Kind of boring. He glosses over a lot of stuff that could be good reading real non-chalantly without any explanation. For example, he states that he and several of his guys shot at any Japanese pilot they could find floating in a parachute, no analysis or explanation provided. This would have been an interesting topic to hear more about! On the last page of the book in the epilogue he says that he latter rose to command a carrier but then navy asked him to retire because "the navy didn't need a captain who couldn't handle his liquor". Then the book ends practically right at that sentence. Again, that would have been interesting subject to explore, but again no explanation or analysis. The book was kind of lame, but the picture on the front did get me thinking about building the 1/32 scale corsair model so all was not lost.

for a better account of WWII combat in the air over the pacific, read Saburo Sakai's "Samurai", or Samuel Hynes "Flights of Passage", or "Aces Against Japan" all much better books.

Tom Blackburn's account of VF-17 in World War II does a better job at making a reader feel like they are involved in the scenery of air combat than does Greg "Pappy" Boyington's Baa Baa Black Sheep.

Overall, I was much more entertained, but still came away wanting more than was given. The book does not have the grand sweep of an Amrose book covering a whole theater, but still does a good job at retelling this piece of aviation history.

A must for anyone who is interested Military Aviation. Tom Blacburn's novel, The Jolly Rogers, oulines the genisis of one of the most well known US Naval Fighter Squdrons in existance - with the Skull and Cross Bones still flying today on the F-14B's of VF-103. In two combat tours, the Jolly Rogers not only broke the backbone of Japanese resistance about the Soloman Islands - destroying 154 Japanese aircraft, but also vindicated their belief in the fighting ability of the F4U, having earlier refused to give up their beloved Corsairs for F6F Hellcats. Vividly written, it allows the reader to glimpse what life on the frontline must have been like, through Tom Blackburn's own experiences and feelings. Sometimes funny, always frank and moving, this novel is a must for anyone wanting a comprehensive library on Military Aviation - or with an interest in the Jolly Rogers

In general, we love the American Girl series of books but two books in the Kirsten series disturbed me. In the book "Kirsten Saves the Day" she discovers a bee tree and decides to gather the honey by herself to suprise her family. This is understandable but she acts very foolishly when she goes back to the tree despite having seen a bear the previous day. To make matters worse, she manipulates her little brother into helping her, risking his life with her own. She nearly gets both of them killed when the bear returns to the bee tree

In the book "Changes for Kirsten" she finds a baby racoon in the woods and brings it home. Her mother specifically tells her to leave the racoon in the barn and never to bring it near the house. Despite this, the minute her mother leaves the house Kirsten defies her and brings the baby racoon in. He gets loose and knocks over an oil lamp, burning down their cabin.

All in all I don't find the character of Kirsten to be the sort of person I want my girls to emulate.

In the Kirsten boxed set, you will read six books about Kirsten Larson, a pioneer girl growing up in 1854. In "Meet Kirsten" Kirsten and her family are coming to America. Kirsten is one of the few characters in the American Girls Collection that stays the same. All the other characters change in some way, but I did not see this in the Kirsten books. The next five books in the boxed set show how Kirsten and her family try to combine Swedish and American traditions. In "Kirsten Learns A Lesson" Kirsten has difficulty with school and meets an Indian girl named Singing Bird. In "Kirsten's Surprise" Kirsten tries to keep some of the Larsons' Swedish traditions alive by planning a secret Saint Lucia celebration with her cousins. In "Happy Birthday, Kirsten!" Kirsten does extra chores after her mom has a baby, and then gets a special birthday party. In "Kirsten Saves the Day" Kirsten finds treasure in the woods and nearly gets herself and her brother killed when she tries to bring the treasure home. In "Changes for Kirsten" Kirsten's family loses thier home to a fire and must find a way to get a new one. The Kirsten books are good. When I was younger, "Changes for Kirsten" was my favorite of Kirsten's stories. When I went back and read it again later on, as a teen, I discovered something. In the story, the Larsons lose their house--but that is because Kirsten disobeys her mother and brings an injured raccoon in the Larson's cabin, knowing full well the mischeif they are capable of. To date, I can't pinpoint which of the Kirsten books is a favorite, but I know that "Changes for Kirsten" is not one of them.

