This excellent history of Jean Schlumberger and his amazing jewelry is very fine in every respect save one: there aren't enough pictures! Specifically, there aren't enough color pictures. Never one to stick solely to diamonds, Schlumberger made piquant and imaginative use of a wide array of colored gemstones. It's a disappointment that we get to see so many of these creations herein only in sketch or black-and-white photo form. The pieces which are shown in color are blazingly beautiful and intricately detailed--Schlumberger at his very best. All in all, an unevenly enjoyable book.

A fascinating museum catalog with a hard back cover and with an enchanting dust cover, but very lacking of text about a collection of Jean Schlumberger's extraordinary jewels. Had this catalog included more vignettes or even the provenance's of the jewels portrayed, as it does of Diana Vreeland's brooch, and how she propped it up on her night stand to admire, I would have found this book more enriching. Had I not recognized the drawing of Elizabeth Taylor's 'Night of the Iguana' brooch, I would have not known the famous lady who had been presented this Schlumberger treasure by the late Richard Burton. As a fine jeweler of eighteen years, I am as anxious to know and to pass on to my clients how other people's jewels have added enjoyment and meaning to their lives. Jewels are more than art, they are symbols of love and affection, and often they are the only highly valued heirlooms that are passed on from one generation to another. Hence Jewels also represent our immortality and how sad when the stories of those who wore them are unknown to the heirs. This museum catalog of a 1996 Schlumberger exhibition in Paris doesn't give us any titillating provenance's as does Judy Rudoe's "Cartier 1900-1939" exhibition text nor how this important master's creations enriched the collector lives.

The textbook contains a great deal of relevant basic information on politics in Western Europe. Unfortunately, it needs to be better organized. This goes for the organization of chapters and organization within the chapters. I used it in my Western European Politics class, but students did not respond favorably. The textbook sometimes picks up a topic without any obvious reason for doing so, and then, having said a few sentences about it, leaves it off, also without any obvious reason. This makes individual chapters hard to follow.

For those who teach European politics, their students, and those who wish to gain a basic understanding of the topic, this text is quite nicely done. Each country section - including the EU - is about 80-100 pages long. While good for those who are new to the topic, it doesn't bore those who aren't. It's one of the better textbooks I've found on the subject, and I will use it in my class.

One starting out on a study of Napoleon can do no better than this work by the master,
David Chandler. Clear and concise , well-paced and appropriately sprinkled with art of the era and good solid maps. A short, select bibliography is appended. The author's final chapter, "Napoleon and his Art of War," is well worth the price of the volume alone as it synthesizes his findings from his magnum opus, The CAMPAIGNS of NAPOLEON. I recommend purchasing this book and following it up with Gates' The NAPOLEONIC WARS, Esdaile's The WARS of NAPOLEON, and Connelly's BLUNDERING to GLORY. Afterwards pick up Chandler's lifework CAMPAIGNS.

It had some good points, particularly economic ramifications of the wars, but was too broad to be of serious use. Perhaps as a high-school classroom text it would be of more use

This book gives a brief history of the Church, its beliefs, and various other things Catholically related. I think this would be for someone entering the Catholic Church, or for those who have been away from the Church for some time now, but I don't think it's written in the way it should be for welcoming souls into the Church that Christ established. I would suggest reading another book and being well-grounded in your Faith before reading this, because there's nothing you're missing in here.

I read this book and I think that it is very sad. I realize that Bernard LeGeros was not an innocent but he took the whole wrap for Andrew Crispo. Justice in this country holds little meaning any more.

I never read the first printing but just finished the update. The final twist will knock your socks (or 'leather pants' off.... No pun intended). Books that do not fully attribute sources leave me with a slightly dubious feeling, but there is enough hard core fact here to send a chill up your spine. Andrew Crispo hobnobbed with the rich and famous. Hmm.......Yes the book flits about in places, but overall it is a captivating read, and will make you wonder how many others are lurking out there with a 'bag of horrors'.

