Parts of this book are also in the paperbacks C'ÉTAIT LE XXe SIECLE published in 1999 on POCKET.I have read tome 2 of L'HISTOIRE EN QUESTION.It is fascinating throughout,complete with pictures.DECAUX here choose 9 stories that are all unique in their own way.Let me say this,if we had history teachers like MISTER DECAUX in highschool,we would have been in heaven.Unfortunately,it was not the case.What distinguish mister DECAUX from many other historians,his is ability to communicate his passion for the subjects.He manages to condensate his stories without losing grip of their ambiguous nature.Once you lay your hands on one of his books,you may want to read them all.The greatest compliment any writer can receive.

This is the first book in a five book series. I believe that all the series is good, but this one is perhaps the best. In this book Decaux explore eight pages of the history, all famous and interesting,for example the kidnapping of Adolf Eichmann, by the forces of a israeli command in Argentina, The tragedy of Budapest, The cursin and the tresures of Tutankhamon, The wall of Berlin, Ciceron the spy and more. A different way to aproach to the history, with testimonies of witness and a huge job of investigation. A book for the ages.

Le Petit Robert's most helpful factor is its extensive use of example sentences in which the word being defined is used, allowing those with a weak sense of its meaning and nuance to know its proper use(s). I use it in conjunction with bilingual French/English dictionaries, partly to check whether that's how the French would really say something, and partly to refer to the example uses mentioned previously. That way I have two takes on a word: the corresponding English word, and the different meanings the word conveys in French. A truly invaluable resource for anyone wanting a trustworthy reference for the French language.

As a student of the French language and literature, I can only say that this book helped me a lot. Perhaps it's the easiest way to learn in the same time many new words, and to find out what are the differences between the meanings of the words which mean almost the same thing. I come from the country were we can only find it at the University, and it is still very expensive for an ordinary student. Anyway I am using it any time I can get a chance. In my opinion every student who is studying French language should have it. Congratulations to the authors!

This nimble and witty book by one of the most important scholars of modern art is not merely the sum of two monographs on these giants of the 20th century. To the now-standard operating procedure of relativism and contextualization, Bois adds a twist. He proposes the relationship between the artists as a fitful but sustaining dialogue, rejecting as inadequate to the critical task the idea that Matisse and Picasso simply influenced one another. Drawing on diverse theoretical models in the writing of Mikhail Bakhtin, Hubert Damisch, Rene Girard and Harold Bloom, the author argues instead that for a period of over 25 years, from the late 1920s until after Matisse's death in 1954, each artist deliberately addressed his work in specific ways to the other. The theory is necessary because actual contact between the two was sporadic. This is what makes Bois's thesis about their need for one another so intriguing. What prompted this dialogue--what made the need possible, Bois asserts--was their common cause against abstraction. Prodding, teasing, paying homage, supplicating, even misunderstanding--in these and other ways Matisse and Picasso challenged each other in their mutual effort to push the envelope of representation without letting the tangibility of the world's things slip from their grasp. When they strayed into the other's long-established artistic territories (Picasso painting odalisques; Matisse working in a Cubist idiom) they were sending signals to each other above the artistic fray, in a kind of Olympian fraternal sympathy. This sealing off of Matisse's and Picasso's artistic communication from the rest of the world is the most controversial aspect of the book, as it was of the beautiful exhibition it accompanied at the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. Bois frankly calls his effort an "experiment" in which it is necessary to isolate variables, studying them carefully in relation to one another, with the relationship itself as the constant factor. This scientific conceit of "let's see what happens" is undermined by the humanistic drive to demonstrate a thesis. And we should be thankful for that. Like the best publications arising from exhibitions, this book will have independent, lasting value, but it will also be more provocative than most.

Some might say that another exhibition of Matisse and Picasso is hardly what the art world needs. Havent't we seen enough of these two artists recently? Why continue to do blockbuster exhibitions which just show us well-known works? If you read this book, you might change your mind about the relevance of the show. First, although some of the paintings shown here are quite familiar from other exhibitions, many have never been exhibited or published before. Second, this exhibition offers a rare look at a virtually unique case of two major artists who visibly responded to each other's styles during 25 years of peak productivity. The book focusses on the 1930's, '40's and early 1950's (the section on the war years is particularly well-written), and allows the reader to experience, virtually month by month, the artistic interaction between the two artists. It is fascinating to see the commonality in their themes, beliefs and motifs, despite the great difference in their visual styles. Finally, this is a well-designed book - the plates are of the highest color quality and are beautifully arranged. Although English is not Bois' first language, the text has been translated in an elegant and efficient manner. If you can't go see this exhibition, definitely read this book.

