When I began to participate in Eucharistic Adoration at my parish, I purchased this book knowing that the prayers of the saints to Our Lord would keep my company when alone at the Church at 1:00 a.m.

I'm glad I purchased the book. It includes prayers of adoration, petition, sorrow and thanksgiving. The prayers reflect the deep love the saints have for God. It is comforting to know that these men and women of God thought many of the same thoughts and struggled with many of the same problems that we suffer.

The Apostle James wrote in his epistle that the "prayer of a righteous man availeth much." This is quite true, and it also doesn't hurt to pray the same prayers that the righteous man has sent to Our Lord!

This book has another practical use. It could easily be used as a daily devotional. This book does not require that you pick it up and read it all the way through. Enjoy it piecemeal. There is a lot of wisdom and love of God in this book. Pick it up and spend some time at prayer with the saints.

Categorized into four specific areas of prayer - sorrow, adoration, petition, and thanksgiving, the author has compiled an excellent selection of prayers of living saints. He also has been able to make them practical in their application to modern day lives. These are not the prayers of individuals who are living in a different universe but men and women who are dealing with daily aspirations, struggles, and joys. This book should be on anyone's list of books about the saints.

The Life of Anthony is truly invigorating. It places a great saint in the context of mainstream tradition. I fear that in the hustle and bustle of today's society much of the rich Christian spiritual heritage is becoming foreign to a lot of people. Read this book to find some of what has been lost-and rejoice in having found it again.

Although the preface is a bit lacking, the two works by St. Athanasius translated here are worth not only reading, but contemplating and wrestling with as well.

The first work, The Life of Antony, is a work about the father of Christian asceticism, St. Antony of Egypt. It contains both narrative and doctrinal content; the doctrinal content is presented in the forms of discourses by Antony, usually to groups of monks. He teaches much on demons and the discernment of spirits, the fate of souls after death, the importance of staying within the Church and staying away from schismatics and heretics. The discourses are, at a few points, a bit polemical - like many works from the early Church - but not excessively overbearing.

The uniqueness of the story is not just in Antony's doctrinal discourses, though. The narrative teaches things all its own. One of these things is that by separating one's self from the world the holy person becomes so much more indespensible to the world. Although Antony lived as a monk separate from the world, he was never separated from the world; in geographically and spiritually separating himself from the world, Antony became that much more involved in his world. He taught, healed, exorcised demons and engaged in debates with philosophers, all of this because of his reputation as a holy man.

From this follows something else taught by the narrative: the pursuit of God truly transforms one and causes one to become a conduit for God's healing and redemption of the world. Antony received visions and words of knowledge about people and things about to occur and more people were converted to the Christian faith. The work of Antony, as the book repeatedly emphasizes, is the work of God.

The second work contained in this volume, The Letter to Marcellinus, is a delightful exposition on praying the Psalms of David. St. Athanasius writes that regardless of one's experience, the Psalms provide words to express where one is at - whether in sorrow and despair or in joy. He also shows (through some rather creative interpretation) that the whole of Scripture is contained within the Psalter.

It would have been nice if a translation of Psalm 151 (found only in the Greek Bible, which is what Athanasius used) had been included, as Athanasius references it in his Letter to Marcellinus. The work is found in the New Oxford Annoted Apocrypha: New Revised Standard Version, though, so if you don't have one, buy one (isbn: 0195288009)!

All in all, both works are absolutely charming.

Very good resource, excellent descriptions and images of pipes in museum's holdings. Covers pipes from around the world, includes historical information. Avoids most of the pseudo-historical drivel that often obscures the actual use and history of the Highland pipes, as well as revealing to many for the first time that there are bagpipes from places other than Scotland. All in all, an excellent book!

This is probably the most well-researched books on bagpipes available in English. It covers bagpipes from all over the world, not just the British Isles, and gives a great deal of technical information concerning their construction and tuning. It is a reprint of an older edition (with changes), so some of the photos are a bit dated, but nonetheless very informative and clear. If you are interested in the history of the bagpipe get this book.

This terrific guide to one of my favourite places in the world is an inspiration to all first time travellers to this sceptered isle.I particularly liked the third chapter which discusses my favourite part of Bali,Its a really beautiful place that all people should attempt to visit.

I used this book to tour Bali in 1991-ish and found it an outstanding guide to the culture of Bali, a very unique Indonesian island. The best features are the excellent maps which illustrate the small, unpaved, unmarked roads. Although phone numbers and such may be out of date, these are not important to having a great time in Bali.

