Most reviewers seem to see this book as a reaction to the rise of fascistic and nationalistic tyrannies of Mr. Ortega y Gasset's day. Fascism is a tyranny of the bourgeois. And though a tyranny is a tyranny is a tyranny, the bourgeois were the minority whom the author claimed were the progenitors and preservers of European civilization. (And for those who feel that Revolt of the Masses is Euro-centric, well you are right. That was his target audience; just read the second to last paragraph. But so what. That complaint is like denouncing the Bible as being biased towards Christians.) Additionally, the fascists, though thuggish and violent in their actions, at least made a pretense to their past and heritage (a la Rome). A far greater representation of mass man is found in the socialistic and communistic nations, then and now. Communism makes no appeal to the heritage of civilization but instead seeks to separate itself via Revolution. Additionally, communism is not a revolution of the bourgeoisie, but against it. What could be more mass man than that? In this I wish to make no defence of fascism, not in the least. But rather to form a distinction between the two and to note, sadly and a little fearfully, that though 99% of us agree that fascism is a dangerous counter to civilization, there are far too many proponents of communism still swaying the opinions of mass man for us to feel comfortable. All in all this book is a good warning to the defenders and partakers of Western Civilization and has not, in any way, become dated by the passing of the fascistic states of Europe. Danger still abounds.

"Imagination is the liberating power possessed by man." (p. 155)

[In the book Ortega y Gasset uses the terms "men of excellence" and "mass man." I will use his terms in this review, rather than trying to be politically correct and be more gender inclusive. If you need more gender inclusive language, be a person of excellence, read the book, and write a better review ' ;-)]

Jose Ortega y Gasset, once a "Liberal" legislator in the doomed Spanish Republic, wrote Revolt of the Masses 70 years too soon. This elitist book, although seriously flawed, makes numerous excellent points, demands to be read in these opening years of the 21st Century, and should be quoted, frequently, publicly, and with great fervor. His elitism echoes through the writings of authors such as Robert Heinlein. This is exemplified in Starship Troopers, where men of excellence are chosen via military service; as does The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress, where men of excellence outwait the yammering groups of "Mass Man" and then create a constitution, perceived as being democratically created.

Ortega y Gasset postulates that "mass man" has come to demand privilege without responsibility. With no idea of the workings of modern life, mass man expects it served up to him on a silver platter. Mass man pays no homage to the "men of excellence" who create, who move society forward, who shoulder responsibility. Ortega y Gasset's fatal flaw is his inability to separate the passivism and immaturity in "mass man," which is a response to the infantilizing power of a hierarchical paradigm of domination, from the inherent state of mankind, which is excellence. While only a small vanguard may rise out of that passivity while dominated and enslaved, numerous historical examples clearly demonstrate the fallacy of Ortega y Gasset's argument.

Two brief counter-examples: the Spanish anarchists (see The Spanish Anarchists: The Heroic Years 1868-1936, by Murray Bookchin; Homage to Catalonia, by George Orwell, and the movie Land and Freedom) and the open source community. In the areas of Spain where anarchists took control, people worked together efficiently to oppose the Fascist insurgency. Franco's forces were held back by anarchists militias, working democratically, with little hierarchical structure. Anarchists organized the labor forces and ran factories by worker control, producing weapons and supplies. Bookchin tells us that these anarchists were a disciplined lot:

The more dedicated men, once having decided to embrace the "Idea [anarchism]," abjured smoking and drinking, avoided brothels, and purged their talk of "foul" language. They believed these traits to be "vices"--demeaning to free people and fostered deliberately by ruling classes to corrupt and enslave the workers spiritually." (p. 48)

"Anarchist-influenced unions gave higher priority to leisure and free time for self-development than to high wages and economic gains." (p. 50)

This is not the behavior which Ortega y Gasset attributes to mass man. This is the behavior of his "men of excellence." Examining this evidence we find that when people are free, they are also free to be excellent. In the "open source" community (those who brought us Linux, Gnu, etc.), we also find "men of excellence." We find people, free from corporate domination, who, without remuneration, have created one of the most sophisticated and reliable software systems for the mass market today. (Linux has been described as far more stable, efficient, and powerful than any Microsoft Windows product.) Again, freedom breeds excellence. The paradigm of domination and power-over does not exist in the open source community the way it does in a commercial environment.

