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The Secret Parts of Fortune Three Decades of Intense Investigations and Edgy Enthusiasms Ron Rosenbaum 9780375503382 Books

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The Secret Parts of Fortune Three Decades of Intense Investigations and Edgy Enthusiasms Ron Rosenbaum 9780375503382 Books

I had never read Ron Rosenbaum before I purchased this book and while I don't love everything I've read so far, I do have a great deal of respect for Rosenbaum as a journalist. To put it simply: he's brilliant. It's so refreshing to read his work. He's one of the best journalists I've ever read and am so glad that amazon brought him to my attention.
My problem with the book was that many of his essays just didn't grab me. The synopsis described several topics which I was sure would interest me but when I actually read them I found the writing style a bit dense and bogged down. I don't ever expect to like everything I read in collections. I particularly liked "The Great Ivy League Nude Posture Photo Scandal," as well as "Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer Hoax." This is the kind of compilation which I would not recommend attempting to read in one sitting. Smaller portions worked best for me. This is a wonderful collection of Rosenbaum's work, and while I haven't read them all yet, so far, so good.


Tags : The Secret Parts of Fortune: Three Decades of Intense Investigations and Edgy Enthusiasms [Ron Rosenbaum] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. In 1998, Ron Rosenbaum published Explaining Hitler</i>, a national bestseller and one of the most acclaimed books of the year,Ron Rosenbaum,The Secret Parts of Fortune: Three Decades of Intense Investigations and Edgy Enthusiasms,Random House,0375503382,United States - State & Local - General,Popular culture;United States;History;20th century.,United States;Civilization;1970-,United States;Social life and customs;1971-,20th century,Celebrities,Current Events General,General,History,History - General History,History United States State & Local General,History: American,Journalists (Collected Columns),Popular culture,United States,United States - 20th Century,1970-,Civilization

The Secret Parts of Fortune Three Decades of Intense Investigations and Edgy Enthusiasms Ron Rosenbaum 9780375503382 Books Reviews

I have to confess being unfamiliar with Ron Rosenbaum until reading his excellent, perceptive book "Explaining Hitler." What a pleasure, then, that he has followed that book up with this collection of his magazine work extending over the past three decades. The essays collected here are a mixed bag showing Rosenbaum's extensive range, from amusing short pieces to long works in depth. Some personal favorites include his early exploration of the world of phone phreaks (in which Rosenbaum predicted, correctly, that computer hacking was the wave of the future - this in 1971!), his exposure of the Henry Lee Lucas serial killer hoax, his slightly crazed looks at TV culture via the war over canned laughter and the eminence of Mr. Whipple in toilet paper advertising, a short but incredibly horrible glimpse of early 60s teen film star Troy Donahue debauched and decrepit in the early 70s, his explorations into the world of the Kennedy assassination mythos, a brief, horrified look at Bill Gates' house, and his wonderful exposure of Yale's weird Skull and Bones fraternity. Every piece is well worth your time and several are worthy of close rereading. Rosenbaum is a fine writer, improving continuously as this collection shows (and he started at a very high level), and I'll be looking for his magazine pieces from now on.
Ron Rosenbaum got a lot of attention a couple of years ago with his amazing book "Explaining Hitler", which was about all the different theories people have come up with to account for that figure's almost overwhelming evil. However, he has been writing journalism for thirty years that explores the hidden underside of contemporary culture--the "gnostic knowledge", if you will, of the modern world. This book is a thick, satisfying collection of much of that work. Some of the best stuff an exploration of Kim Philby and the information about him that Graham Greene might have taken to his death. An amusing expose of the naked "posture photos" that used to be required of every freshman at Ivy League universities. His Hitler essay that first appeared in the "New Yorker" magazine. The inside poop on the secret society of "Skull and Bones." There is also a lot of terrific "literary journalism"--the best essay I've ever read on J.D. Salinger, which first appeared in "Esquire"; along with his famous take on the underappreciated Charles Portis, which got his books back into print. Also, perceptive stuff on Martin Amis and an explanation of how the lost art of the "close reading" of the old-fashioned "New Critics" is better than post-modernism at explaining the world. Rosenbaum is definitely *not* a conspiracy theorist; his real subject is how human beings respond to mystery. He contrasts his own shifting views on the JFK asassination ("Oswald's Ghost") with the fatal paranoia that eventually overcame the late Danny Casolaro. This is an endlessly fascinating book--highly recommended for mystery lovers, history buffs, and fans of the weird and unexplained.
I had never read Ron Rosenbaum before I purchased this book and while I don't love everything I've read so far, I do have a great deal of respect for Rosenbaum as a journalist. To put it simply he's brilliant. It's so refreshing to read his work. He's one of the best journalists I've ever read and am so glad that brought him to my attention.
My problem with the book was that many of his essays just didn't grab me. The synopsis described several topics which I was sure would interest me but when I actually read them I found the writing style a bit dense and bogged down. I don't ever expect to like everything I read in collections. I particularly liked "The Great Ivy League Nude Posture Photo Scandal," as well as "Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer Hoax." This is the kind of compilation which I would not recommend attempting to read in one sitting. Smaller portions worked best for me. This is a wonderful collection of Rosenbaum's work, and while I haven't read them all yet, so far, so good.