Thurber's "The Thirteen Clocks" is one of the best books ever written. The fairy-tale plot line appeals to both the young and the young at heart. No matter your age, after reading this book you will come away feeling like the world is not as rough of a place as it seemed about a half an hour ago. This book is also great to read to young children. While it doesn't have a poetic meter, the dialogue and narration progress in an almost sing-songy way that will hold the attention of even the most restless child.

I thought that this book was a great book and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to read great fairy tale. A tale with Princes, Princess and an evil Duke. I couldn't put the book down. It was short and sweet. There is a simple plot and characters that are easy to relate to. There were many descriptive sentences that painted detailed pictures in your head. I also enjoyed the pictures in the book and found them very amusing. This book as some surprising twists in it that you would never guess. Again I would highly recommend this book for anyone of all ages that just want to read something that is good and it doesn't take him or her days to read. It is just an awesome book to read. I hope you enjoy it.

I first heard this enchantingly wonderful book on cassette tape when i was at art lessons. I would wait impatiently till the next week so I could hear more~ more about the Golux (who resembles only half the things he says he doesn't) and about Princess Saralinda and the Prince whose name begins with X... and doesn't. This book is full of whimsical wonderful wordplay and contains almost all of my favorite quotations of all time. It isn't very long, but every sentence is filled with some little quips or verbal oddities that, quite literally, made me laugh aloud. This book is without question one of my favorites of all time, a truly wonderful tale that can be read over and over again without ever growing old. Really classique. I mean, the book that's given me my tagline HAS to be great: "We all have flaws and mine is being evil."

Edward Gorey was a master of the macabre. Seemingly inappropriate, always bizarre, Mr. Gorey walked the taboo tightrope in his stories and illustrations. Here are fifteen such delightfully atrocious tales, compiled for the convenience of his very demented fans (including yours truly).

First is "The Unstrung Harp" about a befuddled and (in appearance) paranoid writer who trudges through his maddening existence, as so many a writer inevitably will. The casual reader might find this tale odd, but anyone who has ever taken to writing seriously will feel nothing but empathy. Has one of the greatest ending lines of any story I've ever read.

Next is "The Listing Attic", a series of devilish ryhmes with correlating illustrations. Many of these are horrible in design yet strangely you'll find yourself laughing at the unfortunate mishaps that fall upon the characters.

Now, on to "The Doubtful Guest" about a mysterious penguin-like creature that arrives at a residence only to act in a seemingly irrational way, doing things for inexplicable reasons. Personally I think this is nothing more than a metaphor for the unexpected in life and how it's more irrational for people to waste time trying to make sense out of these things. But that's just me.

"The Object Lesson" is just plain confusing, as if Mr. Gorey was just penning random thoughts and then illustrating them. Definitely weird.

"The Bug Book" is pretty childish in design and, to me, not particuarly noteworthy.

"The Fatal Lozenge" is another series of ryhmes, although the level of morbidity and violence is pretty much maxed out. Reading these you won't find yourself able to laugh, only maybe able to produce a nervous twitter as you ponder how very real these situations could be.

"The Hapless Child" is nothing short of a masterpiece, evoking every emotion from love to terror this tragedy should have a place in American high school curriculum, but alas public education systems in this nation would rather not deal with horrible reality.

"The Curious Sofa" is an attack on preconceived notions of sexual morality, being pornographic only in suggestion the point is that if someone who considered him/herself to be in the right in his/her sexual ideals he/she wouldn't understand the innuendo of the words and illustrations. A very interesting piece.

"The Willowdale Handcar" is a story I didn't like.

"The Gashlycrumb Tinies" has to be my favorite Edward Gorey piece, a sinister telling of the Alphabet with a small child meeting its demise for each letter, kind of an anti-Alligators All Around. I have a separate review posted for this story as it is deserving of the title of literature.

"The Insect God" is another disturbing work involving intelligent, and apparently religious, giant sized bugs.

"The West Wing" is a series of illustrations that force the reader to create his/her own captions for what is depicted.

"The Wuggly Ump" is a silly song about a very hungry monster.

