Customer Reviews (15)

"A Circumscribed & To-The-Point Criminal Case Study"
"The Lindbergh Case", Jim Fisher, Rutgers Univ. Press, NJ, 1987ISBN: 0-8135-1233-6, HC 430 pages plus 30 pages of Notes, Sources & Index plus 22 B & W photographs.10 1/4" x 7 1/4".

Jim Fisher, lawyer, previous FBI agent and teacher of Criminal Justice, has chronicaled, rather tersely, the A to Z of the Lindbergh case using records not previously released until 1981, the NJSP records and the Hoffman papers, etc.

The author's writing style blends factual or verbatim quotations with a thoughtfully reconstructured conversational dialogue that admittedly departs from the purest journalism, but garners acceptance by utilizing adequate notes, etc. to effect a pleasant conversational style prose that makes reading almost effortless and ought not alter veridicality.

A lot of "loose ends" are tied or concluded, and many factoids are included so that much detail prevails that appeared lacking in previous books I've read on this case, some of them via Notes but others spelled out in great details, i.e. the details and results of the jury's many votings, the verdicts and setting & re-setting of execution dates, last minute appeals, etc.However, in the end, the reader like the author will find the evidence given to the jurors is compelling beyond a reasonable doubt.It is a long book and the print is small, but the intent, the evidence, and its presentation provides a cerebrally ambitious journey for the reader.

The Book No One Wants to Believe!
Mr. Fisher takes the most controversial case in the twentieth century and shucks off all the wild conspiracies. After reading Fisher's cogent explanation, on can only believe that collective hysteria fueled all the earlier conspiracy books. Mr. Fisher reveals taht Hauptman was a criminal
who left Germany facing jail time. The guards find Hauptman's tray is missing a spoon. They shake down his cell and discover he has already fashined the spoon handle into a shive. Is this an innocent man or a veteran of jailhouse society? Hauptman quits work within days of the kidnapping and starts living the high life. Did the police frame him?
Bring in the missing board and plant it in the attic--to match with the ladder? No way. No need to read another book. Hauptman did it! Fisch was only his invented alibi. Bravo, Mr. Fisher!

Fisher Gets it Right
When I was a teenager I read several Kennedy Conspiracy theory books. The problem with them is that there was always someone new who did it. One time the mafia and the next Castro and the next time the CIA and the next all did it together. That is the way with conspiracy theories. And we the public believe it because we don't realize that so many of these conspiracy cases are based on manufactured effidence and hearsay. Jim Fisher gets it right with this book because he sticks with the effidence from the scene of the crime. The letter was written by Hauptmann. You don't have to be a hand writing expert to figure that out. He also had quite a bit of the ransom money in his garage. One Critic said Fisher didn't address issues like the defense experts claiming the wood wasn't from Hauptmann's attic. Anyone knows that you can find an expert to agree with you no matter what the facts happen to be.

Good, but too much license with the facts and evidence.
Jim Fisher's book is an excellent achievement.He brought forth many facts and pieces of evidence which had never previously been disclosed.He has done a great service to Lindbergh researchers everywhere.

However, his exuberance and desire to prove Hauptmann guilty have resulted in several problems.First, he creates dialogue based on letters and documents contained within the archives.However, the substance of the dialogue creates false impressions.For example, there is a fictitious conversation during which Hauptmann suggests that he would enter a plea bargain if different police authorities handled the case.Th actual letter merely states that Hauptmann once asked if he could ever expect leniency.The differences between the facts and the created dialogue are striking and significant.

Additionally, Fisher relies upon the word of a former archivist as a citation in support of several claims, such as the folding of a $20.00 gold certificate found on Hauptmann's person when he was arrested.The official documents do not support the previous archivist's assertions.

In conclusion, while Fisher's book offers remarkable evidence and demonstrates significant time and effort in research, there are certain factual errors and created dialogue which take a great deal away from this book.I do recommend it though.

