This is an excellent overview and primer on metaphysics. One of the main themes being the common thread of metaphysical truths (ancient wisdom) at the core of all world religions. Most people unfamiliar with this subject have many misconceptions about what metaphysics is. The author very clearly dispells these myths. The book is both informative and inspiring. This book will surprise the knowledgeable, the seeker and the skeptics.

I throughly enjoyed this book. It was a refreshing read about a young man who ends up having it all..his faith..his one true love and wealth. H Anthony has a real flair for writing. I look forward to reading more of his books

This is a very good biography of Michelangelo that ranks along with Irving Stone's "The Agony and the Ecstasy" (fictional bio). Bull includes numerous letters to and from Michelangelo that involve friends and family. One is left with a good overall picture of Michelangelo and his times. I would have given it 5 stars if Bull was a little more inquisitve about painting and how painters of the time went about their work (including Michelangelo).

The book is written in detail. If you are interested to be a microbiologist, you must buy this book. But the content is too much for other medical students, and is not useful clinically. Nevertheless, this book is interesting.

While I know a lot of folks who are fascinated by the Civil War - and I suppose more than most I have that interest myself - my greater fascination has been with the lives that helped shape the coming of the war, and particularly their lives in the aftermath of the war. This biographical novel based on Emily Howland's own diaries and letters gave me a number of wonderful insights into this period, particularly into the ties between the anti-slavery movement and the later movement for Woman Suffrage. Besides learning about Miss Howland, herself, we are afforded personal and revealing glimpses into the life and character of other significant figures as well, such as Susan B. Anthony and Harriet Tubman, founder of the Underground Railroad. And perhaps as important to expanding my understanding of these times, is the view into the lives of her family, friends, and the more anonymous heros of those days in shaping our nation to one of greater equality, a work still going on today. Miss Emily had been one of those anonymous heros, and it is a real gift to have her life brought out of the fading shadows, for hers is truly a life worth remembering. I found the book to be well-written and clearly well researched. My only complaint is the opening 2-page prologue struck me as contrived and Unnatural. It initially led me to expect less of the author, and that is proven unfounded by what follows. My advice is to just skip those two pages. If you have an interest in American history, particularly in the changing role of women, this book is a must read. I'm definitely putting it on the future reading list of our young daughter.

This book introduces modern fighter systems, operations, tactics and technologies behind those hardware. The author describes from the pre-flight preparation, pre-flight procedure, equipment of a fighter and how those systems work. Then it moves on to wepaons, tactis, including missiles, radar, AWACS. It also expalin the developemnt of modern system and pros and cons of current hardware.

This is a very good book for everyone who wants to understand the moder military aircrafts, operations and technologies. Some contents may be a little bit difficult for beginners, but it's organized very well

