As someone who would never think of opening a copy of "America" or the National Catholic Reporter, I found this book oppresively dark. The portrait of the hierarchy -- barely Catholic, no trace of the Roman -- that the author starts with is just incredible. As a result, it's hard to take the plot -- which builds on these assumptions about the bishops -- seriously. Not to mention, the image Notre Dame as a haven of ultramontanism seemed just as fanciful in the other direction.

The book also had a bit too much going on. The politics of appointing an ambassador to the Vatican, the mental turmoils of a youngish priest, the machinations of an Archbishop, a conclave showdown between Martini and the Orthodox, numerous flashbacks, a past affair and its results, a plot to expose the archbishop, several 1960s liberals who seem thrown in for color, a new apparition by Our Lady, to name just a few. Too much.

Still, the book has a lot of color. Everything from doctrinal conflict to an allusion to Cardinal Bernardin's selling a Church school to condominium developers rather than Opus Dei (OK, maybe McInerny's view of the hierarchy has some basis in fact; but I still think the majority are not weak and worldly) that one wishes were more thoroughly developed.

A good read. But you can't help but feel a better book was trying to come out.

I found the Red Hat to be a page turner about the alleged current struggle in the Catholic Church to define what Vatican II was really all about. The reason I say 'alleged' is that the average Catholic has no idea that the struggle is going on, what the issues are about, or who the players are. It's really a conflict that's being waged by intellectuals, pundits, and professionals. Still, the book is smart and a lot of fun. There's some over-the-top bad guys and many humorous observations that keep the story moving swiftly. On a serious note, there's some moving scenes of individuals trying to work out their personal conflicts with faith.

By the way, did I miss something in real life? When did Notre Dame become a bastion of orthodoxy? Or is this, as a previous reviewer has noted, just Ralph McInerny having some fanciful fun?

Ralph McInerny, Edward Sheehan and Michael O'Brien are the three best Catholic fiction writers working today. This is one of McInerny's best novels, comparable to his first, "The Priest," in that it's a stand-alone story rather than part of a series, like the Father Dowling Mysteries. Much more complex than that too, but with the same sly, almost deadpan humor throughout. He takes an extremely serious subject -- the election of an anti-pope and schism within the Catholic Church -- and makes us see the absurdity of the whole thing as well as the seriousness. Just a really great novel. (The digs at Father Greeley alone are worth the cover price!)

John B. Gordon was Georgia's greatest Confederate Hero.
After the war, he led the KKK in Georgia and participated in one of the greatest stock market scandals of the Gilded Age.

He also formed a triumvirate, along with Aleck Stephens and Joe Brown that dominated Georgia politics for more than a quarter century after "redemption." And milked his image as the "plumed knight of Appomattox", who led the last charge of the Army of Northern Virginia.

John B. Gordon, in short, was a piece of work. (Read C.Vann Woodward's description of him in TOM WATSON AGRARIAN REBEL.)

Another of Gordon's postbellum achievements was as high priest
of the cult of the "lost cause." In codifying the "myth," he was second only to Jubal Early. Like Early, he maintained that the war had not been about slavery at all, but states rights. Like Early, he would maintain that the South was not defeated but only overwhelmed but vastly superior numbers of men and material. Unlike Early, he downplayed the struggle between northern industrial capital and southern landed gentry and he gave the myth a conciliatory twist perfectly suited to the capital hungry "new south." For decades he would dazzle memorial day audiences, with a speech arguing that *both* sides of the "war between the states" were right and *both* sides won( the North preserved the union and the South preserved "honor"). (Now *that's* conciliatory!)

It is this mythmaking, that is in evidence in his wartime memoirs. His overwritten florid prose

describes each calvary charge in romantic hyperbole with out a hint of gore attached to the proceeding. (It is just this sort of bunk that Sherman had in mind when he told cadets "war is not a gentlemen's game,
war is hell.")

As "myth" this book deserves five stars, as "history" two would be being generous--so I've split the difference.

If one wants a real soldier's story told with out concern for the memories of marble men or a sense of decorum one would be better off with Edward Porter Alexander's FIGHTING FOR THE CONFEDERACY.

If on the other hand wants to wallow in fantasies of "moonlight and magnolias" then, by all means, knock yourself out!

John Gordon's book is an important book to read for those trying to gain an understanding of the Civil War and a perspective of a individual that had been involved in multiple engagements. From the start, Gordon writes about raising the Racoon Roughs and their start in Georgia which carries the reader chronologically throughout various battles. His service to the Confederate cause is covered well from his early beginnings to his involvement with General Lee in the surrender at Apomattox. This book is an important tool for understanding the fairness and qualities of Gordon and his sympathies for the people involved in the Civil War be it North or South. His character in speaking about individuals involved is fair and truly demonstrates that he wasn't just another 'racist' that fought for the South which is typical of only today's modern society. It is a must read for those looking to get into the mind of a great Southern leader. I would have rated this book 5 stars if Gordon would have only covered his involvement in the Civil War instead of writing reports on battles he wasn't involved with, though shaped the outcome of the Civil War. It would have better in my opinion if the book didn't get into explaining other battles or problems which Gordon had not took part in since it didn't appear that those other situations affected him.

