I loved Sandra Brown's "Mirror Image", but was extremely disappointed with this effort. This book offered some witty bantering between the two main characters, but the romance was unsatisfying--not nearly enough build-up of believable tension between them. Some of their behavior seemed ludicrous--almost like Brown was forcing conflict. And the writing was not very discriptive. The story is set in Hawaii and yet I had no sense of scenery. A disappointment all the way around.

I first read this book three years ago and even now whenever I need something entertaining to get rid of bad mood, I read it again. It never fails to make me laugh. Lilah is just so funny and persistent while Adam is stubborn as mule but no less endearing. Thanks Sandra.

Great book! I couldn't put it down. This is how Sandra Brown should write all her books!! Worth buying and re-reading 100 times!!!

Do not follow the recommendations of the other reviewers for this book. It is a good book. It is not the only source necessary to score a 240 on your Step 2 Exam, however. You need to study your [rear] off using the more in-depth study guides and lecture notes you used to study for your clerkship exams, BUT "Crush the Boards" is an excellent way for you to spend the last two weeks studying for the Step 2 Exam, because it will allow you to bring it all together. "Crush the Boards" is an easy read, is up to date on management guidelines, and is well written. It is no where near complete as far as what you need to know for the exam. Use it as I have mentioned, and it will help you. Use it as the other reviewers here have mentioned, and you will be disappointed in your Step 2 score.

I loved this book! It was easy to read and quick to get through. Having just taken step 2, I can say that a great deal of the questions on the exam were represented in this book. It is very high yield. I studied from one other book as well but this was my main study resource. I would definitely recommend using this book for step 2!

This book will not make you pass Step 2 without any further studying or reviewing. But it is an AMAZING source for last week refreshing.

I must have had 30 or 40 questions on my step 2 that I wouldn't have remembered hadn't it been for my review of this little book. The best buy I have ever made.

It is so easy to get desperate on your last week, trying to cram all your review books at once. Don't. Read this book and be confident that you are using your last days in the most efficient way possible.

The stories about Mrs. Jewls' class get even wackier in the third book about the school that was built sideways. In "Wayside School Gets A Little Stranger", we start off knowing that Wayside School was closed for 243 days (excuse me if I'm not right). Then it finally re-opens and all the kids are overjoyed. Over the next couple of weeks, Dameon notices something different about Mrs. Jewls. She tells the class she is going to have a baby, so that means they're going to have a substitue teacher (or a couple). The first one, Mr. Gorf, can in-hale people's voices up his nose. The next, Mrs. Drazil, Louis' former teacher, makes Louis civilized and can really be quite mean. The last one, Ms. Nogard, has an ear on her head, and falls in love with Louis. This was a great book and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

I like Wayside School Gets A Little Stranger. My favorite part was Voices. When the kids talk, Mr. Gorf would take their voices by sniffing them up. I think anyone would enjoy this book but school kids would really like it. It made me laugh.

I like "Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger" because it is funny and it has long chapters. My favorite chapter is "Poops", it is about Miss Drazil and Louis. The chapters have funny names. I think that other kids would like it too. The other 2 "Wayside Schools" are also funny. Geordi Cochenour Age 6

The Five Ages of the Universe is definitely one of the most well-presented, clearly written, and involving science texts I've ever read, and I've been through many. In terms of quality, it rivals A Brief History of Time, The History of Earth, and Chaos, all of which are among the best books of their type ever written.

The book presents some of the great complexities of modern cosmology, including inflation, the decay of protons, and the ultimate fate of our universe, in such a way as to keep you reading. Further, the authors make every attempt to explain these theories, often explaining them from just about every angle and answering the questions you think of. Indeed, the authors are not adverse to admitting the limits of modern knowledge, and this is very much appreciated in a world where scientism often carries the day.

On a side note, this book must be read with an open mind, one willing to look beyond this world and understand immensely long periods of time (a google years and beyond). This is especially true of the fifth chapter, The Dark Era, and the Conclusion, which is especially powerful, and extremely interesting in what it has to say. The punchline here is not to be missed.

This is an amazing book. I highly recommend it to anyone with a remote interest in the workings of this universe, past, present, and future.

"Five Ages" provides a very comprehensible summary of the extraordinary events from the birth of our universe to its ultimate "end". In the introduction the authors provide an overview of each of the five ages, and also introduce benchmarks and standards for coping with the incredibly large numbers required for such a discourse.

With each successive chapter an in-depth, insightful and clearly understandable discussion of each age includes the relevant subatomic/particle physics and their formed macrostructures. Of equal intrigue, and perhaps what sets this book apart from many others, are the theoretical constructs for present and future life forms, and potential sources of energy for future civilizations.

