Like some others, and perhaps as I've repeatedly mentioned before, I simply couldn't spare the time to endure such a continuous onslaught of evil.

Life is too short at this stage; I had to set it aside.

I'm certain it would be excellent for a college term paper. Or perhaps for anyone younger who believes Hitler was merely a bit crazy and desires to truly fathom the diabolical terror he envisioned and inflicted upon the world for a significant number of years.

It's important to note that Hitler's actions were not just the result of a momentary lapse in judgment or a touch of insanity. His ideology and actions led to the deaths of millions of people and had a profound and lasting impact on the course of history.

Understanding the true nature of Hitler and the evil he perpetrated is crucial for us to learn from the past and ensure that such atrocities never occur again.

By studying his life and actions, we can gain a deeper appreciation for the importance of peace, tolerance, and respect for human rights.

A very good idea that unfortunately did not succeed in its implementation. The book is interesting as it presents Hitler's family history and his childhood years in Upper Austria, what was his relationship with his father, his mother, his siblings. How this monstrous psyche was formed, how he learned to manipulate the masses? The author gives at least a controversial explanation. If he had focused there and not on a thousand details that do not serve the story and burden the book, the rating would have been better.

Hitler's early life and family dynamics play a significant role in understanding his later actions. By exploring his relationships with his parents and siblings, we can gain some insights into the development of his personality. However, the author seems to have gotten lost in the details and failed to present a clear and coherent narrative. The book could have been improved by focusing on the key aspects of Hitler's life and omitting the unnecessary details.

Overall, while the idea behind the book is good, its execution leaves much to be desired. It could have been a more engaging and informative read if the author had taken a more focused approach and presented a more compelling argument.

The Castle in the Forest * Read in Saudi Arabia (Feb - Mar 2021)

This book, "The Castle in the Forest" by Norman Mailer, was an interesting read during my time in Saudi Arabia from February to March 2021. The story takes the reader on a journey into a world that is both mysterious and captivating. The author's vivid descriptions bring the characters and the setting to life. As I read, I found myself immersed in the forest and the castle, experiencing the events along with the characters. The plot is filled with twists and turns that keep the reader engaged until the very end. It offers a unique perspective on life and人性. Overall, it was a great read that I would recommend to others.

Before beginning my workday, which commences in the afternoon as I have a penchant for sleeping late, I find myself engaging in a preparatory ritual. I put myself into a kind of trance, a state that allows me to focus on my writing. It is a fortunate circumstance that the kids are grown, the phone can be switched off, and the computer has not yet completely taken over my life. This gives me the freedom to find my voice and let my creativity flow. Just now, Elvis crooned to me, "I was an oak, now I'm a willow, and I can bend..." I glanced above the CD player and saw the lyrics to "A Lover's Concerto" by the Toys, which consisted of June Montiero, Barbara Parritt, and Barbara Harris. This song transports me back to a time in Galveston in the Sixties when I first felt the allure of the world outside of medicine and began to heed its call, a syncopated rhapsody of love.

I have a list beside the lyrics of "A Lover's Concerto" of those to whom I owe both a debut and a debt. It includes names like John Denver, Julie Andrews, Shirley Jones, Whitney Houston, Judy Collins, Anne Murray, Selena, Paul Simon, Celine Deon, Don McLean, Judy Kahn, Vanessa Williams, and a few hundred others who remain unlisted. I soar with the "Colors of the Wind." I have been living with MS for over 30 years, and it manifests in bladder problems, muscular weakness, and pain. During the day, it is the bladder issues that plague me; at night, it is the pain. Just moments ago, I made a mad dash to the bathroom and managed to get there in the nick of time. My thoughts then turned to the relative merits of jockey shorts versus boxer shorts. Boxer shorts offer the advantage of easier access, which is convenient. However, with jockey shorts, in case of an accident, they have better absorbency and usually prevent me from having to change my trousers. Such are the choices we face!

A man named Mr. Hull came to our Key Club meeting in high school and delivered a speech. I decided to铭记 his theme for the rest of my life. What he said was, "Be courteous to all and intimate to a few." I sure hope Mr. Hull won't turn over in his grave knowing that, as a writer, I have often been more intimate with all and courteous to only a few. I obtained my MFA from the Mean Fast Abyss and have been racing from it ever since. Instead of delving into the work I am currently engaged in, a story about my decade in medicine so many years ago, I have decided to review Mailer's book. Elsewhere, I have expressed my love for the man. I find it interesting that the "Chicago Manual of Style" stipulates that when referring to what a writer says, we should use the present tense, even if he or she has passed away. Mailer has said many things. I had the pleasure of meeting Robert B. Parker and came to love him as well. We had a brief correspondence before Bob (Joan called him "Ace," but only Joan) became too famous to keep up with his mail. Still, I remember a sentence from one of his letters to me: "Writers in general, and Mailer in particular, say a lot of bullshit." I have taken this caveat to heart.

In this book, Mailer takes a significant risk by delving into the mind of the boy who would become Adolf Hitler. In my novel, "Two Hands Full of Sunshine," I also discuss Hitler, and one of the points I make is that he was not mad in the traditional sense. To say that Hitler was mad, as I quote from my book, "solves everything without getting at anything." However, the fact that he was not mad places a greater burden on those who attempt to explain him. Reading Mailer's "The Castle in the Forest: A Novel," one does not have to relish every scatological reference, of which there are many. Instead, one marvels at his masterful use of the language, the way the sentences curl, trickle, coax, and yelp, all in perfect harmony, as if they had always existed and Mailer simply unearthed them. Of course, I have not finished the book yet. I am currently on page 175. In the back of the book, where I often create my own index, I have made several notes. On page 74, it states, "The early death of an exceptional child can demoralize a family." On page 93, "DK stands for Dummkoff. E.O. = Evil One." And on page 98, "inter faeces..." I will add that I do not always feel the need to read an entire book at once. I love Scott Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby," but I know that when I return to it, I won't read it cover to cover. It is sufficient to revel in the style, to witness his extraordinary gifts as a writer and be inspired by what is possible. I approach it like an amateur sneaking up to peek through a knothole at the professionals. This is true of Mailer in many of his books, including this one. Even if it wasn't his last book, it was one of the last, and yet his style remains strong, compelling, and all the other things that a writer should strive for.

In my own case, I am looking forward to turning 71 this summer. When I turned 70 last year, it felt as though an internal switch had been flipped in my body, a kind of final countdown that I am now a part of. If my arithmetic is correct, Mailer was 84 when he published "Castle." I have followed his work for countless years and have never seen him in better form than in this book about Adolf Hitler's youth. A few years ago, due to brain atrophy and the nagging prickles of bad memory, I started making word lists. I fold a piece of blank typing paper, cut it in half, do this for a stack of pages at a time, staple it in the upper left corner, and keep these lists in various locations throughout the house where I live. If an idea pops into my head (and ideas can be quite capricious), I jot it down immediately. But my most dedicated effort occurs in the evenings when I am reading. I carefully select interesting words, almost stealing them if you will. Some of the words I copied last night include "obscene," "stunted," "aroma," "quiescent," "compendious," and "camouflage," along with perhaps twenty others. This morning, while Elvis was singing to me about not having a "Wooden Heart," I copied down "implausible" from the Austin American-Statesman, "painstaking" and "spaghetti" from the Dear Abby column that I always read before checking the TV lineup for tonight. I also noticed "sot," as in besotted, from Mailer. I use these word lists much like an artist holds a palette and selects colors, and with this preparation, I am ready for the day to begin.