This book is a "must" source if you want to learn about the former-Yugoslavia's history, economic system, and its recent war (and related Balkan crisis). I found it indispensible to use during a course study, and an easy-to-follow, knowledge-packed source for a paper related to the recent Bosnian war.

War with the Newts is a good book not only for its intellectual value but also for enjoyment. The plot is interesting and easily captivating. In an age where exploitation in its many forms (politically, racially, environmentally, etc.) is still prevalent, the books stands as a strong satire to the possible, if not far off, consequences of society's actions. As the satire builds and the newts gain control, the book becomes more interesting, especially in a realistic sense with its constant explanatory footnotes and articles from such established periodicals as National Geographic. The final chapter is noteworthy, as Capek reveals his consciousness of the reader and his/her possible reactions to the brief (some would say sudden) ending. An easy and entertaining read, War with the Newts is defintely worth reading. (Personal note: About time, Mr. Rutstein.)

Capeks understanding of human stupidity and the evils that follow it is unmatched in my opinion. Yet the tone in his work is overwelmingly charming and outrageously funny. He is also my favorite writer,and in The war with the newts his genius is evident on every page.He tells the story in a highly entertaining way.Instead of having one or two main Characters hapek jumps between all kinds of different people from the most variyng walks of life, and through the the mirror of their experiences the reader sees the reflected Grand Worldspanning plot. A wonderfull book. Read it. It makes you feel good.

...and this is also the genesis of science fiction as a medium for social commentary. Long before Kurt Vonnegut, Philip K. Dick, and Douglas Adams mined science fiction for dark pearls of wisdom, Karel Capek set the stage with the delightful "War with the Newts." A long-time favorite of mine ever since I studied it in a literature class in college, I enjoy revisiting this book time and time again. Capek effectively uses a time-line approach to document the exploitation of the "newts," all the while poking fun at (then-current) Aryan superiority, rascism, and "bonehead" science. The assumption of the inferiority of certain classes of people is shown by Capek to inevitably lead to the downfall of the world as we know it. Since Capek's time, other authors have followed his path with some success, but Capek remains the master of this genre, and, along with H. G. Wells, Olaf Stapledon, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and Jules Verne (oft-imitated authors in their own right), he must be considered one of the pioneers of modern science fiction

There is so much useful, easily digestable material contained within this book, that only one reading is simply not enough!. I have read this book more than once and the new 2nd edition provides even more tips for growing my business. I particularly like the section on the "Top Ten Commandants of a Networking Mixer" for example, because it gives information that even a "born networker" can benefit from applying at their next networking function. For example- #3 states, "act like a host, not a guest"--so simple but profound in the ability to position yourself as a person in the know--the kind of person others want to do business with! If you are in business this book is a must have. If you know a person in business this book is the best gift you could give! After all, "givers gain" begins by giving!

The information in this book is essential to everyone if you want to 'grow' your business! All to often business professionals take 'Referrals' for granted and while they realize they are the best form of business, they don't know how to increase the referrals they receive. W-O-M Marketing is no secret, but how to perfect it is available in this remarkable book. The 'Devine Guidance' offered by the co-author is extremely easy to read and understand. If you are in business and don't own this book, if for nothing else than to hone your skills, you will never attain the highest level of referral business that you could. Congratulations, a book on building you business whether it's big or small! 'Hallelujah'

This 2nd Edition is even better then the first. They do not teach business professionals enough, if anything about marketing with word-of-mouth. This book is easy to read and easy to implement. If you want to increase the number of referrals you are receiving and receive quality referrals get this book now. Not reading this book could be dangerous to your wealth! Congratulations to Dr. Misner and Virginia Devine for this wonderful book that can teach any business how to be a BIG success.

