Collections are difficult to review, especially one as wide-ranging as this. The thread that (supposedly) holds this collection together is that it is inspired by Yi-Fu Tuan, a "humanist geographer" (who, judging from his essay, and the many bouquets thrown his way in the other essays), is the very picture of a modernist major geographer.

What is a geographer these days you might ask? If you were to read this book, you would have to believe that everyone who has ever read any postmodern thinkers on the subject of boundaries and/or space is a geographer. That means just about everybody, of course, as postmodernists are all about space and, dare I say it, spatiality. How soon will place be converted into platiality?

Despite my snarky comments above, I like this book. Some of it postmodern ideas are only rearticulations of stuff hardcore guys like Derrida are known for, except here is is told from the perspective of geographers. I'm not sure what makes these folks geographers exactly -- in fact a couple of them are teachers of medieval literature -- but, I am sure that the majority of these essays are thoughtful and thought-provoking. Particulary fine is Wilbur Zelinsky's "The World and Its Identity Crisis" which sketches out a (very) shematic history of the world and our place in it. Here's a quote:

"We find ourselves caged in a curious world of contradictions, of unprecedented personal and group anxieties. The freedom to comparison-shop among lifestyles, to rotate among multiple identities, this culmination of millennia of human struggle and progress, such power and flexibility, all this has failed to generate the bliss one might have anticipated or hoped for. Instead an increasingly large segment of First World populations, and incipiently others as well, has begun to wonder who or what they are, or should be."

Here he is quoting Zygmunt Bauman:

"Postmodernity is the point at which modern untying (dis-embedding, dis-encumbering) of tied (embedded, situated) identities reaches its completion: it is now all too easy to choose identity, but no longer possible to hold it. At the moment of ultimate triumph, the liberation succeeds in annihilating its object...Freedom...has given the postmodern seekers of identity all the powers of Sisyphus."

So, this collection offers the general reader a chance to check out what's going on in the new world of humanist geography. Essentially it's re-thinking the ways the world, space and place have been thought about, and are thought about, which is what most post-modern stuff does. Good illustrations, mostly good writing which in some cases opens up new territory, and in others, treads over old, but still interesting, ground.

I would like to append my comment's to panopticonman's below (which I much appreciate). To contextualize myself, I am a graduate student in geography at UCLA. This quarter I am enrolled in a seminar which is reading this book, alongside Claudio Minca's volume "Postmodern Geography: Theory and Praxis." The seminar is run by Denis Cosgrove, a contributor to both volumes, and is attended by Karen Till (one of the editors of "Textures of Place") and Michael Curry, another contributor and former student of Yi-Fu Tuan. Furthermore, I have taken to identifying myself as a "humanistic geographer." Thus I have a particular insider's perspective on the work.

Some minor corrections of panopticonman's comments, to contextualize the work itself. First off, humanistic geography is nothing new. Prior to this book, the most definitive statements on humanistic geography were produced in the mid-1970s, in a series of papers by Nick Entrikin, Yi-Fu Tuan, Ed Relph and Anne Buttimer (all of whom contribute to this volume), and a book titled "Humanistic Geography: Prospects and Problems." What makes "Textures" so interesting is that it is the first book in nearly 25 years to actually have the phrase "humanistic geography" in the title. In our (post)modern times, the very idea of 'humanism' has become less than fashionable, with some avowed postmodernists (see the Minca volume or "Place and the Politics of Identity") actually taking an "antihumanist" stance. Most of the contributors to "Textures" have wrestled with postmodernism before, and many would perhaps take issue with being labeled "humanists," but all have benefited from the work of Tuan and other humanistic geographers. So what you see in this volume is not so much work on postmodernism particularly, but rather on the viability and value of humanistic modes of inquiry in our postmodern context.

