The Enid Starkie biography is a moving and remarkable work. Nevertheless , it has some serious mistakes that the readers and mainly the lovers of Rimbaud must know. Starkie stained the memory of Rimbaud accusing him of having done slaves traffic. Detailed studies have proved that this was absolutely impossible. (You can read the books of Alain Borer, Graham Robb, Charles Nicholl...)
Starkie wants to show us a rimbaud that failed in Abyssinia. It seems that he deserved a punishment for having left the poetry. The truth is that Arthur Rimbaud was an excellent trader that made a little fortune.
A few moths ago I went to Charleville. There, the Rimbaud's museum has a place where important studies about Rimbaud are shown. In spite of the Starkie's play is very well-known, it has not earned a place there.

Enid Starkie's biography of Rimbaud, published nearly forty years ago, still stands as both the definitive narrative of Rimbaud's life and a model of literary biography. Rimbaud was a rebellious, enigmatic, brilliant, and inscrutable poet who, in just four short years between the ages of sixteen and twenty, wrote the poetry which has made him a figure of mythic proportions, not only in French literature, but in the literature and history of Modernism. Starkie, in brilliantly lucid prose and with loving attention to every detail, tells Rimbaud's life story and connects that story to the writing of the poems and the evolution of Rimbaud's views on poetry and the task of the poet. Influenced by his studies of Kabbalah, alchemy and illuminism, and writing in the long shadow of Baudelaire's "Les Fleurs du Mal", Rimbaud precociously enunciated his attack on the then dominant Parnassian school of French poetry at the tender age of sixteen. Starkie examines Rimbaud's original aesthetic doctrine in great detail; in her words, the poet must discover a "new language . . . capable of expressing the ineffable, a new language not bound by logic, nor by grammar or syntax." In Rimbaud's words, the "Poet" must make himself a "seer" by a "long, immense and systematic derangement of all the senses." From this initial position, Starkie brilliantly details Rimbaud's turbulent relationship with Paul Verlaine and his descent into what one reviewer has aptly described as a "perpetual roister of absinthe, hashish and sodomy." Starkie painstakingly relates Rimbaud's poetry to his experiences with Verlaine in London and Paris. In particular, Starkie convincingly demonstrates, through careful exegesis of the poems and their correspondences with Rimbaud's letters and other biographical materials, that the "Illuminations" (perhaps Rimbaud's most brilliant poems) were written over several years preceding and following "Une Saison en Enfer". Starkie then goes on to demonstrate that the latter prose poems were hardly intended to be Rimbaud's "farewell to literature in general, but only to visionary literature." In other words, "Une Saison en Enfer" represents the rejection by Rimbaud of his original mind-bending iconoclasm--the liquidation "of all his previous dreams and aspirations"--in favor of a rational and materialist aesthetics. Of course, after completing "Une Saison en Enfer", Rimbaud's life moved in completely different directions and there is, unfortunately, no existing evidence that he continued his poetic endeavor after the age of twenty. Starkie's biography captures the details of the remainder of Rimbaud's life--he died at the age of thirty-seven--with fascinating and attentive detail. And the remainder of his life, as related by Starkie, is a biography in itself--vagabond in Europe, sailor to the East Indies, gun runner and (slave?) trader in Abyssinia, and mysterious cult hero of the emerging French symbolist movement. Indeed, in 1888, more than fourteen years after Rimbaud's known literary career had ended, he received a letter from a prominent Parisian editor: "You have become, among a little coterie, a sort of legendary figure . . . This little group, who claim you as their Master, do not know what has become of you, but hope you will one day reappear, and rescue them from obscurity." Starkie scrutinizes all of these events with scrupulous attention to detail and accuracy. This is truly a classic of literary biography! (One additional comment: Rimbaud's poetry and letters are quoted extensively in the original French. If you are not fluent in French, you should have Wallace Fowlie's English translation of Rimbaud's Complete Works and Selected Letters by your side as a reference.)

