I really enjoyed the book. I read from it everyday. It is very touching and encouraging. I really enjoyed #51 Keep up the good work Mr. Thomas, I look forward to reading more of your publications in the future.

V Whimper

For someone at the age of 21 years old to write a book to touch on so many different issues, it is inspiring to other people and those who are Thomas' age. Purchasing the book through this site gave me the opportunity to see Thomas' talent, his pain, his goals, his views on other issues as he looked at a diverse amount of topics that many young males avoid or don't address. I truly appreciate his skills and recommend this book to everyone!

I met Mr. Thomas while he was doing a book signing at a local store in Atlanta. He struck me as a very intelligent young man and he is off to a wonderful beginning with this book. His poems are thoughtful, thought-provoking and just plain good reading. I smiled, I laughed out loud, I cried and I felt good. That's amazing to accomplish in just 68 pages. Must read and a must keep.

A brilliantly written mystery of a disturbing father/daughter "relationship." These intricatly woven characters left us feeling unsettled and looking over our shoulders. Robert Peernock doesn't expect his daughter to fight back- I rooted for her throughout. I only wish this story weren't true! Kudos to the author!

As a juror on this trial,I just found out about this book!Ordered it.Read it.Felt the emotion & pain for Natasha & Claire all over again.The facts were written very clearly & precise.I compared many of them to my notes I took during the trial.Incredible!Although some parts of the book were rather "over dramatized",it still held fast to the reality of the facts.To someone else,they might think "No way could this have happened like this.It's too unbelievable".Robert was an evil man-not insane, but greedy,rotten & evil-knew what he wanted-would kill to get it!

Mr. Flacco's work in unraveling this true story is compelling. Throughout the book, as evil as the crime is, we never lose hope for the victim and the system prevails leaving the readers feeling gratified rather than ripped off. Wonderfully written with great visual imagery. Would make a terrific movie!

This is a good over all book, but two things bring the rating down a lot. First, When you are a child in Angel Tower. Moving the blocks is confusing. A person I know found a way that takes 50% less time and is not confusing at all. Second, and the reason that it is three stars not four and a half is the pictures are out of order. It shows different sceans from when you are an adult when you are a child. That is the reason that this book is so bad. If the author makes thoes changes the book will be 100% compleat, not 65% compleat. It would also help to add the best weapon for each character and where you can get it. Lastly, the fishing section is very compleat and good but I can manage with out it and more is needed.

This book was awesome. It was quite helpful in helping me find all the Dragon Genes, helping me fish, provide a walkthrough, providing all the game's secrets, profiles on the characters, how to heal status changes, etc., etc., etc. If you're having trouble, get this book.

This is a great book it gets you all the dragon genes, all the weapons, all the magic, all fishing equipment plus some really great secrets of the game. Before I bought this book I had trouble finding key items or weapons, but now I have everything I need to beat the game. Ryan the Game Player

I very much enjoyed the first few Xanth novels. In those early novels, Anthony combined a well thought-out world, engaging characters, and a humourous tone to make eminently readable books. He lost the spark somewhere along the way, however. The later books, like this one, are simply going through the motions. Take Princess Ivy, for example. Early characters -- like Bink in A Spell for Chameleon -- had unique characteristics and abilities that they had to learn to use to resolve the challenges facing them. With Ivy, Anthony cops out. Her "special power" basically boils down to an ability to cause anything to happen that she desires. Not surprisingly, having given himself this incredible crutch, Anthony feels no need to put much thought into the plot of the book or to devise creative ways for his characters to resolve problems. What, there's a giant chasm blocking the characters' passage? That's ok, Ivy has decided that someone has the ability to sprout wings and fly them across....

I started reading books by Piers Anthony at the age of 13 after I read "Dragon on A Pedestal". That was three years ago and I'm still facinated by the fun and mythical world of Xanth. Heck, if I where up to me I'd live there. A facinating book that should be read again and again. Long live Piers Anthony!!!!

I have enjoyed several books in the Xanth series, but this book surpasses them all. The innocence and pure love and trust of princess Ivy rise above the trials of her magical world, including malevolent creatures and frightening punnish circumstances. I repeatedly found myself agonizing over Ivy's fate, only to cheer when she, Stanley, and Hugo, by their friendship and bravery, surmounted the obstacles set before them. No other book I have read has had the power to bring me to tears with its emotional beauty one moment, and make me roll on the floor in laughter the next. The magical and punishingly hilarious characters and plants fit together in a satisfactory mesh that delights and astoninishes. _Dragon on a Pedestal_ is a lovely book that can be enjoyed by any Mundane adult or child who has a fine appreciation for true character and the intricacies of the English language. Anthony has created a very special adventure, for which I thank him.

