PositiveThe Tampa Bay TimesOh Florida! isn't merely a collection of goofy stories or Florida-Man fodder, though Pittman deftly interweaves a startling number of can-you-believe-this tales. Like a good anthropologist, Pittman tries to make order, if not sense, from the madness ... Pittman draws us in with skillfully told miniature comic operas about crooks and creeps, then uses those stories to lead to parables about the state and its myriad virtues and wonders that make the natives proud ... Oh, Florida! brings readers in for laughs, but then gets them to stick around for the tale of a maddening, fascinating and wonderful place.
Philip Norman
PositiveThe Boston GlobeMcCartney told friends and family to cooperate with Norman, met with him a few times, and hoped for the best. He got it. Norman’s portrait of McCartney is fascinating and exhaustive. This is the story of a relentless entertainer, working well into his 70s to make everybody happy. He is also portrayed as a deep contradiction: generous but petty, mostly kind but sometimes cruel. To his credit, Norman manages to avoid most of the oft-told tales, leaving the Beatles’ saga refreshed by his account...In this massive biography, Norman lifts the curtain to show us the real guy, and he’s somewhat different from the musician we’ve been listening to for decades. But he still largely feels like the act we’ve known for all these years.
Jon Krakauer
RaveThe Boston GlobeKrakauer doesn’t just tell the story of these crimes. As he has done so brilliantly in his other books he sets the story firmly in the context of social history. He gathers relevant research and debunks scores of misconceptions about rape.