This is an excellent book. Gordon may not be as well known as some Confederate Generals, Nevertheless, He was a very good officier and a gentlemen that can discuss the many complex issues with the Battles he was a part of. I strongly suggest that you read this book to learn more about him and his part in the war between the States.

My book "Spider Boy" was a pretty good book.It was funny and exciting.It was about a boy and his spider.I have read the book 2 times.I think if you read it you would love it. It was the the best book I have ever read.

Spider Boy by Ralph Fletcher is a pretty good book. It's about a kid named Bobby that moves to New York. He wants everyone to like him so he tells lies about where his dad works.
Then a boy named Chic Hall finds out that Bobby likes spiders, and calls him Spider Boy. Later on, Bobby is pared up with a girl named Lucky for a project, and become friends.
Towards the end, Bobby and Lucky go to to a party and dances. Then they become boy friend and girl friend. Chick also stops calling names.

THIS BOOK IS A GREAT BOOK FOR KIDS. I AM A KID AND SPIDER BOY IS ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE EVER READ. I LIKED THE WAY RALPH FLECHER WROTE THE BOOK. I WISH HE WOULD MAKE ANOTHER ONE.
IT IS ABOUT A BOY NAMED BOBBY WHO JUST MOVED TO TO A SMALL TOWN IN NEW YORK. HE HAS A UBSECION WITH SPIDERS AND THE KID AT HIS NEW SCHOOL NAMED CHICK HALL CALLS HIM SPIDER BOY,AND THATS HOW HE GETS THE NAME SPIDER BOY. THERE IS A HOLE LOT THAT HAPPENDS IN THE STORY. YOU HAVE TO READ IT TO SEE HOW GOOD IT IS.
THE MOREL OF THE STORY IS THAT HE IS ANEW KID IN SCHOOL AND HE IS IN HIS LITTEL SHELL. HE LIKES TO MAKE UP STORYS AND THINGS. HE MEETS A GIRL NAMED LUCY HWO IS HIS GOOD FRIEND. SHE HAS THE SAME PROBLEM AS HIM (BEING THE NEW KID IN TOWN) AND THE REST YOU HAVE TO READ.

This book is great. It reads easy and it tells you what you're doing wrong if you don't seem to play well enough.

But don't expect this book to work magic, it takes time and effort. You have to practise so much before you realise how valuable Pim's stuff is. It's funny because I play for high school basketball and I've been using this book and I see myself progress faster than my friends who didn't use the book.

It ain't because I'm taller either. Pim has these good training exercises for beginners or pros or people in between like me. If you want to be good at basketball, this book is for you.

This book is THE greatest technique and drill book that I have yet to read. I have learned so much from it and I use it when I practice every day at my house. This book is for any person dedicated to making their game better and I recommend it for anyone that wants to play to their full potential.

Excellent book! The offensive fundamentals are explained very clearly with a list of key teaching points. Easy to comprehend for both players and coaches. Really enjoyed the action photos that went along with each of the offensive fundamentals.

Despite the somewhat annoying "humor" and slang-filled writing style, this book does give a painless introduction to the Rebol language. However, after reading most of the book you still won't find any real reason to USE Rebol. It just has no advantage over Perl, which is much more widespread. Rebol does appear to have a smaller "footprint" and is supported over many platforms. If that's what you need, Rebol is an interesting option. For any platform where Perl is available, Rebol is a poor 2nd choice. The Rebol website also has a ton of stuff, but I think this book is a much easier way to survey this unusual language.

REBOL is touting themselves as "the next generation of distributed communications". With it, a programmer should be able to develop for most platforms. Currently, REBOL supports 40 platforms by using 10 built-in Internet protocols. REBOL can exchange GUI content. Not only from machine to machine, but from users to machines.

This book shows you the basicis of what you can do with REBOL. It is a quick read, so you can make some development decisions without investing a great deal of research time. The book is easy to read and I preferred it over the typical "Dummies" book.

It is however, debateable as to whether you can get more from going to the REBOL website. If you are an experienced programmer the website may become your source. If you are a new programmer looking for "cutting edge" languages, but prefer to learn in a more casual manner, get this book.

This book provides the fastest way to start using Rebol effectively. Covers alot of ground with many examples and effective explanations. I think the author decided to do a 'dummies' book so that he could occasionally insert some humor, and do examples that build off earlier examples. It definitely covers more material than the typical dummies book, and will be useful for the software professional. One of Rebols main bragging rights is its effectiveness at forming dialects. This book only used 30 pages to cover the parsing/dialect topic, --I would have liked more on this topic. The book included a very good treatment of how to get a server up and running using Rebol. Highly recommended, good introduction to a language which may well replace perl.

