This I would have to say is a must read book for all of you out there who are denying one simple fact: Food isn't the culprit. How much you learn to use self-control and the self-esteem derived from it will govern the direction of your path. I got tired of going backwards all the time. This book has pointed me in the right direction. It points out that we should respect, celebrate food. WE should treat food as we would a good friend who we can count on. Well, I made friends with this book and I respect the author, Hal Brickman for writing a weight-management book that I have not seen the like of before. Instead of being preachy it's down-to-earth and uses words that people can understand. It uses ideas that make sense and are hard to forget, even though there is a little devil in me that sometimes says "go back." Go back and get that instant plesure from eating all I want when I want. But, I'm clearer about the consequences now. The book has taught me to slow down and think, breathe, imagine, plan, hesitate. That's all it takes to my amazement. Buying time. I see that now. By delaying that lunge to the wrong foods, I move closer to who I really am and how I really should look and care for my self. Wow! I'm so grateful.

This book has taught me how to balance how to eat. It is more about life-management than weight management. I feel THE THIN BOOK has helped me believe in myself-that I could create discipline in eating and for once in my life sustain it. I'm not sure how this book accomplished that because I'm a pretty stubborn man. But twenty three pounds lighter and a new bounce to my step it certainly has done for me what no diet, book or program has ever done. I never thought a book could change my life and my mind-set to such a great degree. I feel so proud. This is the lightest I've been in fifteen years. If I had a pipeline to the powers that be, I'd get this book into every book store possible so that those without computers can find it. It's just that- a find!

After having read this ground-breaking book, I am developing healthy eating habits as a way of life. No structured program I've been on in the past twenty years (and I have been on more than many) has done for me what this book has.

THE THIN BOOK is also one of the most brilliantly written prose I have read in ages. It is colorful, powerful, highly informative and though extremely serious, a joy to read.

In addition, I know of no other book on hypnosis that is soley devoted to weight-management. It is a classic book, already, because it's one I will return to and reinforce and sustain the progress I've made.

The book is full of vivid imagery that irresistably lingers in my mind. It manages to offset my urge to overeat.

My eating choices have become wiser, more balanced. The book has taught me to slow down my eating (I used to eat on the run or sit down and inhale my food) which has led to a new founded respect and appreciation for the the eating experience.

Eating has now become something I look forward to, as I'm gaining confidence in my self-control. I'm also developing respect and appreciation for the foods I eat. I no longer take them for granted. I love to look at the contrasting colors, nuances of taste, variety of textures and aromas.

The book is comprised of the most effective trances this acclaimed clinician has used in his several decades of specializing in weight-management.

I'm so excited about the book that I have ordered many copies as gifts to friends and family. This book is the best present I can give to someone I care about.

Thank you, Hal Brickman, you have made my life more fulfilling.

Ms. Janie has written the Beanie Invasion to inculde all of the collectors. Read this information packed book and laugh along as I did. This book will allow you to recall events you may have forgotten. I recently met Ms. Janie at a show, what a sweet woman. Not only was I impressed with her knowledge, I also loved her table setup which was geared towards children. I attend many shows and have never found any table to be packed with freebies for kids. Thanks Ms. Janie for remembering the kids are just as important! Keep writing and keep smiling, you are a beautiful person.

Hi and thank you! I just received my copy of The Beanie Invasion. I LOVED IT! Ms. Daniels experiences were well received. I could relate to each and everyone of them. I'd love to meet this woman in person, she sounds like a delight. Does she have any connections with Ty? They should hire her to be their spokesperson!! She really knows how to touch the soul. She has such humor and grace but still manages to get her point across .Ms. Daniels poem on the back cover of the book made me cry. I have three children and felt very moved by her words and thoughts. THE BEANIE INVASION was one of the best Beanie books I've read to date. I love all of the other books with tag information and pictures, but Janie's book offers so much more. It's a book all Beanie collectors can relate to. After I read it, I found myself cheering for her. The pictures in her book are outstanding! I can't believe how clear and colorful they are. Is this her first book? Will she write another Beanie book? I sure hope so! WE LOVE MS. JANIE AND LOVE HER STORIES! California gives Ms. Janie and The Beanie Invasion a big thumbs up and a even bigger (10) GOD BLESS MS. JANIE AND TY!

