Monday, December 8, 2014

Deceivers and Dreamers



Dreamers and Deceivers  True Stories of the Heroes and Villiams Who Made America
By Glenn Beck with Kevin Balfe

Date Review Posted:  December 8, 2014
Author:  Glenn Beck
Release Date:  2014
Web Site:        http://www.glennbeck.com/dreamers/

  CCCCC  (A case could be made that I would only review the best of the best because if while reading a book it does not hold my interest, I would not finish it and therefore would not review it.)

Format:  "Historical Fiction" written in a novel format to make it interesting with each chapter being self-contained meaning you don't have to read one chapter before another.  Historical Fiction is historical fact made interesting by drawing word pictures of what may or probably  happened but the story remains true.

Reason For Reading THIS book:  I heard about the book while listening to the radio.  I researched its subject matter and found it to be interesting and I was not disappointed.

Number Of Times I Have Read This Book:  Once

Brief Summary of Content:  

Each chapter reads like a short story about people in American history who you may or may not know a lot about.  For example most people are well aware that Woodrow Wilson was the President of the United States but were you aware of a remarkable deception he played on not only America but the entire world.  My favorite story involves Alan Turing who frankly I had never heard of before.  His story is truly unbelievable and he single-handedly may have helped to win World War II and yet his name, for most people, would be a mystery until now.  It is a great story of perseverance and dedication and even though he could be considered as one of the saviors of free-thinking people throughout the world, his death was truly sad and totally unnecessary.  It is a valuable lesson for all of us as are all the stories in this book.

President Grover Cleveland:  The Mysterious Case of the Disappearing President
Howard Armstrong:  "I Did Not Kill Armstrong":  The War of Wills in the Early Days of Radio
President Woodrow Wilson:  A Masterful Stroke of Deception
Charles Ponzi:  Streets of Gold:  Charles Ponzi and the American Scheme
Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball:  He Loved Lucy:  The Tragic Genius of Desi Arnaz, the Inventor of the Rerun
Upton Sinclair:  The Muckraker:  How a Lost Letter Revealed Upton Sinclair's Decption
Alan Turing:  How the Father of the Computer Saved the World for Democracy
Alger Hiss:  The Spy Who Turned to a Pumpkin:  Alger Hiss and the Liberal Establishment That Defended a Traitor
Walt Disney:  The City of Tomorrow:  Walt Disney's Last and Lost Dream
Steve Jobs:  Make It Great, John":  How Steve Jobs and John Lasseter Changed History at Pixar

Who Should Read the Book?    If you are interested in history and everyone should be, then this book is for everyone to read.


Final Test:  Would I read the book again?  ABSOLUTELY!   Would I give it as a gift?  ABSOLUTELY!

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