We all love parts of Star Wars, but why settle? For example, he could take a novel like Defenders of the Holy Grail and make it as magical as Lord of the Rings. His fantasies miss connections with the modern world His studio could be making real statements about the human condition instead of lightweight _______.

Wonderful book about the great filmaker who gave us such masterpieces as THX 1138,Raiders of the Lost Ark and Star Wars. . . .very rich and well done with beatiful colored pages, and comments from other filmaker on the movies of George Lucas. . . . a wonderful edition that would look great on anyone cofee table,so go out and buy it today.

This book gives you a sequence of events in Lucas' creative empire. It also contains interesting quotes from the man himself as well as other significant contributors to his work. It may come as a surprise to some of us that Lucas' goals are quite similar to our own; the only difference is that he has a very strong will to make it all come true.

Contained in this book are his projects that touched many who will never imagine the same way again.

This true accounting about the obsession Charles Francis Hall, a somewhat obscure Cincinatti businessman, had for Arctic exploration and its ultimate personal tragedy is fascinating.

The author Loomis trys to convey the environment of thought that created the appeal the Arctic had for Hall. The sentiment was much more pervasively Christian during the 1860-1870s when Hall made his 3 trips to the north and was able to get farther north than any Westerner had until then. In the Afterword, Loomis describes some of the appeal the vast, unexplored Artic must have had for Westerners. The Artic was both magnificent and terrifying, it was as Byron wrote "All that expands the spirit, yet appals." Loomis explains that the public had an asthetic of the sublime and this went a long way to explain to me the attraction Polar exploration must have had for Hall. But as a modern day mountaineer Fred Beckey said, "Man is not always a welcome visitor in a kingdom he cannot control."

The American explorer Kane, who died at age 36 was so revered by the American public for his exploits, that when his body was brought to New Orleans and then went up the Mississippi to it's ultimate burial location, people lined the river the entire way to bid him farewell. This helps explain the regard the public had for explorers (especially the ones who wrote accessible books).

Hall leads the first two expeditions in search of one of the overriding mysteries of the time, what happened to the members of the British expedition led by Sir John Franklin. The last and fatal voyage was in search of the North Pole. However, because of the funding by the US government of the expedition, the loss of Hall and loss of the ship itself, there was a US Naval inquiry. Because of the quasi-Naval nature of the expedition, there was insufficient discipline on the expedition and the loss of the leader under strange circumstances caused most discipline to evaporate thus dooming the expedition.

Loomis undertook his own mini-expedition 97 years after Hall's death in 1871. He visited Hall's gravesite and performed an autopsy with very interesting results.

The book is well written so that during the narrative when the details might seem tedious, they are not. Exhaustively researched and well presented with essential maps, photographs and a list of the crew on the last voyage.

Read and enjoy.

Chauncey Loomis' Weird and Tragic Shores is indeed all that. It tells the story of businessman and amateur explorer Charles Francis Hall. He goes in search of traces (possibly survivors?) of Sir John Franklin's expedition. The third trip goes wrong and Charles Francis Hall dies and is buried in the North. This book is driven by the personality of Hall and it is quite the personality. He is obsessed, unlucky, amateurish at times, belligerent, and stubborn, but the best word that could be one used to describe him is one that is applied to the Arctic itself, weird. The author captures the personality vividly with contemporary accounts, particulary those of Hall himself. It is an interesting book of a footnote character in the great age of Arcitc exploration, and sometimes through these footnotes in history one can see the truth behind what drives the explorers in its rawest form. An entertaining addition to the annals of history of the North.

As a resident of Barrow, Alaska, the farthest north community in the United States, I share some of the goals and fascinations of Charles Hall, which come out in the book. "The Arctic will get into your blood Earl. You'll be back." That is what one Inupiat Eskimo leader told me back in 1969, during one of my first short visits to Barrow. And I did come back and have lived here full time since the mid 1980s. The Arctic, its extreme environment, and its Native people, can get in one's blood. I feel very fortunate to be able to live here.

When I was in Cincinnati, I talked with a local librarian who said that Charles Hall used to camp outdoors in a local park in a tent in the dead of winter, just to toughen himself up for Arctic exploration.

As noted in the book, Hall should also be remembered for working closely with the Native peoples of the Canadian Arctic, as he searched for traces of the Franklin expedition. Many other Arctic explorers had only fleeting contact with the local people, if that. And Hall had to hitch-hike on various ships during his early exploration. When he finally got a ship of his own, then he died under mysterious circumstances. That is tragic and a dreadful way to end one's lifetime dream.
So read this book, and enjoy its excellent perspective on the Arctic and its people, and the dreams and determination of one man, who did all he could to learn more about our northern lands.

