Thursday, September 12, 2013

A Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity. By Bill O'Reilley

In this book Bill O'Reilly does some self-searching of his experiences and how they  have formed him into the man that he is today. He talks his family, the schools he attended, his teaching career and his career as a news talk show host, relating all of this with humor, and a bold fresh view.
   I think Bill wrote this book so people can just see how he came to be the fiery Republican talk show host that he is today. From his upbrining and trublemaking teens he learned some great life lessons and also he wrote this book beacuase so many people just wanted to know more about his early life.
 Now ive skimmed through this book YEARS ago when it first came out and it just didnt intrest me but ive always had it in my room. So when i found out that we had to read a nonfiction book for English class i jumped on the book. Also now that im 18 and more into politics from 5 years ago i think its just really interesting, even though the book shys away from most political views. The first time i heard about the book was actually when i was watching Mr. O'Reilly's show on foxnews. My parents bought it and ive had it ever since.
 I find this book very realistic and i think that me and Bill have almost the same mindset of just questioning why things are done the way that theyve been done for so long. Although i wasnt a big trouble maker like Bill was when he was my age i still feel a connection.
 I think Bills ideas on some people are very subjected. Some people from their descriptions seem very nice and intelligent, but bill just doesnt like them. One person that really stands out in this book is Sister Mary Laurana who help bill captive in the third grade, as cruel and unusual punishment if there ever was one.
Sister Mary was very short on parience, and quick on the draw. She uttered the words that named this book one day when Bill made a quick remark she said "William, you are a bold fresh piece of humanity" and she was dead on. Some other friends were Joe Spencer, Jeff Cohen and Lou Spoto. They were bills three best guy friends, every couple of years they would go on trips to cut loose and spend time in places like hawii, na pali coast, or dive the waters of the british virgin islands.
One thing that stood out was his persistance and tenacity in journalism. Which fueled his talent and made him the famous news host that he is today. One of my favorite parts of the book is the very back outside cover from the book. I used a quote from it earlier but it just sets the tone for the entire book. it says.

"The year was 1957, the month September, and i had just turned eight years old. Dwight eisenhower was President but in my life it was the diminitive, intense Sister Mary Laurana who ruled, at least in the third-grade class where i was help captive. For reasons you will soon understand, my parents had remanded me to the penal institution of St. Brigid's School in Westbury, New York, a cruel and unusal punishment if there ever was one.
Already, i had barely survived my first two years at St Brigids because i was, well, a little nitwit. Not satisifed with memorizing the Baltimre Catechism's final prose, which featured passaged like "god made me to show his goodness abd to make me hapy with him in heaven" i was constantly annoying my classmates, and of course, the no-nonsense Sister Lurana. With over sixty active students in her class, she was understandably short on patience. For survival, she had also become quick on the draw.
Then it happened. One day i blurted out some dumb remart, and Sister Lurana was on me like a panther. Her black habit blocked out all distractions and she leaned down, looked me in the eye, and uttered words i have never forgotten: "william, you are a bold fresh piece of humanity" and she was dead-on."

I Really like this because it totally sets the mood to learn about the life of a trouble making news journalist, i highly reccomend this book.

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