The Venerable Bede, priest and monk of Jarrow, well educated in Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, documented the first history of the English nation, and in doing so earned the noble appellation "Father of English history." It is interesting that the first English history is not a secular, but an ecclesiastical one, brimming with tales of saints, nuns, miracles, and portents. The work begins with a succint backround of Britain under Roman dominion, up to a more detailed account of Britain under the rule of Kentish and Anglo-Saxon kings; it ends nearly around Bede's own times(early 700's). Some important letters are preserved within from Gregory the Great, which show how the young church in England corrisponded with the Church of Rome, and how many ethical and doctrinal matters were solved during the young Church's growth. Unlike many of Bede's contemporaries, his narrative is never dull; and although he remains quite uncritical, the stories he tells are always charming and eloquent. This is a great source to understand the Christianization of Europe...it is a must have.

There is a definite thrill to reading the actual words set down by the infamously unassuming monk himself. This is why there are so many fields where "Bede" is mandatory foundational literature, but if you are a student of English history, literature, theology, philosophy, or sociology you already know that. One of the most lasting of the many images the book creates is the biography of Bede himself; surviving a plague that left only the abbot and the young boy Bede to sing the Divine Offices, then settling in at Jarrow where he was sheltered with the precious books for the remainder of his life.

Dated as 731, Bede's history was written in his old age (when he was 60 or so) and his gentle manner of reflection on the relationship of kings, gentry, the Church, it's priests and leaders, and common folk with one another informs one quite clearly of the many years spent teaching other monks, repeatedly re-reading texts, and living the religious life that bestowed the title "Venerable Bede" upon him. A professional academic in every modern sense of the word, knowledgeable, inquiring, conscious of his place in history, inventor of the chronological annotation (A.D.), meticulous researcher of events, places, and times; from any perspective you choose, this book demands to be part of your life experience.

This edition (which is probably the best-known - it's Sherley-Price's 1955 translation) includes both Bede's Letter to Egbert and the great eyewitness account of Bede's death by Cuthbert, upon which a significant part of Bede's reputation rests. There is no way to read Cuthbert's letter without understanding the ideal of humility for a medieval monk.....the image of him giving away his earthly treasures of pepper, handkerchiefs and incense in the hours before he dies....it's an image that stays with you forever.

All in all, the work is one of the treasures of our species....

This book is a "must read" for anyone studying English history. It was completed by the monk Bede in 731 AD and contains a wealth of material he gathered from sources available at that time. He provided an overview of Roman emperors, and gives accounts of conflicts within the Roman empire and particularly within Briton. He provided a good account of Saxons and other invaders and their conflicts with the Romano-Britons. He also provided various sidelights including accounts of miracle cures using holy relics. Unfortuneately, the material is often all too brief, and the original sources seem to have vanished in the dust. For example, the uprising (led by the warrior queen Boadicea) against the Romans in 61 A.D. is described by Bede in a single sentence in the Greater Chronicle (4021) when, writing of Nero, he states "this emperor attempted nothing of a military kind, and even nearly lost Britain, where two of the finest towns were captured and sacked" (he is somewhat in error as three towns were burned to the ground, and the entire Roman Ninth Legion was massacred).

Chapters are very short, e.g., less than a page. I originally became interested while looking for material on King Arthur. Bede noted in Chapter 11 that after Gratian died, in 407, in his place "Constantine, a worthless soldier of the lowest rank, was elected in Britain solely on account of the promise of his name and with no other virtue to recommend him." This Constantine challenged the Romans in Gaul and was defeated and killed by the Roman officer Constantius. It is probable that this Constantine is the one alleged to be the grandfather of Arthur, but no solid connection is found (the name Constantine seems to have been fairly common). In Chapter 16, Bede again refers to the Britons after invaders (Saxons, etc.) had ravaged the land. Bede notes, in reference to the Britons, "Their leader at that time was a certain Ambrosius Aurelianus, a discreet man, who was, as it happened, the sole member of the Roman race who had survived this storm in which his parents, who bore a royal and famous name, had perished. Under his leadership the Britons regained their strength..." Bede then briefly mentions Mount Badon and goes on to discuss other things (this account appears to have been taken from the monk Gildas, "On the Ruin of Britain," written circa 520/540 A.D. - the decisive battle at Mount Badon was circa 516 A.D.). In the Greater Chronicle (4444), Bede again briefly mentions Ambrosius Aurelianus and "his parents, who had worn the purple..."

The book is sometimes a little hard to follow chronologically because sometimes he gives an actual year AD, and sometimes he gives a particular year in some emperor's reign, e.g., the ninth year in the reign of Emperor so-and-so. It is somewhat heavy on religious detail, e.g., providing the complete statements by Pope Gregory on allowable marriages between related men and women and on relations between husbands and wives.