Joining Kirsten in her travel from Sweden to the United States and then on to the forests of Minnesota has been an enjoyable and interseting experience for both my daughter and I. The pioneer time of our country's history has always been of an interest to me as I have read of my own family's journeys from Hingham England to Massachusetts and then on to Montana during the time of the late 1600's through the early 1800's. What a rich heritage they passed on. And now, my daughter can enjoy learning about the pioneer era with a girl her own age. We have had a great deal of enjoyment reading these books together and discussing what happened to Kirsten in each one. Especially interesting and enlightening are the "Peek Into the Past" sections found at the end of each book. We have had some interesting and lively discussions about what it would be like to live during Kirsten's time. It has been very refreshing to see my daughter and her friends develop a deep interset in these books, role playing the characters, playing with the dolls, and learning about another time rather than pursuing the mindless, empty fluff of many things vying for a young girl's attention. Although some of Kirsten's experiences are a bit far-fetched (I.e. - not fearing a bear, having a pet racoon) the books' intrinsic value is not in the experiences, but rather in the history given in a light, fun way - what better way to learn than by having fun doing it.

The book LA Exposed is an interesting read, but not being from California, a lot of the legends and myths were unknown to me. I think this book would be a lot more entertaining if you knew of the legends prior to reading the book. However, I learned a lot and would recommend the book if you are interested in learning unusual stories from the LA area.

Actually, this book really does take an admirable stab at debunking ridiculous and/or incredulous stories and/or myths concerning things which have happened within or near the City of Angels. It contains some things that I have never heard of and presents logical explanations as to how some stories got started and evolved.
This is a great kickback book for that special day when you are snowed in or dodging buckets of rain and just want to have some fun. Hours will shoot by and you'll never know it.

This book is full of tasty tidbits of tinseltown trash talk. Young obviously spent years researching many rumors about L.A. and its inhabitants. It's not just about celebrites and their dirty secrets, it also talks about city government scandals and even little details like what the different colored bandannas that gay prostitutes display in their back pockets really mean. Young also lets the reader decide whether some stories are true or not by presenting the results of his research and not forcing his opinion on you. It is a delightfully entertaining read.

In this second biography of Larry Fine(The first book to recall Mr.Fine's life was:"A Stroke Of Luck!".Larry's memiors.Which are sadly out of print.)"Stooge In The Middle"looks at the life and career of one member of "The Three Stooges"from the viewpoint of Larry's brother former druggist:Dr.Morris Feinberg.The book looks at his childhood in Philadelphia,Pa.to the accident in his father's jewelry store that introduced him to violin playing lessions(an early form of physical thearpy).Which became his introduction to show business.First as a Charlie Chaplin imitator at local amusement Parks , as a member of a Duplicate version of Gus Edwards' vaudeville kiddie act:"Fun In Hi Skool!"and as a member of several comedy teams:EG:"Fine And Dandy"and "The Haney Sisters & Fine!".Before he married one of the Haney Sisters(Mabel Haney) and he was accepted a job as a performer and MC at The Rainbow Gardens Nightclub in Chicago,Ill in 1925.Where Larry first met:Ted Healy,Moe And Shemp Howard and he was invitied to join "Ted Healy And His Gang!"(The original name of Mr.Healy's act).The book goes onto to look at the boys'difficult relationship with Mr.Healy(Whose drinking,obnoxious pranks and his pay inequity forced the team to part company with Healy.Following some turbulent years working in vaudeville,burlesque,nightclubs,Broadway musicals and some work in the movies).The book relates how Larry almost signed the trio to a contract with Universal Pictures for some feature length comedies.But Moe's deal with Columbia Pictures was signed first.Making Larry's Pact with Universal invalid and The boys began their 24 years with The Studio that featured Hollywood's Stature Of Liberty like symbol.And their other projects that kept the team in the public eye after the unfair dismissal from Columbia Pictures and Larry's years of retirement,following the stroke that forced him to leave the group.For those..who want to read a pleasant and engaging biography of a truly funny and nice man.That has no hint of scathology in it? This is the one book to have.Kevin S.Butler.

