The President Calling-Justin Rosenthal

For this assignment, I chose to listen to President Johnson, as many other students would be more drawn to JFK or to Nixon because of the more well-known events surrounding their presidencies. From the conversations with President Johnson I learned two main things about this particular president: that he was a very good communicator and also that he was not as perfect as I thought presidents were. President Johnson was able to call countless people per day and recorded his phone conversations just to hold people to their word, as well as communicating in a "politician style" very often to persuade people more easily by identifying with their point of view. Also, I have not studied this era of presidents in detail ever, but as a child I always believed presidents to be perfect. This was not the case with President Johnson. Some of his recorded phone conversations were not planned to be recorded, and also near the end of his presidency, he decided not to run for office again because of dwindling support. This podcast offered an interesting perspective on a not-so-well-known president's personality.

Taylor Newman

Although I originally wanted to read The Wizard of Oz, I decided to read something I wasn't familiar with and chose One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. It was kind of confusing at the beginning of the book but once McMurphy came in the story line became clear and it was a lot more entertaining than I thought it would be. I'm glad I chose the Cuckoo's Nest but I didn't really like the movie version of it. The character's personalities felt off and the events were all moved around but I guess that's bound to happen when converting any book to the big screen.

Justin Rosenthal in response to Cody Langley

Like Cody, I chose to read the Wizard of Oz because of my prior knowledge of the story's plot. In response to his comment about the book and movie's similar plot, I will agree that the central plotline is similar, though I believe that many surrounding points such as individual chapters and character development are very different.

Justin Rosenthal

The book I have chosen to read for the APUSH Summer Reading assignment is the Wizard of Oz. My reason for choosing it was the fact that I was familiar with the story because of already viewing the movie The Wizard of Oz. As I continued through the book, however, I learned that there are a plethora of differences between the book and the movie. The characters, especially Dorothy's, personalities in the movie differ very much between their comparable movie character, and the plot of the book includes many stories that were not mentioned at all in the movie. So, although I believed that I had an advantage in already knowing the story, that was not at all the case with The Wizard of Oz.

Ciara Lepanto- Nixon Addresses Nation Regarding Scandal

In my opinion, though President Nixon seems sincere in his delivery, sincerity can be practiced and perfected. The allegations were of such enormity that I have a hard time believing scandals as big as those could be slipped by the leader of our country without notice. In his speech, Nixon says that he had faith in those who told him that there was no truth to the allegations but his faith then faltered and ultimately switched, therefore making it not really his fault but he was willing to say it was. Honestly, it just sounds like he’s saying exactly what people want to hear; that he is appalled yet willing to be the hero and accept responsibility because somebody has too even though he was actually to blame. He mentions repeatedly all of his “personal orders” and his determination to “get to the bottom of the matter.” You know when you can tell someone is over compensating because they know they’ve done something wrong? That’s what he sounded like in the speech. Something just seems fishy at this point of the situation.

It was interesting to hear something like an old Presidential address--something I've never done. I never knew this sort of an application existed on iTunes where you could download recordings and clips for free. Very interesting; something to take advantage of in the future.

Ciara Lepanto in response to Wonmi Lee

Like you Wonmi, I was interested in how the author chose to portray the poor conditions of asylums through the perspective of a hallucinating patient. Although I also had a tough time getting through some of the pages, as the phrasing was not always the most obvious, I enjoyed the take on it. Sometimes I found it confusing to distinguish whether or not he was hallucinating or if what he dictated was actually happening. Nonetheless, I'm glad that I chose it. Have a good summer! See you in August.

Ciara Lepanto

For my summer reading assignment, I decided to read One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey. One thing that drew me towards this book was that, out of all of the potential choices, this was the book I was the most unfamiliar with. Also, my parents as well as a friend of mine recommended this book. Before officially selecting it, I check to see what it was generally about and immediately became intrigued by the perspective from which it was written.

Blair Crumpler's Response to Michael Johns

Just as Michael Johns was drawn to the novel Silver Springs because of its focus on the environment, I was drawn to his post for the same reason. I am very big on protecting our planet, and I think that reading about the things that threaten it is extremely important. Michael's post was not only interesting, but a good overview of the book. Reading his post, I was reminded of my mom, who reads books similar to Silver Springs all the time (and subsequently shares the interesting points with me). I would love to read this book and learn more about the history of pesticides and herbicides, and their affects on the enviroment, plants, and people.