Barbara Chase-Riboud, one of the most amazing artists of the twentieth century, challenged many assumptions about what constitutes art, interrogating the viewer with complex and unforgettable images. Unfortunately, the male writers of this book seem unable to properly celebrate this brilliant artist; they do little other than catalogue her "influences", which one might better describe as the incredibly rich variety of artistic discourses of the past, which Chase-Riboud used subversively and excitingly. African and Egyptian influences are obvious, but she was also engaged with baroque art and Surrealsim (but *always* making it her *own*). Perhaps a better book will someday be written. This is an artist all Women should be able to study from, if only she were to become better known.

Barbara Chase-Riboud is one of the most significant and original sculptors of her generation. Her dramatic explorations of literary and historical themes earned her a presence in major museums throughout American and Europe. Barbara Chase-Riboud: Sculptor is a richly illustrated presentation and overview of her 30 hear career as a sculptor and draftsman. Peter Selz and Anthony Janson are distinguished art historians who draw upon their considerable expertise to reveal how history, archaeology, spiritualism, the Baroque tradition, and Chase-Riboud's parallel career as a poet-novelist worked together to influence her work, from the Malcom X, Tantra, Zanzibar, and Cleopatra series to her recent monument Africa Rising -- the award-wining New York City landmark commemorating an African-American burial ground from the colonial slave-era. Barbara Chase-Riboud: Sculptor is a superb and informative addition to any personal, academic, or community library art history collection.

Every person ever nominated for an academy award is listed in the appendix, but the book has even better things to offer.

Anthony Holden begins the book back in the 1920s and chronicles every year of the oscars up until 1991. He explains how the Academy began as a company union and evolved into the present day awards. There are many great stories. Most of them concerning the politics behind the awards.

He explains how the lifetime achievment awards were created to fill in the gaps of the hollywood greats who were denied the award for one reason or another. Many of these awards were shamefully given out when a person was on his/her deathbed.

Other interesting tid bits include the story of how France's Gérard Depardieu cost himself an oscar by giving a politically incorrect interview, George C. Scott's inconsistent reasons for turning down acting awards, and Woody Allen's indifference for the event as a whole.

Ah, yes... every single March, when that one evening rolls around when a red carpet's rolled out and somebody makes a name for himself or a fool of himself, or somewhere in between, we can only say one word unanimously: "WHY?" And now you will know why... you will know the whole truth, all the hearts and flowers and arsenic. In this juicy tale of the Academy and its unique, oddball system of selecting who gets the Oscar, who should get an Oscar, and it-was-just-too-darn-bad-so-and-so-didn't-get-one, Anthony Holden takes us back to the late 1920's, when a small group of individuals banded together to form the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. From then on, we're taken on a tirade of how simple campaigns, malicious manipulations, and simple mistakes or happenings influence the decisions for Oscar's many surprising receipients. Stars and directors share memories and reminisces throughout the book, which is also illustrated with several darn good photos. The book remembers Oscar's infamous moments such as "Scott, Brando, and The Art Of Rejection" to Greer Garson's "hour-long" speech and dear, sweet Sally Field's "You really like me!" speech. The book also details times when the Academy has been put on the spot: i.e., 1952. In a year of big, bustling dramas, the Academy was able to sigh with relief and vote the year's best picture to the big, bawdy "The Greatest Show On Earth". Another example, this time exploiting the Academy's sentiment: 1981's Best Actor: ailing Henry Fonda won over the "sure-fire" Burt Lancaster. That same sentiment also dealt many, many very deserving Oscar receipients the less glorified "Lifetime Achievement" Awards. And sometimes the Academy has been downright prejudiced: 1954's Best Actress: Grace Kelly over scandal-ridden Judy Garland (the book reveals that Kelly won by a mere seven votes to Garland). Most film critics today will cite Garland's as the better performance, but in 1954... And there have been bitter disappointments. Rosalind Russell's publicity agent had a house riding on a failed 1947 Best Actress win, and Bette Davis was stunned beyond belief when Anne Bancroft won 1962's Best Actress for "The Miracle Worker" over her "What Ever Happened To Baby Jane?". The bottom line: the book is bursting with facts, dirt, and fun and all the way through it keeps up the things the Academy Awards are famous for: drama, suspense, and pure, unadulterated entertainment.

I do volunteer work with the blind and find it a rewarding experience. I like to see the happiness on their faces when they are having fun. It is enjoyable being their eyes. Most are seniors and have been blind for life. When I discovered Blind Willie & Other Stories, it was a revelation. Here was a story where the hero is a dog who is more developed or evolved than his master. Willy's a good man, but he does not come close to the moral growth of his new dog, Perro. Willy does change in the end. The blind can accomplish and do. Loss of sight does not hinder personal growth. This story makes that clear.

The Other Stories leaves one with the sense that the writer drew on his own personal knowledge and experiences to illustrate love, friendship, loneliness, brotherhood, and compassion.