"The Sinking Spell" is another tale of an unexpected visitor, a creature on an indecipherable journey.

Last, is "The Remembered Visit" about a woman who can't forget the odd travels of her youth or her meeting of a once famous man.

That's it, the coffee table book to beat all coffee table books, the ultimate conversation piece. But, then again, everything Edward Gorey did was worthy of conversation.

The artwork in Amphigorey is absolutely amazing. The style is reminiscent of a very old cartoon. Every single frame of each story is so detailed, and the lines are so intricate and precise, it's as if Gorey spent days on each drawing.

The stories which are illustrated by these drawings are very creepy. Many of the stories are incredibly pointless. Some of them end awfully, others don't really end at all. Some aren't stories, but rather collections of poems with a title. At times, things get quite disgusting. For example, in one set of alphabetical poems entitled "The Fatal Lozenge," the last poem goes like this:

The ZOUAVE used to war and battle
Would sooner take a life than not:
It scarcely has begun to prattle
When he impales a hapless tot.

This is accompanied by an illustration of a baby pinned through its abdomen with a sword and blood dripping down. But no matter what, everything in this collection is interesting and unique. This book is at no time dull or boring. Plus, it makes a great conversation piece. I love showing people my Amphigorey book! Most people have never heard of Edward Gorey and are entirely surprised that such a bizarre book even exists.

In any case, if you don't already have it, you should definitely get this book! It's such a great thing to have around the house, you'll never regret owning it!

I was introduced to this book by a friend of mine whose sense of humor is almost as twisted as that of Gorey himself. He delighted in sharing with me "The Gashlycrumb Tinies" (in which small children meet their doom in alphabetical order) and "The Curious Sofa: a pornographic tale" (in which Gorey lays sexual innuendo so thick that it becomes absurd and absolutely hilarious). After wresting the book from the aforementioned friend's hands, I read the rest of it. To my delight I found morbid limericks and quatrains, stories apparently composed of random sentences, and tales of tales of mishap and tragedy--each accompanied by illustrations in Gorey's macabre style. I would recommend this collection to anyone who has outgrown Dr. Seuss but still wants to look at the pictures.

An incautions young lady named Venn
Was seen with the wrong sort of men
She vanished one day
But the following May
Her legs were retreived from a Fen

Herbert Werner with Mr. Beach's help has written one of the most detailed, engrossing naratives of combat that I have ever read. Werner served on U-boats as an officer throughout most of the war, becoming a U-boat commander in '44. Though highly detailed the book reads almost like a novel it is that interesting. His descriptions of depth charge attacks will have you breaking out in a cold sweat. By mid '43 U-boats faced a huge challenge just getting out to open sea. Werner describes his time spent in ports in great detail as well. Overall the book provides the reader with a picture of what WW2 sub warfare is all about and what life as an officer in Hitler's Germany was like.

I first read this book over 20 years ago and it is one of those books I can just re-read periodically My initial impression of it's overall excellence still remains. Highly recomended.

This is the very best book I have read actually describing the conditions inside a German u-boat during World War II Atlantic Ocean war patrols. It is well written with both action and information in mind. The action standpoint is superb and makes the reader wonder how Capt Werner and his crew ever survived the punishment they took in their little fragile "egg" as aircraft and ships constantly dropped bombs and depth charges on them. From the information standpoint, Werner gives us a very comprehensive and interesting description of what it is like inside the early u-boats. It is hard to imagine how the crew lived like they did in their constantly rocking boat: without bathing for months, eating moldy food, suffering from constant humidity, freezing or roasting as the season might be (no airconditioning or heaters), and not having proper sanitary conditions (using a bucket in rough seas, etc.) Very good detail on u-boat life both aboard ship and in port. From another information standpoint, Werner gives us a good description of what average Germans were thinking as the war progressed, what sort of damage ordinary citizens were taking as the war proceeded in depth over Germany both from the heavy air bombardment plus the advancement of Allied armies from the south, east, and north. Werner is also a "ladies man" so we do hear a lot about the girlfriends in every port, so to speak, plus German submariners' night life in different occupied locations. (They seemed to like France a lot.) It is good that Werner provides you this gamut of information: living inside the boat, dealing with the difficult navy bureaucracy, joys of in-port liberty, his nice but unfortunte family, the Nazi party bother, and so on since it furnishes the reader with a rounded out picture of life during these unusual times. Werner is lucky to have come back alive, and we are fortunate he wrote this book. His family and many of his friends were not so fortunate as the reader will see.