I am a literary bio junkie and this is one of the books that turned me into one. Rimbaud is an excellent subject because he led such a fascinating and contradictory life. He went from being the archetypal enfant terrible and prototypical bohemian poet to an engineer in Egypt without any interest in the Parisian literary "scene" whatsoever. Along the way was his enigmatic relationship with Verlaine and Verlaine's wife. Starkie doesn't answer all the questions we are left with regarding this singular artist. Nobody can. It's not even clear what caused his relatively early death. What Starkie does provide is an intelligently illuminated portrait of Rimbaud and provides us with the background for the well of angst into which he dipped his vituperous pen. I can't believe that Starkie's equally compelling bio of Baudelaire is not listed ........ If this book is out of print, it's criminal. It's almost a companion piece to her Rimbaud. It should also be read by anyone interested in French poetry, literary history, or great literary biography.

I guess this book is meant as a real "intro" text, but if you do know something about this art, it seems pretty lite. Clearly, lots of people like it, but Weintraub seems to bend so far over to make complex work accessible that she really over-simplifines. And the "art" in the book is so scattered and uneven, you don't get any deeper sense of what is going on, what the historical context of any of this might be.

Granted, there aren't many intro texts on recent art. So if this is one of the "better" ones, it's mostly for lack of competition. I wish there was some accessible middle ground between pop/gossip texts and academic tomes. This feels like it's written from someone really distant to the work, who's not always that well-informed.

Anyone who wants to become familiar with intricacies of what can be the confusing world of post-modern art should read this book. The author does an excellent job of presenting an interesting cross-section of significant and fascinating collection of atypical artists. Pretty much every artist who is included has done their share of expanding the contemporary definition of Art in the Western and Non-western tradition. Over all, this compendium of essays does much to open the door to widen the reader's perspective on what art can do. The one aspect of this book that is troublesome is that the author often seems to focus on only one or two aspects of an artist's works, a habit that is frustrating at best and misleading at worst. While doing outside research on one of the artists included, Mel Chin, I was convinced there were two artists with the same name, as the perspective provided in the book did not prepare me for the artist's full range of activities. Still, this complaint should not stop an interested party from purchasing the book. I for one did not feel my money ill-spent.

as a MFA student thats currently being educated by "the institution" i find myself flip flopping between wanting to drop out or drop in...this book didn't save me but it sure put things in perspective, never before in a book have I seen cover such topics where you can find Barbara Kruger and James Luna and Joseph Beuys and Tomie Arai between the same cover's in a book. This book also addresses an important issue for me. race. The art world is racist and if you don't know that just look around, art is life and a reflection of society and if you dont know that its because your a white (sorry but its true). This book may not address it but it surely helps to have some artists of color represented (although they aren't near the best art makers).

I feel obliged to write a review, as this book has been instrumental in enabling me to "catch" my alcoholism in its early stages. ~10%+ of the population are born alcoholics; heavy drinking, esp in teen years, can bring it out in others. Alcoholism really is a progressive disease, not a matter of willpower. Ask yourself: Do you handle your alcohol well? Drink more now than a year ago? This book explains that alcoholism really is a PROGRESSIVE disease. Most alcoholics -- and budding alcoholics -- were born with a predisposition to it. Learn why a "strong will" won't help overcome this biological affliction, unless you stop drinking altogether. Understand why "moderation" will not work for the born alcoholic.

Citing the latest hard, cold facts of the most modern scientific discoveries, authors prove beyond the reasonable doubt, and state both loud and clear: Alcoholism is NOT a flaw of character, NOT a weakness of will, but the physiological disease, over which a person, stricken with it, has no control! And it's an equal opportunity disease, striking good people from all walks of life: blue collar workers as well as admirals and generals, senators and congressmen, farmers and sailors, high school dropouts and college professors, beggars and millionaires, idiots, geniuses and our neighbor, everyday common man and woman... (...)

People are different, authors claim and prove in great detail. Some 10 to 15% of us have a gene, which creates different enzymes within our system, which in turn make highly addictive chemicals while processing the ingested alcohol within our bodies. Human brain is uncapable to resist the craving for alcohol, caused by those chamicals, which are never produced by the bodies of non-alcoholics. Therefore, alcoholics are not more guilty of having alcoholism, as cancer patients are guilty of having cancer, or diabetics being ill with diabetis.

