Wow!! California has been analyzed and humorized in this delightful book that will keep you laughing from beginning to end. Mr. Marais doesn't miss a beat as he rattles off one quip after another about this culture of characters that even Hollywood couldn't dream up! From pampered pooches to personal growth weekends, from smog alerts to freeway traffic jams, California has set itself up for this author's hilarious take on the "sunshine state". Enjoy!!

I am a Californian, and I loved this little book that is filled with fact and wit that had me laughing out loud. The character differences between the Northern and Southern Californians were hilarious. All of the stereotypes of the golden state were well illustrated. This is a great gift for every Californian, those who visit California, or anyone who would just like a few laughs.

This 60+ page guide to the Californians is a delight! A unique combination of witty, tongue-in-cheek comments and factual information about California culture, history and geography makes for a very enjoyable read. I highly recommend it to natives and foreigners alike!

Few books devoted to science fiction modelmaking have punctuated the monotonous and predictable landscape of model building related books, and this one is a stand-out! "The Ultimate Modeling Guide..." covers a broad range of science fiction hardware and model making techniques. Excellent photography supports detailed and authoritative text. I've found it to be instructional and inspirational. This book is for anyone interested in modelmaking. And for the sci-fi specific modelmaker, you library is sorely incomplete until you get this book. I highly recommend it!

Reference books and how-to books for modelers are a small niche in the market, and they've been almost entirely oriented toward the military modeler. Now at last is an in-depth how-to book for the science fiction kit builder. We're not out in the cold any more! Steve Iverson has gathered a gaggle of the best sci fi modelers from around the CultTVMan internet community, and they've given us step-by-step articles on building and improving such kits as Polar Lights' Robbie the Robot and C-57D spaceship, Lunar Models' Proteus and Discovey, and many other mainstream and garage industry models. The book is capped off with a fascinating history of the filming model of the Starship Enterprise from Star Trek: The Motion Picture through its retirement, with some wonderful reference photos of the ship - worth the price of admission alone!

I picked up Cult's book at WonderFest with egar anticipation. What was contained in the book did not dissapoint. It was filled with great kits I never knew existed (& now want) as well as great ideas & tips on building them. I can't say enough about this book & how it will help me build a better kit.

This survey of 100 women marrying after 40 highlights the perspectives of this particular age group on common marriage and relationship issues. Among the best features was the assurance given by the author and women surveyed that 40-plus women interested in marriage have the opportunity and can certainly afford to be choosy. Most interesting to me was that almost all of the women who married for the first time or after being single for a long time experienced some anxiety about sharing space and diminished independence. It was heartening to know that this concern, which I share in the abstract, is common and can be dealt with.

It's so good to read a book that makes me feel good about myself and my chances for finding a good man. There are lots of role models in this book, with lots of good advice on how to meet men and how to handle the special problems of mature relationships. If these women can find good men, so can I!!! The book is very uplifting.

Anyone getting married should read this book. Male or female, first, second, Young or old it doesn't matter, this book should be required reading. This book gives good inside into what to expect from marriage. The 1st person stories are great. There are so many things one never thinks of until its too late. This book points them out. For anyone getting married who is marrying someone with children this book is a must. I am giving copies to 3 different brides to be and 1 groom to be.

This is undoubtedly the funniest book I have ever read. 10 years ago in my college dorm through peals of laughter, which had everyone thinking I had gone mad - as mad as Aloysius - I read this tale in 24 hours. Since then I have reread the book several times and given copies as gifts for a variety of occasions. Each time, the response of belly ripping laughter has been the same.

This is a true depiction of the quintessential Jamaican rural mad man. Those of us who grew up in rural Jamaica know an Aloysius. The theme might seem like a simple silly Jamaican comedy, but the writing style is eloquent and easy. Tony does not skip a beat.

I have two criticisms; the first is that we end on an anti-climax as if the writer ran out of ideas or he became tired of writing. Therefore I felt that the tale ended too abruptly. Then again, this feeling could also be due to my desire to have this story go on and on. My second criticism is that I sensed a touch of Condescension by the narattor to ordinary poor country folk. In the Jamaican context, the church going old woman who slept with the mad man would hardly have done such a thing. But then again this is fiction. I guees the problem for me is that when fiction mimics real life so closely, one wants consistency throughout. Nevertheless, I give this five stars - and more - every time I read it.

