Hamill, Pete

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Sinatra to the point
Consider The Source
The man and his music
Some Outstanding Ideas, But Just a Touch too Much Gossip!
I Know Now Why Sinatra Matters....

Why Sinatra Matters
Pete Hamill
Manufacturer: Little, Brown and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0316347965

Book Description

As products of the same urban landscape, Pete Hamill and Frank Sinatra have both been credited with giving the American city a voice. In this widely acclaimed and bestselling appreciation-now available in paperback for the first time-Hamill draws on his intimate experience of the man and the music to evoke the essence of Sinatra, illuminating the singer's art and his legend from the point of view of a confidant and a fan. - May 2003 marks the fifth anniversary of Sinatra's death. - The hardcover edition of Why Sinatra Matters (Little, Brown and Company, 1998), published five months after Sinatra's death, became a national bestseller.

Customer Reviews:

Sinatra to the point.......2006-10-02

This is a small book. Short and sweet. Mr. Hamill gets right to the point . There isnt a lot of fluff in this book. A few pictures and so anecdotes to start some of the chapters. It written well and the layout is succint. This is a must read for any Sinatra fan.

Consider The Source.......2006-06-18

Ironic that Pete Hamill should write this book. To my ears and eyes, Pete Hamill has never written a sincere or honest word in his life.

The irony is that when Sinatra was asked how he wanted to be remembered, he said he would want people to think of him as an honest singer.

The book is good, but read it with a grain of salt due to the author.

The man and his music.......2006-04-19

I like this book because it isn't like all the other Sinatra biographies out there. In fact, it isn't really appropriate to call "Why Sinatra Matters" a biography at all. Author Pete Hamill was an acquaintance of Sinatra's and much of the book is built around conversations that the two men had together, which is very interesting. This book gives a general overview of Sinatra's upbringing and rise to stardom. Hamill explains how Sinatra's childhood and Italian American background contributed to the development of his music. Sinatra's "fall from grace" is also examined, but Hamill is quick to point out that the only thing that really matters is that Sinatra was able to overcome his obstacles and make an incredible comeback. There has never been another singer like Frank Sinatra and there never will be again. Sinatra continues to represent so many things to so many people, which is why his music will live on forever.

Some Outstanding Ideas, But Just a Touch too Much Gossip! .......2005-05-24

Many of the basic,well known aspects of FS's life are mentioned here, starting with the Genoan and Sicilian branches of his family history, his quiet father and brash, Democratic Ward Leader mother. The segment on Bing Crosby's huge influence on 1930's popular culture, especially in the new radio-centered family (like TV today) is great, and perhaps not known too much today. FS as an icon for immigrant Italians, along with LaGuardia and DiMaggio, is also a high point. The days with James and Dorsey are also well done, if rehashes, like much of this otherwise excellent book. And much is written about FS's legendary "Fall" and 2nd Rise, the Fall being among the most overdone of FS's incredible life.(Many would love to fall from such Olympian heights!). Mr. Hamill says that the music is what matters. Obviously, he's right! Only Frank could sing so well about the depths of anguish and despair, as well as the thrill of triumph! The author also gives a nice summation of the great work of FS with Nelson Riddle. Unfortunately, short shrift is given to Billy May, and a short paragraph mocks the "sugary" work of Gordon Jenkins. Oddly, the most famous pairing of Jenkins and FS, "September of My Years" is listed in the appendix as among Mr. Hamill's favorite albums! It would have been nice if a CD was included,since this book does not really mine the golden depths of FS's best recordings. Still, all in all, a fine and succinct presentation of The Man and His Music.

I Know Now Why Sinatra Matters...........2005-02-02

Why Sinatra Matters is an uncensored realistic book on whom other, Frank Sinatra. The book tells of his life, his friends, family, and most of all his intoxicating voice as a singer. To his late night partying, to his ridiculously famous music, this book gives a background not only to his singing and song writing, but to his complex life behind the curtain. However, through marriages, divorces, relationships and more, his music remained untouched. Music remained a rescue boat in his fast pasted life. One of his good friends Pete Hamill, the writer, talks about their past enjoyment at certain clubs and talking about various topics as boxing, women, and their favorite writers. The book also tells about Sinatra's early years and how he came to the road to stardom and how he even paved some of it himself.
This book was defiantly something that interested me. Not very many books catch my eye like this book, and that's saying a lot. Most books contain too much blain description, but this book had description to the point where I want to go buy the whole Sinatra collection. I would tell others to read book to gain knowledge of how one of the greats lived, loved, and never took it for granted. Frank Sinatra will live in infinity as well as his music, and the way he lived his life. The youth of today as well as the adults, that live in modern suburbia could learn more than one thing of this legend of a man. If I even live one year of my life the way he did, I would die a happy man......

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to drink was to be a man..that what was expected of you..
"One thing was certain: in the Neighborhood,the bad guys never went to the Library."
Irish American Bio
A Wondrous and Wild Ride
New York in the 50's

A Drinking Life: A Memoir
Pete Hamill
Manufacturer: Back Bay Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0316341029

Customer Reviews:

to drink was to be a man..that what was expected of you.........2007-04-20

growing up in an Irish Catholic family I remember for my 18th Birthday my father brought home a cocktail for me from the local bar. To drink was to be expected of you. Pete Hamill has written a poignant, funny, sobering look at his life and his journey with alcohol. When he finally realized how much his life was defined by booze, he just quit. This is a courage book, beautifully written full of Irish vigor and spit.