..........................I will agree that this book may not be for everyone. Yes, it is true that the name of the actual victim of the murder does not even appear until page 350 or so. In that sense I can see where some may say it's "boring". However, being an avid true-crime addict, this is my favorite kind, where we delve into the lifestyles of the characters in great detail. I think this book was "too intellectual" for most avg. t/c readers. The author does go into extensive narratives about the art world, New York's homosexual S&M underground, and especially the bizarre main character, Andrew Crispo. I thought it was incredibly fascinating and is probably one of my top 5 favorites. Alot of times I get bored with t/c books when they spend 100+ pages at the end on the trial & sentancing, etc., and I'll sometimes skip blocks of pages due to boredome. Not with this book, though; I was engrossed all 485 pages. You can tell the author is a true journalist, and my only complaint is that in the first 200 pgs. he jumps around chronologically a little too much which caused me some confusion (and re-reading). Other than that, though, I wish all T/C books were written w/ this much knowledge, research, and intelligence.

O.k. first, let me say, it's my own fault. With picture books it's best to have a look to see if you really want to spend the $. I didn't. I made an assumption that with YSL retiring this would be a retrospective of his glorious career. Not so. Fuzzy, boring, behind the scenes pictures of people at work in his atelier. Very few dresses and those shown aren't shown well. All in all a disappointment.

Though the producers and editors of this book have obviously taken great care and reverence in assembling the images seen in this hefty Rizzoli hardcover edition, it is nonetheless lacking.
There is an eight-page, albeit in very-large typeface, essay extolling the philosophy behind the decades of YSL's influence and visions of modern fashion, as well as journal entries in Yves Saint Laurent's own handwriting that are written mostly in French. There are several famous quotes from him: among them the most famous of all "there is nothing more beautiful than a naked body."

The photographs number in the hundreds, though only a handful of family photographs from YSL's childhood in Oran, Algeria are captioned with names. Otherwise, the documentary's images shot mostly in the atelier at 5 avenue Marceau are without caption or description, though you can discern the sense of creativity and endless discussion that is the process of the haute couture. The masterpieces of tailleur (suits) and flou (dresses) are often one-of-a-kind. Their numbers are usually limited to one or two copies, so the 2000 or so women who can afford the prices are not likely to see someone else wearing that same opera coat or evening gown which ends up photographed in the society pages of Paris and New York among other places. If you are paying $50,000 for a hand-embroidered Lesage suit jacket, you don't want to see it on the shoulders of a half-dozen of your fellow couture followers. Ca marche pas!

Most interestingly the editors did not include many quotes from some of Saint Laurent's inner circle, except for a small contribution from his life and business partner, Pierre Berge. There is one short blurb from Catherine Deneuve, but no words from Loulou de la Falaise or Betty Catroux, or even Marie Munoz, directrice of the YSL atelier for years. There are some very old press clippings from the 50s and 60s when YSL was hitting the peaks of creativity, but very little from the pinnacle of his career, which would be most of the 1970s. In the 70s we witnessed some of the greatest moments in fashion history with the Chinese and Russian collections that set the trends for womens' wear for years after the clothes were shown in Paris.

The book is full of images, but short on text. For those who are unfamiliar with all the innovations introduced for women's clothing, their number is second only to that of those brought forth by Coco Chanel. Saint Laurent created the women's pantsuit, the "smoking" or women's tuxedo, the trenchcoat, the safari look, khaki, the list goes on and on. Seeing the documentary would be more than helpful, as it would fill in many of the gaps.

A beautiful book that leaves you only wanting much more...

If you are looking for a book about the designer YSL look somewhere else. If however you are interested in the flow of fashion design as done by YSL then this is a wonderful creation. To me it feels like a work of gratitude to all those involved behind the YSL name.