Janie Daniels' book the Beanie Invasion is excellent! My whole family really enjoyed it! It is truely the BEST Beanie book on the market. Mrs. Daniels does not make random predictions or create information like many of the other Beanie authors. Mrs. Daniels adds a very personal touch to her book looking at the whole Beanie craze through the eyes of both children and adults. It is well written and very creatively laid out. I can tell Mrs. Daniels wrote this book from her heart. You can also tell right away that she genuinely loves children! My children all adored the beautifully creative photographs!!! They were so much fun they spent hours looking thorough the book admiring them! Thank-you Mrs. Daniels for sharing your book the Beanie Invasion with all of us! It is a well written, fun book for the whole family!

The book Eye of the Beholder is excellent! As Tyler and Lymie get into trouble after planting fake sculpted heads that they carved in imitation of Badoglio. He is an artist from there hometown. This book is a must read for all Hayes fans especially if you liked The Trouble with Lemons!!!!!!!!

The book "Eye of the Beholder" is a very good book. It is about two boys named Tyler McAllister and Lymie Lawrence, who are in the eight grade. They are staying together when they have the chicken pox. It is then when they hear about the Badoglio festival that will take place in Wakefield, Badoglio's hometown. The main reason for the festival is to let everyone see the two heads Badoglio made and threw into the Hoosickill River. The towns people were going to try and find the heads. Lymie and Tyler made two heads that looked like Badoglio's and threw them into the river shortly before the town was going to look for Badoglio's heads. I really do think you should read this book so you can see what happens in the rest of the book. I liked the book "Eye of the Beholder" because it seemed like it was something that could have really happened.

I just finished reading Eye of the Beholder.It is a very interesting novel. It keeps you very interested and you just don`t want to put it down. I liked the novel for the most part.The two main characters Tyler and Lymie get into a little trouble during the novel with their interests in art. I like the novel because of what happens during the novel. I would urge a friend to read this novel because it is a fun book to read,and if I liked it I`m positive that they would like it to.

I actually found this book years ago when I knew no Greek at all and was looking for grammars of the Attic dialect. I had no idea that I would one day commit myself to the understanding of the bible. It is actually through an advertisement in the back of this book that I found the whole Zondervan line, including William Mounce's fantastic introductory grammar. Now, years later, as I prepare for seminary, I find that I am already equipped with most of the Greek textsbooks that I will need there.

This book is a real treasure. Long before I could read any Greek I combed over the excellent essays at the beginning about the nature of New Testament Greek and the issues of teaching and learning Greek in his "purpose of this book" essay. Also, the book is designed as a reference, giving you everything you ever wanted to know about cases in one swoop, then verbs in one swoop, etc., yet Wallace keeps the various components of the Greek language distinct from one another and is very meticulous in assuming greater knowledge from the student as one works through the book, indicating that it is designed to be methodically worked through from beginning to end in seminary courses. The result is a teaching aid that is a well-indexed reference, usable for one's entire lifetime. Also, Wallace includes a number of examples with each of his paragraphs, and each of the examples is translated from the Greek. This is a wonderful boon for someone like me who, though having started Greek 4 years ago before before learning any foreign language, has since learned to speak German and read Hebrew fluently, but never got the time to acquire great fluency in New Testament Greek. My daily biblical studies have prompted me to do many advanced word studies and pose a number of syntactical questions involving Greek, yet I have never really attained the vocabulary or fluency in the language as one who can just pick up a Greek New Testament and read it. In this respect, Wallace's clear language and numerous translated examples have helped me to no end.

