Hersey was justly acclaimed for his fine journalist's eye that was so evident in his Hiroshima and A Bell for Adano. But his scathing social commentary of White Lotus and this book probably have not received the attention they deserve, perhaps because of the fantastic, science-fictional feel of their portrayed worlds.

Told strictly as the minutes of a state congressional hearing, this book details the events that follow when Mr. Wissy Jones, from United Lymphomiloid, arrives in the town of Peqoud and presents an offer to outright purchase an exceptional child, Barry Rudd, who is blessed with an extreme intelligence and a maturity beyond his years, for some unspecified project that will 'aid the national defense'.

As we proceed through the hearings, we are treated to some fine characterization of the witnesses, from the sharply opinionated and articulate principal of the school Barry attends to Barry's mumbling, street-wise but not too intelligent blue-collar friend. But the hearings also expose the first of Hersey's sharply satirical looks at our society as we see the conduct of the various senators running the hearing, obviously meant to remind the reader of the McCarthy hearings, with their forcible cutting off of any testimony that does not fit the pre-defined expectation of what the outcome of the hearing should be, denigration of witnesses' lifestyles, and panel members who clearly do not have the intelligence to even understand what testimony is given.

More horrifying, though, is the picture of the educational system presented, from the ivory-tower intellectual theories that have no relation to the classroom, to the constant attempts to make all students fit one pre-determined mold, to the administrative power struggles, to the bizarre web of psychological testing, to the clueless PTA, to the rigid and hypocritical moral code that schools use to bludgeon non-conforming students. Where in this morass is the place for the truly gifted child, or for that matter one who is intellectually challenged? Hersey's points strike like daggers, for even though this book was written more than forty years ago, our schools still have every problem that is shown here.

And what of the moral outrage that should adhere to the concept of selling a child? Once more, Hersey's pen is savage, showing how easily Barry's parents sell out for a few material goods, how the senators are converted by the mere statement that it's for the 'national defense', how the general township is so easily convinced to get rid of this 'different' kid, and, most poignantly, how even Barry, with full knowledge of what the program entails, reacts to the concept.

A very moralistic tale, told sharply and with defining moments of humanity, bringing a near surrealistic concept into the all-too-possible realm of reality.

Mr. Wissy Jones, from United Lymphomiloid, arrives in the New England town of Pequod on a corporate mission; he is to purchase children of exceptional intelligence. His matter-of-fact offer to buy Barry, a fat kid with a high IQ instigates a congressional inquiry.

Meanwhile, Jones skillfully garners support from every quarter in Pequod, from the pioneer-stock, six foot female principal of the elementary school and Barry's closest ally, to his own mother, a slatternly lower class housekeeper who's obviously the source of Barry's brains. Everyone has an opinion about Barry, usually not too good, ranging from jealousy, misunderstanding to just plain contempt (he's fat.) Meanwhile Barry and his street-wise blue collar friend seek to prevent his sale by a hilarious act of sexual misconduct.

What happens to the children purchased by U. Lymphomiloid is openly discussed by Wissy Jones during the trial. Yet despite the shocking revelation, Jones has manipulated the town to his side and even co-opts some surprising allies.

This isn't just an examination of an education system that strives to produce a bland mediocrity and mistrusts talent, it is the story of the intolerance of society for individuals and members of minority religions, race, anyone different than the mass average. There is a lot behind this readable book and it is fresher than every.

Discrimination is declining in modern western societies. After struggles, there are now laws against discrimination of sex, race and religion. In some places there already are laws against the discrimination of homosexuals, and before long there will be laws against the discrimination of age groups (especially elderly). You can be sure of that.

The Child Buyer is sketching the discrimination of people with extreem high IQ (HIQ's), something that isn't even an issue in real life (yet). Mediocracy rules the world.

The Child Buyer is a heart wrenching, but at times also hilarious, description of the trial in which must be decided if a HIQ young boy should be sold or not to a company, because that would be good for national security, even though the boy refuses to be merchandise. The book shows how the people of a small village abandon the boy in his lonely struggle, partly because they see him as uncomfortably different, partly because they think it's for his own good to be separated from the rest, and partly because it turns out to be in their own best financial interest if the cooperate...

