This is truly one of my favorite books (arcane though it is). Sphrantzes' court history is personal, immediate and very human. Unlike most Byzantine historians the reader gets a sense of the author's personality. All of the characters are well rounded with normal strengths and weaknesses. I find the story of Constantine XI last days to be very moving as he struggles to save his city from the assault of the Turks. Sphrantzes portrait shows Constantines' strength as well as his despair in those final days.

Great end notes too.

These early stories of John Constantine are the best. Delano greatly defined and "fleshed out" Constantine. This work is very underrated. The writing is subtle and operates more on a psychological level. Constantine here was the most sly and cunning. I highly recommend.

The text is a good introduction to fungi with several excellent black and white pictures and illustrations. The text also contains an extensive glossary of mycological terms. However, as other reviewers have indicated, the text appears to be written for people with at least a general biology background. As a microbiologist, I find this book to be a perfect reference for fungi.

This textbook is designed and geared towards individuals with already a basic understanding of fungi. Unlike the title, one should be acquinted with basic terminology so that the reading is more instructive and helpful. Once a basic understanding is established, this book can be a great aid when exploring the world of fungi either scientifically or for leisure purposes only. The figures are very useful and the book is well organized and easy to follow.

Last month I began browsing my 1962 edition of Introductory Mycology. Lo and behold I read through the whole book over a weekend. This book was our bible for the Mycology 100 course in grad school. I was noticing how good the narrative and drawings were in this classic. The book is not a glitzy tome so common in textbooks today. Each class of fungi is dealt with separately and there are extensive references at the end of each chapter. Of course because of the date of my edition some of the references are dated. However, the basic science here is solid and presented in a pedagogical manner. The chapter on class Basidiomycetes deserves special mention. The basidium development narrative is just superb. If you have an interest in fungi and want to delve deeper into this important living group then get this book. It will serve you well for years to come just as it has done for me.

An excellently written narrative of the saga of the last Romanovs - from the time of the next-to-last Tsar, through the Revolution, and up to the 1980s when the last imperial Romanovs died. It is a tale of glitter, sadness, imprisonment, torture, flight, unfulfilled expectations and squandered opportunities. The fact is that most of the imperial family didn't have a clue about the world outside their royal cocoon and were ill-prepared to understand the rapid sweep of events that led to the loss of their status, power, money and, for some, their lives.

The authors also make understandable the changing alliances of the various nations involved in World War I - enemies became allies and allies became enemies. The book made it possible for me to 'get a handle on' the confusion of forces competing for power during the Russian Revolution (no easy task!). This is a history buff's book, but one of the best on the topic I have read. Exceptionally well researched and footnoted

I am a relative newcomer concerning the history of the Romanov family, but this has changed now. This book is just incredibly fascinating, there are so many facts as well as samll anecdotes that it is just pure delight to read this well written and extremely well researched book. The book demonstrates the lavish lifestyle of the last Romanovs, describes all the relationships between the European royal families in the late 19th and early 20th century, and goes into every single detail of the relationships within the Romanov family. The second half of the book describes the hardships hte Romanovs had to endure under the Bolshevik regime and how all their lives changed so drastically after Tsar Nicholas II abdicated and the Bolsheviks came to power.

The only slightly negative thing which came to my mind while reading this book was the vast number of names in some parts of the book. It sometimes hapens that there are eight different names in one sentence, referring to three different generations from three different parts of the Romanov family.

But this still does not cloud the impression from reading this extremely informative book which is absolutely readable for non-historians who are just interested in this topic.

Having read all the available books on the Romanov family at the local library, I was shocked to actually find a book that was written within the last few years about the Russian royal family. It was fascinating to read how the grand dukes survived after the fall of the house of Romanov. It was very easy reading, well written and very informative as to the outcome of the extended family members. highly recommend!

