Storm Thorgerson is best known, of course, as the premiere album art designer with a 30-year association with Pink Floyd. If you became fond of his work because you're a PF fan, you don't want to miss this book just because Floyd art isn't the primary focus this time around. Storm's writing in Mind Over Matter was very entertaining, but in Eye of the Storm he's assumed an even more relaxed, personally revealing style. His character comes through more clearly, and he's a very engaging character indeed!

Among the book's features is an art concept that was originally intended for a Hey You 1994 concert video. He confesses that the Tree of Half Life concept didn't begin as Pink Floyd art. It tells more than his previous books about his talented associates, for example Keith Breeden (who is unfortunately now retired from the business).

The book is compelling entertainment, and it fills a gap for some of us who missed seeing his intriguing work for less famous bands than Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd. My favorite at the moment is the Catherine Wheel art he selected for this book's cover.

Not your standard fashion advice by any means. Susannah and Trinny will probably offend as well as enlighten many readers with their outrageous sense of humor and strong opinions about the do's and don'ts of dressing well. The book presents a cast of characters - all portrayed by Susannah and Trinny, with help from a talented crew of make up artists and stylists. These ladies are desperately in need of wardrobe guidance, and boy do they get it!

The authors have a refreshing approach to dressing. Dress for the figure and lifestyle you actually have, rather than trying to be a clone of some model or celebrity. That's radical! I know that there are those who think that clothing is a trivial subject, not worthy of serious thought. But consider this: you wear clothes every day, don't you? So why not do it well.

This book may not have all the answers, but it will get you thinking-and laughing too.

I saw this book in a London store in October and thought it was fantastic. It is based on an English TV show called "What Not To Wear". The show has just begun being aired on the cable network BBC America.
The book's pictures show the do's and don'ts of dressing to your appropiate body type. The authors poke as much fun at themselves as they do other people and it makes great fun to read and share with other women, especially over a bottle of wine.
It is the ultimate "Glamour Do's and Don'ts" book but alot more fun.

This book is about a young boy in Freedom, New Hampshire named Nate Twitchell and his discovery. The young boy went to fetch his hen one day and noticed that the hen had laid an enormous egg. Six weeks later the Twitchell family realizes that the egg hatched into something much bigger than they imagined, a triceratops. Scientists from all over went to New Hampshire to see this animal. Soon the dinosaur got to big to stay in Freedom. With the help of a paleontologist Nate gets down to Washington DC where he is turned away form the zoo because the animal would cost too much money to feed. Soon Nate and the scientist are trying to convince everyone why the dinosaur should stay.
This book is an easy read for a fifth grade class. The silly predicaments Nate and his dinosaur get in are great. Also there is suspense and frustration when Nate is denied a home for the rare/extinct animal. This chapter book has few pictures throughout but they are useful in assisting the imagination in order create this scenario in your mind. In this book there are also many true facts about dinosaurs that were great. Like how much it eats, grows, and weighs.

The Enormous Egg is about a a boy, Nate, who lives in a farm and his hen who laid an egg. But a baby triceratops pops out! Nate named him Uncle Beasley who was Nate's real Uncle.

One day when Nate was fishing he met a dinosaur scientist named Dr. Ziemer. Dr Ziemer came every few weeks to see how the dinosaur was doing. Nate's Dad was the newspaper reporter for New Hampshire and he wrote an article about the dinosaur. People from Washington DC were calling about the dinosaur. All these people came and all these scientists came. During this time the dinosaur was getting bigger and bigger and bigger. Dr. Ziemer wanted Uncle Beasley to go to Washington DC so that scientists could study him but Nate didn't want that to happen. But when his teacher said that he could stay with the dinosaur for three weeks (and miss school) Nate said, "yes." In Washington DC a Senator wanted to kill the dinosaur because he thought it was too expensive to feed. Nate went on tv and people from all the states came to see Uncle Beasley and put money in a jar to help pay for his food. They ve $240,271.31! And the dinosaur was saved.

I liked this book because it was interesting. This is the first time I read a book about an egg that had a dinosaur in it.

