This is a clearly-written, easy-to-read book that is full of useful information. It provides numerous techniques that readers can apply to any learning situation.

Some of it does, of necessity, review what may be old ground for some readers who have prevously encountered accelerated learning. And, of course, the authors do promote the fact that in-depth study of particular topics will require progressing to an in-depth home study course. Surprise, surprise. One would be naive to expect anything else.

But nevertheless there is an immense amount of useful information throughout this entire book. It's an inexpensive investment and well worth anyone's time.

I'm not sure where Boo-Hiss Mithras got his information. I've READ the book and it is outstanding. It is extremely helpful in teaching you to learn faster. Further I've taken PhotoReading and when I went back to the university after 30 years I graduated with highest honors, directly attributible to PhotoReading, if that is snake oil, it is certainly effective. Also, I repeated the photoreading class, repeating the class is always FREE once you're a graduate. Members of the class included the Director of an 80 million dollar fund, the president of a corporation that came from Australia for the sole purpose of taking the course and a man who came from Holland, also with the sole purpose of taking the course. I think that is an indication of the quality of the results anyone can expect of taking the photoreading "snake oil" course. Also thanks to this book, photoreading, and the fact that I am willing to follow through with ordering other things from a proven source, I expect I will be fluent in spanish is a very short time. I found this book well written, enormously helpful and useful in too many ways to mention. I approve of being provided with information that I might want to follow up on, such as language courses and other things. If I don't want them I can always ignore them. If I want them an have to go looking it's takes time that I can use better elsewhere.

I found Accelerated Learning for the 21st Century to be an enlightening, well-researched, comprehensive and even entertaining book.

It is an excellent introduction to the entire accelerated learning system of learning which the authors seem to have applied from cradle to grave! Although the subject matter ranges from early learning to corporate training, from the value of music to language-learning, there is plenty of "meat" for would-be learners of any age or interest.

It is not a book for intellectual snobs but for people seriously interested in improving their personal ability to learn anything faster and easier.

Like all of you who read this review,you're Everest junkies who probably won't even get near this mountain, but are hooked on all books about it.
High; Stories of survival from Everest and K2 is NOT what you're looking for. This book is nothing but one-chapter excerpts from other books. It's like walking into a movie half way through: You have no idea what's going on. Also, there are no maps of either Everest or K2, so if writers of these chapters (and some of them are BORING writers!) describe trouble on Everest's north col or K2's Abruzzi ridge, we can't picture these places in our minds.
This book (unlike all the other Everest books I bought and immediately read) has been sitting on my bedstand for months. I only read it when I wake up at 3AM and can't go back to sleep. Just reading from this book puts me back to sleep reeeeeal fast!
Don't bother with this one. The Everest season is happening right now. Maybe more books will come from this year's hikers.

I very much enjoyed and highly recommend this book. I've read many of the books from which these chapters are selected, yet there was much fresh material for me. The editing was so masterful that even though the chapters are from different writers, mountains, and times, they flowed together seamlessly

High does for climbing what the movie The Thin Red Line did for combat: It explores not the details of the event, but the inner thoughts of the participants. You read what it feels like to have a climber dying in a tent next to you. You learn about the humilation of having frostbite while back at home. You are with the widows who trek in the paths of their husbands to glimpse the mountain graves of their loved ones.

While I can understand that some reviewers felt the selections dropped one into the middle of a big problem high on a mountain without the broader context of the expedition, I didn't feel this was a problem. I don't need the beginning, middle, and end to enjoy a brief tale. There are plenty of books that give all those details, yet few that are gripping to read from the first page to the last.

This is the first book i've read that was a collection of excerpts from other books. The only thing i didn't like was that the book itself was big and bulky. Well anyways, just buy it. you won't be disappointed.

