The book contains 3 or four short stories that carry well Mr. Grey's attitudes about fishing and life in general. These stories are interwoven with information about him that I had not heard before. About his prowess as a horseman. His horses carried familiar names of those used in his writings, "Riders of the Purple Sage" in particular. The story, "The Fisherman", gives a clear vision of his love and reverence for the waters of the world and the quest to catch fish from chub to be used as bait to "fish of the largest kind". I have approx. 80 titles written by Mr. Grey. I have read them all and many of them 2 and 3 times. Any insight into the man aids the enjoyment of reading his books. This book does just that.

While I was not familiar with many of the works of e.e.cummings, I heard a poem used in a scene in the movie"Hannah and Her Sisters". A beautifully touching love poem"Somewhere I have never travelled". It affected me so deeply I had to find out who wrote this piece.I researched it and found it in Viva. This collection by e.e.cummings is so intensely beautiful,complex and challenging,you may think your'e in over your head. It is not for just its lyrical complexity but even the way it is typed it is a puzzle worthy to piece together and watch its beauty unfold in your hands.If you love poetry on levels beyond the rhyme this is the reason to get Viva. Viva la difference!Exquisitely done.

This was written by my great, great, grandfather! I was so excited about it! Finally I can read it as I do not speak German! My maiden name is Fricke and there are were four Richard Frickes that followed him: my brother, father, grandfather (who are all alive) and then his son and himself (both deceased). Who is George? We must be related!

This short, though concise and informed critical biography of William James is a good introduction to his life and thought. The text predominately is a historical analysis concerning the era in which he lived, providing us with the necessary social influences that shaped the man's philosophy. One of the arguments in this text is that all philosophy is a biographical expression of the philosopher. And James wanted to express philosophy in the most accessible terms possible. As Cotkin suggests, James was a public philosopher, he wanted '...philosophy to be a conversation, a playful yet serious and enlightening confrontation with philosophical and cultural issues.'(14) He brought philosophy into the public arena and made it his life's mission to combat systematisation and abstraction, the "abstract rigmarole" that can riddle this subject. The subject of philosophy has been exiled to the academy - a specialized technical area of learning designed for the insecure elite. James wanted philosophy to be a 'passionate vision', not a complex array of problematic terms and ideas. He believed professional academics and their writings "obscured the truth". As Cotkin writes, 'Through his public philosophy James codified his revolt - and enlisted himself among those who practiced philosophy as edification - against the pretensions of professional philosophy.'(15)

This text presents us with a man who is the expression of a generation. He was a man of the times. Cotkin then moves on to James' family influences, his brilliant and eccentric father as well as the intellectual relationship with his brother, Henry. What begins to unfold is an individual who achieved the ability '...to universalise his private universe into public discourse, as well as the reality that his turmoil was the common cultural property of other Americans.' This convergence of public and private indivudual, Cotkin suggests, defined or translated into what became James' philosophical doctrine.

The most interesting chapter is 'The Discourse of Heroism'. Here Cotkin explores the philosopher's value on maintaining an on going 'passionate engagement' with life. In this chapter the author takes the reader through the many arguments concerning James' call for excitement and strenuosity in one's approach to existence, but with a warning: one must also remain committed to "courage weighted with responsibility."

~William James Public Philosopher~ is well researched and well written, presenting us with the man, the times in which he lived and his refreshing view of philosophy which continues to be important and relevant in the 21st century.

This is the first book by Michener that I have read. Having lived in Maryland for 6 years now I was interested in the history of the Chesapeake so I chose his book to better educate myself. Michener did a wonderful job combining history and fiction into a story spanning centuries of life on the Eastern Shore. His description of nature, the land and the bay are so inspiring that I have vowed to spend more time there. I became very involved with all three families. The development of some characters were better than others but when covering such a great length of time it did not bother me. I felt he developed the character of each of the families over time wonderfully. More importantly I learned a great deal about the Chesapeake and Eastern Shore which has given me a new appreciation of the area. I would have given the book 5 stars but there was one drawback for me. I was disappointed that Michener brought his somewhat liberal political views on slavery and Watergate into the story. It was so glaringly obvious and I felt they did not belong in the story. I wish he had not used his book as a vehicle for this but it certainly didn't prevent me from enjoying it. He also neglected to talk about the wild ponies on Assateague Island which I think are an enormous appeal to the history of the area. Oh well, he covered everything else! All in all a fabulous and intriguing read.