To begin with, I would first like to say that Rat Race was a much better mystery story than what I had first expected it to be. While it could have been much better, it was not a complete waste of time. This is a book that frequently centers on horse racing, which I despise, so you may want to keep my prejudices in mind while reading my opinions.

Rat Race slowly begins with pilot Matt Shore flying passengers to a horserace for a little airline company named Derrydowns. Matt was taking over for another pilot who had left the job just a week before. On his fist flight to the races Matt found out that other pilots despised him just because he worked for Derrydowns. He also found out that one of his passengers was the famous jockey, Colin Ross. Colin became one of Matt's permanent costumers. Everything was going well with Matt's job until he had trouble with one of the plane's steering cables on a trip home from the races. He then made an emergency landing to have the airplane checked out. The disgusted crew was suddenly jolted by an explosion at of nowhere as they walked from the plane. Luckily, though, no one was close enough to be injured. Right timing and chance seemed to have been the only thing that saved them.

After much questioning from the Nazi-like Board of Trade, Matt was reprimanded and then decided to search for answers to the explosion. As a result he made an astonishing find: one of his passengers was an explosives expert! The 'chance' that saved his life was now thought to be a deliberate ploy by one of his own passengers riding in the plane with him. Was this loose maniac planning to take Colin Ross' life? Maybe someone had made a bet on Colin Ross to win or lose a race and needed that bet secured. But why would he blow up a plane with no one in it.

As time passed Matt forgot about the explosion because of the fact that he met Colin Ross' sister, Nancy, and became infatuated with her. The story then turns into a boring romance between Matt, Nancy, and her doped-up ex-lover. Fortunately, the story picks up again when Colin is in another near-death plane incident. This time Nancy, who is not very experienced, is flying. The same man who hid the explosives on Matt's plane has now sabotaged her plane. With all electrical devices not working, she is done for in the cloud-filled sky. Luckily her lover, Matt, finds out about the plot and manages to find her in the sky in his own plane and guides her to safety.

Matt now knows who has sabotaged the planes both times but is unable to have him arrested. He also finds out that others are involved. Other peoples' lives are in danger but he cannot tell them without looking like a fool because he has no solid proof. Even more disturbing is that the crooks know that Matt knows about their scheme. Which side will come out victorious in the end?

Was this book worth reading? No. There was not enough excitement or enough suspense. Nor was the plot original. It was the same story of two lovers falling in love, some kind of event splitting them up, and they finally live happily ever after in the end. While I suppose this sort of 'fairytale' type of story is possible, it is highly unlikely. For example, Matt is invited to move in with Colin and Nancy in the end. Colin is very rich, so the rest of Matt's life is a breeze. I am sure this sort of thing could and does happen, but for the most part, only in dreams.

One good thing about the story, though, is that it develops the characters very well. I was able to learn the personalities of most the characters fairly well. This, of course, is essential in a mystery story. If I had to give it a grade on the overall quality of reading I would give it an average, solid 'C'.

RAT RACE is mainly about insurance fraud. The side issues are the fixing of horse races and a feud between rival air taxi services. As a former jockey and pilot the author is able to lend an air of authenticity to the story.

Once again he makes you run to the store to get another one of his books. The mystery and supense is just a great read

