Review of "Seven Years in Tibet" by Heinrich Harrer

Undoubtedly made famous by the film of the same name starring Brad Pitt, Seven Years in Tibet, as is usually the case, is a better book.  The story is visually stunning on screen, but the hardships and troubles Heinrich Harrer and his partner experience getting to and surviving in the Himalayan kingdom are revealed in more affective and detailed fashion on the page. Having almost a fictional feel due to larger-than-life size of the story, Harrer’s autobiography of his transition from prisoner in India to adviser to the Dali Lama makes for amazing reading.

Working as an Austrian mountaineer at the outbreak of Word War II, Harrer was suddenly “the enemy” in British occupied India as Germany attacked in Europe.  Placed in an internment camp at the base of the Himalayas, Harrer bided his time and eventually escaped along with Peter Aufschnaiter.  Their escape did not immediately reap benefits, however.  The greatest mountain range in the world greeting them, the pair’s plight through the Himalayas tested every bit of integrity and will to survive they possessed, and is a great travelogue by itself for anyone interested in survival stories of the range.  Staggering into the Shangri-la kingdom in the Tibetan plateau months later, suffering the long-term effects of altitude sickness as well as bone and nerve issues, they hoped life would get better.  Learning of the strange white men who’d found their way into his land, the Dali Lama, then just a boy, opened communication with the duo, and was soon absorbing every ounce of knowledge they had of the outside world.  The rest history, it’s this relationship, and the titular seven years the two spent in Tibet that are the truly poignant side of the tale.

Review of "The Cat from Hue" by John Laurence

John Laurence, a young television reporter for CBS news, was sent to the front to cover the Vietnam War in 1965. Though barely surviving some situations, Laurence would go on to serve two additional “tours of duty”. It is this experience, along with personal reflection and commentary on the social and political arenas of Vietnam and the US that would later be collected in The Cat from Hue.  Interesting reading, those wishing to look deeper into life on the front lines in America’s war in Vietnam and media in the US should have a read.

A devil-may-care attitude is not precisely the mindset with which Laurence arrived in the southeast Asian country at war. It’s fair to say, however, his relative youth played a hand in repressing his fears and being somewhat innocent regarding American political interests in the region. The more time he spends at the front, however, interacting with soldiers and dealing with the contradictions and propaganda produced by not only the government but his own news agency, slowly drives Laurence to take his opinion of the war in the direction of much of America’s counter-culture, though naturally with a higher degree of sympathy for the soldiers and veterans and the clashing expectation from each side.

Review of "An Outline History of China" by Bai Shouyi

Having one of the earliest recorded in the world, China’s history becomes even more interesting when one learns it is unbroken.  From the 3,600 years ago to modern day, scholars and historians have kept record of the Middle Kingdom’s events—amazing considering the multiple fragmentations and government transitions.  When China’s Foreign Language Press decided to publish this history in 1982, they called upon Bai Shouyi, a man with impeccable credentials, to condense 5,000 years into a book.  The 800 page An Outline History of China is the result.

Often when a person needs something, it’s best to go to the source.  Such as it is with An Outline History of China.  Bai being Chinese and having complete access to historical archives, the book is flooded with data and information coming directly from actual records and the work of thousands of years of Chinese historians.  Of particular interest is the early history of China.  Dynasties numerous and important figures even more so, I will not even begin to relate a summary of this, but suffice to say Bai’s work can be considered the authoritative version of matters in China before the 2nd millennium.  In this regard, the book is invaluable.

Review of "The Explorers" by Tim Flannery

For those who are unfamiliar with Australian geography, take a look at any topographical map of the continent.  Roughly 70% is covered in dry land, most of which is arid desert seeing little to no rain throughout the year.  Inhospitable to say the least, this knowledge was known only to the Aborigines when Europeans began settling the land more than 300 years ago.  White man’s ambitions being what they are, the desert was seen as something to be conquered and an obstacle to be "discovered" as more and more foreigners began settling the land.  In following, numerous parties set out with differing goals in mind, some to find mythical places, others to be the first to cross continent, or be the first to plant a flag at the center.  Not all the expeditions successful, Tim Flannery’s The Explorers: Stories of Discovery and Adventure from the Australian Frontier collects the “best of” of journal entries from those who braved the endless desert—only the words living on to tell of the experience for some.

Most if not all of the explorers and expeditions Flannery includes will be known to Australians.  They include the Sturt expedition (he brought a boat thinking to find a huge lake in the center), Ernest Giles (who wisely turned around after getting lost a few times), and the famous Burkes and Wills’ (from which only the journals survived of the expedition leaders).  Each having its own angle on Australia’s interior, the landscape and its harsh realities come to life as each viewpoint adds itself to the previous.  Hot, dry, and endless are only the beginning.