"One thing was certain: in the Neighborhood,the bad guys never went to the Library.".......2007-01-28

What a sroryteller and what a story to tell.I can't believe it took me so long to "find" this wonderful writer.I had never read anything by him or even heard of him.I do recall, seeing the name on books in the bookstore;but since I tend to read mostly non-fiction,I guess I've just been passing him by. This book has been on my bookshelf for some time,so I decided to pick it up and see what it was like;not really expecting much. I hadn't even recognized him as an Irish-American writer. I have read all the books by Frank and Malachy McCourt,Roddy Doyle,Brendan O'Carroll,Brendan Behan and numerous other Irish and Irish-American writers; and enjoy them immensely.
I found this book a real gem for many reasons.The author was born the same year as I was. Even though he grew up in Brooklyn in the 40's and 50's and I grew up in a small town of about 5,000 in Nova Scotia ,life was very similar.All the things he talked about were familiar to me. Warships in the harbor,Servicemen everywhere,Rationing and shortages (I never saw a banana till I was 10 years old),Air Raid Wardens,etc. I sympathized when he told of giving his skates for the war effort.I can remember Aluminium drives at the school,where there was an effigy of Hitler hanging from a pole and the kids were to bring aluminium stuff to throw at it. Was my mother ever mad when she found out what happened to some of her pots and pans. Peter brought back the many memories of the comics,Comic Books,Big Little Books and all the heroes .I followed all the same ones too. And then the movie theatres,especially on Saturdays. The one big difference was that there were no bars in my town,The arena and the Pool Room was where the young guys "came of age",,or could get anything they were not supposed to have. My town had an Army base nearby.When soldiers were off duty they had to get beer or wine from the Bootlegger (no Bars ,and Liquor Stores closed at 5 p.m.).There was a big orchard back of my house,and that was where they did their drinking. Since the bootlegger did not deal in returns,the empties were given to us kids and kept us in spending money.I still remember going to the junk dealer with my wagon piled high with bottles ;2 cents for quarts and 1 cent for pints.Man,we thought we were rich! So much for being a kid during the war!
Then Peter takes us along with him as his interests develop,how he wanted to be a catoonist,writer etc.He tells us about all his exploits in finding his way through life and impact that drinking had on him. In the end,he finally quits drinking; but if you expect this book to deal with great problems in drinking,extreme difficulties in quitting etc.,you're going to be disappointed. Quite to the contrary,drinking was a real part of his daily existance and the solution to many of his hard times and also very much part of his good times.
Virtually everything and everyone mentioned will be familiar to anyone who was born in and grew up at the same time.
As with other Irish writers ,their use of language is wonderful. It is filled with expressions and great lines.Here are a few;

"Never marry a woman you can't knock out with one punch."

"an Artist must pay a price in loneliness."

"most people go through their lives without ever doing one whole thing
they really want to do."

"No matter how fine a school you are in,you have to educate yourself."

"You could be there for life. That's what I'm afraid of."

"All good books are alike in that they are truer than if they had really happened and after you are finished reading one you will feel that all that happened to you and afterwards it all belongs to you:the good and the bad,the estacy,the remorse and sorrow,the people and the places and how the weather was." (this is one of those kind of books)

Now that I've read this book and ejoyed it so much;I'll be reading more of his books.Just remember;

YOU ARE THE SAME TODAY,
THAT YOU WILL BE FIVE YEARS FROM NOW,
EXCEPT FOR TWO THINGS;
THE PEOPLE YOU MEET,
AND
THE BOOKS YOU READ.

Irish American Bio.......2006-12-01

Much of the book focuses on the gritty details of Hamill's poverty stricken childhood in Brooklyn and his coming of age. His Irish-American boyhood in the 40s and 50s gives him mixed goals so he rebels, yet follows in the footsteps of his drunken father, while trying to be the "good boy" for his mother.
Seeking to escape the never-ending drudgery of the factories, he turns to reading and drawing. He muddles about, exploring sex/art/bohemian life/ travel, while drinking gradually saturates his whole life.
He takes full responsibility for his failed marriage. Touches on his relationship with Shirley Maclaine. Mentions names in literary circles. This part of the book skips rather lightly through to his repudiation of drinking.
The meat of the book lies in his earlier years. At times it brings to mind Angela's Ashes. An insightful look into Irish-American city life during WWII and the Korean War era.
There's a sadness to this account of seeking a way out of poverty while trying to define himself and deal with the conflicting expections of others.
Reader's might want to also explore All Souls by Michael Patrick Macdonald and Singing My Him Song by Malachy McCourt.

A Wondrous and Wild Ride.......2006-10-20

Pete Hamill's memoir of his early days in Brooklyn, his flirting with the visual arts, and his later years as a hard-drinking reporter and writer is brutally honest, evocatively descriptive, and crackles with so much emotion and description that the reader feels as if he's right along with him.

New York in the 50's.......2005-12-26

Pete Hamill is a New Yorker and he explains what it was like to grow up in the 50's. Some of his insights are brillant. For example his discussion of how television changed community life was wonderful. He also points out how a young person could move around the City was nostalgic.

When we get to Pete's growing up we get a wonderful story about growing in an Irish family. I think his insights about that deal with the fear of success and leaving the neighborhood is fascinating. The sociology of the Irish upbringing is interesting.

My major criticism is that Pete seemed to loss interest in the book when he reaches his 20's. We do not get an insight on why he stopped drinking.

Average customer rating:

Hamill's "Forever" Liberal Bias!
Will stay with you, well, Forever
Amazing
Magnificent Manhattan
Very Refreshing . . .

Forever: A Novel
Pete Hamill
Manufacturer: Back Bay Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0316735698

Book Description

This widely praised bestseller is the magical, epic tale of an extraordinary man who arrives in New York in 1740 and remains...forever. Through the eyes of young Cormac O'Connor--granted immortality as long as he never leaves the island of Manhattan--we watch New York grow from a tiny settlement on the tip of an untamed wilderness to the thriving metropolis of today. And through Cormac's remarkable adventures in both love and war, we come to know all the city's buried secrets--the way it has been shaped by greed, race, and waves of immigration, by the unleashing of enormous human energies, and, above all, by hope.

Customer Reviews:

Hamill's "Forever" Liberal Bias!.......2007-02-26

I only know Pete Hamill through his fiction "Forever" and his resume containing his writing for the New York Times, the Post etc. etc. The history of New York City in Forever was first of all intriguing, then interesting then tedious and finally "let's skip through these 10 or 11 paragraphs (over and over again). Perhaps one would have to live in Manhattan instead of Columbia, Missouri to stay with all 600+ pages.

What seemed more unsettling was what I perceived to be his strong bias against WASP (white anglo-saxon protestants), Christians, Christian clergy etc. etc. In Forever, everything Christian seemed to be at the root of all evil and those who embrace many gods, sex on a whim, vengeance and revenge are to be elevated to the "Otherworld". I wonder if in Pete Hamill's view of history whether Christians played any positive role in the building of America. In Forever, the clergy, the WASP, and other Christians are the nemesis who totally aided and abetted in all things hurtful.