Nevertheless, Ortega y Gasset has served up an apt description of the "typical" American, who watches 35 hours of TV each week and feels the ideas he absorbs from Rush Limbaugh, Jerry Falwell, Matt Drudge, and the late news equal the work of serious scholars and intellectuals. Most of us Americans have long since abdicated our power and responsibility to "somebody else." We don't really trust our government, but we expect somebody else to fix it. We are the "mass man" who demands more government services, fewer taxes, and a higher quality of living, while refusing to volunteer our time in our communities. I conducted an informal poll in the weeks following the 9/11/01 tragedies. The more American flags a person displayed, the less likely he was to have voted in the 2000 presidential elections! While tens of millions of Americans fought terrorism by putting cheap flag stickers on their windows and automobile antennas, only a small minority of the citizenry took action: from donating blood to working for peace.

Ortega y Gasset's contempt for mass man echoes the fear of the Spanish Liberals. They feared both fascism and proletarian liberation movements. They wished to hang on to their middle class privilege without being dominated from above, or being equalized from below. A social and political hierarchy helped them to maintain their privilege. Contrasting this stance with more equalitarian writings is an interesting experience. I recommend that Reane Eisler's Chalice and the Blade also be read, to lend insight on how societies of people of excellence were compelled to become mass man. Daniel Quinn, in his Ishmael books, also deconstructs how societies produce mass man to maintain power hierarchies.

One of the most prophetic parts of the book was Ortega y Gasset's exposition on the union of Europe. He saw that the creation of a single European state was an inevitable part of the historical process. Watching the European nations struggle to come together as an economic unit it is easy to see his "prophecy" being fulfilled. He also made a profound statement about the democratic process; one that every flag-waving American ought to consider deeply:

"The health of democracies, of whatever type and range, depends on a wretched technical detail'electoral procedure. All the rest is secondary. If the regime of the elections is successful, if it is in accordance with reality, all goes well; if not, though the rest progresses beautifully, all goes wrong." (p. 158)

Regardless of how many flags get waved, regardless of how many red-white-and-blue ribons get pinned on clothes, the 2000 election went terribly wrong. The Supreme Court prevented a full and accurate count from being conducted. The man in the White House was not put there by the vote of the American people, but by the vote of the United States Supreme Court. "All [has] gone wrong."

The book is full of concise, brilliant, quotables. Here are a few of my favorite:

"All of life is the struggle, the effort to be itself. The difficulties which I meet with in order to realise my existence are precisely what awaken and mobilise my activities, my capacities." (p. 99)

"Human life has arisen and progressed only when the resources it could count on were balanced by the problems it met with." (p. 101)

"If that life of mine, which only concerns myself, is not directed by me towards something, it will be disjointed, lacking in tension and in form. In these years we are witnessing the gigantic spectacle of innumerable human lives wandering about lost in their own labyrinths, through not having anything to which to give themselves." (p. 141)

"There is truth only in an existence which feels its acts as irrevocably necessary." (p. 182)

Who should read The Revolt of the Masses? Everybody. This book throws down a gauntlet challenging us all to become people of excellence, to participate in shaping our own destinies, rather than handing that over to a few rich men in suits in corporate boardrooms and congressional offices. Ortega y Gasset writes well, better than the average philosopher. The translation from Spanish sacrifices no readability. Although I disagree with him on a major premise, I still must find this book to be a solid, five-star read.

(If you'd like to dialogue about this book or review, please click on the "About Me" link above & drop me an email. My website also contains a large number of quotations from the book. Thanks!)