"Summerland" has a strong premise, four interesting characters, and an author with a lot of guts - it takes some nerve for a first-timer to deliberately court comparisons with F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ford Madox Ford. Unfortunately, the gamble doesn't entirely pay off. For me, the enterprise is ultimately undone by the narrator's journalistic tone of detached amusement. It's as if he never really knew these people, never really had these experiences, and is only pretending to care. I sense no real pain in Richard's telling, no real regret, so as the story of a man whose life has been obliterated by treachery it just didn't ring true. The voice fights with itself, wamndering into anecdotes and tangential ramblings in a tone suggesting Knox might have been happier writing an essay entitled 'Reflections on the Ruling Class.' I think I would have been happier reading it. Knox clearly has a good mind and a sharp appreciation for the cant and hypocrisy of Sydney's idle rich. He's a good writer, too. But I think his talent could have made more of this material as an extended sociological essay - much like Lewis Lapham's "Money & Class In America." No one has exposed the rotten core of Sydney High Society in that way, and I reckon Knox is just the man for the job. It's still an enjoyable read. But perhaps asking for comparisons with Fitzgerald sets the wrong expectations up front.

This fantastic narrative of the very privilaged life of a cluelessly happy man, his conniving wife, and their life long friends tells you from the begining that disaster has already struck. The narrator then draggs you back to the begining of their story and takes you through their life, ever moving slowly forward to that inevitable end. I could not put down the book in suspense as to how their lives would play out. It was really really great - teasing and suspenseful without being overly so.

I just finished reading "SUMMERLAND" by Malcolm Knox this morning and I must say that after struggling through the beginning of this book that in the end I really did enjoy it. Summerland is not an action packed novel of lies and deceit, rather it is a story that is slowly unwound by a man who missed the entire thing. Richard is telling the story of the affair of his wife and his best friend.

Richard and Pup, Hugh and Helen were best friends since their teenage years, which is when Hugh and Pup actually began their affair that lasted well over a decade. The four of them had a yearly tradition of summering at Palm Beach a tradition that unbeknownst to Richard, was built on lies from the very beginning. Even Helen the beautiful wife of Hugh knew of the affair and in many ways had a hand in controlling it. Now years later after the whole story has been revealed to him by Helen, Richard attempts to recant the stories of his friendship with Hugh, his marriage to Pup, the marriage of Hugh and Helen and the affair that ultimately ruined all of them.

As I said, and I cannot emphasize this enough, I struggled through the first few chapters of this book. I thought it was over written and a bit slow but as I read on I became more engrossed in these four lives and very interested to see how, in the end, everything played out. I can honestly say that I am glad that I did not give up on this book in the beginning because I would have missed out on a really entertaining novel.

I have made the baby girl's chenille princess coat from this book. The directions were excellent. They gave you easy to read instructions, graphs, and sizing to assist the knitter through the project. The other directions are of the same quality; however, I found some of the patterns rather disheartening for the price. Frankly, some of the patterns are very wild and unbecoming on children. The patterns are also very serviceable, regular patterns with not a lot of flair and design. They are simply put-- the classics of children's wear. I suggest buying it from Amazon, as I paid full price for it and it certainly is not worth 12.95. All in all, I think it is an "okay" book to have in one's knitting collection. I myself could not resist that little chenille coat! Were it not for this pattern, I would not have bought this book!

As an avid knitter, I am enjoying this book very much. My best friend just had a baby girl and I love all of the patterns. The only thing that disappointed me is that they did not show a yarn sample like "Vogue Knitting" magazine does. (That really helps when selecting your yarn). Otherwise, I love it!

Ever notice that most knitting books double as coffee table tomes? VK had the ingenious idea of bookes sized to fit in your knitting bag. And they're by topic--hats, socks, pillows. Snap up every one, each is chockablock with a comprehesive range of patterns. Baby Knits has rompers, cardigans, sunsuits...a compendium of the best baby patterns VK has to offer in an eminnently useable format: color photos of the project, illustration of the garment shape,clear, accurate directions. Knitting stores can't keep these on the shelves (at least the one I worked at coudn't), so ordering from Amazon is a good idea. Really, this book and the others in the series are the best thing that's happened to knitting books in a long time. I want to knit most of the patterns in this book, and the same goes for VK Socks.

