Two Words, One Answer.
humanity
 Humanities through the Arts $58.94 Ordered the book and it arrived ahead of anticipated time. Very good condition. Great company.  A Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity $26.00 A friend at work let me borrow this book over the Thanksgiving holiday. I know of Mr. O'Reilly of course, but do not watch his show. As my other reviews indicate, I generally have a strong distaste for cable news. Still, I thought it might be interesting to read about one of these people who have made it such a phenomenon. And I do have to say, parts of it were rather good. I very much liked the story of his father in the Great Depression, and about his childhood classmates he remembers fondly. A certain humanity came through in those little vignettes that I found charming and touching. But the rest, I have to admit, left me terribly put out for the following reasons. 1) The editor of this book should be shot. Not only would a chronological telling better suit what O'Reilly had in mind, but the structure of the book makes it cloudy and confusing. The writing and editing is really sour, almost to the level of reading like a "rush job." 2) The "little vignettes" that are the book's strength would have been better standing alone as small fables or meditations, perhaps as a kind of "collection." As is, surrounded as they are by other, competing narratives of far less force and consideration, they become far more "watered down" than they should otherwise be. In other words, the strengths of the book are wasted in the chosen format. 3) Mr. O'Reilly - well - needs to lay off the comedy. He's a horrendously bad comedian, even sometimes to the point of being mean-spirited with no purpose I can see than just sheer "cussedness." Some people may find that appealing. I do not. Curmudgeonly humor is very difficult to pull off, and he needs a lot more practice. And, again, this is not necessarily a reflection on the author so much as the serious weakness in editing. 4) Of course, this book is autobiographical, so I do not understand the criticism that the author "talks about himself too much." That's what any autobiography does. But, autobiography at its best should also strive for honesty. Some of his observations about himself and his life were, frankly, self-promoting to the point of being repetitiously vapid, even at times weirdly "messianic." I could just get no sense of the person except in brief flashes, and I have to wonder if perhaps he should have waited until his retirement to attempt this kind of work. Where the man stopped and the television niche personality began I could not say, and it is worrisome to think that perhaps he himself has a hard time discerning the difference (assuming, hopefully, there is one). So I have to say that this book is very weak tea and hardly worth the "new" list price. But, for O'Reilly fans, I have a suspicion that this is one of those books that might SOUND better than it actually reads, so I would check out the audio format (which I have not). That medium may be much more delivery effective and a better buy than the book itself. No recommendation.  Divine Soul Mind Body Healing and Transmission System Special Edition: The Divine Way to Heal You, Humanity, Mother Earth, and All Universes $49.95 gr8 book worth a read. lots of fabulous info. Divine Soul Mind Body Healing and Transmission System Special Edition: The Divine Way to Heal You, Humanity, Mother Earth, and All Universes |
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