Herbert R. Lottman (1927–2014)

In her review, another Goodreads member said "There's often a whisper-thin line between a biography and a boringly-written research paper. Lottman has rubbed that line out completely." I'm not sure I have much to add except that Colette is one of my favorite writers and I've read several biographies about her. I may have learned something new from this one, the fact is that I don't remember facts well. The best thing about this book was that it coupled the events and stages of her life with show more what she wrote at that time. Other than that, it was poorly written and really there are better ways to learn about Colette. show less

Easy, if overall slow read. I kept putting it aside for failing to retain my attention.

Still, it was interesting, if academic, and a fan of Verne may unfairly come away with the image tarnished. Tarnished not because of Verne, but because of Lottman's treatment...slow, and an odd mix of broad-based critique with excruciating attention to irrelevant minutia of details of Verne's life.

In this case, shoot the messenger. I loved Verne from childhood and knowing the man, as an adult, show more fortunately doesn't impact the memory of the love, but that's because I was able to overcome a plodding narrative. show less

It was interesting to learn about the behavior of intellectuals before, during and after the occupation; but on the whole, the book is flat and fails to show the relevance of these thinkers to the broader world. It's a history of relationships and not ideas.

A welcome companion to reading Camus, but a slightly odd one. Lottman reports Camus' movements on his trip to New York during the 1940s, when he was still relatively unknown in the US. There is no real attempt to get inside Camus' head, simply to list where he went and who with. It is a mini-biography stripped to its barest bones: the facts and nothing but the facts. I have read a lot by Camus, but nothing about him, and Lottman's book was illuminating, providing a very human face for the show more writer. It has little to say about Camus as an intellect, but something about him as a socializer and traveller. Interesting without being revealing. show less