The Blithedale Romance is a somewhat dark, depressing tale of idealism gone awry and of friendship and love torn asunder by private ambitions. The romance of these pages is not what many modern readers may expect to find here; there is no penultimate consummation of love among these characters, nor is there much happiness indeed to be discerned from the complexity of their relations one with another. Much has been made of Hawthorne's own temporary residence at the utopian-minded Brook Farm a decade previous to the publication of this work; it is true that some of the experiences derive from his own memories, but Hawthorne went to great pains to make clear that this is a romance first and foremost and bears no direct relation to the experiences of his own life. Those who would read this novel in an attempt to get at Hawthorne's true feelings about the utopian socialism he flirted with and watched from afar during his pivotal creative years may well miss out on the thought-provoking treatment of such wonderfully literary, fascinating characters as Hollingsworth the idealistic philanthropist, Zenobia the modern feminist reformer with a fatal flaw inimical to her self-realization, and the sweet and frail Priscilla.

The first-person narrator of this story is Miles Coverdale, a man difficult to come to terms with. He joins with the pioneers behind the utopian farming community of Blithedale and truly takes heart in the possibility of this new kind of communitarian life offering mankind a chance to live lives of purpose and fulfillment, yet at times he steps outside of events and seems to view the whole experience as a study in human character and a learning experience to which his heart-strings are only loosely bound. The drama that unfolds is told in his perspective only, and one can never know how much he failed to discern or the degree to which his own conjectures are correct. His eventual castigation of Hollingsworth cannot be doubted, however. This rather unfeeling man joins the community on the hidden pretext of acquiring the means for fulfilling his overriding utopian dream of creating an edifice for the reformation of criminals. This dream takes over his life, Coverdale observes, and his once-noble philanthropic passion morphs him into an overzealous, unfeeling man who brings ruin upon those who were once his friends. It is really Zenobia, though, upon which the novel feeds. She is a fascinating woman of means who makes the Blithedale dream a reality, a bold reformer seeking a new equality for women in the world who ultimately, at Hawthorne's bidding, suffers the ignominious fate of the fragile spirit she seemed to have overcome.

This is not a novel that will immediately enthrall you in its clutches. The first half of the novel is sometimes rather slow going, but I would urge you not to cast this book aside carelessly. The final chapters sparkle with drama and human passion, and you find yourself suddenly immersed in this strange community of tragic friends-turned-foes. You care deeply what happens to such once-noble spirits, and while you may not find joy in the tragic conclusion of the ill-fated social experiment of Blithedale, you will certainly find your soul stirred by the tragedy of unfolding events.

vintage is always a pleasure, presuming of course that we're talking about the real thing. there's a regal pace about hawthorne's prose that is undeniably hawthorne and no one else. there's that rigid, regimental quality uniquely hawthornian, a sense of iron discipline, utterly lacking in modern american prose. if vintage is what you seek, check out the blithedale romance: it'll set you straight.

This is not only a book with which any Hawthorne fan should be familiar, it is a necessity to anyone who is studying the Romantic Tradition. This text is an elegant commentary on the ideals that the Romantics held dear, such as the authenticity of a life close to the earth, the superiority of existence outside of common society rather than within it, and our innate ability, with enough well-directed effort, to transcend our own humanity. Like a breath of fresh air after Wordsworth, Thoreau, Keats, and both Shelleys, Hawthorne's cynicism and pessimism on these topics shine clearly through this work. Though admittedly he has failed in his announced effort to make the text cheerful and lighthearted, this is not such a complete failure as one may initially suppose, when this novel is contrasted with his others. Much of the humor that is in the book is centered around the narrator, Coverdale, whose nature forces him to fit in with his surroundings in a way which is a bit askew, precipitating enjoyable scenes which the reader can appreciate, if he or she has refrained from judging this main character. The treasure in this book, however, is not mainly in its humor, but rather (for me at least - each person presumably takes from it something different) in the elegance with which so many universal truths are exposed (often only partially, so that the reader can feel a sense of triumph when they wholly uncover them) to our conscious awareness. As you have no doubt already surmised, I highly recommend this novel.

