Reviews for Fulton County, Ga Fire

The average rating for Fulton County, Ga Fire based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2019-05-22 00:00:00 Edward Servin I absolutely LOVED this book. Billed as "WWII Memoirs of an LSM215 Veteran", this is really much more than that. William Craighead, the author, and a Crewman on the LSM 215 in WWII, tells the story of the boat in WWII,but makes it more of a "YearBook" for the Ship, having lots of other content , some from Official sources, some from Shipmates, and re-telling some or all of the tale several times in the book. But that's OK- it's the mixture of Raw data/coverage/Letters/Memoirs, and wonderful cultural richness like his careful alphabetic list of Swing Music favorites near the back of the book, that makes this a really fun resource. But even the multiple tellings of many part of the story pays off as each telling shows just a little bit of different nuance. By the end, you really feel like you understand Craighead's wartime experience- you've been along for the ride. Drafted in 1944, Craighead joined the Crew of LSM 215 in Philadelphia. LSMs (Landing Ship Medium) were a key Class of ships in WWII, some 558 of them serving at EVERY Allied Amphibious landing. Craighead is aimed for the Iwo Jima Landing, but technical issues mean that the ship participates in the Okinawa Landing, before serving a little bit after the War. But that means a trip down the East Coast, through the Panama Canal, out to Pearl and then across the wide Pacific , visiting several Battle sites, to Okinawa. These are ships with no keels, since their Bows open to off load Tanks/Trucks/Guns/Men- I had thought they were towed or even stacked on other ships- as they are now. No- these were sailed everywhere under their own power- yikes. No keel in bad weather means really bad pitching - turns out it happens a lot. Then at the Beaches of Okinawa- the Kamikazes have the Gun positions blasting away all hours. It's engaging stuff- and better raw like this than overly filtered. This is a good read for the Junior reader about 12-13 years, since the Adult themes are largely management oriented, and there are no graphic injuries. For the Gamer/Modeller/Military enthusiast a really rich trove. The gamer will really only get Kamikaze content- as I know that exists as a game category. But the Modeller get all sorts of Diorama and oil stain content, and I know that I have not seen another LSM memoir yet- so this is fascinating to learn about a New Class of vessels and their use and abuse. And of course at each stop on their voyages- both out and back- Craighead's impressions of WWII battle fields and ports of call is really a great record. A strong rec- a cool insight into a interesting feature of the logistics of WWII

Review # 2 was written on 2013-11-08 00:00:00 Jamie Gillis Profoundly boring autobiography. While dedicating more than half of the book's space to flattering pictures of himself, Liberace does write about all kinds of personal things: his many extravagant performances, his love for food and cooking, his glitzy rhinestone-studded costumes, his many kitschy and artsy possessions, his dogs, his maids, his famous friends and acquainted fellow celebrities, his expensive collection of real estate. But as he chitchats a blue streak about all his circumstantial and materialistic pomp and splendor, he almost altogether leaves unaddressed who he really is: the man giving rise to the entertainer and the existential forces and events that came to shape his offstage unfeigned character. Sharply contrasting his devotion to extensively describe the polished-up external crowd-pleasing shell that is expressly meant to provoke ooh!'s and aah!'s, he all but neglects delving into the man he is on the inside. Although he promises to reveal the truth as to his person, there is, for example, not even a remote hint of his painfully obvious homosexuality and his string of gay lovers. In fact, he implicitly denies his sexual preference out of shame by covering it up with a sham story on how he lost his cherry to a woman named Miss Bea Haven (!). In short, Liberace tells you all about how he wants people to see him; the book is one big self-image promotion, one big celebration of self-idolatry. To find out who the real Liberace is, one has to consult the much more revealing unauthorized biography by Scott Thorson. Liberace's book--his last, before AIDS got the better of him--is all but existentially sterile.