Blair Crumpler

For the AP United States History summer reading assignment, I chose to read The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. This book is about an immigrant's journey from a rural life in Europe to the stockyards in Chicago, Illinois. Traveling with family and friends, Jurgis Rudkus (the immigrant in question) came with several preconceived notions about all the money and happiness he could find in America. However, he soon comes to realize the horrors that working in a slaughterhouse brings. I chose to read this book because, several years ago, I picked it up when I was at a friend's house. This friend told me that when her mother read The Jungle in college, she became a vegetarian for several years. Being a vegetarian myself, I was extremely curious what this novel had in store, but I never actually sat down and read it until now. I find it quite easy to read and extremely fascinating.

Michael Johns in response to Wonmi Lee

This certainly sounds like an intersting book. I too am fascinated by the human psyche, but it is incredibly complicated to understand. I might have to read this book, as well. As fas as the conditions of the asylums, it shows how much society then treated its outcasts.

Michael Johns

Being an Environmentalist, I naturally gravitated towards Silent Spring by Rachel Carson. So far, this book is incredibly interesting. It is, as it says on the cover, "the book that launched the environmental movement." Focusing on the use of pesticides, herbicides, and other poisons used in the second half of the 20th century, it explains how they came into use, their popularity, and the unseen, unintended consequences. It goes deep into the chemistry aspect of these toxins, as well, making it very intriguing to the chemist in me. Also, she brings in many negative events that happened due to the use of these chemicals. One of which describes two small children who use an empty pesticide bag dropped by a plane to fix a tire swing. One child died and the other child went brain dead. All of the amazing, frightful, and eyeopening descriptions in this book shows the great consequences of pesticides, and how humans are part of nature, not separate entities.

Zachary Laranang Response to Kirsten Huffer's The Jungle post

Kirsten Huffer's post on The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair, was informative and interesting. I had heard of The Jungle before, and knew what it was about, but after reading Kirsten's post, I now have a much better idea of what kind of themes and ideas are contained within the novel, as well as of the general plot. The fact that this book sparked major reforms in the meatpacking industry by harshly depicting its disgusting conditions really makes me want to read it to see what all the fuss is about. Overall, it was a good, informative post.

Zachary Laranang

For the summer reading assignment, I chose option A because I wanted to read One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. The reason I chose this book was because I thought that the film adaptation was probably the best out of all of the choices (when compared to the other adaptations). I really like Jack Nicholson as an actor, and I couldn't wait to see the movie. However, after both reading the book and seeing the movie, and comparing the two, I was very surprised that, in my opinion, the book was a thousand times better than the movie. The movie, which makes the fatal mistake of reducing Chief Bromden to a supporting character and taking away his point of view (although admittedly filming the movie from his perspective while portraying his mental problems would have been difficult) omits and edits many aspects that gave the novel its appeal. The book was able to communicate the patients' sense of paranoia, their insanity, their savior-like view of Randal P. Mcmurphy, and the tyrannical rule of Nurse Ratched, as well as many other things all much better than the book. The only thing I really liked about the movie was Jack Nicholson's performance. I firmly believe that in order to successfully adapt a book to film, you must take one of that book's major characters and bring him to life on film through great acting, casting, screenwriting, and directing (Brad Pitt as Tyler Durden and Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh come to mind). Although Nicholson was physically different from the Randal Mcmurphy in the book, he perfectly portrayed the character's confidence, determination, and rebelliousness, and his Best Actor win was well-deserved.
After reading One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and seeing the film adaptation, I can say with complete confidence that the book is much better, and that it has become one of my favorite novels of all time.

Omari Anyabwile

I wanted to read Band of Brothers for my summer reading assignment because I thought it would be about the hardships of war. Instead I chose The Autobiography of Malcolm X since I had seen the movie and had little insight on the full story of his life. The book is a must read and grabs your attention from page one, some parts do become boring however the constant changes in his life and how he deals with them is inspiring. I hope i'm able to finish the novel before we go back to school.

Allie Burroughs

For my summer reading book, I first chose The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, but after reading a few chapters, I decided that I really wasn't that intersted in the book. So instead, I chose to read The Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum. I loved to movie as a kid, even though i had only seen it a couple of times, but I had never read the book. I figured that now would be a good time to finally read it!