Herbert Werner's book has been printed many times, a testament to its writing and story. Werner joined the German Navy at the outset of World War II, and was able to rise through the ranks fo this extremely dangerous calling to command his own U-Boats by the end of the war. Werner writes his account from a chronological perpsective, from the early, easy successes to the end of the war and the bleak outlook Germany had ahead of them. Key events like the "Happy Time," the sinking of the Bismarck, the Battle of Britain and operation Sea Lion figure in, as do the attacks on Pearl Harbor, D-Day, and the waning days of the war.
Iron Coffins also exudes humanity, finding fault with the Nazi high command and the naval leadership that caused too many losses, weakened morale, and doomed Germany's effort. The title itself refers to Werner's view of the U-boats as floating deathtraps for most of their crews (perentage-wise, German U-boat crews had one of the top positions in any list of potential losses).

Werner was lucky to survive, given his job, and we are luckier still to have his account of U-boat work in World War II.

Both the Church and the Academy have desparatly needed an introduction to the New Testament which was both balanced in its approach and thoroughly academic. Thus, academics and laypersons alike will benefit from this outstanding contribution by the late Fr. Brown.

Fr. Brown approaches the New Testament from a balanced perspective, acknowledging the various scholarly opinions and controversies inherent in biblical criticism, while at the same time retaining a great love for the text as the Word of God.

I particularly appreciated the fact that if Fr. Brown was unsure about his position on an issue, for instance, regarding the authorship or dating of a book, he was willing to say so! What a refreshing lack of academic hubris!

This book is suitable for use as an upper division undergraduate theology text, as a graduate level introduction, or as a seminary text.

The author has done a great service for new readers of the New Testament. This book presents a balanced and informative introduction to the New Testament that is both scholary and extremely well written. There are adequate footnotes and bibliographical references for those who wish to explore a topic in greater detail. I read this book as I read the New Testament and I would recommend this approach to others. Father Brown is both knowledgable and enthusiastic about his subject matter and after reading this book so was I. Thank you Father Brown.

The most important thing to say about this book is that you will want to (infact, you will NEED to) read the New Testament to fully understand much of its content. This is not a bad thing: Brown's intent was that you actually sit down and read the bilblical texts, preferably before delving into his commentary! His format is extremely no-nonsense (his frequent abbreviation may infact be the only off-putting aspect of the book), and the "Issues and Concerns" at the end of each chapter encourage dialogue and critical thinking. I have already read many books by other popular religious authors (J.D. Crossan, John Shelby Spong, Elaine Pagels, etc), and was happy to finally get around to Fr. Brown. I am looking forward to reading his other books.

Mr. Schmelzkopf offers up wit, humor, and optimism to an otherwise serious and debilitating condition that is brain damage. His anecdotes throughout the book are down to earth and proves that it is indeed possible for a person who has had brain surgery to get through the difficult days of therapy and once again lead a normal life. This book is a must read for all patients recovering from brain surgery and their families.

Dick Schmeltzof's very personal book, Brain Damage, is both heartwarming and informative. He treats a very serious subject with humor, wit and compassion. It is difficult to imagine the drastic changes that have occurred in Dick's life since the emergency surgery to remove a tumor on his pituitary gland. But through his carefully constructed narrative, we can "feel" his frustrations and also revel in the incremental -- yet moving forward -- progress that he makes. His is a story of great courage, hope and love; a lesson for Humanity. Thanks to Dick for sharing this moving and insightful story of life after brain surgery. Readers will laugh. They will weep. And finally, they will applaud this incredible human being. Dick demonstrates a real gift for storytelling through this book. Let's hope he delights us with "Brain Damage II".