Hersey has structured his book around the trial. It contains only the dialogue, that is recorded in the courtroom. This may seem odd in the beginning, and perhaps slowing things down a little when all the characters are introduced, but the author succeeds very well in showing the diffence in characters. And in exhibiting the gross stupidity of some of them, as well as the way people choose for there own wellfare, above anything else.

This book was way ahead of it's time, when it was published in 1960, and - unfortunatly - it still is.

I can highly recommend it.

This is not a quick/cash in book by some wanna-be, we are talking about a well-crafted piece. Furthermore, aside of being extremely well written and researched, the work shed some light into the psychology of cults. I believe that Raven can help us understand and eliminate many "Jim Joneses" that plague our world culture.

Well done Reiterman/Jacobs hey what's up! Mr. Publisher, this book cannot be out of print.

Well written, unbiased account of the Jonestown Massacre by someone who was there when it happened, and knows how to write. I was wide awake for the last 300pp sacrificing sleep just to get to the end of it. It helps explain how and why 912 innocent people died at the instruction of their leader, Jim Jones.

The story of Jim Jones and Peoples Temple was the basis for my Master's Thesis. Reiterman's text was indispensible in that pursuit. As a prior reviewer states, it is an indispensible warning which should be read and understood by all people. But more importantly, this story has a very current importance in that Charles Garry, one of the lawyers for Jim Jones, was a partner with Robert Treuhaft. Treuhaft and his wife, Jessica Mitford, are avowed communists. Treuhaft has spent his entire career advancing the agenda of the Soviet Communist Party and the KGB according to historian, Stephen Schwartz.

What then makes this a current story of importance is that Hillary Rodham Clinton accepted a summer internship in Treuhaft's Berkeley,CA law firm during the summer of 1971. Even though she knew quite well that his firm was a leftist firm, it held no problems for her.

Additionally, since 80% of the people who died in Guyana on November 18, 1978 were Black, it adds credibility that liberals will allow minorities to die if it can show them as some sort of minority victim.

The story of Peoples Temple is a precursor to the story of Hillary Rodham Clinton's political thrust and as such, should be considered for reading. I agree, it's a shame it's out of print.

Reiterman takes the reader through the history of Jones's cult with an eye for detail and the precision of a seasoned writer. He shows how Jones was sexually perverted, committed to the destruction of the family, and willing to kill people for a cause which had gone sour long before the move to Jonestown. I highly recommend this book for reading.

Ray Jones is among the best lighthouse photographers working today. He provides some of his best photos for a book in which writer John Grant provides a good narrative and history of lighthouses in general. This book strikes a good balance between information and photography.

I picked up this book without having seen the companion PBS series, but now I'd really like to see it. The book presents a very nice story for each lighthouse visited, discussing more of the people stories that go along with the history of the houses themselves. A really nice find for lighthouse fans.

It is very informative and provides much detail about all the lighthouses. There are numerous pictures and they are absolutely great. This book also gives you very good directions on how to travel to each of the lighthouses some of which are very remote. I would highly recommend this book to anyone.

Wendy Froud is the wife of Artist Bryan Froud ( Good Fairies, Bad Fairies). She is a great artist and this book reflects her abilities, the books has pictures of the dolls she created for the story. The pictures say a thousand words. If you are a doll maker, you will greatly enjoy this book. The story is good but the pictures are better. It has different kind of trolls, fairies and wizards. If you love fantasy you will love the book.

This is an extremely beautiful book. With Wendy Froud's doll making skills and Terri Windling's magical story weaving, teamed up with Brian Froud well, it sounds too good to be true. This follow up to "A Midsummer Night's Faery Tale" did not disappoint.

Sneeze, our beloved hero from the first book, is again teamed up with his friend Twig for a quest to find out why Winter has not yet reached their forest. Again they encounter many characters, in which Wendy's dolls never fail to amaze me. She is so incredibly gifted. I would like to show this book to anyone who does not appreciate winter as a season, because while it's not the "moral" of the story...it takes a look at winter as being the season for rest so that everything can be reborn in the spring. It tells a magnificent tale.

Not only is it a wonderful book to read and enjoy, but it's a treasure to put up on the shelf or coffee table for looking at again and again.