This review comes strictly from a reading of Norman Maclean's written work without any influence from the film version of A River Runs Through It, for I have never seen it. Simply as a piece of written work, Maclean writes an absolutely inspirational novella. As his introduction indicates, part of the motivation for writing his stories came from wanting to preserve a decent sense of parental identity for his children. This intention comes through in Maclean's A River Runs Through It as he uses first-person narration, which evokes a story-telling quality about the work. The reader is made to feel as though the story is truly a personal recounting of significant life events that reveal something about the main character's past concerns, how he came to some sort of resolution about those concerns, and of course, explain a few things about his identity to his listener.

The way in which Maclean connects fly-fishing to family values and also to spirituality is beautiful. Norm, the main character of the book, has such an attentiveness to beauty and feels such reverence for his brother's angling ability, the reader is unable to separate the idea of fishing from an appreciable means to well-being. Time spent fly-fishing is quality time for the male members of the family, and it is especially revered by the two brothers, Paul and Norm, as they go out to the river as adults, no longer with their father. It is while fishing with their father that they learn spiritual truths, and these ideas are carried with them, in perhaps slightly different interpretations, into every expedition. A conflict arises when the respectful attitude the brothers expect at the river is difficult to arouse in others.

What's interesting is that the brothers do not converse much during these outings. They are not there to lounge and chat. They are truly there to practice their skill, and they do so in separate sections of the water. The conversations that they do have are slight and perhaps a bit obscure, but meaningful. Maclean does a wonderful job presenting the methods by which male communication is relayed and interpreted. His ability to present men as dually sensitive and proud is commendable.

Another thing that Maclean does well is maintain his readers' participation in the story. His explanation of fly-fishing mechanics, which does not at all distract from the story, prevents the reader from feeling detached from a possibly unfamiliar experience. In fact, a moderately involved reader will find himself or herself agreeing with the opinion that fly-fishing is the only respectable form of fishing, and will scoff together with Norm at the use of worms and "poles" rather than flies and "rods".

As the story develops, it becomes apparent that one of Norm's main concerns is his ability to be helpful, and that his attempts are frustrated repeatedly. Discover what Norm learns about his concerns and responsibilities, and find out about some other provocative characters within this tale. It's a short, enjoyable read with an inspirational effect.

A River Runs Through It is a story of the heart of a man and the passion for life that runs through all men. Some of us may not be aware of this when we look at our lives of struggle and mediocrity. Others may say this is a dreamer's attitude. Norman Maclean shows us how it is as natural as a river, and as powerful as a fist . This book is about men, and growing into manhood. It uses the river both as metaphor and as the dramatic backdrop for a life of a man. It is written as if every word was distilled to its purest essence, and reads as a drink of the finest wine. I read it sentence by sentence and went over many passages simply to savor the view and the feel it created in me. Read it and treasure it and give it to another man you may care about.

There is something about this novel that felt like reading a classic novel that had been passed on for generations. Maclean gives a story that has so much purity to the relationships between his characters, and there is definitely a sense of innocence within the text.

The story is based around the relationships of father and son, and brother to brother. Between these two relationships, Maclean explores the tribulations that come within a family, and the challenges of wanting to protect a loved one compared to having to let them make their own mistakes. Maclean has an excellent handle on conveying the true emotions that come within a bond such as these, and it gives and very honest sense to the story.

The lessons given to the characters of the book take on the medium of fly fishing. There were times when these sections seemed very lengthy. But once they can be gotten throughm the reader is given a great reward by Maclean's natural ability to tighten a story and use very exact and straight forward language. This is a novel that shows a contemporary reader that we have masters of the English language all around us.

I would recommend this book to anyone. It gives a very strong sense of place as well as excellent characterization. The sense of place is what makes the book have a bit of a romantic feel to it, though it revolves around the challenges between family men and their friendships.

Maclean show that even when you love someone with eveything you have, you still have to let them be and make their own decisions.

This book asks the questions that can be applied to many relationships between not only family members but also friendships.

It is an excellent read.

Assuming you never heard of the Church of the SubGenius, and their horrible, discordian, and nerdish beliefs...I'd say it's about time you did. BUY THIS BOOK.