Secondly, this book offers a very particular representation of academic geography. As panopticonman noted, what binds all the essays together is the presence (explicit or implicit) of Yi-Fu Tuan. (In fact, the book has its roots in a set of paper sessions held at a national meeting of the American Association of Geographers in Tuan's honor.) The three editors are all former students of Tuan (Till was his last formal student) and several of the contributors are former students. As well, quite a few of the contributors are colleagues of Tuan. The contributing geographers include several emeriti professors, several who have been active in the field since "humanistic geography" first emerged (and, indeed, helped to shape that perspective), and several who have begun their professorial careers in only the last 5 or 6 years. In other words, you have presented here close to 30 years or more of academic geography's history. This volume, then, is a good indicator not only of contemporary work in geography, but the historical trajectory which geography has taken. Furthermore, beyond the discipline of geography, you have represented the fields of English and American literature, art history, philosophy and anthropolgy, marking the influence of Tuan beyond his formal disciplinary boundaries.

Finally, I would just like to offer something moving (slowly but inexorably) towards panopticonman's question: what is a geographer, anyway? Certainly for many of the contributors to this volume (and including myself, though I am merely a reader of the book, and lack an authorial presence), Tuan does offer a model of the ideal geographer. His intellectual project begins with a simple supposition: that geography is the study (and, following Sack's analysis, the practice) of how humans transform the world into 'home.' Tuan has been concerned throughout his career to analyze how people have actively shaped their world -- nature, relations with other people, even 'raw' space itself -- in order to transform it into meaningful places. This project involves active (materialist), normative, and aesthetic dimensions; these various dimensions are explored, singly and in combination, by the contributors to "Textures." As well, Tuan has exerted a significant pedagogical influence on geography, exemplified in Entrikin's closing essay of the volume. Entrikin identifies Tuan as "the perfect humanistic geographer," focusing on Tuan's understanding of liberal education and humanism as a philosophical outlook on the world (as expressed most particularly in "The Good Life"). The purpose of humanistic inquiry, for Tuan, "is to develop the whole person, to create a good person, and in this way to cultivate humanity" (Entrikin here connects Tuan's project up conceptually with Martha Nussbaum). This volume, drawing on the force of Tuan's personality and perspective, contributes to the cultivation of humanity through its engagement with the material, moral, and educational directives and achievements of contemporary geography.

John Galvin guides the reader through Boston politics in the fifteen years preceding the Revolution, 1760-1775. Mr. Galvin focuses on the three men he contends were the most influential in the events in Boston in the pre-revolutionary years (Thomas Hutchinson, James Otis, and Samuel Adams).Very readable and a good source of behind-the-scenes activity that led to the beginning of the American Revolution.

Author John R. Galvin explores the personalities of three key figures whose actions and discourses constituted the roots of the American Revolution. Galvin's admirable scholarly discipline and his keen analysis deserve praise. His scope is very precise: it begins and ends with the period where Hutchinson, Adams, and Otis were interacting. Readers interested in Hutchinson, Adams, or Otis should read this book to gain a deeper insight into their personal philosophies and into the political struggles and challenges which made or defeated them, and which ultimately constituted the unyielding backdrop of their social existence and historical judgement. Readers interested in mid-18th century Massachussetts or American politics will learn much about the many groups and organizations of the period.

This is a great historical geopolitical look at the Middle East of the Dark Ages for Vampire. White Wolf does a good job of showing us the Kindred of the Middle East who have been influneced by living in the geographic center of 3 major world religions. The impact of the faiths is obvious in all of the clans. White Wold has taken pains to accurately reflect the culture of the times and superimpose it onto the likely reactions of supernaturals. If you play Vampire: Dark Ages and wish to have a religious themed game or an exotic setting then this is the book for you.