Toy Henry takes the reader into the soul and heart of a young urban teenager and his daily struggle to escape the life he is trapped in. He tries to use his artistic talent only to have his past immorality destroy him and all that he loved. I think this story is so real it deserves to be classed as a modern classic.

I liked Blind Willie, althogh it took me a couple chapters to get into it. I particularly liked the premise of some humans being able to communicate with animals. It definitely reminded me of the relationship between the two main characters in the book "Ishmael," particularly when Perro was discussing his former maste Lawrence. I also liked Willies perspective on religion, since my views are some what similar. I definitely think a sequal is in order for this story. Would love to see developed further.

I like the how the Pie story and Cookie Trilogy revolved around "karma," more or less, fate, and self fulfilling prophecy.
I especially liked the Fortune Cookie chapter. Twelve Boots in the saddle left me wanting more. I thought it was an interesting premise.

I enjoyed the Last Tribesman especially since I remember reading a short book about Ishi in grade school. The ending was a clever twist.

The Studio was a little implausible, but everything Hollywood falls into the implausible.

Of all the stories Toy Henry was the greatest. The characters jumped off the page. The story took me through a range of emotions. I hated the guy then loved him.

Overall I thought the book was well written.

The two longest stories in this collection are the first story, "Blood Lines," an Inspector Wexford tale of 40 pages, and the last story, "The Strawberry Tree," a somewhat strange tale which is 85 pages long. In between are 9 short stories, some of which are only 6 pages. As usual with collections, some stories are better than others. All the stories involve murder, attempted murder, or accidental death, with the exception of "Clothes," which is about a compulsive shopper. As in other English mysteries, guns do not come into play. Murders tend to be by poison or bludgeon. The author has an inventive mind when it comes to eliminating people (I would be afraid to get on her wrong side).

While some stories are very good, I had trouble getting interested in the long novelette, "The Strawberry Tree," which is written in a narrative form with only a little dialogue. The narrative starts on the island of Majorca with no real indication of why the narrator is there, then skips back 40 years to give an account of past events on Majorca, her life in between, and finally her arrival on Majorca where the story started. A mystery is introduced along the way, and a solution is finally presented. This story, like the others, was written in the 1990's, but the Spanish apparently didn't use DNA analysis.

This is an ok collection of short stories, right up until the final novella, "The Strawberry Tree". Until then, most of the stories are enjoyable, all are well written, but some of them don't have much impact. "Clothes" is a bit puzzling, to name just one. However, there are some excellent ones. "In All Honesty", "Lizzie's Lover" and the wonderful "Unnacceptable Levels" which is very short, but the best short story in the collection apart from the final one.

The characters are all well drawn with accurate psychology, and many have rather disturbing and strange traits. The first story, a Wexford, which serves as the title for the collection, is well written and clever, but not quite as entertaining as some other Wexford short stories.

However, now we come to the final story. "The Strawberry Tree" is a short novella of about 90 pages, but it is the best story in the collection, and possibly the best novella i have ever read. It says many things about the human condition, as well as being incredibly touching, well evoked, interesting, clever, very well written, etc. It in itself is worth the price of the entire book. Set in part in Spain, she describes the foreign landscape beautifully, as she does the relationships between the four main children in the story. It is a beautiful story, full of psychological perception. It's intriguing, compelling, emotional, sometimes sad, and has a subtle twist to the tale that it is hard to pre-empt.

First class, but this book by the world's most talented writer. Of this generation or any previous.

When I ordered this book I was expecting something that closely followed the form Baines had used in his Woodwind Instruments and Their History. This was not to be the case. Instead, it is a detailed history of the brass family from prehistoric time to the modern valved era. This is not quite as exhaustive of a book as I was looking for (something that dealt with modern valved brass). With all that said it is still a marvelous book and full of usefull information.

Every field has its classic work, and this is it for brass instruments. Not definitive, because nothing could be, but the linch-pin of the library as far as brasswind instruments go.

I think his best effort has been Red Fox, that book is truly a five. This good is a close second but does not have the tension and great mystery that Red Fox had. This author writes tight, slick books that keep you interested through out. This is an interesting book that combines espionage with a murder mystery. You are never in need of additional details with this author, he really fills the pages up, and for some I think this can be too much. This really is a book that has two - three very well developed and written plot twists that makes you stay on your toes. I have reread the book and it is something how well he places the road signs. This is a great book; unfortunately he was not able to keep up this form into his next.

I have read 3 of Hyde's books: Formosa Straights, China Lake, and The Red Fox. I think he is, either, the best or second best American thriller/spy story writer currently working. (His only competition is Alan Furst)

I also think Formosa Straights is his best book. He is a wonderful writer, has complex plots, and is able to communicate a sense of place that is hypnotic.

I only hope he publishes another book soon!