A true remedy for all the [junk] that clouds the minds of modern man. You might think you think, but you WON'T think the same after this thought provoking 'reveal all' tale. Life begins AFTER you look at this book for the first time. A true mind opener. Ever felt the popular, and organized religions are missing the boat, or that TV ad media are hiding the facts, or maybe that people are just looking at you weird because THEY just don't GET IT? The answers are here. This is truely a guide to fill in every missing crack, especially yours. Stang and Drummond (with the help of Bob Dobbs) have burst open the doors to a unique INDUSTRIAL STRENGTH CHURCH that will clear the cobwebbs from your eyes so you can replace them with a wool of your own choosing.

Filled with passages fusing together the histories and religions of mankind's blatantly pointless path, the SubGenius detail how you can be freed from the bounds of this horrible present life style of common possession and launch yourself headlong into THEIR HELLISH HEAVEN of individual, spastic, self expression. Filled with plenty of illustration, clip art collages and snappy sayings meant to confuse the unworthy! You can read it in bits, or all the way through; it doesn't matter because you can't go back from this experience.

A great organization, a ground breaking book, I still won't pay MY [money] to these guys. It might be TOO much Slack, but I'd just call it laziness, or prudent money management.

In 1993 I received an unexpected surprise: my brother and I were browsing through the Buck-a-Book discount bookstore in the Cambridge area (Buck-a-Book is a prime source for Slack!) one day, when he found a copy of the Book of the SubGenius on sale for one dollar. He showed it to me, knowing how I had pointed out "Bob" a few times in the past. I snatched the book up and bought it...after all, what's a buck these days? Plenty, as it turned out. I enjoyed the book immensely, and I thought the message of the Church of the SubGenius was a good one. This was back when memberships in the Church were still $20, and every so often I would look through the Book and say, "I should really send in the money and get ordained." But I didn't...because I didn't GET IT.

But the pivotal day came in February, 1994, when Buck-a-Book came through again! This time I was browsing the store in the business district of Boston during my lunch hour, when I came across the book that was to change my life: "High Weirdness by Mail." ("Three-Fisted Tales of 'Bob'" was also on sale for a buck that day, but I didn't get it yet.) I picked it up and said to myself, "I really should get this - it's only a buck!" and I bought it. A good omen occured right there at the cash register: the cashier saw the book and he said, "That is such a GREAT book! I've gotten so much weird stuff from that book...my neighbors think I'm crazy!"

So I read the book...and I WAS STRUCK BY A REVELATION! The rightings within this Sacred Tome were as much of an eye-opener as Rick had been! The chapter on dangerous hate groups alone was worth the cost of the book (the full cost, that is - not just a buck), and the book's musings on the philsophies of life and what is good (and what isn't) helped me to truly read between the likes of the Book of the SubGenius at last. YES! I was struck by the reality of the true meaning of the Church of the SubGenius...and it was good! It was something I already believed in! It was a cause worth sending money to! I finally GOT IT! Within the next week, I finally wrote out my $20 and mailed it in to the Sacred P.O. Box. I also went back to Buck-a-Book and got "Three-Fisted Tales" before it vanished, though I thought (and still think) that it wasn't as good as first two books had been.

When you first read "The Book of the SubGenius," you may not GET IT. Only those of true Yeti heritage will be blessed with the vision that is J.R. "Bob" Dobbs...and one of those rare souls could be YOU. You MUST see the Book of the SubGenius. Even if you don't GET IT right now, you will one day...if it is right for YOU!

One word: brilliant! Many words: This book is equal parts scathing indictment of conformist thought, a sincere exhortation for the free-thinking individualist to not lose faith in himself/herself, an amusing cosmogony filled with sundry gods, demons, yetis, aliens and more, a free-spirited religious/philosophical treatise on the merits of self-indulgence, an ego-maniacal, self-aggrandizing rant and a blatant attempt to "cash in" by Ivan Stang, a satire on mainstream American culture AND seemingly "counter culture" types (cults, hippies, punks...; in short any "followers" of any stripe or creed), and one long, self-satirizing, not-at-all-to-be-taken-seriously joke.
If all this sounds like essential reading for any sane person in an insane world, then...your right! If all this sounds like a stupid, rambling, jerk-yer-chain-jape, then...your right!
Based on all that, if you cannot conceive how this book could could be so ESSENTIAL, then you're *SO PINK* you can't think straight anyways.