The only solution to the disease of alcoholism is professional, medical treatment, followed by warm and sensitive care of the family, support groups, and society. Punishment, consisting of creation of severe stress, humiliation and application of strong mental and spiritual pain won't work, only making condition worse. Much worse! Primitive and superficial psychological counseling won't work, either. Only complex, modern, professional treatment will.

Great reading for anyone affected by or interested in the disease of alcoholism. A must for judges and prosecutors, busy sending ill people into the sewer pipe of industry of "corrections"! And those few members of MADD, who REALLY want to decrease incidents of drunk driving by fighting its causes, not symptoms, by helping alcoholics to get well, not just looking for an outlet of their hate and anger, which are the most destructive and counterproductive of all human emotions.

This is absolutely the best book I've ever read on alcohol & alcoholism. It's authoritative and all encompassing covering all aspects of the subject including medical, psychological, nutritional, educational, social, legislative, and spiritual. And it's written in an easy to understand manner that keeps you interested and wanting to find out what else the authors have to say.

This is a well written and easy to understand book about artificial intelligence. This book examines "2001: A Space Odyssey," from the standpoint of scientific predictions. It examines the central character of the book - HAL 9000, the highly intelligent computer that has emotions. It explores questions such as whether HAL can be built, why is HAL late for his party and how the technologies, enabling HAL, are progressing. It also examines the feature film from the view point of a scientist. It examines the making of the film and shows how faithfulness it is to science. You will gain a much greater appreciation of the book "2001: A Space Odyssey" and the epic film after you read the book

Prior to attending a lecture by Dr. David Stork at a celebration of HAL 9000's birthday in Urbana, Illinois, I had only a passing interest in the field of Artificial Intelligence. After the lecture, I was motivated to learn more and bought a copy of his book, Hal's Legacy: 2001's Computer As Dream and Reality. It turned out to be one of the most thought-provoking as well as entertaining books I have read. Through a series of expert essays, Stork explores the current state and direction of Artificial Intelligence using HAL as both backdrop and benchmark. Non-technical readers will enjoy the way that the scientists that Stork has chosen present their theories of what it would take for us to realize Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke's vision of HAL. HAL's Legacy analyzes the prospects and possibilities of computers being able to converse, understand natural language, visualize, feel emotion, and even make value judgements. It also give the reader a new appreciation of the science that went into the science fiction of the movie 2001.

There are few films that have had the influence of Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. It is difficult to say how many A.I. researchers were inspired to go into the field by the viewing of the film, but this book is good evidence that research in A.I. has undergone a sort of "public benchmarking" via a comparison with HAL, the arch computer-villan in the movie, and whose name is now ubiquitous in debates on robotics and artificial intelligence. This excellent book is a summary of just how far A.I. has come, as compared to the abilities of HAL. All of the authors acknowledge that the present level of A.I. is not what it is in HAL, but that progress is being made, in spite of, as one author remarked, the fact that A.I. is one of the most profoundly difficult problems in science.

Marvin Minsky is interviewed in the book, and he believes it is the problem of knowledge representation that has slowed down the progress in A.I. Too much time has been spent on chess programs and character recognition, and not on fundamentals, Minsky argues. Minsky also believes that emotions are absolutely essential in intelligent problem solving, and this is interesting in light of recent work on computational models of emotion.

The large physical size of HAL is compared with present sizes of computers in the article of David Kuck. But, the author argues, the human brain is also much smaller than HAL, but such a marvelous computing machine has yet to be emulated by even the best of present-day supercomputers. Size does not matter in matters of intelligence.

The article on error correction by R. Iyer is particularly insightful, for he argues, quite correctly, that making mistakes is a characteristic of true intelligence. HAL's brag that it is "incapable of error" is a sign of stupidity, rather than intelligence. False leads, uncompleted strategies and goals, and inconsistent reasoning are all part of genuine problem-solving.