I guess what I am trying to say is that this book is very user-friendly and makes a wonderful companion even to beginning students in the language, or for pastors whose Greek has gotten rusty.

This is the book that I used in my Greek Exegesis Class at Seminary, and it is the most helpful and up-to-date book on the market. Most helpful is both the Syntax Summaries section near the back, and the index of Scripture, which is very helpful if you'd like to reference his exegetical work on individual passages of Scripture. Dan Wallace is perhaps one of the most brilliant NT grammarians alive today. There are a few annoying aspects (if you have conservative evangelical presuppositions i.e.) such as his acceptance of 'plenary' meanings among a few other minor things. These aside however, it is still the best intermediate Grammar there is, and I would enthusiastically recommend it!

This is the reference grammar that I needed when I was in graduate school! This grammar is completely compatible with Herbert Weir Smyth's GREEK GRAMMAR (Harvard Univ. Press) and that is extremely helpful. What is unique and most praiseworthy about this book is that it gives examples for its syntactical categories, both in Greek and in English. It summarizes the scholarly controversy about verbal aspect and comes to its own conclusions in an even-handed way. This is fine book that I do not hesitate to recommend to my graduate and undergraduate students.

I absolutely love this book. The introduction and the photographs are worth the price alone. This book has the lyrics to all your favorite Doors songs plus poetry (lyrics) from Jim Morrisons' spoken word album "An American Prayer." It has also got interviews and a behind the scenes look at what went on during some of the recording sessions as well as definitions as to just what Jim meant in some of their songs. The discussion about the meaning of The End is great. This book is a must for Doors fans from the most ardent to the just curious. The book is not one that will be looked at once or twice and put on a shelf. It is a facinating read no matter how many times you read it. The Doors: The Complete Lyrics increased my respect and admiration for the band, and Jim in particular, 1000 fold.

I'm somewhat of a new Doors fan, particularly of Jim Morrison. The hair and the pout drew me in first, then the music followed. When I found this book, I knew I had to own it. I was not at all disappointed. Sugerman has done a fantastic job of compiling the hundereds of pictures and newspaper/magazine articles from over the years into this informative collection. The progression over the years of Morrison's rise to fame and eventual downfall into drugs and self-desctruction is adeptly demonstrated. A must-have for any Doors fan.

"The Doors: The Illustrated History" is the best photographic, visual book record of the band. Compiled by Doors manager Danny Sugerman, it is a fascinating, visually rich and enjoyable display of a band that changed rock music and the amount of praise (and criticsm) they inspired. The pictures are great, they are clear, close and informative and clearly show how Jim Morrison created the theatrical aspects we so see so often in today's rock music. We also get different shots of the man, as the wild, leather-clad Lizard King and as a lonely, quiet poet. The articles and reviews are fascinating because they take us back to a time and place, but they are also surprising to read when compared to what is written today about certain rock artists. In one article dealing with the New Haven arrest where Morrison became the first rock performer to be arrested at a concert, the writer calls the music of The Doors "satanic, sensual and demented." A sign of what was to come with artists like Iggy Pop, Marilyn Manson, Alice Cooper and many others. Some of the reviews are especially well-written, like one where the writer says the Doors music evokes images like the eye-ball slashing in Luis Bunuel's "Un Chien Andalou." Like the music, the images are timeless, and evoke a poetic, deep persona who's presence is ever so strong in rock. Like The Beatles, The Doors are an unforgettable force, you hear them once and never forget. The foreward by Jerry Hopkins, who wrote "No One Here Gets Out Alive," is also informative and has interesting things to say about the resurgence of Doors music. This is a must for any Doors fanatic and anyone who has ever been touched by the music and words.

I was first drawn to this book by a haunting picture of two little girls on the book cover. I was impatient to learn their significance. I had to wait. In the opening of this story, the author relates his fear of the Not-sees (Nazi) as told to him throughout his youth by his mother who escaped Europe.

