I was sad to see that this book is no longer in print. Truly it is one of the better books in this area and should be required reading in respiratory therapist training programs. I found it was very helpful in preparing for my registry exam when I took it 5 years ago. The presentations are really clear and it makes for enjoyable reading while one is studying. I'm thrilled to have it on my bookshelf and hope that they will consider coming out with a new edition or reprinting the present one.

This book is a must have for the respiratory student. It has been written specifically for respiratory therapists and covers twenty-two commonly encountered respiratory diseases. It looks at the assessment and treatment of patients with respiratory and related diseases and emphasizes the use of case studies to illustrate key pathophysiological concepts. Each chapter focuses on one particular disease and provides information on its etiology, pathophysiology, clinical features, and treatment along with case studies and a extensive list of questions that covers the preceding material. This book is especially suited for students preparing for their credentialing examinations and clinical simulation examinations. Although the material is presented in a clear and understandable manner some may need background some courses in anatomy and physiology, diagnostic techniques, cardiopulmonary pharmacology, and medical terminology to fully understand the case reports. This is a book the student will use throughout their respiratory education.

This is one of the best commentaries on Revelation that I have encountered. While it is written from a dispensational point of view, it was encouraging to get to chapter four and not find that John's summon into heaven is automatically interpreted as being the rapture of the church. (For me, this particular interpretation has always been so obviously strained that it is embarrasing to me when folks actually try to preach it from the pulpit. It is also the farthest thing from a literal exegesis that you can get, in a place that does not even require a symbolic interpretation.)

Almost all of the major opinions and arguments pro and con for each passage are cited along with their respective proponents and they are presented with great precision and scholarship. Although the author definitely has his own point of view, he is careful to write in a manner that at least comes across on paper as being fair and impartial to the reader.

Even though the exegesis is scholarly, it is not written to such a technical extreme that no one but a PhD can understand it. On the contrary, it is quite accessible to the average reader, yet has enough "meat" for anyone intersted in an indepth study. In short, you will enjoy reading it. This volume along with its companion volume on chapters 8-22 by the same author would be a highly prized addition to your library.

This is a very informative and detailed commentary on the Book of Revelation written from a premillennial dispensationalist viewpoint. I have found this commentary to be extremely useful for my study and for my teaching. I highly recommend this volume (chapters 1-7) and also volume 2 (chapters 8-22). I highly recommend this commentary.

I've just read some Amazon reviewers' responses to T. S. Eliot's poetry as testimony to his possibly being the greatest poet ever. Such an evaluation practically proves Eliot's insistent point about the cultural impoverishment of the present.

Indeed, Browning's masterwork may very well be the ultimate poetic epic in the English language, rivaled certainly not by Spenser, Wordsworth, and Pound but only by Chaucer and Milton. The fact that even the "trial of the century"--the O. J. Simpson case--did not produce widespread renewed interest in its literary predecessor and equivalent would produce surprise and disappointment were I not so aware that, outside of Shakespeare, the academic canon has been foreshortened (and engendered) to a tradition that begins with Virginia Woolf and ends with Sylvia Plath.

In "Ring and the Book" Browning takes the sordid event of an enraged husband murdering his helpless bride--the daughter of a prostitute and rescue project of a priest--to "explain the ways of God to man." The reader of the poem becomes, in effect, a "privileged" juror in the trial of the murderer, positioned through Browning's protean and powerful rhetoric within the consciousness of each of the principals before finally being enabled to glimpse the "truth" that affords meaning to human mutability and suffering.

The poem no doubt will remain in dust closets, largely unread even by literature Ph.D's. But there's little chance of its ever becoming lost. Like the priest-hero of the poem, a few priests of the imagination will ever so often make the poem's discovery and be lured into the quest of pursuing its singular meanings.

