The Merry Month of May is centered on the student protests of May 1968 in Paris. Jones' protagonist, Jack Hartley, is a middle-aged American writer who is friends with a family personally affected by the summer's events. The family, the Gallaghers, consist of Harry, a sex-crazed film writer, his long-suffering wife Louisa, and their rebellious, anarchist-wannabe son, Hill. Hill is involved with a radical group bent on filming the protests; Harry's sympathy and help is not welcomed by the boy. Meanwhile, Harry is having a hard time remaining faithful to his wife. Obviously, little of this has anything to
do with Jack Hartley. Because of Hartley's outsider status, he is able to make witty comments about the absurdity of the young idealists' perceptions of the world and the worth of what they are doing. However, Hartley's irrelevance to the action shows in dull passages where he is simply walking around before, during, and after riot action. He is an annoying meddler in the Gallaghers' problems; despite insistent claims to the reader that
he doesn't want to get involved, he continually does so. Here politics and social upheaval are awkwardly mixed with sexual dalliances, particularly Harry's irresponsible ones, for which Hartley condemns him. Gallagher's wife is portrayed as nearly a saint, while all the other women in the book (sexually
liberated by 1968 standards) are physically described at length in vulgar terms, considered amoral if not evil, and whatever efforts they make for the cause are belittled by male characters. This is not uncommon for a novel published in 1970, and perhaps it says something about the so-called sexual revolution that Jones can so easily milk it for sexploitation. Or, perhaps, it just says something about Jones.
Jones' writing has improved since the clunky, adverb-heavy prose of From Here to Eternity, or perhaps he simply acquired better editors by this, his sixth, novel. The book is at times funny in a cynical way that seems before its time, but for the most part, it's windy, too distanced, and terribly dated.

A classic that stands the test of time. Note the parallels with Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises.

Courageous, unflinching portrayals of Americans in Paris.

Bertolucci's upcoming film covers the same time period. But this novel's the Real Thing.

... "The Merry Month of May" is a brilliant, perfectly structured novel which was misunderstood when it was first published, and is apparently still misunderstood. Like Jake Barnes in "The Sun Also Rises," Hartley is a wounded man who finds himself emotionally impotent to help the people he loves most, even when his own godchild's future is in question. He is an observer, in the tradition of Barnes, or Nick Carraway, and to observe is his JOB. His own feelings of guilt and shame come from the very fact that he can't bring himself to act, take sides, or take a stand, even when his friends demand it of him. This is actually, in my estimation, one of the few novels of its time that deals honestly and compassionately with women's true roles in the "sexual revolution" of the Sixties.

Basic overview of the author's relationship to Jan Kerouac - he interviewed her to do her biography, this went all right for a while and she decided she did not like him anymore. Seems to be no real reason for this but it happened anyway. Jones does not seem hurt by this and still sees Kerouac as an interesting and worthy subject.

I think this is an interesting area not tapped into very much, since Jan and Jack had no relationship whatsoever, though anyone who has read her books can tell that he had a major impact on her life. It is hard enough to have an absent father. Make that father Jack Kerouac and it gets even more difficult. What I found even more interesting is the interviews with Jack's nephew, who I have never seen anything written up on before this book, which is probably because he seems to be a pleasant and well adjusted fellow who had a good and healthy relationship with his uncle, but still interesting to read about here nonetheless. As for Jan, it is hard to take what she says at face value, since she seems to have forgotten a lot of what she says has happened to her or changes it from time to time. But I don't know how much of that might be because it didn't happen quite as she either remembered it at the time of interviewing or writing her books or whether it was just the effects of all she had done in her life. But overall that didn't really matter, the reader really gets the essence of who Jan Kerouac was in this book. She was far more rebellious than her father ever was and far more wild. Her mother couldn't control her and it doesn't sound as if she really tried. So whether small details are true or not seems unimportant when looking at her overall life. She was a tough lady who, sadly, had a lot of problems with drugs, alcohol, and men.

I had some issues with the author using this book as a way to make a case for the Sampas family. While I do agree that they take some unnecessary flack from people in general, the author uses having a book published on Jan Kerouac to go on and on about the politics surrounding Jan and the Sampas family. While I think this info. is definitely helpful, there really are two sides to every story and Jones goes on and on ad naseum about how wonderful and benevolent the Sampas family are and how they are really the victims while Gerald Nicosia is a big bad evil person exploiting Jan and her famous father. I am not saying he couldn't be right, only that, despite what the author suggests, both sides probably have good points. And I must admit that it bothers me that, in writing a book about how strong Jan Kerouac was in spite of those pesky human vulnerabilities, he makes her out to be a victim in the end. His book discusses how she would not allow men to take advantage of her and how she was overall a strong sort of person, and then, in taking up his crusade against Gerald Nicosia, he completely turns around and discusses how Nicosia manipulated her and turned her into a total victim. Hmmm. Mostly it just left me wondering at Jones's point - did he write the book to give insight into Jan's life, or to take sides in a legal battle?

well it certainly was an eye opener to greed and what a messed up family they were........ to bad to bad about alot of things huh ... but still a good book for any kerouac fanatic ... a good thing to have in your collection on kerouac

I hope to meet author at 12th annual Lowell Celebrates Jack Kerouac Days in Lowell---early October...discuss his forthcoming related title-

As a nonnative speaker of English who teaches English as a second language I've found this book to be a source of valuable information. Its wide coverage and the inclusion of alternative or variant pronunciations are among its best features. However, it is not possible to approach it without a working knowledge of the IPA. The explanations given in the introduction are hardly enough to aid production of the sounds. Explanatory notes are few and far between. In this aspect, I believe J.C.Wells' Longman Pronunciation Dictionary is a much more complete and detailed guide (especially for nonnative speakers).