After reading the various pros and cons of this book, I thought I would take it for a spin from my local library. Unfortunately, for the author, he runs off the road in the first two pages. In this short space, he talks about how terrible it was that when Napoleon fell from power the great personal freedom(???) that the French people had was lost, onerous reparations that France had to pay, and how great social institutions were dismantled. Those three statements alone are enough to show that this author should be stopped for WWI (Writing While Intoxicated). As an example of the great personal freedom that the French people had he mentions that people were able to rise due to merit. Hmmm, I guess being a relative of Napoleon is meritous since that's all it took to become the king of Spain - even when Joseph didn't want to be the king of Spain. Titles and estates were given hither and yon simply for being a good general in the rape and pillage of innocent countries. Maybe the author meant free speech, but no there was none. Newspapers were closed. A printer *in another country* was kidnapped to France and executed for having the audacity of printing a anti-Napoleon pamphlet. Napoleon was the sole arbiter of plays, music, newspapers, etc.
The state was everything... the individual, nothing. Elections were fixed, his assistants virtual slaves. His secretary of ten years asked to leave due to health problems. His house was stripped, his reputation ruined, his ability to earn a living destroyed simpley because he wished to leave a job. Maybe he meant freedom of property or commerce. Confiscatory taxes were used to supply the army. If taxes didn't cover it, then you would supply a loan at the point of sword. If you asked for repayment... another sword point would meet you. After the taxes, the loans, and simple confiscation they would come and take what they needed including your son. In Poland, Napoleon got a mistress by threatening the countries nobles. Even if you weren't French, you could conscripted in to their army. There was no freedom of commerce. If you traded with England for anything, anywhere in the world, you were an enemy. Napoleon was genius, but a heartless, flawed, faithless and incredibly malicious and cruel genius.

As with this authors other work on Napoleon there are some mistakes, but given the sloppy level of "scholarship" that abounds in Napoleonic studies this work is hardly a candidate for historiological oblivion - despite the best efforts of the more hysterical and strident readers/guardians of the "truth"

The author's take on Bonaparte is realtively one-sided, but, so what? That's not a crime. Perhaps buyers of this book could place it at one end of their shelf and Alan Schom's "biography" at the other with the truth falling in-between? Either way, more reading is always better than less. Buy this book and enjoy it, it's not bad.

A Reader

Hamilton-Williams places an entire new slant on the subject of Naploeons fall and uses his many sources well ( and provides warnings when the sources are not trustworthy ) most of his conclusions are viable on the evidence provided and well written. Half his problem are that a large amount of his conclusions destroy the assumptions that a large portion of Napoleonic historians make and like to continue to make and hence the backlash against him. His view of Napoleon essentially brought down from within is one that is gaining more and more acceptance and anyone who is prepared to cope with his partisan approach to the issue will enjoy and learn from this book.

With regards to emphasis the book leans heavily on the undercurrents, political manouverings of this period and thus provides a fresh look on an overwritten subject. Excellant

A work of pure fiction by a totally discredited author.

Don't waste your money

Hamilton William's work is sloppily researched and cannot be considered a serious work of history. He seems much more concerned with grinding his own political axe than in presenting an accurate view of history. Other historians have dismissed his work as being closer to fiction than reality.

A better study on the period of 1813-1814 is R.F. Delderfield's "Imperial Sunset: The Fall of Napoleon 1813-14."

I'm not an expert on the history of this period, but I do find it fascinating. That's why I bought this book. The writing style is fast-moving and entertaining. The book does provide an interesting look at the complex reasons behind the fall of Napoleon. For example, I didn't know previously about the attempts to assasinate Napoleon. I also enjoyed the drawings and maps. This was a "fun read."

This is the recipe a la Chandler: good pictures, poor, and with errors text, some maps. Rush, rush. I have the impression that author wants to finnish quickly this book, so he can write about chess or farming, or angels (see amazon.com). Yes, I looked for Fuengirola, battle where the Poles trashed the Britons completely. This is outrageous what Chandler writes about this battle.

This book was a disappointment. When the subject matter concerns the British, Chandler uses the sharpest pencil possible to get all boastful rights in place; when it talks about subjects not connected to the British, the author's thin descriptions, often incorrect facts and uneven work, make for an unsatisfying read. Recommend that you seek alternate dictionaries for this period.

I am interested in the German King Legion, Polish and Swiss troops at Peninsula. I was deeply surprised at the author's description of the battle at Fuengirola where the Poles trashed British troops. Nothing is more misleading. Please compare this to G. Nafziger's "Saxons and Poles" and to other authors.

I think this author has tried to specialize in too many topics, (see his other books mentioned on amazon.com)and that this is the side effect.

I am also disappointed in the maps. These great battles appear like skirmishes when compared to those which were fought by the British.