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I have other books that feature Mackie's unrivalled fashion illustrations, but here I can see and almost touch the finished costumes that made Cher and Carol and Ann-Margaret. I can finally analyze how they are made.
Please, don't wait to buy this wonderful book. and it is well worth getting a new, pristine copy of this treasure.
As a designer & illustrator just starting out, I find no end of inspiration in this book! The sketches are delightful and the outfits are always immaginative. (Looking at the photos & sketches, I found out I can draw Cher too!) :o)
Before reading this book on Bob Mackie, I had no idea the extent of his influence. I just knew I liked his designs. Now he is undoubtedly my favorite designer. (I want to do what he does!) This man has done everything...from his own ready-to-wear fashion line to Broadway, television (Cher and Carol Burnett), movies, ballet, an opera, Vegas and Barbie! If there's something he hasn't designed for, I'd be surprised.
I heartily recommend this book!
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This volume collects 6 of Mosher's short stories along with the title novella -- the latter being possibly his most well-known work, having been made into an exceptional film with the amazingly-talented Rip Torn in the role of a lifetime as Noel Lord, Mosher's cantankerous ex-lumberjack. Lord is mentioned in some of the other stories, as well as in some of Mosher's novels -- and other characters make appearances in more than one work as well.
Set in 1927 Vermont, 'Where the rivers flow north' takes the familiar theme of the rugged individualist going up against the evil, unfeeling corporation, and breathes new life into it. Mosher's flowing style, combined with his incredible ability to bring to the printed page all the nuances of his characters' personalities -- warts and all -- give this and all of his works the finishing touches that only a fine craftsman can give. Noel Lord's Native American housekeeper/wife, Bangor, is one of the most memorable characters you'll ever run across. She and Lord have a classic yin-yang relationship that, most likely, neither one would acknowledge. A reader from any part of the nation can get inside these people, can feel and experience everything that happens to them -- and any time we can do that, we can learn and we can grow.
The characters in all of the stories here are, as in all of Mosher's works, vividly drawn -- Alabama Jones, the innocent-but-worldly aspiring carnival performer -- Burl, an old woman lying in a nursing home waiting to die, looking back at her life with a combination of bitterness and longing -- Eban and Walter, brothers, neighbors, at odds in their life over things large and small, but brothers -- a man dying, clinging to life through a kept peacock -- a boy passes through a coming-of-age event, a flood, which changes forever the way he views both his brother and his father -- another man, Henry Coville, makes some painful recollections and decisions as he feels the end of his life approach. Mosher paints them all with the deft brush strokes of an artist who intimately knows his subjects and the landscape in which their lives are played out.
Howard Frank Mosher is an immensely talented, always entertaining writer -- he deserves to be widely read, and what a treat is awaiting those who read him for the first time...!
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Jerry Robbins's and the Colonial players deserve a lot of praise, the quality of the production is excellent.
The actors bring to life our cherished Oz characters with enthusiasm, lots of humour and Dorothy (Amy Strack) is marvellous she plays Dorothy the way Baum wrote her happy , intelligent, earnest and confident! A true all round Amercan girl.
Just sit back and close your eye's and let the music and sound effects whisk you down the yellow brick road to Oz!
For those out there who are upset at there not being many, prospects of sequels to the films at the moment, this is the next best thing.
The efforts in this productiion are those of any great film or television series and I would compare them to any of the great B.B.C. radio productions.
For those who have never known anymore about Oz than the Wizard of Oz M.G.M.film, if you love this then you'll love the books and will never want to look back.
I wait in anticipation of the next instalment it will be money well spent!
There are few or no weak links in the cast. The performers who appear as Dorothy and the Scarecrow deserve special praise, but there were only two or three performers I couldn't warm up to, and others may feel differently. Amy Strack's Dorothy is almost in the same league as those of Judy Garland and Fairuza Balk (in Disney's "Return to Oz"); her interpretation of the role, however, is quite different from theirs. Strack's Dorothy is only seldom tearful and sentimental like Garland's, and never somber and introspective like Balk's. She is cheerful, determined, and courageous in the face of every situation -- a wonderful role model for young girls. Strack even manages to make Dorothy sound older in each successive story (since the five books adapted by this production take place over several years; Dorothy probably ages from about 6 to about 10). "Wonderful World" was recorded over only six months, so this subtle but wonderful effect is due to Strack's skill as an actress. As a fan of the Oz books, I recognize Strack's Dorothy as Baum's own conception of the character at last brought to life.