Terri, Wendy, and Brian have done it again! Teaming up again to send Sneezle, the beloved hero of "A Midsummer Night's Faery Tale," on another adventure, the Frouds and Windling masterfully create a mythical world that defies the pages the story is written on. Using photographs of dolls created by Wendy Froud in settings built in the Froud's garden studio, the characters literally step from the pages. Fresh and exciting, Windling's writing brings new life to old folklore, bringing the faeries and goblins of Dartmoor out of their hiding places, at least for a little while, for us to see. A treasure to keep, with plenty to share, this is a wonderful read for the self and the wee ones!

Kerrie Colantonio, Penny-A-Page Publishing

IF YOU THINK ER ROCKS, LIKE I THINK IT DOES, THEN THIS BOOK IS AN ABSOLUTE MUST FOR YOUR CHAIRSIDE! IT'S RATHER CONFUSING AT FIRST, BUT YOU'LL QUICKLY FIGURE IT OUT! YOU'LL BETTER UNDERSTAND EACH INDIVIDUAL, FROM DOCTOR TO PATIENT TO NURSE AND ALL -IN-BETWEEN, ONCE YOU'VE READ THIS "GOTTA HAVE IT" BOOK!

This book is a must have for all ER fans. It really helps you understand the show more and it is very interesting. I would definitly recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about ER.

This book was great, I am a devoted fan of ER and I am patiently awaiting the release of an updated version of the ER Files,I hope it is coming soon!This book described the charchters in detail, and gives a description of every episode from the Pilot, to the end of the third season. I think that the author needs to update this book with a new ER Files from the Fourth Season to now, nearing the end of the Fifth. In closing I would recommend this book to any devoted ER fan , or someone looking to understand the show or charachter's past.

The kids of Bailey School go to laua, while they meet a very hairy hula dancer. But is this guy a wolfman?

Will the lights turn on? Will the wolfman die? Do wolfmen hula dance? What's going on? It's up to The Bailey School Kids to find out!

This fabulous book is funny and exiting. Its well writen and its a great plot. I loved this Book!

I am a mother and a school teacher. And, this book as well as other of the "Bailey City Monster" and "The Bailey School Kids", books are great for all ages. I have shared these books with others and given many away as gifts to friends and family. When you read these books, you can think of students that you know and children who remind you of each of the characters. I just wish that I knew where I could get a brooch like Mrs. Jeepers!

The second novel of the John Paul Jones Trilogy by Nicholas Nicastro, Between Two Fires continues the saga of America's first naval hero. An historical fiction, Between Two Fires offers the reader a riveting 18th Century odyssey of bravery, battle, tragedy, and loss on the high seas, exciting and tautly written. Also very highly recommended is the first novel of this outstanding trilogy, The Eighteenth Captain...

There are no easy blacks and whites in Nicholas Nicastro's wonderfully written tales of the American Revolution. Forget about the flag-waving pabulum that your ninth grade textbook passed off as American History. Nicastro portrays John Paul Jones as a Napoleonic .... who alternates his barks with his bites as the never-say-die commander of the Bonhomme Richard. The monomaniac runs many of his men and his ship into extinction while defeating the British Serapis.

The even more engrossing parallel tale in "Between Two Fires" revolves around conscience-stricken Captain Severance, who watches his Colonial comrades barbarically commit genocide against the Iroquois Nation. Nicastro takes Lechterian delight in describing the atrocities perpetrated under General Sullivan's command--officers parade around in flesh cut from the hides of Native Americans while burning and desecrating village after village. Yes the Indians do commit their share of torture, but theirs, as described by Nicastro, is a far more noble form of sadism.

Should David Lynch ever decide to direct an 18th Century war picture, this book is filled with a wonderful cache of quirky historical curiosities. A female character aboard Jones's ship dedicates her life to capturing the ideal physical traits of people she meets in her sketchbook. Her goal is to create a composite which would match the image of Jesus Christ. I won't betray the macabre manner in which she locates the preeminent nose. Joseph, the noble Native American hero aboard the Richard, has his teeth knocked out halfway through the saga and speaks the remainder in a humorous lisp. George Washington is a self-conscious poser, pretending to act as a great commander should act-- the Ronald Reagan of his day.

The book does have a few narrative flaws. Would an eighteenth century officer really write letters describing all the grotesqueries of war, not missing a morbid detail, to his bride-to-be? Would he also write extensively about his obvious attraction for a headstrong Native American woman?

But minor exceptions aside, this is a novel not to be ignored--certainly for fans of seafaring novels but more broadly for anyone hungering for sharply written historical ficition, fiction with a harsher, less propagandistic view of the era.