Review of "The Tale of the Heike" trans. by Helen McCullough

One hundred and fifty years after the turn of time’s hourglass, BC to AD, the Chinese were in the midst of a major dynasty change.  A time called the “Three Kingdoms”, the period was later epitomized as the perfect example of how dynasties vacillate between unity, fragmentation, and unity once again.  Centuries later the history was published, including a romanticized version of events called simply The Three Kingdoms.  Japan experiencing its own transition of dynasties at the end of the 12th century, The Tale of the Heike is the country’s analogous work of literature.  Its is no less powerful.

The Tale of the Heike is the story of the transition of power from the Taira to the Minamoto clan.  The groundswell beginning several years before the Genjei War which decided matters, the book opens with a slip in the Taira’s power base many decades prior.  Taking years for this slip to manifest itself as a major weakness, the surrounding events are described and woven into the full political context of the kingdom at that time.  Phase by phase, individual maneuver by maneuver, the machinations and plots of the Minamoto clan slowly reveal themselves.  And in telling of the rise to power, not only cabals and battles fill the pages.  Earthquakes, assassinations, mass executions, and major fires—all from real history—flesh out the change of dynasty, giving the history an edged interest.

Review of "Rising '44: The Battle for Warsaw" by Norman Davies

His wife from the country and the two owning a home there in addition to a residence in Britain, Poland is once again the setting of a Norman Davies’ book.  But where God’s Playground and Poland, Past and Present survey the history of Polish culture (must be ‘culture’ as for significant time periods no country existed) from various perspectives, Rising ’44: The Battle for Warsaw focuses on a two month event that occurred in Warsaw toward then end of WWII.  Germany feeling the effects of its losses on other warfronts around the world, in mid-1944 the underground Polish remaining in Warsaw saw hope that their city could be reclaimed and staged a rebellion to coincide with the arrival of their allies, the mighty Soviet Red Army.  The outcome of the situation could only have been more tragic for those who lived through it.

Davies divides Rising ’44 into three sections: stage setting, the uprising itself, and the aftermath.  Rather than attempting to outlay the players and game board in linear fashion, Davies opts to divide the first section into three parts: the Germans, the Russians, and the Poles and their allies.  Each group is introduced, their goals outlined, and status set at the time just preceding the rebellion.  Having the effect of three roads converging at an intersection, the uprising bursts from the text in affective detail at the start of the second section.  

Based on the amount of data included, trivial to vital, Davies and his team examined all available records related to the plight of the native Poles and Jews in hiding in Warsaw in the summer of 1944.  Their underground routed through a network of sewers and tunnels, the Poles—with promised but limited assistance from British, Russian, and American allies—maintained their position with guerilla warfare throughout the war, using and salvaging the most basic of weapons.  The Germans never able to fully exterminate them, in August and September that year the Poles switched into full attack mode in the belief their Russian allies arriving on the city’s doorstep would step in and help.  The final section of the book deals with the aftermath of this battle, in particular the state of Polish society and politics from the end of the rebellion until now.  

For those with more than background knowledge of WWII, the opening section can be skipped as many other books offer more exhaustive detail about the movement and mindset of allied and axis powers during the war prior to 1944.  The Warsaw Uprising itself, however, is not to be missed.  The focus of the book, Davies brings it to life in both touching and graphic detail.  Diaries, official documents, written accounts, and verbal histories are all used toward painting a picture of what life was like for the Poles living and hiding in the city, not to mention fighting to reclaim it.  The food shortages, transportation methods, weapons training, communication with the outside world, even a media network are described as they affected events that transpired.  The Germans only mostly portrayed as ruthless oppressors, many of the individual stories involving interaction between the two sides are emotional and transcend scholarly accounts of history.

Davies’ writing, as usual, strikes a middle ground between cut and dry facts and engaging prose.  Confidently and consistently expressed, the uprising comes to life beneath the author’s pen.  What also comes to life is an acknowledged agenda.  Aside from the main goal of bringing attention to the details of the uprising, another of Davies’ goals in Rising ’44, is to emphasize the negative effects of Stalinism.  Not as subtle as the information related in his Europe: A History, Davies’ version of the Warsaw Uprising condemns Soviet involvement in the situation every bit as much as the Nazi’s.  The aftermath section in particular contains specific examples tailored to highlight the atrocities the Soviet “allies” committed against the Poles during and after the war.  Soviet realpolitik not garnering the attention of Nazism has in the half-century since, Rising ’44 makes further inroads toward bringing to light the darker side of Stalin’s regime.