Moe Howard often said that Larry was probably the best actor out of all the Stooges. Few can deny Larry was the unsung Stooge who never got much of the spotlight from Moe, Curly, et al. This book, written by Larry's younger brother, traces the natural born entertainer's life from birth until his tragic death. I wouldn't call this hard hitting, as the author was not a professinal writer but a loving brother, thus many of Larry's financial problems due to gambling are glossed over. But I can forgive that. In an era of trashy, tell all celebrity books, this is a breath of fresh air. It's a quick read and loaded with photographs spanning the entire Stooges' career. This is a must have for any Stooge fan.

I have been watching the stooges since the late 50's, and have always liked Larry. I enjoyed watching his reactions to different situations. This book is enjoyable and pretty informative to boot. Larrys little brother Morris gives an insiders view of Larry, from early childhood to his untimely death in 74. If you are a stooges fan, then definately get this book, you will not be sorry you did. It is a welcome addition to my stooges library. Quick reading and lots of pictures, plenty of information . A must read for all stooges fans.

I'll have to enter a dissenting voice, here. I'm glad to see that this book has been useful to others, but for myself, I found it boring and lacking anything new or eye-opening. The authors seem earnest in their advice, but they don't go into much depth about the challenges of marriage. It's feel-good candy for the soul, not the protein needed to sustain a lifetime.

My husband is a recovering addict and this book was great for us to read together. It helped him see just how ego-centered he is and gave him ways to work on changing that. It also reminded me that my husband and I are at very different places, but that's okay as long as we are both making progress.

This is one of the best marriage/relationship books that I have ever read. The insights into what makes a marriage/relationship work and why it does not is superb! There are practical suggestions and guidelines as well that enable the reader to maximize their ability to gain

Sorry about the harsh #1, but I have just started to work my way through this book and have run into a problem. I am not sure if the error is yours or mirosofts. Page 20 SHOW DESK TOP. When I press the small icon to minimize all open windows, not only do the windows disappear, but so doe's th task bar. That leaves me with no way to re- display them later. I still intend to keep working my way through the rest of the book as I do like the layout. I do hope somebody in your company will take time out to answer this. By the way I am 69 and new to the computer world,and am really keen on teaching myself as much as possible about it. Hope to get a reply from you shortly Thank you. Tony

I'm a "Total Newbee" in the World of Computers. "Master Windows 98 Visually" is by far the most, "Cut To The Chase", and makes you understand exactly what you're reading and best by far, what you're learning. You cannot read this book and "NOT" learn and understand. "Master Windows 98 Visually", blows the others out of the water. I got so frustrated and was going broke investing in hope, when I came across this book. For a beginner as well as advanced I recommend this book. I've had the pleasure of teaching my instructor and class mates a few things. I'm looking forward to purchasing additional books by this author and I'm giving my friend a copy as a gift, she's had a computer for 3 years, and she's coming to me for answers to her problems.

Thank goodness for MaranGraphics.

If you can read a cookbook or other simple instruction-type books, this is great. I learned so much about options that I didn't even know I had available. It is clear, concise and with all the illustrations, even a complete novice can start to use it immediately. I've been able to organize my files, manage disk space, customize my computer and customize my menus with what I need. I'm no longer stuck with things I don't need or understand. This was one of the best purchases I ever made. It's incredibly easy to understand and instructions are super easy to follow - everything is illustrated for you.

I was excited to get this book - when it arrived, I liked it immediately. It is handsomely bound, with a beautiful glossy cover, in a comfortable size and weight, and with a very user-friendly typeface.

I've been searching for a good, modern, doctrinally neutral history of the Bible text from ancient manuscripts to compilation/recension to modern translation, and thought I might have finally found it. But I was mistaken.

After four chapters worth of heavy-handed doctrinal polemics, I decided to close the book and look elsewhere. I want a research thesis, not a Sunday School theology lesson! The author seems unable to set aside his desire to promote his own pet theological bias (and to denegrate all others), and just focus on the objective history of the Bible text. Which is fine for a church lesson-book, but inappropriate in a scholarly treatise in layman's language.

I bought the book based on the strength of several of the reviews I read here on amazon's site, as well as the praise from the back cover, all from sources I respect. But I just couldn't go with the crowd on this one, I have to call it as I see it. A real disappointment.

I got much more benefit from OUR AGELESS BIBLE by Thomas Leishman and THE MAKING OF THE ENGLISH NEW TESTAMENT by Edgar Goodspeed, both of which are basic introductory texts, but unfortunately out-of-print.