Turned off by the strong AI type point of view of consciousness, yet looking for a scientific explanation, I have repeatedly turned to Penrose's work hoping he would have enlightening ideas. At first, he seems to be on the right track, but when he starts making conclusions, things go awry.
As a biology student, I can say that his understanding of biology seems mediocre at best. And physics may be even worse - in fact his skepticism about the "flatness" of the universe has recently been rendered bascially obsolete.
I feel that the unified brain quantum undulation camp, if you will (penrose, zohar) paint themselves into a frightful corner. For instance, penrose never explains why his microtubule ideas would apply to the brain in particular...we've got oodles of them in every cell in our body! Basically, these ideas try to strike out against the strong AI poing of view, but actually create a new version of it! It's not the neuron construction, they say, instead it's a mechanism even more arbitrarily linked to the brain!
Penrose seems to be a great mathematician...and should stick to that. Still searching for explanations...

Roger Penrose's original and provocative ideas about the large-scale physics of the Universe, the small-scale world of quantum physics and the physics of the mind have been the subject of controversy and discussion. These ideas were proposed in his best-selling books The Emperor's New Mind and Shadows of the Mind. In this book, he summarises and updates his current thinking in these complex areas to present a masterful summary of those areas of physics in which he feels there are major unresolved problems. Through this, he introduces radically new concepts which he believes will be fruitful in understanding the workings of the brain and the nature of the human mind. These ideas are challenged by three distinguished experts from different backgrounds: Abner Shimony and Nancy Cartwright as philosophers of science and Stephen Hawking as a theoretical physicist and cosmologist. Roger Penrose concludes with a response to their thought-provoking criticisms.
To see a scientist of Penrose's ability, stature and achievement toss large parts of modern physics into the air as though juggling balls and try to keep them aloft while marshalling them into a coherent pattern is a thing to behold. It is a wonderful illustration of a first-rate scientist doing what first-rate scientists have always done: make bold conjectures and display them for others to confirm, refute or amend

