Doyle brings to life a clutch of fascinating, utterly forgotten (even by real film buffs) performers from the earliest days of silent films in this superb collection of short biographical essays. The tales are gripping and well-told. The book's second half makes it a must-have for libraries and serious researchers: an amazingly detailed list of everyone who ever stepped in front of a silent camera; their birth and death dates and places. Doyle's research is staggering. It's a shame a major house couldn't have put this book out and given it a lower price and more photos, but anyone interested in silent films should save their pennies to buy this.

This is an excellent book, and absolutely essential to any author writing on silent films! Highly recommended; well worth the price.

It's the tale of a mutated man in a world of barbarians. His adventure is filled with a rollercoaster of events. Should be read with "SOS the rope", and "Neq the sword"

As most of Peirs 'themes', the first book in this series is simply amazing, the second is wonderful, and the third is merely great. *smile* Read this series if you enjoy his writing. This book (and the series in particular) is very imaginitive and a joy to read.

This is among the books that has given me a wholistic view of the design field- combining aspects of culture and society at the subliminal framework of understanding. It is a good read and very objective in its approach. I personally enjoy criticism and have read books by Victor Margolin and this one analyses the merits and demerits of a field that draws influences and in turn influences a wider spectrum of issues. It is interesting to perceive the manner in which the book uses a synchronic approach to arrive at a very comprehensive analysis of the current day status. For a young designer this book gives a lot of thought to treating design as a part of a larger framework. It forces one to think on larger issues that can be solved through design.

As the title indicates, Vidler's recent publication guides us to see the underlying forces that caused warping and irregularity in contemporary architecture. Beginning with defining various conceptions of 'phobias', Vidler navigates us into the realm of abnormal psychology. Critical theorists, such as Georg Simmel and Walter Benjamin, are also introduced to interweave the ideas of 'estrangement' and 'flaneur(metropolitan nomad wandering unconsciously)'. In so doing, he allows readers to understand underlying mindset behind the buildings of Libeskind, Himmelblau, and Eric Owen Moss.

Excellant material for the Pre-Catechumenate phase of RCIA. Just enough information to provide the "overview" encouraged by the Rite.

Fr. Champlin provides an excellent "beginners" overview of the important aspects of Catholic faith. While this is not intended to be a theology text book and does not address any issue in depth, our parish has found it to be the perfect resource for persons in the Pre-Catechumenate stage of Christian Initiation. The colorful illustrations and very readable text are attractive and inviting. The articles lend themselves well to discussion questions that draw on the life experience of the participants. It provides the Inquirers enough background to introduce them to the church and stimulate questions without overwhelming those without previous instruction with excessive theological jargon.

For use in the Pre-Catechumenate - this book is PERFECT.

The events and trends and art works that these collected articles discuss are all worthy of reflection. The title I find a little pretentious - "Reporting of the Twentieth Century" is a bit much, considering that the Pulitzer didn't exist before the 20th, and the obvious fact that the 20th would be every bit as interesting even if the journalism awards went to papers other than the most circulated (and wealthiest) of them all. But there is undeniably excellent reporting here, and at least some good commentary. Anthony Lewis's introduction is ill-written and a bit fatuous (not unusual with him), but can easily be ignored. A highly recommended compendium.

In his 1904, Joseph Pulitzer left $2 million to Columbia University to establish a journalism school.

Believing an "able, disinterested, public spirited press, with trained intelligence to know the right and the courage to do it, can preserve the public virtue without which the popular government is a sham and a mockery," he reserved 25 per cent of the amount for prizes to reward excellence in the field.

During the twentieth century's remaining years The New York Times won 81 of those prizes. In his introductory essay and story forwards, the editor, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Anthony Lewis relates the stories behind the stories and documents journalism's evolving role in society. For the reader, a vivid, moving portrait of the century emerges, as told by a group of talented, dedicated observers.

Included in a section entitled "What the Government Didn't Want You to Know," David Halberstam's December, 1963 think piece on the Vietcong growing strength. Published 15 months before President Lyndon Johnson committed hundreds of thousands of U.S troops to assume the brunt of the fighting from the South Vietnamese.