Read this book; it applies to America in the 21st century even more than it did to Europe in 1932, when it was first published. Ortega told both the commies and the fascists where to stick it way back then and showed the right path for civilization to follow, but no one listened. Above all, every person that feels misunderstood or underappreciated should read this book and find out why. They're most probably unwitting victims of the 'mass man.' Ortega isn't just any writer, the guy's a master philosopher who provides reasoned, unassailable arguments for everything he asserts--so be forewarned: this book will CHANGE YOUR LIFE and MESS WITH YOUR HEAD. Don't come with any preconceived ideas expecting to keep them, you won't be able to, not if you consider rationality a virtue.

The Xanth series is the best series I have ever gotten into. I believe that the best book in this series so far is Isle of View. Isle of View captures the essence of the soul of Xanth, with characters such a the undecided Dolph, who can't make up his mind between the beautiful Nada, whom he loves with all his heart, or the unbeautiful, but sweet and rather cute Electra, who loves him with all her heart. Unfortunatly, Dolph will have his heart forever broken if he can't have Nada. Electra, because of an enchantment placed on her 900 years ago, will be forever dead if she can't have Dolph. There's also lovable Che, who was kidnapped by Gobins. The Goblins had a good reason, which complicated things, and left poor Jenny to make her most diffucult decision, What was more important, Che being with his parents, and educated in the fashion of a young winged centaur, or the life of a Goblin girl?

I am a 16 year-old guy who loves Piers Anthony's style of writing. This book has staked its claim at the top of my list of Xanth writings. Wow. This novel is full of twists and turns that keeps the reader coming back for more. Even if you have read ahead of this and know the story, you will be quite pleased. Che Centaur is the only offspring of his kind that he knows of, and he is protected by all the winged monsters of Xanth due to a pledge enstated by the infamous Simurgh, however, Che is kidnapped by Goblins. (Never good!) Meanwhile, it is a very short time away from poor Electra's eighteenth birthday, and Prince Dolph has still not chosen between the voluptuous Princess Nada Naga and Electra, the maiden he awoke from a 1000 year slumber, who has fallen magically in love with him. Naturally being a young man, Dolph is considering Nada Naga mor readily than Electra, despite the huge age difference between himself the half-serpentine princess. The book pans out in the usual Piers Anthony way, full of puns, twists and turns, and has a beautifully written climax that can literally take your breath away. If you like fantasy at all, you must pick this book up. Also, on a personal note, Jenny Elf is introduced in this book, and for those who are unaware, Jenny Elf is actually a real girl who has horribly injured for life in a brutal drunk-driving accident, when she was a young girl. Her story is also in the end notes of this book. It truly brings a tear to one's eye, and this reviewer's heart goes out to her and her family.

Isle of View is a fun-filled, action-packed extravaganza! It's absolutely my favorite of all the Xanth novels. I would recommend this book to anyone.

Ember and Blaze met at the beginning of time and fell in love. They couldn't marry each other because they were members of the same tribe, so they both married other people and had families. Ember, Blaze and their kin are reborn every chapter, each in another point in history. But all the while, they feel a strange longing for each other. And in the furture from today, they finally meet again. Piers Anthony brings a reader all around the world throughout the centuries, and into the personal lives of the characters associated in the story. As teenage girls, we found this story to be well-written and detailed in all aspects of life. We recommend it to all mature readers

Piers Anthonys depiction of life evolution is a great example of his dedication to the entertainment of his readers. As an avid fan I have read almost all of his novels. And I do mean novels! Mr. Anthony has an uncanny ability to draw his readers into the worlds he creates. The emotions and reactions I felt were as if I were there in real life. This series is a wonderful example of Mr. Anthonys ability to draw a reader in and make them feel the emotions and thoughts of his charaters. Overall, a very exceptional book that I highly enjoyed reading!