While the authors presume the universe to be open (and flat) they do not deprive the reader of a fantastic, fast paced scenario describing a "big crunch". The emphasis, however, is to describe the later ages as somewhat stagnant and dull. When even matter, as we are familiar, ceases to exist (proton decay becoming complete by 10e38 cosmological decades) except for the matter "protected from time" by the strong gravitational fields of black holes.

Ultimately this book includes information including particle physics, nuclear physics, relativistic theory, astronomy, biology, thermodynamics & energetics and provides the reader with a comprehensive evaluation of each of the "Five Ages."

This has to be one of the most brilliant books I have ever read. If you have never experienced intellectual duhkha in your life, read this book. This is a fascinating explanation of the universe from its birth to its death. It puts in perspective that there is no escaping the ultimate end to everything. Eventually, the universe, as we know it, will simply cease to exist.

In the beginning was the Primordial Era, when antimatter annihilated almost completely with most of the matter in the big bang. The small residue of matter left behind is what makes up the universe of today.

We are now living in the middle of the Stelliferous Era, which is a time period when stars are actively forming, living, and dying. This is the period in which all galaxies, stars and planets form. The authors even include here an interesting discussion of extraterrestrial life and the possible number of habitable planets within our own galaxy.

The third era is called the Degenerate Era, when the stars have exhausted all their hydrogen gas and nuclear reaction has ceased. The white dwarf stars and neutron stars that remain dissipate into radiation as protons and neutron decay.

The stars which were large enough to develop into black holes, instead of white dwarfs and neutron stars, will be all that is left during the Black Hole Era. Although the mass and gravity are so great that even light cannot escape, black holes emit heat energy. This process of black hole evaporation is named Hawking radiation and eventually the black holes in the universe will also dissipate.

The final period is the Dark Era. The authors investigate the possible scenarios for our expanding universe. If the universe is open, then it will continue to expand. A closed universe is expanding at a continually slower rate and eventually gravity pulls everything back together into a big crunch. If the universe is flat it will expand like a closed universe, but then will eventually stop.

The investigation ends with a discussion of a possible phase transition where the universe changes its physical composition and the laws of nature to be something else. Or there could be a birth of a child universe. Or our universe might be just one small part of a multiverse having a different space-time continuum and different laws of nature.

This is not science fiction. It is written by two prominent astrophysicists, Fred Adams and Greg Laughlin. I highly recommend this book to any thinking mind.

Though I have never read Thomas Hardy before, I shall again very soon. I greatly enjoyed Far From the Madding Crowd. I kept associating Bathsheba, the heroine, with Scarlett O'Hara. They are both women from the past who are struggling for a place where only men typically tread. Unlike Scarlett, Bathsheba's emotions are more restrained. She's so young, but matures through the book. The reader yearns for the day she finally matures to the point that realizes she needs a partner in life, and her perfect partner is Gabriel Oak, her steadfast mate of fate.

I definitely recommend this book for one of those cold rainy weekends curled up on the couch.

I am looking forward to diving into my next Thomas Hardy novel, Jude the Obscure.

I've always condidered myself to be sort of an optimist; so it is really odd that I've always really loved Thomas Hardy's books. I count Tess of the D'Urbervilles and Jude the Obscure among my very favorites, and whether or not it is my favorite, I think that The Mayor of Casterbridge is marvelously written. Still though, reading all of that fatalism and cynicism can be a little much. It was really nice to pick up this novel and not read so many grim scenes.

Far From the Madding Crowd is a pretty simple love story driven by the characters. First, there is Bathsheba Everdeen. She's vain, naive, and she makes the stupidest decisions possible. Yet, you still like her. Then there are the three guys who all want her: Troy who's like the bad guy straight out of a Raphael Sabatini novel, Boldwood who's an old lunatic farmer, and Gabriel Oak who is a simple farmer and is basically perfect. The reader sees what should happen in the first chapter, and it takes Bathsheeba the whole book to see it. The characters really make the book. The reader really has strong feelings about them, and Hardy puts them in situations where you just don't know what they're going to do. The atmosphere that Hardy creates is (as is in all of Hardy's novel) amazing and totally original. I don't think any other author (except Wallace Stegner in America) has ever evoked a sense of place as well as Hardy does. Overall, Far from the Madding Crowd is a great novel. I probably don't like it quite as well as some of his others, but I still do think it deserved five stars.