Taylor Dayton

I listened to the most of The President Calling but what stuck out to me was Kennedy's conversations with the mayor considering the denial of a black man into the University of Mississippi.  To be honest, I don't know a lot about the presidents so I don't plan on writing a comment rich in history and point of view. Instead, I plan on writing about what I was able to comprehend, and hopefully after taking APUSH i will be more qualified to give an opinion based in fact and history.  

I was very surprised when the mayor was interrupting the president. If I got a chance to talk to Obama I would be all ears. Kennedy tried to solve the situation over the phone, and tried to avoid sending in troops and causing a scandal. This reminded me of the recent scandal of Professor Gates in which Obama invited him and the officer to the white house to settle things. Both situations dealt with race.  I admire how both Kennedy and Obama would like to calm things rather than stir them up.  However, Kennedy was unable to calm things, and rioting broke out.  Although he sounded persuasive over the phone, obviously he couldn't convince Mayor Barnett to fix things.  Hopefully by inviting Professor Gates and the officer to the White House, Obama will do a better job of avoiding a riot than Kennedy. These two issues are almost fifty years apart and I hope that in fifty years the issue of race will be long gone, and presidents will be able to focus on other things. 

Wonmi Lee

I have decided to read One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. I was thinking about reading The Wizard of Oz, since I loved the movie when I was younger, but I wanted a fresh and new story. I choose One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest because this book explored the human mind and psychology. This story is an Indian, "mute" Indian man, a pretend patient, and a Nurse who dictates the asylum. This book, in my opinion, reflects the poor conditions of the asylums and metal wards in the late 1900's, the patients experiencing crude and harsh punishment and degrading life routine. Though it was confusing, because the book is in the point of view of the Indian man who hallucinate and has paranoia, I liked the moral of the story.

Kirsten Huffer on JFK and Civil Rights

Eavesdropping on JFK's telephone conversations and listening to his public addresses regarding civil rights was far more interesting than reading a dull, drawn-out textbook discussion of the same issue. Even so, I appreciated having a transcript so that I could follow the discussions more easily, especially when the president and Governor Barnett interrupted and tried to speak over each other. Although the recordings were very informative, I wish there had been a brief paragraph of background information on the topic so that I might familiarize myself with it before I began listening; unfortunately, it was not until I reached JFK's explanation in his public address that I fully understood the situation involving James Meredith and the University of Mississippi.
Overall, I was impressed by the way JFK intervened to ensure that the court orders were carried out in Mississippi to permit Meredith , an African American, to enroll in and reside at the University of Mississippi. I was equally impressed by JFK's delicacy, patience, and restraint in talking with Governor Barnett, whose attitudes toward race relations were obviously quite different from JFK's.
The podcast did leave me with several unanswered questions: Did Governor Barnett drive to the scene of the riot, and if so, what was the outcome of his appearance? Was the riot successfully repressed, or did violence continue in Mississippi? What happened to Meredith? Did they manage to transport him safely, or was he injured or even killed during the rioting? If he reached his destination unharmed, did he fall victim to violence later while attending the University of Mississippi?

Kirsten Huffer on The Jungle

Initially, I was torn between reading Rocket Boys and The Jungle, but eventually I decided upon the latter. When my seventh grade American history class was studying the progressive era, my teacher read a selection of rather disturbing passages from Upton Sinclair's muckraking masterpiece. My morbid curiosity piqued, I began to read it, but abandoned it about a quarter of the way through in favor of a lighter, less depressing (and less disgusting!) book; this summer, however, I was determined to finish it.
This time I did manage to read the entire novel, although I still found it depressing to read the series of tragedies that befell Jurgis Rudkus and his family of Lithuanian immigrants in the deathtrap of Chicago's stockyards. Even more disheartening was the impact that Chicago's corruption had on the morals of Jurgis and his relatives. Toward the end of the book, I became rather irritated by the lengthy socialist rants. Interestingly enough, these appeals for socialism and Sinclair's protests against oppression and "wage slavery" had significantly less impact on the American public and Theodore Roosevelt than the dozen or so pages early on describing the horrors of the meatpacking industry. Apparently, it is easier to reach a man's stomach than his heart!
While it would be untrue for me to say that I enjoyed The Jungle, I can honestly say that I appreciated it because of the major reforms it sparked. Thanks to this book, I do not need to consider becoming a vegetarian.