Probably the best book for the Dark Ages setting thus far, this Year of the Scarab release focuses on the Islamic world in the context of Dark Ages: Vampire. After opening up with a short fiction of a vampire's meeting with Mohammad, and another short fiction focusing on a the lengths that ashipu (Middle Eastern vampire magicians) must go to, we get to an excellent introduction. The introduction explains what the book is an isn't, as well as giving us a lot of useful books, magazines and websites to visit concerning the real history of the Islamic world. Remember that while the west was in the "dark ages", the Islamic world was experiencing a golden age of science and learning. There is also a lexicon of Arabic and Islamic terms that are used in the book, and more specifically the context they hold in the game.
The first chapter covers the history of Islam, giving a biography of the Prophet Mohammad, as well as a historical account of the spread of Islam across the Middle East and North Africa. The second chapter continues by giving a look at Islamic beliefs and practices, both from mortal and vampiric perspectives. The most interesting part here is a description of the Ashirra sect, a brotherhood of Islamic vampires who seek to redeem themselves. Very good for Storytellers and players alike, as this section is almost essential for understanding how and why the Ashirra work.
The next section is a bit of IC stuff, written by an Assamite vizier as he travels from al-Andalus across north Africa to Arabia and the Holy Land, and from there to Baghdad, Persia and finally disappearing in the east, killed by some unknown force. Think something like the vampiric equivalent to ibn Batutta. At the end are a bunch of profiles of NPCs he met along the way. Almost all of the NPCs are interesting and unique, and can easily be placed in a chronicle. The next chapter covers the various clans (all called by their Arabic names) in the Middle East, and things are quite different. As would be expected, the Assamites and Setites are dominant, but the Brujah, Nosferatu, Gangrel, Ravnos and Lasombra are also quite influencial. Indeed, all western clans (save the Tzimisce and Tremere; the Ventrue are also rare being represented only by a small Arabian bloodline) are represented to some degree, along with three bloodlines: the Salubri, Baali and Laibon.
Some of the alternate takes on the various clans are quite interesting. For instance, the conflict between the animalistic hunters and monsters of clan Nosferatu (called Mutasharid) and the peaceful Nosferatu who have adopted Islam (known as the Hajj). Indeed, the Hajj are one of the leading groups in the Ashirra. Or the Lasombra, many of whom are devout Muslims and who are treated with respect and honor. All in all, its a pretty cool section. In the end, it also gives some descriptions of Paths followed by the Ashirr and how they differ from western paths. For instance, Path of the Bedouin becomes Tariq el-Bedouin, and is focused more on living a simple, nomadic lifestyle than becoming an animal. Special attention is paid to the Path of Blood (Tariq el-Haqim) given the prominence of the Assamites in these regions.
Following this is the juicy chapter, chock full of everything you need to know to run a Cainite in the region. Aside from information on the different cultures and groups (such as Berbers, Moors, Kurds and so forth) and Arabic naming conventions, there are also some sample concepts and such. Some new Merits and Flaws, specific to the setting are given, along with new Traits and even a new Animalism power (used many by vampires to create animal ghouls out of animals that drink from isolated desert oasis). There is a great deal of information on Sihr, faith based blood magic used by the Hajj. A couple paths and rituals and not much else. Given that its specific to the Hajj and maybe a few Assamite sorcerers, I guess not too much detail is needed. And theres also some systems for situations Ashirra are likely to get into as well.
And then there is the next chapter, Damascus by Night, which gives an entire ready-to-run plot focusing on the secret corrutpion in the city of Damascus. The chapter gives a pretty nice amount of information about the city of Damascus, as well as the Ashirra in the city and how many of them have been subverted by the Baali. Character profiles of major characters are also given, so everything is already set up for you to run it. This ties in nicely with the closing chapter, which focuses on various supernatural threats that Ashirra are likely to face in the night. Information on mortal dangers (like crusaders and the Knights Templar and Islamic monster hunters) is presented, alongside bits about jackal-blooded Lupines (and other shapeshifters), wizards (primarily Ahl-i-Batin and Taftani, but also Knights Templar, Hebrew qabbalists and tribal shaman), ghosts, mummies, djinn and even mysterious eastern "Kindred" from the White Tiger Court...
Over all, this is an excellent book. I strongly recommend it to anyone intending to run a Dark Ages game, or even a game set in the Mid-East in general. The Ashirra sect supposedly survives to the modern era, though little information is given on it outside brief references in a couple other books. More information on the future of the Ashirra sect would have been appreciated. Nonetheless, this is an excellent book and well worth buying.

Tony Adams writes the definitive book for those interested in the history of the Mexican-American War. He provides the political and strategic setting of the war, as well as great tactical accounts of the battles.

Of particular interest is his detail on the Order of Battle, uniforms, tactics, weaponry and leadership for both the American and Mexican Army.

The Naval War is covered in suprising detail as well.

This is one great book, in my opinion. It has good maps, orders of battle for each engagement with unit strengths in many cases, chapters on each army and its weapons and tactics, and chapters on the uniforms of each army. Good campaign and battle descriptions too. Good descriptions of the generals for each side. I just can't say enough good things about it. If you have any sort of serious interest in this war, do yourself a favor and get it.