This book was a required read for Academic Decathalon but I was handed the cliff notes and told to study them if I didn't have time to read the book. I dislike cliff notes unless I have already read a book and I need to review so I chose to listen to it on tape. I was thoroughly surprised to find myself laughing at the overly-honest Gabriel Oak proposing marriage to Bathsheba Everdene, I had been informed that this book was something of a rural comedy but I had not expected such preposterous situations and ironies. The novel centers around Bathsheba though I would not label her the heroine because the reader is often frustrated by her behavior and even annoyed by it. She is quite poor but a smart girl and a particularly beautiful one as well. Gabriel meets her and soon decides he must marry this young woman. She declines deciding that she can't love him and soon moves away. Gabriel loses his farm in an unfortunate event and through circumstance comes to be in the same part of Wessex as Bathsheba. She has inherited her uncle's farm and is now running it herself and she is in need of a sheperd and sheperding happens to be Gabriels forte so he is hired. Farmer Boldwood who runs the neighboring farm becomes smitten with Bathsheba too when he recieves a prank valentine saying "marry me" on the seal(this valentine was sent by Bathsheba and her maid/companion). He soon asks for Bathsheba's hand and Bathsheba who feels guilty for causing this man's desire says she will answer him upon his return in two months time. The union with Boldwood is not to be since Bathsheba falls deeply in love with Frank Troy and soon marries him. An ex-girlfriend of Troy's shows up but dies shortly after giving birth, Troy is heartbroken and tells Bathsheba that he loved Fanny more and still does. Troy leaves and soon is assumed dead but is truly only missing. Boldwood moves in one Bathsheba again but in a set of bizarre events Troy returns to take Bathsheba from Boldwood once more. Boldwood is infuriated and turmoil ensues. This is an escapist novel in these times and is well worth reading. Weatherbury and Casterbridge will charm you and allow you to experience the little oddities of Victorian Era rural life in the pleasantest way imaginable.

I loved this book so much that I've added the author to my list of favorites for the year and am eagerly awaiting his next book (due in March 2002). If its anywhere near as good as this one, I'll be up all night reading it.
But on to this book: Adam's Fall takes place in the world of an elite university and author, Sean Desmond, a Harvard graduate, clearly knows the world about which he writes. The pressures, anxieties and competition of a top university are all revealed here. But the novel is more than that - at the heart of the book is a mystery, focusing on a murder (suicide?) and a love triangle.
What kept me glued to the pages of this one was way Desmond created his world and left just enough suspense to keep my interest. Was the suicide really a murder? What happened just before then? And is there something supernatural or unearthly behind all this or is the protagonist simply going slowly, but undeniably, insane? Could Adams Fall be haunted or is it the protagonist's soul which is haunted? The answers aren't clear till the end...meanwhile, things get stranger and stranger. Bloody sheets. Possible ghosts. Eerie sightings. All written so vividly it'll make every last hair stand up on your neck.
Although I really enjoyed this one, readers should be warned that this novel has some of the flaws of a book written by a first-time writer - some awkward plot sequences, a few slow parts, a tendency to bog down some sections with overdescription.
On the other hand, it has oarts that so perfectly capture the life of college students and the pain and confusion of searching for one's identity that I found it easy to overlook the flaws. Kudos to Desmond for a promising debut!

Sean Desmond, a Harvard grad, is not a dimwit. Reading this book is like being in the head of The Shining's Jack Torrance had he gone mad in his upper-crust liberal arts college dormitory hall. Add in a dash of sensitivity, humor, and self-identity issues (which I'll allow you to discover on your own) and you have Desmond's narrator/hero. If you like thrillers with a touch of humor, and are nostalgic for, disdainful of, or curious about campus life, this book is definitely worth your time. It will slowly and craftily swirl you into the brew of terror, helplessness, and desperation that the narrator experiences.

This is great material for a movie. The Shining meets Cruel Intentions, Love Story, and a healthy dash of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

Warning: this book will cause insomnia! I reached a point while reading this novel where I was terrified to continue reading, but I was equally terrified to close the book and turn off the light. (I opted to keep reading, and boy am I glad to be 3,000 miles away from Harvard's blood-soaked bricks.) My favorite scene was set on Halloween night in the steam tunnels beneath the library - don't expect to fall asleep after reading that chapter.

Sean Desmond is a master of terror and I am certain that his horrifying portrait of Adams House circa 1994 will haunt me for years to come.

I studied Joan of Arc for my college senior seminar, and found this book to be one of the most useful books on the subject of her life. Pernoud did an amazing amount of research on J of A's life and times, and had a great amount of information to share. She is also usually one of the more readable historians I have read; every now and then she becomes dry, but this is rare. She has written many books on J of A; this one is the best general reference. It has information on J of A, several people in her life, her time, etc. I would definitely recommend this book (and this author) to those interested in reading about history.

I think it wise for anyone who reads this book to begin with the prefaces which give a clue to the overall presentation of the book. I did find myself captivated by the book upon first reading. And though it is easy for us to become lost in the maze of characters involved in St. Joan's life, a testament of how many she affected in the brief time she was alive, there are the second and third parts to enlighten us. The book does well with the presentation of her life. Further, there is plenty of information in the appendices to give someone not familiar with the "life and times" of the late Medieval Age to come away with enough background to have a better understanding of the events that unfold in this book. More interesting reading would be found in Pernoud's "Joan of Arc: In Her Own Words." if one is interested solely in her story without having to worry about a lot of the historical contexts.

