Reviews

The Bittersweet Nature of Being a Pittsburgh Steelers Fan

Posted on by Kevin Holtsberry / 2 Comments

The Pittsburgh Steelers football team won 13 games this season, won their division and had a bye week to set up a home playoff game.  Pretty good season, right?  Wrong.

They lost a bitter game to the New England Patriots when they were jobbed by the NFL which meant they would not be playing the Tennessee Titans but the Jacksonville Jaguars.  One of only three teams to beat the Steelers in the regular season when five interceptions (two pick-sixes) led to an embarrassing 30-9 loss. One of two teams with a winning record against the Steelers at home (the other? Yes, the Patriots).

That is what is called foreshadowing. So naturally, any remaining positive feelings from winning 13 games and the division is flushed down the toilet in demoralizing fashion when they lose again to the Jaguars 45-42.  One and done. End of season. Poof.  All of that offensive talent finally healthy and it doesn’t matter.  Fans who desperately wanted revenge against the hated Patriots, were instead handed another depressing loss to the Jaguars.  The wailing and gnashing of teeth will last for some time. Anger, depression, confusion, a swirling sea of emotion as fans come to grips that football is over for the year.

For fans of dozens of teams these bitter tears are sweet.  Browns, Bengals and Ravens fans are all enjoying this moment I am sure.  There are no shortage of fans who hate the Steelers and their fans (who often dominate visiting stadiums across the country thanks to all the Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania folks who left to find job during the economic slide the region experienced).

But many of those same fans would also laugh at the bitter complaints of Steelers fans.  Who are not known for their calm and balanced reactions.

And it is a weird feeling to be so bitter about this franchise when they have experienced so much success.

In my lifetime (1970), the Steelers have won something like 23 division titles (my rough count), played in 8 Super Bowls and won 6.  They have won more Super Bowls than any other team in the NFL. They haven’t had a losing season since 2003.

After the legendary and dominant Steelers of the 70s, the Steelers are once again a perennial contender in the NFL. Ben Roethlisberger has two Super Bowl wins in three tries.  Most fans would love their team to have this kind of record.  Heck, Roethlisberger has more wins in Cleveland than the Browns do.

And yet.  The fact of the matter is that Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots have dominated the NFL and the Steelers since Brady came in to replace an injured Drew Bledsoe to beat the Steelers in 2001.  17 consecutive winning seasons, eight consecutive 12 win seasons, 15 division titles since 2001, and five Super Bowls and counting.

Losing at home, after a bye, with all your stars healthy hurts.  To again commit critical turnovers and mistakes and to let a pretty mediocre QB beat you adds to the pain.  To watch helplessly as the defense gives up big play after big play, is demoralizing.

But what really pours salt in the wounds is to know that the Patriots are still favorites to win the Super Bowl.  It is the knowledge that the Patriots don’t seem to lose these games, don’t seem to let these type of seasons slip away, that lingers.

Today felt like a chance for the Steelers to reassert themselves as the team to challenge the Patriots.  Ben Roethlisberger’s career is coming to a close and he won’t have this much talent around him forever.  But instead of setting up the rematch everyone wanted and was expecting, they will be spending the offseason thinking about what might have been.  Even as Tom Brady seeks to add hardware to his already crowded shelf.

And that is a bitter pill for any fan to swallow.

Reviews

War Cry by Wilbur Smith

Posted on by Jeff Grim / 1 Comment

Wilbur Smith’s latest installment in his Courtney Family series is entitled War Cry. It is as riveting as his other books. The book is strongest in the beginning and the end. It seems to get a bit bogged down in the middle.

Although I did not read Assegai (the prequel to War Cry), I could piece together what happened based on the writing in this book – Leon Courtney was the main protagonist with his wife Eva. Leon continues to be the main protagonist in War Cry along with his daughter Saffron.

Smith’s writing is detailed with great descriptions. I especially like the descriptions of Kenya and its native people. The African plain is brought to life with Smith’s prose.

The character development is excellent. Smith firmly establishes the backgrounds of the antagonists and protagonists. This is particularly true of Konrad and Gerhard von Meerbach. Evilness seems to seep from Konrad’s character and the opposite is mainly true of Gerhard. Although women were free to be who they wanted to be in the 1930s and 1940s than anytime.

I think that some of Saffron’s actions are a bit out of context. She is much bolder and gets away with more than she probably would have if she lived during those times. Don’t get me wrong, I think her character is solid, she is a little hard to believe at times.

War Cry is a wonderful work of fiction by a master storyteller.

 

Reviews

The Chosen Few by Gregg Zoroya

Posted on by Jeff Grim / 0 Comment

The men and women of the United States armed forces never cease to amaze me. Their dedication to their country and each other is astounding. Gregg Zoroya writes an account highlighting the fighting abilities and sacrifices of these men and women in his book The Chosen Few: A Company of Paratroopers and Its Heroic Struggle to Survive in the Mountains of Afghanistan.

Zoroya, like so many great authors in the past, perfectly describes the fighting spirit of America’s warriors. He chronicles the different firefights and battles in explicit detail.

Zoroya pulls the reader in with brief biographies of the men in the company. This approach acquaints the reader with the men and humanizes them (all too often it is easy to read of casualties without thinking of the human sacrifice). The humanization is hard because you get to slightly know the men and are more unnerved when they are grievously wounded or killed.