Although it is the largest book I've read, it was one of the best! I would've finished it alot sooner, had I more time. I enjoyed learning about the struggles of the Paxmores the Steeds, the Turlocks, and most of all, the Native Americans. when I was reading it, my U.S. history class was learning the same information, and my teacher was amazed I knew so much! I also read the book for a book report, and my teacher was amazed I picked the book, as opposed to the shorter, Catcher in The Rye-like books we've been reading. Never have I learned this much history from one book, and actually kept my interest in it! I went to the Chesapeake Bay when I was little, and remembered the atmosphere that I had forgotten, almost immediately. If this is a fair example of what James Michener has written, you can count me in as a regular James reader.

Having spent some time around Oxford, MD in the early '50's, I could visualize the scenes in Mr. Michener's novel and return again to one of the beautiful spots on earth. In 1952 the black population still lived in their own enclave, and kept a low profile. Old habits surely did die hard. In Chesapeake, I could once again smell the breezes, feel the wind and spray, taste the boiled crabs, watch skipjacks drudgin' for arsters. Michener gave an awesome sense of being there, at those times, and participating in the daily struggle for survival in the early times. And his upbringing by Quakers in poverty gave him an amazing insight into to problems between the several races. Even though I read this novel many years after publication, Michener's rich descriptions and sense of presence make it a superb story. Recommended reading for everyone with a feeling for history, and the changes that an expanding civilization makes on our environment.

This book is the best one-volume biography of Washington I have found. As the title hints, Flexner takes the approach that Washington was an indispensible figure in the period leading up to and through the Revolutionary War, as well as the drafting and ratification of the Constitution and the formation of the first truly republican government. He makes a pretty good argument! This book gave me a much better appreciation of how remarkable Washington was to willingly and conscientiously refuse to assume the autocratic powers that were surely his for the taking, thus setting the precedent for the remarkably peaceful and unopposed transfer of leadership that is the hallmark of the US government to this day (recent presidential elections notwithstanding). If you really want to plumb the depths of Washington's life and career, read the entire multivolume biography by Flexner (from which this book was condensed). If you want a single-volume biography of the "Father of His Country" (who, ironically, was sterile as a matter of fact), you will not be disappointed with this volume--although I would not put it in the David McCullough class of presidential biographies (which is a small class indeed).

...and if you do, you'll be forever grateful you did. Flexner is a wonderful writer. George Washington is a subject more than worthy of his talents. Flexner takes this man, someone reduced through the years to a stiff plaster saint, and shows the real human being. Amazingly, the portrait reveals someone entirely worthy of all the adulation his contemporaries heaped upon him. Washington had faults, including enormous pride, a terrible temper, a great yen for money. He became, worst of all to modern eyes, a slave owner. Yet despite all these things, Flexner's distillation of his four volume life shows that, in the creation of these United States, Washington truly was indespensable. Though America's list of so-called Founding Fathers is legion, filled with people of extraordinary talents, the American Revolution succeeded largely because of Washington. He managed, first, to keep an army in the field despite loss after loss and the essential apathy of the Continental Congress. At the close of the war, he single-handedly kept the army from taking over the civilian government, thereby sustaining the freedom and democracy in whose name the war had been fought. Because Washington lent his prestige, support, and presence to the constitutional convention, men of substance attended and managed in the face of great controversy to craft the amazingly flexible and inclusive document which is the basis of our nation. Because everyone knew Washtington must be the first president, the Constitution that resulted did not have a weakened executive branch, which would certainly have proven unworkable. The men who wrote the Constitution held deep antipathy for a strong executive--a king, in other words. But such was their trust in Washington--the only US President ever elected unanimously--that the executive branch was made an equal partner to the legislative. Washington was fully aware that, as the first President, his every act and gesture set precedents for the future; what is astonishing is that he felt unworthy for the task and humbled by the honor. What is astonishing in Flexner's book is how the author lets his readers inside the mind of the times so that we understand the politics and emotions and lofty ideals of that now-remote time, and can see and appreciate a great man in terms that still speak eloquently today.