This is a well-written book with excellent photographs. This book presents the results of conservation efforts for medieval age Christian Egyptian, Coptic, wall paintings at Saint Anthony monastery, Egypt. The monastery is believed to be the first Christian monastery in the world. In the preface, the writers outlined the genesis of this conservation effort. They also provided progress photographs for some of the early and limited test cleaning work that showed the promising and extraordinary work of art that was underneath centuries of grime and over painting. The preservation and restoration efforts were funded by a grant from the United States Agency for International Aid (USAID).
As an American from Coptic ancestry, I would like to express thanks and appreciation to the American people, government and the USAID for their support for the conservation work of the Coptic cultural heritage and art.
The book outlines the history and life of Saint Anthony the great (251-356 AD). Saint Anthony is considered to be the father of or originator of monasticism. However, there is evidence that the ancient Egyptians temples included devotees, who led lives of prayer, learning and pursuit of wisdom, celibacy, and poverty, e.g. the story of Ptolemaios and Harmais the Serapeum temple devotees circa 164-158BC. It could be argued that, the Egyptian converts to Christianity continued to use of their past artistic and cultural heritage in new or modified ways compatible with Christian teaching. For example the Copts continued to use the ancient Egyptian ankh symbol in conjunction with the cross. Artifacts from the early centuries AD show the use of both the ankh and the cross. Contemporary Copts continue to use the ankh and the cross together as jewelry pieces. Similar arguments could be made about the artist rendering of Isis and baby Horus, which may have been used by early Coptic artists as a model to portray the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus. Saint Anthony the great led a solitary life in the desert. Accordingly the Coptic/Greek term monachos or monk in English was used. Saint Athanasius the Apostolic of Alexandria (296-373 AD) introduced monasticism to the west through his famous book the Life of Anthony. Contrary to the image painted for Anthony as an unlettered person, the book comments on letters of Anthony, of which seven are extant. The letters show Anthony to be well versed in platonic philosophy and Alexandrian theological traditions. Furthermore his letters emphasize gnosis or knowledge, and echoes the Greek philosophical tradition," Know thyself".
The book is written by several authors from different disciplines art history, history, archaeology, anthropology, and art conservation. The contributors to the book are mostly Americans and Copts from Egypt. The conservation team was led by Adriano Luzi and Luigi De Cesaris from Italy. Luzi and De Cesaris participated prior to this effort in the conservation of the paintings in the tomb of Nefertari. The main wall paintings in the monastery were originally the work of a team Coptic artists led by a master artist, Theodore Zographos, the painter, or the writer of life in Greek, circa 1232-1233 AD. The book indicates that the Coptic Church did not enjoy any royal patronage that could have helped funding churches or monasteries. The temporal rulers of Egypt from about 640AD were Muslims, and far from donating funds for churches, they actually taxed monks and forbade them from building churches without permission. The high-quality paintings in the Church of Saint Anthony were painted on dry plaster, in a technique called secco. Neither the pigments nor the plaster were of more than modest cost. About 33-40 Copts are believed to have been the patrons of the 13th century artwork. In addition to paying for the project, one or more of these 13th century Coptic patrons are likely the designers of the painting program. The style of Theodore is thoroughly Coptic, however the 13th century art is different from the first centuries of Christian art in Egypt. It is possible to discern the influence of Islamic, Byzantine and even Romanesque arts on the Coptic art of that era. The conservation work shows 6 layers of paintings, some of which date back the 5th-7th century. The results of the conservation work further indicate that the newly visible early 13th century paintings are so greatly at odds with art historical expectations that they mandate a near total reevaluation of the Coptic art after the Arabs conquest of Egypt.
This is a book that provides both entertainment and information. It would be a good addition for art, art history, and conservation aficionados.

Although part of this book is out of date, it is still an interesting look into the dealings of the international banking community.
The author begins with a survey of the most important events in world monetary matters: the creation of the big banks in the Middle Ages, the crash of 1929, the foundation of the IMF, floating exchange rates, the power of OPEC.
The second part are comments and analyses of events in the nineteen seventies and eighties of the past century:
- The New York City debt crisis (as Walter Wriston put it: We have also our LDC's : our least developed cities)
- the recycling of the OPEC money surplus (Paul Erdman: What the Arabs cleverly have done is to put the New York banks in the front row of risk. In other words, if Zaire goes kaput, Chase Manhattan is in trouble.)
- the credit card business (one Korean business man built a whole apartment block on one card)
- OPEC: Milton Friedman predicted that the OPEC cartel would soon break up.
An interesting read, not only for historians.

I attended Catholic schools from 3rd grade through graduate school, and have heard the story of Moses leading the Jews out of Egypt so many times I was worried I might be bored by another version. I was wrong. Burgess's ability to blend historical fact with brilliant style and humor made Moses come alive for me for the first time. Once again writing in verse, Burgess provides an enjoyable read and an excellent history lesson.

This book is completely different than I expected. From its cover and the "official" reviews, I thought that it would be an enjoyable and easy read. It is not. Nonetheless, its analysis-- while not what I was looking for-- is interesting, so I read it anyhow.

Just to give you an idea what you are getting into with this book, here is an extended quotation from Chapter 3: "If Hegel was right, an appreciation for dialectical oppositions can greatly enhance one's insight into the nature of existence, including the experience of historical development and change. Harvard law professor Duncan Kennedy, present at the creation of the critical legal studies movement, wrote a famous law-review article identifying a tension he saw running like a red thread through the history of American law: that between individualism and altruism. Historian Athur M. Schlesinger, Jr., has described American history as a whole in terms of the 'cycles of American politics,' an oscillation in governmental commitment to the public purpose against the private interest. ... Core genres within the culture of American legal cinema can similarly be portrayed in terms of a central and animating contradiction or dialectic specific to each."

Again, not the causal book about how the law has been portrayed in movies like I was expecting. Still, worthy of reading for those with the patience.