Charles Ashbacher Reviews

  Review of What If? 2, Eminent Historians Imagine What Might Have Been , edited by Robert Cowley, ISBN 042518613x Five out of five stars Learned thoughts on what might have been   It is always interesting and entertaining to think of what might have happened if one specific event had been a bit different. When people that know history engage in such actions it is also educational. This book contains 25 essays based on what might have happened if an event had a different outcome. The timeframe starts in ancient Greece and moves through the aftermath of World War II.   The first essay is based on a little-known fact, that Socrates was a soldier before he became a sage. He fought in the battle of Delium in 424 B. C. and apparently barely escaped capture or death. The “What If?” scenario is based on the consequences of his being killed in that battle. Given his influence on Greek thought, the emergence of what we now call philosophy and how the ancients Greeks form...

  Review of Strikeout Story , by Bob Feller Four out of five stars The early years of Feller’s career   Hall of fame pitcher Bob Feller made his major league debut at the age of seventeen on July 6, 1936, striking out 8 in three innings. He won 24 games in a season before he turned 21, so his debut was not a fluke. The two best hitters of the time, Stan Musial and Ted Williams, called him the best pitcher of his generation. If he had not enlisted in the Navy and spent almost four years in the military where he saw action in the Pacific, he might have entered the record books as the best of all time. If you interpolate an average of 25 wins per season over those years, he would have added 95 wins to his record of 266 wins. He pitched 3 no hit games as well as 12 one-hitters.   This book is an autobiography of Feller’s life from his early years until the start of the 1947 season. While he does cover his time in the military, he generally passes it by rather than d...

  Review of The Impossibly True Story of Tricky Vic, the Man Who Sold the Eiffel Tower, by Greg Pizzoli, ISBN 9780670016525 Five out of five stars Chronicle of an amazing life   Born in 1890 in what is now the Czech Republic, the man originally called Robert Miller went under forty-five different aliases and once actually sold the Eiffel Tower using the name Count Victor Lustig. Hence the name “Tricky Vic” in the title.   His list of other scams is considerable, he was also a counterfeiter and played a scam called the Romanian money box. It was a simple device loaded with a couple of valid bills that supposedly printed out $100 bills.   This account of the life and times of one of history’s most well-traveled and experienced con men is a joy to read. It also contains a very serious lesson, Robert Miller ended up in Alcatraz prison after being convicted of counterfeiting. He left the prison due to serious illness and died shortly afterward..   Robert...

  Review of Star Trek The Next Generation: Starfleet Academy, Line of Fire , by Peter David, ISBN 0671870858 Five out of five stars A peek back at the development of Worf   As a Klingon raised by humans and the first one to attend Star Fleet Academy, Worf is in a unique position. He is proud of his Klingon heritage while totally loyal to the Federation. In this book, we get a look back into his days as a cadet, where he must learn to work and play well with others. Being a Klingon, playing well generally means intense physical action.   Dantar is a planet where a social experiment is taking place. A colony where humans and Klingons live and work has been placed there and it is being disrupted, both internally and externally. A group of Federation cadets that includes Worf has been dispatched under the guidance of Professor Trump, a well respected international diplomat/scholar. When they arrive, there is a small delegation of Klingons from the Empire and Worf en...

  Review of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, Cadet Kirk , by Diane Carey, ISBN 0671000772 Five out of five stars The early relationship between Kirk, Spock and McCoy   In this book, James Kirk is a Star Fleet cadet, Spock is a Star Fleet ensign and McCoy is a Medical Intern. Kirk is to pilot a shuttlecraft to a conference where the primary passenger is to be computer genius Dr. Richard Daystrom. Through a change in plans, the passenger list is changed so there are three people on board, Kirk, McCoy and Spock.   While enroute to the conference, the shuttle is grabbed by a tractor beam and forced down on a planet. Thinking that Daystrom is on the shuttle, the goal of the pirates is to take him captive, extract classified information and then ransom him back to the Federation.   All three of the characters are not yet molded into their final form. Kirk is a very regulation/rule follower, Spock has not yet managed to adapt his Vulcan logic to his interactions wi...

  Review of Westeryear: Stories About the West, Past and Present, edited by Edward Gorman, ISBN 087131553X Five out of five stars Not the usual western stories   Western novels tend to have a generally standard format, with the hero engaging in gun battles with the villains. The heroes tend to be excellent shooters while the villains find it difficult to hit their targets. There is some character development, but it is easier for authors to engage in the actions with firearms.   That is not the case with these short stories. They all have a point, there are heroes and villains, but there is more moral ambiguity as to which is which. There is the common theme of how difficult it was for the people that pioneered the settlement of the west. Native Americans do appear on occasion, but in secondary roles and not as protagonists.   Plot devices range from the appearance of a werewolf to hints of the occult and life prolongation. My favorite was “The Return of...

