Forget about the Alamo, San Jacinto and the heros that have made Texas famous throughout the world. Here are the stories only the real Texans know about. These are the stories my grandmother used to tell me when I was a kid. They carry on the tall-tale tradition and reinforce the Texan image of grandeur and hyperbole.

It is for good reason that J. Frank Dobie is known as the Southwest's master storyteller. With his eye for color and detail, his ear for rhythm of language and song, he movingly spins tales of Texas collective heritages. This is a collection of 28 stories filled with vivid characters, exciting historical episodes, and traditional themes.

This is a great old book. Read about Josiah Wilbarger, who lived through a scalping and the woman who found him in her dreams, a bear who stole a pig and fattened it up, a ghost rider, a thief who took things from homes and walked right by the owner's dogs, a man who fought a tribe of hostile Indians singlehanded with the help of a load of hickory nuts, and various amusing stories about lost treasure and frontier life. This book is a treasure trove of tall tales and yarns that I couldn't put down.

In 1958, when I was eight years old, my older cousin was cleaning out his bookcase as I played solitaire on his bed. "Here," He said, handing me a paperback. "you like this kind of stuff". It was an Ace double novel - "Two Complete Novels, 35 cents". One side was Doomsday Eve, by Robert Moore Williams (forgettable), and the other was Three to Conquer. What impressed me most about this novel was the character development. The hero was not your ordinary lantern-jawed he-man type prevalent at the time; Wade Harper was a squat, hirsute, ape of a man who was contrary enough to have a job developing instruments to manipulate the very small. Oh yeah, he also read minds, which is the catalyst for the story. The plot is simple Bodysnatchers fare, the good guys are good and the bad guys lethal, and you can read it in one evening. I still do. What more can you ask?

As usually, E.F. Russell has created an excellent scanario with three aliens dressed as humans and only one man who can stop them. Wade Harper, a telepath, needs all his wit, wisdom and inspiration not only to stop the conquerors from enslaving all humans but also to keep his little telepathic secret for himself. A must for every true SF lover. I've bought two copies just to be sure to find at least one if I feel the urge to read it again (every year or so).

Our Hero is able to see the surface thoughts of others. Its been more of a hassle than a gift, Who wants to know that the guy next to you wants a hamburger or has an itch? Then one day he passes a hideous (sic?) alien intelligence wearing a human body. If he goes to the government with what he knows and HOW he knows it, they're likely to disect HIM to figure out how he works!!! Killer The realistic attitude and sense of humor of the hero has to be experienced to be believed! I read this about 10 years ago and can't remember the character's name. I wish I had never loaned this one out! (ie. gone!)

Frank Peretti is a great author and I've read many books by him and they're all good. This one impaticular was excelent.

I love everything I have ever read by Peretti, he is a genius at painting pictures for the minds eye.

Ever wondered what happens to children who were aborted, either spontaneously - or by force? Do they, as catholics and many (unfortunately) lutherans claim - go straigt to hell - or does G-d in His infinite wisdom and mercy an opening for them to go the heaven? Peretti answers these questions without confusing theology - and in easy terms. The books is well-written, and easy to read. A couple of hours at the most. Bon Appetite!

After reading "Cheaper by the Dozen and "Belles on Their Toes", I really wanted to learn more about the amazing Gilbreth family. Written by Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr., it's a more detailed story of the patriarch of the Gilbreth family, Frank B. Gilbreth, Sr. His outstanding career is highlighted, and the author seems to spend a great deal of time making sure his father gets proper credit for his landmark work in motion study. He succeeds, and entertains and amazes his reader in the process. He also shares additional stories about the 12 children, the unusual relatives, and other people who influenced their lives. The book is also a glowing tribute to his mother, Lillian, who partnered with her husband and then took over the reins upon his death.