My favorite part of this book is when the dinosaur hatches. Dr. Zeimer is so excited that he shows up in his bathrobe! No one knows what it is. Another scientist comes to figure it out. But the dinosaur is gone; then it pops out of a flower bed! The scientist was first impatient, then amazed. This book is very funny & exciting & makes you want to read on. Everyone would enjoy it, but especially people who are interested in dinosaurs. Douglas A., age 9

I recently read this book to my 2nd grade class. They absolutely adored Otis. Story time became their favorite time of day. Many have requested their own copies to read independently. I hope this is the beginning of something really big! We are now beginning HENRY HUGGINS

Otis Spofford is a boy just looking for a little excitement. To Otis excitement means upstaging a playacting toreador, shooting spitballs at classmates and even his teacher, sabotaging a class experiment, upstaging a friend while helping the local football hero, and especially chasing and teasing the very prim and proper Ellen Tebbitts. Otis' classmates and teacher warn him that someday he will get his comeuppance for his antics. When Otis takes his teasing of Ellen too far then his comeuppance finally happens.

Beverly Cleary's "Otis Spofford" was one of the funniest books I ever read. I particularly enjoyed Otis' comments on how "dopey" the characters in the books he had to read for school acted. Ms. Cleary obviously wrote "Otis Spofford" for children who felt the same way about reading as Otis did. Otis is no dope and non-readers will love him for it!

Some of Ms. Cleary's older books are sometimes dismissed as being "quaint" or out of date with their 50's settings and families (father works and mom stays at home.) "Otis Spofford" was written in 1961, but Otis has a single mother who owns her own business and they live in an apartment. In some ways Ms. Cleary was ahead of her time; but there is no denying that Otis is a wildboy of the 50's. "Otis Spofford" is an extremely readable and hilarious book featuring the wonderful drawings of illustrator Louis Darling. (I've always preferred Mr. Darling's idealized illustrations of very 50's looking children (the girls in dresses or rolled up pants with moptop hairstyles, the boys in canvas hightop sneakers and bristled haircuts) which are in Ms. Cleary's older books to the illustrations of her more recent books which make some of the characters look rather ugly- Ramona is so much cuter when drawn by Louis Darling than Alan Tiegrin.)

I recommend all lovers of children's books to read this captivating classic of the exploits of a mischievous young lad, as only a genius such as Beverly Cleary can explain. It made me want to relive my childhood days!

Once I started to read the book, I just could not put it down. Cleary contiuously maintained my interest throughout the reading of the text. I am sure children in the age range of 9-12 will be able to relate to the title character, Otis Spofford.

Hooray--our motorcycle riding little friend is back,and he's just as spunky and determined to be a Night Rider as ever!
If you enjoyed Ralph's antics when he received his very own motorcycle, you'll be delighted to continue reading his new adventures--this time at school. Also he has new boy to talk to and con into serving as his pit crew, accomplice and general gopher.

Feeling very much unappreciated by his
extensive rodent family, Ralph decides to leave the Mountain View Inn to spend a week at Ryan's school--hey, there's nothing like a complete change of scene to forget one's problems, not to mention, drown a slightly guilty conscience. But one never can count on the reactions of human beings; instead of being terrified by a live mouse in her classroom, the clever teacher
improvises an entire MICE unit for her students. Activities include pure biololgy, scientific experiments and literary data entries.

Unfortunately, her class falls victim to shoddy journalism, which proves a lesson for us all. Even feisty Ralph learns some non-violent strategies to cope with rowdies and bullies. But tragedy strikes during Ralph's acadeic sojourn; alas, will he ever ride his beloved motorcycle again? Or earn the respect of his family? A darling tale which will entertain kids of all ages!

This book is great to read because it has alot of adventure for people who like books that have adventure.Ralph the mouse,is a curious little mouse that has a lot of dreams and tries to make them comer true.I would recommend this book o everyone and I'm pretty sure they would love it.

It's about time someone put these books in a box! Beverly Cleary's beloved tales of Ralph the mouse and his motorcycle have been enchanting young readers for a very long time- I first read them 13 years ago.
Cleary has written countless wonderful books for children of all ages, from the numerous Ramona stories to the award-winning Dear Mr. Henshaw. The Mouse and the Motorcyle is aimed at the younger end of her audience, and kids can't help but love Ralph, the spunky little mouse with big dreams, who lives in a hotel and wants nothing more than a chance at riding that red motorcycle, the motorcycle that will lead him into countless adventures with his human friends.
In Runaway Ralph, Ralph's visit to a summer camp turns out not to be at all what he expected. Can he avoid the more unpleasant kids in the cabin, and get back to his hidden motorcycle?
In Ralph S Mouse, Ralph goes to school in a human friend's pocket, unaware of the new adventures in store, that will earn him the name of Ralph S-for-smart Mouse.
These books are a marvellous addition to any child's collection.

When Henry Huggins has nothing to do, Scooter comes by passing out papers because he has a paper route. But the paper route is a hard job to get, espicially when Henry puts an ad in the paper for the paper drive, and he gets millions of papers! At the end, he gets the paper route.