Let me first say something about Roger Penrose. One notices how certain other mathematicians and mathematical physicists speak of him. He is not only admired and respected; it seems that he is positively enjoyed! This may be a bit surprising when one notices that Penrose is something of a thorn in the side of several popular ideas in contemporary physics (and psychology). Cosmic inflation theories and ideas regarding the fundamental nature of quantum uncertainty find a formidable and articulate critic in the Oxford mathematician. Of the somewhat less popular, but ever fanciful "many-worlds" interpretation of quantum superpositioning, Penrose says "[the 'many-worlds' view] is not a very economical description of the Universe but I think things are rather worse than that for the many-worlds description. It is not just its lack of economy that worries me. The main problem is that it does not really solve the problem." He brings the same mental rapier to what he has called "the missing science" of mind and to the idea of computational / artificial intelligence. It is the problem of superpositioning described by Schrodinger and the decoherence caused by quantum measurement that prompt Penrose's search for an 'objective reduction' (OR) of quantum state vectors, the key ingredient in a "revolutionary" physical theory that remains a mystery. He speculates that this physical mystery may be related to the mystery of consciousness. He is unconvincing in this regard, but his ideas and arguments are quite interesting.
Well, let me now take this a bit further. Penrose also seems to terribly irk certain others! In particular he really raises the hackles of proponents of strong AI and the Dawkins/Dennett camp of 'consciousness-is-merely-mechanism' dogmatists. His views are much closer to those of perhaps most mathematicians and philosophers and stand on a deeper logical footing than do the doctrines that the human mind is mere biology. Let me say that I agree with Penrose in that the 'simple biology' view is never going to win this argument for reasons that can be demonstrated by the application of mathematical logic. To say that Penrose "doesn't understand biology" is to miss the point. The author freely admits, "there is a good deal of speculation in many of these ideas". Of course there is; science is largely -- we might even say wholly -- speculation. A more perceptive analysis would suggest that those committed to a rigid materialistic aesthetic don't understand (don't want to understand) the mathematics. Those who summarily dismiss Penrose do so unwisely. Given his contributions to mathematics (e.g., Penrose tiling, computability, mathematical logic) and his stature within the mathematics community, and given that the history of mathematics is essentially written by mathematicians, Roger Penrose may come to be considered the greatest mathematician of his generation. Given his work on black holes and space-time geometry (he recognizes the apparent "flatness" of the universe but suggests a more elegant geometry to describe that flatness), he may be one of his day's greatest physicists as well. Should his hunch ("OR") one day prove "true", his stature would approach that of a Newton or Einstein. The point being that any scientist who avoids or ignores Penrose's views, or is inclined to dismiss them by erroneously characterizing them, does so, as I say, unwisely.
Chapters 4, 5, and 6 are challenges to Penrose from A. Shimony, N. Cartwright, and S. Hawking, respectively. Apart from Shimony's discussion of A. N. Whitehead's views, its not on a par with the author's discourses; Cartwright suggests that nature may be a mess of "patchwork" laws (her view itself seems a horrible mess), and Hawking is disappointingly flippant. Penrose certainly meets these challenges.
I must say that the "controversy" over Penrose's Platonism is nothing less than nonsensical. Hawking complains "basically, he's a Platonist," as though calling him an offensive name and thereby granting the reader cause to disregard Penrose's arguments. That's unfortunate. Most of history's great minds have been Platonists; even Aristotle*, so often cited as the philosophical godfather of reductionism, was arguably a Platonist. Augustine, Kepler, Descartes, Pascal, Newton, Leibniz, Kant, Linnaeus, Einstein*, Schrödinger, Gödel, Whitehead -- the list of Platonists is long and impressive. As Penrose has said, "... it is my direct personal impression that the considerable majority of working mathematicians are at least 'weak' Platonists." Yet it seems as if some who call themselves "positivists" feel a calling to be science's mind-police. I suggest that this should be the real controversy... So-called positivists would do well to honesty consider Gödel's observation that the idea that mind/mentality is simply material is nothing more than the "prejudice of our time."
There is a rather child-like glee in the way Penrose sees and uses mathematics. His investigations and speculations are those of an extremely astute mind having fun! In his aggressive curiosity, his boldness, his clear-eyed honesty about the frailties of human thought and the limits of science, it seems to me that Penrose is something of a treasure and an inspiration. As he candidly states, "... the world-view that present-day physicists tend to present may well be grossly overstated as to its closeness to completion, or even to its correctness!" This volume presents a concise look at the Penrose ideas/arguments and even if nothing much ever comes of these arguments, they present a shining example of the kind of creative thinking that moves science into new frontiers.
*(footnote: While recognizing that it can easily be argued that Aristotle and Einstein were not "strong" Platonists, it seems obvious to me that they were each Platonists in some fundamental ways. I consider them to have been "weak" Platonists.)

This volume is a collection of cockpit voice recorder (CVR) transcriptions related to "breaking news" flight accidents and less famous incidents. They are riveting reports of actual events leading to the final moments before the "irreparable" taking place, as recorded by the blackbox (that ironically is a vivid orange case containing the recording equipment).

This book is only for general reader since the full CVR transcription is a part of a large and massive technical document, not so easy to handle, being interspersed with data meaningful only to professionals. There are some mistakes that a specialist can easily identify. Some of them are typical technicalities; other are quite gross since they refer to main determinant for crash (especially when the source is not american).

But this is a fascinating account for the rest of the world (by the way each reader is a potential passenger); for sure it will not allay anxiety, but at least it is a way of facing fear of flying. It shows how a crew works professionally in the worst case scenario to ensure the safe termination of flight. And if safety statistics do not calm down your concerns, knowing the human drama behind this activity will tease the dreeds.

You're not going to buy this book by accident. It's black box recordings of doomed flights.

If you're interested in knowing what happens in the final moments of an airline disaster, of seeing part of the human drama as well as the resolve of a skilled crew working to the very end, this is something for you. It can be creepy, but there's an insight into these events that the news can't capture often.

The transcripts, which usually pick up right before the real disaster begins (an engine going, etc) are presented with a little bit of backstory and commentary. There is not a lot of technical info to assist a reader unfamiliar with the flight crew's jargon and not enough information about each of the 28 flights (some of them near-misses) chronicled. As another reviewer noted, there is no indication of time in the transcripts to more fully reveal how the events unfolded.