If you are reading this review then you have almost definitely drifted here because you are fan of 'Cheaper by the Dozen' and are looking for further reading - well the short answer is - track down a copy of this book - it will explain all - but don't expect Cheaper by the Dozen all over again. While that book was a series of Hilarious anecdotes on how the dozen children of Time and Motion experts, Frank and Lillie Gilbreth, were raised this is really a more serious biography of their life. Frank Jnr, who co-authored the first book and is sole author of this memoir, started writing it before his mother Lillie died - I think to please her. For while she had enjoyed the flippant good-fun of Cheaper by the Dozen, it seems she was worried that her and husband's work might be reduced to the level of a comic remembrance, and certainly she had fought long and hard for their work to be accepted thanks to a smear campaign conducted by their rivals. This book is still has all the warmth of Cheaper by the Dozen, I think the Gilbreth's must be pathologically incapable of being anything but witty and friendly, but it is a more serious biography of the family. It was also a very welcome one for I Cheaper by the Dozen left many things unexplained - I could never quite figure out how many children the family had at any one time as names would pop up with the barest of reference. In this we find out that one of the children, a daughter, died very young in an epidemic. Mostly what I found interesting is the greater detail of Lillie's life both before she married, and as a widow. The book also explains more about the Gilbreth's work, the innovative techniques they introduced which we now considered standard business manangement practice. Lillie Gilbreth was an amazing woman, she pioneered many of the advantages women hold today - including membership of engineering organisations, and all in her inimitable, calm way - she is truly inspirational.

I loved Cheaper By The Dozen and Belles on Their Toes, so I loved this book,too. It was really interesting to find out about the lives and the families of Frank and Lillie before they had the children. It was written from a point of view that made it easy to understand. This book is more focused on the lives of the parents of the children and their lives than it is on the lives of the children.

I just got back from Russia and found this book. I wish I had found this earlier. It was hard to find English speaking guides in Russia as most excursions are in Russian. It would have been nice to read about the Jewish influences in the Russian history before the travel.

I also liked the writing style, very clear and captivating.

For completeness sake, I have one request from the authors....I am planning a visit to Lebanon, West bank and Gaza soon. I hope a brave soul would write about recent Jewish history in these areas before I go there. I like to better understand the Israeli massacres in the refugee camps, the villages and cities that they destroyed, the prisons and concentration camps that Israelis operated in southern Lebanon, and the occupied territories, etc. Such a book would be a valuable tool in understanding the current Middle East.

Approximately 120 years ago the majority of the world's Jews lived in what was called the "Pale of Settlement" in the Russian Empire of the Czar. Most American Jews today trace their ancestry to Russia, the Ukraine, and the surrounding territories and provinces of the old empire. Until Communism fell, the Jews of Russia and Ukraine had been suppressed and denied human and religious rights. With the collapse of the Communists, Judaism has emerged from centuries old persecution and pogrom and the synagogues, monuments, schools and other Jewish historical sites are available and accessible to the western visitor. Ben Frank's A Travel Guide To Jewish Russia & Ukraine is an invaluable, highly recommended travel guide for planning and implementing a trip in search of their family heritage and religious roots throughout Russian and the Ukraine.

Not only informative but terrific reading. It will keep you on the edge of your seat. A travel log that's enjoyable to read whether you visit the places or not. Put on your seatbelt because this is a journey well worth taking!

Beck gives us a glimpse of a gay man's coming of age in Nazi Berlin. It is not only erotic but holds up a light by which all aspects of love should be measured. Once again, the Gay Spirit has triumphed over bigotry, intolerance, and in this case even the holocaust.

Gad Beck brought to life not only the cruelty to the jews but also the cruelty of the gay and lesbian people of the Nazi Era. I had to do a research paper for a Holocaust in Literature class I took my junior year in high school...and I was entralled the whole time I read this book. It shocked me, it horrified me...and I loved it.

That any Jews survived Hitler's holocaust in Germany is remarkable; that they did it in the capital of the Third Reich is astonishing and that some of them were gay is almost unbelievable. Gad Beck's book starts out a bit slow, not quite dull but you hope it picks up its pace. Indeed, it does. Living in the underground, sought by the Gestapo (just being a Jew became illegal and transport to death remained a priority with the Nazis even as their regime was invaded and bombed) helping one another and living and loving as they best could is a gripping story. Told with humor and frankness, it's an excellent story. I can't wait for the next set of memoirs from Beck to be published.