Piers Anthony has written in a janre too little used in a world full of the knowledge of evolution and cultural diversity. The chapters are introduced by the time frame and theories of what may have been taking place in each. Although knowledge of evolution changes very quickly and is always open to debate depending on the most recent archeological finds, Piers Anthony deserves distinction for attempting such an undertaking as reconstructing human origins and history. He does an exceptional job proposing hypotheses for each step in evolution, while also working them into a coherent storyline in which the reader can become involved. As a student of anthropology, I am frustrated by the lack of imaginative storylines based on evolution, and Piers Anthony's series is the only reading I have been able to find which satisfactorily shows that the author has a working knowledge of evolutionary theory and its' realistic possibilities.

The sixth outing for Barbara Parker's legal duo, Gail Connor and Anthony Quintana, is the best yet in this excellent legal thriller series. Gail and Anthony take a capital appeal case with time running out and the system running against their client. With an engrossing plot, intriguing characters, and great pacing, the reader is drawn into the story of this last-ditch effort to save an innocent man (or is he) from execution. As they pursue the case, Gail and Anthony find that the only way to stop the execution is a fraught-with-danger attempt to locate the real killer. If there is any quibble with this thought-provoking study of the death penalty and the legal system, it is that fans of the series might miss its usual Miami locale and also notice that the focus here on the legal partnership of Connor-Quintana leaves little time for focusing on the deliciously torrid side of their relationship. But then, perhaps, that's for the next "Suspicion" book. If you haven't read the earlier books in the series--Suspicion of Innocence, Guilt, Deceit, Betrayal, and Malice--do so. They shouldn't be missed!

After everything that has happened to them in the past, lawyers Gail Connor and Anthony Quintana are trying to make their relationship work. He hires divers to try and find the engagement ring he threw into the muddy pond. Their joint profession brings them closer together when Gail's mother asks her to help the son of an old family retainer appeal his death sentence.

Kenny Ray Clarke has been convicted for the vicious death of Amber Dardson twelve years ago. He has been sentenced to death and the appeal process is rapidly running out. Gail is reluctantly dragged into taking on the appeal. Anthony knows what the mental price on a lawyer the process takes and reluctantly helps her in order to spare her a nervous breakdown. By the time they are fully acquainted with the facts of the case, Anthony and Gail believe their client is innocent, but only have days left to prove their case before Kenny receives a lethal injection.

SUSPICION OF VENGEANCE is one of the author's best Gail Connor and Anthony Quintana novels to date. Barbara Parker has thoroughly researched the death penalty issue and it is more than likely readers on the fence will come away converted to her belief that its too open for human error. This novel is an exciting romantic legal thriller that will have massive cross-genre appeal.

Harriet Klausner

Into NOT enjoying Barbara Parker's 6th outing for the legal couple, Anthony Quintana/Gail Connor. It is certainly a stretch to believe that Connor, a civil attorney, and a sole practitioner at that, would become involved with a death-penalty appeals case. Forgiving that, sit back and enjoy what is Parker's most ambitious and well-written tale of the series!

In it, some of the past jealousy dances over Connor's relationship with her ex-husband do not play a role, and her civil practice and single parenting responsibilities don't dominate the story line, as they have in past outings (this is positive; Quintana's jealousy does not become him). Nor does Quintana appear as self-assured and in control of situations in the "wilds" of northern Florida, as he does in his native
Miami. One of the most important and touching passages of the book deals with his realization and communication to Connor that she is a better attorney than is he, himself, because of the passion and dedication with which she serves her clients.

The client, Kenny Ray Clark, is on his final stretch of death row in Florida for a murder it becomes obvious he did not commit. Central to proving this is the role played by a new character, Jackie Bryce, a local deputy, and Connor's cousin.
Connor's family relationships are the background focus of the tale, and the sense of desperation the group feels while racing the clock to prove that someone else killed Amber Dodson and covered up the murder by blaming Kenny Ray, is palpable. Although there are a lot of victims in this tale, few are as tragic as the Mendozas, a local immigrant family who found themselves in the way of a land grab by the real perpetrator's of Amber's murder. You'll find yourself unable to put the book down as Connor and Quintana peel away the layers of the cover up, in a race against death.

