statement about that fact. Unfortunately,nhe seems to be unable to definenwhat he wants to say. (BK) DnWaste of MoneynPride andnLiberal PrejudicenJames Aldridge: Goodbye Un-nAfnerica;Little, Brown & Co.; Boston.nby Becki KlutenA man denounces his best friend asnun-American, marries his ex-wife andnadopts his son. This is the plot of JamesnAldridge’s propaganda tract disguisednas a novel; his real subject, however,nis America and Americanism, both ofnwhich he seems to loathe.nWith flat, paper-doll characters henattempts to encapsulate what he seesnas Americanism—flag-waving, “mycountry-right-or-wrong”nfanaticism,nand the “yes – but – there’s – so – much -nwrong” school of thinking. Pip, a bluebloodednNew Englander is the “yes,nbut …” man. He is extolled as intelligent,nmultilingual and “almost alwaysnright.” Lester, the flag-waving patriot,nis portrayed as a rather thickheaded hick,nthe “immigrant son of Polish and Czechnparentage.” They meet at Time magazinenduring World War II and a sort ofnfriendship evolves wherein they continuallyndiscuss what America “really” is,nor should be, or used to be—always onnopposite sides of the fence.nIn order to keep all this from lookingntoo much like ideological agitprop pulp,nMr. Aldridge introduces sex in the formnof Judy—a virtuoso of bitchery andnmanipulation. After leading on both Pipnand Lester, she decides that Pip’s backgroundn(and money) would be morenappropriate to her lifestyle and marriesnhim. Thus the stage is set for a sub-nMrs. Klute is on the editorial staff ofnthe Chronicles.nconflict between the two men.nEventually, the bumbling hick denouncesnthe spiffy man-about-town tona McCarthy committee, allegedly innself-defense—Lester himself was oncenenamored of communism and the onlynway to prove his complete change ofnheart was to betray his best friend. This,nof course, underscores the innate knavishnessnof a communist-turned-patriot.nPip, made a nearly broken man by hisntreatment at the hands of the McCarthyites,nescapes to France, where henekes out a living of sorts.nThe two men are brought together bynthe machinations of Judy, now marriednto Lester. She insists that Pip forgivenRossman’s Black HolenMichael Rossman: New Age Blues:nOn the Politics of Consciousness;nE. P. Dutton; New York.nIf the human-potential movement ofnthe 1970’s was disjointed and rambling,nthen New Age Blues accurately reflectsnthis phenomenon in both style andncontent.nMichael Rossman, an activist in thensocial revolution, seemingly has hadna unique opportunity in terms of participationnand proximity to his humanpotentialnsubject. He has failed to presentnhis relationship in a readablenfashion. His essays follow no logicalnprogression and his first-person formatnseems to come from notes in a personalnjournal rather than any orderly proof.nBooks in the MailnLester because Lester is dying. But Pipncan’t quite forgive, and Mr. Aldridgenseems to view this as a left-radical virtuenof strength: “I’ve been as generousnas I can be . . .” said Pip, “. . . he needsna bigger absolution than I can give him.”nAnd there we have it—the muchnabused “true” American of the Waspliberalnvariety, his nobility shiningnthrough the blackness of McCarthyismnand betrayal, behaves with supreme dignity.nThe “immigrant son” is dying ofncancer—his just deserts, no doubt, fornhis fanatical patriotism. All in all, Mr.nAldridge has churned out a transparentncondemnation of inadmissible nonliberalnattitudes and called it a novel. DnIn addition, his essays are pockmarkednwith hip jargon, “… while around mengrew the funky subinstitutional structurenwhich embodied them, and while Inworked on body. Shortly after I firstnfelt clearly the ch’i flow in someone’snmeridians…”nTo Rossman’s credit, he has apparentlynput much thought and time inton”experiencing” his work. He raises ancogent point when he acknowledges thenpowerful, subtle fraud some nouveauxngurus perpetrate upon naive seekers ofnenlightenment. But the overall feelingnis that New Age Blues must undoubtedlynbe Rossman’s own as he tries tonsupport the edge of his own black holenwith renditions of a 1960’s view of then1970’s. (JDH) DnT/je Business of Organized Crime: A Cosa Nostra Family by Annelise GraebnernAnderson; Hoover Institution Press; Stanford, California. A study of organized crimenand its impact on our society.nWealth of Nations in Crisis by Ronald C. Nairn; Bayland Publishing; Houston. A looknat methods for optimizing human economic activity and the inhibitors to its growth.nKarl Marx: Racist by Nathaniel Weyl; Arlington House; New Rochelle, New York.nA careful documentation of Marx’s and Engels’s racist-elitist views.nRoosevelt, Clourchill, and the World War 11 Opposition: A Revisionist Autobiographynby George T. Eggleston; The Devin-Adair Company; Old Greenwich, Connecticut.nThe story of a man who resisted U.S. involvement in World War II and the consequencesnof his opposition.nnnMarch April 1980n