Perhaps other authors will have to write of Christian charity for the downtrodden immigrants who came to New York City and the Church's bravery and sacrifice regarding the struggle for freedom and the birth of this nation.

I am certain that his many liberal literary accomplishments are applauded by those in the circles he travels, but as for me, I am grateful that I purchased "Forever" at Sam's Club for only $4.88. Whew! That was close.

Will stay with you, well, Forever.......2006-11-23

I picked up this book knowing the basic plot: somehow an Irish immigrant to New York is granted eternal life so long as he never leaves the island of Manhattan. I was willing to give the book a chance only because I knew that Pete Hamill had a love and knowledge of New York that few people possess. At first, I wondered where the book was leading me during the almost 200 introductory pages of Cormac O'Connor in Ireland. But the story really took off once Cormac's father is killed and Cormac vows to avenge his death. Upon Cormac's arrival to the dirty town of Manhattan in the mid eighteenth century, I was already hooked. The next two centuries flew by.

Hamill almost bites off more than he can chew by deciding to write the history of New York City in 600 pages. And so he improvises by having to skip decades at a time. While the history of the City is incomplete, he skips through time effectively, with larger historical events resurfacing as memories within Cormac. The result, however, is that Hamill is only able to focus on a few periods of time in order to make his story work. The reader spends time in the early 1740s, the Revolutionary War of the 1780s, sometime during the first half of the nineteenth century, the last days of Boss Tweed, and the weeks leading up to September 11, 2001. There is some fantasy involved in the story, which admittedly, I don't usually read, but Hamill intertwines it into the story well. I was not bothered at all the times throughout the story when Hamill asked me to suspend my belief in reality. All in all, this is a magical story full of memorable events and characters. The reader who sticks with this book may well be rewarded forever.

Amazing.......2006-11-21

This novel is nothing short of incredible. It started a bit slow, but once I got into it I couldn't put it down. It takes you through the New York you've never known to what it has become, and being from New York, made me appreciate the history that has made our city as diverse and strong as it is. The plot reads like Dumas' Count of Monte Cristo, and is just as captivating, if not more so. Cormac O'Connor will open your eyes to the importance of sacrifice and teach you to always fight for what you believe in. This book blew me away, def worth reading.

Magnificent Manhattan.......2006-11-03

This novel starts slow, but quickly builds momentum. Pete Hamill masterfully draws the reader into the rich tapestry of protagonist, Cormac's experiences on the island of Manhattan. Although the ending could be argued cliche, the novel is worth the journey through the history of Manhattan.

Very Refreshing . . ........2006-10-17

After spending the summer reading the best-seller murder-mystery type books, and deciding that they were getting rather repetitive, I picked up this book and was very pleasantly surprised . . . It is not your run-of-the-mill, boilerplate story. It is historical, magical, and very readable. I highly recommend this book for everyone who would like to take a vacation from the ordinary and jump into the magical world of immigration and the history of New York City.

Average customer rating:

Disappointing Book
Touching novella
Leaves You Wanting More
Splendid Little Novel from Pete Hamill
A coming-of-age tale and the story of the immigrant experience in America

The Gift: A Novel
Pete Hamill
Manufacturer: Little, Brown and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0316011894

Book Description

A powerful short novel that's vintage Hamill-an evocative, emotionally involving tale of fathers and sons, loss and yearning, forgiveness and approbation-is restored to print. Brooklyn, 1952. It is Christmastime and a young sailor named Pete is home on leave, temporarily liberated from the specter of war in Korea. He's back in the old neighborhood, discovering firsthand that the girl he left behind evidently meant what she said in the Dear John letter she sent him. He's back in the dreary Seventh Avenue apartment that his mother can ill afford to decorate for the holidays. And he's back facing off with Billy, the gruff Irish factory worker who is his father, yet seems forever a stranger-until, on Christmas Eve, Pete pays his first visit to Rattigan's, the local bar where his father hangs out, the place where Billy seems most fully alive.

Customer Reviews:

Disappointing Book.......2007-01-10

I love Pete Hamill and was looking forward to reading another of his stories about New York at Christmas time. This was a major disappointment.

Touching novella.......2006-01-03

Beautiful descriptions of old Brooklyn in the early fifties--an era which still had some residual impact on my childhood in the sixties. It was a more innocent era, particularly the descriptions of the teenage lustful sexual yearnings, seldom satisfied, but nearly always colorfully described. The writing is a little uneven, but I found the ending to be very touching. A small gem, fitting to read at Christmas time. It made me want to seek out more works by the author.

Leaves You Wanting More.......2005-12-22

A Good Read for anytime of the year, but an especially good read at Christmas...A coming-of-age story that leaves you wanting more...More about the soldier telling the story, more about his family, more about the other people in the story, all of whom are interesting and well-crafted...Set in 1952 during the Korean War, this book is proof once again that good stories are ageless and timeless...A story that stays with you and gets finer with time...

Splendid Little Novel from Pete Hamill.......2005-11-28

Without question, the dean of living New York City Irish-American writers, Pete Hamill has enjoyed ample success as a superb journalist - the only one who ever became editor-in-chief of the city's current tabloid newspapers, The Daily News and The New York Post - and as a splendid writer of fiction and nonfiction, ranging from his celebrated memoir "A Drinking Life" and his critically acclaimed biography of Mexican painter Diego Rivera to his novels "Snow in August" and "Forever". Now, in recognition of his literary excellence and to coincide with the paperback release of his memoir "Downtown", Little, Brown has reissued "The Gift", a splendid little gem of a novel - or rather, fictionalized autobiographical memoir - which was first published back in the early 1970s. "The Gift" demonstrates all of Hamill's ample gifts for dialogue and prose, told in much of the same plain, yet lyrical, prose which characterizes his memoir "A Drinking Life". It's Christmas time 1952, and young Pete returns home on leave after attending a Navy boot camp, unsure as to whether he will be stationed in Korea during the final months of the war. He returns home in search of his girlfriend Kathleen Crowley, hoping to gain again her affection, but perhaps more importantly, to seek finally the love that is absent in his relationship with his father Billy. Fans of Pete Hamill's - and I predict, Frank McCourt's too - will treasure Hamill's eloquent prose and this timeless story of seeking love from an absent father at the most appropriate time of the year.