I don't know what it is, but in this series, it seems that a weak title follows a strong one. Just like "Bearing an Hourglass" didn't come up to the level of "On a Pale Horse", so "Wielding a Red Sword" does not come up to the level of "With a Tangled Skein".

The basic premise of this novel seems more concerned with finding a permenant love interest for the main character than it does with exploring the role/nature of the Incarnation of War. Also expanded upon are the concepts of the "lesser incarnations"; a plot device which is (probably) necessary to explain the "Four Horsemen" which traditionally accompany War, but introduces a weakness in the integrity of the series as a whole.

Two interesting conventions are either exapanded upon or introduced. The first is the "tying together" of the various characters, hinted at in the first couple of books, but emphasized strongly in this volume. Now we know some of what happened to Orb, introduced in the previous volume as the daughter of Niobe. It certainly appears that Anthony intends to unite all the Incarnations in one family (or love) realationship. The other is the idea of an Incarnation defeating Satan by threatening to bring down the entire world. In the previous three novels, the title character's showdown with Satan never approached this level.

I enjoyed this book -- and enjoy this series -- but this is one of the weaker titles.

I loved this book best of 'em all. I'm absolutly crazy about weapons, especially swords, so even the name was exiting. I'm eleven and flying through this series a book a week. If you like this series, read Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny. If I were Mars, I would slay all who oppose this book. And to let you know, Mym's former snake-ring now belong to Norton/Chronos and goes by Sning. It was awsome and very detailed. Who would have ever thought a Prince for Mars, I mean a PRINCE to be the incarnation of WAR. Anthony is a genius for writing the series. Even Xanth doesn't compare. I advise this for anyone who CAN identify GOOD si-fies.

Piers Anthony, in his continuation of the "Incarnations of Immortality" series, tries to answer that question. Each book deals with an aspect of reality - death, time, fate, nature, war, evil, good - by having an ordinary person take, get stuck with, or slip into the job of being the Incarnation of that aspect of reality and having to run it.

The series tackles many philosophical issues, while the writing is in a light, whimsical style and the setting is a world very much like our own, except that magic has the same status and commonality as science. "Wielding a Red Sword" is well-written, the characters are likeable, the plot is coherent, and it tackles one of the toughest topics in the series: war. Through various situations, the author tries to address the questions of what purposes does war serve, are any of those purposes valid under any conditions, and does any good come out of war ever?

Again, we have good, fun, reading, that is also thought-provoking. The story has enough twists and turns to make it interesting, along with the underlying philosophical questions addressed.

Claimed to be the best of all Greek tragedies, OEDIPUS REX (or OEDIPUS THE KING..."REX" means "KING") by Sophocles is that classic story of the man who was doomed to kill his own father and marry his own mother. Everyone seems to know the basic plot of the story, but how much do you REALLY know?

This new translation of OEDIPUS THE KING by Berg and Clay proves to be successful...everything is understandable and rather enjoyable to read too. It's hard to believe that you're actually reading a play.

I suggest that you DO NOT read the original version of the play by Sophocles first...you might be discouraged by the difficulty of the language he uses. Instead, start with Berg and Clay's translation...it's so much easier to read, and more importantly, enjoy.

I felt that the action and plot was well-woven out, and the story tied together nicely; however, there was one flaw. The ending was too abrupt. Of course, I'm not going to spoil the ending for you now (you'll have to read it yourself) but I WILL tell you that if you're one of those people who hate endings that just leave you hanging, you might not like OEDIPUS THE KING.

I had to read OEDIPUS THE KING as an Honors English assignment (and usually what kind of books we have to read for school are good?). Nevertheless, I found the play interesting, but because of the so-abrupt ending with questions still dangling on the end, I give the book 3 stars. (By the way, in no other Greek tragedy are so many questions asked, so be prepared to have your mind boggled by this book!...Have a spiffy day! -Nick Chu

The only budget series of audio books and recorded drama comes from Naxos. One of their more recent entries is a very modern version of Sophocles' in a translation by Duncan Steen. In fact, some might find it a little too modern with its use of idiomatic expressions such as "You can't pin that on me"--which might be taken as an ironic reference to the final horrible deed of the hero. But when the messenger the agonized Oedipus as calling himself a "mother f..." (although he stops at the "f") the effect is far too "modern" for comfort. You see, given a sound recording, we can only assume that the action is taking place in the nearly prehistoric past. I do not know the tone of Sophocles' Greek; but I do read that it is elegant and decorous. Therefore, I can only assume that this translator is doing his source a great injustice.