While written as a textbook, this is a good guidebook for the person who needs an introduction to western political thought. It is a most effective tool if you actually have access to the writings of the philosophers discussed in the book. I followed the footnotes to the original writings, and it helped me understand the topic more thoroughly. For someone who lacks a formal education in philosophy or political science, this book offers such a strong foundation that a thorough "self-education" is quite possible.

I red this book following the advice of a friend who was a philosophy major. My interest in politics and in the formation of the political ideas in the ancient and in the medieval world led me to this book. I think that the chapters on Aristotle and Plato are excellent. I am sure that we can't substitute or even avoid reading the original works (in the original language or in the best possible translations) but this book can help introduce and clarify some parts of the most important works. For the person who wants to read about a larger number of thinkers this is not the book. But for the person who wants to follow a tested textbook and it's basic material it is very good.

This is the source. Strauss and Cropsey certainly have compiled the authoritative reference for political philosophy. This is great for beginners and also seasoned scholars. There is a chapter on just about any philosopher you could imagine in here. Clearly-written essays provide for a greater understanding of each one.

This book is a summary and overview of the Councils and the climate in which took place. If you are looking for extreme detail, this may or may not be what you are looking for. But when read along with the Early Church Fathers volume on the Councils (Series 2 Vol 14) at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library, it serves the reader well.
Mr Davis writes well and does his homework, but when you read, you must keep in mind that he is a Roman Catholic and puts in plugs here and there for the Pope, as if that is what made the council Ecumenical. Even the title reflects this (as if there were an 8th ecumenical council).
After reading the chapter on the 7th Ecumenical council, I was almost convinced that it was not even Ecumenical, on account of his exerpt on the Franks "not being included". But even as an Eastern Orthodox, you can read this and get a lot out of it, as for Councils'theology and politics.

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In this valuable book Leo Donald Davis, a Roman Catholic priest takes an objective look at the history of the Church and the theological story of the council meetings during the first seven ecumenical councils. Each chapter of the book is dedicated to one council; the circumstances that led to the council, the convening of the council, the actual deliberations and the aftermath of the council. The seven ecumenical council dealt with are the councils of Nicea I, Constantinople I, Ephesus, Chalcedon, Constantinople II, Constantinople III and Nicea II.

The life of the Church during these councils was very much intertwined with secular history. Secular politics and theological controversieis were often intermingled. The eccelsiastical rivalries were sometimes much worse than the political ones. The author deals with history in an objective manner and is preoccupied with showing the gruesome facts without taking any sides. The faithful people need to note that the Holy Spirit worked through all these persons and situations.

It is a delightful book. After having read this, our outlook on the Church and her doctrines will no more be the same.

I stumbled across this book while browsing in search of a good read to enjoy over lunch. This was my first journey into Ford country and I found it delightful and surprising. For me the plot line and characters carried me back to Travis McGee days. In many ways it was a retread of several of John McDonald's McGee mysteries. A mysterious death and suspicions of foul play. The P.I. slowly unraveling the tapestry of the suspect's personality and discovering a long, dark thread that leads backward into a web of deceit and darkness. If you've read McDonald you know the tale already, but this does not prevent the story being well received. The setting in the Northwest is well-placed and described. The supporting characters are enjoyable. The bad guys are appropriately bad and even if you realize where the plot is going there are a couple of surprises along the way that bring delight. A good read and I will now be hunting for other books of the series.

This is as good or better than the old Travis McGee stories by John MacDonald. Great plot, wonderful characters, crackling dialogue...author Ford is a superior talent. When someone this good writes a novel, their work almost defies description because the result is like magic. You are transported, informed, entranced, amused, and entertained. Try Ford's series of Leo Waterman, Private Eye, novels. You'll be glad you did. Also... please ignore the luke warm endorsements on the back covers of his books. They don't do the author justice; he is BETTER than they say.

I really enjoyed this book. The plot reminded me of some John D. McDonald books where Travis McGee backtracks an evil killer. Plus Leo Waterman has a hilarious sidekick--a foul mouthed New York phototgrapher--that helps him Some of the scenes with the photographer are laugh out loud funny. One negative is Ford's characterization of the minister which showed some anti-Christian bigotry on the part of the author.

Essentially, the line of the book could be summed up as, "Young aristocrat makes mistake, forgets mistake, remembers mistake, tries to make up for mistake". During the course of this story line, the reader is pounded with the defects of a criminal justice system in which those who are supposed to be guilty are actually innocent and those who sentence them are actually the guilty ones. It isn't entirely convincing as Tolstoy tries to make the case that people who rob are doing it for survival and those who murder must have been drunk or inflamed with passion. The book ends with a poor thesis on what the purpose of life is and five rules for living your life. Not the best of endings, but the book is, for the most part, decent. Not his best work.