A handsome book! 462 pages in a smyth-sewn hardcover for under [price], the paper is not however, certified ANSI acid-free stock.

Wegner does a fine job of introducing the average Christian to the sources of their English Bibles. It is clearly written and professionally laid out (despite some lingering software/printing errors). It has numerous images and charts, many of important persons (Westcott, Gerrit Verkuyl et cetera) and of numerous Biblical manuscripts (many from the Van Kampen collection in Florida). The book is a fine work for use in a classroom situation as well as private learning. It also serves as a quick general reference text for data related to the text and editions of the English Bibles.

My only complaint is that Wegner is biased towards the text as found in Egypt, as seen in his discussion of the KJV debate beginning on pages 337 ff.. His language downgrades the Byzantine text-type, which is too bad. He does admit that just because the Egyptian text-type has been discovered, and is dated as the earliest text or manuscripts -- does not automatically mean that it/they must therefore be the most accurate, but he unfortunately does not abide by his observation! He laments that no early copies of a Byzantine text has yet been found (yet papyri P46, P66 and many other MSS found in Egypt do DISPLAY Byzantine readings) [or, more technically - Antiochian readings]. He is a good writer, but he should have withheld his uninformed judgment here! Also he seems to be unaware of the many errors lying in the apparatuses of the Nestle/Aland and UBS Greek New Testament text editions!

A fine book, useful and well worth the price. Be sure to purchase the corrected edition -- on the publication data page it will say -- "Corrected printing, December 2000", in which many images and layouts are corrected. Some still remain, yet a small hinderance they be. ...

Nicely written, with excellent illustrations, sidebars, charts, &c., this book will guide complete novices into a better understanding of where their favourite English version(s) came from. Technical subjects (for example, textual criticism) are handled simply, but not simpistically. Wengert most successfully realizes his goal--to "enable those in the church to determine the validity of charges leveled against modern versions, as well as to instill an appreciation of the difficulties of producing new translations of the Bible" (p. 17).

The maps are miniscule, reproduced to fit into a single spread, where they are squeezed between commentary. The type on them is so small and blurry that it was impossible to read, even with serious magnification. This book was a complete and total disappointment. Instead of an informative, legible reference, Manhattan in Maps is nothing more than a "coffee table" book, and not a very good one at that. If you're looking for maps you could actually refer to and learn from, this is not the book for you. Hopefully, someone will get the hint and put out a quality folio of these valuable maps.

I know I'm jumping on the bandwagon here, but the maps are disappointing because they're too small to be scrutinized. The text, however, compensates greatly for this flaw. The chapters are concise but not a word is wasted. I found the section on the British invasion of Brooklyn as well-written and gripping as any thriller. I can only hope that they are planning to come out with a larger edition for the illustrations.

While I agree with one reviewer that the maps depicted in the book are small and difficult to read (more due to the apparent custom of making 17th and 18th century maps totally illegible in any case rather than the editors' layout of them), the commentary accompanying the maps is very illuminating and interesting. The authors also chose to use maps highlighting, for example, '70s-era police practice, '20s-era political classifications and a map of the subway along with the more conventional surveyor's maps; truly a very interesting collection. A good companion to any history of pre-20th century NYC, such as Gotham.

The use of statistics is pretty questionable -- the author cites the absolute number of accidents at different experience levels, but not the *rate* of accidents.

Are there more accidents between 50 and 350 hours because those pilots are less safe, or just because there are more pilots with 50-350 hours experience? The Killing Zone may actually exist, but the numbers in this book don't prove it; in fact, they may give a false sense of security to pilots with more than 350 hours experience, because their accident rates may be relatively higher than they think (how many private pilots give up before 350 hours?).

When you strip away the number games, what's left? This book does contain good safety information and a selection of accident reports, but that information is no different that what you will find in a typical flying magazine or online article: don't fly VFR into IMC, don't turn back when the engine fails just after takeoff, etc. etc. By all means, read it, but read STICK AND RUDDER and THEY CALLED IT PILOT ERROR first -- they'll give you far more for your time and money.

I like this book because even though we all know everything in this book, how many of us get lazy and cut corners. How many of us climb on the airplane and check the fuel level. I have gotten a few surprises. Reading this book while it is a recap still is a good idea. Also, I really liked the book.