In 1967, J. Anthony Lukas exposed a growing gap between children and their parents in "The Two Worlds of Linda Fitzpatrick," a well-to-do Connecticut girl who was found murdered in Greenwich Village with a hippie friend. The story, which contrasted her privileged up-bringing with her squalid, drug-ridden lifestyle, caused numerous families to reconsider this wide spread and dangerous split.

Dave Anderson won the prize 1980 for his column on George Steinbrenner's ceremonious - complete with finger food for the assembled press -- firing of Yankee manager Dick Howser.

It is tough to ignore the prizes for commentary won by Anna Quindlen on AIDS and Russell Baker's two prizes for being serious and his reflections on working with Norman Rockwell.

Journalism maybe rift with faults, but the stories contained in this volume demonstrate what results when gifted, hardworking journalists follow their noble ambitions and dreams.

This BOOK is amazing! From the basics of animation to the more advanced practices, this book is for any animator that wants to animate in XSI. Every animation feature is covered with this book. Unfortunately, since this book does not come with a CD that contains the scene files necessary, you must download them from Mesmer's web site. That's not the bad part. First, the contents were not uploaded. Then, when they were uploaded, they were a temporary version to make downloaders happy. Unfortuantely, when you finish downloading the 43.9MB file, you find that this "temporary" version of the scene files CRASH XSI. I'm sure that the scenes will be nice and relate well with this book WHEN THEY ARE UPLOADED IN THEIR COMPLETE FORM. Until then, this book is a great fundamental resource, but a poor learning tool. 4 stars = Good Book + Bad Content. 5 stars = Good Book + Good Content.

The scene files that accompany this book only crashed the free XSI "Experience" demo version, due to a backwards-compatibility issue in the software (not a bug in the scene files from Mesmer). Softimage was kind enough to release a patch to the XSI Experience CD that fixes the problem, just for this book series. The patch is available from the same place you get the scene files (due to the review guidelines I can't include the URL, but it's in the book).

One central premise of Ishmael is that ideas are to culture what genes are to an organism--the core ideas determine the culture's growth and direction. It's sometimes called memetic's, sometimes shared vision and mental model, but you won't read those words in the book. Quinn calls it story. Quinn explores the stories of our culture, where they have led us, and why. That's either the mind-blowing part of the book, or the part you don't get and think the book is a dud.

If your mind is blown you come away with a better understanding of why we are more or less trapped in a system that compels us to destroy the world in our daily actions and why, if the world is to be saved, it won't be saved by programs like recycling, or birth control, or legislation to cut emissions--only a change in vision will work, a change in the story we are, as a culture enacting.

When the book works, you can suddenly see our cultural story everywhere, transmitted in news stories, in advertisements, lectures at school, fairy tales, religion, songs. You become tuned into the transmission of our culture. When you can do this, you can more easily change your own story.

When the book doesn't work, readers don't get the point at all. It seems a half baked noble-savage argument. They think Quinn is saying we should go back to living in the stone age, or they get caught up in Quinn's explanation of food-population dynamics, and they read into it things Quinn doesn't say. Sometimes they just can't endure the poor storyline. For all that the book is about stories, there is little storyline in this book. Quinn's storytelling improves in Ishmael's sequels Story of B, or My Ishmael. Quinn did a better job with them. Quinn particularly shines when telling parables, and you will find more of these in his latter books.

Taken individually, Quinn's ideas are not really new. Most of what he says has been said better by others. Quinn's genius isn't so much in presenting new ideas, but in drawing connections between existing ideas. It's the connections that are new. Some criticize Quinn for not covering the details of the ideas themselves, but those details can be found in his sources. Quinn keeps a list of the books he read in preparing to write his own on his web site... For those with an earnest desire to save the world, Ishmael is just a beginning.

I had read Ishmael about three years ago and I have been in debate about it with other people who discuss only the idea that the Taker culture was bound to happen eventually and the psychology of human consciouness at the time of the Taker split. Upon reading the reviews here I am not surprised in the least to many high ratings and those to don't get the intended premise.

1.)Ishmael is not a literary masterpiece and was not meant to be. Quinn peferably would rather write nonfiction but he realizes that a novel form for presenting the ideas is the best way to reach the intended audience.