This book gave me a new perspective at looking at society. After reading this book the wrongs and should-be-rights of my society hit me on the back of the head. Though this is not the best of Tolstoy's work, it should be read by all who love literature and all who want something to stimulate the psyche with something new.

Tolstoy at his best, Resurrection digs into the soul and causes the reader to consider society, the world at large, and governments in perhaps a new light. It addresses some of mankind's most gripping problems and questions, and also entertains via a well crafted story. A wonderful, unforgetable book and first rate piece of literature that will leave a mark on you, among the very best I've read.

Worth reading, but dramaticly weaker than the previous 3 in the series (which were delightful!).

The last 1/4 of the book isn't even story, more like a set of authors notes created to help him map out the future world.

There are several outright flubs, such as the hints about how they shouldn't have bragged about East Gate being impervious (which goes nowhere). Such as the last 20 pilots all "crash" landing at once, and they all die except Lambert who is unharmed? Like what happened with the Duke? Why the sudden ending with all the mongols in one place? The entire "time is shifting" angle seems to be thrown in to justify a few random changes in events (almost like the author wanted it both ways in one particular case), but goes nowhere. Weak.

Leo Frankowski is a master of the first person story. The first 3/4 of this book was full of wit and fun technical details. However, this is still by far the weakest of the series. Books 1, 2 and 3 were some of the best SF work I have ever read. The last part of the book was a description of Conrad's world instead of the wonderful first person story that made this series so much fun..

This is the best time travel series in a realistic timeline ever written. Before these books, L. Sprague De Camp had held that title for decades with his "Lest Darkness Fall", but it was too short. Mark Twain may be the most famous with his "Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court", but that is more light hearted than serious, and disappointing at the end. The Conrad series delivers on all the promise, and even after 5 books, it still leaves you wanting more. (There is a sixth book now, but Conrad is a minor character, and I've reviewed it separately.)

I say realistic timeline, because Conrad isn't really from our timeline. I was a little suspicious right from the start, but it wasn't until Conrad reminisced about the Mongols invading France that I thought "Hey, wait a minute". It turns out that it didn't happen to us (even without Conrad). But the historians I read agree that it would have, except the great Khan died and the Mongols had a war of succession which they never recovered from. This is often used as an example of the actions of one person changing history. I never even heard the story, until Conrad got me to look it up. Go figure.

This is an action story, with fighting and sex, where Conrad overcomes insurmountable obstacles, and usually has a good time along the way. The author doesn't just ignore the time travel though. He writes a science fiction sub-plot about that too. In fact, the author is obviously an engineer, not just because it takes an engineer for Conrad to build the things he does, but also from the way the books were planned out and crafted. Obviously the author planned the Mongol invasion and built the series around it, but he also foreshadows romantic sub-plots 3 books in advance.

I love these books, and share other reviewers disbelief that they haven't been reprinted since 1993. If you've already read them, and love them too, you might want to try "The Misplaced Legion (Videssos Cycle, Book 1)" by Harry Turtledove, about elements of one of Caesar's legions travelling into Rome's future of the Byzantine Empire. Only it's not the real Byzantine Empire, it's a parallel universe where magic works. Aside from that, it's Byzantium during the 1100's written by a Byzantine historian. And of course you'll want to read the "Island in the Sea of Time" series by S. M. Stirling, about modern day Nantucket going back in time to the Trojan War. These works are different, but also 5 stars.

Primal Schmimal...if you follow the references here you will find it very shallow and highly speculative. Gobbledygook.

This set is worth the price for the book alone. It is easily one of the best Goddess books I've seen, containing much information about the history of the Goddess as well as valuable practical information that can easily be applied to daily life. The stones are great to use during meditation as they give you something physical to focus on, and work very well for divination also. I just love this set!

as someone who's read many many books about Goddesses and ancient matriarchies i didn't think i could learn much more about this spirituality - the amulets proved me wrong. they are so incredible and have made me more psychic and intune with my inner Goddess. if you're serious about Goddesshood these are a must have!!!!

I wish all vet's would write a similar book. A first hand account of the personal recollections of wartime service of the average enlisted man, a paratrooper no less! You'll find a lot of great little gems in here you might not get in a traditional history. It only suffers from a lack of photos and additional background on the Heroes that the men of the 509th were. Well worth the price, you wont be able to put it down untill your done.

With this memorable memoir of World War Two, it was as if I was really there. I highly recomend this book for children of veterans, and for our honored veterans themselves. Leo C Inglesby has a way for words and I hope that he will share his gift with the public in an exciting sequel. Read this book!!!

