Authored by Messrs. Bill O’Reilly and Martin Duggard, instant #1 New York Times and USA Today nonfiction bestseller “Confronting the Presidents” takes an incandescent snapshot of the tenure of every American president – George Washington to the incumbent (2024), Joe Biden.
Confronting the President is written in O’Reilly and Duggard’s unique, emblematic literary style. A patchwork of satire, subject introspection, author retrospection with a dash or more like a splash of panache. I have read and audio listened a few O’Reilly and Duggard books. My favorite is easily ¨Killing JESUS.¨ O’Reilly and Duggard indulge in history and historicity. Contending the Presidents gives the Killing Series (13 books, ~17 million in print) a fair run.
This is definitely not a one and done. I see myself coming back to this book over and over again making inferences, references and whatnot.
A must read for American history enthusiasts and for persons who for whatever reason did not study American history.
Notable:
Many Presidents loved their wives deeply – with intensity – and were not afraid to put it in full display of staffers and the public.
Many Presidents outlived their children; very few children survived to adulthood and beyond.
Excerpts:
¨´My wife is as handsome as when she was a girl, and I …… fell in love with her; and what is more, I have never fallen out,´ he (Abraham Lincoln) remarks one evening as she greets guests¨ (Chapter 16, pg. 133, paragraph 2).
¨Conjecture is a fool´s errand¨ (Chapter 16, pg. 136, paragraph 3).
¨No President was ever confronted with more turmoil than Lincoln. But he handled it¨ (Chapter 16, pg. 136, paragraph 4).
¨Perhaps his (Abraham Lincoln) greatest words are from the Second inaugural: ´¨With malice toward none, with clarity for all, with firmness in the right as GOD gives us to see the right, let us strive to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations¨ (Chapter 16, pg. 136, paragraph 5).
I am reading Hillybilly Elegy authored by J.D. Vance, vice-presidential candidate of the Grand Old Party (GOP [Republican]). An excerpt from the book’s intro (hardcover sleeve, front) reads, “J.D.’s grandparents were “dirt poor and in love.” Great start I say. These days that is almost mutually exclusive; today this is a shade cinematic. 🫢
J.D. Vance takes the reader on a journey through the brokenness and struggles of the White working class in post World War II America. I go along for the ride and watch him shift gears as we travel.
Written at the age of 31, before Mr. Vance’s adventure nay foray into the murky waters of bipartisan politics, Hillybilly Elegy does not attempt to persuade the reader one way or the other.
A brilliant yet simple tale of a young J.D. navigating the troubled waters of life in Greater Appalachia.
Revealing! In post World War II America, the poor trade in the same currency regardless of demography.
Killing JESUS is a rapid page turner; it dares you to put it down. It tells the compelling story of our LORD and savior, JESUS the CHRIST. However, any pretentious or allusions to winning souls to CHRIST is extremely subdued and/or exceedingly feeble. While for some it may read like a work of fiction, two words aptly define it: historicity and authenticity. These two words tie the narrative into a bow with a near perfect flourish. As strenuously stated, Messrs. O’Reilly and Dugard present the life and times of JESUS on earth with a preponderance of context that transports the reader into Roman and Jewish society BC & AD. The reader is submerged in historical understanding that underscores Biblical teachings. The mindset of the Roman and the Jew post Julius Caesar is brought to the fore in all its brilliance, glory, gory and attendant frailties. Killing JESUS is an excellent read. We recommend you consume it: https://www.amazon.com/Killing-Jesus-History-Bill-OReillys/dp/1250142202.
The Call for Chapters (CFC) for the IGI Global book entitled “Exploring the Efficacy and Beneficence of Complementary and Alternative Medicinal Products in Disease Therapy:” https://www.igi-global.com/publish/call-for-papers/call-details/4155 has been revised to include elements of epidemiology and public health in an effort to expand book chapter contribution and readership.
Manuscripts on infectious diseases with a focus on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2 [COVID-19]) are welcome! Articles that discuss disease onset with an emphasis on symptomatology, distribution and progression utilizing complementary and alternative medicinal products as defense strategies in achieving disease tolerance and resistance shall ignite the curiosity of the scientific community and a broad spectrum of readers.
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