This book Castaway was about a boy who was struggling for his life.When he and another friend were in boat, they got too close to shore,and they were flung into the rocks and the other boy was nowhere to be found . The other boy managed to find an ore and paddle himself to this island. There was absolutely no live thing on this island. He was straneded on this island all by him elf. He struggles for his life and managed to survive ooff fish and clams. He was able to survive uder very harsh conditions. Then he saw a boat and he waved, but the boat went right by him. After that he became very depressed. Then two months later he found and saw a boat, and he waved. This boat came down to him, and he was picked up and left the island and he was left happy ever after. What I feel about this book that is I think it was a very informative book to read and to learn about survival book, and this book made me think about how privileged to have what I had.

Inasmuch as only a fraction of any armed force directly participates in combat, this stunningly broad study of a Florida air force base in the latter stage of World War II is actually more relevant to the history of our participation in that struggle than a book like "The Naked and the Dead". And its look at an early chapter in the unfinished story of race integration in America is arguably more germane than ever, although its conclusions do not sit comfortably. (No televised talking head could hope to express them and still keep his job.) If you're interested in a truly adult novel, in the best sense of the word, you can't do much better than this one.

Cozzens decision to place his novel in Florida during World War II actually allows him to analyze the military culture in the minutest detail without the adrenaline distraction that actual combat would produce. It's a risky choice, but it works brilliantly.

The story contains a bewildering number of characters but is centered around two generous and kind men: Colonel Ross and Captain Hicks. Ross represents the command structure trying to hold an unwieldy organization together through the insanity of war. Hicks is the common man thrown into the same situation. How their lives play out is the heart of the book.

If you want explosions and gore, this book is not for you. If you want to know how the military lives, thinks and breathes read this book and cherish its portrait of a world very different from civilian life.

The judge and the DA explain to the jury that in these circumstances all of the kidnappers must be found guilty of first degree murder. The defense attorney argues that the jury is free to disregard the DA, the judge, and the law, and that each juror must follow his own conscience.

The author seems to be telling us that the defense attorney is out of line, a wise guy. But a higher authority, an ex-judge, comments that jurors should follow their consciences even when this clashes with the law, as part of the series of checks and balances in our society. Judges don't want part of their job to be to decide verdicts because they would then be vulnerable to angry protests, so they must bow to King Jury.

Naturally there's a love story thrown in. But writing about love isn't a forte of this author. The whole question is whether Bonnie will finally accept Ab's proposal. I don't know what's holding her up.

There is a scene where the central character and his sexually-repressed wife are in the sack ("Her." "Him", "Her", "Him." )...the instructions on how to program my VCR were more stimulating. Give me a break.

Maybe by today's overly PC standards this book could be considered mildly racist and bigoted, but I fail to see where. Catholics do take it on the chin, however.

This was almost a good novel. John Cheever does this type of thing much better.

By Love Possessed chronicles an eventful weekend in the life of Arthur Winner, leading attorney and citizen in the small town of Brocton. No grasping uncouth Snopes, this Winner serve as living proof that virtue is not necessarily its own reward. When lesser lawyers offer a quid pro quo, he deigns to accept only with silence.

The novel's narrative frame begins and ends with Amor Vincit Onmia, frozen forever and eternally ambiguous. The intriguing characters surrounding Winner in this modern Man of Lawe's Tale range from pillar of legal acumen with something to hide to an unfaithful wife converting to Catholicism to a precise drunk who becomes a victim of petty theft. In the end, one wonders if the most important character in By Love Possessed is not the raccoon that freezes in Winner's headlights and is run over with only a thump to mark its passing.

The high point of By love Possessed is a masterly courtroom scene that strikes at the heart of what it is to be a parent. The novel is full of murder and suicide (intentional and unintentional). Events between the sexes range from a first date to a distasteful allegation of rape. In the end, when an untimely death reveals legal matters best left in darkness, Cozzens concludes that self-interest conquers all, at least in the world of small-town privilege.

By Love Possessed moves through so many beginnings and endings that the novel seems somehow complete by its end, although all loose ends are left hanging. Read this book; it certainly does cure nostalgia for the 1950s.