Strong characterization, tense and thrilling plotline, and her signature byproduct of the incredible bond between Quintana and Connor all will heighten your enjoyment of this Parker
effort.

Read all 6, Parker is a terrific storyteller!

This book provides simple, thought provoking concepts that open your eyes to the world around you. Each chapter challenges your goals, thoughts, and beliefs as to what you need to be happy. Read it. Spend time contemplating these concepts and experience the freedom from axiety and boredom in your life. It prompts a whole new level of thinking that rebuffs what society, religion, and family have taught you.

This is one of my favorite books. Small in size (easy to carry in a pocket), big on wisdom. The thirty-one or so chapters are small, four or five pages each, easy to read and understand that you may contemplate and witness the truth of them in your own life situations. Books written by the awakened consciousness -- as this one is -- are alive with freshness and authority. Their purpose is simple: explain and clarify what is false, that the unexplainable and unspeakable Truth may be seen and lived. If you are serious about waking up -- that your life may be an unhindered outpouring of true unconditional love -- then buy this book, carry it with you, and read from it often.

This book was my introduction to Anthony deMello. A friend showed me his copy, I read one page and knew I had to read this book. It changed my life!

I liked the book,but it did have many faults to and left much information out abotu the truth and reality of Africa people. I would recommend this book to any one starting out on the path ot learning about African people and African cultures,as well as the dispora. I am not the biggest fan of Henery Louis Gates considering his documentary made also left out much information and was very disrespectful to African people. I know many people feel Gates as a negro saxon. Gates may have his faults,but it seems there are hints of Afrocenttrism in his book. I am glad Gates talks about the black peole of Russia that not very many people know about the mysterious black people of the caucaous mountains. I don't like however how Gates twists the theroies about Ancient Egypt by making Cheikh Anta Diop look less creditable. The other thing about the blacks of the caucaous mountains, the russian goverment has relocated from.
They are the possible link to the ancient egyptains also people known as the colchians.

This encyclopedia is a wonderful source of information on all aspects of the African experience, both on the African continent itself and in the diaspora. Without being ideological, it celebrates the Black experience by summing up the fruits of many decades of scholarly research into Black culture and history. The articles that I have read are well written and reliable in the information they provide, while also remaining accessible to a general audience. (I regret a bit that there are no bibliographies to direct the reader towards further readings on each topic.) The volume, lavishly illustrated, is so heavy that one could use it for advanced workouts... That the publishers have managed to publish it at such an extremely reasonable price is in itself an amazing achievement. This book should be on the bookshelf of every educated person of African descent, and of every American, whether black or white.

Upon opening this book, I realized I had stumbled on to the missing link in American History. Africana provides a glimpse of what traditional history books have been all to willing to ignore. As a person of Native American and European heritage, I have seen time and time again, the way American History Books have focused primarily on the accomplishments of Europeans, leaving out the rich history of all of her people of color. With it's amazing photographs and easily followed geographical references, Africana fills this gap, as it provides a much wider view of the true history of America. I hope someday that traditional American History Books will include this information in their pages and there will be no need for separated histories... but until that time, Africana is a book that every parent should buy for their child and every American should have in their home. The history that this book brings to the table of humanity, can help us heal and grow as a country... and a people.

While it is true that Simmons advocates leaving off the absolute value sign when integrating 1/x dx, and even assuming he got one problem wrong involving this, to dismiss the entire book as "rubbish" and to recommend "avoiding [it] like the plague" is completely unfair and totally out of proportion. Furthermore, claiming that it's "confusing" to even introduce the idea of the derivative before a formal definition of a limit is given is also unfair. There's absolutely nothing wrong with providing students with this kind of motivation, and you really don't need a formal definition of a limit to understand the concept. Having a correct and intuitive understanding with a minimum of prerequisites is helpful and an admirable pedagogical goal. [In fact, a classic calculus text (the two-volume set by Tom Apostol) even treats integration before differentiation (and limits), and it's completely correct and clear.] I trust that the fact that every other reviewer gave this book extremely high praise will give students the confidence to read and use this text to learn Calculus in an ideal way.