M.S. Campbell discusses the efforts in machine chess, with Deep Blue of course being the focal point. Comparisons of how HAL plays chess compared to Deep Blue illustrate Campbell's belief that a mere combinatorial approach to playing chess should not be considered an intelligent one. HAL is intelligent because it plays intelligence like a human does, but Deep Blue does not. Campbell also gives an interesting historical summary of computer chess. He cites that example of a "fortress" position as one that chess computers have severe difficulty with.

The ability of computers to speak, and not sound "machine-like" is the subject of the article by J.P. Olive. His discussion gives the reader both an historical and technical overview of the difficulties involved in computer speech. And yes, the song "Daisy, Daisy" is real, and was the first song ever sung by a computer.

R. Kurzweil gives an optimistic overview of computer speech recognition. He details the "lessons" one needs to perform speech recognition and repeats his well-known desire to "reverse-engineer" the human brain, once the computational ability becomes available.

R.C. Schank discusses why he thinks A.I. must be able to understand more than just words, if natural language processing is to become a reality. And, interestingly, he believes that intelligence and problem solving are not necessarily the same thing and gives the reader insight into the difficulties involved in language acquisition by a computer.

This book was first printed in 1997, but given the recent news of a common sense reasoning computer developed by the company that D.B. Lenat heads, his article is particularly interesting. The ability of computers to exercise common sense is considered a fundamental requirement for machine intelligence, and Lenat outlines "3 easy steps" for the building of a HAL-like computer. It remains to be seen whether Lenat has indeed achieved this.

The ability of HAL to recognize images is discussed in the article by A. Rosenfeld. In light of the recent need for face recognition software for security enhancement, this discussion is particularly interesting. Rosenfeld details just what is difficult and what is easy to do in this area.

The capability of a computer to perform speechreading is the topic of D.Stork's article. Noting that speech has both auditory and visual aspects, Stork argues that HAL's ability to perform speechreading is far advanced in comparison to the real computers of today. He discusses interestingly, some of the tools used in current research on speechreading, such as hidden Markov models and neural networks.

The article of D. Norman addresses the human factors involved in living with intelligent machines. Norman contends that 2001 is too optimistic a projection of the future, and, in addition, that its technology is too large and bulky to be of much use to humans.

Computational models of emotion have been a subject of intense interest of late, and R. Picard addresses the issue of emotion and computers in his article. The discussion is fascinating, and Picard clearly believes that emotional states can be recoginized and mimicked by a computer. "Emotional" intelligence is something that must be part of any notion of artificial intelligence.

The ability of HAL to manipulate circumstances and trick the crew members is addressed in D.Wilkin's article. The ability to plan is based on common sense issues, and this is no where near being realized, he argues.

D.Stork interviews Stephen Wolfram in another article, and the reader learns of Wolfram's opinions on A.I. and related issues. Wolfram believes that its the nature of intelligence that must be understood to develop thinking machines, and not just processing power.

When thinking machines are built, legal issues of responsibility will naturally arise. D. Dennett addresses this in the last article of the book. Dennet puts HALs behavior in the context of what a human might do when faced with the mission priorities given to him. Turning off HAL was justified, but so was HALs response to it.

"A hug or a kiss raises dopamine levels," says Dr. Janov, and on he goes blending psychology and neuro-science. Whether or not you "believe" in primal scream, so much of what he writes about just rings true to common sense. One reason what he writes is hard to take, I think, is that some things about birthing are so beyond our control, even if we're a caring parent, e.g., if you have to have a baby by c-section, you have to. But there's still all the time of infancy and onward -- "Touching a child allows for greater density of synapses in the developing brain," he writes, "the more dense the synapses the more information the brain can handle." Whether you agree with what he says, or you don't, he makes his point (and it's extremely well annotated) and you won't walk away untouched. Read the chapter called "The Gate-Control Theory." Wow!