Amy Looper

Hi everyone! I also read One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. I choose it because it seemed like it would hold my attention. There are many characters in this novel so sometimes it was confusing to keep them all straight. In order to really get a sense of what was taking place you really had to look deeper into the character's personalities then what was written on the page. Much to my surprise it turned out to be a pretty good book.

Nixon's character during his presidency

Linda Infinger

During Richard Nixon's presidential campaign he said he stood for order and decency but was found to be cynical, profane, and a liar. In my opinion he was also slightly prejudiced toward African Americans as well. In a practice that ranked racial groups based on their IQ points he said "Africans just can't run things", and although they are good when it comes to athletics and music, they just have a hard time when it comes to "profound rigid disciplines". Personally i think it would be very interesting to see what Nixon would say if he knew that we had an African American as our president today. Lastly, he was also found to have lied to the public about an illegal break in at the Watergate Hotel which caused him to resign as president to avoid impeachment.

Linda Infinger

For my assignment, I chose to read the Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum. When I was little i used to watch the movie all the time, but never read the book. I didn't understand why it was on the same reading list as Frost Nixon and The Autobiography of Malcolm X, but I enjoyed reading it especially after reading the Catcher in the Rye for my English class.

Corrine Gottberg - Harris

The book I'm reading for school is One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. It's a very good book so far I'm only about half - way through but still it's very good. It's a bit confusing too but over all good. It's about an all male insane asylum when a new patient comes in. The new patient begins to break all the rules and create mayhem. The head nurse of the wing keeps everything ship shape and when the new patient comes she has to use all her power to try and break him down.

Rebecca Williams

For my summer reading choice I'm reading "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest". It started off being a slow read but after awhile I started to get more into the story and it wasn't as bad. I didn't think it would be as good as it was (even though I haven't yet finished it) and I haven't seen the movie yet but I hear it's really good as well. It should be interesting to compare the movie to the book since most of the time the movie varies a lot but people have told me that this one is actually very close to the book. 

JFK and Ross Barnett

Hearing the president negotiate over the phone, often unsuccessfully, with Mississippi governor Ross Barnett gave me a great insight as to what the era was like. I was surprised at how resistant and racist the people and even the governor of Mississippi were. I was even more surprised by how carefully Kennedy dealt with the situation, as if afraid to offend the southern fundamentalists. It often seemed as if the president and the governor did not understand each other and would disagree as to the best course of action in dealing with James Meredith, the first black man to attempt to go to Ole Miss University. While living in the time period, the public probably saw the strong political stand taken by the president, although the phone conversations with Burnett did not make the president seem very in control. In the end, however, Kennedy was the better politician and got his way.

Sarah Higbee-Tindell

I chose to read The Jungle by upton Sinclair. While learning about the industrial revolution in America in 7th grade I had heard of the book, and it interested me. As of now I am about one fourth of the way through the book and am highly engrossed in the story. The struggles of immigrant families are facinating and tragic. It's inspiring to know that this piece of fiction sparked an investigation into and change of conditions and regulations in meatpacking factories in the U.S.

Sam Cook

Since I was forced to read Catcher in the Rye for AP Lang, I chose to read Catch-22 just to be funny. Check it out: they both start with "catch." How ridiculous is that? Anyway, while Catcher in the Rye was absolutely terrible, Catch-22 was actually really funny and well-written, although sometimes depressing.

Cody Langley

I decided to read The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. I have always enjoyed the movie, TheWizard of Oz since I was a little kid but never read the book. It is a good book and is different from the movie but only by a few things.
-Cody Langley

Katie Verges

Hello friends! I chose to undertake One Flew Over The Cukoo's Nest. I chose to undertake this classic piece because I had heard of the play and knew the main story, wasn't that interested in Malcom X, i have already read the Wizard or Oz, and I couldn't figure out the virtual tour thing. I thoroughly enjoyed this story. It was both enjoying and mind stimulating. Everyone in my family did mention that it was "R rated" but worth it. I look forward to watching the movie and doing the assignment this week.

Julian Havlicak

For my Advanced Placement United States History Summer Assignment, I chose to read The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara. I selected this book because I learned that it was a detailed historical account of a Civil War battle based on the words, letters, and documents of actual people and soldiers from the war which I thought would be interesting.