Speaking as an average math student, I found Dr. Simmons' book to be the best "read" of any text out there. The book's writing style was excellent, the example problems were quite helpful, and the appendicies were terrific-- especially the biographical sketches of history's mathematical greats. Those made for a pleasant break when the rigors of infinite series or double integrals took their toll!

On a technical level, the book is as solid as any out there, and does a fine job of covering two semesters' worth of calculus. From derivatives to gradients, it's all in there.

Speaking as an average math student, I found Dr. Simmons' book to be the best "read" of any text out there. The book's writing style was excellent, the example problems were quite helpful, and the appendicies were terrific-- especially the biographical sketches of history's mathematical greats. Those made for a pleasant break when the rigors of infinite series or double integrals took their toll!

On a technical level, the book is as solid as any out there, and does a fine job of covering two semesters' worth of calculus. From derivatives to gradients, it's all in there.

THE PROTESTANT ETHIC AND THE SPIRIT OF CAPITALISM by Max Weber is the kind of book which I imagined was important in my youth. I find it difficult, now, but not because anything which is says is any less true than it ever was. As history goes, it is some of the most thoughtful. The problem is that we are no longer living in history. Comparing ourselves to the contents of this book confirms that society is now at the level of farce, and likely to remain so. This conclusion might not strike anyone starting the book for the first time, but it ought to grab anyone who is capable of comprehending Chapter 3, "Luther's Conception of the Calling."

My point of view works best if it is accepted that, as America now stands, it can only be understood as a nation of shoppers. The large and still growing amount by which imports exceeds exports requires that the entire world maintains this view for monetary stability. The political parties might pretend to be theoretically split between those who use the government as a means of shopping for people's needs and those who would enhance the ability to make big bucks, but neither party can, in actuality, represent with their whole heart those who picture government as the ultimate shopper, which ought to be able to provide people with what they would not otherwise have, whether through liberal social programs or by imposing rigid security provisions and covert activities. Thinking about how well secret military tribunals or jailing users of illegal substances actually functions, as applied to "others," strike me as being an absurd application of Luther's "observation that the division of labour forces every individual to work for others." Both parties, to maintain their existence in such a tipsy world, must appeal to those who would maintain "the privileged position, legal or actual, of single great trading companies." Only the American ability to convince the world that everyone who takes our money for their products fully shares the ability of Americans to benefit from such great wealth can maintain such a situation as "a traditionalist interpretation based on the idea of Providence. The individual should remain once and for all in the station and calling in which God had placed him, and should restrain his worldly activity within the limits imposed by his established station in life. While his economic traditionalism was originally the result of Pauline indifference, it later became that of a more and more intense belief in divine providence, which identified absolute obedience to God's will, with absolute acceptance of things as they were." The uses of two "Absolute"s in that sentence is what frightens me. Any sign of inability to adapt to a future which includes vast changes is a bad characteristic for a modern society, and the modern economy seems to be headed in a direction that will no longer provide great wealth to all who expect it. In such a situation, anyone might consider the words of Milton in "Paradise Lost," as quoted by Max Weber, which points out that people are able:

To leave this Paradise, but shall possess
A Paradise within thee, happier far.

The next paragraph suggests, "The appeal to national character is generally a mere confession of ignorance, and in this case it is entirely untenable." The difference between what Max Weber is trying to describe and what I'm thinking is what makes this kind of book so difficult to read, and I wouldn't be surprised if you haven't read it.

This book is legendary. Max Weber arguably was the first social scientists who devoted his life's work to cross-cultural studies. His pioneering study of "The protestant ethic..." combines a broad, almost universal, vision of human desires and ideas with painstaking details of how certain religious movements transformed the economic basis of feudal Europe, and later the United States, into an economy of competition and free enterprise. The drive in early capitalism, Weber shows, was an inherent
religious belief in money as a means of eternal salvation. Trough accumulating more wealth, capitalists were trying to prove for themselves that they were worthy of God's grace and hence were secured an afterlife in Paradise. However, spending money was not an option for these capitalists. It was considered a sin to use capital gains to satisfy carnal and worldly desires ( compare with Enron and Worldcom executives). Wealth was in many ways protected by a fear of God.