A coming-of-age tale and the story of the immigrant experience in America.......2005-11-16

For over four decades, Pete Hamill has been one of America's greatest writers. He started out as a newspaperman covering the turmoil of the 1960s. But like many great newspapermen who came before him, he proved capable of crossing genres and writing bestselling novels, memoirs and screenplays.

Despite covering too many wars and the great issues of our time, Hamill's ultimate beat has been New York City. He will always be associated with New York. He has written for just about every paper in the city and is the only person who worked as editor of both the New York Post and the New York Daily News.

Last year he released a memoir entitled DOWNTOWN: MY MANHATTAN. Now, coinciding with the release of that book in paperback, Hamill has re-released his second novel, THE GIFT, first published in 1973. Long out of print, THE GIFT is a real treat for readers, especially those who are longtime Hamill fans. Both books, read together, serve as an essential guide to understanding the greatest city in the world.

THE GIFT is a short autobiographical novella about a 17 1/2 year-old sailor named Pete coming home to Brooklyn in 1952 for Christmas leave after boot camp. In his wallet, as the Greyhound bus speeds north towards home through a cold rain in the middle of the night, is a picture of his first love, a girl named Kathleen. Three weeks before, he had received from Kathleen a dreaded "Dear John" letter. He needs to talk to her. Hamill writes:

"The darkness of the bus was punctuated by struck matches and bright washes of light from passing cars, and I stared out at the rain-glossy roads, past the small neat towns and the clumps of dark forest, out past the neon of roadside taverns, past the blue-white glare of gas stations and the bright wilderness of those early 1952 shopping centers, to the place where Kathleen lived, getting there at 60 miles per hour. I was listening for her voice and the sound of her laughter and trying to control what was happening in my stomach as I fought off the anxious knowledge that she might not be there."

Hamill has always been a teacher to the generation of writers and reporters like myself who followed him. And the reason we study him is the tough, understated way he uses words. He has the reporter's eye for detail mixed with a novelist's evocative way of capturing mood, emotion and inner turmoil. Hamill's writing manages to be both economical and personal, much like an early influence on his work, Ernest Hemingway.

In THE GIFT, Hamill puts readers right into the lost world of Brooklyn 1952. "The avenue was lined with four-story tenements whose faces were marred by fire escapes: dark, hard, spiky, rectangular presences through winter nights..." And then he arrives at his Seventh Avenue home: "There were traces of dinner smells in the hall, as if you could chew the air itself. It was almost three."

Pete lives in a tiny apartment with his immigrant parents and four younger brothers and one sister. And as he fears, his homecoming will bring heartbreak. But this is not just a coming-of-age story; it is also the story about New York and the immigrant experience in America. The Brooklyn of young Pete's world, very much like New York today, is a city of neighborhoods and immigrant dreams and decent people worn down by constant struggle and the threat of perpetual poverty. And too often that struggle has been forgotten by the affluent Irish descendent of the immigrants, especially on days like March 17th when it is all green beer and sentimental blarney.

Pete doesn't know his silent father, a man who was a brilliant soccer player as a young man but lost his leg years before when injured on the playing field and nobody owned a car to take him to the hospital. Once there, he had to wait a day to see a doctor with disastrous results. Pete's tired mother has to somehow make ends meet with little money and day-old bread and then "every Christmas there seemed to be one more child to please."

Pete yearns to get close to his father, who retreats every night after work to the bar across the street, Rattigan's, to drink and sing songs about the old country deep into the night. Pete says, "I loved the hard defiance of the Irish songs...But I didn't really know him, and I was certain that he didn't know me...in many ways he was still Irish and I was an American."

Whether it was the Irish on Seventh Avenue in Brooklyn or the Irish of my parents in the Highbridge section of the Bronx, Hamill paints a vivid and accurate description of the lost world of New York. "Nobody could go home in that neighborhood if somebody else had bought the last round; it made for late nights." Or: "They knew that in that neighborhood, you became a cop or a fireman or an ironworker or maybe ended up in the can; you dreamed no large dreams."

And it is the same way today for a new generation of New York immigrants from Ireland or Nigeria or Bangladesh or Haiti or Vietnam. They still struggle to make ends meet each month on these mean streets while making sure that their children are safe and can go further in life than they ever could. This new generation comes here for the same opportunity as their predecessors and the eternal idea of freedom that is America.

And perhaps on a freezing Christmas Eve in 2005, one of these children of the new immigrants, just back from Fallujah or Ramadi, will realize the greatest lasting dream has nothing to do with money or the latest video game. And, like young Pete in 1952, he or she will realize that the greatest gift is the one that lasts a lifetime and can never be taken away.

Pete says of his father, "He was there, still there. He wasn't on relief, he wasn't begging on the subways, he had resisted, he hadn't given up. I touched him and then Red Cioffi yelled from down the bar. 'Hey, Billy, give us a song!'"

Much like New York itself, THE GIFT still works after three decades. This is a beautiful little book, perfect for the holidays. Read both it and DOWNTOWN together, and you will be treated to the work of a young writer just reaching the top of his game and the legendary American writer he became.

--- Reviewed by Tom Callahan

Average customer rating:

a gem of a tour through Manhattan...
Romancing the Island
Start Spreading the News...
A Lyrical and Lucid Glance at New York
Pete Hamill's Downtown

Downtown: My Manhattan
Pete Hamill
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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A Drinking Life: A Memoir
Why Sinatra Matters
Forever: A Novel
The Gift: A Novel
Piecework: Writings on Men & Women, Fools and Heroes, Lost Cities, Vanished Calamities and How the Weather Was

ASIN: B000JGG9I2

Book Description

A rich historical and personal portrait of Manhattan from the bestselling writer who is for many the living embodiment of the city.

Manhattan, the keystone of New York City, is a place of ghosts and buried memory. One can still see remnants of the British colony, the mansions of the robber barons, and the speakeasies of the 1920s. These are the places that have captivated the imaginations of writers for centuries. Now Pete Hamill brings his unique knowledge and deep love of the city to a New York chronicle like no other.

During his 40 years as a newspaperman, Pete Hamill has been getting to know Manhattans neighborhoods and inhabitants intimately, bearing witness to their greatest triumphs and tragedies. From the winding, bohemian streets of Greenwich Village to the seedy alleyways of the meatpacking district and to the weathered cobblestones of South Street Seaport, Hamill peels back the layers of history to reveal the citys past, present, and future.