In the end it's fascinating to find these collected here; many of the tapes having never been reproduced. I'd recommend it if you think you might like it. Some people might think you're disturbed if they see you reading this, but that shouldn't stop you. Again, it's not very technical, and basically focuses on just the transcripts, but it's in a niche market...

The Black Box: All-New Cockpit Voice Recorder Accounts of In-Flight Accidents was an incredible book that dealt with human tragedy, heroism in the face of death, the frailty of human life and the sad reminder of human fallability. I read this book sometimes with a heavy heart, sometimes with a sense of relief and always with the knowledge that anyone can experience an aviation disaster; not just "someone else". The stories related in this book were explicit, and I think that is the only way they should be represented since this lends to a feel of 'being there' in the cockpit with the crew. On an emotional level, this book literally made me cry. I thought of all the people who lost their life in these disasters, and I wondered what they were thinking when they knew the plane was in trouble or going down. It was a sadness for them; for what could have been. For plans and hopes and dreams that literally and metaphorically went up in flames. I finished this book with a heavy heart and an undefineable sadness that still haunts me even now. Read this book, but be prepared to be emotionally drained and to spend some time contemplating your own mortality.

I was a bit disappointed with this book. So many different tests and ways of looking at yourself but nothing to sum it all up. This is a book that would be helped by having a score sheet included so that you don't have to write in the book.

When I received this book in the mail from Amazon, the first thing I did was to page through it completely. The art work is riveting. Malcolm Goodwin's illustrations have such motion in them they are a joy to look at. The color and illustrations as well as the quality of this publication is top-notch. This was obvious by just paging through it the first time. I've nearly dog-eared the pages by now.

As a person who has dabbled with astrology, numerology, palm reading, personality types, etc. this books puts them all in one place and simply. It is like all my mini-vices in one neat package.

There are four sections of evaluations: Body, Feeling, Thinking and Spiritual. In each of these you can evaluate where you fit and what characteristics each type is endowed with.

The introduction at the beginning of the book puts it all into perspective. You get out of this book what you put into it. The author indicates there are four ways you can approach the book.

1. As entertainment.

2. As a map of the types of people out there, some we are kin to.

3. A means of understanding your own behavior.

4. A means of realizing who you are, versus who you think you are or want to be.

Rarely does a book truly respond to all these needs. If you want a lightly entertaining book and you dive in with that attitude, you'll get that. If you want a sense of direction of where you are to where you want to be. This may help you get there. If you want a sense of who you are, this can help.

I don't know if people serious in any of these subjects would find this book accurate or even correct. I really don't know enough to check this. And if I did, what would be the point?

This book is about self discovery. To be honest, I doubt someone really serious in any of these would buy this book unless to look at the areas they are not that experienced in. Each topic of self discovery, all 101 of them take up only (2) 8-1/2" X 8-1/2" pages. Just enough to introduce the topic, give you the scale to work with and it's characteristics. If you want to go further on the topic, you have enough background information to start digging in.

I have spent many an entertained hour just going back and forth from one topic to another. What is really neat is when a bunch of people look at it all at once too. The discussions can get pretty interesting. It is a discovery in itself when you see what ratings others give you. Teenagers have a ball with this.

This book is perfect for the young person who is trying to realize who they are and who they want to be. For the middle ager like myself and the elderly, it is interesting to note where I've been as well as where I'm going. You can also look at your children's types as well.

All and all, this book is a good investment.

This is a book that can be fun, introspective and enlightening.

There are more psychological and self awareness test here than you will ever find within a single book.

It does not dig in depth in anyone direction, but gives you such a broadbased exposure to everything that is available. This will invite you to do further reading on your own on any one methodology that you found particularly relevant to your own character. In itself, this book has a unique value. I have never come accross to another book like this. It has no substitute or competitor.

An imminent Texas book critic has called M.C. Beaton the "Barbara Cartland" of police procedurals, if not in quantity in formula! That said, of course, readers of Beaton's Hamish Macbeth series will once again welcome her newest addition, "Death of a Celebrity," the 18th episode about her affable and honest constable from the
affable yet murderous village of Lochdubh somewhere in the Scottish Highlands.