As an English major at the University of Pittsburgh, I was never exposed to this series of dramatic monologues. It's a pity, because when I finally stumbled across it, Browning went from being just another 19th-century poet to my favorite English language poet of them all, at one fell swoop. The Ring and the Book is based on a real-life murder trial in 17th century Rome. The story is told from multiple perspectives, changing with every new section of the book; we hear from the "Man on the Street", the murderer, the victim on her death-bed, and even the Pope. The details of the story are far too convoluted to explain in summary and do anything resembling justice to the book, but it can be safely said that once you've begun, you're in for a whirlwind ride through a carnival of a trial that makes the O.J. Simpson affair look like a parking-ticket dispute by comparison. The truly stand-out feature of The Ring and the Book is not in the story itself, however, but in the telling. Browning handles the English language like a virtuoso emulating angel's choruses on a Stradivarius. If the book suffers any single flaw, it is the simple fact that at times, Browning writes these lines almost TOO well, making it difficult for the reader to pay attention to the actually progression of the story, as said reader becomes entraced by the beauty of the poetry. (In particular, I consider Caponsacchi's description of the flight from Arezzo beginning at line 1152 of Book VI to be one of the best written passages in literature of all time.) Dramatic blank verse hasn't seen genius of this level since Milton wrote of the angelic Fall. It's a pity this book isn't more widely recognized and discussed, for it deserves recognition as one of the best-constructed poetic stories of history, and the pinnacle of 19th century authorship.

I really liked this book. I learned a lot. It was interesting. Sally was a spunky girl. She had the courage during a bad time to help her family.

This book is about Sally Bradford, a young Confederate girl during the Civil War. This gives a Southern perspective of the war. Sally's father and brother are away fighting for the south. Even though the Brafords own no slaves the Yankees still burn her house and the family must flee to Richmond. Then, Sally's brother gets typhus and is sent to a Richmond hospital. He needs quinine but the stores have none because of the war. Sally must travel across enemy lines to get medicine for her brother before it's too late. This book showed that there was more to the Civil War then the slavery issue.

This winter break I went on a Shakespeare buying spree, and this book is one of the fine gems I found. A large, but fascinating book, this work of great scholarship and excitement takes the reader on a whirlwind tour of Shakespeare, even into rather obscure corners of his works (Trollius and Cressida, Timon of Athens). This book is a must read for any would be deep thinker about Shakespeare.

Shakespeare as Political Thinker is a must for everyone interested in the political thought of William Shakespeare. This reprint will finally allow new comers to become familair with a commonsensical approach to Shakespeare's plays. The introductory chapter by John Alvis is worth the price. Perhaps the best Shakespearean critic alive, Alvis has an uncanny ability to show Shakespeare's moral seriousness without making the bard an unquestioning adherent to any political school or theological creed. Many of the essays that follow are also well done: Jaffa's chapter on Shakespeare's entire corpus, Laurence Berns' meditation on Lear etc.

The second printing of Shakespeare as Political Thinker gives hope to those interested in relearning ancient wisdom and pays tribute to its inspiration, Shakespeare's Politics (Allan Bloom).

I decided to use this book as a companion reader in a course in American history this year. This series of essays, which consist primarily of topics in social history, are an excellent complement to our very traditional textbook, which stresses political and diplomatic history. The authors of the essays are top names in the field, and the student response to the essays has been fantastic. I highly recommend this book as a teaching aide!

The Social Fabric presents a detailed array of readings insocial history for any United States History course. The readingsspecifically encourage two main revelations: U.S. History has many more interesting stories than the textbooks reveal and the historian's craft is much more complex than many students admit. The anthology is entirely engaging with details about daily life and customs. This book makes great general reading and should be required for all U.S. History courses.

Generals such as Patton and Rommel were drawn to study Jackson's Valley Campaign because of the successful use of mobility and concentration of force in local engagements to overcome theater area force inferiority. "Stonewall in the Valley" is an incredible story, fundamental to an understanding of the ACW for amateur and professional historians alike. A testament to Mr. Tanner's zeal for history and accuracy was his willingness to go back and undertake a major revision, twenty years after initial publication of the original classic. It is rare that one can point to a signal source of this type as an undisputed, authoritative classic - Hennessy's "Return to Bull Run" and Coddington's "Gettysburg Campaign" are two other examples. Mr. Tanner's work is a success at every level. Whether discussing national politics or the effect of local roads on soldiers' shoes, the commentary is thoroughly researched and rendered with an understandable authority. He is equally adept at identifying and explaining causes and effects and debunking many of the popular myths that have arisen over the years. This is not another contribution to the plethora of Stonewall legend making compilations - this is a serious historical work which examines exactly what happened, the when and the how, the why and why not. There is a most enlightening addition in this revision which discusses the operational art of war - actions which translate overall theater strategy to local area tactics - in the context of Stonewall's Valley Campaign. Mr. Tanner bucks the trend in giving Joe Johnston some credit and in rendering just criticism of the mighty Stonewall where appropriate (more often and harsher than expected). If only we were so lucky as to have a treatment such as this for every other ACW campaign - we can only hope.