James Adams has done a great service to the body of Christ. This is an excellent discussion of the theology of the imprecatory psalms with much practical help and exhortation. This book will open your eyes to not only the psalms but much of the New Testament and the Lord's prayer in particular. It's only real down side is that there is not author or Scripture index for the book itself. ...

Our modern liturgies are weak and insipid because we neglect the Scriptures in general and the Psalms in particular. We especially neglect the "nasty psalms" that are so "mean" like Psalm 2, Psalm 58, Psalm 59, and Psalm 137.

Yet these are the very Psalms persecuted Christians and first the Jews of course have prayed for centuries.

Why pray them? Because, Jesus said "Ask,Seek,Knock". God hears them and avenges His people.

In our conscienceless society we don't believe that because "nobody" is sinful or needs punishment...unless it's a bible believing Christian of course.

If you believe in prayer, get the book and pray these psalms. They're the perfect liturgy for our freewheeling society.

I have a training room in my basement with eight computer stations. At this time, they are not networked and several students have asked about my plans to connect them. While I currently have no plans to network them, I will no doubt do so in the near future. Even though I have investigated physical connections between the machines, I had not considered the wireless option until I read this book.
From it, I learned all the background information needed to make a choice concerning whether to use wire or broadcast connections. I am now convinced that wireless is currently the best way to network the machines. From explanations of how a wireless network works to how to connect the machines, the basics of using wireless on both Windows and Apple machines is covered in understandable and complete detail.
A great deal of paper and ink is also devoted to the security aspects of wireless connections. In the world we find ourselves in today, this is a necessity, to ignore it is to place yourself and all you communicate with at risk.
While predictions in the computer business are always problematic, one of the safest is that wireless computing will supplant a large amount of wired connections. From this book, you will learn how wireless works and how it can work for you.

The Wireless Networking Starter Kit is subtitled the practical guide to W-Fi networks for Windows and Macintosh, and this book by veteran writers Adam Engst and Glenn Fleishman is a complete success. It is full of real world "how to" information on how to understand, design, configure, troubleshoot, and use, a wireless network.

Engst penned the enormously successful Internet Starter Kit, and publishes the very popular TidBITS newsletter. Glenn Fleishman has co-written Real World Adobe GoLive, and has written for the New York Times. Their respective resumes set high expectations, and The Wireless Networking Starter Kit meets them all.

While hard-core Macintosh users may feel slighted that the book's subtitle leads off with Windows, Engst and Fleishmann gives Macintoshes their full attention in each chapter. This book, like all good Wi-Fi/802.11b networking books, is fully platform-agnostic.

One thing that distinguishes the Wireless Networking Starter Kit (WNSK) from some other Wi-Fi books is that the authors spend a fair number of pages early on discussing the basics of networking, both wired and wireless. This is a good tactic, as many readers are using the ease of Wi-Fi/Airport to make their first forays into what can be an esoteric and confusing networking world. Having a grounding in the basics will ease the potential frustration that comes from not really understanding how networking works when you first plunge into the deep end of the 802.11b swimming pool.

Chapter 3, How Wireless Works, is less detailed than other books but enough detail is provided for the reader to understand the essential concepts. I found the best tidbit to be that airborne water particles can absorb or deflect radio waves in the 802.11b frequency band, something I had not read in more technical discussions.

Chapter 4, Connecting Your Computer, leads the reader through the "how do I set up my network settings" morass. Plenty of screenshots are used to show how OS 9 and OS X Macs, and Win 98/XP machines are configured. I've found that the help provided by this type of graphic hand-holding is the key for most people, as some understand the hardware concepts of networking, but cannot wade through the computer jargon to know what number goes in what dialog box! When you get through the relevant part of this chapter, your computer should be ready to go.

I found it refreshing that the authors heavily emphasize planning before doing when a wireless network is first installed. For me, a long-time advocate of the "just start plugging stuff in" approach to network design, this is a novel concept. If I had taken the time to follow Engst's and Fleishmann's advice, my own early forays into networking would have been much easier. Included in this chapter on network building is a good overview of various hardware devices such as print spoolers, switches vs. routers, and bridges.