2.)Ishmael is repetitive only to lay the ground work for further discussion. In the Story of B Quinn explains in detail the necessity to repeat the structure in order to form colage where pieces fall thogether at different times.

.3) Ishmael,B, My Ishamel, and Providence when read in that order give the reader the full tools to decipher Quinns arguments. Alan in Ishamel is supposed to play the role of limited inquisitor in order for the ground work to be laid. Those three novels are needed in full to lay out the premise. The questions are supposed play the role to support that objective.

.4) We aren't Humanity. I am dumbfounded that people still didn't see Quinn's point. This is not a nature good versus humanity bad scenario

.5)By the way if it is written like it was intended for third graders as some of the critics say I am glad because frankly Mother culture hasn't drifted their minds to sleep! Ishamel Rules! Rock on read Beyond Civilization it is the answer to your, but now what questions.

I have read a number of the poorest reviews for this book just now. I read ishmael at 17 on a whim. I found it to be an eye-opening experience for a close minded know it all teenager (i'm only all of 20 now though). The book is written simply because everyone should be able to understand it, but not everyone has the patience or ability to understand something so simple. I find it similiar to tying one's shoe; it's easy to do, but try to explain it to someone who doesn't even know where to begin...not as easy is it? As well, this is not simply a book of man vs mother nature; not just man is bad, go hug a tree, love your neighbor and everything will be ok. People who read the book expecting to have a utopian future laid out for them in simple terms are just an example of this culture becoming accustomed to a fast-food, single-serving answer to everything. Quinn simply says that everyone on the planet engaging in totalitarian agriculture is too much of a strain. The goal as some have taken it is to revert back to "the uncivilized tribal heathen"; but Quinn is just saying that people can live all sorts of ways, that no one way is the right way for everyone to live. As for it's lack of concrete plans for the future: Quinn cannot know how it will turn out, he cannot know how things will change, the best way that he can can make a difference is to help others see the problem so that they can find their own solution. When enough people find their own solutions, then the problem will have been eradicated. Share this book with others, Quinn has said something like "even if you reach just one person, that one may reach a million".

I was amazed to see so many complimentary reviews of this book, especially the ones that rate Bourdain as such a 'fine storyteller'. Maybe he comes across better in print; I listened to the Audible version that he narrates himself. The subject matter and his exploits are certainly entertaining. However, before I was halfway through the book I had developed such an intense dislike of the author that I could barely listen to the rest. I understand his intent to write a 'tell-all' description of life as a chef, and I have read many a book that used constant, never-ending, over-the-top foul language for that 'touch of realism'. But Bourdain just comes across as such an unpleasant S.O.B. on tape that I was soon sorry I had given money to his cause. In the end, it wasn't the behind-the-scenes stories of what really goes on in a kitchen that repulsed me so much as having spent six hours listening to someone who I would never want to sit through a dinner with. Get 'Fast Food Nation' instead.

You'll learn some kitchen slang, a lot of new obscenities, a couple of cooking tips. You've already learned all the restaurant survival tips, like "don't order fish on Monday," from reading the reviews.

The main draw here is Anthony Bourdain his own bad, raunchy self. He is Not A Nice Person. I wouldn't want to be him, or even particularly close to him. I'm not sure I even want to eat his food - maybe I know a little too much about his kitchen for comfort. But: man, he tells a good story. Some parts of the story drag, as the various doomed restaurants of his early career start blending together. That costs him a star in my rating. Otherwise, it's an exciting, morbidly fascinating view into Bourdain's life as a sensualist, and the "dysfunctional family" of his kitchen.

I "read" this book as an audiobook from audible.com, which I highly recommend. Bourdain himself does the reading, adding life and dimension to this character study. Also, it gets you past the unfortunate editorial flaws mentioned in a previous review.

The author warns, "There will be horror stories.
Heavy drinking, drugs, screwing in the dry-goods area, unappetizing industry-wide practices. Talking about why you probably shouldn't order fish on a Monday, why those who favor well-done get the scrapings from the bottom of the barrel, and why seafood frittata is not a wise brunch selection.... But I'm simply not going to deceive anybody about the life as I've seen it."