However, in an effort to come to grips with being Jewish and to learn the truth about what his family endured during World War II, an American divorced father and his two sons begin a quest to retrace the steps of an uncle who endured the Holocaust. Using a tattered journal's clues they searched for his hiding places and learned more than they expected about the war and its victims. Only after finding where and how the twins died did the author understand his great-uncles, other family members, and his mother. During the trip he also realizes what it means to be a father.

I could not appreciate the cover of this book until I learned the fate of the Jewish twin sisters and others who suffered.

Daniel Asa Rose has succeeded in writing a memoir that touches the reader in so many ways.He opens by inviting us to his childhood home of Rowyaton ,Connecticut ,and by sharing his memories, opens the flood gates of our own memory. But, Daniel's comforting small town life disguised the history of terror which his glamorous art dealer mother survived. This life is contrasted by that of his mother's family, the New York Orthodox Jewish diamond dealers,foreign and covered with diamond dust, who both embarrased and haunted the young Daniel.They were made more mysterious by the fact that that their Jewish traditions were in no way reflected in the home that Daniel's parents created.

Years later, after a wrenching divorce Daniel takes his two charming and intelligent sons ages seven and twelve, to Belguim,France and Spain to track the steps that led to his family's survival. The results are both delightful and harrowing, but conclude in an triumphant reconciliation with identity. The European chapters are interspersed with the author's boyhood adventures and conflicts. The device, though initially slightly disconcerting, help us understand the arc of Daniel Rose's life. The book deals with the issues of identity with which we all struggle.The reader will not want the story of the Rose family to conclude, but when it does you will have been greatly enriched by the journey.

Hiding Places reached deep inside me to my hiding places, touching me on so many levels. I loved the dual stories of Daniel growing up feeling isolated by his Jewishness in goyishe suburbia and the Jewishness he instilled in his sons by taking them on this trip to find the hiding places of his relatives from the "not sees". The author made me feel his pain and his joy, his fears and his pride. It was an exhilarating read, an emotional roller coaster for me. Daniel's distress for his children's loss of family after his divorce showed sensitivity that men are often criticized of lacking. The writing is so personal the reader can't help but be drawn into this family, to care about them. I found myself laughing and crying, sometimes on the same page! This book is a treasure and will resonate within me for some time to come.

AGRIBUSINESS ANTITRUST CASE LEAVES WHISTLEBLOWER IN PRISON The book, "Rats in the Grain; The Dirty Tricks and Trials of Archer Daniels Midland" by James B. Lieber describes what Nicholas Hollis, president of the Agribusiness Council called "one of the most important antitrust cases of the century. It certainly was the most important to agriculture." The case developed because one of ADM's highest officials, Mark Whitacre became "one of the most productive...and...courageous" whistleblowers in history," Hollis added. He noted that Whitacre "stood up to two eight-hundred-pound gorillas, ADM with the Andreases and the federal government." He's talking about ADM's primary grandfather, Dwayne Andreas and his relatives. Ironically, the federal judicial system treated the whistleblower more harshly than it treated ADM and its leaders. Whitacre was given up to 10 years of prison (probably until 2007) while only two of his supervisors were tried and given a couple years. One of them, however, was Andreas' only son, Michael (Mick). Helpful in Lieber's 400-page account are various appendices that list people and places linked with white-collar crime close to the case. Despite its lawyer-like detail, this is not a tedious book. It suspensefully chronicles case events. Lieber also includes useful data on U.S. trust busting history. Lieber describes an epic struggle for justice and his part IV, "The Cover-Up" shows how the government avoided giving ADM the usual punishments for such major crimes. It seems justice has yet to be served. This book ought to be require reading not only for every journalism, law and business student who wants to know what goes on in the 'real' world but for every high school class studying the U.S. government. Lieber documents every truth about the ADM scandal. Read "Rats In The Grain!" - end -

