DiMaggio: The Last American Knight – Joseph Durso, 1995 ★½

Heavy Sits the Crown

Heroes seemed to come thick and fast for America in the middle of the 20^th century. Few burned as bright, or left as deep a mark, as Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio. Whether in baseball or his personal life, his story inspires wonder to the point of disbelief. How to tell it in a way that is relatable?

Daisy Miller – Henry James, 1879 ★★½

Fatal Abstraction

Is Daisy Miller a little child running wild? Or is she an innocent martyr to outdated social conventions? Could she be both?

And why is this acclaimed novella more interesting to ponder than to read?

Evil Under The Sun – Agatha Christie, 1941 ★★★

Score Another for Monsieur Poirot

Characters who employ multiple secret identities, dialogue scenes that turn out staged for a listener, red herrings, U-turns, left-field clues, secondary characters who portend nothing but offer strategic diversion at critical intervals: These are devices one not only expects but comes to appreciate reading Agatha Christie novels.

Here's Johnny! – Ed McMahon, 2005 ½★

A Sidekick's Lot Is Not an Easy One

Whenever I tuck into a celebrity memoir, great expectations are not an issue. Maybe I’ll learn something. Maybe I’ll be entertained. But it’s unlikely I’ll be blown away, or even remember much about the book a year later. Grant me pleasant diversion, and I’m satisfied.

The Power Broker: Robert Moses And The Fall Of New York – Robert A. Caro, 1974 ★★★

Building a Monster

Like platinum, efficiency in government is highly prized but hard to find. Yet it can be overvalued, too; think of Mussolini making the trains run on time. If you think a fascist analogy is out-of-place in reviewing a biography of a parks commissioner, you probably haven’t read Robert A. Caro’s The Power Broker.