Anthony Bourdain has lead quite a life, and retells some of his adventures in frank, vivid detail. This book is full of fact, gossip and inside views of a sub-culture most of us will never experience, yet sit just on the outskirts of, on the other side of those swinging kitchen doors. It touches us, but we cannot touch back. This is a rare treat.

From defiantly slurping down his first raw oyster as a child, through CIA education, to working in New York's hot spots, cooking for celebrities, Anthony Bourdain candidly exposes some of the seedier elements of the restaurant business. He speaks of sex in the storage rooms, backseat negotiations over bread delivery with shady businessmen (presumably mafia), ego-induced insanity and down-and-out genius.

He gives us some food for thought, lets us in on the odd sense of humor shared in most of the kitchens he has worked in, and occasionally shocks us with things we may not have wanted to know, but we read on, swallowing every juicy tidbit hungrily. It reminds one of watching a car wreck victim be loaded onto a stretcher, we try not to, but we continue to stare transfixed, wincing all the while.

He describes most restaurant staff as "wacked-out moral degenerates, dope fiends, refugees, a thuggish assortment of drunks, sneak thieves, ... , and psychopaths," with a cast like that, how can any story fail to entertain?

At one restaurant the crew spent slow hours coming up with practical jokes to play on the unsuspecting front room staff and management, such as molding life-like severed fingers from various food products and leaving them around in freezers and on cutting boards.

It is not all lurid amusement, however. He does manage to sneak in some wonderful recipes, along with very good advice (what knives are really worth owning, for example) for casual cooks, would-be professional chefs and potential restaurant owners.

If you don't have a weak stomach, enjoy cooking, eating, laughing and/or general debauchery, this book is bound to have you hooked from page one.

Also, if you enjoy listening rather than (or as well as) reading, look for the audio book, read by the author. His delivery adds something rich and spicy to the already wonderfully satisfying feast of words. It had me looking forward to my commute, just so I could hear how Chef Bourdain would garnish the next course with his own inflection and undeniably charming "gruff New Yorker" attitude.

Non-fiction stories of a unique southern city are nicely interwoven by Esquire writer Berendt, who was lucky enough to live there.

Basically, it is a true crime novel, but it is written with warmth, humor, and a remarkable eye for detail. Berendt takes the reader behind velvet curtains and antique walls into a society where pedigree is based as much on lineage, wealth, and power as on quirky southern traditions like knowing how to serve a fine platter of tomato sandwiches.

Forget Eastwood's oddly disappointing film; this book is quite marvelous. True crime lover? You will enjoy the book's steamy setting and colorful characters, an almost poetic break from the repetitive and merely competant writings by the likes of Ann Rule. Aristocracy - watcher? You will savour the odd little schemes and intrigues exposed without any hint of malice. The tragic saga of one man's extraordinary ascent into high society is presented amidst many delicious (and often hilarious) vignettes of all levels of Savannah's class structure. The author beautifully describes Savannah's magic, mystery, and achingly sad decay. Really, it is a fine tribute to this historic city of likeable conmen, sexy ne'er-do-wells, conniving politicians, and obsessive hostesses.

It's a real page-turner, a good companion if you are planning to visit Savannah.

"Midnight In The Garden Of Good and Evil" is peopled with a human gumbo of high society hobnobbers, charming hustlers, sassy crossdressers, overzealous police and prosecutors, voodoo practitioners, coffee shop weirdos and lounge musicians. Author John Berendt paints the pictures along our strange odyssey with a hypnotic and lush vocabulary evoking the Savannahian enclave vividly. He does a great job on dialogue, tickling our funny bones with the idiosyncratic vernaculars of the inhabitants. I've had the pleasure of visiting Savannah, and during my stay, truly got a sense of the eccentric populace, the unique and gorgeous natural beauty of the place, and the abundant and spooky graveyards and houses overgrown with Spanish moss. Berendt succeeds wildly in his storytelling plan by laying down the xenophobic nature of Savannah high society, juxtaposing it with his own move to Savannah from New York, and focusing the main story on the iconoclast Jim Williams, a self-made mega-successful real estate speculator and antiques connoisseur, who shakes up business-as-usual with his lavish parties and refusal to kowtow to the deeply ingrained traditions of the place. The book is an easy, smooth and entertaining read. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is just that. A snap shot into the lives of the wealthy and privileged of the South captured in the pages of this novel by the more than skilled and nimble fingers of John Berendet. I almost did not want to reach the end. I fell in love with Savanah, with the wild, wacky and wonderful people that fill this book to the brim with a richness that could only be true. There is a reason that Midnight was the longest running hardback on the New York Times Bestsellers list. It was only recently made into a paperback so that it could reach another audience.