Major General Bart Lowe is a military superstar. Deep selected for major after seven years of service, promotion to brigadier general at the age of forty-three, command of a key combat unit which he figures will be his swan song - for a soldier it just doesn't get any better - he's handed yet another challenge. This time it's as head of the Defense Attaché Service (DAS), that cadre of men and women from the nation's five armed forces (yes, even the Coast Guard participates!) who act as the nation's front line eyes and ears at diplomatic outposts scattered across the globe. As a former attaché from Chuck Scanlon's era at DAS I relished the opportunity to read his story, as told through the persona of Bart Lowe, who obligingly delays his post-retirement sinecure to lead us on an epic journey through all of DAS' nooks and crannies. We're treated to the sights, sounds and smells of several continents, vivid and detailed descriptions of the training that attachés undergo, and white-knuckle intrigue in the search for HEAT-SEEKER, a suspected mole within the intelligence services. In this regard Chuck Scanlon does DAS a great justice and is to be commended. However, as anyone who has ever been on a group excursion will attest, the sights, sounds and smells of new places have to compete with those of your fellow travelers. Bart Lowe is like the tourist who remains largely an enigma, but whose occasional outbursts and flashes of character, while not actually ruining the trip, provide enough petty annoyances to keep it from becoming too perfect. Bart can't seem to hide his disgust around people whose personal habits do not agree with his own, particularly those hard-drinking, chain-smoking Eastern Europeans. The story is peppered with enough of such judgmental barbs that an all too obvious Yankee hubris come to light in the man. Can't he just chill out once in a while? Also, one is left to wonder just what is it about him that got him his general's stars so fast. Nothing is revealed in the way of Bart's unique leadership style, his problem solving skills, his effectiveness with people on a personal level. Essentially he's seen just floating from post to post, always showing up in time for something important to happen, though not necessarily causing the event or influencing its outcome. In this way he comes off less as an engaged, proactive leader and more like Forrest Gump. And for sure his secret to success was not his acumen with the opposite sex. We're treated to a glimpse of his romance with B.J. Ross, supposedly a senior State Department official, although we never do learn what her claim to fame is either. B.J. and Bart share candlelight dinners in Georgetown, where he seduces her with inane, older-than-dirt frat-house beer toasts and she responds by cooing "you scoundrel!" Interludes like this help confirm the suspicion that maybe the area inside the Capital Beltway is romantically challenged. Despite these shortcomings, the book is a delight for former attachés, a must for attaché wannabes, and a fine read for anyone interested in a most interesting aspect of the U.S. Armed Forces.

I constantly see books that depict intelligence and diplomacy as James Bondish in nature. It's refreshing to see someone who can shead some literary light onto the DAS and express the excitement and intrigue without fancy gadgets and fantasy characters.

This book is one of the finest I have read dealing with Military Intelligence in general and Defense Attache Service in particular. It is a honest read on the activities of the DAS and should be required reading for those aspiring to be DAS officers, warrants and NCO's. As a current Military Intelligence NCO I can attest that this book is as realistic as they come. Better and more thourogh than Tom Clancy, and more exciting than WEB Griffin, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in MI/DAS.

The World War II exploits of the 332nd Fighter Group--the first all-black unit in the US Army Air Forces--is a fascinating story on several levels. The pilots of the 332nd fought long and hard in the skies over North Africa, Italy, and Central Europe. They racked up an impressive record of enemy aircraft shot down, ground targets destroyed and--on the bomber-escort missions they often flew--friendly planes brought home safely. They also paved the way for the integration of the armed forces, and of American society generally, by showing that blacks could handle the stress of battle and the demands of high-performance airplanes just as well as whites. In a world where many (most?) whites saw blacks as innately inferior, the Tuskegee Airmen proved otherwise.

This book is a dense, detailed, information-packed history of the 332nd during and immediately after the war. It's a valuable source on a vital topic, and I'm glad it's out there.

That doesn't, however, make it a great book.

The style, for close to 400 pages, is choppy and unpolished with only a vague suggestion of a strong narrative line. Context is spotty at best, and technical terms sometimes go unexplained. The typography is idiosyncratic, and the inexplicable rendering of nicknames in italics and ranks, abbreviated, in ALL CAPS is distracting in a book where names come thick and fast. The type face itself is ugly, and the reproduction of many of the pictures is substandard. The index consists almost solely of personal names, which makes it intensely frustrating to use if you're not already intimately familiar with the story. To look up an incident in which two members of the 332nd sank a German destroyer, you have to know what their names were . . . no entry for "destroyer," or "strafing," or "naval vessels."

If there were other books out there that provide the sheer volume of facts about the subject that this one does, I'd give it about a star-and-a-half. There aren't, but there ought to be. The 332nd was noted for its professionalism; it deserves a more professionally-done history. Until that book gets written, though, this one (flaws and all) is essential.

In baseball, Jackie Robinson's impact can never be overstated. What he did for the game is immeasurable. In the world of aviation African Americans owe a debt of thanks to a group of men called "The Tuskegee Airmen". Their contributions to aviation are just as immeasurable.

Francis takes the reader back to the time when blacks in the army were living under Order 9981 from President Truman. Francis's gives you the triumphs and failures and brings it to life through each page. This read was truly remarkable.

This is the second book I have read on the Tuskegee Airmen, the first being a biography of Charles F. McGee, and for the second time I was moved by how this group of Officers and enlisted personnel worked through segregation to ensure the civil rights of those to follow.