Miss Saigon contains some of the most beautiful music ever to be performed on a Broadway stage. This book contains most of the music from the show, but considering the whole thing is sung, it would be impossible to contain it all at a resonable price.
The music is wonderful, and is an essential for many singers of musical theatre. Especially for mezzos.

I saw Miss Saigon on Broadway, and it was a wonderful experience, the best musical i've ever seen. The music is very great, and being able to play it on the piano and sing it is simply wonderful.

For those who may be thinking about looking into Kabbalah, you must look here! Very practical, very enlightening and most enjoyable. Not simply another book for one time knowledge but can be used over and over and very helpful primer for anyone considering looking deeper. Also try "Amazing Holy Secrets" webruler.com/torah, and "Babylon's Great Masquerade -666- The Christian Connection" by Elmer C Todd, and Kabbalah Centre "The Zohar".

This book is beautifully written and creatively inspired. It is presented in a clear manner, and gives precise examples on how to apply Kabbalistic principles to every aspect of Life. It moves your spirit while occupying your intellect. I highly recommend this book to all students of Kabbalah, beginners or seasoned students alike. After studying Sprirtual Principles for 39 years, finding this book was like finding a lost key.

The illustrations in this book are so beautiful, reflecting the spirit of upheaval and aesthetic, sexual revolution taking place in Europe during this period that if you are interested in Art of the 20th Century, Feminism, Design, etc. you must own this book.

I picked up this book in a used bookstore in the Marais, Paris. It is a must-have for those who enjoy the fashion plates of La Gazette du Bon Ton.

Alain Haché's The Physics of Hockey an extremely interesting book. As fans, we watch NHL players do some pretty incredible things, but don't really understand how they do them. Mr Haché uses his tremendous knowledge of physics to explain "how hockey happens".

The book explains just about every imaginable aspect of ice hockey. It explains how the ice rink is created and maintained. It tells us why players skate the way they do, why goalies move the way they do, why the players manipulate their sticks in certain ways, why the bodily protection is needed and how it works and how the game generally proceeds.

Haché's style is quite readable, though the idea of applying physics to hockey seems on the surface to be dry. He clearly loves the game and that comes through in his writing. He is both a scientist and a player, and he skillfully combines both of these talents in one very well-written volume.

For a scientist the book is much more meaningful; however, the book has plenty to offer for non-technical hockey fans. The book mixes very technical analyses and diagrams demonstrating physical principles with very down-to-earth prose that general hockey fans should gain a lot from and really enjoy.

The book's one flaw is the way in which the content was organized. The book starts off with a lot of scientific content before moving into the down-to-earth, non-technical prose. In fact, the first topic treated, the physics of the ice itself, is so esoteric, that even I, an engineer, was almost discouraged from moving past it. I was glad I made it through.

If there's a second edition, I suggest that Haché revise the structure of the book. He should write a version that deals with the physics in a way that demonstrates principles without detailed equations and diagrams. Then he should complete each chapter or section with his more technical treatment of each topic, which the non-technical person can bypass without really losing anything in the translation.

The physics is mainly what is called "mechanics". It involves the forces on skates that propel the players and the effects of friction with the ice. It also explains the movement of a puck, both sliding on ice and soaring through the air, and the impact of players on each other or on the boards in body contact. Haché also discusses ice quality and how it affects the play, and how the design of hockey skates achieves maximum usefulness. We also learn how figure skates and speed skates differ from hockey skates.

The difficulty of getting a puck past a goalie is explained in diagrams showing the effective open area of the net, why a goalie moves as he does in order to minimize this area, and why his equipment is designed as it is. Lots of interesting statistics are presented, such as typical puck speeds, both in standard shooting and slap shots, skating speeds and acceleration rates, and sizes of hockey players as it affects their play. The explanation of how a Zamboni works and what ice maintenance is about in general is also extremely interesting.