Quite a good book and ideal to focus a course around

The textbook is very well written and beautifully and effectively illustrated. Critical topics, especially plate tectonics, are thoroughly discussed. The review questions at the end of the chapters are very useful for recitations and laboratories. The glossary is also helpful, but not all bolded terms in the text (such as theory and hypothesis) are located in the glossary. The appendices include mineral identification tables, unit conversions, and information on topographic and geologic maps. The third edition has been extensively reorganized and most of the changes are definite improvements of an already superior textbook. One negative point: one of my students had a malfunctioning CD in her copy of the third edition.

I took a base-level intro course on geology and we used this book, and I found it to be very straight forward and casual. The soft cover was durable and easy to manipulate....which means a lot when you have to make the most of minimal space!

I remember his running for New York City Major. I read this book in college. He know he was not going to be elected. But Buckley put The Conservative Party on the map in that campaign. And in 1968 his brother, James Buckly, was elected to the office of US Senator from New York State-- on the conservative party line. James Buckley was a very significant Senator.

When it became clear that Lindsay would be the nominee of both the Republican and Liberal Parties,
and furthermore, thanks to incumbent Robert Wagner's scandal ridden term, that Lindsay would likely
win, Buckley began to write pieces asserting that it was important that someone who actually
represented Republican views enter the race, simply to guarantee that there would be an honest debate
on the issues. When leaders of the recently formed Conservative Party approached Buckley and asked
him to take on the race, he agreed, on the understanding that he would not campaign full time and
would continue to fulfill his obligations to the several jobs he held. He made his reasons for running
clear in his announcement speech:

The two-party system presupposes an adversary relationship between the two parties. That there is
no such relationship in New York Mr. Lindsay makes especially clear when he proposes as running
mates members of the Liberal and Democratic Parties. Mr. Lindsay's Republican Party is a sort of
personal accessory, unbound to the national party's candidates, unconcerned with the views of the
Republican leadership in Congress, indifferent to the historic role of the Republican Party as
standing in opposition to those trends of our time that are championed by the collectivist elements
of the Democratic Party. Mr. Lindsay, described by The New York Times as being "as liberal as a
man can be," qualifies for the support of the Liberal Party and the Republican Party only if one
supposes that there are no substantial differences between the Republican Party and the Liberal
Party. That there should be is my contention.

It was clearly understood by all concerned that he would basically play the role of a gadfly in the
race. Indeed, any doubts that he reckoned how little chance he had of being elected were cleared up at
his first press conference, when to the consternation of staff and Party officials he gave the following
answers to questions:

Q: Do you think you have any chance of winning?

WFB: No

Q: How many votes do you expect to get, conservatively speaking?

WFB: Conservatively speaking, one.

In the campaign that followed, Buckley, freed from the restraints that bind a politician who thinks he
may win, proceeded to run one of the most ideological, honest and entertaining campaigns that anyone
had ever seen. He quickly became a media phenomenon, although they were almost uniformly hostile
to him and his views, they loved covering him. And when the cities newspapers went on strike the
race came to center around television and Buckley was able to totally outclass his opponents, Lindsay
and Abe Beam.

Besides his natural facility with the fairly new medium, Buckley's political platform turned out to be
more popular than anyone expected. Indeed, his proposals were twenty or thirty years ahead of their
time, including Education reform, Welfare reform, beefed up law enforcement, tax cuts, balanced
budgets, an end to school bussing, abolition of rent control, and so on. as a result, when the first polls
came out, not only was Beame beating Lindsay, Buckley was polling over 20% and doing particularly
well with Blue Collar Democrats. Suddenly everyone, including he, had to take his candidacy
seriously.

From that point on Lindsay and Beame and their cohorts trotted out all the trusty anti-conservative
canards--tarring him as a racist, an anti-Semite, anti-Protestant and, somehow, even an anti-Catholic.
Buckley ended up spending so much time defending himself that he lost the momentum he had gained
by being a purveyor of brash new ideas. He acknowledges that his political inexperience was a major
handicap as he allowed himself to drift off message and into a defensive posture.