Rats in the Grain is a tale of corporate criminals from Asia, Europe, and the U.S. whose price fixing conspiracy was finally exposed by a government witness working undercover for the FBI for over two and half years. The FBI tapes and documents sow ADM was involved in fixing prices, technology theft, prostitution, systematic campaign voilations and the transfer of corporate funds without the proper signatures to senior executives' overseas bank accounts to avoid taxes. ADM paid a $100 million fine and was allowed to keep the USDA business worth $85 million, which was unprecededented for a corporation who pled guilty to a criminal felony. THe second conspiracy involved ADM, the Department of Justice and ADM's lawyers working together with the media to paint a picture of Mark Whitacre, the government witness, as the real criminal. Whitacre who worked undercover for the FBI was also receiving illegal bonuses. Records show ADM was aware of this, yet the government and ADM claimed that no one except those around Whitacre were involved. The FBI agents with whom Whitacre worked while recording the crimes at ADM turned their backs on him. All the departments of government in place to administer justice for the people were administering the wishes of ADM's chairman Dwayne Andreas. ADM and the Andreases have spent millions in donations over the years. Adding that to the millions spent on lawyers clearly showed that justice was for sale. Part IV of the book the cover-up is a real eye-opener. It tells of people who sold their souls aiding and abetting in the obstruction of justice which included sending the government witness to jail at the request of ADM. Lieber's book serves notice that all is not well in the heartland and conditions are even worse in Washington.

A terrific book. Rats is the Grain reads like a novel, a mystery thriller, and a lawyer's expose of the crimes of a dominant American corporation, all at once.

The amazing tale that unfolds -- double crosses by the US Department of Justice, well aware of ADM's political power, the questionable ethics of powerful Washington lawyers, deals within deals, crimes the FBI never really explored -- all this is told in a way that keeps the pages turning rapidly.

Archer-Daniels-Midland, or ADM, calls itself "Supermarket to the World." This book reveals it as much more. The heart of the story is a gigantic price-fixing conspiracy for which Mike Andreas, the son of the fabled Duane Andreas and himself the president of ADM, now sits in prison.

Mark Whitacre, a fascinating and twisted man, was a rising star at ADM and the president of a big division when his newest plant wouldn't produce. As the pressure from his bosses intensified, he crafted a lie to blame a mysterious Japanese competitor. ADM has connections with the CIA and asked for help. The CIA asked the FBI and that's when the real crime began to unravel.

Whitacre needed a cover for his lie, so he told the FBI of a real and gigantic conspiracy -- in which ADM and other giant corporations were fixing the price of additives that go into all our food. He taped and videotaped the on-going crime for the FBI. Without Whitacre's lie the crime would still be going on, yet he got the most prison time, for what was a trivial offense in comparison to the stealing by ADM and its conspiracy.

This is a fascinating and well-written book that tells a tale of corruption that runs deep in American politics and business. Read it.

There is a small Island in Buzzard's Bay that isn't a vacation resort. It was once a leper colony and is now a kind of prison.

Dan Robb, a version of today's Renaissance Man, crosses the water to teach at Penikese Island School, a community for delinquent boys.

Robb avoids the temptation to offer a romanticized or idealized account of this work. He describes it in excerpts from his journal-passages that include his inner thoughts along with the actual exchanges he has with his students. He does offer his analysis and evaluation of the effort to assist these young outcasts-we learn what the experience has to offer them and view a range of responses from the individuals he encounters at the school.

Robb weaves his own developmental struggles (growing up in a single-parent home) and his academic interests (a writer and student of English Literature) into his work and he shows us how such inward-looking reflection informs him about the destructive impulses which weigh so heavily on the boys at Penikese. He concludes on a strong, positive note.

The book is a job well done, interesting, instructive and thoughtful. Thanks, Mr. Robb, for writing it.

