Dick Gordon loves a good mystery

I have been bumping into Senator Richard Gordon since he was the Tourism Secre-tary, and I have been hounding him for his favorite books. I’m happy to finally share his favorite books. He has taken a step further by taking the time to share more than just a line of description for each book.

Read on:

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"When I was younger, reading a lot of fiction put me in the invaluable habit of reading. I could read anything – mystery, adventure, and even romance. I particularly liked the James Bond series by Ian Fleming. As I grew older, I got engrossed with books like Shogun, Noble House, and Whirlwind by James Clavell, the John Grisham law novels, Leon Uris’ books, like Exodus and Trinity, and Robert Ludlum’s Bourne series. On the lighter and raunchier side, I liked Harold Robbins’ books, and things like Lady Chatterly’s Lover by D.H. Lawrence and Fanny Hill by John Cleland.

"I also enjoyed reading English literature, and to this day, I am trying to find my old college text book, A Survey of English Literature, which included a lot of metaphysical poetry. I learned a lot from Edith Hamilton’s Mythology.

"What I really enjoy most are books which depict the triumph of the human spirit over insurmountable odds. I am also an avid fan of historical biographies. Some of these books are:

• Nothing Like It In The World: The Men Who Built The Transcontinental Railroad by Stephen Ambrose

It gives the account of an unprecedented feat of engineering, vision, and courage. It is the story of the men who built the transcontinental railroad: The investors who risked their businesses and money; the enlightened politicians who understood its importance; the engineers and surveyors who risked, and sometimes lost, their lives; and the Irish and Chinese immigrants, the defeated Confederate soldiers, and the other laborers, who did the backbreaking and dangerous work on the tracks.

I like this book because it tells us that we can make our biggest dreams come true. It tells us that the Filipino can do it. The book shows that with people who are focused and determined, anything is possible. The book tells us that we should stop belittling ourselves. It doesn’t mean that we should gloss over corruption, which tainted the building of the railroad, but we shouldn’t sweat the small stuff like we often do.

• TR: The Last Romantic by H.W. Brands

Prolific Texas A&M historian H.W. Brands makes his first venture into biography with this lengthy book on Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt’s often tragic life – his first wife and mother died the same day under the same roof – is fully explored. Brands ignores neither the personal nor the political side of his subject, depicting Roosevelt as a romantic during his idyllic childhood; his grieving over the early death of his wife, Alice; the war in 1898; and his governorship and presidency. But as America’s romantic era ended abruptly on the battlefields of France in 1918, Roosevelt’s life ended as well. Brands uses Roosevelt’s many personal letters to tell his story in a firsthand manner, resulting in the most comprehensive Roosevelt biography yet.

I admire Teddy Roosevelt because, despite his infirmities, he had a vision for a great America and went straight to the point in getting this accomplished. He conquered his physical and psychological frailties. He went West and traveled the world, not as a tourist, but to learn and to apply whatever knowledge he earned to making his own country better.

• Ghost Soldiers: The Epic Account Of World War Ii’s Greatest Rescue Mission by Hampton Sides

On Jan. 28, 1945, 121 hand-selected US troops slipped behind enemy lines in the Philippines. Their mission: March 30 rugged miles to rescue 513 POWs languishing in a hellish camp, among them the last survivors of the infamous Bataan Death March. A recent prison massacre by Japanese soldiers elsewhere in the Philippines made the stakes impossibly high and left little time to plan the complex operation.

In Ghost Soldiers, Hampton Sides vividly re-creates this daring raid, offering a minute-by-minute narration that unfolds alongside intimate portraits of the prisoners and their lives in the camp. Sides shows how the POWs banded together to survive, defying the Japanese authorities even as they endured starvation, tropical diseases, and torture. Harrowing, poignant, and inspiring, Ghost Soldiers is the mesmerizing story of a remarkable mission. It is also a testament to the human spirit, an account of enormous bravery and self-sacrifice amid the most trying conditions.

This book puts a face on forgotten Filipino guerilla. For many years, WW2 in the Philippines was seen as an American victory. In truth, more Filipinos died than Americans. If we had written books after the war, we would have chronicled this. I recall a quote by Horace that says, "Many heroes lived before Agamemnon, but they are all unmourned, and consigned to oblivion, because they had no bard to sing their praises."