In his book, Washington the Indispensable Man, James T. Flexner attempts to show just how important Washington was in the development of this country. Washington was not a diplomat or a great intellect nor was he a master of military strategy. What he was, was a self-made man; a leader of men who commanded respect and loyalty. Without this quiet self-effacing, the Revolutionary War might not have been won. Washington's self control, dignity, common sense and his basic character made him a truly indispensable man for the times. The author subdivides George Washington's life into three major categories: military man, statesman and finally George Washington human being. He gave great insight into all areas. James T. Flexner has done a remarkable job with this book. He brings George Washington alive within its pages. The man is certainly more than the myth. The book flows and takes us from a young Washington of 1732 to the death of a true hero in 1799. There are not an abundance of maps or pictures in the book, but what there is, is sufficient. They enhance the book rather than detract from it. This book is very eash to read and extremely interesting. Mr. Flexner drives home the point that George Washington was an ordinary man who did extraordinary things during extraordinary times.

I read the book James and the Giant Peach. The book is about a boy named, James. One night James' parent's go out and die in a car accident. James is sent to his two mean aunts, named aunt Spike and aunt Spunge. They where very cruel to James they made him work day and night. Then a miracle happens. A big peach begins to grow a tree and becomes humongus. One day James ate his way throw the big peach and he meets some insects inside the peach. The peach breaks off the tree and lands into the sea. You will have to read the book to find out what happens next I really enjoyed this book .

This book has been one of my favorite books the third or fourth grade, I don't exactly remember which one, I just know that I've really liked it for a long time. I'm getting out of the seventh grade in a month and a half and I've read this book at least five times; each time I read it I enjoy it as if I was reading it for the first time and it never gets old or monotnous. This is a book that I would read to my children as a bed time story; it's really a book the whole family can enjoy. I love how original this book is and how it captures your immangination, regardless of what your age is. I love how different the characters' personalities are and how much they fit them. I especially love Centipede's rudeness and songs, and Aunt Sponges' vainness. Lane Smith's wild illustrations are great; they're much better than the boring realistic illustrations. "James and the Giant Peach" is definitly a keeper. Roald Dahl is, in my opinion, the best children's book writer of all time. If you enjoy this book, I guarantee that you'll love Dahl's "Matilda" and Dahl's "Witches".

As a 5th grader in my elementary school, I read James and the Giant Peach cover to cover 5 times, out of my own will.

Roald Dahl's fiction work in this novel is fantastic, as well as fascinating. This selection describes the story of James, a young boy and his trip across the Atlantic Ocean, on a huge peach! James has several encounters including a shark attack, being attacked by cloud men, and having a run in with a group of Cloud Men, who are painting a rainbow.

It all begins when James parents are violently scarfed down by two rhinos on the escape from the London Zoo, and poor James is sent to live with his Aunts, Spiker and Sponge. While working in a garden, James is approached by a fearful looking creature, much like a goblin, who gives him several special wormlike organisms in a plastic bag. With the right recipe, these organisms spell H-E-A-V-E-N for James, yet he drops them onto the ground...

As an extraordinary children's bedtime novel, I rate this book Five Stars.

