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This book is an interesting departure from all of the other books on TREK as it is a rather self expose of the "Doctor" revealed. Written by the only person who could have the knowledge and insight to do it justice the "Doctor" himself... Robert Picardo.
I found the book to be lighthearted enlightenment... something to read and get a chuckle out of. And chuckle I did. Yes, if you remember the "Doctor's" character, you'll find all of his quirks and witticisms here, or at least enough of them to make a nice reading diversion.
The book is lavishly illustrated by Jeff Yeager. You'll remember him from the Star Trek: Voyager series titled "Flesh and Blood" as Iden, the rebel leader of a band of renegade holograms.
The Hologram's Handbook is an attempt to bridge the everyday interaction between the holographic and biological life and is an essential guide.
This is a good look into the psychi of a character popular on the Voyager series. Cleverly written.
Robert Picardo catches the essence of Voyager's EMH, our beloved Doctor, in a way that only he could. Witty, insightful and thought provoking are all words that perfectly describe this book.
I couldn't put it down, Picardo's writing is so smooth it's like listening to the Doctor himself talking. And not only does he provide insightful views on his character, but also some views about life in general, which are recurrent themes throughout all the centuries portrayed on Star Trek.
And, unlike the show, this book gives equal credit to pre-Scorpion and post-Scorpion time periods, and the Doctor speaks of both Kes and Seven of Nine fondly.
However, the book wasn't perfect. While Picardo covers the Doctor's views on some of the major characters nicely, I felt that he failed to provide enough insight into his relationships with the other characters on Voyager, particularly Neelix and Harry Kim.
Another low point of the book me was his continued references to Lt. Joe Carey, a recurring guest star on Voyager. In one early episode, Carey was abrasive to the Doctor, and Picardo has played that out to the extreme here, often saying he didn't like Carey. I found that to be a little rough, Carey eventually died on an away mission for Voyager, and to speak ill of a dead crewmember like that doesn't cut it in my book.
I would also have liked to have read more about the Doctor's experiences in the Delta Quadrant, and not just about personal relationships. The Doctor remained active and onboard the ship during most of the alien takeovers, and more often than not entire episodes were devoted to his adventures. Wouldn't these sorts of experiences have shaped his views on life a little? He watched as Suder struggled to contain his violence, watched as the Hirogen tortured the bodies of Voyager crewmembers, and countless other such experiences. Wouldn't these sort have things changed him? Perhaps he held a grudge against the Hirogen? Or detested the way the Vidiians used their medical science to harm others? Little to no attention was paid to these in the book, and I didn't like that. Those sort of experiences deserved a chapter at least, but Picardo paid no attention to them.
But that being said, the book was excellent, and provided great insight into the Doctor's character.
A must read if you are a Voyager fan.
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Bob Toski and Davis Love III have written a book that truly fosters golf as an athletic expression. Rather than burdening ourselves with overly precise mechanical thoughts, we must allow our natural athleticism to shine through and carry our game. The golf swing is a beautiful, fluid motion. To mechanize it detracts from its efficiency and power and renders it less graceful and effective. "How to Feel a Real Golf Swing" provides invaluable drills and advice that will allow you to understand and develop the feeling a good swing creates. It fosters the notion of allowing the arms and club to do the work of turning the body and shifting your weight.
As a serious golf addict and student of the game, this book, more than any other I've read, allowed me to understand my swing and improve my game. We all know the sweet feeling of hitting the ball on the sweet spot, this book devotes itself to the sweet feeling of the entire swing. I give it the highest rating I can.
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_The Last Hero_ sweeps you away to a time when honor and ego and plain old guts -- combined with the vast heart of unexplored Africa meant adventure. I read this novel in amazement, at the rich characterization, the lavish settings, the graphic narrative; only to be further amazed when I learned that this wasn't a mere work of historical fiction, but rather a fictionalized account of real events.
Read it. You won't find many novels that do this. Serious business, deep in the Congo Ituri rainforest, late 19th century...no one can hear you scream.
Kurt W. Wagner kwagner@gti.net
"The Last Hero" is a very well-written adventure story, all the more interesting because it is true. My only complaint (a very minor one) concerns the absence of notes and bibliography which could have given some historical documentation and sources.