To call "Death of a Celebrity" a "Scottish fling" would be a bad pun, but still. Once again, an outsider has come to the fair village, this time in the role of an irritating local television host who revels in making people miserable. Insufferable herself, TV "star" Crystal French sets about offending yea and nay, giving just about everyone but the Archbishop in Edinburgh a motive for killing her. In true Beaton style (and by page 30), we have our corpse.

Enter our Hamish, still a-fretting about his long lost love Priscilla Halburton-Smythe who's just announced her impending marriage to another, who quickly lines up "all the usual suspects." Thus, Beaton treats us to another littany of local characters, many of whom we've met in previous episodes (after all Lochdubh is a small village!).

Thus, working alone, working with a new boss, and working with a new romantic interest, Macbeth bounces here and there and eventually it is his insight, his perseverance, his knowledge of human nature that lead him, inevitably, to the solution

No surprises here, of course, and perhaps the Beaton followers (and I'm one of them) don't want or expect anything else. A P.D. James or Ruth Rendell she is not; but her fans don't confuse her with those two. They love her as she is.

If you want predictability and you do not wish to have to think about solving the case, any and all of the Hamish Macbeth books are for you. They're fun to read.

In her latest Constable Hamish MacBeth tale, Death of a Celebrity, M.C.Beaton has outdone herself! Arguably the best yet of this cozy series, Beaton finally fulfills the potential of the series. In this book, Hamish, himself, has been fleshed-out - flaws-and-all, to the degree that on our next trip to Scotland, I expect to be able to spot his tall, red-haired form patrolling the streets of his cherished Lochdubh and the rugged Highlands, as well! Too, coming from a law enforcement heritage as I do, I recognize MacBeth's bucking of "the brass" as a behavior also resorted to by other bright, young talents who serve on police departments in the US, as well...As one who loves both the British "cozy" and the country of Scotland, itself, I have thoroughly enjoyed ALL of M.C.Beaton's books; THIS one is the very best!

Death descends into the quiet highland village of Lochdubh once again when a muckraking t.v. presenter is found dead in her car just outside of town. It looks like a suicide but police constable Hamish Macbeth thinks differently and sets off to prove otherwise. Nothing comes easy in the highlands, though, and the more he digs into the crime, the more he discovers that many people had motive to murder....

This book is the quintessential Hamish Macbeth: sharp, witty, brooding, and oh-so-unlucky at love. Beaton offers up the most well-rounded Macbeth mystery ever, propelling her quirky (but nicely defined) characters along a briskly paced plot that's as warm as a wee dram o' whiskey.

As a military pilot, I'm of course drawn to stories such as these. A family member got the book for me as a gift, and upon seeing the front cover of the book, something immediately just said "generic". However, that being said, I would actually recommend the book to someone who isn't intimately familiar with flying or the military. Despite the skittish storyline, it's actually a quite readable and inspirational book that will likely invoke a bit of patriotism.

Nevertheless, I think some people, especially professional aviators, might find it hard to like this book, even if they want to. To me, every page seemed to be written with the intent of someday being read in front of a camera for a bad made for TV movie...but maybe I'm just being overly crtical. The story, in and of itself, is a great one (although covered almost in its entirety in the news), but I thought the literary qualities of "Born to Fly" just left much to be desired.

In just days, my local Barnes & Noble nearly sold out its floor display of Born to Fly. While I rarely went beyond reading romance books, I loved this book. This book's foundation in reality, not fantasy, didn't diminish its magical literary power. It's much more interesting than Mark Twain.

Pilot-turned-Author Mr. Osborne, who's as handsome as Tom Cruise in Top Gun, reminds us that our world's exploding with danger. The description of his experience is intense. This book will lead to a whole generation of young Americans discovering the world outside of our continent.

This book is an inspiring true story of how a Navy pilot and his crew safely landed a crippled plane after a mid-air collision with a Chinese fighter jet and the 11 days of captivity they endured together. The true meaning of honor, courage, strength and a bond between the mission commander and his crew that was unbreakable under pressure; is shown throughout the book. Easy to read and not loaded down with military jargon that no one understands. Highly recommended for those interested in a story that shows the best in the military when under pressure. True Americans!