More than just history or reporting, this is an elegy by a native son who has lived through some of New Yorks most historic moments, and who continues to call this magnificent, haunted city his home.

Customer Reviews:

a gem of a tour through Manhattan..........2007-04-20

being an ex-NYer and having been changed forever by the years I lived there this book was a whirlwind tour through my favorite city. Pete Hamill knows his history and takes you through the history of buildings, people and the vibrant city that it's always been. Parsing bits of his own life with the life of the city it's like being on personal guided tour by one of NY's finest writers. My only problem was it was too short, I wanted to read more.

Romancing the Island.......2006-09-20

Mr. Hamill takes on every bit of New York and discusses why he loves even the worst parts of it. He crafts a walk downtown thru the 1800's past buildings and men who shaped this city and produces a novel that inspires.

Start Spreading the News..........2006-08-28

This book was much more than I had expected. Thinking that it would be more autobiographical, I was pleasantly suprised to find that it was really the story of New York City, specifically the downtown area of Manhattan. Being a native New Yorker, Hamill gives great insight not only into the historical facts surrounding the city's origin, but also its lore, its people, its music, its drama, and its tradition. This book is so heaped with history, yet it reads so easily like a great love story. Like most New Yorkers, the names and faces of those who came before are soon forgotten, but Hamill brings them back to life again in a very real way. He leaves us with this feeling of connectedness to our past and a sense of longing nostalgia for old New York. However, he reminds us that New Yorkers do not live in the past and that self-pity is a mortal sin. The story of New York is very much one of constant difficult change, earned renewal, progressiveness, tolerance and optimism. These traits have been a part of the city since its origins and more important than ever as we see these traits come alive once again after 9/11. This book is a treasure to anyone who loves New York and wants to understand its history and its people without having to sift through textbooks that only gives facts. Put your vagabond reading glasses on and be a part of it.

A Lyrical and Lucid Glance at New York.......2006-02-24

Pete Hamill's "Downtown: My Manhattan" is part of the latest spate of books that combine personal New York City experience and New York City history, as do Colson Whitehead's "The Colossus of New York" (in a way) and Phillip Lopate's "Waterfront". However, Hamill's is as different from those two other books as those two books are different from each other. I don't know what is causing these authors to write such material--maybe the nostalgia brought about by the horrors of 9/11--but I'm glad they did.

Nostalgia is the key word for Hamill's "Downtown". And it is not just the strong, personal nostalgia that Hamill luxuriates in: it's also the nostalgia that every true New Yorker feels for his City. Whether it was the Dutch or British who longed for their roots in the "Old World", as did the Irish, Eastern Europeans, Italians, Asians, Latinos, etc., or the people born here who cherish the memories of people and places now locked forever in the past, New York's ever-changing "scene" quickly compels our present into history. Hamill's sensitivity to this is brilliantly conveyed on every page.

However, "Downtown" is by no means a treacly, misty-eyed glimpse backward. It is a studied and educational examination of several of New York's neighborhoods--some well-known, some not. The pieces about the Bowling Green area and Times Square were the most fascinating.

What, to me, is special about this history is how it intertwines with other histories: with America's history, with Hamill's history, with my history, and, if you are a New Yorker, your history. I could not put down "Downtown"; in fact, I read it cover to cover in two sittings (I had to go to sleep) and then read it again. It's that amazing a book.

Pete Hamill's Downtown.......2006-02-22

Ex-newspaper editor of the New York Post and New York Daily News, Pete Hamill, was born in Brooklyn, moved around a bit, and returned to Manhattan where he lives and works. Having intimate knowledge of a city so revered, respected, and loved, but also scary and intimidating such as New York City, is surely grist for many a writer. Each time there are different aspects a writer will concentrate on, and many times one will not see what the other does, hence the many books on or about this awe-inspiring place. Mr. Hamill has a fluidity about his account which makes for easy, interesting, and page-turning reading about "his" downtown in Manhattan. It's a compelling read as Hamill tells the history of New York - easy to follow and it all fits into place - unlike other confusing "historical" accounts I've come across. From the late 1700s and through the 1800s and 1900s, so much exquisite change flourished in the then, and now, ever-growing city of New York. He not only covers the buildings and streets and avenues, but also the many peoples (the Dutch, the English, the Germans, Russians, Italians, Irish, and so many more) who so long ago had a huge hand in shaping the city.

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Hamill Fan
One of my favorites of favorites
Confused
Snow in August Great Book!!!!!
Worlds Collide, Worlds Unite

Snow in August
Pete Hamill
Manufacturer: Grand Central Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0446675253

Amazon.com

In 1940s Brooklyn, friendship between an 11-year-old Irish Catholic boy and an elderly Jewish rabbi might seem as unlikely as, well, snow in August. But the relationship between young Michael Devlin and Rabbi Judah Hirsch is only one of the many miracles large and small contained in Pete Hamill's novel. Michael finds himself in trouble when he witnesses the 17-year-old leader of the dreaded Falcons gang beating an elderly shopkeeper. For Michael, 1940s Brooklyn is a world still shaped by life in the Old Country, a world where informing on a fellow Irishman is the worst crime imaginable--worse even than the violent crimes committed by some of those fellows. So Michael keeps silent, finding solace in the company of Rabbi Hirsch, a Czech refuge whom he meets by chance. From this serendipitous beginning blossoms a unique friendship--one that proves perilous to both when the Falcons catch up with them.

Interlaced with Hamill's realistic descriptions of violence and fear are scenes of remarkable poignancy: the rabbi's first baseball game, where he sees Jackie Robinson play for the Dodgers; Michael's introduction into the mystical world of the Cabbala and the book's miraculous ending. Hamill is not a lyrical writer, but he is a heartfelt one, and this story of courage in the face of great odds is one of his best.

Book Description

It was a unique and unusual friendship: 11 year-old Michael Devlin, an Irish Catholic from Brooklyn, and Judah Hirsch, a rabbi and refugee from Prague, meet during a swirling blizzard on a Saturday morning. For Michael, the rabbi is an extraordinary window to ancient times and foreign lands; for Judah, the boy is an encyclopedia of cultural knowledge of his newly adopted land.In baseball, the two find a common love, but when anti-Semitic hoods threaten them with violence, the two must look for a miracle.... in a most unlikely place.