The combat descriptions, as told to Zaroya by the men who experienced it, are gripping. I would like to say hard to put down, but that is not true because the descriptions of the action are so intense that you find yourself putting it down briefly to get a break. Zaroya’s writing is magnificent and powerful.

The emotions brought forth by Zaroya’s writing are powerful. More than once, I found myself wiping away a tear after reading about the fate of a paratrooper.

A refreshing change from some of the books on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is that Zaroya is not all rah rah U.S.A. He subtly points out the mistakes and deficiencies of American commanders. He also gives respect and admiration to the execution of well-planned attacks by the Taliban and other enemy fighters. He gathers this respect from the paratroopers who fought them. As in Vietnam, the Americans in Afghanistan depend on firepower to equal the troop disparity. However, also as in Vietnam, the Taliban have learned to “hug” the American positions to try to neutralize that superior firepower.

A gripping and enduring tribute to the men of the “Chosen Few.”

Reviews

Ragdoll by Daniel Cole

Posted on by Jeff Grim / 0 Comment

Ragdoll is the debut crime novel of Daniel Cole. It is a spellbinding, suspenseful look at a serial killer.

Cole’s story revolves around a controversial detective, William Fawkes, as he along with other detectives try to solve a mystery. The mystery surrounds a body, which is composed of the dismembered parts of six victims that are sewn together – the “Ragdoll.”

The novel is a dark and brooding work. Fawkes is not a likeable character – his rude and abrasive personality is grating and he is a little nuts. But, like many flawed detectives in novels, he is a genius at solving crimes. His doggedness in pursuing leads and thinking theories through explain why he is so successful.

Cole writes in a clear and brutal fashion. The injuries to the victims are vivid, but not overly so. Cole provides enough detail to give the reader a good handle of events and the personalities of the various characters.

The plot is engaging and keeps you guessing through most of the book. Cole uses trainee homicide detective Alex Edmunds wonderfully in unraveling the mystery of the killer.

A good and easy read.

 

Reviews

Quick Take: The Fortunate Ones by Ellen Umansky

Posted on by Jeff Grim / 0 Comment

The Fortunate Ones by Ellen Umansky follows the trail of, and lives of those touched by, a piece of Nazi-looted art.

The characters are strong, especially Lizzie and Rose. Most of the supporting characters are obviously weaker – Lizzie’s sister Sarah and her friend Max are more fully developed than Rose’s brother Gerhard. Umansky really shines in fleshing out the relationship between Rose and Lizzie – from tentative to a strong bond.

The plot is intriguing with the premise of Lizzie and Rose trying to determine the fate of Soutine’s painting. The plot is especially intriguing as Rose looks at the painting as a link to her past and Lizzie looks at it as a comforting reminder of gentler times.

A decent and quick read.

 

Reviews

Never Call Me a Hero: A Legendary American Dive-Bomber Pilot Remembers the Battle of Midway

Posted on by Jeff Grim / 0 Comment

So, after too long of a hiatus due to family medical issues, I am finally getting back into reading and reviewing.

First up, N. Jack Kleiss (with Timothy and Laura Orr) recounts Kleiss’s role in the pivotal battle in the book Never Call Me A Hero: A Legendary American Dive-Bomber Pilot Remembers the Battle of Midway. This past June was the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Midway.

An overview of the book from the publisher:

On the morning of June 4, 1942, high above the tiny Pacific atoll of Midway, Lt. (j.g.) “Dusty” Kleiss burst out of the clouds and piloted his SBD Dauntless into a near-vertical dive aimed at the heart of Japan’s Imperial Navy, which six months earlier had ruthlessly struck Pearl Harbor. The greatest naval battle in history raged around him, its outcome hanging in the balance as the U.S. desperately searched for its first major victory of the Second World War. Then, in a matter of seconds, Dusty Kleiss’s daring 20,000-foot dive helped forever alter the war’s trajectory.

I love the title of this book. Kleiss never considered himself a hero for doing a job that thousands of other men did throughout the war – flew as pilots for the United States Army, Air Forces or Navy. The word hero has been thrown around so many times that it is now somewhat cheapened when it is used – which is too bad because there are/were some true heroes.

Kleiss’s account of the battle from his perspective is riveting. His detailed analysis of how everything transpired is a testament to the professionalism and expertise of the Navy pilots. Kleiss rightly criticizes naval commanders for their plan to form a large gaggle of planes from the three carriers – the pilots knew it would take too long – and then attack the Japanese fleet.

Kleiss’s personal account of the battle is touching. He brings the personal costs into focus. For example, he recounts the last time he saw his flight school buddy the morning of the attack. They both knew that his friend was going on a suicide mission (his friend was a torpedo plane pilot) because all naval pilots in the Pacific knew the defective nature of American torpedoes. You can sense his raw emotions of the moment even decades after it occurred.

The blow-by-blow account of the battle from a pilot’s perspective is great. Kleiss details what it was like to dive bomb a ship and see the results of a successful bombing run. Although morbid, he describes seeing parts of the ship and men flying in the air because of the explosions. Yet another description of war as hell.

Never Call Me a Hero is a fantastic first person account of the Battle of Midway.