In just the first section of the book, Dr. Janov says so much of what needs to be said. As a Primal patient, I wish the world would heed what is in this book. He is the only professional to effectively unite the disciplines of psychology with the neurological sciences. If one is divorced from the other, the theory will be incomplete and any treatment will fail. Dr. Janov explains more about the nervous system than in his previous books. He also empahsizes how pre-natal experience affects a person's state of being, including his or her state of feeling, thought and behavior.He says what we as patients need the world to hear:"Feelings are not businesses to be 'managed.' They are meant to be felt.""We need access to our feelings to lead an intelligent life.""Feeling is what makes us human."Dr. Janov again assures us that to delve into the deepest levels of conciousness is not at all scary, but that it is necessary to connect to, release and resolve old imprinted pain. As a Primal person, I have enjoyed the benefits of doing this and look forward to delving ever deeper.

In this book,Dr.Janov shows what love and -contrarily- lack of love means in the different phases (womblife,birth,infancy) of our early lives.
The experiences of our early lives affect our brains in a multi-
ple manner,and if these experiences are traumatic they will remain,with all their original power,in the subcortical networks
of our brains and determine the quality of our adult lives.

Janov offers a therapy enabling suffering people to return to the beginnings of their lives and resolve those early and deeply hidden pain which is responsible for a wide spectrum of symptoms
and will finally shorten life.
It is not easy to get there.So it is important to be put on the right track.And it is not easy to go through these traumata.So it is important to have somebody standing by us during the difficult phases of this process.
When the levels of consciousness (page 106 in this book) can com-
municate with each other without interference (see page 231 "The
Gate-Control Theory") we come to be feeling creatures again.

After all it is a completely natural process.We help the brain (which will find its own rhythm)get rid of something having in-
vaded like an alien force and keeping hidden.It is an ancient,
evolutionary phenomenon (see THE NEW PRIMAL SCREAM by Dr.Janov,
page 25,"The Nature of Emotional memory")

THE BIOLOGY OF LOVE comprises a fullness of technical informa-
tion.Janov presents a lot of material from scientific research
which substantiates his theory.The weight of evidence is over-
whelming.The paradigm of primal theory,the concept of the early
imprint and its lasting effects,stands as firmly as a rock.
Janov`s antagonists in the field of psychology having so far pre-
vented primal theory from being on offer in the curricula of most
universities will have increasing difficulties in ignoring or
discrediting this new paradigm.
HOW TO DISCREDIT A PHENOMENON THAT HAS ACCOMPANIED AND INFLU-
ENCED HUMAN EVOLUTION FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS ??? A scientist who
has lost the connection to his personal (ontogenetic) history ,
can no longer recognize the inner truths of our conditio humana.

Having understood the message of this book, we are able to spare
the following generations a tremendous lot of pain.As hard as it may be,we must understand now that womblife,birth and infancy are
the most crucial phases of our lives.In these phases,we are most
vulnerable and may be damaged worst of all.It is not all the same
if a pregnant woman is smoking and drinking or if she is not.It
is not all the same whether birth happens on conditions of anesthesia or not.
Janov says that heavy lack of oxygen (anoxia) is a central element of most birth traumata he has observed in his therapeutic
practice.On page 253 in his book he provides an exellent descrip-
tion and explanation of what happens to the mother and the baby
in the drugged birth.In the western world,the great majority of all birth processes goes under such circumstances.The conse-
quences for the psychophysical state of health of the adult pop-
ulation are anything but positive.
THE WAY WE GIVE BIRTH TO OUR CHILDREN IS THE WAY WE PERPETUATE
NEUROSIS TO THE END OF TIME !
I wonder whether the structures and institutions of neurotic
societies may be changed in the foreseeable future.However,I know
for sure that we can create microcosms making life a precious good.The smallest and yet most unsheakable of these microcosms
is our own deeply feeling self.
I have experienced the symptom-reducing,life-saving benefits of
primal therapy.A long,long journey along the chain of pain into
the deepest deposits of my history is coming to an end.I`m look-
ing forward to an entirely new consciousness and quality of life.

Janov`s book is well written like all of his former books. As a
lay person,I recommend it without reservation.