In the end, Rising ’44 is informative and engaging reading for those interested in the history of Poland and WWII.  While the earlier Europe: A History saw Davies riding on the coattails of previous research, Rising ’44 shows the historian and his team more than capable of doing their homework.  The two month window in the history of Warsaw during WWII is examined from many angles and with specific details.  Though biases against the Nazis and Soviets are undisguised, the text suffers none for it.  An emotionally engaging history of the people living beneath the streets of Warsaw and their rebellion against oppression, this is one of Davies’ best works, the quality of human stories that emerge from the chaos worth the price, alone.

Review of "The 47 Ronin" [trad.]

It is no coincidence that ‘history’ ends with the word ‘story’; events from reality really do make the greatest tales.  The 47 Ronin is precisely that.  A novelized event from the Genroku era of Japanese history (late 17th-early 18th century), it is perhaps the greatest story of revenge ever told, not to mention one of the world’s great tragedies.  A deep expression of loyalty, the lengths Oishi and his fellow ronin go to perform their duties defending the honor of their liege arouses a primal sense of emotion, the suffering and triumph unmatched.  The men’s tombs standing to this day in Tokyo, the 200 years that have since passed have done nothing to diminish the power of this great story—true history.  

The storyline of The 47 Ronin is particularly difficult to comment upon without spoiling major plot points, some of which occur at the very beginning.  (For those not wishing to have the story spoiled, it is best not to read many reviews of the book; taking it all in with a clean slate is the biggest part of the enjoyment.)  Suffice to say, the book has everything a highly entertaining and emotionally affective story should.  Along with the aforementioned attributes, love, trickery, suspense, and sacrifice exist in such proportions as to make the reader doubt the veracity of the book as history.  It should thus be noted that there are two versions of the story told: the romanticized version and that closer to the real history.  John Allyn’s translation (the version being reviewed here) is of the former. 

The timeline, characters, and settings of the romanticized version the same as the historical, the difference amounts mostly to tone.  Purists will comment that details are altered, removed, or created, and yes it is true, however, the street-corner storyteller will tell you that it is well-timed and slight exaggerations combined with packaging the story in the language of novels that renders the romanticized version more engaging than the drier historical version.  Kira, for example, while following the same historical path in each version, is nevertheless capable of producing more despicable comments and damning words in the romanticized version.  Much like the two versions of China’s The Three Kingdoms, each have their advantages, and thus choosing between them is a matter of taste.  (If the reader prefers something more historically accurate, versions of that story are also in print.)  

While not necessary, a small amount of knowledge regarding traditional Japanese culture, particularly samurai codes of honor and propriety, would help the reader fully understand the sense of duty and propriety underlying the deeds and conduct of the daimyos, shoguns, samurais, sing-song girls, and peasants featured in The 47 Ronin.  The translation clear and lucid, Allyn presents the story transparently enough that the mindset motivating what otherwise seems strange behavior to the Western mind can be implicitly understood, extrapolated from context.  Though the cultural backdrop gives the story its depth, knowledge as such is not necessary, the bones of the story touching something more primeval in the human soul.

In the end, The 47 Ronin is one of the great tales of revenge, and given its cultural context, may be the greatest.  (The number of film and television versions of the story in Japan is mindboggling.)  That the story is taken from real history makes it all the more amazing—a thought that trails the reader like a shadow to the end.  Though I have not read other translations of the story, Allyn’s version is accessible, well-paced, engaging, and balances nicely on the line between condescending to the reader’s knowledge of Japan and telling an exotic tale.  The Tale of the Heike and The Tale of Genji may garner more attention from scholars, but The 47 Ronin is for everybody as beneath the culture, history, and samurai lore is a story that lives and breathes at all levels of humanity.  Their monument standing still, Oishi and the 46 other ronin truly deserve a place in people’s hearts and history. 

Review of "Europe: A History" by Norman Davies

Extremely few cultures in the world can lay claim to having recorded their history for more than the past millennia, let alone two or three.  Egypt, Persia, and China have to some extent, however, it is only Europe that has collectively done so consistently—an amazing feat for a continent featuring hundreds of differing, adapting, and warring cultures over the years.  Norman Davies’ undertaking to relate the entire history of Europe, past to present, is ambitious to say the least.  

The result is Europe: A History, a volume more than a 1,300 pages in length, including appendices featuring raw data in the form of graphs, charts, maps, family trees, and statistics in support of the facts supplied in the narrative.  Davies begins in pre-historic times before Europe had a name, slowly breaking down the major events and developments which have brought the continent to where it presently stands.  Not a focus on the glories of Rome and British empires, Davies exhibits and an even hand throughout, doling out page space to the lesser-known cultures and countries of the continent as well.  Poland, Romania, Scandanavia, the former Yugoslavia, etc. all find their place in European history thanks to the attention of Davies.  