Kaitlin Ward

For the summer reading assignment, I chose to read Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam Jr. I decided to read this because it seemed like an interesting book and many had recommended I would like the book. Rocket Boys was funny and very entertaining. It provided me with a better perspective of how rockets came about and how different it was back then.

Shelby Searcy- Nixon Adresses Nation Regarding Scandal

Listening to Nixon adress the Watergate scandal was very interesting to me. When he speaks of first learning of the break-in while on vacation in florida on June 17th he uses the words "appauled & shocked," as I would expect anyone would be when theyve found out that trusted people have been sneaking around behind their back. I was a little confused on why in the world after finding out about his trusted workers taking part in the scandal that he would be so trusting of investigaters when "reassured" that no members of administration were involved. He later found that information was wrong, but why he would be so trusting once again in the first place to me was a bit odd. I might just be the paranoid type but i think id be a tid bit less trusting of people in general. Also, he turns the case over to Elliot Richardson his newly appointed attorney general so that he can attend to "more importnat matters." I understand that he shouldnt get wrapped up in the case and be M.I.A on other aspects of his presidency but I definitely wouldnt just throw the case entirely off on someone else. Id be even more determined for justice and id take more of a part in what goes on in the investigation.

Shelby Searcy

For the summer assignment i'm reading One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. I chose this book because, from taking psychology this past year at Lincoln, I have taken an interested in people with psychological disorders, what life is like for them, and how they view their world. From reading the brief summary of the book i took interest in it because i find it interesting what factors seperate us as "sane" or "insane" people. Im on the verge of finishing the book now and so far i find it very interesting. Its really got me thinking about people and their desperation to label everything anyone does wrong as symptoms of a psychological disorder so that it can be excused in our society. Im getting alot of meaning and deep thoughts out of it and im anxious to see how the movie compares.

Megan White

Hi, this is Megan White. I have chosen to read The Devil in the White City because after I read briefly about each of our options, I was interested in doing the Google Earth project. Also, this book is focused on the Chicago World's fair, with a side-story of a murder mystery. I am interested in architecture, which was key during the construction of the fair, so naturally I the book held my interest, and the mystery behind the story made it even better.

The President Calling

Post your comments about a 15+ minute conversation by one of the Vietnam Era Presidents (Kennedy, Johnson, or Nixon) by clicking on comments. Be sure you include your first and last name with your post. Additionally, identify the president and the topic of the conversation prior to your comments.

Ziyan Song

I just finished reading Killer Angels by Michael Shaara. To tell the truth, the reason I chose this book was simply because I like the name of this novel. I had no ideas what it's about until I started reading. Combining various views of Civil War leaders, Michael Shaara retold the bloody battle of Gettysburg. I learned about a famous Confederate leader that I never knew, Longstreet, and many other leaders. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested about the Civil War.

Ashley Prow

I am reading Catch-22. It's about an air force base during WWII and is fictional. It's a very good read,because the writing is very good and it's very funny. I don't understand it quite well but thats because of all the military terms and such. I chose to read it because I'm interested in WWII and Holocaust stories and also that It's suppose to be really funny.

Nick Warnet

I chose to read the book "Rocket Boys" by Homer H. Hickam, Jr. I chose this book because I have seen the movie once before and I really enjoyed it. Also, the plot is appealing to a high school guy, like me, which is always a plus. I am looking forward to seeing how the book and movie compare considering corresponding movies often have very large differences from the books. Hope everybody has a great rest of the summer. Happy reading!

Phillip Isenberg

I'm reading Catch-22 and it is both funny and depressing at the same time. I chose it because it was the only one I had ever heard of and was highly rated. Everybody in the book is crazy except for the main character who is assumed crazy by every body else. Still, it's better than The Wizard of Oz. Talking straw men and lions? What was Frank Baum on?

Taylor Dayton

I just finished the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey.  I researched the books that we were given to read and this one seemed the most appealing. Also, both of my parents had read this book and recommended it to me.  I haven't seen the movie yet but I really enjoyed the book, even though it was hard to understand at times. 

Stephanie Everett

Hello! I am reading The Wizard of Oz b/c when I was little it was one of my favorite movies and I always wondered what the book would be like compared to the movie.

Anna Drake

I'm reading Rocket Boys. I chose this book because i saw the movie 'October Sky' when I was younger and always wanted to read the corresponding book.