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Michael Korda

Michael Korda Books

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“Escapism sold books, to be sure, but not nearly as many as were sold by exposing America’s flaws and making the average American reader (and book club member) look closely at his or her most cherished social assumptions. Americans might not be eager to accept integration, feminism, homosexuality, juvenile delinquency, and the drug culture– or to shoulder the blame for the existence of these problems– but they were certainly willing to read about them.”

Books
Book:Making the List: A Cultural History of the American Bestseller, 1900-1999
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“None of this means of course that Robert E. Lee wasn't influenced by his father, or didn't inherit some of his better characteristics. Like Henry Lee, Robert was tall, physically strong, a born horseman and soldier, and so courageous that even his own soldiers often begged him to get back out of range, in vain of course. He had his father's gift for the sudden flank attack that would throw the enemy off balance, and also his father's ability to inspire loyalty--and in Robert's case, virtual worship--in his men. On the other hand, perhaps because of Henry Lee's quarrels with Jefferson and Madison, Robert had an ingrained distrust of politics and politicians, including those of the Confederacy. But the most important trait that influenced Robert was a negative one: his father had been voluble, imprudent, fond of gossip, hot-tempered, and quick to attack anybody who offended or disagreed with him. With Henry Lee, even minor differences of opinions escalated quickly into public feuds. Robert was, or forced himself to be, exactly the opposite. He kept the firmest possible rein on his temper, he avoided personal confrontations of every kind, and he disliked arguments. These characteristics, normally thought of as virtues, became in fact Robert E. Lee's Achilles' heel, the one weak point in his otherwise admirable personality, and a dangerous flaw for a commander, perhaps even a flaw that would, in the end, prove fatal for the Confederacy. Some of the most mistaken military decisions in the short history of the Confederacy can be attributed to Lee's reluctance to confront a subordinate and have it out with him on the spot, face to face.”

Civil WarRobert E LeeConfederacyGeneral LeeHenry Lee
Book:Clouds of Glory: The Life and Legend of Robert E. Lee
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“The American system demands success, and in order to succeed we must first believe that we can. Yet our society, with its intolerance of failure and poverty, traps millions of people in positions where any kind of success seems impossible to contemplate, and in which failure itself is a kind of passive rebellion against their own misery and the social system which created it in the first place. To succeed it is necessary to accept the world as it is and rise above it.”

PeopleWorldFirstsBelieveKindSeemsOrderSocialAcceptingPovertyMillionsImpossiblePositionSucceedDemandMiseryOur SocietyRebellionContemplatingIntolerancePassiveTrapsRise AboveSocial SystemsOrder To SucceedRise Above It
Author:Michael Korda
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“Success on any major scale requires you to accept responsibility in the final analysis. The one quality that all successful people have is the ability to take on responsibility.”

PeopleInspirationalMotivationalSuccessAbilityQualityResponsibilityAcceptingSuccessfulMajorsEthicsFinalsScalesAnalysisSuccessful PeopleTaking ResponsibilityPersonal ResponsibilityAchieving SuccessGreat ResponsibilitySelf ResponsibilityAccepting ResponsibilityLove And ResponsibilityResponsibilities In LifeResponsibility And AccountabilityRoles And Responsibilities
Author:Michael Korda
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“Concentration is the magic key that opens the door to accomplishment. By concentrating our efforts upon a few major goals, our efficiency soars, our projects are completed -- we are going somewhere. By focusing our efforts to a single point, we achieve the greatest results. The first rule of success, and the one that supercedes all others, is to have energy. It is important to know how to concentrate it, how to husband it, how to focus it on important things instead of frittering it away on trivia.”

KnowsFirstsImportantEnergyGoalResultsEffortKnow HowFocusDoorsMagicAchieveKeysHusbandProjectsMajorsImportant ThingsAccomplishmentConcentrationEfficiencySoarConcentratingTrivia
Author:Michael Korda
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