On the other hand, the dialogue MOVES. There is an excitement to this performance, although the Creon of Adam Kotz lacks some force. Michael Sheen is good in the title role, as is Nichola McAuliffe as Jocasta, Heathcote Williams as the Chorus Leader, and John Moffatt as Tiresias and the Narrator at the start of the recording. The Chorus itself is cut down to four voices, but they are handled nicely with stereo separation and are quite comprehensible. The music is meager but effectively used.

All in all, a very good if not perfect attempt at making one of the greatest Western plays accessible to a wide audience.

"Oedipus the King" or Oedipus Rex is the world's first great tragedy. Almost everyone knows the tale of the man who murdered his father and married his own mother. The only question is, which translation do you read? Bernard Knox makes an excellent case for his prose translation of Sophocles classic. This is a version designed for the a filmed version meant for the classroom; as such, it is remarkably smooth and easy to read. There is little poetry left in it; if that is what you seek, look elsewhere. This edition comes with a nice set of introductory essays on the background of the play, the theater, and Sophocles. All in all, a nice little edition.

My thanks to Dr. Walker for putting this painful experience to paper. Some of the negative reviews suprise me. This book is not intended to propose treatments. It is a testimonial. Why is that important?
I went thru hauntingly similar experiences during a relationship that ended in divorce after a brief and hurried marriage. Even as a physician, I was not sufficiently familiar with borderline personality disorder to recognize it in my partner --an embarassing admission. It only dawned on me that my wife was borderline, because a therapist suggested the diagnosis, and that was at the end.
A relationship with a person who has borderline personality disorder is frightening and can be life altering. I wish I had known more at the beginning.
I agree with the negative reviewer who states that the person who gets involved with someone with a serious mental condition needs to examine themselves. That I have been doing. But the value of Dr. Walkers story is not diminished. It sounds like an honest account, because it rings true for me and maybe others.
What I do wonder though is why he endeavored to advance a relationship with a women he knew had this condition at the outset. Alternatively, how many of us, once thru this, will do it again?

This account of the author's marriage to an abusive woman with BPD reads like a novel - except it really happened! I couldn't put it down. Now a psychiatrist, Dr. Walker details the experiences surrounding his youthful marriage to a charming and captivating - but manipulative woman - who nearly destroyed him. The reader gains an understanding of the BPD mind as well as the partner's co-dependent participation in the events. As Jacqueline's verbal abuse escalated into violence over time, a loving husband progressively lost touch with his inner self, running the risk of becoming violent himself. Neither person set out to hurt the other. Unfortunately, this is how too many of these one-sided relationships go. BPD is poorly understood by the lay public, yet is a prevalent illness more often diagnosed among women than among men. This clearly written and informative book is excellent reading for any person interested in BPD relationships. This book is MUST reading for any man who has been in a destructive relationship with a BPD woman - the woman he just can't do enough for... Dr. Irene

The term Borderline Personality Disorder seems to get thrown around easily. Sometimes it is even used as a pejorative. Friends and families often don't understand what someone married to a BPD goes through. This is a book to give them. Many of the instances in the book are very easy to identify with if you have ever been in such a relationship. Manipulation, all-or-nothing, up-and-down, good-or-bad, nothing in-between, suicide threats. This book is written by a psychiatrist but it is a memoir and not clinical...anyone can read it. I found it though to be a tremendous asset mainly because Dr. Walker put down his thoughts and motivations in ways that I could understand my own. I read it in one night unable to put it down.

After reading Beyond The Pale, I wrote an online review (not for amazon.com) stating that it was "a good start". I really enjoyed some of the aspects such as the iron hearts, the travails of modern Americans trying to adjust to medieval living, and the mysterious Child Samanda et. al.. But I was fearful that the subseqent books would be a letdown.

In this second book of the series, Mr. Anthony continues some themes and introduces others. Once again, he focuses on a specific stone of power (this time it's the stone of fire). Our heroes work to prevent the misuse of the stone and the destruction of Earth and Eldh. We get more information about what it's like to live in medieval times. Child Samanda makes a brief appearance. The main characters finally have to face their inner demons. And so on. In addition, we get the character development that is typical of the second book of a trilogy, including the homosexual knight mentioned in other reviews.

In general I like Keep of Fire and the series. It may be a ripoff from other epic fantasies (Tolkien, Eddings, Donaldson, Hambly), but there is a lot of new stuff as well. Mr. Anthony has given us a rich world and some interesting characters.

Much like the book that came before it, "Beyond the Pale", this book is filled with the precise detail that I've already learned to expect from Mark Anthony. "Keep of Fire" contained the awe-inspiring imagery and gorgeous prose of its predecessor, and elaborated significantly on the already-real characters. I was helplessly caught up in this book, and encourage everyone who enjoys a good fantasy to read "Keep of Fire". The third book promises to be every bit as fascinating as the first two. All that really needs to be said is that this series is, without a doubt, my favorite. I've never encountered such believable and likable characters, or waited so nervously for an ending, or delighted at each new turn -- read these books for yourself, and see why!