This book is an outstanding example of an individual's true courage to tackle challenges that most of us cannot imagine. Mr. Schmelzkopf's wonderful sense of humor invites the reader to learn about brain damage and how it effects all areas of an individual's life, as well as their family's lives. His descriptive approach about his cognitive deficits allows the reader to envision a patient's perception of his own environment. Mr. Schmelzkopf's comical, honest, informative style catagorizes his story as a must to read and a difficult to put down book!

I first discovered this book over 12 years ago when it was only available in hard cover while I was running the young readers section of a bookstore. We only carried one copy but after I had read the book myself I began recommending it to people who wanted something "really special" to give to children. Soon we had to keep 2-3 copies on the shelf to accomodate our customers. I have to admit I gushed about this book...it's one of the finest explorations of imagination I have ever run across (and since I have a personal library of over 10,000 books *besides* all the others I've read, I feel that I have a good perspective! ). This was the first 'big' children's book that I read aloud to my own children (who where then four and two). They were enthralled. We read a chapter a night and the one time I was too sick to read, they *insisted* on *two* chapters the next night! I'm so glad that this book is now available in paperback so that more people can enjoy it...but I'm glad that I have my copy in hard cover because I know that it will be read many more times over the years! (hey! I've read it more than five times already myself!!) This is a classic that is suitable for all ages...except perhaps infants!

I read a chapter in this book each night for months to a cabin full of cynical, talented 17-year-old girls. And they loved it - and weren't ashamed to admit it. It's one of the few children's books I will recommend to any friend (I'm 25) and one that I love re-reading after enough time has passed that I've forgotten how beautifully worded it is. There's plenty of description AND action, and a moral thrown in as well (but not grossly). I can't believe this beautiful woman with an incredible voice and acting talent can write this well. She does!!!

I absolutely loved this book and would have given it 6 stars if I could. The woman who was once Mary Poppins and taught the world to believe in fantasy and the power of their imaginations has done it again. This book sends a wonderful message about keeping our imaginations fresh and the power that the youngest among us have to enter into Whangdoodleland - a place that disappears when people stop believing in it.

Three rather ordinary children ranging in age from 7 to 13 happen across Professor Savant. He agrees to give them lessons on how to reach the magical place. What he is really teaching them though is how to see the world in a different way. They really do reach the land of the Whangdoodle and have many adventures while learning a lot about themselves along the way.

This book is filled with factual information as well. Only one small piece has become out of date, concerning DNA research, since the book was written. The rest is solid and very informative for intermediate grade students. I have seen this book used for literature study in a 5th grade classroom and it worked marvelously.

Why 5 stars?:
This book should have no problem holding the attention of 9-12 year olds though it is quite lengthy. The themes of using our imaginations and being creative are ones that are important for every age group. As well, there is lots of factual information in this book. It will serve well as a discussion starter and in literature study groups (not to mention it is also an AR book).

I am a student at Waldron Mercy Academy. (ADH)
The story takes place in a stone orphanage close to the woods. In the orphanage lives a 10-year-old girl named Mandy. Secretly Mandy's heart pounds for a family and a place to call home. One day Mandy follows her heart and travels in the woods. There in the woods she finds a cottage and a little garden. Mandy loves it so much that she dreads leaving. When she gets back to the orphanage she swore herself to secrecy. Soon Mandy falls terribly ill and is forbidden to leave the orphanage. When
no one was around Mandy sprints towards the cottage. Outside Mandy hears loud crashing thunder and is so sick she can't even move. The only person who can reach her is a secret admirer.
This book kept me reading from page 1 to end. You should defiantly read this book.

I'm a Senior in college and I still tell everyone that this is the best book that I have ever read. I remember the first time that I found out about this book. I was in fourth grade and my reading teacher, Ms. Reed, read this story to the whole class. I got lost in the book and couldn't wait until the next day for reading class to find out what happened to Mandy next. I told my mom about the book and she went out and bought it for me. I had finished the book before Ms. Reed finished reading it to us, but I still enjoyed listening to the story. I know that this book sparked my desire to learn and read and to this day I remember that teacher and wish I could thank her for choosing such a wonderful story to get us involved in literature. I love this book!!