Customer Reviews:

Hamill Fan.......2007-06-15

Hamill once again guides his reader through the streets of New York with terribly likeable and detailed characters. Quite simply, Hamill knows the qualities of a good story; realistic yet supernatural, heart-warming and humorous, and all taking place in a world that warmly welcomes the reader into an urban reality. I've been to New York once, but after all of Hamill's works I feel like I'm a native with a knowing sense of respect and love for the character of the city. A very enjoyable read.

One of my favorites of favorites.......2007-04-08

That's it. One of my all-time favorites, period. I once flunked a tryout with the Dodgers at Ebbits Field in '52 -- and can well relate to EVERYTHING going on, especially the mixed cultures (even though I lived in Northern Jersey). Simply, well worth the time! Good stuff.

Confused.......2007-03-17

The author seemed very confused on how to end this novel. He write a lovely story about an unlikely friendship in a troubled neighborhood. Unable to come to an ending, he takes the book into a Harry Potter land of make believe. Make up your mind what type of genre you're writing for!

Snow in August Great Book!!!!!.......2006-09-27

The Novel Snow in August by Pete Hamill is a great book. It is about a young boy named Micheal who struggles against a man named Frank McCarthy. He must find a solution to get rid of Frank McCarthy. This book is about World War 2, racism and Fanatsy. I recommend this to any readers that wanna read about fantasy stories.

Sean McGivney

Worlds Collide, Worlds Unite.......2006-09-11

Magical realism is usually not my taste... but my children (14 & 24) loved it & insisted that I read this book. Altho one has to step outside of the real world to appreciate the imagery, there is enough of the real world to keep the story grounded.

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Off The Wall Popular Culture Definitive Volume-A Must Have.
Damaged cover on a great book
Masters all
Comic retrospective
Herriman's line

Masters of American Comics

Manufacturer: Yale University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 030011317X

Book Description

Comic strips and comic books were among the most popular and influential forms of mass media in 20thcentury America. This fascinating book focuses on fifteen pioneering cartoonists—ranging from Winsor McCay to Chris Ware—who brought this genre to the highest level of artistic expression and who had the greatest impact on the development of the form.

Organized chronologically, Masters of American Comics explores the rise of newspaper comic strips and comic books and considers their artistic development throughout the century. Presenting a wide selection of original drawings as well as progressive proofs, vintage printed Sunday pages, and comic books themselves, the authors also look at how the art of comics was transformed by artistic innovation as well as by changes in popular taste, economics, and printing conventions.

First appearing in newspaper Sunday supplements, the comic strip became immediately successful and created the largest audience of any medium of its time. The comic book first began as a way to print existing newspaper comics, then subsequently established the mass popularity of superheroes in the 1940s and 1950s before it matured as a vehicle for independent personal expression in the underground comic books and graphic novels of the 1960s.

Included in the book are insightful and entertaining essays on individual artists written by major figures in the fields of comics, narrative illustration, literature, popular culture, and art history. Masters of American Comics convincingly positions the genre of comics into the history of art and is destined to become a classic text for years to come.

Customer Reviews:

Off The Wall Popular Culture Definitive Volume-A Must Have........2007-03-15

As a Lender to the Exhibition this book covers in its voluminous pages, the actual chance to see the exhibitions in LA, Milwaukee and New Jersey Museums was only aided by this graceful tome. Four Stars ****!

Damaged cover on a great book.......2007-02-08

I purchased this book for a Christmas gift, the cover was damaged and it should have been protected in shipping.
The box it was shipped in was in perfect condition the inner protection, well there was none!

I purchased this book as a gift for the person who viewed the exhibit with me, it's an excellent book, a great retrospect.

Masters all.......2007-01-02

I recently purchased "The Monster of Frankenstein Dick Briefer's Horror Comic Epic" and was so enthralled by this golden age comic that I had to have more.

"Masters of Comic Art", a reexamination of pop culture comics morphed in to fine art, is a useful overview of a "who's who" in the comic world.

Beautifully reproduced in full color and loaded with great art and interesting information about the creators makes this book a must have.

Comic retrospective.......2006-11-07

This book works well with the museum exhibit, if you get the chance to see it. If you don't, the book itself is a good overview of comic history, and the pictures are great.

Herriman's line.......2006-08-03

There are precious few draughtsmen that can put line to paper in all of low/high art than he. he is a master. Take a look at "Archie and Mahitabel"; authored by the great Don Marquise.It simply does't get any better than his exquisite line

News Is a Verb (Library of Contemporary Thought)

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Journalistic Narcissism
Good sense
All news is local
A great essay
The way it ought to be

News Is a Verb (Library of Contemporary Thought)
Pete Hamill
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0345425286
Release Date: 1998-04-20

Amazon.com

Pete Hamill's fed up with the decline in quality of America's newspapers, and he's got a solution. News Is a Verb calls upon editors to focus on accuracy, leaving the "instant" reportage to TV shows. He also stresses the need for local papers to pay attention to the issues that affect their communities, as well as the importance of reaching out to women readers and the new wave of immigrants looking for ways to assimilate American culture.

As a lifelong newspaperman, Hamill is dedicated to the idea that if something didn't happen, it isn't news. Artificial celebrities such as Donald Trump should not be given valuable column inches simply because they exist; likewise, important figures such as Bill Clinton should not be reduced to gossip fodder. Unsubstantiated rumors, he makes plain, are not newsworthy. Anybody who cares about the state of contemporary journalism will find much to appreciate in Pete Hamill's straightforward appraisal.

Book Description

LIBRARY OF CONTEMPORARY THOUGHT
"When screaming headlines turn out to be based on stories that don't support them, the tale of the boy who cried wolf gets new life. When the newspaper is filled with stupid features about celebrities at the expense of hard news, the reader feels patronized. In the process, the critical relationship of reader to newspaper is slowly undermined."
--from NEWS IS A VERB

NEWS IS A VERB
Journalism at the End of the Twentieth Century

"With the usual honorable exceptions, newspapers are getting dumber. They are increasingly filled with sensation, rumor, press-agent flackery, and bloated trivialities at the expense of significant facts. The Lewinsky affair was just a magnified version of what has been going on for some time. Newspapers emphasize drama and conflict at the expense of analysis. They cover celebrities as if reporters were a bunch of waifs with their noses pressed enviously to the windows of the rich and famous. They are parochial, square, enslaved to the conventional pieties. The worst are becoming brainless printed junk food. All across the country, in large cities and small, even the better newspapers are predictable and boring. I once heard a movie director say of a certain screenwriter: 'He aspired to mediocrity, and he succeeded.' Many newspapers are succeeding in the same way."