The fellows who fought in the early days of WWII as this nation built up it's great military strength, when the odds were even between us and the enemy, are the great American heros of this century. I cannot imagine what the author and the others in his battalion must have been thinking aboard their C47s as they were winging towards North Africa, in advance of the invasion force, to be the first American troops to fight and be bloodied by the enemy. I found the story about the botched parachute drop on Avelino to be very interesting, what goes through a paratroopers head when he realizes after he lands that he has no idea where he is, he can find only one other guy from his outfit, and he must make it back to his lines wherever they might be. The author relates it much like a Boy Scout hike in the country and sprinkles in a little Sgt. York American hero in as well -- capturing a couple of Germans along the way. Mr. Inglesby relates his story with charm and dry wit, I was very sad when I finished his book, I enjoyed it very much and hope that he will write more. I wholeheartedly recommend the book to all.

In this gargantuan volume, Michael Hickey presents a conspiracy theory in the aftermath of the death of Warren Earp (Wyatt's brother) that would perhaps do credit to a JFK assasination buff, but hardly qualifies as good history. To accept his conclusions, in my opinion, requires the reader to discard logic and common sense. There is a wealth of primary source material presented, and for that I will give the book two stars, but I do not advocate that anyone read this book in the expectation of learning the truth.

Recent years have seen the emergence of someone who has proved to be a relentless pursuer of the truth, an historical researcher of the first order: Michael M. Hickey. In the early 1990s, Hickey published no less than three books looking in great detail at the thirty-second "O.K. Corral" gunfight and then, in 2000, produced a volume that has really given Earp historians something to think about. "The Death of Warren Baxter Earp: A Closer Look" puts forward the proposition that, subsequent to the shooting down of Wyatt's youngest brother, Warren, in an Arizona saloon in the summer of 1900, Wyatt went on yet another "trail of vengeance" and killed all those whom he held responsible.

This enormous book of 759 pages is the most exhaustively researched book yet on the doings of Wyatt Earp - and in an area of his life about which little is known. Aided by a small army of field investigators from all over the States, Hickey has come up with an extraordinary story which, if true, puts a whole new light on the character of Wyatt Earp. This is a truly fascinating read and is the sort of history we Earp enthusiasts want, packed full of primary source material, expertly, and entertainingly, edited.

David Ashford, England

There have been numerous books published about Wyatt Earp and his brothers, "The Fighting Earps", over the years. A few of them are very good. Most of them are very bad; being either a repitition of the well-known facts or a distortion of them to present Earp in a particular way.

Michael M. Hickey's "The Death Of Warren Baxter Earp" is one of the very good books on this subject. Yes, of course, this massive (over seven hundred pages) work on the strange death of Wyatt's younger brother in 1900 can be labled a "conspiracy theory", but with such persuasive evidence it is an intriquing one. Hickey and his team of researchers have discovered an impressive amount of new information on a very familiar topic. All of this primary source material is reproduced on the page so that the reader can judge for themselves. Perhaps Wyatt Earp's vengance against his enemies did not end when he rode out of Arizona in 1882.

If you think you have read everything about Wyatt Earp then this fascinating and provocotive work about a little known part of his life will surprise you. Anyone with an interest in the Earp brothers, western lawmen and outlaws or justice (and the lack of it) in the old west will find this book hard to put down. It is highly recommended.

This book shed light on the northan art of shaolin kung fu. For a book written nineteen years ago it is packed full of knowledge, but admittidly some was irrelavent. I would recommend this book to the buyer however martial knowledge on the subject from the buyers behalf would be useful befor as it can be complexed in termanology in places.

This is an excellent presentation of a form and style not seen much outside of China. The form is over 70 moves long and has a number of very complex sequences, so it is quite an impressive kung fu set. The photos are a little dark in the later editions of the book that I've seen in book stores in recent years, but in my nearly 25-year old copy it's okay.

This very dynamic and athletic form, and the somewhat more sedate, but much longer (at about 150 moves) Tiger/Crane form from the Hung Gar style are two of my favorite kung-fu forms/sets.

The author also includes a section showing the practical self-defense application of some of the form sequences. Overall, a fine little book with much good information, and we owe Draeger, Chambers, and master Prakarsa a debt for documenting this unusual and rare kung-fu form and style for posterity.

This book is great. Well written in English and illustrated with both photos and line drawings. The book goes over history through applications in modern times. The basics...stances, arm/leg applications/strikes are illustrated by line drawings (with an area that has the exact striking area shaded). So no guessing. Traning methods on how to train, including conditioning. And a form is included as well as partner training. There just seems to be more information in this book than the size would lead you to believe. Highly recommended.