This is an eloquent and detailed book, full of scholarly facts and based upon extensive research. Mlle. Pernoud, "'la grande dame' of French historical writing", was probably the foremost expert on Joan of Arc, and she is famous both for her scholarship and her engaging writing style. Better yet, she stands aside and lets Joan do the talking.

While "Joan of Arc, By Herself and Her Witnesses" makes for easier reading, this one covers a lot of information not found in the above book. Both would be good choices for anyone studying the subject.

I have loved the Cat Who...series ever since I picked up my first one over ten years ago, and I still look forward to each new one coming out. I love following along and keeping up with the lives of Qwill, Koko, and Yum-Yum and all their friends. I persuaded my husband, whose favorite reading material is the sports papers and comic books, to read one, and now he's hooked, too. I hope Ms. Braun keeps writing them for many years to come.

I have read all of Braun's Cat Who books, and this one is a great example of the books where she's really hit her stride. Koko and YumYum are throwing hints all over the place, and Qwilleran makes a new friend--Joe "Wetherby Goode" Bunker, who's a terrific character. Qwilleran goes around the North country gathering spooky tales, and these little stories just add to the enjoyment of the book.

None of the Cat Who mysteries are that profound. I wasn't shocked at the solution to the mystery. But for pure enjoyable reading, I recommend this Cat Who book very highly.

This is the 19th of the series. I do agree with some others that there weren't quite as many surprises in this one but it was still good. Braun's specialty (in my opinion) is character development, and as a couple of other reviewers have mentioned, the characters are written in so much detail that after reading the books we come to feel they are real people! I especially enjoyed getting to know Wetherby Goode, who has previously been something of a joke. Also I liked the cat naming information and the "tales" Qwill was collecting. I wish that the first death in the book had been investigated more, and I wish that the second death hadn't occurred at all. (That is one thing I don't like - Ms. Braun occasionally kills off a character that I have come to like!) P.S. If you haven't read any of these books, start at the beginning and read them in order. The character development will be much more evident. First is The Cat Who Could Read Backwards. P.S.2 - Please, no Sean Connery playing Qwill. Maybe Sam Elliot - but perhaps someone a little more substantial physically? Why haven't these been made into movies by now?

Like another reader I picked this one up in the bargain bin because it seemed interesting based on the inside cover. I actually enjoyed the book quite a bit; as a computer scientist I was surprised how few mistakes Harry made in his descriptions of modern and near future computing. There were a few errors, usually in terms of scale, like some of the things depicted in the book would take a lot more computing power than he says they have. Overall, though, I would say it's the best description of current technology by a layman I've read.

As to the story, it mostly consisted of the main character going from place to place and learning about new technology. The constant revelations kept me interested, but by the end things had been built up so much that I was disappointed with the story's climax. I also felt the ending was a bit too formulaic for an otherwise different book.

Overall, it's a fun book and one that will probably open your eyes if you don't follow the major developments in technology. If you can get it for a buck or two in the bargain bin I would reccomend giving it a try.

I purchased this audio book to keep me company on my drive back home--Houston to Austin. I selected it from the bargain bin at Half-Price Books on Guadelupe. I found that it was just a bit longer than the drive, hence my reluctance to get out of the car. Yes, the dialogue was formulaic but not the plot or the information. Harry was and is ahead of the curve in his understanding of the pre-eminent role that smart computers could take. As I drove I continually compared it to the dystrophic undertow of computer operations depicted in The Matrix and AI. It was not the greatest story ever told but it had the ability to evoke imagery and provoke thought. Two rarities. As it was abridged I decided to look it up once I got home. Much to my surprise it was one of the many bargain paperbacks that I had already picked up because it had the word cyber-- included in the title. Well worth the read.

I'm not really into computer sci-fi's. As a matter of fact, this is the first one that I have read. This was the BEST book I've read in a long time. I admit, at first, when I read the summary, I was only slightly interested in this story, but once I started reading it, I just could not, to use a cliche, put this book down. I read until three that morning, having started at midnight. I was seriouly sleep deprived, but I fought the drowsiness with the book sucessfully. It was rather frightening, though, one because Gray could predict things wiuth such startling accuracy and was, as he said, "an equal of God," and two, that the computers that we so often use and probably would shut down without, can turn against us. The writer did a superb job in describing the reality of such a world. Trust me, don't read it at night if you have a computer in the same room. Is there going to be a sequel, since at the end of this book, stage 3 was beginning? I hope so. The author made this book a very irresistable blend of coldness (from certain robots), emotions(from Laura), the compassion from High Top and Gina, and the intelligence from Joseph really shows.