Weber's Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism is CLASSIC - and should be a mandatory read for every student of sociology. Unfortunately, the classic literature of sociology isn't emphasized enough in today's educational institutions. Students are entering the real world without the foundation of social prophets and coming up with their own ideas of "what the world is coming to," and taking credit for ideology that has long been debated and written down by masterminds such as Weber. Pay attention! What is this book really about? This is a revolutionary work discussing critically the causes and effects of sociological chance, and how the sociology of religion has changed meaning because of the philosophy we now base our ideas on. Anyone interested in postmodern theory, the iron cage of bureaucracy, rationalization, and even symbolic interactionism should read this before continuing to literature of modern sociological thought.

I thought that this story was one of the best!! Having read numerous of Ann's historical books I thought it was one of the best. The narrirator, Mary, helped descibe it even though it was about Tempe. It was a good time frame. I'm studing Americas wars in school and this was a total help! Once again Ann has written a wonderful book!

Ann Rinaldi wrote another great book. I've almost read all her books. Mary Cooper, the main character, has a wonderfully developed character. If you like this book, read Time Enough For Drums. It is her best book. It is out of print but it can be found at the Dutch Amazon.com or Amazon.de

This is one of the BEST Rinaldi books I've ever read! It's about fourteen year-old Mary Cooper. She goes to live with her cousin Tempe Wick, who despises her more than anything. Throught the book, you learn of Mary's life with her cousin, up until the point when the "mutiny raid" occurs. Mary witnesses the frightening scene, as well as helps Tempe save her beautiful horse, Colonel, from Billy Bowzar. I loved this book SO MUCH! If anyone passes this book by, they'll be missing out! It's filled with suspense, adventure, and a little bit of romance! The PERFECT BOOK! Great job Ann!

The Dastard is on of Piers Anthony's better Xanth books. It has a lot of humor and too many puns (as usual), but the puns don't detract from the story. I have been waiting for the last 2 years for Melody, Harmony, and Rhythm to make an appearance as major characters and I really like their personalities. I would have liked them to star more as children (like Ivy did in Dragon on a Pedestal, my favorite Xanth novel), but maybe next time. Becka also proved to be a dynamic character. She had her dragon heratige to keep the Dastard in line, but also her morals and common sense to provide an alternate point of view from the Dastard and to move the plot along. Castle Maidragon was great fun and I hope it appears in future books. I'm glad Becka got her wish (though I won't say what it is). I thought the ending needed work and I would have prefered to see the Dastard work on using his talent for good. Over all, it was a terrific book and it kept me enthralled till the end.

Piers Anthony's Xanth series fills that void we all get when we just want to read for the pure pleasure and not have to "think". You know, like wanting to watch a light hearted movie where you don't have to follow an intricate plot line or keep track of who did what to whom and why. The Xanth series pokes fun at the mundane world. Anyone who lives in Florida will appreciate the way Anthony describes local landmarks with a pun-ish twist.

The Dastard didn't let me down. Piers Anthony is back with a great plot as well as a bucketful puns. I know, people have been saying that the Xanth books were becoming just one big pun and there wasn't really a story. I'll have to agree, but it was only a few books and they were still a GREAT read. But, be forewarned. The Dastard has not one, not two, but more plots and subplots than you'd ever dream of in Xanth book. Savor it slowly so you don't miss any of the fun.

I adore this series and eagerly await the next release. I fiercly guard by collection and only let very special people borrow copies after leaving an adequate replacement such as their car or deed to their house as collateral.

I love the Xanth series but I don't think I'd pay $24.95 for an e-book version! Most other e-book prices are in line with a paperback sale price, $4.00 - $7.00. I think if you bundled 3 of his book together for download you could ask for that kind of price.