This is the story of wealthy and eccectric Jim Williams, who throws lavish parties, is the envy of all of Savannah and equally despised by the same people. During a wild party, one of many, the readers begin to glimpse the underbelly of Jim's world and then suddenly a shot rings out and a man is dead. Accident or murder?

How does a transvestite, a vodoo priestess and UGA fit into the picture? You will have to read this fantastically crafted book to discover the truth. If you love the book as much as everyone else - you should rent the movie (which does not hold a candle to the book) just to see the REAL Lady Chablis as she plays herself in the movie.

Enjoy this one - it is really worth the read!

Strange animals have been found in Costa Rica, animals that are burnt to remove evidence of their existence. Dr. Ian Malcolm is called upon to return to a world that he thought he would never have to face again. This time they are traveling to Site B, a second set of InGen labs, a place where the infant dinosaurs were hatched and then raised before they were released into Jurassic Park. For years the dinosaurs have been living in a natural environment, with no fences and no men - this is their home and humans enter at their own risk.

The movie that was based on this novel was pretty close, but the book is even better. On site B the animals are completely wild and most of them have never had any interactions with humans. Into this wild landscape comes Ian Malcolm and Sara Harding. As with the first novel it is interesting that Crichton decided to include children as part of the main cast of characters. It is also interesting that in both novels the children end up partially saving the day.

If you decide to read this novel then put aside the movie and read the novel for the sake of reading the novel. If you have not read Jurassic Park (only seen the movie) then don't worry because you should still be able to enjoy the story. I have read this book twice and still enjoyed it the second time around. I would recommend this book if you liked the movies and if you liked Jurassic Park the book.

I've just finished this and its a good read. Not Crichton's best by any means, but nonetheless a good book. I like the way that it links with Jurassic Park but actually uses a different set of characters (apart from Ian Malcolm). It did annoy me a bit that Malcolm was in the novel since he was supposed to have died in the last one. I also felt it unnecessary to include more kids for the sake of it. Also, the story was a bit one-dimensional compared to Jurassic Park, and it didn't have quite the same bang. A bit like comparing Hollywood with the Welsh Film Industry...

Anyway, what I will say is that I don't like the accusations about Crichton writing this for commercial value because the film was released at the same time. Firstly, the set of characters is almost completely different. Secondly, the plot is also very different. This isn't Jurassic Park, it's not Sphere, its not even Timeline. But nonetheless, its still worth reading if you're a Crichton fan, especially if you liked the first book. But, as other reviewers have stated, it wasn't really a needed sequel, neither did it match up to the first book. The only real reason I gave it four is because it was entertaining enough.

"The Lost World" is one of the best books I have ever read. Crichton was ingenious while writing it, although I have head that he very much hated it himself, when writing it, until he read it once again. I have read it 5 times and have seen the movie 6. It is one of my favorites along with "Sphere", "Airframe", and several others of his. His characters, such as Ian Malcolm, Sarah Harding, Doc Thorne, and Eddie Carr are very strong, and it seems as if you could actually meet them once you get into the book. The movie was not as good, but much better than "Jurassic Park". The original had much more research dedicated to it, but when Malcolm describes this information, which he does often, he begins to drone, and becomes especially boring. He is not near as boring in the sequel, but, as one other person remarked in their own review, Malcolm was said to be dead by Muldoon, who would have surely known. The others left the island--Isla Nublar--in helicopters, and the island was obliterated with bombs, unless other choppers came to the compound, taking Malcolm's 'dead' body away, and fixing him up. Anyway, "Lost World" is a magnificent book, and I would advise others to read it.