When the votes were finally counted, Lindsay won, but with just 45%, Beame tallied 41% and
Buckley polled an impressive 13%. In the process, he had carved up Lindsay to the point where no
one seriously considered him to have a future in Republican politics and indeed Lindsay eventually left
the party for his natural home with the Democrats. But more importantly, Buckley demonstrated that
there was a significant segment of the democratic Party that was just waiting to be wooed by a
conservative Republican message. These folks--largely middle or working class, White, ethnic and
Catholic--would later form the backbone of Nixon's "Silent Majority" and would come to be called
Reagan Democrats, but it was the 1965 New York mayoral race that really showed that conservatism
had an inherent appeal to this population. For this, as for so much else, the Republican Party is
indebted to William F. Buckley.

This book, his account of these events, is one of the funniest political stories ever written. He looks
back not in anger but in bewilderment at the neophyte mistakes he made, at the shoddy media coverage
he received, at the character assassination he was subjected to and at the entire chaotic process of
running for office, especially in New York City. It's a real shame that the book is out of print (though
easy to find used, see the link above); it is almost frightening how much of the story remains topical
and pertinent today. In particular, and somewhat ironically, I couldn't help thinking how badly the
Democratic Party today needs someone like Bill Buckley--someone with wit, grace, style, and actual
core convictions who will remind them that they are supposed to represent something more than
conservatism with an Oprahesque tone. As Buckley said in his announcement, the American system
presupposes two adversary parties. Men like Goldwater and Buckley made sure that the republican
Party offered "a choice, not an echo"; where is the Democrat who will do the same for his party, who
will undertake a similarly quixotic quest, though it prove his own unmaking? We're waiting.

GRADE: A+

This true story is written from a somewhat sardonic viewpoint, given the fact that its author, conservative journalist William F. Buckley, had no intention of winning, or even actively campaigning in, the race he had entered. The year of this tale is 1965, with the election in November. However, the real story begins in the 1933 New York City Mayoral election.

Republicans in New York had been dormant ever since Al Smith's glory days of the 1920's, and they were unsure of how to operate. In 1933, however, the party's nominee won a commanding victory in the general election, definitely something curious for a city where, amongst registered voters, Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 3-to-1. Buckley explains that a certain political faction backed the 1933 GOP nominee, Fiorello LaGuardia, and these were not your usual Republicans. Rather, a centrist coalition of good-government seekers (or "goo-goos") choose to stand by LaGuardia rather than his Democratic opponent, a top lieutenant of the notorious incumbent Jimmy Walker.

After Walker's resignation in 1932, the normally victorious Democratic Party had a tarnished image and a corrupt machine, and subsequently the GOP was almost guaranteed the Mayor's Office if it choose the right man. By the end of LaGuardia's reign, the Democrats were ready to take over once more. Thus, Buckley asserts, the only way for the Republican Party to win a city-wide office in the Big Apple was by nominating a non-traditional Republican at a time when the Democratic Party was under intense scrutiny.

Such was the case again in 1965, when this story takes place. Mayor Robert Wagner had chosen not to run for re-election, and voters were extremely flabbergasted at the ethical shortcomings of his tenure at City Hall. Thus, voters were carefully watching the Democratic Primary to see if the victor was a crony of Wagner or a political independent.

Republicans had already nominated U.S. Representative John V. Lindsay as their mayoral candidate, much to the chagrin of conservative Republicans. In1964, Lindsay publicly denounced Republican Presidential nominee Barry Goldwater, a staunch conservative. Additionally, he had accumulated the notorious distinction of being the most liberal Republican, voting with President Lyndon Johnson's position over 80% of the time. Thus, he was seen as a Republican in name only by conservatives, but he was perfectly suited for the Mayoral "nomination" of the goo-goo crowd.

Subsequently, many prominent Democrats supported Lindsay. Though a few die-hards waited for the Democratic Primary, it was clear that a bipartisan coalition of left-of-center politicians had practically elected Lindsay long before the election. Furthermore, the New York State Liberal Party gave Lindsay its nomination, and this was the culmination of conservative unrest and disdain towards Republican politics in New York.

In 1962, Kieran O'Doherty and Dan Mahoney, two young lawyers disgusted with Governor Nelson Rockefeller's nominal Republicanism, founded the New York State Conservative Party in order to elect conservatives to the many local, state, and national offices that were of concern. By fall of 1964, they had no formal Conservative candidate for Mayor, and so begins this story.

