Paul Schrader positions Taxi Driver, American Gigolo, and Light Sleeper as the first three film in a quartet depicting, as he puts it, "...a certain character... who drifts on the edge of urban society, always peeping, looking into the lives of others. He'd like to have a life of his own, but doesn't know how to get one." This character is angry in his 20s (Taxi Driver), narcissistic in his 30s (American Gigolo), and anxious in his 40s (Light Sleeper). In his brief introduction to the collected screenplays for these three films, Schrader announces the existence of a fourth script that will show this "certain character" in his 50s, after which "I'll retire him. It's getting too difficult to finance existential character studies." Schrader finds the genesis for this character in his own strict Calvinist upbringing and subsequent escape to LA, where he says "I was not unlike Travis Bickle: a bundle of tightly wrapped contradictions." He thus wrote the script to Taxi Driver in a chapter format "because I wanted to capture the seeming randomness of Travis' life..." Several years later finds the script for American Gigolo in a conventional format because "I was 'in' Hollywood... and wanted scripts that looked like everyone else's." Light Sleeper, being an independent film, was able to return to the chapter format (for better or worse). Both Taxi Driver and Light Sleeper were previously published as single volumes by Faber & Faber, and in the case of Taxi Driver, it's shame to have lost the 14 page dialogue between Schrader and Martin Scorcese that was in that book. Still, it's hard to complain about getting three Schrader scripts in one book, and judging from the "1" in the title, further Schrader collections are forthcoming.

Howard Morgen's arrangements & treatment of standards are great as usual !

Paul Simon is one of the worlds greatest musicians. This book shows a three decade career at it's best, the book includes a good number of the hits as well as the not so well known hits. The only bad thing I can think of to say about it is that it came out before Rythm of the Saints did so therefore it didn't have songs like the Cool Cool River, obvious Child, or Born at the Right Time. Overall for any musician who wants to be able to play the songs of one of the worlds greatest musicians, get this book

This is a good companion to Paul Simon's masterpiece album, Rhythmn of the SAints. With this album, Simon's music reached a whole new level of poetic lyricism at an almost surreal level, as well as amazing instrumental arrangements. These songs are some of his finest, and this book very nicely transcribes them for all to learn to play. Enjoy!

Those of you who want a Pauline theology book that goes straight to the meaning of Paul's writings without dogmatic interpretations of the text should read this book. Beker does an excellent job laying out Paul's theological convictions in an easy to read and scholarly manner. Beker's thesis is that Paul's theological center is the apocalyptic triumph of God through Christ. He develops his thesis with an interesting proposal on Pauline hermeneutics--the coherent center working alongside contingent particularities. Though Beker may not get much support from the more orthodox and traditionalist crowds regarding methodology, one cannot but respect Beker's attempt to stay true to Paul's writings. Though some of Beker's views may turn-off conservative Christians (he denies Pauline authorship to Ephesians), he generally presents a view that sticks to the mainline Christian tradition. Overall, a good book to read on Pauline theology. I would balance this book out with a more evangelical and conservative Pauline theology book like F. F. Bruce's "Paul, Apostle of the Heart Set Free" or Thomas Schreiner's "Paul, Apostle of God's Glory in Christ".

A reader curious about Paul would be unlikely to find a better guide to the places and cultural forces that formed his life. The book begins with descriptions of man, ship, and ports, an almost journalistic reporting of the transport of a man to Rome for trial -- "a man of consequence", treated with deference by his guards, middle-aged, educated,"a Levantine -- possibly a Jew." The author then describes, quoting occasionally from ancient historians, the city of his birth, Tarsus, typical familial life of one of his community (Pharisees), his probable education in Jerusalem, and extensive detail on the political and decadent social millieu of this Roman era. The author peppers the story of Paul with facts of the lives and foibles of other influential personalities of the period, including the Caesars and the scholars who tutored them. Gives one a very real sense of the small world of the new Christian sect, within the small world of Judea and Jewish culture, overwhelmed by the forces of the Roman Empire at the height of it's power and corruption. After the initial flashback the author hypothesyzes Paul's travels and missionary/revolutionary work with a continuation of detail, rich with knowledge of the places and cultures visited.

Like Karl Barth, Tillich can be hard to read for those unaccustomed to reading scholarly theological texts, but once you get past the dense language you'll find yourself probing the deepest mysteries of Christian thinking and asking questions you've never before considered.

You may not agree with all of Tillich's ideas, but you simply can't ignore him when considering the deeper issues of modern theology. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wishes to deepen their faith by considering issues not considered in the day-to-day Christian world.

The life of one of the greatest singer/songwriter/guitarists from the music scene of the late '70s until now is documented greatly in this book. It deals with his earlists influences, his first (and so I think, his best) group The Jam, to the laid back cappuccino and white overcoat times of The Style Council, to the rough guitar driven solo work. It talks to the people around him, his friends, his fans, people who didn't like him and even the man himself. Its a great book because it captures all aspects of him and all his poetic/rock genius.

Boyd's book was an interesting book. I enjoyed his insight on the life of Paul. I did find one problem with his book. Towards the end, he starts using his imagination to fill in the blanks on Paul's life. He added an extra mission trip which the Bible does not include. Other than that I enjoyed the Book. I would recommend this book to any person that is interested in a detailed book on the life of Paul.

This book isn't exactly written for a popular audience. However, if you are interested in biblical studies, this is an excellent exegisis on II Corinthians. It is clear, well organized, and surprisingly easy to read. My one complain is that he assumes the reader can read and understand Greek. But if you can, this book is all the more easier to read.