Let's face the harsh reality of customer reviews. They're either 5 stars, or 1 star. Benedict, or scathing. I choose the former, or rather, Mark Anthony earned it. Simplicity is the weapon of masters and fools, and clearly, Anthony is a master.

His plot is simple, yet enthralling. Gone is the complex plot and multitude of indecipherable subplots. I would take this book to school, and amidst the cackling children and ranting teachers, I found nothing but pure ecstacy, or sorrow, or horror. It is the kind of book that will keep you pensive all night long, pondering over who is the epitome of this vile undertaking, or who Tira really is.

His character development is commendable. One moment a character's ignorance almost gets him/her killed, and the next, he/she is the savior of the party.

For a budding author, Mark Anthony has displayed a skill in authoring which surpasses that of any other author, either self-promoted or reputably commended. If you are a reader who enjoys a captivating mystery/action book, then I recommend The Keep of Fire and Beyond the Pale. If Mark Anthony lives up to his well earned reputation, then The Dark Remains should par, if not surpass, the entertainment that The Keep of Fire has served me.

I'm new to SQL/SQL Server, and was looking for a basic intro to the package. The book does an excellent job introducing all of the features and functions, but not much else. Real-world examples were there, but very limited. As I read, I often found myself asking, in a manner of speaking, "sure, that's what button I push, but WHY do I push it?"

I did walk away with an appreciation for the complexity of SQL Server 7. Save yourself the cash, and read the product documentation instead.

I was disappointed with this book. Many trade books that are the first out to cover cutting edge topics merely take the documentation and present it a little differently (i.e. "To use this feature, first click this, then enter this, now do this." etc.) IMHO, there is too much of this in this book. Also, there is not enough explanations of the features of SQL Server 7.0 to help you understand them or how they could be used. This is the first Dummies book I have been disappointed with.

While this book maybe less than what a seasoned DBA maybe looking for it is non the less an excellent book. The author wrote the book using Beta 3 and I used it against RC-1 of SQL 7. There were some differences but not enough to interfere with the authors clear introduction to SQL 7.

I believe you will find SQL Server 7 for Dummies to be a superb introduction to SQL 7 and as only one of two books on the subject in print at the time of this review it is the least expensive and most informative.

Regards

As another reviewer said, the structure is not logical, e.g., capturing video is at the end of the book, when it needs to be at the beginning. The author steadfastly recommends using the single-track, rather than the far more intuitive and simple-to-use A/B roll method of editing, forgetting that anyone buying a beginner's book on Premiere is just that...a beginner! Why not make it as easy as possible? His approach offers no real advantage. Further, the "visual" aspect is not sufficiently helpful, and the short descriptions create 2 new questions in the reader's head for every 1 new concept covered. Do not buy this book.

Premiere 6 for Macintosh and Windows Visual Quickstart Guide by Antony Bolante, et al can help readers at any level learn this very capable but sometimes complicated software. Chapters and examples are organized in the same order that most users will access various Premier 6 features, Macintosh and Windows version differences are painlessly explained, and step by step task instruction is provided in each chapter. This logical "here's how you do it" approach, plus the wealth of illustrations and non-technical explanations should be especially welcome to readers without experience. It is refreshing to read a computer book that visually educates and contains plain language instead of chapter after chapter of technical jargon. But, this is far more than just a book for beginners, as the experienced user will also find many tips and strategies for effectively using Premiere 6, too. Explanations of the many audio and video import and export settings, information missing in most Premiere documentation, were invaluable in helping me produce an acceptable end result. The comparisons between Premiere 6 and traditional film editing were also very interesting, and although this information isn't necessary to use Premiere 6, it helped me understand how motion picture editing is done. And the price is right too, especially for a 400+ page book loaded with examples. This book helped me make the fast progress that I needed to make, and did it with style. Bravo!

A comprehensive and well organized manual for Adobe Premiere 6. Includes a great Index and detailed Table of Contents, making it easy to find answers to almost any questions very quickly. Text is generally to the point and clear, with many illustrations. In addition to thoroughly covering Premiere, there are general sections related to video, such as Frame Rate, Time Code, Interlacing, Aspect Ratios, etc..

It should be noted that this book is NOT a step-by-step tutorial to teach you Premiere. It works as a reference manual, and does that job admirably. Although one could probably learn Premiere with this book, for beginners I would recommend Adobe's Classroom in a Book series and/or the tutorials that ship with Premiere.

Overall, an outstanding book and an excellent value. ...END