This is an extraordinary piece of non-fiction writing that adds a powerful dimension to the growing literature on the U.S. gun crisis. It presents the story of the AR-15, a firearm that has become a notorious symbol of 'gun rights' activists and other far-right libertarian groups. The narrative charts the complex and highly controversial history of this weapon, including the life and career of its main designer, its adoption by the U.S. military and its assignment to troops in Vietnam, the business models of the various manufacturers and distributors who developed and popularized the firearm, and the terrible stories of its frequent usage in mass shootings. The focus on just this one weapon makes for a focused and powerful story about America's reckless and harmful gun culture. A gripping, informative and often shocking read about a senseless and tragic situation.
“A magisterial work of narrative history and original reportage . . . You can feel the tension building one cold, catastrophic fact at a time . . . A virtually unprecedented achievement.” ―Mike Spies, The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)
A Washington Post top 50 nonfiction book of 2023 | Short-listed for the Zócalo Book Prize
One of The New York Times’ 33 nonfiction books to read this fall | One of Esquire’s best books of fall | A Kirkus Reviews best nonfiction book of 2023
This book is simply phenomenal. I've always been a big fan of Mailer and I'm fascinated by JFK and that era of U.S. politics; the Cold War, espionage, conspiracy theories. Obviously there is an enormous cultural output about Kennedy and the Long Sixties, but this is unique. Mailer paints an entirely convincing canvas about Oswald and his bizarre and short life. Although supremely detailed and well researched, the book also has a kind of dreamlike quality, such is the weirdness and intensity of the tragic story it tells. Oswald's characterization is truly stranger than fiction - he has a distorted intelligence and drive, a deluded and impulsive personality, lashing out at what he perceives to be the weaknesses and limitations of others and of himself. I particularly appreciated how Mailer refuses to throw more fuel onto the conspiracy fire. Instead, he leaves any interpretations about the Kennedy murder up to the reader to make. My reading of this is that Oswald emerges as just far too irresponsible and unpredictable to be trusted to be part of anything bigger than his own self-delusions. A truly brilliant work.
This work looks at the life of harvey Lee Oswald. In 1959 he defected to the Soviet Union and was sent to Minsk, where he was kept under constant KGB surveillance on the suspicion that he might be a CIA agent. In 1993 Norman Mailer spent six months in Minsk retracing Oswald's two and a half years in the USSR, interviewing Oswald's former friends and sweethearts. He obtained exclusive interviews with KGB officers and access to KGB surveillance reports. Mailer also provides an account of Oswald's disastrous childhood and of the events leading from his return to the US in…
This is another wonderful book from Sonia Purnell, biographer of a range of interesting, controversial and unusual political and social figures. This book is a biography of Pamela Churchill Harriman, a British-American 'high society' figure who is difficult to categorize. The book does a great job of exposing and criticizing the culture and structure of transatlantic elite society, while also being sympathetic to its main subject. I struggled to relate to Pamela in any way, but I greatly enjoyed her story and I learned an enormous amount about elites, wealth, gender and power. Purnell characterizes her as an important and totally unacknowledged power broker in US politics and society. This interpretation is novel, timely and convincing, telling a rare and much-needed female-centred history of politics and power. The writing is colourful, entertaining and very insightful about the tremendous variety, complexity, and oddness of human behaviour. A great read.
“A thorough account of Harriman’s rise which also manages to be a brisk, twisty read … riveting and revelatory.” —The New Yorker
“a must-read book of Fall 2024” —People Magazine
“Rigorous but rollicking.” —The New York Times
From the New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of A WOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE, an electrifying re-examination of one of the 20th century’s greatest unsung power players
When Pamela Churchill Harriman died in 1997, the obituaries that followed were predictably scathing – and many were downright sexist. Written off as a mere courtesan and social climber, her true legacy was overshadowed by…
This book of mine is academic, but I hope it is one that is readable and human centred. Based on interviews and observations with NHS paramedics in England, it tells the story of how the 'occupation' of emergency ambulance work has transitioned into the paramedic 'profession'. Through their words and actions, we see how paramedics have developed into a complex and versatile clinical workforce, responding to all manner of callouts from their traditional role of life-threatening emergencies, through to unplanned primary care, social care and simply to people who are distressed, anxious and vulnerable. In writing the book I did my best to convey my admiration and respect for these workers, noting their substantially improved clinical scope and abilities and their compassion and empathy, while also noting the often terrible conditions in which they are employed. Paramedics would rightly complain bitterly about all manner of things they encounter; unsympathetic patients, exhausting shift patterns, wasteful callouts, incomprehensible call prioritizing, bullying managers, and pointless targets and metrics. But they also described their work as 'a privilege' and 'the best job in the world'. I hope that readers interested in healthcare, the NHS, and just work and workplaces in general can appreciate the complexity of the story I tried to tell.