Few literary works are capable of properly representing Christianity especially in such a brilliant way. The few that do are Flannery O' Connor and Dostoevsky's works. However, the problem that occurs is that people who are not Christians in order to understand the work create their own idea of what the author is trying to say. For instance, The Death Of Ivan Ilyich is often seen only in existential terms by those that are not Christian or is given a broad psychological analysis. What the work is really about is the selfishness of man, his loneliness,and the meaninglessness of life without Christ. He empahsizes the meaninglessness by Ilyich and their all consuming materialism. Notice how no matter how much his wages increase it isn't enough. This should resonate with American society, however it is too busy trying to act as Ivan and his family did. Although, written before Capitalism, Tolstoy stunningly rebukes it. In addtion, he brilliantly shows what true Christianity is about and not as the American church would like people to perceive it. For instance, he repeatedly emphasizes the notion of dying to sin (dead to sin) and being alive in Christ. But this is too often missed because people have failed to understand the true nature of Christianity. How he does this is brilliant. For instance, in the beginning of the book his supposed friends are seen as thinking well at least he's dead and I'm not. But Tolstoy is mocking them and everyone who thinks this way. For they are really dead in that they are spirtually dead and slaves to sin, while Ivan has moved on from being dead in sin to dead to sin and alive in Christ. This is what baptism is supposed to represent. Chiefly, this work is a blatant example of the process that an individual undertakes when they convert to Christianity. As a result, those that are not Christian too often don't understand the story and great it is. If you want to examine more work that is equally brilliant read Flanney O'Connors short story's, especially A Good Man is Hard to Find, which is best story available on demonstrating God's grace and essence of the gospel. As to the person who said that the story is ruined by the ending being told at the beginning you are missing the point entirely. Tolstoy was more interested in the content in the story making a specific point, rather than shrouding the ending in mystery. Additionally, the reader is unaware that Ivan will convert to Christianity in the end, so the ending is still not entirely known to the reader. And the title is ironic because Ivan is the one that actually finds life and didn't die, while all the other characters are spiritually dead with the exception of Geraism the servant. He actually represents God's grace being actively present on earth.

If you have ever asked yourself what is really important in your life--this book is a must read. In todays fast-paced, modern day society, Ivan Ilyich appeared to have it all--a high-profile job, a beautiful wife, a well-educated child, and a future son-in-law that most parents would be proud to have in the family. When Ivan Ilyich realizes that he is dying all that he thought he wanted in life is put into question. This book is descriptive, evoking powerful and provacative questions that cause the reader to reflect on one's own life.

This is not a lengthy book, but Tolstoy has managed to discuss the subject of death and create a concise, philosophical piece. This is one of those works that could be read several times, at different stages of one's life, as the answers to the questions it creates will most likely change.

...so I could read this story in the original. This novella is an absolute masterpiece. It made me think about things my jaded self had long since given up on, like God, purpose of life, death, fear. Tolstoy has an absolute deadpan sense of humor, which was so subtle it took me a while to catch on (for example, Ivan's fatal injury occurs while he is hanging expensive drapery out to impress his friends--what a beautifully ironic, even funny way to point out the meaninglessness of his life?).

If you're like me, and don't have the time to slog through "War and Peace" but are interested in Tolstoy, try this book. It's outstanding.