I started collecting Hellblazer TPB's mostly to complete my Garth Ennis collection, but the character of John Constantine got me hooked. Unfortunately I missed some of the arcs by past writers, but I slipped into the current Azzarello run pretty easily with this paperback.

"Hard Time" is a pretty fun story. The whole prison motif intrigued me when I first heard about it, and I really enjoyed seeing the hardcore Constantine deal with it. Azzarello handles the story pretty well, and although it's far too early to judge his handling of the main character, "Hard Time" remains a good read.

Some of the story elements, though, seemed a tad cliched. The whole story seemed like an episode of Oz. I wasn't sure if he was paying homage or blatantly stealing.

Those who're already fans of the series and missed this arc should pick it up, but if you're new to Hellblazer, start off with "Original Sins". It's a great way to be introduced to the series.

Brilliant crime-author Brian Azzarello has done the unthinkable. He's taken John Constantine past where even Garth Ennis had darred. Azzarrello, once attacked for being and American on what was a very English book, showed us that of all the demons and monsters that a magic man like John Constantine has to face, the scarriest buggers out there are still just humans. In prison for murder, on his own, haunted by the ghosts of his past, John must work his way through the 'system' at place, and in pure Constantine fashion, bring it all down around his head. The art could be better, but the writing is some of the best graphic-fiction to come out in years.

This is a good primer in control theory. Although it may not cover things in depth at times, it offers a good sense of perspective and may be a good starting point for those coming from other fields.

Johnny Dixon and Byron, Johnny's friend, notice that their friend, Professor Roderick Childermass, is being very secretive. So he finally shows them his discovery of a funky trolley car. The Professor tells them that it can go back in time and that he is going to go back to Constantinople in the time of 1853 during the Turkish invasion.

Time travel in fantasy is now such a cliche that it's a bit hard to write anything original about it. But John Bellairs managed. "Trolley to Yesterday" has a bunch of intriguing twists and unexpected events, and while it doesn't have as much supernatural content, it still is an enjoyable read.

Professor Childermass is acting even more oddly than usual, which is saying something. When Fergie and Johnny try to investigate his weird behavior (including sand on his carpet and talking to himself), they find the professor having a conversation with Brewster, a magical Egyptian statue. He admits his secret: Behind a bricked-up wall is a time-travelling trolley. And the boys hitch a ride when Childermass travels back in time to save the city of Constantinople from invasion.

The problem? They arrive a little too late, and the city is being overrun by Turkish soldiers. As they struggle to make their way back to the trolley and the safety of the future, they encounter the trolley's creator (who accidently got left behind during one of its previous excursions), a deranged monk, and a group of ghostly Crusaders. But then Johnny is poisoned, and the only cure means going back to Constantinople -- and back into danger.

Usually time travel books are full of cliches, and this one has a few, but you probably won't notice them. Kids who read this book may become interested in the Byzantine Empire -- while Bellairs doesn't present huge amounts of historical detail, he gives enough to be very, very interesting. (There's also a dash of Egyptian stuff too) There's adventure, humor and the odd way of getting around.

Johnny and Fergie remain the surprisingly courageous duo of previous books, the shy boy and his brasher, jokier pal. Professor Childermass is crusty, sometimes a bit irrational, but very lovable. And Brewster (a deity of Upper and Lower Egypt) really steals the show with his dry little comments. .

This book proably has one of the lowest amounts of supernatural stuff of Bellairs' books. Certainly it doesn't have much in the way of horror. But there is a great twist about halfway through, where our heroes are aided by a group of ghostly Crusaders, who are trying to make amends for sacking the city centuries before. I suppose Brewster technically counts as supernatural, and he provides a lot of the humor (such as translating a Turkish soldier's words as "Butter and eggs, and a pound of cheese!").

"Trolley To Yesterday" isn't Bellairs' best novel, but it is an intriguing and informative historical book that adults may enjoy as well, especially if they're Byzantine buffs. Good fun.