For me, the best two chapters in WNSK are the discussions of wireless security, and how to actually use wireless networking in the big, wide real world of airports, coffee houses, and offices. The security chapter pulls no punches about the pros and (mostly) cons of the wireless WEP security protocol, but the authors don't foment panic by discussing what level of security is appropriate for what kind of user. Various techniques such as SSL, VPN, SSH, are covered in enough detail to show the user that reasonable wireless security can be obtained with a modicum of effort.

Taking It on the Road was a great read. I found the chapter to be a great resource listing both for-fee commercial networks, as well free networks. Hints on how to connect to many different providers are included, as well as how to resolve possible connection problems.

The section on long-distance wireless was interesting, but I do wonder how many novice to intermediate uses will use WNSK to build their own special antennas and establish long-distance wireless networks. More generally useful was the section on troubleshooting wireless networking problems.

The Wireless Networking Starter Kit is the best book so far for the average reader on Wi-Fi/AirPort/802.11b networking. If you want to cut the (Ethernet) cord, start by reading this book!

MacMice Rating: 5 out of 5

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David Weeks ...

I bought this workbook for my precocious 9-year old, and she jumped right into the first chapter and enjoyed it immensely. Each chapter begins with a list of about 20 vocabulary words, which are defined. Several forms of the word are offered as well as different meanings.

Then the student is asked to perform various multiple choice and sentence completion activities using the words in context. Finally a passage using the words is introduced, after which the student is asked to answer questions that require an understanding of the vocabulary words and the passage.

This book is just the right level for my fourh-grader, but is probably intended for use in grades 5-6.

My only criticism is that not all definitions are given for a vocabulary word. For example, the word "pedestrian" is defined as a noun, but the meaning of the adjective is not provided. Perhaps the author felt this was too advanced for the level, but I disagree.

All-in-all, this is an effective tool for building your child's vocabulary. It's certainly enjoyable for those children who love to learn new words.

In my school Book 2 is fifth grade material. We do the exercises for one reason, to learn. Wordly Wise Book 2, is a book based on vocabulary. it is divided into chapters, which are divided into exactly 30 lessons. Exersice A would be multiple choice, ex: to intercept a letter (a)plan to write(b)write in code(c)deliver(d)seize on its way Exersice B would be multiple choice as to which sentence states or uses the word wrongly. Exercise C is a sentence that synonoms to replace the word, and you would write the word that on the list would replaceit. Exersise D is a crossword puzzel. At the end of this workbook, there is a glossary, which has all vocabulary words in all of the lessons. I recomend this book because I believe it has really helped me this year, I have thrived as a student and as a person.

My 4 and 1 year old children love these stories. They do require minor "translation" from "British" to "American" but it is nice to have a different approach and fresh ideas. We always seem to read more than one day's worth of stories...

My kids and I have fun reading this book. It has a short story or poem for everyday so you can fit reading in anytime. It has colorful pictures to keep the little ones entertained. The kids enjoy finding today's date to see what we will be reading. It has a lot of reading in one hard back book so it make a good gift also.

The new Star Wars movie had the potential to rival the original trilogy, but just about everything felt forced. The drama felt forced, and so did the comedy. It was more an exercise in world-building than storytelling, and if Lucas can get his act together by Episode II, this will be easier to forgive.

None of this is Terry Brooks's fault, of course, but I would have expected him to recapture the movie's visual magic in the book's prose, which he does not. I think Lucas could have chosen an author more skilled at visual description, like Ray Bradbury or Alan Dean Foster. To add on to that, the movie's funniest moments come off pretty flat on the printed page. That may not be Brooks's fault either, but humor has never been one of his strong points as an author.

What makes this novelization worth reading is the detail it adds to the movie's narrative. Well, most of the detail. The first couple of chapters, detailing Anakin's history as a pod racer, are boring as can be. I'd almost suggest just skipping that first section. But most of the additions only lend clarity and depth to the story. Just a couple of examples: We get to see Anakin's evil foreshadowed when he beats up a kid who accuses him of cheating. We also get to see his ability to predict the future when he tells Padme he's going to marry her. Both of these scenes should have been in the movie, in my opinion. From what I understand, however, Lucas was the one who conceived of these scenes, so I'm not so sure that Brooks deserves credit for the way they improve the story.