One of "Wonderful World"'s greatest glories is Jeffrey Gage's memorable musical score. Certainly one of its greatest moments comes when Dorothy and her friends first enter the Emerald City and the music by itself manages to convey the City's beauty and glory. The sound effects and stereo production are also superb -- for the full effect, listen to this set on headphones.
"Wonderful World" **is** wonderful, like the books on which it is based. Buy it for your children, for your library, for anywhere where children with access to a tape recorder will find it. It represents a kind of beauty, hope and love that we need now more than ever before.
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The narrative follows their discussion as they read, with Christopher asking questions that any child might typically ask -- "How do we know Jesus was really God?" "Why did they hang people on crosses, Dad?" "But if Jesus had a solid body and wasn't a ghost, how did he get through the walls?" Maier's format works well in this setting. Quotations from Luke tell the story, but the discussion between Christopher and his Dad explain the Easter story in a way that seems natural and easy to understand.
While the text of this book is quite good, what makes this book a excellent addition to the Easter collection is the outstanding artwork of Francisco Ordaz. Beautiful, full page pictures take up the right hand side of each spread. These realistic and detailed illustrations do a superb job of furthering the viewer's understanding of the Easter story. Especially well done is a portrayal of Jesus praying in the garden of Gethsemane and an illustration showing the women standing in amazement before the empty tomb. The Very First Easter is an wonderful book to share with a child, or anyone, who wonders what more there is to Easter than bunnies and painted eggs.
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I have read books on Kundalini or Raj, and Hatha yoga by many authors. These books usually diagram an asana - a yoga movement or position - along with a short explanation. These books expound the positive aspects of widening the openings of the body and stretching the muscles as a whole. Rarely will they speak of anything but stretching. I'm sorry but stretching will not work a muscle. To work a muscle a person must contract that muscle. Stretching is good for warming up and widening some of the openings in the body is a paramount issue, but not for serious muscle health. Once in a while these authors will get into meditation, mysticism, or a little bit of anatomy.
Yoga For Men Only is the only book I know that even gives a definition of yoga! These yoga asanas help the mind tell the body what to do. Yoga means union. The union of the mind and body is the core of yoga. This book tells how to overcome hypertension, high blood pressure, and even wrinkles. Two years ago I got arrested because a Redwood City policewoman refused to believe that I was as old as my driver license stated - with yoga I erased my wrinkles. That is a true story.
Other books merely touch on how yoga differs from isotonics, isometrics and calisthenics. This book wades into it. Dr. Young - that's his real name - has invented yogametrics. He uses yogametrics not only for muscle building but also for controlling the blood supply to the mysterious youth-giving (or with misuse, taking) endocrine gland system. Dr. Young treats the endocrine glands in a scientific yet ancient manner - from a health perspective.
This book gives the most dynamic method for deep breathing ever devised by man. This doesn't get into the Kundalini breathing techniques or the variation that Edgar Cayce taught which opens the sevens seals, but it is practical and should be a must for any serious body builder. I used it to increase the girth of my chest by over three inches without gaining a pound in just six months with only half an hour a day.
Yoga For Men Only is not just for men. I believe that the title is more for catching the prospective buyer's eye - it worked for me. This book spends no time on mysticism, or meditation. For those items read books on Edgar Cayce. They are the best. Cayce's books treat the endocrine glands not only from a health perspective but also from a mystical viewpoint. Dr. Young does not treat the endocrine glands as chakras like Cayce or the yoga mystics of old, but from a very practical viewpoint instead. The asanas that Dr. Young describes with respect to the endocrine glands have interesting details. They show the muscle combines which in turn stimulate the specific nerve ganglia that control the blood supply to a specific endocrine gland. It is awesome. I myself have invented a handful of asanas using his ideas.
It is a shame that this book is out of print. It is magnificent.
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