This book is known mostly, perhaps, for the character of Bazarov, widely considered the vanguard of nihilism in literature, especially in Russia. Bazarov is a significant fact of fiction, a sketch of the young middle class intellegentsia developing in Russia in the second half of the 19th century. Brash, self-confident, iconoclastic, educated young men like Bazarov were popping up all over Russia. Turgenev finds a way to tie this into a rich tapestry of love, familial relationships, and simplicity that Arkady and Bazarov, the young men, succumb to. Even in his determination to change the world by destroying it so it can be rebuilt, Bazarov does not overcome the strong bonds of family. Love and family has the sort of redemptive power found so often in War and Peace, and indeed, Turgenev writes from a similar perspective and on a similar wavelength as Tolstoy. This book, while not big on plot, is to be appreciated for blending its simple prose with a poetic passion in showing how love between fathers and sons is ageless, and love between men and women occurs. I found the last passage very moving.

In Turgenev's Fathers and Sons, as in most of Chekhov, nothing much really happens. People talk a lot and that's about it. Should be dull, right? But it isn't. The talk, and the characters revealed, reflect the profound changes that were being felt in Russian society at the end of the 19th Century; changes that would set the stage for much of what was to happen in the 20th Century. But more important to a modern reader, the ideas and the real life implication of those ideas are as current and relevant as when Turgenev wrote. Bazarov, the young 'nihilist', sounds just like the typical student rebel of the 60's (or of the Seattle WTO protests just recently). He has the arrogance and the innocence of idealistic youth. He is as believeable, and as moving in his ultimate hurt, as any young person today might be confronted with the limitations of idealism and the fickle tyranny of personal passion.

I loved this book when I first read it as a teenager and I enjoyed it even more on subsequent rereadings. It makes the world of 19th century Russia seem strangely familiar and it gives many a current political thread a grounding in meaningful history.

One of the most eloquent works in Russian literature, Fathers and Sons has had a major influence on subsequent Russian writers. Turgenev weaves so much into this short novel. As the title suggests he is dealing principally with generational differences, but ultimately this is a book about finding yourself in the world. In Bazarov, we have the ultimate nihilist, someone who renounces all societal conventions, which his peers utterly fail to understand. As a young doctor he has turned his back on noble society. We see some of his old feelings briefly rise to the surface in a romance which he pursues, but Bazarov chooses to extinguish those feelings, and return to his paternal home, where he ultimately seals his fate.

Turgenev is the bridge between the Russian writers of the early 19th century and the later 19th century. In many ways, Fathers and Sons reminded me of the theme which Lermontov explored in "A Hero of Our Time," and Turgenev appears in Dostoevsky's work, even if deliberately as a caricature.

One day...is that all it was? Even reading the novel, you feel the exact sameness of the days, how they all blend together in a Soviet workcamp, and how it had to be difficult to keep track of how many days have passed.

This book had a profound impact on me. These types of books make me look at myself a little differently. They make me wonder just how I define what's important in my life, and they make me awe at how easy it would be to redefine "important." For Ivan, what's important is an extra bowl of food, dry gloves, and a little tobacco. But we know, when we read this, that it wasn't what was always important--once upon a time, he had a life.
Simply by becoming a prisoner of war, he's become an enemy of the State; and a prisoner of a much larger war (Stalin's war on his people).

This book is about more than Stalin and more than a workcamp. It's about much more than a day in the life of a single prisoner. It's about humanity, about questioning who we are and what it would take to make us radically different, and yes, about communism and another world.

Read it yourself--and find out.

_Ivan Denisovich_ is by no means light reading, nor is it particularly notable for its entertainment value. Solzhenitsyn's detailed descriptions of the horrors of life in the Gulag, though, give the reader a glimpse into an otherwise unknown life, a life filled with desperation, starvation, frozen tundra, and injustice. Although I did not particularly enjoy the book as I read it, I am glad that I did--Solzhenitsyn's story is worth being heard, and the novel's ultimate value surpassed my initially negative feelings about the book. It is truly amazing and thought-provoking to realize what sort of a day is good in the eyes of Ivan Denisovich and his fellow prisoners.