Johnny, Fergie, and Professor Childermass are back and it seems the cantankerous old coot has something special in his basement. A time machine! Well, actually a Time Trolley! When Johnny and Fergie notice the Professor acting strange they decide to investigate, instead of finding the Prof one step closer to insanity they find that he has an honest-to-God time machine that allows him to travel to Constantinople right before its fall to the Turks! The Professor has a hair-brained, but well intentioned scheme to alter the course of history (and save more than a few helpless souls) but alas, things do not always go according to plan.

With grand, Bellairsian style the inseparable trio come across ghosts, statue guardians, Turkish hordes, and a really cool thingamajig that allows them to fly only by uttering a few simple words. With any John Bellairs book you know you're in for a treat, and although The Trolley to Yesterday is amongst some of the master author's lighter works it never fails to entertain. So if you're a fan of the fantastic hop aboard The Trolley to Yesterday!

Garth Ennis' work on Hellblazer is some of the best in the medium, but this trade horribly dissapoints. Any no name writer could spin this tale of John Constantine, it's suprising to see the Ennis name on it. Constantine himself loses most of what made him so cool in other Ennis works... He becomes an everyman in this book, a nobody with nothing so cool about him that someone would want to write a book about. But sadly enough, Ennis has done it, and it's a stinker.

I am sad to say that I didn't enjoy this as much as other Hellblazer TPBs that I have read. The art was OK, but the storytelling was jumpy. I love the character of John Constantine, though. They shouldn't 'Americanize' him with Nic Cage in the movie.

I have to believe that whoever didn't like this collection either doesn't get it or refuses to accept it. To be fair, the opening story is a little out of the ordinary for the usually London-based Constantine. Whereas Garth's other spectacular book PREACHER embraces the American Myth, "Damnation's Flame" thouroughly reveals it for what it is...a myth. Caught in a sliver of Hell, John encounters slaughtered Indians, soldiers who died for nothing, streets covered in crack, and a positively wanker of a president.

The other stories aren't earth-shattering, but they are enjoyable. John visits his old friend Brendan and meets Kit in a flashback to his days at Ravenscar (the mental hospital he was in and out of for three years). John also meets Brendan, now a hard-drinking ghost, in the present. And back in London, Chas tells his mates about one of the many times Constantine was apparently killed, and how this time there was even a funeral for him. The entire Ennis cast was present (Header, Kit, Brendan, Rick the Vic) as well as the Delano cast (Ray, Chas, Ritchie, Cheryl), and Moore's little-seen Emma.

By the way, if the sight of John F. Kennedy walking around with his hand pressed against the hole in his head to keep his brains from falling out isn't enough incentive to buy this book, check out his best line from the story:

"To be seen in a historical context as the conscience of the United States is not the honor one might think. It is, in fact, a burden, and one that I was...at the time...loath to shoulder. My chief concerns were, to set the record straight, immediate political survival, and regular extramarital sex with as many women as possible.

I'm a Mechanical Engineer and I'm doing a MSc in materials and manufacturing processes.
I'm from Colombia, South America. You could say it's a "developing country" but may be not, I find here better books than this.
I'm owner of this book, I thought that an Algor publishing work could be great, but it doesn't.
Using this book, you'll not learn so much about finite elements, it's like a description about what ALGOR can do, but doesn't explains in a good manner what finite elements analysis is.
If you want a really good book, the classic, Zienkiewicz and "The finite element method" could be, Bathe too. But Spyrakos, mmmmmmmmm it's for someone who doesn't know anything about FEA and wants to know what FEA means, no more.
Printing also, it's not as I expected.

This book present the prolems concerning FEM in a very pragmatically way. This implies that: 1) you will soon be able to use this tecnique if you have a mentality used to learn and acquire infos very quickly, but not understanding deeply what is phisically implied in these formulas. 2)You won't be able in a second time to review your work and understand it. That's it. I'm a phisician and have some problem with engineer mentality.