Customer Reviews:

Journalistic Narcissism.......2005-01-09

Pete Hamill's problem of presentation is two fold in this extended essay on the current state of journalism. The first and more minor problem is that the tone he adopts (I don't know if this is his standard tone or if he just adopted it to sound more `reporterish' since it is the work I have read by him) seems to be loosely based on Dick Tracy. Not that this is exactly the type of book that a movie could really be made from but if there ever way such an adaptation it would have to be shot in black & white in an old time, smoke filled detective's office.

The second issue I have with Hamill, less stylistic and more substantiation in nature, is that he seems to of bought into all of the stuff that journalists tell themselves about there job. Yes, it is important that citizens be informed... no, reports are not god like creatures that have descended upon the mortal plain to bring us wisdom- like Prometheus bringing us the gift of fire. At one point he actual compares journalist to Homer's chronicles The Iliad and The Odyssey... I mean common! If you are already in a journalistic profession then none of this will bother you since no doubt you drank the kool-aid long ago but to someone like me who isn't it just gave the book an almost laughable feel like it was a brochure for a cult.

If you can get past those two rather large stumbling blocks then this book does actually have some good things to say about newspaper reporting's attempts to find it's place among cable news and the internet- personally though it was more a source of amusement for me than of any hard hitting insight.

Good sense.......2002-06-15

The problems Hamill identifies in newspapers coexist in magazine journalism, where I worked for most of a 25-year career.

For starters, the corporation has overtaken the newsroom. Along with downsizing, cost cutting and concerns for shareholder value, come certain malaise. Hamill disparages today's "tabloid" journalists, but his complaint covers the entire news corps just as well. I learned recently that one major news magazine now determines whether or not to report a story based on its research costs per page of the expected count. Since the best stories always cost most to produce, this system ensures that the best stories will not be written.

Good old tabloid reporters, he avows, would be appalled at the slovenly way the word "tabloid" is thrown around and at most current practices--what I call "state-of-the-art." Old-timers didn't pay streetwalkers for stories, he notes, or "sniff around the private lives of politicians like agents from the vice squad." On breaking news, they did not "behave like a writhing, snarling, mindless centipede, all legs and Leicas," but rather "found ways to get the story without behaving like thugs or louts."

Old-timers also believed what too many newspaper reporters and publishers have forgotten--that they should act as ombudsmen for the public (my term). They have instead traded that role for consumerism, denying fundamental responsibilities to instead give readers entertainment, "what publishers, in their omniscience, think those readers want."

Without healthy newspapers, Hamill understands, no democracy can function and evolve. He reminds us that 65 reporters died in Indochina to bring us the truth, that reporters have continued to die in wars ever since--in Lebanon, Nicaragua, Bosnia and Peru--"and a lot of other places where hard rain falls." The total is now higher--of course, including 8 reporters in Afghanistan, and Daniel Pearl, murdered in Pakistan because he was Jewish.

But Internet and television relentlessly pull readers away. From 1970 through 1990, U.S. newspaper circulation remained roughly static at 60 million.

One result is a decline in quality of which the reporters, editors and publishers are all too aware. Another is that newspapers start to lose money and die. A third is the promotion of self, celebrity journalism. Newspapers today peddle "the same obsession with big names" as everyone else. I couldn't agree more. Witness the celebrity television and movie stars hired as news anchors by CNN.

Finally comes the loss of reportorial humility. Hamill writes that few reporters are today like David Remnick of the New Yorker, remaining properly humble. Those rare souls "are uninterested in working as hangmen," because their sense of proportion prohibits it. They know they cannot reach as deeply into the secret places of the heart as great fiction. "People lie to themselves as well as others," Hamill writes. "The journalist is always a prisoner of what he or she is told. The truth is always elusive." Without humility, reporters actually believe they can hit the ever-illusive bull's eye.

But the largest casualty is the deflation of journalism's key currency--truth itself. It is defeated by conditions best described in George Orwell's fiction, conditions that have become reality. To reporters today, murderers are not killers, but activists, and terrorism is a cause celebre.

Hamill correctly savages newspapers and their current culture. "Trust is the heart of the matter," he writes.

Too bad more editors and reporters don't trust the mass of readers with the good sense to tell them that they have the most critical story wrong. They trip themselves up on old-fashioned hubris. Alyssa A. Lappen

All news is local.......2000-08-26

Pete Hamill is one of the last and finest of old-time journalists, a master of his craft who genuinely believed in the old adage that a newspaper's prime job was to "comfort the afflicted, afflict the comfortable."

Today, the opposite is true. With the exception of a few papers, and no television stations, news is based on the idea "comfort the comfortable advertisers, afflict the welfare victims of society." It's called "press release journalism" and reflects the basic reason for the decline of many modern papers, the timidity and fear of editors who limit news coverage to people and events about which press releases are offered. Years ago, I worked beside a reporter who had a big "No guts, no glory" sign above his desk; it took awhile to realize the emphasis of the paper he worked for was "no guts" because any original work might upset powerful friends of the publisher. Readers know "a flawed watchdog is better than no dog at all;" but editors have muzzled the watchdog for fear someone will object to its bark.

I've been an editor at various times from 1968 through 1996; on every occasion the paper gained circulation. Hamill talks about quality, which he doesn't define except to say "it is good stuff." My approach was to emphasize local news and provide commentary with a sharp edge -- scorched earth journalism, one fan called it -- recognizing that we couldn't obtain the kind of quality Hamill stresses.

The secret of good commentary isn't excellence; it's readers who know they have the complete freedom to respond. In many cases, I gave them a prominence equal to my commentary. No one ever agreed with me all of the time, but everyone knew they had a right to reply and their response would not be trivialized. It's the most important element in establishing trust, the willingness to respect readers. Hamill is wonderful at analyzing the past; this is a man who loves newspapers, and is a superb observer of the human condition. His book "Why Sinatra Matters" is a slender classic that offers more insight and understanding of Sinatra and America than any of the mighty and lengthy biographies. He brings the same expertise and passion in his analysis of newspaper failures. This book offers dozens of examples of why papers are dull, dull, dull.