The Truth About the Lindbergh Case
In the midst of revisionist books presenting improbable coverup and frameup accounts gullibly swallowed by a naive reading public and seized upon by anti-government types, Jim Fisher has taken us back to the essentials of the Lindbergh-Hauptmann affair and presented the evidence and the simple truth of the case. Bruno Richard Hauptmann, an illegal alien and a petty criminal in his homeland, kidnapped and murdered the Lindbergh baby for profit. Not a pretty story but in the real world it makes a whole lot more sense than massive conspiracies in which all the evidence is manufactured and all the witnesses are lying. Hauptmann did it and Hauptmann deserved to die for it. End of story. And Fisher tells like it was. ... Read more

Product Description
In September 1938, Europe teetered on the brink of war. The German dictator, Adolph Hitler, planned the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia and its ultimate absorption into the Third Reich. Winston Churchill, who was then a member of parliament, understood Hitler’s motives far better than those in the Chamberlain Government. Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was desperate to avoid war. At the time of what became known as the Munich Crisis, Joseph P. Kennedy, who had no diplomatic experience, was the ambassador to the Court of St. James. Without authority from the State Department, Kennedy summoned Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh, then the most famous aviator in the world, from France and had him write a report overnight on the German air force. Shortly before Chamberlain left for his fateful meeting with Hitler at Munich, Kennedy secretly gave him “The Lindbergh Report.” It was, perhaps, the most shocking document ever handed to a British prime minister. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Fascinating and realistic
Matthew Wills has a gift for research and writing that makes historical events come alive, and transports the reader in time and space, as if enabling the reader to become an eye witness to history. ... Read more

Product Description
The famed flier's own vivid word picture recalls withwarmth and accuracy the years before World War I on his family farmnear Little Falls, Minnesota.The brief text is enhanced by manyphotographs from his personal albums. ... Read more

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Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

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collection of tales from the finest writers
A collection of tales from the finest writers of the time that illustrated the growth of aviation.Painted front cover of two airplanes by Jack Floherty. Introduction by Colonel Andrew F. Gordon, USAF. Anthology of 20 stories, some true, some fiction, all are exciting recounts of man's efforts to fly longer, higher, faster and more safely. Authors include Charles Lindbergh, James Thurber, William Faulkner, Saint-Exupery, Richard Hillary, Ernest Gann, Walt Sheldon, Guy Murchie, Oreste Pinto, Ward Taylor, 10 others. ... Read more

Product Description
True crime story of the kidnapping of toddler Charles Lindbergh, Jr. Includes pictures of the major players in the investigation, trial and execution of Bruno Hauptmann. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

a classic
I read this book more than forty years ago.In style, it's like "In Cold Blood" -- but it's a better book.One of the all-time most under-rated.It reads like a dream. ... Read more

Product Description
An anthology of more than seventy accounts covers flight literature from Greek Mythology to the Space Age and includes The First Success for the Wright Brothers, First Flight to Paris, and Downing My First Hun. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (7)

A Excellent Work about an Odd and Flawed Man
I doubt that Lindbergh realized how odd and self-absorbed he would come across in this autobiography.He was cleared a gifted and brilliant man, but one who failed to realize that self-canonization is not an acceptable act for most mortals.His less than disguised bigotry and his last minute attempts to hide his serial adultery and illegitimate children further tarnish him as a man.He lived life large, in reality and more so in his own mind.That is my judgment, harsh though it may be.

The Most Interesting Man in the World
I found the book both interesting and incredibly self-patronizing. Lindberg was an amazing individual to be certain but I felt, at times, that no human could be that interesting or intelligent, gifted or have that many opportunities to take whatever interest they may have and turn it into a National spectacle. I was reminded of the tales told in The Bible where men sat near the doorway of towns and talked with the King or other nobles as if they had unlimited access to them.Although Lindberg's fame granted him a certain level of notoriety and access to a higher level of citizenry, I still had a hard time with all of the muckety-mucks he rubbed elbows with in every endeavor he attempted and, as chronicled, succeeded at.

