It would be unfair to Mr. Knecht's fine reporting to give away more of the story.

WSJ: Book Review: Grand Ambition

That observation is very much at the heart of "Grand Ambition, " though not overtly stated by Mr. Knecht.

WSJ: Book Review: Grand Ambition

Mr. Knecht, without being in any way judgmental, catalogs the jaw-dropping excesses.

WSJ: Book Review: Grand Ambition

Ethan Knecht, a 27 year old teacher who lives in Brooklyn, soaked up the sun Thursday afternoon while sipping a sugarless black cherry seltzer.

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Christopher Knecht, a former inmate at Lucasville who served time both during the riot and some years afterward, said the two eras can't compare.

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Oddly, Mr Knecht does not seem to take against the tycoon.

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Mr. Knecht, the author of two earlier books about sailing and a former reporter for The Wall Street Journal, follows the lives of a few of these workers and craftsmen as they labor on the Von Allmens' dream.

WSJ: Book Review: Grand Ambition

Mr. Knecht breaks up the story of Lucky Linda's construction by salting in some rather fun history of yachting though the ages, beginning with Pharaoh Ptolemy IV, who ruled Egypt 200 years before Christ and built a 400-foot vessel powered by several hundred oarsmen.

WSJ: Book Review: Grand Ambition