Anyone who's disappointed in the quality of newspapers can sympathize with the faults Hamill outlines. For example, a recent local report of a major fire with damage in the millions of dollars failed to mention the name of the company or their product -- but, it had extensive interviews of bystanders who came to watch the fire. It's what passes for news; bystanders who think the flames were very impressive. In the modern newsroom, it's called ". . . the human touch."

Give me a break. Tell me about the fire, and I'll add my own human touch. I don't need a newspaper telling me that bystanders are impressed by big flames. Give me local news and the right to talk back. That's precisely what Amazon.com does with reader reviews of books -- it gives ordinary people an uncensored forum. It's why Amazon.com is a success; and the opposite attitude is why newspapers are either static or declining.

Hamill points out, "Newspapers emphasize drama and conflict at the expense of analysis." He's two thirds correct; people want facts, not conflict and drama. But, they want facts, not analysis which used to be rare and clearly identified. Readers are smart enough to make up their own minds, provided they get accurate information. What are facts? Briefly, the old reliable "Who, What, Where, When and How."

This is a superb book for analyzing the faults of modern newspapers; but, it falls short on offering solutions. Hamill thinks the fault is centered on absentee owners who don't understand the newsroom; my experience says it is based on "press release" journalism which changed the "watchdog of the community" into a tame "little bark and no bite" puppy.

A great essay.......2000-02-27

I picked up the book partly because I admire Hamill's writing and partly because I had just been griping about our local newspaper. The book was great. It articulated many of my own criticisms about the press -- the adoration of celebrity, the lack of accuracy, the re-hashing of somebody's press release.

Hamill is a great writer. He conveys his thoughts in a stimulating yet simple, straightforward manner. He has the talent to "tell it to the Sweeneys" without sacrificing depth.

He reverently tells about the great history of newspapers. Sometimes, this dips to a form of romanticism which detracts from his message. He is best when he sets forth goals for the industry and avoids the rosy-dream context.

I was a bit disappointed that Hamill omitted commenting upon the decline in grammar and spelling in the newspapers. [I found a typographical error in the text.]

The book is a must for newspaper folks and all of us shake our heads over the morning edition.

The way it ought to be.......1999-10-25

This book describes the way newspaper journalism ought to be, as seen from the eyes of an excellent newspaper journalist. It's also a glimpse of the way things were just a few decades ago, when newspaper journalism was still a vital part of life in the town and cities of the United States. Hamill is an eloquent and emotional voice for better newspaper journalism. He is also, sadly, a voice from the past, for the past.

The core content of the book is a set of well-thought out solutions, recommendations intended to pull the papers back out of the swamp. Hamill is remarkably optimistic, in fact, about what might solve the problems he so convincingly describes.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent book about an impressive metropolis!.......2007-04-17

This book is excellent!

The introductory essay brilliantly connects the history of the city, the multiculturalism of the city, the reality of the city in a way that is warm and insightful. It smoothly flows from the actions of yesteryear that have lead to the great metropolis of today, all while maintaining an emphasis on the human side of the story. Its a great literary preparation for the visual feast your eyes will experience as it glances, absorbs, and inspects photos in the latter parts of the book.

The images themselvess are fantastic. The book is divided into six chapters: City of Islands (which is the well written introduction), Passage (random images of the city), Retreat (images of green areas, parks, and gardens), Connection (images of bridges and roadways), Structure (images of facades and interiors of a few important buildings), and Edge (images of places along the outer edge of the city such as Staten Island, Rockaway Beach, and Coney Island among other places). There is a certain human element through out the book. One of the nicest element is that the author places emphasis on showing pieces of all New York boroughs and avoids the Manhattan bias typical of other books about this city.

All in all, the book shows New York City as it is, a great multicultural metropolis worth saving!

THEY WILL RISE AGAIN!!.......2001-09-17

I bought this book back in 1999. I am a New Yorker and I wanted a book that showcased all of my wonderful city. I never, in my wildest dreams, thought that I would have to look at this book in order to ever see the World Trade Center again. After the attack on New York City on Sept.11, 2001, my whole world as I knew it changed forever. This wonderful, beautiful book is my only reminder of the New York City that I have known and loved all my life. I know the Twin Towers will rise again! Until then I have my book!

A great documentation.......1999-07-20

I bought the book based on the coverphoto. Regarding that I in fact wanted a book on New York, I cannot say I regret it. The book is fully illustrated with beautiful photographs of New Yorks five boroughs. Though I`ve been to New York five times before I`ve only been to Manhattan and Queens, but I surely was tempted to see all five boroughs when I go back during fall -99. The photographs has a soul in a way and all represent a motion or a mood that I catched right away. I could actually feel the smells the sounds and the dynamic pulse New York stands for. Pete Hamill's text as an introduction to each borough gives the reader a fully good and poetic insight in New Yorks majestic soul.

Under the Influence: The Literature of Addiction (Modern Library Paperbacks)

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Under the Influence: The Literature of Addiction (Modern Library Paperbacks)
Rebecca Shannonhouse
Manufacturer: Modern Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Substance Abuse | Recovery | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0375757163
Release Date: 2003-02-04

Book Description

Drawing on two centuries of important literary and historical writings, Rebecca Shannonhouse has shaped a remarkable collection of works that are, in turn, tragic, compelling, hilarious, and enlightening. Together, these selections comprise a profound and truthful portrait of the life experience known as addiction.

Under the Influence offers classic selections from fiction, memoirs, and essays by authors such as Tolstoy, Cheever, Parker, and Poe. Also included are topical gems by writers who illuminate the causes, dangers, pleasures, and public perceptions surrounding people consumed by excessive use of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. Recent provocative works by Abraham Verghese, the Barthelme brothers, Margaret Bullitt-Jonas, and others expand and modernize the definition of addiction to include sex, gambling, and food. Together, these incomparable writings give shape and meaning to the raw experience of uncontrollable urges.

Shannonhouse’s recent anthology, Out of Her Mind: Women Writing on Madness, is also available as a Modern Library Paperback.

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