The worst thing about reading great trilogies is the wait. I re-read the first book, "The Eighteenth Captain", just prior to the release of "Between Two Fires"; as I often do with a much anticipated release. If you haven't read the first book...do yourself a favor and grab a copy.

"Between Two Fires" provided some of the best historical fiction writing I've had the pleasure to page-turn. You don't need to be a history, war or nautical buff to truly enjoy the well-developed, fascinating characters in Nicastro's follow-up book. He has a way of writing dialogue that makes you feel a part of the conversation...as if you might be standing next to the characters. No easy task.

This book has everything I enjoy...action, compelling characters, period atmosphere that draws me into the time, and a great story. Please get the third book out a bit quicker.

I have been reading books on palms for the last 2 years. Many are extremely superficial treatments of appearances only. Others are extremely detailed and not very useful to the non-botanist/horticulturalist. This book has a satisfying combination of background on a variety of palms, basic palm information, and excellent photographs. I would have liked more horticultural information regarding seed propagation, light and soil requirements for the specific species. Overall, however, you need this book.

I use this wonderful book on a regular basis for identifing species on catalog lists. I consider this one of my primary palm books. Great for the novice or nurseryman. Easy to read. I would love to see more cultural information in the next edition. However, I would be lost without this book.
...John TexasGardenCenter.com

This book is great for those interested in learning about palms. It has great information and pictures on many types of palms. I look forward to any upcoming editions to this one.

I first picked up Tom Jones because to put it bluntly I am a bibliophile and it was a cheap book. However, I was suprised at how engaging and hilarious the story was despite the claims on the back cover, which are often far off. To tell the truth I did not expect to make it through this extremely lengthy tome, I only wanted to satisfy my curiousity.

Although I am a fan of Jane Austen I was shocked by the freshness and wit that Fielding's writing still retains. Every book in the novel begins with an essay by the author. Do not skip these, they are one of the best features of the book. My favorite is the essay before the ninth book which explains the purpose of these introductory chapters. What a riot!

The story of big hearted and big appetited Tom Jones and his adventures and misadventures is one long satirical gem. Fielding's interpretation of morals, piousness, love, and high society is still as hilarious and relevant as it was in the 18th century. For anyone who appreciates wit and history, this is a must read.

It was so hard finally putting this book down.

The friends you make!

Tom, Sophia, Allworthy, even Western himself.

But most of all, Henry Fielding.

The humor, the humanity!

What an author and what a man. And to think he
penned his comic masterpiece in his darkest days.

With all that, Tom Jones can be tough going. The
language requires you read fairly slowly. And the
novel is huge. And the plot is intricate.

You may benefit from book notes; I did, especially
during the second half.

If you love Tom Jones, check out Thackeray's
Vanity Fair. And Guerney's translation of Gogol's
Dead Souls.

While you're at it, grab The Brothers Karamazov
and go crazy.

Tom Jones is probably one of the greatest novels in all of English literature. I imagine some might be put off by the length and by its designation as a classic (something which Mark Twain said was frequently praised and rarely read). Tom Jones does not deserve to be ignored since it is a riotous rollercoster of a book filled with comic vignettes and blows against the self-satisfied and pompous. It is a book that not only is instructional, but is considerate enough to give the reader a good time while doing so.

Though frequently termed an immoral book, Tom Jones holds up rather well in the early 21st century. Even Fielding's comic characters seem to have a dimension often lacking in 18th and 19th century novels. Fielding is a genius.

this book is ok...that's about as far as i would go. there were some interesting quirks but i felt this was all too shallow.
it did provide some interesting cocktail banter and it does give value for money.
you'll finish it within half an hour and forget it under your bed.

This book is both a useful resource and an enjoyable way to past a rainy day. Ideal for all age groups - preteens will love learning about 'famous' mistakes - teens will get interested in thinking of ones left out of the book and adults we be amazed.
Overall fun book.

My mom always told me that you can't make anything if you can't make mistakes. This book proves the point aptly, highlighting several mistakes that turned into common and often-loved inventions (chocolate chip cookies, Coca-Cola, the Slinky). This is an enlightening book to share with kids, encouraging them to realize that taking risks, learning to improvise and experiment is often the best way to learn, even if you don't end up creating something new and wonderful.