The Physics of Hockey is an excellent book. Alain Haché's explanations are current (using many current NHL stars) and very interesting (most hockey fans really have no idea how everything happens on the ice from a scientific standpoint). This is a very engaging book for a technical person, but I think Haché missed an opportunity to achieve a broader appeal with a somewhat different organization of the material.

If you like ice hockey and got a B or better in high school physics (and you remember how it happened), this book is a must-have.

Alain Haché is an amateur-league goalie, and a professional physicist. His book analyses all aspects of the game, from the coefficient of friction of ice at different temperatures to the effects of air and gravity on a flying puck after a slapshot.

The book includes references to hockey biographies, medical and physiological papers, and player technique books like "Speed on Skates".

Some reviewers might fault the book for not explaining hockey with only physics; the author uses statistics (to explain witing and losing streaks), and geometry (to explain why goalies come out of the net) in his analysis.

Haché's explanations are well written, and as far as I can tell, technically correct. The author is a student of the game and his reference for it is obvious. For the math hobbyist or amateur physicist who is also interested in hockey, this is a fantastic book.

Lacan's seminars are superior to his articles because he clearly is addressing an audience, and needs to make himself understood, but he has already anticipated all of his students questions, as if he could read their minds: "I know what you're thinking." The argument of the third seminar is easy to summarize: the psychotic, because foreclosed from the father, faces a hole in the imaginary that is filled by the symbolic (or is it the other way around?), hence the hallucinations and voices. The psychotic always imagines that somewhere the big Other resides, in this world, like the man who broke into the US capital because there was a time machine inside that was trying to control his mind. The psychotic is in fact unable to distinguish the small from the big other. Lacan is always thought to be a little mad himself, something of a fraud, "il gagne beaucoup d'argent," and even Heidegger gave up reading Ecrits because he couldn't make sense of it, and he does make something of a display of his learning (not so much in this seminar). That said, there is something to Lacan, and eventually he will get his due, and outside the narrow circle of his devotees.

The work of Jacques Lacan is infamous for the often obtuseness of its language and presentation. It is often said that the reader must work hard at Lacan to reach a glimmer of understanding. The work of Dr Russell Grigg as translator to this edition certainly gives the reader a head start. Dr Grigg address the work of Lacan from a new perspective of the 21st century, nolonger happy for the work to remain arcane and cloistered from the reading public, but he throws open the windows of further understanding for those willing to look and read closer the work of this French master. An excellent work.

I bought this book a few years ago after happening across it on the internet. What a beautiful book. The selections are well-chosen and the photos are unreal. Buy it. You won't regret it.

A goldmine for any fan of Chandler's Marlowe novels and short stories, I couldn't put this book down. It finally gave context to the vistas I had only been able to imagine previously, and I'll never be able to pick up any hard boiled detective story set in Los Angeles without flashing on the images painstakingly chosen to be included in this volume by Ward and Silver. An invaluable asset to any Chandler and noir fan.

I received this book as a gift many years ago as I made my transition from simple engineer to an analyst of CAD/PAD devices. If you are interested in propellants you can find many rare references and very good working closed form solutions. A majority of the work comes out of Europe so those of us in the US will be pleasantly surprised at what we can find. One word of caution to the user who has been educated with Sutton - the derivations are different and tend to be stretched out over the chapters but are very useful. For anyone in the field of rocket propulsion the "red-book" must be in your library. If you are in CAD/PAD or gun propulsion the propellant information is good -keep it with your Corner or Hunt as a key reference, most everything is steady-state.

Finalmente un libro completo sulla propulsione a razzo a propellente solido, in 600 pagine di libro vengono trattati molti argomenti, ed in modo professionale, con metodologie molto moderne, come ad esempio l'uso di modellazioni del grano di propellente con programmi agli elementi finiti; con l'uso dei computer si possono così simulare sollecitazioni interne del grano e l'erosione interna del canale. Alcuni capitoli sono dedicati allo studio dei propellenti dal punto di vista chimico, e ci sono considerazioni riguardo agli sviluppi futuri di questo tipo di propulsione. Consiglio l'opera solamente a "veri" appassionati della razzopropulsione per almeno due motivi: il primo perchè i problemi vengono trattati con soluzioni prettamente "industriali" con l'uso di materiali e tecniche di uso non tradizionale per gli amatori. Il secondo di carattere economico....... lascio a voi la scelta. Luca Musolesi