My curiosity with Animal Communication lead me to pick up Arthur Myer's book on communicating with animals. It is a must have for anyone interested, curious, and even skeptical on the whole subject. Myer has more or less written on his investigation with so-called communicators; their stories, their techniques, and has left it up to his reader's to believe or not to believe. This is the foundation for anyone opening their eyes to this world. Though it is not written to "teach" you animal communication, it certainly sheds light on the subject enough that will encourage you to desire to learn more.

I found this book to be a wonderful 'introduction' resource for those who are curious about animal communication. It is particularly valuable for the skeptic, as it was written by a skeptic (or at least he started out that way). It looks at the skill of communicating telepathically with animals from an 'outside' viewpoint, allowing the reader to step back and consider with a critical yet unprejudiced eye just what they are seeing. I think this book will open skeptical minds at least to the overall idea that what they are looking at is possible, even if it does not convert them totally to the cause. A definite recommendation to all with an interest in the subject, and a fine 'first look' for those who wish to know more.

Thumbs up.

[Another good book for the beginner and those who are looking at the subject from an outside perspective is Patty Summers' book, "Talking With the Animals".]

This was a book that raised my curiosity in the introduction then pulled me further within it many fascinating chapters on the world of communicating with animals. It was well written and researched book full of detailed documented cases, with tips from all the experts laced throughout make it a must have volume I feel for any serious animal lover, veterinarian or scientist wishing to gain more insight into the spiritual nature of the other living creatures.

If you are looking for a story of a man who got what you don't seem to have, you may more or less enjoy this book. It will keep Liberation at a safe distance: only for the few "awakened ones" and not (yet) for you, the reader.
If you really want to know what true awakening is, you'd better read Tony Parson's book "As It Is". Or a book from Steven Harrison, Chuck Hillig, Nathan Gill or Douglas Harding.
I liked the title "my name is nobody" on page 151, but I am disappointed the whole enlightenment issue is personalised. For example, he claims to be awakened (p.65). A lot of readers may be confused about that. Liberation has nothing to do with a person, and even less with perfection or holiness (as is suggested in a lot of books from the East). Although I am sure meeting Stephen is very interesting, inspiring and maybe exiting, keep your head clear about this.
Remember: awakening has nothing to do with me or Stephen or Tony or Douglas, it is about That which we all share. If you can keep that in mind, it is OK to read Stephen Jourdain's book. Or to go and see him.

Jan Kersschot, author of "Nobody Home"

I loved this book. I wish SJ would write another one. Call it...Radical Awakening II.

Mr. Jourdain was born with his entire body/mind already wired to awaken. It was only a matter of time and it just so happened at the age of 16 for him. The book doesn't teach you how to awaken but you can surely get glimpes of "how to" for yourself just from just from reading it.

I don't totally understand why Mr Jourdain smokes 3 packs of cigs a day, because it is sort of stupid to do so. They say that he is in excellent health, but from his picture on the back of the book, it sure doesn't look like he's in excellent health, i.e, his skin and all.

A little difficult to read a first, but ever so interesting and enlightening!

Highly recommended!

mr jourdain is another of that rare breed who see beyond what the rest of us are capable of seeing. awake! he sees beyond the poor shadows and ego games we take as real life and a real world. he knows how to be still and know I AM. this is an interesting book of conversations with a very rare bird indeed. in my humble judgement i rate jourdain with the likes of david hawkins and jed mckenna, but probably still short of ramana maharshi and nisargadatta maharaj and a few, very few, others. i notice these great ones generally tell us seeking is futile, there's no "place" we should go and there's nothing we need "do." they hold rank on me and i can't argue but i always notice that they themselves were extremely driven "seekers" before the great awakening came. things that make you say, "hmmm"...a very interesting read this book is, about a very interesting fellow. for myself, though, i think i'll just keep right on knocking to open, asking to be given, seeking to find.....

