This is a big book that I might not have read unless I searched for it and found it after reading an article by the author which struck me as truthful in the sense that one says, "this guy is telling the truth," regardless of whatever literary or personal foibles he may have. To say that I was surprised is an understatement. This is on my list of the top 50 must reads. To understand how a large part of the civilized world has been hoodwinked by both the academic and political / economic powers that be in this world, one deserves to read something like this work. I suppose the author could have found no better title for it, for in a way he intended it to be autobiography. But it isn't really. Or it is besides something else; a lot of personal venting about historical facts that are well known to him and should be better known to the rest of the world. Doubtless some have already come to the conclusions this author has reached.

He should be read in any course dealing with Soviet history, Soviet-American relations, political science or Russian history.

Anyone after reading this work who honestly has the courage to call him/herself a communist, socialist or social idealist, including most of the talking heads in the media or those who manage to get their voices heard there, should be consigned (openly and in public) to even greater fusillades of ridicule and scorn until they and their opinions vanish from the public scene, unless of course they want to share responsibility for the murder of hundreds of millions of human beings, more in one century (the 20th just past, the bloodiest in history) than they claim for all the religious wars in all of history put together, which they wont since they are mostly cowards.

Hats off to Lev Navrozov! May he succeed in getting his next work published and may all the world (civilized that is) read it with appreciation.

This is an inspirational book that I recommend for any Christian or non- Christian seeking some insight into Christ's Love. Fr. Gillet does a wonderful thing by speaking in the voice of "Love" (Christ) and offering us a window in which we see Christ's luminance shining through. At other times, he speaks in the voice of man, as if in prayer. The book is a series of short chapters on various topics. Each resembles a dialogue which Christ has with us each day (if we listen). "I am Love, thy Lord. Dost thou desire to enter into the life of Love?" (pg 9) This is a book that I have quoted many times and has been the catalyst of many contemplations.

An excellent book -- like listening to the author's conversations with Jesus. Read a chapter a day, but think about the chaper for the rest of the day. The book will be read many times. It is not a book you will give away, but you will recommend it to your friends. Not a book for beginners in spiritual life. A well known retreat master is reading it for the third time. Buy it and grow!

Lev Ivanov has been, for the last century, a known name but an unknown figure. As fruit of exceptional research into Russian archives, Professor Wiley has produced what he claims is a `first study'--which undoubtedly it is, but which future generations of dance lovers and scholars will recognize as a major work of historical and interpretative research. Ivanov must ever remain a shadowy figure. Contemporary comment and contemporary records reveal as little as one might expect about a man was only `second balletmaster'. His legacy to us, of course, is enshrined in two of the most popular ballet in the world--`Swan Lake' and `The Nutcracker'. Yet it is Professor Wiley who has now made clear the extent of Ivanov's contribution to the development and the greatness of the Russian imperial ballet at the Maryinsky Theatre. The book is essential reading for anyone concerned with ballet, and it is a work of both scholarship and artistic insights. --Clement Crisp, Ballet Critic, The Financial Times of London

Fabulous! Combines classic murder mystery with romance, mysticism, and even sports, with fascinating details slipped in about Chinese culture.

The only criticism I have of this book is that it kept me from doing all the chores and projects I had set aside for the snow days! I couldn't put it down!

Le Marteau sans Maitre, or The Hammerless Master was after the Surreal poet Rene Char, he was part of the Resistance to the Nazis during World War 2. Boulez was the first to realize the creative implications of the dodecaphonic language begun by Arnold Schoenberg later Anton Webern. Serialism was a vigorous extension of the utilization of the profound number of 12, all of the tones in the tempered system. This 12 was extended to rhythm,duration, articulation and dynamics, so not only pitch was a point of organization.What this created was a situation where sound could now be projected in an infinite variety of shapes and designs. Serialism was a brief epoch like any epoch with a beginning middle and end, and it came to a marvelous end around the late Fifties. Its demise can be explained by the exhaustion of the language, of its music materials. Each work was an excursion into eradicating itself. Boulez, of his gneration was always the most musical, always with tangible gestures and emotive threads traceable to Debussy,or Webern or Messiaen, wheras composers like Stockhausen, or Nono, Berio,tried to erase this connection. Boulez brought an informed musical sensibility, an aesthetic of the sensuous, the exotic, and mysterious to his music,informed by World Music as well, as the instrumental constitution that Marteau suggests. Serialism had its problems however, structurally, it couldn't extend itself into larger forms,orchestration was also problematical, and there was a point where the complexity the density of the phrase existed purely for itself, for no one could hear it. Marteau however is a classic precisily because it harbored modest expressive goals, albeit within an incredibly complex structural plan.Koblyakov discusses Boulez's use of harmony, a concept others of his generation might well dismiss. And the fascination here is the analysis of points,and simultanaeities of density, how they function within locally from note to note and from movement to movement, how harmonies are constructed, their gradations and shape.Marteau unfolds as the three poems Boulez selected in three discreet sections composed of shorter movements, with what is now a classic avant-garde instrumental combination of voice, viola, alto flute, guitar and a large array of handheld percussion&(vibraphone).As a tribute to this works profundity, there were countless works by Boulez contemporaries with this identical set after. Boulez's aesthetic always sought the means toward multiplication, how a germ of an idea can sustain, refigure and reproduce itself. This is done here with reiteration of the materials of the serialized 12, with harmonies accreting and diminishing as the work progresses.How pitch reproductions can exist on alocal level within each movement and on a global level, within the entire work. Koblyakov impeccably traces these complex transformations of pitch with wonderful graphic tables equally exhaustive as the work. A full score of the work projected into screens defining the works relationships is also provided here.