Dr. Craig's book, The Killing Zone, is based on the combination of well-researched studies and years of general aviation flying. The Killing Zone, 50 to 350 flight hours, is a crucial and life-threatening time in a pilot's career. Craig portrays the most common mistakes pilots make in the zone and provides helpful insights on how to avoid these mistakes. I highly recommend this book to student pilots and professional pilots alike. For the professional pilots, who sucessfully flew through the Zone, this book will refresh your memory on forgotten yet pertinent elements to safe general aviation flying. The information in this book will aid in the prevention of an accident and ultimatley save your life- a must read for all pilots!

The Lonely Planet came with me for a 6-week stay in the Corinthia. Overall I found prices to be very outdated. When I turned to the book looking for specific information, most of the time I discovered it was either scant or missing.

In Athens, I stayed in a couple of budget accomodations in Plaka that received glowing reviews from the guide -- both places didn't even come close to the authors' high praise. In Delphi, the phone number provided for the hotel where I wanted to stay actually rang at a completely unrelated pension several blocks away. A description of which bus to take into Athens from Bus Terminal A and B would have been incredibly useful, and saved me an afternoon of wandering.

I also referred to this book many times for information about the towns and sites around Ancient Corinth, only to find it totally useless. Clearly the authors' own distate about places accounts for this gap. For example: "Loutraki: The town was devastated by the 1981 earthquake, and subsequent reconstruction has resulted in its reincarnation as a tacky resort with dozens of modern, characterless hotels along the seafront. Loutraki hardly warrants an overnight stay." That's it.

Color-photo sections are a nice selling feature of the book, but don't help much when you're trying to find your way around Greece. When I referred to this book I often ended up more lost than found. Browsing through some of the comparable guides, such as the Rough Guide or Let's Go, I unfortunately found them to have very similar shortcomings. Lonely Planet forced me to approach more Greeks and ask directions, and to learn how to find my way around on my own -- perhaps something I can thank them for after all. Next time I go to Greece, I'll leave the guidebook at home.

This book offers engaging information and useful tidbits. It's more upscale than "Let's Go," but at 800 pages, offers more complete listings. It includes sets of attractive colored pictures. The maps are in black and white but very detailed. This guide provides practical information designed to get you around Greece. It includes information on ferry time tables and offers a range of places to stay and dine.

This review compares the Lonely Plantet Greece (4th Edition) with the Rough Guide Greece (8th edition). We spent 2.5 weeks in July, 2001 in Greece, our first visit, and these were our guide books.

A relucant 4 stars to each, and a slight preference for RG. We certainly found the books serviceable, and they gave us good ideas of where in Greece we wanted to go. But they were much less valuable in their listings for individual destinations. They were the least valuable compared to the other LP and RG travel books we've used (Portugal, Italy, Thailand, Tokyo).

As usual, they both overstate their hotel rankings which to me make sense only if you've been sleeping out on the beach from necessity, and now have finally scraped some money together for a room. An exagerration, but I've lost patience with gushing praise for facilities which are usually no better than serviceable and sometimes less than that. And, we're not into spending money on fancy accommodations. Occassionaly the books are on the money, but often not.

On the smaller islands RG usually had more accommodation listings, but occassionally LP did. There were at least two instances when LP had none, just saying that rooms were available.

The ferry schedules in the books, pretty much consistent between them, bore little relation to reality, even though we were there in the high season.

I want to complete with my usual gripe about these and other guide books: we don't know which restaurants and hotels were actually visited by the writers (and by which one) and when. To paraphrase from my review of RG Portugal:

LP is out front in saying that its reviewers do not stay at all the hotels or eat at all the restaurants they list. I would like it if the reviews would be initialized by the reviewers with the date. This would allow us to learn each reviewer's tastes and standards, not to mention seeing which places they actually visited.

One LP writer (not I think an author of this book) in discussing restaurants wrote: "As one of those LP writers I can tell you that it is not physically possible to eat even a 'little bit of a meal' in each of those restaurants :-) What we all tend to do is eat at a broad cross-section within the norms of natural eating times and visit the other restaurants and talk to the owner or even the diners if it can be done discretely. In the same vein we don't sleep at every hotel!"

Talk to the owners for your evaluation! Says it all.