Also recommended: Slip Stream, by Rachel Manley, Orange Laughter, by Leone Ross, Mine Boy by Peter Abrahams.

mi laugh until mi bawl wid tears running down mi cheek, as a jamaican I think Anthony winkler went in the mind of a madman to wirite the book. The book has brought me closer to my roots, there are chapters in the book that I can relate to espcially the backras.

There isn't much of a tradition of the comic novel in the West Indies. (Naipaul, I suppose, and a couple of others.) Winkler seems in a fair way to be creating a tradition all on his own by combining magical realism and traditional humour.

In Life Lines, Anthony Edey draws upon his experiences with Parkinson's Disease and Cancer to craft a poetry which is both serious and hilarious at the same time. Enhanced with line drawn illustrations by Iris Edey and a section of black & white photographs, the poetry comprising this slender volume is as unique as it is memorable. The Final Cure: I hear that I ought to tart smoking,/Just try a medicinal pack./Inhale all the nice levadopa/My little gray cells seem to lack.//I hear that the feeling-good factor/Is just what I'm missing of late./A packet of Gaulloise should fix it,/I'd happily asphyxiate.//It's really a strange contradiction/That smoking could see this thing off./Instead of a long life of shaking/I'd die nice and slow of a cough!//On balance it seems quite apparent,/The treatment is worse than the cure./Through Parkinson's may not be perfect,/It's better than smoking, for sure.

We think that the book is a real light that shines on the fundamental questions of life that many of us manage to ignore.

Life Lines, especially the poem about Sam, made us think again about what is important in our own lives.

Life Lines was meant as a double-entendre by Edey -- "life lines" as throwing them out to save someone drowning in adversity, and lines by the words used by this man who charismatically wrote about his experiences in being treated for skin cancer and Parkinson's Disease. We've heard actor Michael J. Fox talk publicly about his life with PD, and like Fox, Edey provides a service to those who read his words. In Life Lines, Edey takes a "that's life" attitude with his health issues, and makes us chuckle in the face of reality.

Penn & Teller take their stage personas to the print medium, and it works superbly. Penn is just as loud as ever, and Teller (seen in many of the photos) wears his trademark blank smile.

Most books on magic and ``tricks'' tend to be frustratingly dull, but the lively prose, scrumptious humour and fine photos and illustration make this one a pleasure to read.

This magic book also has the virtue of presenting several tricks that are easy to perform--if you want to learn two or three very funny and fun tricks table gags that require almost zero practice, this is the book to get.

everybody loves humor, everybody loves food, and, well, there are creeps who don't like penn & teller, but this if one of the funniest things i've ever read, i learned every trick in the book and life is neeeeeever boring. the two best parts, in my opinion: teller's bit on the great egg drop and penn's story of a milkshake as self-defense. worth every penny.

Got this book a couple of years ago, and spent a weekend trying NOT to die laughing reading it! Some of the tricks in here were absolutely wonderful. I'll never look at jello molds the same way again!

Although the serious part is quite thought provoking, the funny side of this book can lift even the heaviest heart!

I really enjoyed this book because it made me both laugh and think about how I look at my own life. My friends and family read it and they enjoyed it as well. I highly recommend it!!

This was a comical look at life and all its curiosities. I loved it. It makes a great conversation piece and gift to family and friends.

I find Waterhouse the greatest of the late 19th-century British painters. His women are full of life. He was a master at capturing the slightest expression to convey the personalities of his models. His compositions are superb. Paintings such as the 1888 "The Lady of Shalott" and the 1894 treatment of the same subject are as powerful as they are beautiful.

Hobson makes his admiration of Waterhouse's paintings obvious. This makes the book a very enjoyable read. It is a wonderful introduction to Waterhouse's work. Hobson spends a lot of time discussing paintings--this is something that is too often forgotten in art history texts. He identifies aspects of Waterhouse's compositions that help make his paintings outstanding. He describes the literary sources of Waterhouse's subjects. He mentions the artists who influenced Waterhouse's style. The essays are clear and well-organized. Anyone who is interested in Waterhouse's work should read this book.

During my education and professional life as an artist and professor of art the work of the Pre-Raphaelites and their contemporaries especially Waterhouse was/is extremely appealing and inspirational to me and many of my peers who are painters or illustrators. His work is among the best of his and any era since. The lavish reproductions in this book do homage to the wonderful God-given ability of the artist. Waterhouse's nymphs, faeries and women are innocent, gorgeous, and fetching, his colors deep, dark and lush, his men heroic and altruistic. If you love PreRaphaelite era art, Romanticism, mythical stories skillfully representated in figure art, this is the book for you. Though I bought the book for the reproductions, I recently read the text and found it helpful.