Hello , I read sometime this book and is one of the more explicit and clear that I have never read. The problem in this case is this > Amazon Have out of print and Im very interesed about this volume. I want really buy this but How many time I have to wait until you get some used copy? By the way, what is the degree of security if I try to buy it via VISA or American Express Card ? By everything Thanks , a lot of thanks ! And by the way again, how many books I can buy in one time or in others words Do you have any limit about the numbers of book that I can Buy ? Thanks! and congratulations , your service until I can see is in quality , and quantity the number One #1 .

With an opening book, normally I have to spend quite a bit of time with it before forming an opinion as to its worth and necessity. Having spent a lot of time with this book, I know it is a true gem. It is brilliantly constructed, with the reader in mind. For instance, each time a major sub-variation is begun, all of the moves to that point are presented, so that you don't have to flip back to re-start the game. Plus, this encourages you to play back through the moves to that point, forcing you to better absorb the meaning of the variation in question. The index of variations at the back is crystal clear, so that you can tell quickly the location of each variation. The point is, it appears that a great deal of thought and care went into the layout of this book. It deals with all major variations, presenting major games in a line in the notes. There is something special about this book. Not only do we all really need a book about the queen's gambit declined, but "Polu" put great care into his books, and he decried the quick cranking out of books by other authors. Plus, he was one of the best players in the world for many years, and this gives great authority to his recommendations. I find myself more willing to trust him than I do Matthew Sadler, who, although a GM, does not have Polu's pedigree. I like Sadler's book "QGD" also, and I am working through that in tandem with this book. I have noticed some conflicts between the books that are quite significant. For instance, when anontating the Fischer-Spassky game in the Tartakower variation (Polu. 161, Sadler 67) Sadler claims that Spassky went wrong with 14... a6?! He states that "after Spassky's inaccuracy, the game loses its theoretical significance." But Polu states that 14... a6 is the normal continuation in this line, and he indicates that after Spassky's 16... Ra7, white stands better. Polu's 16th move for black, Qa7, seems much more natural and logical. Playing through Polu's main line makes much more sense than following the line in the Sadler book, when Geller's 14...Qb7 is said to be satisfactory. But this line results in greater complications than the 14...a6 line suggested by Polu. I am left feeling that a6, followed by 16...Qa7, is totally solid and best in that situation. So we have Spassky and Polugayevsky recommending a move, and Sadler denouncing it. I am much more inclined to follow the two more experienced GMs. Again, I like the Sadler book, but the Polu. book comes off as more a authoritative source, based on 150 years of chess history. It is of more lasting value in my opinion. In short, it is a great book that should be sought and bought.

This book contains seventy-two black and white images of the former Soviet Union taken by Soviet photo jornalist, Lev Poliakov. Most of the photos were take in the 1960's although there are a few from the early 1970's. Most of them are both landscapes and portraits and generally show ordinary people doing ordinary things. My favorite photo of the book shows more than just ordinary activity. It is a 1970 photograph of a bearded man in swim trunks and a towel standing on the the frozen Neva River. The ice has been cut away, and the man is apparently drying himself off after dip in the frigid river. Watching him are three young children bundled up in scarves, hats, and heavy winter clothes. In the backgound of the image can be seen Leningrad's (now St Petersburg's) Winter Palace, Admiralty, and St. Isaac's Cathedral. Since I have two adopted children from Russia, I appreciate the honesty of Poliakov's images. So many books on Russia over emphasize the beautiful palaces, museums, and churches. Poliakov has found beauty in the ordinary and is able to present a more honest image of what was Russia. This book would be a great addition to the library of anyone with an interest in Russia.

I was fascinated by the information presented in this book, especially with the insight into children with serious learning and behavior problems. It gave me information that I was able to use with children I was working with who displayed the difficulties described in the book. What a tremendous help!