  Review of What If?: The World’s Foremost Military Historians Imagine What Might Have Been , edited by Robert Crowley, ISBN 0425176428 Five out of five stars Informed, plausible speculation about forks in history   The butterfly effect is a well known and genuine phenomenon in science. It means that the actions of a butterfly flapping its’ wings can lead to a major storm thousands of miles away. In other words, very small changes in initial conditions can lead to dramatic changes in later events. There is no question that small changes in historical events would lead to significant changes later. The example that is probably most often stated is what would have happened if the assassination attempts against Adolf Hitler that took place before September 1, 1939, had been successful.   In this book some of the foremost military historians look back on a specific historical event and ponder how the world would have changed if the situation had evolved differently....

  Review of Fighting in Flanders , by E. Alexander Powell Four out of five stars One of the first books on WWI in Europe   Powell was an American war correspondent that witnessed the early weeks of World War I in Europe when the German army invaded Belgium. He witnessed how the relatively small Belgian army held off the powerful German forces for a few weeks. As an American, Powell had some immunity within the conflict, but he did not hesitate to place himself in danger to get the story he wanted.   While there is a clear occasional bias against the German military in terms of their tactics and actions in occupied Belgium, Powell also praises the efficiency of the German military while on the move. Extremely well organized down to barbers and cobblers that can cut hair and fix boots all while the massive army is on the move, he watches them as their columns march through Belgium. His relationship with the Germans was relatively cordial, the first image in the bo...

  Review of Commerce and Coalitions: How Trade Affects Domestic Political Alignments, by Ronald Rogowski, ISBN 0691078122 Five out of five stars Why commerce makes strange bedfellows.   There is an old saying that “politics makes strange bedfellows,” meaning that political alliances often are formed between groups that seem to have nothing in common. In this book, Rogowski puts forward very convincing arguments that trade and commerce also leads to coalitions that seem impossible. This of course leads to unusual political alignments.   Four square matrices are used to illustrate the points. For example, the entry where the economy is advanced, and land and labor are both scarce capital is assertive when trade is expanding and defensive when trade is declining. Some of the points are well documented historically. For example, in Japan labor was abundant and land was scarce. Hence the expansionist movement in Japan almost from the moment the nation was modernized...

  Review of The Man From Mars: Ray Palmer’s Amazing Pulp Journey, by Fred Nadis ISBN 9780399160547 Five out of five stars Biography of an unappreciated figure in SF/occult literature   Ray Palmer was severely injured when young, leading to a deformed body. He stood about four feet tall and had a hunchback. While he was unable to do many physical activities, he more than made up for it in his work as an author and editor in the area of pulp literature. The list of his achievements is considerable, a partial list follows: *) He edited “Amazing Stories” from 1938 through 1949. *) He created the magazine “Fantastic Adventures,” which ceased publication in 1953. *) He cofounded/edited the occult/supernatural/paranormal magazine “Fate.” *) Palmer was a major promoter of the flying saucer craze, he created the magazine “Flying Saucers.” *) He published “Marooned off Vesta,” Isaac Asimov’s first professional story. *) He wrote many stories of fiction/pseudofact fo...

  Review of The Twentieth Century in Cartoons: A History in Pictures, edited by Tony Husband, ISBN 9781784044336 Five out of five stars Cartoons that reflect and teach history   There is no more powerful force in social movements and public opinion than properly drawn cartoons. Generally using only a few words as a supplement, the best cartoons can represent, parody and if necessary, ridicule the most powerful and famous people. The cartoons in this collection reflect some of the most significant events of the twentieth century.   Some of the cartoons are nationalistic in nature, reflecting on the leaders of nations that are considered adversaries. A short caption of explanatory text is included with each cartoon, very helpful to the reader that is unfamiliar with history and the physical appearance of world leaders. These cartoons cover the political and social spectrum, some of the best were drawn by people that were pacifists or politically left.   My...

  Review of The Turnover , by Mike Lupica, ISBN 9781534421585 Five out of five stars Love proves stronger than anger   Lucas Winston is in middle school and a superb basketball player. His team is called the Claremont Wolves and last season they won the championship. Lucas’ grandfather, called Gramps, coached the team last season, and will do so again this season. Lucas and his teammates are growing in confidence, for they know their skill levels and Gramps knows basketball. Lucas’ father died when he was young, so his Gramps has been his father equivalent. They both love basketball and talk about it and watch it all the time.     One odd thing that Lucas notices is that Gramps never talks about his life as a boy or a young man. All he will say is that he played basketball for a college that doesn’t exist anymore. Whenever Lucas mentions anything that is even a veiled reference to Gramps’ past, the subject is changed, dismissed or joked into another subject...

  Review of A Season in the Sun: The Inside Story of Bruce Arians, Tom Brady, and the Making of a Champion , by Lars Anderson, ISBN 9780063160200 Four out of five stars Interesting, but a little too laudatory   After an incredibly successful career quarterbacking the New England Patriots, in 2020 Tom Brady found himself yearning to play elsewhere. For reasons that have never been thoroughly articulated, and are not examined in detail in this book, Tom Brady decided he wanted to play for another team. At 43 years of age, Brady was generally considered at an age where he could no longer be effective in the NFL. Yet, Brian Arians, having been a successful head coach in the NFL, was now coaching the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The team with the lowest historical winning percentage in all of major sports, the Buccaneers were not a team with a great winning tradition.   Brady signed with the Buccaneers in March of 2020 and immediately began the process of acclimating to the...