Who hasn't heard of Robin Hood and his merry band of outlaws in Sherwood Forest? In this book you meet them all - including the powerful Little John, courageous Will Scarlet, musical Allan a Dale, and sly Friar Tuck. Roger Lancelyn Green has researched the legends and ballads about Robin Hood, and this collection of Robin Hood tales rivals the authoritative collection by Howard Pyle which has been unequalled for more than 100 years. But Green corrects one notable omission in Pyle: the absence of Maid Marion. In addition to the ample adventures revolving around Maid Marion, all the old favorites are included - Little John and his quarter-staff toppling Robin into the water, Robin winning the golden arrow at Nottingham's archery contest, and the Sheriff being outsmarted in numerous attempts to capture Robin. But these are just the tip of the iceberg - this book is chock-full of entertaining merry adventures.

The medieval setting is portrayed beautifully, including the vast gulf between the upper and lower classes of society, the corruption and greed of the nobility, and the hypocrisy of the medieval Roman Catholic church where religion has degenerated to mere outward rituals. But the medieval setting is not presented without a social commentary - Green shows that the unbalanced social structure inevitably resulted in the oppression of the poor and weak. Robin Hood and his band are clearly Catholics, and they are motivated by a genuine love for God and for the King. It is left to Robin Hood and his men to take justice into their own hands, and fight nobly for the cause of the downtrodden. Such justice is accomplished in a questionable manner, because the notion of robbing the rich to help the poor implicitly endorses civil disobedience. But Green points out that Robin Hood is motivated by justice and not revenge, and acts only because the lawful authority of King Richard has been replaced by an unlawful usurper. The theme of seeking justice and maintaining truth and right is in itself a noble one. With Robin Hood, we find ourselves wanting justice, and being prepared to make unselfish sacrifices in order to achieve it. When justice is done, it is actually the greed and corruption of the nobility that has led to its own destruction and ruin.

But the real attractions of this gem are the enthralling exploits of Robin Hood and his band of merry men. Comparisons with the classic Howard Pyle collection are inevitable. Green's collection of tales is equally well researched and equally comprehensive. Although the absence of Pyle's antiquated language is an improvement, Green's collection is still in the end inferior to Pyle's. Pyle's Sherwood Forest is a rather glamorous utopian world where feasting and song abound, where it is never winter, and where the ale rarely runs dry. Robin Hood clearly represents a form of hedonism, and in his company there is never a lack of action, adventure, or for that matter - ale. Green's Sherwood Forest is ironically less "green" than Pyle's, and lacks the hedonistic feasting and song, and lacks the sense of atmosphere that Pyle so skilfully evoked. Green's action and atmosphere fails to match the excitement and merriment that Robin Hood deserves, and he seems to have taken the "merry" out of Robin Hood and his band of outlaws. In this case the grass really was "Greener" on the Pyle side of the fence.

But that is not to detract from Green's superb effort. If you can't get Howard Pyle's "The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood" or can't endure his antiquated language, then don't look further than this collection by Green. There is no end to the accomplishments of muscles and mind, as Robin and his merry band outwit all comers by sheer physical skill in archery, wrestling, swordmanship, and quarter-staff combat, or by outsmarting them with deceit and disguise. To our delight, Robin's brawn and brains always come out on top at the end. Along with the tales of King Arthur, the tales of Robin Hood are the most exciting tales that British history has produced. Green's collection of Robin Hood's merry adventures is still constantly entertaining and exciting - one that you'll want to own and read over and over!

I read this book when I was a kid, and I can't recommend it highly enough to parents and kids who are looking for classic high adventure. It's timeless, yet provides good role models for boys (Robin Hood was the original cool do-gooder) and for girls, since Roger Greene's Maid Marian is more than a match for Robin with sword and bow and arrow.

I first read this book when I was 8 years old. Again at 10, again at 15, again at 20, and I just bought a new copy for my library from Amazon. There is no film, short of the John Irvin classic with Patrick Bergin and Uma Thurman, that comes close to telling the tale. I've always had an affinity for this novel, and have shared it with many of my friends. Great for children, as well as grown up children. Just plain good reading.

I must admit I'm a fan of Russell, so I tend to be a bit biased. But I also think that Russell really has, as one person put it, "hit the nail on the head" with this book on happiness.