A few years ago, I went to Los Angeles to convince Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg to make a movie out of this book. Through Jun Juban, I got through to Paula Wagner, Spielberg’s assistant. I wanted them to shoot in the Philippines because it would have been great for tourism, but they were keen on Shanghai and Australia. Eventually, Miramax produced the film, and it was great. I hope everybody watches it.

• Under The Red Sun by F. Monaghan SJ

We read this book as high school students at the Ateneo. Written by a doting Jesuit, it is about young Ateneans who, in spite of youth and training, fought in World War II all the way to the Liberation. Guys like Ramon Cabrera, Arsenio Lacson, Raul Manglapus, and Manny Colayco. Sometimes people talk about how the "Ateneans won the war all by themselves." While it seems a bit biased, I wish more were written about it. That is why oral history is so important, and I wish the National Historical Institute would really encourage the chronicling of these things.

Another good book about Philippine history is Saga and Triumph by Onofre Corpus.

• Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell

Gone with the Wind explores the depths of human passions with an intensity as bold as its setting in the bluff red hills of Georgia. It brings the drama of the Civil War and Reconstruction vividly back to life through the tale of Scarlett O’Hara, the spoiled, ruthless daughter of a wealthy plantation owner who arrives to young womanhood just in time to see the Civil War sweep away the life for which her upbringing prepared her.

I liked this book because it had an excellent treatment of the passing of time and the change in the way generations think. It teaches us that we must always prepare for changes in life – war, the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, the departure of the US bases, and even death. In truth, nothing is really gone with the wind.

• THe Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill by William Manchester

Both books of this unfinished trilogy portray the human side of the man whose powerful will marshaled a prostrate England to its successful, life-or-death defense against Hitler. It also imparts the greatness of this amazing man – his toughness, his brilliance, his eloquence. Readers will enjoy seeing his pluck and ingenuity exhibited in his early life, in this book. Churchill suffered defeats, but never was defeated, and this quality shows in this book.

• First Great Triumph by Warren Zimmerman (This is the book Senator Gordon is reading now.)

Zimmermann’s account takes its readers deep into a small, captivating circle of figures instrumental in shaping American thought and history. In this case, the five men most responsible for making the United States a major player on the international stage at the start of the 20th century. The key players are Theodore Roosevelt, Henry Cabot Lodge, John Hay, Elihu Root, and naval strategist Admiral Alfred T. Mahan. Mahan, perhaps the least well-known of the five, emerges as the group’s touchstone. An ardent admirer of the standing British fleet and the British colonial system it helped police, Mahan believed the United States should institute similar military might to help administer an American worldview. He aggressively lobbied for the establishment and maintenance of a large, well-funded navy and for strict enforcement of the Monroe Doctrine, with US domination of such strategically important outposts as Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Guam. In this fascinating and engaging account, Zimmermann does a brilliant job of showing how Mahan’s views enabled the United States to bootstrap up to the status of world colonial power within the short space of just five years, from 1898 to 1903.

This book tells us that we must have a strategic vision for your country. We need learned men to make a country, which is why education is so important.

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"I also like books about military heroes, like William Machester’s American Caesar, and Frazier Hunt’s The Untold Story of Douglas Macarthur. He was a pompous man, but he did get the job done. Patton, too, is a great subject, and I enjoyed Patton: A Genius for War by Carlo d’Este. These books show us that even heroes are humans. Everyone has their flaws and shortcomings, but it’s how we overcome this that makes us great.

"Of course, politically themed books are interesting to me. I like Theodore White’s The Making of the President about the Kennedy vs. Nixon campaign. Of the more recent titles, I liked Tony Blair’s New Britain: My Vision of a Young Country. I believe in what Blair says: ‘No society can ever prosper economically or socially unless all its people prosper, unless we use the talents and energies of all the people rather than just the few, unless we live up to the ambition to create a society where the community works for the good of every individual and every individual works for the good of the community.’

"Newt Gingrich, too, has a great book in Winning the Future: A 21st Century Contract with America. I like his grassroots call to action!

"I love books about Japan. I think the Japanese people are very eclectic and these books help give an insight as to what goes on in their minds. I think they are a fascinating people and their thought processes and ideologies can teach us so much. I like Kenichi Ohmae’s The End of the Nation State: The Rise of Regional Economies and The Mind of the Strategist: The Art of Japanese Business."

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The Reading Club recommends Becoming Madame Mao by Anchee Min. I am sure you can find it at any of the branches of Powerbooks and National Book Store.

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For your comments and suggestions, write to readclub@aol.com.