If you liked the movies, this book is something that you should find quite agreeable. "Star Wars" is probably not as well written as the other two stories(a friend of mine remarked that "it reads like a script"). Still, read it if you must. The writing gets better with "The Empire Strikes Back", but I think it would had been a lot better if Glut had gone into detail a little more. Still, even if it is missing something, it's still good. "Return of the Jedi" surprised me. Many critics say it is the worst movie in the "Star Wars" trilogy, as it can be constructed as weak and childish in some respects. Yet it makes for the best book of the three! Since it is best, of course, to read all three books in sequence, a compressed edition should be very convenient. I would recommend this book to most "Star Wars" fans I know. But on the whole, I'd rather just go out and see the actual movies instead

Overall, this is not a huge book, but contains elements to complete the movies storyline. Even with a 3 film span, the book is harder to read than most Star Wars novels, including SW Episode II. However, George Lucas' vision is realized in the most basic of ways in the 3 stories that weren't shown on film. Simply put, you aren't embarking on a strict movie tie-in when you turn the pages, rather a raw form that the movies followed. For those that want to read the original storyline, and I'm not saying it's 100% different than the movie counterpart, pick up this read. It's hard to put down. The first tale, A New Hope (Episode IV), shows Lucas' initial vision, while Ep. V & VI more or less expand the story already in place. No true Star Wars fan should be without this, if I may, companion piece.

***The reviewer is author of: Amber Spirit: Poems & Stories (Hats Off Books, 2001) and a frequent magazine contributer & short story contest judge.

Rated and reviewed by ROBERT ELDRIDGE

The books are great, but they only serve as for you remembering the movie, knowing a couple of things that were cut but were written in the script and knowing what these great characters were thinking at the very moment.

The books are short, yes and if it were only for them the Star Wars book universe would be very short, that's why Lucas has hired so many talented authors to expand the book universe in all of those novels that have come out explain what happened before and after the story that he's presented to us in his movies.

These books are not on what the movies are based, the scripts were written before, the scripts are of about 100 pages each, these books are novelizations of the movies that came from the scripts, these books are almost the scripts only that in novel format.

Stop posting reviews commenting on that they are too short, because for me they are not all what we've gotten, we've gotten many other novels that are not to be taken as each story they are to be taken as ONE huge amazing story filled with everything, comedy, drama, action, adventure, love, romance, some stupid points and some intelligent points, there's a little bit of everything in a story set on a galaxy far, far away.

This is the first book that I've read by James Rollins and it will not be the last. I'm not going to bother summarizing the plat for you. that's what the book jacket is for. This ia an adventure story set in the Amazon jungle. The character's are fairly well developed. The story just flys! After about the first two pages you wont be able to put it down until it's finished. My only complaint is that some o the things in the book seem pretty far-fetched, even for this time of book. Pirhanas that come out of the water onto land?? As far as new authors go, Rollins ranks just below Jack DuBrul and just above Matthew Reilly. Amazonia is well worth the money, like I said it will keep you turning the pages.

Ok....one would think everyone knows online etiquette by now. I guess not. CAPS means you're shouting. Looks rude, feels rude, sounds rude, whichever way you read it....After reading your review, no need to read the book.

As for the book in question, this story is imaginative, as adventurous as anything I've ever read in this genre, well written and at least marginally believable compared to Matt Reilly's novels. Sure, I'm a Reilly fan as well, but you can't compare apples and oranges. Reilly writes comic books in novel form. Rollins writes novels, period.

Need I say more? For action/adventure fans out there, read it. It's well worth it.

This is one of Mr. Rollins' best books so far, reminiscent of the non-stop action in his first book, "Subterranean". It is far better than "Deep Fathom" with more hair raising situations and unbelievable escapes. Characterzation takes a back seat to plot development and action sequences, but taken just as a thrilling adventure it is suberb. Mr. Rollins' style reminds me a lot of the writing of Alister McLean, another author who could spin a great, albeit sometimes unbelievable yarn.

Not being an expert on the Amazon rain forest, I cannot attest to the validity of the flora and fauna theories described in the book, but whether factual or not they contribute greatly to the mood of the story. My only complaints are that the ending seems a bit contrived and some of the characters were unnecessarly killed off. It is violent, but not as graphic as lot of novels with similar story lines. And there is of course the requisite romantic interests, although it does not play a significant role in the story line. All in all a great read. I look forward to Mr. Rollins' next book.