Cozzens' novel covers 49 hours in the life of Arthur Winner Jr., a small-town Pennsylvania lawyer who has prided himself for living his life according to a strict regimen of reason and yet finds all those around him seemingly throwing their lives away to emotion. Rape, suicide, jealousy, and greed mark the behaviour of his friends and relatives, much to his consternation. Not until the end, when a deep secret is revealed, does Arthur Winner realise that an emotional reaction is sometimes the only recourse to an unreasonable situation; indeed, it may be a neccessary reaction.

Because of its style and conservative stance, I've always been surprised that By Love Possessed was such a huge bestseller when originally published; perhaps its title and small-town setting confused readers that it was another Peyton Place (which, ironically, it replaced at #1). But it IS an incredible book, very influential (just read anything by Scott Turow), and a must read for those who want to understand the mindset of the middle-class American male in the mid-20th century. Personally, I find Cozzens' prose fascinating--the more a book makes me reach for the dictionary the better. And as a gay man, I take less offense at Cozzens' occasional prejudices than I do with those politically correct readers who only blindly see bigotry and not a man truly trying to understand the world around him.

There is no glorification of war here; indeed the message is very clear - the only glory in war is surviving. The movie is very creative in introducing characters whose sole purpose, with their demise, is to underline this message. The short careers of both Lemchek and Kaiser are cases in point. The battle scenes are weak and unrealistic but that's not the emphasis. The action scenes that are memorable are the ones with a subtle message; the camera focusing in on the dead soldiers wristwatch in the surf of Normandy, the water turning red with the passing of time; the scene at the asylum in France and the concentration camp scene where Griff overcomes his compunction about shooting while seeing the whites of his enemies eyes.

It's a well crafted movie, with some strong acting from Lee Marvin and Mark Hamill and a movie which delivers it's message in a well thought out and strong ending.

During almost 2 hours, we follow Lee Marvin and his four GI's through the battlefields of World War II. And, believe me, it's a hell of a ride. Be prepared for the shocking images Samuel Fuller had the habit to offer to his audience : a woman delivering a baby in a tank, a wooden statue of a blind Christ eaten by insects, etc...

Every scene is a little pearl of emotion and energy. War movie, surrealistic essay or religious allegory, THE BIG RED ONE is waiting for you. Don't forget it! A movie which is not seen is a dead movie.

Audio and video perfect for me considering the fact it's a 1980 movie.

A DVD for your library.

I did find some inconsistancies in item pricing (Litchfield bottle pg 398 - $70 and same item pg 400 - $55, pg 152 item pcs108.000 - $1300 and same item pcs108.000 pg 87 - $1000). Given that this book has become the "bible" for Coca-Cola collecting - these inconsistancies can cause some problems...

I could overlook some of the pricing errors - heck there's thousands and thousands of items and no one is perfect. But the real problem I have is how high the prices are for all of the items.

Let me get on my soapbox for a minute and conclude by saying that I've been collecting 1890's - 1930's Coca Cola items for the past 20 years and have acquired a pretty extensive collection. I have to say that in my humble opinion the prices that are in this book are dangerously overstated - perhaps in an attempt to help us older guys as we approach retirement. Afterall, we are the one's that acquired the vintage, quality items inexpensively in the early days... In the end I'm not sure its working -- in fact I think the prices have begun to fall!!! One only has to look at the prices being realized on auction sites like ebay to see what I mean - even the "near mint" items don't even come close to the prices in the 10th edition, let alone those in the 11th. Many desirable items have no activity because of greedy sellers that set minimum prices that are out of sync with demand.

I think the high pricing in guides like this actually harms the market, since most collectors can no longer afford the older, quality items. As the old-timers have seen, in the end - the winners are the manufacturers of the recent garbage made in CHINA as it becomes desireable since it's the only thing that's affordable. Vintage-item collectors die-out or begin to get frustrated since they can't find quality merchandise at affordable prices and move on to other hobbies, and there are no replacement collectors coming in.

At this stage, as an old-time collector, I shouldn't complain I guess. Because of Allan's books my items have appreciated substantially. But I still enjoy the hobby - yet I can hardly afford to stay with it. I'm fearful that the number of vintage-item collectors is wanning, and the interest in the hobby is really falling off. If that happens - we will soon find ourselves using Shelly and Helen's old 1970's four volume price guides to buy and sell.

Maybe that wouldn't be so bad afterall...