Probably the most detailed analysis of Jackson's Valley Campaign I have ever read. Tanner has gone to great length to document every detail of the classic campaign fought in the Shenandoah Valley in 1862. New evidence and extensive analysis are presented in an effort to explain some of the controversies of the campaign. Tanner's conclusions differ in some respects from the traditional explanations of some of Jackson's actions but he backs them up well in light of new evidence. The book will make for rather dry reading for those not interested in military history but for the Civil War buff and Jackson admirer it is the best account I have read of Jackson's career as an independent army commander.

A Theatergoer's Guide To Shakespeare provides a companion to the plots, characters and themes of Shakespeare's plays, and will delight both beginning theater buffs and those studying Shakespeare. Fallon's treatment avoids the usual jargon and presents a clear picture of the play's events and characters, providing lively commentary on the plots and history. A recommended picks for a wide range of audiences, from students to drama fans.

In this fine introduction to Shakespeare, Prof. Robert Fallon had more sense than to try to "dumb down" Shakespeare. It can't be done--however, you CAN approach Shakespeare simply and cleanly, as the "Dummies" guides absolutely fail to do. The appropriate approach is to present the basics that are required to appreciate Shakespeare's plays, and that is exactly what Fallon has done in an enjoyable, highly readable text with no frills, distracting unfunny cartoons and trivia quizzes. To put my cards on the table, I worked in the recent past in a publishing company where I was not permitted to publish this excellent introductory guide myself, because it did not take a "for dummies" approach. I greatly regretted the stupidity of this decision (ever have a stupid boss?) and I salute Fallon for filling a need on the theater shelves of the bookstores. And bravo to his intelligent publisher Ivan R. Dee for putting out a well-designed volume. So take it from me, a theater lover for ages: This is the guide to choose if you want to begin to feel comfortable with Shakespeare or just want a solid guide to complement your experience of the plays.

Thomas Merton said, "Nhat Hanh Is My Brother," coming to this conclusion after meeting him but once.
Robert H. King traces the paths of these two men toward their historic meeting, yet respects their differences and the differences between Christianity and Buddhism. According to King, the contemplative practice which each of them followed in his own tradition led both of them into an active role in worldly affairs and to a deep respect for each other and for one another's tradition. King sees here the start of a fruitful inter-religious dialogue and the beginning of relationship between very different traditions.
I really enjoyed hearing how these two men, from such very different backgrounds, arrived at a similar place of "engaging" the world and its problems.
Anyone interested in learning about contemplation, either Christian or Buddhist, will find much to think about in this book.

Sept 11 demands a new perspective on old issues. Dr King gives readers just that with a beautifully written, fascinating look at these two peace advocates, who tried to expose the true face of peace hidden by the clouds of political dust during the turbulent Sixties. This is an elightened look at bringing major religions together for peaceful exchange.

More than forty years of thought have gone into this lucid synthesis of Tibetan belief. The carefully chosen illustrations are beautifully reproduced, and worth the price of the book. There is no better introduction to the subject, and whether you have just one book in this field or are adding to a collection, this book is a must.

In The Tibetan Wheel of Existence, Jacqueline Dunnington has rendered a well-researched, scholarly, yet highly readable exposition of the Bhava Chakra (literally, the Wheel of Becoming).

The richly layered symbolism portrayed in this popular icon offers valuable information about our challenging life experiences, inner processes, and states of mind. The underlying psychological principles expressed in the elegantly concentrated symbols of the diagram have influenced and informed my work as a clinical counselor for many years. Ms. Dunnington takes a refreshingly straightforward approach, and does not reduce this great tradition to the spiritual slogans and simplistic formulas that are so popular today.

The series of full color plates included in the text are both instructive and visually delightful. When approached appropriately, the Bhava Chakra can serve as a mirror or lens through which we can observe our own inner conditions, and transform them into states of enlightened awareness. Highly recommended.