This is from memory of reading it about 50 years ago. Austin Freeman created a better detective than Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. His "Dr. Thorndyke" is Holmes with TV's Quincy added: a more logical detective who explains things better to the reader. Indeed, some of the stories are "inverted", i.e. you know who did it and how, but you follow the good doctor as he unravels the case. I wanna new copy of his cases!

This book covered children's health from birth to teenagers. It was able to easily clarify whether or not to bring a child to a doctor. There were good descriptions and illustrations of ailments, as well as an easy-to-use index. I would recommend it to any new parent as a reference manual.

My husband and I travelled to Texas on holiday and this book was brilliant it saved us time and helped us find things we wouldn't have found with out the help of this book. I would recommend it in an instant.

It's too bad that over the course of X-Men history, Jean Grey has died and been resurrected so many times that she's become something of a comic-industry in-joke. It's to the detriment of one's perception of the depth of the original story. She remains possibly the most complex of X-Men characters, and her dark history is chronicled in this well-written collection that tells what is considered the best storyline in X-Men's history.

My one gripe is with the artwork. Yes, it's dated, but there's a much more important issue here -- why is it that they used only one page to illustrated the climactic sacrifice? In this one scene is incorporated the fate of the whole team of X-Men (whether they will be killed by the Imperial Guard), the ultimate fate of the love between Phoenix and Cyclops, Phoenix' final decision (her humanity, or her power?), and the fate of the universe. Even the defeat of Colossus at the hands of Gladiator received more panels. The scant amount of space devoted to this devastating ending is a matter of storytelling, and the age of the comic doesn't excuse it from a fault on this level.

Other than that, it's one of the most effective orchestrations of the huge cast in the X-Men series. Most of the time, storylines in comic books like this revolve around the appearance of some anticipated character or another. Here it's driven by emotion and story development, and the Dark Phoenix/Phoenix character remains fascinating, driven less by malevolence than hunger and arrogance. One occasion where a lowbrow cultural form like the comic book has produced something worthy of deeper consideration beyond that of simple entertainment.

In the Dark Phoenix Saga, Chris Claremont and John Byre, firing on all cylinders, create the greatest comics story ever. It is a story that fits logically in the greatest run by an artist/writer team in a comic series ever (chronicled in the Essential X-Men Vol.2 graphic novel), but one that also stands so well on its own.

In a story where so many things are done right, it stands out because it is a primarily a story about conflict. There is conflict on virtually every page. Not just shot-em up, video game violence, but internal, character-driven conflict.

There is conflict between Prof. X and Cyclops over leadership of the X-men; between the fiery Wolverine and the control-freak Prof. X; Jean Grey struggles to control her dark side; Cyclops tries to mold the fiercly independent members of the X-men into a tight-knit team; Jean & Scott try to maintain their relationship thru the mounting chaos....

The X-men, the ultimate ousiders, rely on each other time and again and yet, their most powerful member turns on them and then saves them - repeatedly.

The X-men have a truly worthy opponent in the Hellfire Culb.

Obstacle after obstacle is overcome before the truly life and death battle at the climax. The escalation of tension is evere bit as gripping as when I read the original comics as a kid. Its lost none of the magic or mystery. There is none of the letdown so often felt when we re-visit the source of our nostalgia.

There have been a half dozen stories that were much more revolutionary than the Dark Phoenix Saga - from the death of Gwen Stacey in Spider-Man, to The Dark Knight, the Watchmen and Crisis on Infinite Earths over at DC. Yet, for my money, Dark Phoenix is better - not for its novelty or originality or life-like art, but because its that good.

It is up to each X fan to decide if subsequent events have diluted the power of the Dark Phoenix saga, but it is still the one story that everyone who really wants to know the X-Men must be familiar with.

Seemingly by a miracle, Jean Grey's life was recently saved by psychic melding with an elemental force called the Phoenix. Unfortunately, a price soon becomes apparent. At first in small ways, it starts to become obvious that the Phoenix has started to change Jean, wheather for good or ill not immediately apparent. As the obscene Hellfire Club - which makes Magneto look like a boy scout - tries to find a way to make use of Jean, it slowly becomes evident that the power of the Phoenix is becoming beyond her control. This time, not even her teammates - not even Scott - may be able to save her.

This story is still powerful, and younger readers should be aware that, at the time, it sent shockwaves through the comic reading world because nothing like the tragic resolution had ever been done before. It was grim indeed.

There is, however, a light at the end of the tunnel. As the remaining X-Men grieve, a young girl hesitantly arrives at Xavier's to begin schooling - a girl who had a peripheral involvement in the Phoenix events. She's Kitty Pryde, who will eventually become the love of Colossus' life, like a foster daughter to Storm and like a little sister to Nightcrawler.

Newer fans will be surprised in particular by the beginning of Kurt and Kitty's friendship. "I don't think the little Fraulein likes me", Kurt notes to himself during the calm before the storm. The matter is dropped in the whirlwind of events, but it will come back to haunt them both. The truth is that Kitty, in spite of her best efforts to hide it, WAS a bit frightened by Kurt for quite some time. It would take alot of mental conditioning on her part and patience and sensitivity on his before she became his fiercely adoring Katzchen.

Knight's is indeed the professional standard omnibus for seamanship. It is an excellent comprehensive text for any mariner. That said, it is desperately in need of updating. The electronic navigation section lists systems no longer in use (Omega, LORAN), and treats GPS as a "future" system (although the editors do prophetically write that GPS receivers will drop in price until they are affordable by the average mariner).
Additionally,there are a disconcerting number of typographical errors present. I can only hope the editors are progressing on a 19th Edition.

This book is in the pilothouse of every ship in the US Navy. 'Nuff said.