I discovered the work of Waterhouse fairly recently at anexhibition of art in Seattle of paintings from England's RoyalAcademy. I fell in love with his work instantly, started looking for websites about him & stumbled across a website bearing his name which recommended this book. Needless to say I purchased it instantly. I agree with the previous reviewer that it is a shame about the b/w reproductions (many of them are reproduced in color on the website mentioned above), but it is more than made up for with the wonderful research that Anthony Hobson had done (I have found out that sadly he died in late 1999). To sum up: a wonderful introduction to the work and life of John William Waterhouse, a timeless master among British artists!

This is a very great story, not just this volume, I really recommend these books to be read by anyone it has everything that a great -great story need.
Prepare yourself for a great journey...read the story.

_Journey to the West_ is, almost more than anything else, a hilarious read. The adventures of Handsome Monkey King, which dominate this volume, are witty and engrossing. Much better than many historical epics, in which everybody is just so darn EARNEST, this book inserts wit and a genuine (and gentle) understanding of human nature into an engrossing, and often deadly serious and menacing storyline. Yu's translation is clear and lucid, and supports the action very nicely. So many Asian epics are muddled (well, massacred, really) in translation that Yu's gifts are a breath of fresh air.

I highly and enthusiastically recommend _Journey to the West_ to...well...everybody.

This is a book written on lots of levels. It's a great adventure story for kids or for anyone else at first reading (although the old Arthur Waley abridgement is better for that kind of reading). On second (and third, and fourth...) readings it becomes clear that this is a story of the different parts of the self--the "five elements" in classical Chinese terms--that learn to integrate and find the self-discipline to reach the Buddha-realm. Each adventure is a challenge to master a different part of the self and its experience of life: the "six robbers" are the illusion that the six senses show us the truth, the White Bone Demon is fear of the idea of death, etc.. Monkey, the main character, is the limitless power of the mind, arrogant but tameable. Not just a great story, this is book of incredible depth and understanding. Yu's is the only translation that understands this.

If you want a guide book with more than the basic superficial run of the mill tourist info this book is for you.

Lots of maps, tips and explanations of the deeper meaning behind the sites you're visiting.

I'm bringing this book with me on my trip!

Now in a updated and expanded new edition, John West's The Traveler's Key To Ancient Egypt continues to be the definitive guide to all of the sacred places of ancient Egypt. The ideal traveler's guidebook is enhanced with maps, diagrams, and photos to accompany the history and spiritual significance of Egypt's art, architecture, mythology, religion, and ritual practices. From the Pyramids of Giza to the Valley of the Kings, this traveler's guide reveals the hidden meaning of monuments, ancient city sites, as well as new research on the dating of the Sphinx. Travel tips include tour information, Nile cruises, what to bring and what to wear, shopping advice, as well as information on money, hotels, and restaurants. If you are planning a trip to the Land of the Pharaohs, beginning with a thorough perusal of John West's The Traveler's Key To Ancient Egypt!

This book is essential for any traveller to Egypt with a mind that is even slightly ajar, let alone open.

West gives an alternative account of the meaning of the monuments and antiquities to be seen in Egypt, more esoteric (though certainly not more difficult to understand) than that which is usually presented in guide books. He points out the details which brought him to the conclusion that the Giza Sphinx is in fact closer to 13,000 years old than the 4,500 years old that has been traditionally believed, and has a different viewpoint to the orthodox school in many cases. He presents both sides of the argument, and gives the information necessary to make up one's own mind based on observation of what is actually there to be seen.

On my first visit to Egypt, my companions and I felt rather sorry for tourists in groups with official guides, because they seemed to be missing out on at least half of the story, and in many cases the whole point.

I was particularly impressed with West's analysis of the architecture of the Temple of Luxor, based on the work of Schwaller de Lubicz, and once it was pointed out how the whole building maps onto a plan of the human skeleton, I found it very difficult to refute.

Whilst I did not always agree with his conclusions on every occasion, it cannot be disputed that West has raised thoroughly pertinent questions which conventional Egyptology has either glibly brushed under the carpet or failed to address at all.