Another good book is "The River Congo: The Discovery, Exploration and Exploitation of the World's Most Dramatic River" (nonfiction) which is also by Peter Forbath (a journalist who reported on Africa). Henry Morton Stanley was also a bestselling author, he wrote: "How I Found Livingstone" (1872); "Through the Dark Continent" (1878); and "In Darkest Africa" (1890).
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School Library Journal Review: "PreS-Gr3 - As night falls on the pond, an unusual orchestra assembles. As fireflies light up the stage, Maestro bullfrog leads the chorus frogs, spring peepers, American toads, and others in an outdoor symphony. Berkes incorporates sounds such as "woink-woink" and "twang" into the rhythmic text that recreates the atmosphere of a lazy summer evening. Noreika's watercolor illustrations bring to life the amphibious musicians as well as the other animals in the audience. Shades of green, brown and blue capture the watery setting. A glossary of musical terms Berkes uses in her concert decription provides helpful definitions. She also offers a brief paragraph about each kind of frog and toad appearing in "the cast." MARSH MUSIC has the visual and verbal pizzazz to make it a read-it-again treat."
From Booklist:
"Ages 5-8. Berkes turns the night songs of all kinds of frogs into a concert, with a bullfrog, Maestro, assuming the role of conductor. As the illustrations move from twilight to dawn, Maestro supervises a symphony of frogs plunking spiders webs, playing pond instruments, and making sounds ("woink-woink-woink," "gronk-gronk-gronk") that illustrate tempo, from moderato to animato. Noreika's watercolor paintings of marsh life--plants, animals, insects, and even mist--are stunningly detailed and luminous. They perfectly complement this book about nature and music, brought together by the singing talents of frogs. An entertaining way to teach children about both nature and music. A glossary of musical terms, and descriptions of the frog musicians are appended."
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Just the fact that the author has "been there and done that" speaks volumes (no pun intended) in my opinion. PLAIN TALK is very well written but more importantly it contains down to earth advice. Advice that has actually worked for the author in real life, and advice that will be of benefit for anyone that wants to imporve their leadership/management skills. Not only does it cover important topics for all managers it contains Silver Bullets at the end of each chapter that serve as easy reminders for those who want to sharpen their leadership/management skills.
PLAIN TALK shoud be required reading for all those who want to be good leaders and managers.
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Seriously, Students of "The Mysteries" will have a field day (or an Astral Field Trip) with this thrilling "fictional" novel.
Robert Anton Wilson must be a genius to have incorporated so much historical and metaphysical Truth, into this "story" of a young, wealthy, well-educated Englishman being Initiated into a branch of The Golden Dawn, while trying to investigate a series of strange "occult" attacks in Scotland, against a Presbyterian minister....fighting both the forces of Darkness and his own repressed sexual tendencies, simultaneously !
This is a fascinating journey into the world of occult organizations and Initiation, climaxing in a most unusual and exciting manner....leading the reader to strongly desire clapping Aleister Crowley on the back while saying, "Well-done, 'ol chap!"
I strongly doubt that non-occultists will understand this great novel--but, the Story holds it's own and being a student of The Mysteries is not a Prerequisite. For those in the dark, a quick online search can fill in the gaps, as you read.
This book is more fast-paced than Focault's Pendulumn and the scenes with Einstein & Joyce as Sleuths are very well-constructed. You will feel that you are in the room with them...listening attentively and anxiously awaiting the Conclusion !
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For the others, just like me, not really specialized in physics and maths, but maybe just curious, this book can bring you a lot of fun too. It reminds you of what you may have studied a few years ago... And more than that, you cover with this book other fields of mathematics that are not taught to non specialized students like Hilbert space, quantum physics, theory of analytic functions, Green's functions and integral equations.
To conclude, if you're curious about mathematics and physics, you should buy this book. If you're good at maths and physics, you should already own this book.
And now, with this special price, do the maths!
If, though, you have this background, then this book is may just be for you. It is concise, to the point and presents a clear and well written discussion of mathematical physics.
I just felt that before you dive, head first, into the world of mathematical physics, somebody needed to warn you about what you were getting yourself into.
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