The book Mandy was given to me on Easter about three years ago. I started reading it and immeadiately loved it. Mandy is about a ten year-old orphan girl who yearns for something she can call her own. Thenn one day she finds it. At the edge of the orphanage there is a high wall. Mandy climbs over it and follows a path till she discovers a wonderful little cottage! The rest of the story is about how she tries so hard to keep the cottage to herself. I loved this story because every kid shares Mandy's feelings at some point in their childhood.I could feel Mandy's feelings as if they were my own as I read the book.

I read an Anne of Green Gables many, many years ago and immediatly fell in love. At once, I went out and bought the entire series, loving each book more than the one before. This is a line of books I would highly recommend to anyone, of any age. It is truly my favorite set of books. No matter how many times I have read it...and my first copy had fallen apart years ago...I laugh and cry just as hard as I did the first time. Anne of Green Gables 2, or Anne's House of Dreams, is a wonderful story of a couple just starting out in marriage. Moving from their friendly town of Avonlea, they started out anew, in a little cottage by the seashore. Gilbert, Anne's husband, is a young doctor, beginning his practice. They make many new friends, each more interesting than the last. There is even a mystery to unravel in their midst! Romance galore, love, friendship and dreams unfold before our eyes. Even when we read of their tragedies, we hurt along with them, feeling their pain. That is how well this book is written. Read it, enjoy it and buy the whole set. You will never regret it!

Anne of Green Gables is one of the first books to make me fall in love...with it. I mean, it was cute, it was lesson teaching (hehe, that sounds strange), and Anne was just such a good character. She sort of reminded me of me: bad temper (I've gotten much cooler now, haha), big words, amazing imagination, smart (haha, well, I was and am PRETTY SMART, at least, I think, haha). Gilbert reminded me of this guy at school...haha, well, I won't get into details there, but the book was charming, and I've already read it over four times in only like three years, which is sort of alot. I loved this book, and I believe that many other people will learn to appreciate its cuteness and truth and stuff over the years, hehe. Enjoy!

When I first read this book many years back, I loved it, and was sad for it to end when I finished reading it. I loved every single part of it...I simply couldn't put it down. Anne is such a character...you can't help liking her more and more, and wishing that she was your own "bosom friend" just as I did. While reading, I was transported back to that time, and I could just see Avonlea and Green Gables, the school which Anne studied in, and I could see Diana and Miss Stacy and Gilbert just as if they were my own friends.

I loved this book, and read it many times over again after I first picked it up, and it still delighted me. Lucy Maud Montgomery is a stunning writer, and I believe that she must have been like Anne, for no one could create such a realistic character and write everything that poured out of Anne's mouth...her made up stories, the things that she she thought of, her wild yet delightful imagination...all in all, Anne of Green Gables is one of the finest books I've ever read, and were ever written. I strongly recommend it to anyone, old or young. Everyone can relate to Anne and she could make you smile like she did for me.

Mrs. Frisby, a widowed field mouse, is forced to take on a big adventure when her youngest son Timothy gets ill. Timothy's illness comes just before spring, and with spring comes moving day. Mrs. Frisby is forced to seek help, leading her to the all but ordinary Rats of NIMH. This fictional adventure is perfect for capturing the attention of any reader nine years of age or older. Although the story is written from the view of fictional farm animals the reader is pulled into the suspenseful plot and is easily drawn into the emotions of each character. Not only is the book enjoyable to read, it is good for the classroom teacher. It conveys lessons on qualities like friendship, bravery, and teamwork. These qualities let the book easily be integrated into the classroom. I recommend "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH" to anyone who would enjoy a fun and rewarding text.

It's nearly time to move, before Mr Fitzgibbon owner of the garden comes with the plow and breaks up their homes. But Mrs. Frisby,a field mouse has a sick son who can't move! Mrs. Frisby is a widow, who used to be married to Jonathan Frisby who unexplainably dissapeared. She goes to the owl, who, at the mention of her name, tells her to go to the rats. She goes to find them friendly and int elligent. But their moving plan includes her. There's a feirce cat called Dragon who prowls around. She must put him asleep with a powder for the usual bearer, Mr. Ages, another field mouse, has a broken leg. But they warn her, it was in doing the same thing, her husband died.