Gentlemen: I am very interested in buy the book "Remote Sensing and Image Interpretation" same edition another books in spanish. My e-mail is dolcese33@hotmail.com. I look forward to hearing from you soon yours faithfully.

Daniel Olcese Huerta Geology Boss of Division of Geophysic Direccion de Hidrografia y NAvegacion

The text is a comprehensive introduction to RS that covers the science from physical basis to sensors and applications. It is not a HOW-TO-DO-IT book as opposed to a complete textbooks for students in this area who need good background of the science and its application. We use it as a good textbook for solid foundation prior to more practical texts on HOW-TO-DO-IT.

One of the best text books in Remote Sensing: comprehensive, complete. I have the 1st, 2nd and 3rd editions. Will wait to the 4th edition in paperback.

As is the case with just about every book attacking the whole concept of the Rapture in general - and specifically the concept of the pre-tribulational Rapture idea - the author commits the error of saying that the Rapture is somehow "secret" in the way it is presented to the American church. There is nothing secret about it; it is plainly taught in the New Testament. The only thing unknown about it concerns the timing debate, which is really the crux of the matter. Woodrow's title for the book suggests to the nominal reader that the Rapture concept was hatched up in secrecy by certain individuals who were not following scripture. Should anyone find the timing question difficult to accept (assuming it really is not known), they should consider what Jesus said in Matthew 24:44. For the Bible-believing Christian, Christ's words settle the matter.

. . .demonstrating that even among extremely conservative evangelical Protestants, some ministers and scholars are beginning to realize that the extremely popular doctrine of pre-millenial dispensationalism (see the popularity of the "Left Behind" series) was not the view of the early Church, was not the view of the Reformers, was not the view of the revivialists of the First Great Awakening -- and is, in fact, of recent and doctrinally dubious origins.

Unfortunately, Mr. Woodrow's booklet will never sell as many copies as "Left Behind"! But, he can rest secure in the fact that he has tried his best to encourage and educate his fellow believers that Scripturally -- and historically -- there IS another answer.

(As a personal aside, I can attest that dispensational premillialism was unknown in 11th century France!)

If you are trying to convince a Dispensationalist of the errors of
Dispensationalism then give them this book to read!:)
This is an excellent book that shatters Dispensational error!
A must have for any Theologians library!
Awesome!!!

there is not strategic management but psicological beaheviour of human in every situation. complexity and incertanty are the keys words of this book and we must to be creative and innovative to deal with the unpreviusly world.

Stacey takes a different approach, an argumentative stand against the realms of bounded rationality. He argues the paradigm-models formerly explored by management gurus like Porter, Handy, etc. who have implored upon the usage of scientific management and logic. The truth is, humans have irrational possibilities, logic aside. We bend under stress, and we do crazy things disbelieved by others. But we as individuals each add value whether positive or negative to the system (Senge). Stacey brings this to light in this book. Chaos theory is not a theory, but merely an isometric view of systems and particles within - a holistic approach... a welcome to radical change.

I think that unlike many strategic management books which are prescriptive, Stacey's book is unique. He emphasizes that very often strategy cannot be planned, that management has to learn to cope with uncertainty as it unravels. Traditional strategic management emphasizes negative feedback, but Stacey says that positive feedback or amplification is possible and makes matters worse. He uses chaos theory to try to explain that there is order in uncertainty. He emphasizes the need for an organization to learn from bottom up, and that top-down strategic planning may not work in such uncertain situations. I fully recommend this book to anyone who wants a different perspective of strategic management.

I'm a serious student of alternative history and was looking in earnest to read Ellis' book, because it has been footnoted by some big names in the field.

What a disappointment! This book might be of some interest to engineers and people who love to play with numbers, but it makes zero sense historically. Not only is Ellis' final concluclusion absurd, but the length of time it takes to get there is far too long. The writing is clumsy and the thoughts convolulted.

This is one time I'm sorry I spent the money.

I found this book to be a fascinating publication.

Mr Ellis certainly has done an enormous amount of research, both in the libraries, and in the field.

I found that the central theme of the book ties in very closely with arguments put forward in publications by Robert Bauval, Robert Temple, Graham Hancock, Maurice Cotterell, and others. In fact, it is very believable, unless one is unable to discard the dogma of centuries of archaeological and religious indoctrination.

The central theme (theory) certainly gives us a different view of the possible meaning of the Pyramids, and Stonehenge

It is a great shame though, that the proofreaders seem to have "slipped up", and enjoyment of the book is marred by a plethora of spelling and grammatical mistakes.

Perhaps in the reprinted edition......?

All in all, a good read if you have an open mind.

Nice to see something very new and exciting in this field of research. Well researched and very provokative thoughts on the history of manking - I like it.