As it stands, however, the book is precisely that: an overview of European history.  Readers seeking details of particular places or times should look into historical works more closely related to the region, culture, or era of interest.  Europe is more light reading, at least as light as thousands of years of history compressed into one large volume can be.

When confronting the reading of such a mammoth block of text, it’s important to consider the style of writing.  Poorly written prose unbearable at such a length, Davies does not disappoint.  Occupying a point somewhere between scholarly and contemporary, Davies never leaves the layperson behind in the details or formality of his writing.  At the same time, scholars will appreciate the informative manner in which facts are related. Never condescending to assume the reader is implicitly of certain historical facts, Davies works from square-one, ensuring the material is available to all readers. 

There are potential faults in the book.  Mankind in disagreement over what happened a decade ago, reports on history a thousand years of age are bound to raise a few objectors.  We will leave that to the scholars, however.  A second point may be the lack of anything truly groundbreaking.  The opening line of the preface stating “This book contains little that is original”, readers hoping for something fresh they haven’t encountered in other history books may be disappointed.  Davies writes clearly in the introduction that Europe is a survey rather than intricate or unique look at every detail of the continent’s past.  Thus, scholars be warned nothing new to be found here.  The book is fully intended for people with little knowledge of events as a whole in Europe who want to know more.

In the end, Europe: A History is the best survey of European history currently on the market.  Covering the immense time span of the pre-historic to the end of the 20th century, readers looking for detailed expositions of individual cultures or eras should look elsewhere.  Like an ongoing epic, Davies relates Europe’s history with an eye to the whole, forever conscious of how events in the east affect the west, or how political regimes failing from within allowed weaker kingdoms to rise.  Educated historians perhaps taking issue with some of the data Davies presents (little of history is not contentious), few, however, will argue with the overall scope of outcomes.  Thus, the book comes recommended for anyone looking for an overview of the important events that have shaped the European continent, all written in quality prose.  With an eye to including even the less prominent cultures, it is an interesting story.

Review of "Beethoven" by Barry Cooper

A heady mix of history which focuses on music theory, Cooper’s biography of Beethoven is everything the music scholar could hope for.  The best and lesser known of the great composer’s works are broken down for style, theme, and technique, all in the context of Beethoven’s career.  Thus, for those looking for an in depth look at his personal life, more speculative but perhaps interesting information can be found elsewhere.  If music composition and theory are your bag, however, then by all means check out Cooper’s survey of Beethoven and his work.  Based on the depth each piece is examined, it seems impossible not be disappointed on this front.  For myself, a non-scholar, skipping the super technical yet diving into the thematic expositions has proven itself invaluable listening to the concertos, symphonies, and quartets, since.  Therefore, be warned that in Beethoven, the music not the man takes center stage.

Review of "Microcosm: A Portrait of a Central European City" by Norman Davies & Roger Moorehouse

Another work featuring the second place he calls home, Norman Davies returns to Poland with Microcosm:Portrait of a Central European City, this time bringing the expertise of Roger Moorehouse along with.  Not always known by the name we currently use, Davies and Moorhouse explore the evolution of Wroclaw through the ages, from small river village in European no-man’s land to modern day Polish metropolitan city. 

What makes the history of Wroclaw’s development interesting is its location.  Set nearly at the geographic heart of Europe, the city has had many claimants over the centuries, the modern day Polish occupation of the city mere decades in age.  Prussians, Germans, Piasts, Bohemians and Russians, Habsburgs and Napoleons, and a host of other dynasties and noble families have at one time or another called Wroclaw their own, signs in Germany often still using the name ‘Breslau’ from when the city was their own.  Readers of Davies other tomes, like Europe or The Isles, will find this work not only lighter in weight, but in tone.  Information is still delivered both prosaically and technically, but at the same time in more manageable pieces, closer to general overview than detailed exposition.  The duo’s (and their respective team’s) research is extensive and (as far as I, a non-scholar) can determine, comprehensive. 

Though focusing on German, Polish, and Jewish interests, the stories of the afore-mentioned groups and their roles in shaping the city are well defined, rendering Wroclaw's history a multi-cultural skein.  And despite being sponsored by the city, Davies and Moorhouse include enough negative reports of Polish occupation to lend the work credence.  Certainly not as fascinating as the histories of Paris or Rome, that Wroclaw has constantly been a footnote in the major events of European history has not done anything to prevent it from being an integral part of events as a whole, and by writing Microcosm, Davies and Moorhouse have proved just that.  Recommended for anyone interested in the Central Europe has played in the larger European arena, or someone who has interest in knowing how one city could have been called so many names over the years, Vratislavia, Presslau, Wroclaw, Breslau, Vretslav…