If you are looking to be entertained by an account of a man's values, as the title suggests, you may want to look elsewhere.If you are looking to find out more about a man who's arm may get tired of patting himself on the back, this is your book.

Condition of book was not as good as promised...
This book was noted as being in Good Condition, well it wasn't. Some pages were stained and many pages had been written on and sections underlined. If I had known I would not have ordered this book. Will try to sell it on at a car boot sale! Disappointed and Amazon should inform the suppliers of this.

Values ????
30 years after his death we find out that he had three mistresses in Europe and fathered 7 illegitimate children with them. Some values.This book is extremely hard to read after finding that out about the man.

A Blend of History, Memoir, and Metaphysical Musings
This is an extraordinary and unusual book, and certainly not what one would expect from the first man to fly the Atlantic alone.

Lindbergh (ever the trailblazer) sets the tone for the future otherworldly musings of astronauts. There must be something about the experience of flight-or of pioneering flight in particular-that sets fire to the spirit and imagination of man.

In Autobiography of Values, Lindbergh freely blends history, memoir, and metaphysical musings. Here we see what was hinted at in Of Flight & Life and parts of The Spirit of St. Louis, given free rein. Reading his mind-expanding phrases, and the extraordinary spiritual experiences during his famous Paris flight (mentioned three times), one sees how a yoga master (Yogananda) could have said that Lindbergh had been a Himalayan yogi in a past life (although this book was written decades after that statement).

Lindbergh was a private person; yet it seems to me that in this book he let the veil slip a little. Perhaps it was because his death was approaching that the flyer felt free to share some of his deepest thoughts.

I recommend this book to spiritual wayfarers and aviation buffs, and to those who fall somewhere between.

Richard Salva--author of Soul Journey from Lincoln to Lindbergh [UNABRIDGED] ... Read more

Product Description
Illustrated with archival photographs, this acclaimed biography presents a full portrait of the handsome and brave aviation pioneer--from his global fame to the kidnapping of his baby son and his shocking politics Ages 10 and up. Pub: 1/98. .Amazon.com Review
Charles Lindbergh is fascinating both as a complicated man andas a case study of the problematicnature of "heroes." Lindbergh's famousflight put him in the history books and made him the toast of America.The tragic kidnapping of his child made his name even morefamiliar.But his peculiar politics and wartime actions, which included Naziaffiliations and leadership of the original "America First"movement opposing war against Germany, added a notorious quality to hisfame.Pulling no punches, thisbiography tells the interesting story of the man and the legendsthat surround Lindbergh.The well-researched book draws from interviewsand includes period photos. (Ages 10 and up) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

An Inspiring Story
Lindbergh's life was full of triumph and tragedy. This book has both, it follows him from his childhood to his old days and throughly documents every event. It also has some small photos to allow the reader to become more familiar with the times. This is an interesting and inspiring story. It's also a must read because it sheds light on the difficult past that most people alive today have no idea about.

An inspirational read
This biography about Charles A. Lindbergh covers his whole life from childhood through his eventual depression and death.

Charles Lindbergh lived an interesting life. His first son was kidnapped and murdered. His father was a politician for the state of Minneapolis. His grandpa spent a lot of time with him and also was a great inventer. All of these helped me really get into the book. At certain points I didn't want to put the book down!

I also liked this book because I could relate to him. He was bad in school but turned out to be a hero. He didn't like school, went to collage and didn't do well once again. Then, he went to flight school and found flying was what he really enjoyed. After discovering this interest, Charles Lindbergh soon became a hero. This story was inspirational to me.

An American Hero
This is a fascinating and interesting book, full of hiddenfacts that force the reader to become involved in the book. Togetherwe share his triumphs and tragedies: we are with him when he flies theAtlantic, we are there when he loses his son. A must read for all those who have fantasised of being a hero. ... Read more