I read this book in one delicious gulp! I, literally, could not put it down. I was fascinated by these boys, pushed to the fringes of society, accountable to everyone and embraced by no one. Robb does an excellent job of explaining the frustration of working with these "problem children." All the sacrifices, rewards and disappointments of being an unasked-for mentor are here in vivid color. The often times sad tales of these boys are skillfully woven through with narratives from the author's own life, his struggles to come to terms with his own childhood, and his own fumbling attempts at "parenting." Robb asks the difficult question: How can a young person follow the path to responsible, nurturing adulthood if they have no footsteps in which to follow? It's a hard question...and the answer harder still.

In this wonderful book, Dan Robb has managed to write about his experience teaching troubled boys with soul and without sentimentality. The rawness of his experience teaching on an isolated island off of Cape Cod, and the soul searching it prompted, makes for compelling reading no matter how much time you spend thinking about or working with kids. As the mother of a small boy, I also felt that reading this book was a way of learning about how to be a good parent to my child. I recommend this book with all my heart, and hope that it touches you as deeply as it did me.

I found that this book utilized a little too much set theory for beginning students. If the author could have given more concrete examples, perhaps from group theory or simpler ones from analysis or number theory, it would have been much better. For students wanting a more lucid exposition of proof techniques, I highly recommend, "100% Mathematical Proof" by Rowan Garnier and someone else,whos name escapes me at the moment. "100% Mathematical Proof" is far superior to this book, and it has answers to the exercises which is crucial to the beginning student learning on his/her own. Velleman needs to bring the abstract nearer to the concrete for the beginning student.

A mathematically inclined student can expect to reap a bountiful harvest from D.J. Velleman's 'How to Prove It.' You needn't be a computer type to benefit. In fact, the book avoids computer gobbledygook and, in a highly disciplined manner, hones in on the essentials of proof techniques. Though Dr. Velleman's overt aim is to familiarize the student -- no advanced math necessary -- with the reading and writing of mathematical proofs, he also succeeds admirably in teaching basic logic and set theory as a useful mathematical tool, rather than as a mere corpus of interesting ideas. Velleman writes in a spare, lucid style and his exercises are well chosen to illustrate his lessons, though for some reason the book omits the customary answers to alternate exercises, which is useful for someone, such as myself, engaged in self study. Even so, other writers could take pointers from Velleman. I had very little trouble using the book for self-instruction, which is more than I can say for the Schaum's guides and numerous other math textbooks. I found no significant errors in the text or exercises, though Velleman and I did have a bit of an email dustup over 'vacuous truth' .... A quibble: Velleman omits mention of the foundational problems of set theory, other than to stick Russell's paradox in as an exercise. The final (and very good) chapter gives us Cantor's theorem without mentioning Cantor's paradox. Though beginners may shrink from foundational subtleties, a few more words would have been useful. Yet, all in all, this is an elegant, succint and enormously useful text.

Everyone knows that proving mathematical theorems formally is tough. Although some proofs may seem obvious, they are hard to put down onto paper. Well, this book takes you back and builds the fundamental skills that you will need to make solid proofs. It covers the same thing that other proof-teaching books do, but in my opinion, it does it in a clear concise way. It gives you examples of how you are going to use the info that you are learning. This book will definitely help you on your way to doing great proofs.

"Daniel Deronda" is George Eliot's last and, perhaps, most ambitious novel. It has great literary merit, but I do not think it is her best work. The novel contrasts the lax moral attitudes of the British aristocracy with the focused dedication of the Jewish Zionists. Given the typical anti-Semitic sentiments in Victorian England, and the little known world of the Jews and the Zionist Movement, Ms. Eliot's made a brave and idealistic effort by writing this book.

Ms. Elliot describes the lives of British Jews, a society-within-a-society, of which most of her contemporaries were oblivious, through her hero Daniel Deronda. Through her heroine, Gwendolyn Harleth, who marries for money and power rather than love, Eliot explores a side of human relations that leads only to despair.

Daniel sees Gwendolyn, for the first time, at a roulette table. He is fascinated by her classical, blonde English beauty, and vivacious, self-assured manner. When Ms. Harleth is forced to sell her necklace to pay gambling debts, Deronda, a disapproving observer, buys back the jewelry, anonymously, and returns it to her. This is not the last time the deeply spiritual and altruistic Deronda will feel a need to rescue Gwendolyn.