The 15th edition of Daniel Jones English Pronouncing Dictionary follows the tradition of its ancestors. It gives not only details on British and American English, but also includes international place names and internationally known proper names. It is userfriendly and easy accessible, although to use it properly, the reader has to be used to IPA (International Phonetic Association / Alphabet) symbols, otherwise the transcripts are not readable. Nonetheless, the book has to compete with Wells' Longman Pronuncation Dictionary, of which a second edition is to come up. Already the first edition of it is a concurrent of Daniel Jones, both books serve the same purposes and are equally good. Either the one or the other should be on the bookshelf of each English student.

Learning to see is very helpful if you want to learn to establish value stream maps of your key processes. The book is set up like a work book and walks you through the process step by step. J. Womack is very prescriptive in how to produce value stream maps. It would be helpful to have additional examples from several industries. Value stream mapping is useful in helping to indentify areas that need improvement projects. They should be the basis for strategic plans for process improvement. This book will be helpful if you are new or trying to introduce others to the importance of value stream mapping.

The book is a good attempt at explaining how to use value stream mapping in a manufacturing plant. The format is sort like a workbook which makes it a little easier to use and also great as a teaching tool. What is lacking is more examples from a wide variety of industries from small to large so the reader can really understand how to apply the tool to their workplace. There is also a lack of application to areas outside of manufacturing where I think VSM could be applied: product design process and administrative processes. Overall it seems to be a good book, but you'll need some backup material from the web to round our your education on the subject.

Thank God I found this book!! I recently started home schooling my 5th and 6th grader. I have searched every books store in my town for the perfect supplemental workbook. Ladies and Gentlemen, this book is the one. The book should not be used alone in homeschooling. However, this workbook in combination with the textbook provides the perfect match. My children get bored with workbooks. I have found that this book offers the teacher and the students with multiple tasks that keeps all minds interested. I would hope that you take advantage of this wonderful product.......Thanks for making my job as a teacher less hectic.

Young Theodore Jones, called Jigsaw because of his love of solving puzzles and mysteries, (along with his friend Mila) is hired by his classmates to find out who the mystery author is who is scheduled to visit their school. Along the way they explore several meanings to the term "ghostwriter"! My 7-yr old first-grader read this book to me. It is listed here for ages 4-8. It's a great book to read to this age group, but he stumbled a bit with some of the term and really didn't get into reading the story with pleasure 'til he was well into it. He is an advanced reader, but even so I think I'll save the other Jigsaw Jones books for me to read to him for another 6-12 months when they'll be smoother reading for him. Don't pass up on these books tho, they're clever fun.

My name is Jack and I am a 7 year old first grader. This book is the first Jigsaw Jones mystery I have read. The mystery solver's nickname is Jigsaw. His nickname is Jigsaw because he solves mysteries like puzzles. I like the book because the mystery is cool. I like it that the kids are about the same age as me. These books are good for active readers.

This was an excellent reading of this classic in Christian spirituality. The book itself is one of the foundations of contemplative prayer and was written for the more advanced. Even for us children in contemplation it is wonderful. The only problem with this tape is that it is abridged. This is such an important book it should be available in its complete state. (Publishers please read or listen to the intiial warnings of this unknown author).

This book offers practical advise for the ecologist or biological data manager. Although some of the principles of data management in this book should be review for those in the field, this book brings together this advise in one place. Most useful to me were the sections on data archiving and metadata, which go hand in hand. Throughout the book are references to data standards, and examples (such as online web sites) of implementing the principles. I would have appreciated more mention of XML, which has the potential to promote data exchange. I would have enjoyed more discussion of warehousing and mining, but you have to have the basic data management first! I would whole heartedly agree with the basic premise of the book of the need for treating data as a resource and the need for stewardship to increase understanding, data value, and understand long term problems.

What to do if you're trying to make something as stupid and boring as the bible into something that a poor gullible child will accept? This is the problem faced by the authors, and they do a half-way decent job of presenting bible idiocy as something partly entertaining as a comic book. Should be useful for gullible, brainwashed parents attempting to produce gullible, brainwashed children. Start them with Santa, and if they believe that, move on to the bible in comic book form.

Great idea with uneven results. Some superb art in places, but not always as an appropriate counterpoint to the accompanying Scriptures. The parts that do succeed are worth the cover price alone.

This book was well received by me and my teenagers. There needs to be more artistic interpretations like this that tackle scripture. Not every translation done in this book is accurate to the Word of God but every piece is brilliant in its own right. Bravo! Encore!