Russell divides the book into two parts (essentially). One is devoted to the causes of unhappiness, with chapters on persecution mania, fear, envy, boredom and excitement, fatigue, the sense of sin, and fear of public opinion, among others. I found the chapter on fear to be the most interesting, although they all were fascinating. In chapter 9, Fear of Public Opinion, Russell alleges that many people drive themselves to unhappiness by trying to conform to others and/or being afraid of opprobrium from friends, family, or co-workers. Of course, the chapter itself is much better than my terse summary.

The next part of the book is devoted to the causes of happiness, with chpaters on: zest, affection, family, work, hobbies, and effort. I found this part to be of lower quality than the first. If one works backward from Russell's causes of unhappiness, than one would come across interesting ways of finding happiness. In others words, if you discovered that you were submerged in unbearable (perhaps religious) guilt all the time, than perhaps some rationalization would help. For example, let's say you're a woman, you've been raped, and you have an abortion. You are under a tremendous amount of guilt because you happen to be a conservative (theologically) Baptist. What do you do about your religious guilt, which is ruining your life?

I think Russell should've devoted a section to his causes of happiness part of the book to getting out of the causes of unhappiness. Not that he doesn't make a half-attempt to do this, but I really would've liked to see whole chapters devoted to the subject, not whole paragrahps or pages.

All in all, this book, taken with all of Russell's work on social problems, is (as "Time" magazine says) a modern substitute for the Bible. Russell really does see the problems of modern society, and his solutions are still relevant after more than 70 years.

In this book Bertrand Russell writes about things that cause unhappiness and--as the author himself explains--having no outside cause, are all the more distressing since they seem to have no solution. Russell proposes answers for the everyday happiness that every human being is bound to suffer. His chapters include Envy (the greatest of human passions, according to him), Persecution Mania (a VERY interesting chapter), Family, Work, and so on. A few things in the book must be taken with a grain of salt; however, I fell that on the whole Russell hits the nail on the head and offers us a work that is part philosophy, part psychology, and very effective in doing what it proposes. The second part of the book contains chapters that explain the cause of happiness, and how one can attain it. In the end, I put down the book knowing a bit more about human nature, and realizing that a book that was written so long ago is incredibly current--the truth that human nature never changes is one of the book's corollaries.

The monograph, written by Russell at the age of 58 (he lived to 98), is first and foremost a self-help book. As Russell clearly states in the preface, the book contains "no profound philosophy or deep erudition," and was "aimed only at putting together some remarks which are inspired by what I [Russell] hope is common sense." And how wonderful those remarks were.

As with any self-help book, there aren't that many _new_ facts to learn within. Rather there is a certain view of the world the authors offer, and it is their congeniality and their own conviction in their view that provide readers with consolation, and motivation to try out such view. Russell's view is that the world is abundant with joy to be explored and discovered. The programs he suggests for conquering happiness, most notably, were 1) to face whatever fear you behold with sincerity and conviction that they are possible to overcome (Russell regards even one's unconscious changeable with sufficient vigor and intensity), 2) enjoy to its fullest extent what life has to offer no matter how trivial the source of enjoyment are perceived by others insofar as the act of pursuing enjoyment do not harm others (example: Russell's Gardner was fascinated in hunting rabbits!), and 3) to realize that whatever happens to oneself is not all that important after all (Russell's such laissez faire-ish view is exemplified by his words: "in the broad stream of history nothing is of paramount importance..."). With a mathematician's rigor Russell in each chapter scoped out what the problem he wished to take on, and laid out his solutions, logically deduced from common sense. I was convinced.

However it was not so much the solutions Russell provided that made me enjoy this book. What I enjoyed most was the chance to peek into a mind that appeared to me to be naive and held no pretense: "I shall therefore assume that the reader would rather be happy than unhappy. Whether I can help him to realize this wish, I do not know; but at any rate the attempt can do no harm." To see people attempting to overcome difficulties in their utmost sincerity, in my view, provides one with the ultimate consolation.