This was the first Henry book I read, so it got me into the rest of them. Imagine a ten-year-old boy trying to look like a grown-up while a kitten pokes its head out of his jacket. This book is a delightful voyage into the lives of kids and animals in America.

This book is hilarious! I'd give it 10 stars if I could. All the emotions are there -- frustration, longing & joy. While the book is very, very funny, great lessons are taught along the way about perseverance, patience and having high hopes!

If you want to rely on one book to get you through the Programmer's Exam, this is NOT the one. It does not go into enough depth. The Mughal & Rasmussen and the Brogden books are much better for this purpose (I have read all three and passed the Programmer's Exam yesterday).

If you are already a seasoned Java programmer and just want a quick overview, this book might work. Keep in mind that the Programmer Exam test and corresponding objectives (on Sun's site) were changed as of 10/4/00, and this book was already a little dated compared to the previous objectives (book is copyright 1999).

Don't be deceived by the thickness of this book; only 400 pages cover the Programmer's exam, another 150 for the Developer exam, and most of the remaining are the Java API reference (which makes the book way too thick...you can download the API for free from Sun...and it's in a better format).

Finally, the practice questions in each chapter are way too easy. They are definitely easier than the official exam questions...this is not a good thing. It gives one a false sense of security.

Yesteday, I took the JAVA 2 Programmer Exam for the first time and passed with a very comfortable margin. This text helped alot and I do recommend it. However, I have to say that the real EXAM is MUCH more difficult then the practice questions in this book. The actual EXAM (at least the version I took) requires you to think though scenarios that are not obvious, even from the "strict" information provided in this book. If you want confidence to pass the test on the first try, I would do the following:

1) Read the Gosling book "The Java Programming" Language" and code many of the examples for youself. Use a good Java IDE to step though the code and understand what it does and how variables inside specific objects change.

2) Work through many of the AWT examples from the Java Tutorial (Books or WEB) using an IDE as above.

3) Thoroughly study "The Java 2 Exam Cram" by Bill Brogden AND do his mock EXAM - it's more difficult than the one in the book being reviewed.

4) Take some WEB based mock exams (like MindQ) and/or even purchase the gEs: Java Exam simulator.

Tests are kind of subjective in many ways. Some people are better test takers then others. I highly recommend a multi-faceted approach to preparing for this exam - especially if you want to really understand Java ... and not just pass the test.

I would also say that including the Java 2 API reference at the back of this book is pretty useless and adds signifcantly to the cost AND the WEIGHT of this book. The Java Developer's Almanac 1999 is the best concise desktop reference for the JAVA 2 API that I've seen.

I bought this book, read it, and didnt have alot of confidence in it, so I went and bought another more indepth book and used that as the main base of my studies. I went back after the exam and realized probably 80-90% of it was spelled out in this book(The Complete Java 2 Certification Study Guide). The version of this book I had only covered the 1.2 exam, so it had alot of extra [stuff] I didnt need (IO, AWT and a bout half the other book(it covers the developer exam too i think)) and its lacking a few things you need to know for the 1.4 exam, such as assertions, Wrappers, and Collections (which all 3 probalby make up about 15% of the test). This book, with the help the addition of a few java websites, like javaranch.com can get you a good passing score. I scored an 83% but realized that I could have gotten alot higher if I didnt spend so much time concentrating on the other book which had more indepth information than needed.

Bottom line:
This book (with the additional exam material that can easily be found online) will get you atleast a good passing score. Its probably not gonna teach you java or make you a great java programmer, but the goal is to pass the test, and it does that.

First let me state, this book should not be read by a novice, seeking to learn the history or cause of the Civil War, but if one is highly knowledgeable on this topic, this book, is a good 'PC' version.
Mr. Lankford does a wonderful job of bringing that era of Richmond to life, but he seems to believe in the current 'political cause' of the Civil war.
With all the research done, I am surprised he has not found other documents, or historical facts that dismiss his views.
By page 5, I came very close to throwing the book away, when I read of General Lee, riding into Richmond in his "misbegotten attempt to set up a separate republic built on human chattel, slavery."
Historical facts actually record Lee's daughters teaching the slaves to read, and Lee stating, "There are few, I believe, in this enlightened age, who will not acknowledge that slavery as an institution is a moral and political
evil." - Col. Robert E. Lee, USA - December 27, 1856
Or "If I thought this war was to abolish slavery, I would resign my commission, and offer my sword to the other side." --- Ulysses S. Grant
Mr. Lankford then attempts to state that Lincoln wanted equal rights for the African Americans! Here again, the facts bear out Lincoln by his own speeches--"Negro equality, Fudge!! How long in the Government of a God great enough to make and maintain this Universe, shall there continue to be knaves to vend and fools to gulp, so low a piece of demagoguism as this?" -- Abraham Lincoln 1859 [Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, Vol III, PP 399, Basler, ed.]
Or
During the fourth Lincoln-versus-Stephen Douglas debate on Sept. 18, 1858, in Charleston, Ill., Lincoln emphatically stated his view of the role of black people in American society:

"I will say that I am not nor ever have been in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races; that I am not nor ever have been in favor of making voters of the free Negroes, or jurors, or qualifying them to hold office, or having them marry with white people.

"I will say in addition that there is a physical difference between the white and black races which, I suppose, will forever forbid the two races living together upon terms of social and political equality; and inasmuch as they cannot so live, that while they do remain together, there must be the position of the superiors and the inferiors; and that I, as much as any other man, am in favor of the superior position assigned to the white man." ." The Collected
Works of Abraham Lincoln edited by Roy P. Basler, Volume III, "Fourth Debate
with Stephen A. Douglas at Charleston, Illinois" (September 18, 1858), pp.
145-146.")

Rm. Lankford continually implies the Union army was the "army of freedom" PP. 118, line 14, through the entire novel. On page 244 Mr. Lankford again attacks Lees character, when Lee went to kneel beside the freed slave, at St. Pauls church, by stating the person that reported it, "could not have divined what was in Lee's mind" ( Do we suppose Mr. Lankford does?)
For the aforementioned reasons, I can only give this book one star.

I would give Mr. Lankford an A+ for his graphic description of the women crying in church, during the first Sunday, after Union occupation. Actually much of the description is very nicely done.

I would like to see Mr. Lankford write more books on the civil war era, but hope he would be less biased, in his future books.

Minnesota Senator Morton Wilkerson stated the only hope for the country was the "death of the President and a new administration" PP. 205
I've read extensively about this, and would wish Mr. Lankford would write a book, on who actually pulled the strings behind the Lincoln assassination and cover-up. ( Booth escaped on THE ONLY BRIDGE THAT STANTON did not close, he was a suspect, other northern senators also openly expressed the desire for Lincoln to be shot)
Mr. Lankford, you write a book on that topic, I'll be the first to buy a copy.

At the beginning of RICHMOND BURNING we see Robert E. Lee ride into town in the rain. This is pretty much the last time we get to see him. Lankford edits the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography and lives in Richmond so we can understand why he might be interested in the politics of running the city after the evacuation of the Confederate government, but a reader of popular history might be disappointed in his emphasis on minor characters, such as Major General Godfrey Weitzel, who administered the city for a time after Davis and his government left. Even the pictures leave something to be desired. There's one of Robert E. Lee standing on the porch of his rented home taken by Matthew Brady. Supposedly there's another one where Lee is shown with his nephew Fitzhugh I would've liked to've seen. No such luck.
I was momentarily absorbed when Lankford showed Jefferson Davis leaving the city on a train carrying what was left of the Confederate treasury. It would have been interesting to see how Davis was captured, but Lankford has narrowed his focus to Richmond, so that wasn't possible. Even the fire isn't much to speak of. Davis orders what's left of the Confederate pickets to set fire to the tobacco warehouses and the wind spreads the fire; the Union Army puts it out in two days.
The most intriguing part of the book is when Lincoln shows up. Lee's army has not been defeated and here he is without an escort. Lincoln further complicates matters by allowing former Supreme Court justice, John Archibald Campbell to summon the Virginia legislature to discuss seceding from the Confederacy. We get a glimpse of Edwin Stanton, Lincoln's powerful secretary of war, who puts the fritz to that notion in a hurry.
Lankford also seems to have reinvented the wheel. In his acknowledgments, he mentions Rembert Patrick's THE FALL OF RICHMOND, written only forty years ago. Although Lankford has done extensive research, there doesn't seem to a reason for another version.

It is hard to see how this book could be improved upon. It is meticulously researched and footnoted, and there is a comprehensive bibliography. The viewpoint of the author is not pro-secessionist, albeit he tells us he lives in Richmond. This book literally allows one to live the last days of Confederate Richmond with the people who were there, and I found this was an experience well worth the time spent reading the book. It is a good supplementary companion to Jay Winik's April 1865: The Month that Saved America.