One Day is based on the real life experience of A. Solzhenitsyn, who was imprisoned for the better part of ten years (may have been more, can't remember) in a Russian hard labor camp. One of the ironies of this is that A.S. was not an outspoken dissident or a rabble rouser, he mostly held to the party line, or didn't give much thought to politics. He was imprisoned for an offhand comment after years of loyalty. After finally being released, and writing this novel, the book was banned in Russia and he was eventually forced into exile from his beloved/hated mother country. He went on to win the Nobel Prize for this and his subsequent works about Russia during his lifetime.

The character Ivan mirrors A.S. in some respects, most notably in the fact that he doesn't care at all about any of the ideology behind the camp. Some of the other characters debate politics or sociology and mostly get thrown into solitary confinement. But not Ivan. He thinks about food and how he's going to get more of it. He thinks about keeping his foot wrappings dry and leaves the political proselytizing to the fools who will soon be dead.

Ironically, this is where the book finds its true literary achievement. At the heart of this character is a total disillusion, not the smallest spark of hope or faith in ideals or humanity, and yet the experience of watching this character carefully manuever his way to an extra bowl of soup, a pinch of fresh tobbacco, an old crust of bread -- it's magical somehow. The scene of the prisoners laying bricks is practically transcendental. Here there is dignity, pride, a sense of accomplishment, community, even a small amount of pleasure. Did we forget we were reading about a communist forced labor camp? Yes, for a moment, we did.

There's a powerful statement about the nature of a human being in that. This is A.S.'s achievement, the puzzling complexity of this book -- it is precisely out of his hopelessness and disillusion that Ivan Denisovich's humanity and strength arise.

You can still feel the author's conflicted sorrow, the unquenched bitterness and the utter frustration with a communist system that was completely irrational and blindly destructive. Yet the source of that frustration is the love he had for his country that nearly destroyed him. This confusion and melding of opposite poles is only appropriate for literature about Soviet communism -- a system based on such high utopian ideals, yet responsible for some of civilization's most massive atrocities.

All in all a quick read and honestly not as depressing as it may sound. An incredible novel as well as an incredible piece of literary history. Besides, when was the last time you got off so easy reading a Nobel Prize winner?

PS. I happened to pick up All Quiet On the Western Front at the same time as this book. They turned out to be quite similar in a number of ways. If you like one of these books, you will certainly like the other. Both fascinating and oddly beautiful accounts of the misuse of the population by those in power.

My sentiments very much tend to echo those of the previous reviewer.

This book remains indispensable for any serious collector of classical music. I have made numerous purchases based on the recommendations in this book and have been rarely disappointed (in particular with the sterile Naxos recording of Bruckner's motets - rather buy the Jochum on DG).

My reservations are twofold:

1) Too little report on action at the independent classical labels, eg: Martin Jones' excellent second cycle of Spanish Piano Music for Nimbus remains unreviewed. Various excellent Russian recordings devoted to Grechaninov's choral works exist (Chandos, Olympia) but the only one reviewed is (needless to say) a British one.

2) Glaring ommissions. Composerwise I'll stick with Pavel Chesnokov - probably the most important Russian composer composing almost exclusively choral works. Excellent recordings were released by Olympia, but no mention. As regards compositions, I was disappointed by the paucity of reviews of Sarasate works for violin and piano (other than the Zigeunerweisen and the Carmen fantasy, which are almost mainstream) - Rachel Barton and Itzhak Perlman come to mind.

Still, an excellent guide.

These days there are a number of good guides to classical music, but this one still holds its own. The writing is clear (sometimes even amusing), and the choices are usually thoughtful. At its best, this guide succeeds in comparing two, three or even a dozen different versions of a given work, rather than merely citing the "best" one - which may be unavailable for any number of reasons. For anyone trying to make sense of the classical music marketplace - especially beginners dazed by hordes of Beethoven Fifth's - you could do much worse than investigate these editors' recommendations.

Some caveats: yes, there are some composers who aren't even represented by a single recording. This is somewhat shameful, given that (just to pick one) there is more Xenakis available to listen to than this book would have you believe. And if the writers have an overall bias, it appears to be toward British composers, conductors and orchestras. This is not, in my opinion, a major minus since the country has such a rich musical culture, and the Guide's editors are all British. Just note it, accept it - and move on. Get what you can from their experience, and then explore some other publications, either printed or increasingly online. There are plenty of other sources of musical criticism and insight available, and frankly, for a balanced view of recordings, any skeptical consumer would want to investigate other opinions anyway.