The much briefer "Queen Amidala's Journal" does a much better job of bringing the characters to life. Brooks does give us more details about the characters than we were given in the movie, but he has a similar weakness to Lucas in that he often states motivations, emotions, and temperaments without showing them through a character's actions. If Obi Wan is a "headstrong young apprentice," we just have to take Lucas' and Brooks's word for it.

This is unfortunate, because people who have never read Brooks before might incorrectly assume that he's a mediocre writer. Under Lucas' constraints, Brooks has no chance to show his talents as a storyteller. I encourage anyone who was less than impressed by this novelization to go back and read "The Sword of Shannara," the novel which made Brooks famous. You should be pleasantly surprised, like I was.

Terry Brooks works around George Lucas' script to give an expanded view that a movie can't. Reading this helps fill in all those holes that were there in the movie and what gave it such a poor rating by the critics.

Eventually we will see a re-edited version of the movie the would match the book, sometime in the future

I loved this book. Personally, I've seen the movie 3 times already (due to change to higher number soon). The 2nd time I saw the movie, I went and brought the book. It was worth every cent. Now, I was introduced to Star Wars when I was four. My grandmother had it at her house and I thought it was scary as anything. My brother got it for his 7th birthday (when I was nine) and we watched all of them straight through and I finally understood the plot. Then I was hooked. My dad started to let me read the Star Wars books. I enjoyed most of them (save some Kevin J. Anderson books). Until this day, my favorite SW book is "Jedi Under Seige", surprisingly by Kevin J. Anderson/Rebecca Moesta. When the new movie came out, my friend and I skipped school to see it. For those of you who haven't seen it, get off the internet, get your shoes on, and haul your butt to the nearest threater showing Episode One. The book, in my opinion is just as good as the movie, which was killer. Terry Brooks is a talented writer (unlike some. I'm not mentioning any names, Ms. J. V. Jones. And Mr. Kevin J. Anderson (Adult Star Wars)) and keeps strictly to a plot line. He doesn't give away any secrets about the movie until they're supposed to be given (Sound familiar, Ms. P. C. Wrede?).The one problem I had was that the battles could have been more descriptive. As an unpublished novelist, I'll say firsthand that battles ARE hard to do, but when you're doing Star Wars, blood and gore, and lightsabers, and ships, and big explosions work. Thank you and have a nice day.

I thought this book did a disservice to Virginia Woolfe by transposing her brilliant and poignant novel (Mrs. Dalloway) onto a modern day plot. Substituting character names, locations, and various major and minor sub-texts (AIDS in place of post-war trauma; a movie star in place of a queen) does not create an original novel (or even a thought-provoking sequel). I don't think you can "cover" literature in the same way you can cover a song.

The other two sections of the book, which dealt with the 50's housewife who read Mrs. Dalloway, and the fictional account of V. Woolfe writing the novel, were much more enjoyable and well done.

THE HOURS, Michael Cunningham's riff on Virginia Woolf's envelope-pushing novel MRS. DALLOWAY, is a pretty stunning piece of work in its own right.

Filled with razor-sharp observation and devastating emotional interconnectedness, THE HOURS is a stunning odyssey through a day in the lives of three women, and by extrapolation, every woman and every human being. It would be impossible to read this book and not find little bits and pieces of yourself strewn across its pages.

What's really amazing is that Cunningham is able to stick so close to the themes, structure, and characterization of Woolf's novel, while managing to build, out of seemingly the same pieces, a story all his own.

What THE HOURS does so well is reveal to us the binding emotional ties that unite us all. It makes you see the similarities in ostensibly different lives, different dreams, and different words. Cunningham manages to create a perfectly balanced fulcrum on which a large teeter totter of metaphors is able to swing up and down in powerful arcs.

While I found "Mrs. Dalloway" enjoyable, and it does help to read it before reading "The Hours," I thought this book was more enjoyable, easier to read, yet just as deep and complex. I loved how the lives of the three women wove together; it made perfect sense at the end. This book really explores why we live, whether live is meaningful, and how we find meaning in it. I think this book is destined to become as much of a classic as the Virginia Woolf novel on which it is based.