Thanks to the many requests of Star Wars fans and radio enthusiasts alike, the team that brought us the radio adaptations of A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back, reunited to conclude the original saga. Made exclusively by Highbridge, Return Of The Jedi, once again uses the film's score by John Williams and sound effects by Ben Burtt, to make for a top notch production. By using the actual soundtrack from the film, it gives the audio production crediability, as opposed to being made without it.

Once again, directed by John Madden, Jedi reunites most of the actors from the previous adaptions, with a couple of notable exceptions. Mark Hamill, who reprised his role as Luke Skywalker, for the first 2 productions, is replaced by Joshua Fardon. While, Billy Dee Williams, as rogue Lando Calrissian, is replaced by Arye Gross. As hard as these gentlemen try, because of the original actors previous involvment with the other two radio dramas, its difficult to imagine anyone else in those parts. Fardon's portrayal lacks the maturity of Hamill's character in the film version, Gross comes off, not quite as smooth, in playing Lando. The rest of the main radio cast, from the other two adaptations is thankfully intact. Actors Anthony Daniels, once again as C-3PO, (who has appeard in all 3 radio dramas as well as all of the films in the series) Brock Peters as Vader, Perry King, as Han Solo, Anne Sachs as Princess Leia, all complete their character arcs in the seies with style. Actor Edward Asner as the gangster Jabba The Hutt and John Lithgow as Master Yoda, (as he did in the Empire radio drama) use vocal talent, like no others, to bring these 2 unique characters to life.

Sci-fi author, Brian Daley, once again. wrote the radioplay for Jedi. As before, there are a few additional "scenes" presented, not in the film version. The end result is very good, but thanks to its shorter length, and the casting changes, I mentioned, Jedi doesn't seem quite as epic, as the other radio dramas in the series. Sadly, Daley passed away soon after the dialogue was recorded, and the production is dedicated to his memory. His script is very faithful to the film and the added scenes remain true to the characters and story.

If you own the other two radio dramas in the series, Jedi is a must have, minor problems and all. The story has six episodes, presented on three compact discs with a total running time of nearly 3 hours. Recommended

Return of the Jedi has always been my favorite Star Wars movie, both because I like how all the characters matured, (especially Luke) and because it finally delt face to face with the dark side, possibly the best force of evil ever thought of in the realms of fiction. This book exheeded not only my expectations for the book itself (which were very high) but even surpassed the movie in some ways. The author has a deep, highly emotional writing syle which apealed to me greatly, and was so profound that all through the book I truly felt as if was there, a part of the story. Every Star Wars fan should read this at some point, especially those who didn't like Return of the Jedi because they thought it was weaker than the others. I could almost garantee this book would change their minds. Also, the author did a tremendous job on the characters. Just they way they were presented made me truly feel for them, even characters who were previously not my favorites. At times this book had me sitting on the edge of my seat actually wondering if maybe this time it would turn out differently, and the part where Anakin Skywalker dies almost had me in tears. Anyway, I don't think think this book belongs in any particular age range, though probably some of it (in fact a lot of it) would most likely go over the heads of people younger then twelve or so.

You'll never see me cite one Star Wars movie being better than all the others (at least until Episode III comes out, which I'm convinced has the potential to be the best movie of all time), but as far as the novelizations go, Return of the Jedi is by far my favorite.

If you didn't already know it, there are a handful of important details included within this book that didn't make it into the movie. These details alone are reason enough for all Star Wars fans to read this book. When Episode III finally comes around, you will be able to appreciate it much more having read this book.

However, the true strength of this book is the wonderful portrayal of the characters. So much depth was given to them that it just strengthened all of the reasons why I love Star Wars. And the reason I do love Star Wars is because of the characters. While all the sci-fi stuff is really great, it is the story of these characters that has drawn me into this universe. Reading about Luke flaunting with the Dark Side as he faces against Vader and the Emperor is gut wrenchingly incredible.

This is the third part of a three part story. I recommend reading the first two parts first respectively - the third part is a treat you won't regret.