I've been using the Penguin for years and have rarely been steered totally wrong. Sometimes I don't quite agree with the top choices, but this shows how many great recordings we have (for some works) from which to choose - not to mention how two people can hear the same recording and come to a different conclusion.

For both beginners and veteran listeners, this book can be safely recommended as an important volume in a well-rounded reference collection.

Absolutely the best, most helpful guide to recorded classical music there is. Indispensible when trying to buy unfamiliar music. I've used prior editions of this guide over and over to choose cd's of music I don't know well. Every time the guide has given a cd 3 stars, it has been terrific. One caveat: the reviewers do like performances on period-instruments, and they like old (sometimes mono!) recordings, and they like complete operas. So they will often give a cd a very high rating when the average listener would not necessarily enjoy it that much. But they always provide that information in the text, so you can watch out for it. I find these reviews consistently more reliable than reviews in other guides, eg Gramophone, etc. Also a pleasant book to just read.

I was looking for a nice diary book to read with a story or character that I could easily follow. I was quite disappointed to find that stories were out of order (due to changes by people other than the author, after the book went into 'publication'). There are also so many footnotes, that are all listed at that back of the book, so there is lots of flipping back and forth. In addition, the footnotes take up 120 pages, not including the additional 40 odd pages of maps or other additional information.

This body of the text is very poetic, and you can feel a strong sense of character from the author. There is also a wealth of information and knowledge that is in the text pertaining to the time frame of heian times in japan.

But unless you are studying japanese culture, or history, this would not be my top recommendation for a memoir sort of read.

I do like pieces of the material alot, but just find that above forementioned things take away from enjoying the body of work, as it was written.

I would like to disagree with the last reviewer and stress that Sei Shonagon was certainly not a highly intelligent statue and she was not particularly zen either. Shonagon was a lively wit and intellect, known for her erudition and scholarship. The thing that I found most wonderful about the Pillow Book was not its serene contemplation of nature, which was often a literary conceit in Heian times, but rather her robust enjoyment of life. In the Tale of Genji, the Gossamer Diary, and the Sarashina Diary, you find disappointed women, unhappy with the way their lives turned out and often betrayed by their men. Although several lovers are hinted at in the Pillow Book, Shonagon never lets anything get her down. The time she describes was probably not a happy time, her patron, the Empress was suffering due to lack of political support, and Shonagon's own future must have looked bleak. However, she never falls into self pity and rather treats us to a delightful look through the eyes of an extremely intelligent and realistic woman. Her description of the worst lover ever is hilarious today. I've read it to friends of mine who have never read any other Heian literature and it made them laugh. Shonagon's keen observations and ready wit shine through after a thousand years and a translation. It stands as a testament to the fact that somethings, love, laughter, friendship, and the relations between men and women never change.

I have just completed a reading of Ivan Morris' translation of the Sei Shonagon Pillow Book and I cannot reccoment it enough. What is striking about the literature of Heian era Japan is not only that the great majority of it was produced by brilliant women, but that the parallels between the ancient human condition and that of the modern are amazing. Reading about the joys and annoyances in the life the brilliant and quick witted Sei Shonagon are comfortingly familiar. In comparison to other literature of the time it is also an extremely candid look at a fascinating civilization. What sets Shonagon apart from her contermporaries is her ability to express uncensored opinions that are both hillarious, beautiful, and heartbreaking. She does not show the aversion to boldness that some of her (though equally brilliant) sisters of the ancient courts demonstrate. All the writing of this era is fascinating and becoming unfortunately harder to find (eg - the out of print status of the beautiful Izumi Shikibu Diary - Nikki) If anything, purchase this book to keep the brilliant voices of women past alive in our hearts, minds and presses today!