I find it useful as a basic reference, for vocabulary, and for filling the gaps that Bowditch leaves.

The chapters are well laid out, the information is well indexed, and topics proceed logically. The illustrations are clear and useful.

Best overview of professional seamanship. This book goes leagues beyond novice publications such as "Chapmans" and "Annapolis". The book begins with simple principles and builds the basic vocabulary as it progresses. It's easy to understand with good photos and illustrations. Great study text for the masters exam. Electronics section obviously outdated.

Austin takes the life of John Muir and presents the picture of the Wilderness prophet. He is able to take the events of Muir's childhood and youth and show how the "wilderness" became his saving grace. Muir was able to feel the soul of the Creator while climbing mountains and standing, mouth open, awed by the scenic beauty of the wilderness. Read this book and you will want to plan a trip to Yosemite Park and see what had so inspired John Muir.

This was a very informative book for children. I plan to put in in our school's library. It has information on Pope John Paul II from his birth until it was published in 2000. It has many color pictures. It is a very nice book.

Although Romney Pringle isn't as interesting and memorable as E.W. Hornung's character, Raffles, I still enjoyed the clever plots of each chapter. Pringle's personality is held a bit in the dark, but the surprising story conclusions make up for it.

Walsh's account of the Todd-Dickinson affair is probably the most unbalanced work in the name of scholarship I have read so far. Unabashedly biased and judgemental, this book reeks of the author's personal issues with matters of adultery, while no effort is expended in trying to understand the complicated dynamic between all the adults involved in the affair.

Among other ludicrous and reductive explanantions for the behavior of Dickinson and Todd, Walsh asserts that Dickinson's participation in an almost fifteen-year affair was driven by a desire for "revenge against the fate" that had taken his son, who died as a young child. Walsh's grip on the psychology behind this stops here as does the supporting evidence. However, a great more effort is made to "justify" Austin's role in the affair while Todd, according to Walsh, is guilty of the deliberate "wrecking" of the reputation of Austin's wife, Susan, assuming that for her, malice toward others was the driving force behind her participation in the affair.

Apparently, Walsh is joining the ranks of a long line of historians and scholars who see fit to crucify their female subjects for deviant sexual behavior, while ignoring or justifying the same behavior in men. It is also interesting to note that Todd's sexual behavior is the just about the only aspect of her life mentioned in this book; her numerous accomplishments as a musician, author, painter, seasoned travelor and lecturer are dismissed or ignored. Once again, with Walsh's help, the historical representation of an ambitious, successful female is reduced to that of a conniving, malicious "hussy" whose sexual behavior exclusively defines her.

It seems odd that Walsh or any other investigator on this topic feels the need to "justify" or blame anyone's actions, well over a century after the fact. Susan and Austin Dickinson and Mabel and David Todd were all strong, creative personalities who created their own complex dynamic which in turn created the behaviors we have evidence of today. Understanding what happened between them as a group is nearly impossible, but reducing their individual motivations to a series of quick explanations is simply foolish and unrealistic. No individual is this easily explained through biography, historical research or other speculation. Even Walsh's attempts to portray Susan as the "victim" in the affair are reductive and insulting. That she should be viewed historically as a passive martyr, who "endured" the events around her, sacrificing her own accomplishments and reputation is ridiculous. Given her intelligence and social dexterity, it seems her role must be given a more complex motivation than this.

If nothing else, Walsh's account raises some important questions about just how much social attitudes toward women have changed over the years. Do we still consider successful, ambitious women who challenge the sexual status quo to be threats to society? Mabel Todd extended the notion of "ownership" in a nineteenth-century marriage to include more than one partner, and partners of her choosing. Mr. Walsh's aggressive condemnation of her suggests that if an educated woman were to suggest such a radical definition of multiple partner marriage today, she too would be considered deviant and perhaps malicious. Have attitudes toward women evolved to the degree where women might be able to criticize the accepted social dynamic of marriage without fear of castigation? Mr. Walsh's book suggests not, but I hope his view is an anomaly and that Mrs. Todd was not ahead of our time as well as her own.

John Evangelist Walsh's books explore murky literary corridors, sweeping aside rumor, innuendo, and distortion. In 'This Brief Tragedy', he examines the last days of Emily Dickinson, with particular emphasis upon the affair between her older brother Austin and the young wife of his colleague, Mabel Todd. Walsh brings a fresh and critical eye to this relationship, using their own letters and diaries to reveal the truth of this celebrated 'love affair'. Neither Austin or Mabel are well-served by their own words.

Walsh also argues for a new study of Austin's long-suffering wife, Susan. Susan was Emily's closest friend and supporter, but she has suffered through a century of bad press largely because of Mabel Todd's peculiar place in Dickinson scholarship. Todd was asked to type copies of Emily's poem for publication because the Dickinson family did not wish to risk mailing the original manuscripts. She did so, and from that humble beginning, managed to fashion herself into the authority on all things related to Emily Dickinson. In truth, the two women never met and Emily had a low opinion of the woman who willfully toyed with the emotions of both her nephew and brother.

But all lovers of great literature were desperate for information about the reclusive poet from Amherst. As various Dickinson relatives died in rapid succession, Mabel rewrote her own place in Emily's history. She found a receptive audience and few scholars have questioned her true motives. For this reason alone, Walsh's book is a necessary companion piece to Richard Sewall's celebrated two-volume biography of Emily. Sewall accepted Mabel's version of events so thoroughly that it mars his otherwise fine work. Neither Emily or Susan Dickinson left behind journals or diaries regarding the tumultuous events of the 1880s and '90s. But Mabel did. As a result, she has been given too much influence upon Dickinson scholarship. Read Sewall, but pick up this book immediately afterwards.