Will she keep her nerve and do it? Or will she bungle the whole affair? To find out read this marvelous book, "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

This story has long been one of my favorites and deserves to be a (future) Classic. O'Brien introduces many serious issues into his fascinating yet charming tale about a fieldmouse mother who desperately needs help to save her family. When Farmer Fitzgibbon prepares to plow up his vegetable garden, it proves an annual Day of Judgment for all the creatures who forage therein. Mrs. Frisby's quiet determination to save her invalid child leads her on a perilous quest, during which her matnernal devotion and courage will be tested.

To willingly enter the home of an owl, to humbly approach the clannish rats in the rosebush, to expose herself to a hungry cat, this tiny fieldmouse proves equal to all demands upon her trembling heart--a true and worthy wife to the late Jonathan Frisby. Her husband has earned the respect of many creatures, including the owl and the secretive rats. She gradually discovers that she (and her children in particular) are much more than they seem.

Just who Are these rats who know so much, who possess so many human inventions, who can read and write, who have even acquired a sense of morality? Why are they called "mechanized" and consider themselves "civilized?" How and where does a private rat Society fit in with normal rats and normal humans--with all their foibles? Can timid Mrs. Frisby help them in their endeavor to find a peaceful and pro-social environment free of human interference? Then too, why should the rats bother about her problem, when their very existence is threatened? O'Brien reminds us of the dangers of genetic tampering, and points out the similarities between both rat and human species when it comes to issues like theft, power struggle, greed, and lust for fame, as well as self sacrifice, courage, faith and hope. This is a wonderful and highly-enjoyable read--not just for kids!

Reporters have been known, now and then, to play fast and loose with the facts to entertain their readers or elevate themselves. This phenomenon is not limited to our own age. For proof, look no further than Lowell Thomas' fanciful volume, With Lawrence in Arabia. In 1917, Thomas was a 25-year-old part-time instructor at Princeton, a "fledgling showman from Ohio who had knocked about North America in search of fame, fortune and adventure," according to historian David Fromkin (A Peace to End All Peace). Thomas then raised enough money to travel to Britain and the Middle East front as a World War I cameraman. With his coverage began the Lawrence of Arabia myth.

Eight copies of Seven Pillars of Wisdom were published by Oxford in 1922 (six still exist). The first limited edition was followed in 1926 with the private publication of 211 copies of the book. In 1935 another limited run was published. But the same year, Seven Pillars was reprinted at least four more times. Now, there have probably been dozens, if not hundreds of printings.

This work assured T. E. Lawrence a place in history as 'Lawrence of Arabia'. It is a military history, colorful epic and lyrical exploration of Lawrence's mind.

Nevertheless, it is largely fiction. Fromkin writes that when poet and scholar Robert Graves proposed to describe the liberation of Damascus in a biography of Lawrence, the subject himself warned Graves, "I was on thin ice when I wrote the Damascus chapter...."

A onetime junior officer in the Cairo Arab Bureau, Lawrence admitted that Seven Pillars of Wisdom included a false tale of Arab bravery to aggrandize the followers of Sharif Hussein of Mecca and his son Feisal. Indeed, as early as 1818, reputable newsmen reported that the Australian Light Horse division liberated Damascus from Ottoman control, not Feisal's Arab troops, who marched in afterwards, for show.

By 1921, Fromkin writes, Winston Churchill was in charge of Britain's Arab policy in Mesopotamia and tapped John Evelyn Shuckburgh to head a new Middle East department and Foreign Office man Hubert Winthrop Young to assist him. They arranged transport and supplies for Feisal's Arab army, earning hearty endorsement from Churchill's Masterson Smith committee, which simultaneously took grave exception to T.E. Lawrence as a proposed Arab affairs adviser. The committee considered Lawrence "not the kind of man fit to easily fit into any official machine."

Fromkin reports that Lawrence was frequently insubordinate, went over his superiors and in 1920 publicly disparaged Britain's Arab policy in the London Sunday Times as being "worse than the Turkish system." He also accused Britain of killing "a yearly average of 100 Arabs to maintain peace." This was of course untrue.

