra: All about MUSIC, MOLLS, MOB and MEMORIES. He did it his way and he didn't care what anyone else thought about it!.......2007-08-08

Francis Albert Sinatra (1915-1998) grew up in a lower middle class home in Hoboken, New Jersey. Frank's parents were from immigrant Italian families; mother Dolley was a strong community figure working with politicians and mobsters as she performed abortions. His father Marty held a succession of jobs; was a boxer and was uxorioius in his relationships with the strong Mrs Sinatra.
Frank dropped out of school and was a mama's only child petted and pampered. He began singing at local clubs eventually landing a stint with the Harry James and Tommy Dorsey bands as lead singer. Girls went wild for him at the Paramount Theatre; he went to Hollywood where he made movies (winning an Oscar for best supporting actor for his "Maggio" charcter in "From Here To Eternity." Ole Blue Eyes performed in nightclubs and theatres throughout the USA and the world. He loved Los Vegas performing for many years at the mob owned Sands Hotel. He and his rat pack playmates Dean Martin, Joey Bishop, Sammy Davis Jr. and Shirley McClaine stood at the top of the entertainment ladder of accomplishments.
Summers and his spouse Robbyn Summers have done their research in this well chronicled career. Over 100 pages of footnotes and 300 reference books as well as over 500 interviews lend credence to their assertions regarding the singer's Cosa Nostra ties. The mob forced Tommy Dorsey to release Frank from his contract or face personal retaliation. Later film studio head Harry Cohn was forced to cast Sinatra in "From Here to Eternity' or face mob violence.
Frank was a friend of such notorious organized crime figures as Lucky Luciano; Frank Costello, Sam Giacanna and others. He served as a go-between between the Kennedy family and the mob during JFK's presidential campaign of 1960. Sinatra would later become a Republican who was friendly with the Reagan family.
Frank was an alcoholic and a lifetime womanizer. He wed his teenage sweetheart Nancy by whom he had three children: Nancy, Frank Jr. and Tina. Sinatra may also have fathered illegitimate children. The great love of his life was Ava Gardner whom he wed on November 7, 1951. The tempestuous duo fought, drank and were unfaithful during their short marriage. Sinatra later wed Mia Farrow who was over 20 years his junior.
His last wife was Barbara Marx the divorced wife of Zeppo Marx. Barbara was a Vegas showgirl who was not liked by the Sinatra family.
Sinatra was a great singer with such hits as "I Did It My Way:; "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning; "New York, New York", "Nancy With the Smiling Face", "Night and Day" and "Strangers in the Night."
He was not a very nice man. He could be cruel often being up columnists and erstwhile friends in public places. He often lied about his mob friends. Sinatra could become violent in a second with a hair-trigger temper and a Dr. Jekyll/Mr Hyde personality. The kid from Hoboken was intelligent enjoying serious reading, classical music and art.
The material garnered by Summers and Swan makes for a good celebrity biography of a complex figure of American popular culture. I recommend it to anyone interested in Sinatra or the Mob in America.

Mob and Sex.......2007-03-20

To be short, if you're interested in Sinatra's sex life and Mafia connections, that's your book. But if you want to know more about his music or his career as an actor, skip it.
Nevertheless all the authors' effort to be "objective", the fact is they simply don't like Sinatra, and try, all the time, to desconstruct the mith. But as someone has said: "a world without heroes is like a world without sun".

Doing Things "His Way".......2006-10-23

Sinatra: romantic rogue or front man for the mob. Probably both, though which part predominates will likely never be settled. His life and career are presented in some detail in the Summers-Swan book, which I picked up because of Summers' reputation for unflinching jounalism. All in all, I wasn't disappointed. The various phases of Sinatra's long and controversial life are presented with little editorial comment, excepting an outspoken admiration for the vocal artistry. Critics who claim editorial bias or warmed-over news have lttle textual support for the former and a lack of understanding of the latter. And if the facts too often reflect poorly on Sinatra's character, I take that to be the result of having done things " his way", rather than the result of a slanted account. The absence of material on the singer's family life amounts to the book's biggest deficiency, the consequence of Nancy and the children's refusal to be interviewed. Too bad, because that would have provided additional insight.

Whatever the truth behind the tawdry altercations and underworld associations, their frequency and nature add up to an unmistakably abusive pattern. Here the truth lies in the whole. One serious example concerns Sinatra's relations with the carnally-obsessed JFK. It seems that in stoking his ego by setting up "dates" for the president, Sinatra remains unfazed by the fact that he is also opening up the highest office in the land to mob blackmail. In fact, neither man appears much concerned with the possible consequences of their careless actions. And while some may romanticize the culture of organized crime, the mob nevertheless remains one of the single most corruptive forces in our land. And that's the main reason for taking an interest in Sinatra's life, in particular. There are hundreds of abusive, ego-driven celebrities with shady connections in Hollywood-- the nature of show business breeds them. But few have ever wielded the clout or dwelled so centrally at the crucial intersection of pop culture, politics, and organized crime as Sinatra. His life story thus amounts to much more than one more cynical rags-to-riches anecdote from Tinsel Town.

This book is a disgrace.......2006-08-28

This book was a compendium of every negative and unsubtantiated event that ever took place in the legendary singers life. It is full of third handed accounts that attempted to get beyond the reported story and tried to convince you that Sinatra was the most despicable human to ever walk the face of the earth.

It is filled with inaccuracies, such as the movie Guys and Dolls was a weak attempt at re-creating the Broadway Play, when the opposite is closer to the truth and that it has been hailed by many famous producers and directors as being one of the greatest musicals ever brought to screen. Or that Shirley McClaine when touring with Sinatra in the 1990's was the last surviving Rat Pack member when just about everybody knows that Joey Bishop is still alive and well.

I actually learned nothing from this book about the Man. The authors intent to discredit Sinatra and portray him as some kind of monster prevented any truly insightful look into his personality. If you believe the conclusions this book led you to, Sinatra was an alcoholic, rapist, communist, draft dodger, and a bag boy for the mafia. In fact it was even suggested Sinatra had a hand in the Kennedy assasination.

If you absolutely detest Sinatra then this is the book for you. It will confirm all of your psychotic notions about the man and you'll also descend into this fictional, sensationalized account of a great entertainer who deserved a better fate than to be portrayed as an insecure low life.

drinking, sex and the mob, not enough about the art.......2006-06-17

Summers dwells on and on about Sinatra's drinking, his women, his mob ties and his meanness. All very interesting, much of it new and revealing. One is left with a bitter, smarmy confusion about this icon of the American music scene. John Lahr once wrote a splendid piece about Sinatra's artistry of the singer in the New Yorker. Summers spends little space on the artistry of the singer and the significant contributions of Nelson Riddle. One wonders why not complete the portrait of Sinatra more than Summers did. the book would have been far more fulfilling.

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