William F. Buckley, Jr. was editor of National Review, an accomplished writer, a weekly columnist, and a staunch conservative when he decided to run for mayor. He was concerned that the Republican party was swinging away from its classic platform, and therefore decided to run for Mayor to carry the Conservative backing and its ideological accruements.

So in April of 1965 he began his campaign, with his brother and future Senator James Buckley serving as campaign manager and confidant Neal Freeman acting as press secretary. Buckley immediately deemed that it was impossible to win the November 1965 election, and so he decided against having many rallies or appearances. Thus, his campaign was half Quixotic, half symbolic.

After his declaration, the press was indifferent, but many associated his candidacy with the far right wing John Birch Society. The growing sentiment in the New York circles was that Buckley was a rightist henchman trying to kill the "moderate" influence that Gov. Rockefeller, Rep. Lindsay, and Senator Jacob Javits (R-NY) had on the party. Of course, Buckley pointed out, his goal was not to destroy moderation but to make sure that the left wing of the GOP did not destroy the party.

The Democrats nominated Comptroller Abraham Beame for Mayor, and many were disappointed. Beame was part of the Wagner regime, and his two "running mates," the candidates for Comptroller and City Council President were Wagner associates. Though Beame stressed his independence, the opinion polls indicated that Lindsay was still running ahead.

Immediately, the campaign turned nastily racial. Buckley, a Catholic, made an off-hand remark about Lindsay's Protestantism, and wildfire began. Beame, a Jewish man, tried to take the high ground, but his numbers did not change. From this point, it was clear that Buckley's vote would make the difference in the campaign.

Since Buckley hurt Lindsay more than Beame, he received a worse assault from the pro-Lindsay camp. He was derided as racist, elite, anti-progress, anti-Protestant, anti-Semitic, etc. Beame finally assailed Buckley, but it seemed that his campaign was not improving. It was, however, apparent to both Beame and Lindsay that the more they criticized Buckley the more votes would be returned to their campaigns.

Beame, a moderate-liberal with a low-key personality and generally boring speeches, had an ineffective campaign from the start. On the other hand, though he was oratorically mundane, John Lindsay had a Kennedyesque charm that led many journalists to speculation on his Presidential aspirations. Buckley was perhaps the most interesting of the three, because he was unfettered in rhetoric because he had no intention of winning. He had colorful speeches and fresh ideas, but the press treated him as if he was Adolf Hitler.

Eventually, the assault on Buckley, his campaign workers, and his speeches diminished his support. On Election Day, Lindsay won the race with 45.3% of the vote. Beame came in behind with only 41.3%. William F. Buckley ended up with 13.4% of the vote, which was significantly lower than projected.

Though it seems as though Lindsay's victory was Buckley's loss of purpose, it must be noted that Buckley's candidacy did more to help the fledgling Conservative Party. The total percent of votes cast for the Conservative ticket, 13.4%, was much higher than the 11.1% cast for Lindsay as a Liberal. Thus, for the first time, the three-year-old Conservative Party outpolled the older Liberal Party in a major election.

This was a great book, because it was written from a dynamic first-person point of view. Buckley more than adequately gave the reader background on New York Mayoral politics, and he then went on to analyze the events leading up to the 1965 race. He described the three candidates, including himself, very much in detail and he never lost sight of his subject matter. Additionally, in the end of the story he compiled many excerpts from various news articles pertaining to his campaign, giving the reader an impartial collection that shows one the hostility most reporters showed towards Buckley's candidacy.

This book was written not for the mere entertainment value that such a firsthand account of politics espouses, but for the cause of conservatism. Buckly is trying to show us that the Republican Party is still not the vehicle for true conservativity, and that third parties can literally grow overnight. His point may be that conservatives ought to form a viable third party. Hopefully, though, the Republican Party will not be detained from pure conservatism for much longer.

One of these fat library texts. Resonably ancient, hence not terribly useful except for structural data.

One of THE texts to own for understanding the structures and relationships of solid state materials.