Efraim and Inari Karsh write, in Empires of the Sand, that Lawrence's Damascus victory was "less heroic" than he pretended. Feisal was "engaged in an unabashed exercise in duplicity and none knew this better than Lawrence, who whole heartedly endorsed this illicit adventure and kept most of its contours hidden from his own superiors." Yet Lawrence basked in the limelight Thomas created in London, attending at least five of the showman journalist's lectures.

As an unfortunate result of Lawrence's subterfuge, he had a large hand in shaping the modern Middle East.

Bad enough, we suffer to this day the consequences of Lawrence's fabrications.

Worse, a new generation of readers seems to accept as gospel the Lawrence of Arabia myth that stemmed from Lowell Thomas' hype and Lawrence's own Seven Pillars of Wisdom. While few seem to know it, this was long ago debunked. Those who want to know what really happened should at minimum also consult Fromkin's A Peace to End All Peace and the Karsh's Empires of the Sand. Alyssa A. Lappen

Those who enjoyed David Lean's magnificent "Lawrence of Arabia" and picked this book up wanting to gain a deeper insight into T E Lawrence will be sorely disappointed if they expected to see the film reflected clearly in the book. True, the main incidents in the film are there in the book, albeit in a totally different context: you begin to realise how freely Robert Bolt (and presumably Lean himself) adapted Lawrence's account to make the film hang together more dramatically.

Many of the previous reviewers have commented that the book is a rewarding if demanding read, that it doesn't really "get going" until about 100 pages in, and that the constant shifts of scene and entrances and exits of characters are sometimes difficult to follow. All that is true - a friend of mine advised that Lawrence is easier to read about than to read. But I felt that choppy nature of the narrative was inevitable when one considers the type of warfare Lawrence describes: hit-and-run guerilla action undertaken by (often mutually antagonistic) Bedouin tribes. Just as Lawrence's raiding parties would emerge at unexpected places out of the desert, so the reader must be prepared for the text to jump from location to location, event to event, and must I suppose be prepared for much of the text (particularly the first 100 pages) to be devoted to how Lawrence managed to muster support both from the Arabs and from the British.

Parts of the book will remain with me for a long time - for example - Lawrence's descriptions of how he dug his camel out of the snow, the descriptions of the Bedouins' eating habits, the non-romantic description of life in the desert (defecating camels, infestations of lice and so on). However, what does come over is Lawrence as a tortured soul: he both loves and despises the Bedouin; professes that he knew from the start that the British (and therefore he himself) were merely using the Arabs against the Turks and would not honour their promises at the end of the War; is both proud (particularly of Allenby) and ashamed of the British; and is both spiritually and physically attracted to the Bedouin men, yet embarrassed by this.

It helps to have even a superficial knowledge of the Middle East campaigns in World War One: I felt that the danger of not having that overview is that one would tend to think that Lawrence's campaign was the pivotal factor in those campaigns rather than a contributory one (Allenby's campaigns are referred to only obliquely by Lawrence, even though in the later stages of the book he does emphasise the supportive role he was playing). Fair enough, as Lawrence was not writing a general history of the campaigns, but I feel (as my friend advised) that reading about Lawrence now that I have read him would be interesting.

Absolutely fascinating account of the Arab Revolt of World War I, and of the Mind of one of its orchestrators (that being TE Lawrence). I don't know much about WWI or II history but I'd recommend this as a great place to start. It has all the elements of a great war story -- strategies, battles, troop movements, intra-battling amongst Arab tribes, Arab history and culture, plus Lawrence's inner conflict about his knowledge that the Brits were merely using the Arabs as a pawn in the greater scheme of WWI. The relevance to modern times is staggering -- if we had not made the horrible mistakes we did then (not giving the Arabs the indepence they worked so hard for), the world would certainly be a better place today. Also, this book is beautifully written and contains absolutely wonderful descriptions of the Arabian terrain. My only criticism is that Lawrence tends sometimes to get a little too abstract and pontifical, but that's okay. Excellent work of literature in the form of a non-fiction memoir.