Army life today, and the African American who serve with honor, can thank the men of this book for what they have. This nation owes a debt of thanks that can never be expressed enough. I am truly thankful to have had the opportunity to read this wonderful book.

I recommend this autobiography to anyone interested in any field of science, or anyone who wants to read about one of the most influential men of all time. It is a very well written autobiography, and is easy to follow. It contains material to catch the interest of anyone form the biological scientist in the field to the average person making up their summer reading list. For the student that has taken any biology class that talked about Darwin, it adds an entire new dimension to his theories when you feel like you know a part of the man by reading his very words. I would recommend this autobiography, to anyone who wants to read a well-written autobiography about the life of an extraordinary scientist and man.

A CD-Rom jammed with articles from EXECUTIVE EXCELLENCE. I actually got my copy as a bonus for subscribing a couple of years ago. Many of the articles are interesting, but they are all quite short, almost MTV-ish. This seems to be the preferred style for this publication. If you are a fan of Warren Bennis, or one of the writers who regularly contribute to that publication, this is a good way to pick up some new material from your favored writer. The articles are on a variety of topics, which means that there will probably be something for everyone with an interest in this subject, but by the same token, there will be a lot that won't interest you. The CD includes a search engine that is workable. I benefitted from the magazine and the CD, but they didn't set my world on fire.

Similar in layout to the other New Holland guides. Thereby making it obvious that it is not intended for the scientist. Small and handy, perfect for a pocket. However, do not think it only covers a small number of the best known mammals. Several newly discovered mammals are included (e.g. a strange ungulate called the Saola, and a beautifully striped rabbit only discovered in the late 1990's). Most of these are interesting but would never be encountered by the "normal backpacker". Several rarities are also included for example the Lesser One-horned Rhino, of which it is believed that only approx. 60 individuals survives. Almost all of the larger mammals known to occur in this region are described individually with at least one (usually very good) colour photo. The small number of large species not described are almost always mentioned in the description of a relative. The smaller mammals (bats, insectivores etc.) are described in groups (also with at least one photo) usually comprising a genus. The text is strait forward and easy to read for everybody with average English skills. However do not forget your glasses, the text is very small! The text itself is good and actually quite long with the books size in mind. It usually comprises of id, range (no maps!), behaviour, habitat etc. Each species description (incl. photo) comprises 2-1/2 page. A great thing for the novice is the use of easily recognisable thumbnails (an example being deer). Thereby it shouldn't be a problem finding the species your looking for. In the intro of the book a chapter speaks about finding and observing mammals, and 31 national parks or reserves are also mentioned briefly. The thing I find most annoying is the very small number of dark or unclear photos. Another thing to remember is that the book doesn't included whales or dolphins other than the one species which regularly enters fresh water. With the prise and size in mind everybody travelling to this area should bring a copy.

This book gives great insight in to the true meaning of African American slaves songs. This book also discusses the origin and uses of the songs and provides footnotes for most of the colloquials and variations in dialect for each song.

This book does everything right--it introduces the reader to a new world, it has a tight plot and engaging characters, and it uses emotion effectively. Tony Beach is, in his own eyes, a coward and a failure. Both his father and grandfather were distinguished military men, while he, after years of searching for something he can be good at, has settled into a modestly comfortable life as a wine merchant. As the story opens, Tony is still grieving for the death of his wife, whom he loved very much, and he is still living under the shadows of his great forebears. In the course of the story, however, Tony is able both to come to terms with his loss and to discover strengths of his own. The crimes described in the story are not pretty, but the story is about more than crime. My favorite part of the book is the ending, where Tony finds out that he has more in common with his father than he ever thought.

More sedate than his parents, Tony Beach has found contentment running a small wine shop in a small English town, but he is still dealing with the recent tragedy of the loss of his wife. He is soon brought in as a consultant by the police in what seems a relatively harmless, small scale fraud--someone is mislabeling wine. But it seems there's quite a bit more to it than that, and the wrongdoers are willing to kill--again--to avoid prison!

With only a minimal involvement of the racing world in this mystery, Francis paints an interesting and informed picture of the wine and liquor industry. A bit formulaic, not unusual for Francis (his heroes ALWAYS feel they have to go get the crucial evidence themselves, rather than leaving it for the police!), but not unduly so.

Well worth a good read.

This book is a typical Francis hard-to-put-down, fast-reading thriller with one exception. Francis does his usual thorough job of investigating Clancy-style, but this time goes easy on the horses and heavy on the liquor industry. As usual, one is swept away by the story and is delighted to learn what Francis has uncovered in his research.