William C. Kashatus

I'm an avid baseball book reader (and baseball fan) and my favorite reading area is the 1960's/1970's game so this book fits the bill for me perfectly. This detailed look at the greatest battery in baseball, Lefty Steve Carlton and catcher Tim McCarver is outstanding.

The two were battery mates for both the St Louis Cardinals (in the 1960's) and the Philadelphia Phillies (in the 1970's) and the author does an excellent job explaining how the two players were in sync as to their pitching approach, to the benefit of Carlton's performance.

Naturally, the focus is on Carlton but the book is very well-researched. The avid baseball enthusiast would probably love it but the even the more casual fan might enjoy it.

An excellent baseball (dual) biography!!

(I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via Net Galley, in exchange for a fair and honest review)… (más)

Timely Take-Aways for Life-Long Learning

Three recent works of nonfiction focus on America’s history of slavery and evolving narratives regarding acknowledgement of enslaved people.

William Still: The Underground Railroad and the Angel at Philadelphia
William C. Kashatus; April 2021; University of Notre Dame Press/Longleaf
Themes: history, social science, biography, African American & Black Studies
Set within the context of the broader anti-slavery movement, William C. Kashatus tells the compelling story of William Still, a key leader of the Underground Railroad and early civil rights advocate. Of particular note is the detailed database of the 995 runaway slaves who William Still helped escape between 1853 and 1861 which provides priceless information about each individual.

On Juneteenth
Annette Gordon-Reed; May 2021; Liveright/W. W. Norton
Themes: history, social science, memoir, African American & Black Studies
Blending both heart-wrenching and uplifting personal anecdotes about growing up Black in Texas with key historical events and stories, Annette Gordon-Reed takes readers on a journey through history with connections for today.

How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America
Clint Smith; June 2021; Little, Brown and Company/Hachette Book Group
Themes: history, social science, memoir, African American & Black Studies
A travelogue, a memoir, a history, and a powerful reckoning… Clint Smith shares his experiences visiting sites connected with the history of enslaved people from Africa to the United States.

Let’s explore seven timely take-aways for life-long learners:
1. Free black abolitionist William Still coordinated activities of the Eastern Line of the Underground Railroad in Philadelphia. The detailed records kept by Still in the mid-nineteenth century about escaped slaves provide a priceless tool for researchers exploring the African American enslavement experience.
2. Those involved with the anti-slavery and later civil rights movements often disagreed about the best approach to address abolition, the plight of enslaved peoples, and the aftermath of slavery.
3. Juneteenth refers to June 19, 1865. On this date, the news arrived in Galveston Texas proclaiming the end of slavery and defeat of the Confederacy (General Order No. 3).
4. Although long celebrated by Black Texans, Juneteenth has recently become part of the national conversation and ongoing battle to acknowledge the racism and battle for civil rights in America.
5. The nationalist-oriented, conventional narrative of American history comes from a white, English-speaking perspective closing off varied influences and viewpoints.
6. Many historical sites are working toward a more truthful approach to the discussion of enslaved people.
7. While some historical sites are striving to fill the gaps with a more accurate picture of their connection to slavery, others are finding the process of reconciliation a challenge.… (más)

I would hazard a guess that anyone who knows who Mary Jo Kopechne is, probably knows that she died one night in July when then-Senator Edward M. Kennedy's car plunged off the side of a bridge. Since then, there has been speculation and conspiracies as to how and why this happened, when Kennedy himself survived.

People have said that he drowned her because she knew too much about the Kennedys; that she was having an affair with Ted (Edward); etc., but I tend to believe it was merely an accident, and although many will disagree with me, I seriously can't believe that someone as high-profile as the senator was and still is, that he would purposely kill a young woman and then just walk away...

This book begins far earlier than Mary Jo's conception, beginning with her grand-parentage and explaining the type of people that her family was and where they came from: a set of working class immigrants who came to this country to make it a better place and give themselves a better life. Her family worked in the mines, which even now is dangerous and hard work, causing all manner of health problems.

But Mary Jo was born to Joe and Gwen Kopechne, their only child. As such, she was pampered and loved, given every opportunity to make something of her life that was better than her parents'. After all, isn't that what we as parent are supposed to do? Want something better for our children and give them the chance to be better, to grow? Joe and Gwen were no different than other parents, and they supported Mary Jo in whatever she wanted to do.

What she wanted to do -- and succeeded in doing so -- was go into politics and work for Senator John F. Kennedy while he made a run for president. She worked hard, she worked long hours, and she pushed her way into becoming important for his campaign. When JFK was elected, Mary Jo couldn't have been happier. But then, unexpectedly, he was assassinated while driving through Dallas, and she was crushed. It shattered her world.

When she recovered, she went to work for his brother Robert, who was once John's attorney general, and worked longer hours and like a whirlwind to help him in his own campaign for the presidency. But then again, RFK was assassinated, and Mary Jo's life once again crumbled to the ground; she had utter adulation for the Kennedys, and this truly devastated her, while she insisted she would never work for Ted, while other of the Boiler Room girls (Robert's staff) did so.

Now you can say that she was having affairs with these men, but you'd be wrong. Robert was happily married to Ethel, and while John had a roving eye, it never roved in her direction. Her zeal was to help the Democratic party and her loyalty was to the Kennedy brothers. Unfortunately, the third time tragedy struck, it stuck hard and ended everything.

Senator Edward Kennedy never wanted to be president. He didn't have the charisma of his brother John, and he didn't have the determination of his brother Robert. He was the youngest Kennedy, and the last of four brothers (Joseph, Jr. was killed in WWII). He'd lost three brothers and one sister at this point, and some say that he never recovered after Robert's death.

It was a fateful night on Chappaquiddick when the accident occurred, and Ted made decisions that would change both his life and that of the Kopechne's forever. Mary Jo's death never went away, and Ted threw himself into his work, playing a major part in getting laws passed that have benefited the American people, which included (but is not limited to) the COBRA health insurance provision; The Americans with Disabilities Act; and the Ryan White AIDS act. You can say that Mary Jo's death left Ted a better person.

Now I am not praising Ted Kennedy at all; in fact, I've always believed that if he'd gotten help immediately she might have lived. For myself, when John died so did my alliance to the Kennedys themselves. And who knows what her life would have been? Her death shattered her parents; it changed Ted. Nevertheless, she left behind a legacy. She was definitely a victim in this, perhaps someone who shouldn't have been there, perhaps willingly. We will never know the truth.

But this book gives an interesting take on Mary Jo's presence; it delves into her life and brings forth the young girl she was and the young woman she became. It gives her life meaning, and makes her more than just a victim on a late July night. It tells the story of how she became the person she was, and gives her loss a heavy sadness. I read this book hoping to gain insight into Mary Jo, and I was not disappointed in the outcome. Highly recommended.… (más)