Daniel was adopted by an English gentleman at an early age. He has received affection, a good education, and to some extent, position, from his guardian. However, Deronda has never been told the story of his true parentage, and sorely feels this lack of roots and his own identity. Not content to play the gentleman, he always appears to be searching for a purpose in life.

Daniel's and Gwendolyn's lives intersect throughout the novel. They feel a strong mutual attraction initially, but Gwendolyn, with incredible passivity, decides to marry someone she knows is a scoundrel, for his wealth. The decision will haunt her as her life becomes a nightmare with the sadistic Mr. Harcourt, her husband.

At about the same time, Daniel inadvertently saves a young woman from suicide. He finds young Mirah Lapidoth, near drowning, by the river and takes her to a friend's home to recover. There she is made welcome and asked to stay. She is a Jewess, abducted from her mother years before, by her father, who wanted to use the child's talent as a singer to earn money. When young Mirah forced her voice beyond its limits, and lost her ability to sing, her father abandoned her. She has never been able to reunite with her mother and brother, and was alone and destitute, until Daniel found her. Daniel, in his search for Mirah's family, meets the Cohens, a Jewish shop owner and his kin. Deronda feels an immediate affinity with them and visits often. He also comes to know a Jewish philosopher and Zionist, Mordecai, and they forge a strong bond of friendship.

Daniel finally does discover his identity, and has a very poignant and strange meeting with his mother. He had been actively taking steps to make a meaningful existence for himself, and with the new information about his parents and heritage, he leaves England with a wife, for a new homeland and future.

One of the novel's most moving scenes is when Daniel and Gwendolyn meet for the last time. Gwendolyn has grown from a self-centered young woman to a mature, thoughtful adult, who has suffered and grown strong.

The author is one of my favorites and her writing is exceptional. This particular novel, however, became occasionally tedious with Ms. Eliot's monologues, and the book's length. Her characters are fascinating, original as always, and well drawn. The contrast between the lives of the British aristocracy, the emerging middle class, and the Jewish community gives the reader an extraordinary glimpse into three totally different worlds in Victorian England. A fine book and a wonderful reading experience.

George Eliot's final novel is both riveting and problematic. Many critics have called it "two books in one" -- some have even said that the two strands of the book should have been *separated*. One plotline follows Gwendolen Harleth, a spoiled and beautiful girl fallen on hard financial times, and what happens when she marries a soulless aristocrat...the other plotline concerns the title character, Daniel, who is drawn into the revelation of his true Jewish ancestry. George Eliot is a Novelist of the Mind...she dissects the motivations and psyches of her characters, setting them against the society they inhabit and examining interaction both with that society and with the other people it encompasses. This is a stirring novel, with sharply-etched characterizations : not a melodrama or a potboiler, yet still with the drive of a thriller.

Daniel Deronda is a brave piece of literature. It attempts to chronicle the budding Zionist movement and anti-semitic attitudes of Victorian society, and combine it with a more traditional George Eliot soul-searching story of a young woman (a gentile who has a complex relationship with Daniel Deronda, the young Englishman who discovers he is a Jew). While many people have quibbled about various details of the story, with some justification, the overall impact is one of awe. It's amazing how an accomplished writer defies popular criticism and explores a subject matter which was, at the time, politically incorrect.

Strictly speaking, Daniel Deronda isn't quite the same level of immaculate fiction as Middlemarch. So I think George Eliot fans will be somewhat disappointed. But on the positive side, the book is much more accessible (ie, easier to read). And the subject matter makes it required reading for everyone interested in modern Judaism/Zionism. It's fascinating to compare how Jews were perceived during the mid-1800s relative to today (..in western Europe).

Finally, the Penguin Classic edition of Daniel Deronda has both great Notes and Introductory sections (which, oddly, is supposed to be read AFTER reading the book).