This is an excellent review of nets and interpenetrating nets of the main group and transition metals. In fact, it is a classic of structural inorganic chemistry couched in terms of the idea of fundamental nets and interpenetrating nets observed in structural inorganic chemistry.

Climbing the helix staircase of DNA the author attempts a survey of everything new in the field up to 1996. His effort to speak to the layman is rather uneven-half the book is strictly for PHd candidates in microbiology. It would appear that each research team in the field of unraveling DNA speaks its own language. What makes the comparison with the tower of Babel more apt is that DNAology sounds like another secular religion. Many of the body's ills previously attributed to God are now being attributed to faulty DNA. Also there seems to be a tunnel vision developing that the study of DNA will bring mankind into the promised land.

Kamenetski did provide some interesting tidbits. The coiled string of DNA in each human cell is 7 feet long when stretched out. Deoxyribonucleic acid, DNA, isn't an acid at all, rather its a salt. Plants cannot assimilate nitrogen from the air and must have a symbiosis with nitrogen fixing bacteria in order to produce proteins. The success of cancer cell growth lies in their ability to disarm cancer killing T-cells by ordering them to commit suicide-apoptosis. The ribosome process acts like a molecular computer to translate the nucleotide language of DNA and RNA into the language of proteins called amino acids. This specialized computer uses only one program called the genetic code.

Kamenetski points to claimed successes with AIDS and atherosclerosis and successes in manufacturing insulin, interferon and growth hormone. The author hints at further futuristic breakthroughs in genetic engineering that will crumble the species mixing barrier. This will make the chimeras of Greek mythology commonplace. He foresees the day when diagnosis of all disease will stem from DNA analysis and when chemically modified DNA will be used as drugs. People will then greet each other with, "How's your genetic health?" But who knows whether future discoveries will reveal that everybody's DNA contains the seeds of its own death? Who knows whether cellular degeneration will become synonymous with maturation?

In reply to the the purpose of life, selfish gene arguments -replication of genes in one's children shows next to nothing. What is more telling, say, is whether man's genius could invent a spaceship that would permit travel to and population of other worlds?

The Most Important Molecule of Life, Maxim D. Frank-Kamenetskii gives a clear understanding of genetics without political overtones. For a good understanding of the mechanics of genes this is an excellent book. But he is not without some philosophical thoughts on the subject. "It is very hard to admit that there is only one single reason for each of us to come into this world: to transmit our DNA to the next generation. There is absolutely no other purpose for us to be born. It is very uncomfortable to realize that our body is actually nothing more than a shell to carry DNA. There is no difference, with respect to this goal of existence, between a human and a bacterium, or a simple virus, or even a plasmid. From the biological viewpoint, people have been wandering in darkness trying to find the goal of their existence in cults, religions, music, poetry, and fine arts. Although they all have the same goal, various species differ drastically with respect to the means they have at their disposal to reach this goal. Keeping in mind the simplicity of the goal, the diversity and the degree of sophistication that nature demonstrates seems truly amazing. However, if you think about it, you will realize that under conditions of fierce competition for limited resources, more primitive organisms should eventually lose to more sophisticated organisms, let alone different species. It still remains to he seen whether humans are sophisticated enough to avoid eventually following the fate of dinosaurs. One can state that the above argument is correct only for rather sophisticated organisms, like animals, and that primitive organisms like bacteria, viruses, and plasmids compensate for their lack of sophistication by their ability to multiply with fantastic speed." The above is unabashed science, bringing you stark reality without cowardice and aversion. Richard Dawkins coined the term the selfish gene, and in his latest book Unweaving the Rainbow he takes on the assumption that genes are destiny. Humans alone can use their immense creative power not only to build upon science and technology, we can create and purposefully direct our own evolution. This is the most creative endeavor ever undertaken, and our best hope for peace and happiness without disease or want while turning from the material to the intellectual. Marxists would deny people this intellectual world for one filled with material needs only. For leftist intellectuals to deny others access to this world is cowardly, elitist and hateful.

Get this book to learn more about DNA. It is easy to read but contains all the details. DNA is a very important issue for everyone today and this is the book you need to become knowledgable on this issue.