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Book reviews for "Grant,_John" sorted by average review score:

Perceptualistics-Jael
Published in Hardcover by Collins & Brown (May, 2002)
Authors: Jael and John Grant
Amazon base price: $29.95
Average review score:

A Legacy to cherish
I am Jael... and I'm so thrilled with the overwhelming success of my first book, _Perceptualistics_! This book, packaged and designed so beautifully by Paper Tiger, contains not only wonderful samples of my illustrative work through the last twenty years, but the "now discovered" Perceptualistic pieces, that I've been painting throughout my entire lifetime. I thank everyone who has supported this, my first publication, and encourage you to keep traveling within your mind. Dream your dreams of worlds and journeys that are real, but perhaps as yet unexplained. Nurturing, personal, comforting realms in which to retreat, are very much needed for us in this world today. Jael

Into One's Imaginings and Beyond...
"Perceptualisitics" is a magnificent gift to the reader. But beware, you "won't find a banana in the middle of each painting..."

That quote captures the essence of a Perceptualistic painting, if such an exercise is even possible. There is nothing literal about these paintings, and a casual observer, expecting to "see" a clearly defined image or a pictorial story in them will be challenged. And that, dear reader, is exactly why you should own this book and drink in the intoxicating visions it contains.

But let me segue for just a moment, for while the Perceptualistic paintings alone are an experience that will engage and enthrall you, there is so much more to this book that make it a compelling "must have."

It is eminently readable. John Grant's prose is both succinct and lyrical, and his biographical rendering of Jael invites one into her world in a way that is palpable and enjoyable. Rarely does one find oneself wanting to finish the text in an artbook before viewing the illustrations. Reading about Jael through Grant's eyes and ears made me want to know more. If there is a shortcoming here, it is because one finds onself wanting an even more intimate and extensive portrait of the artist.

Jael's paintings, regardless of the genre, are superb. Those seeking to view her Science Fiction and Fantasy illustrations will not be disappointed. Her work is among the best in the field and begs comparison to no one. Jael stands among the pantheon of "great ones" in the SF&F area.

However, dear reader, Jael stands alone with her Perceptualistic paintings, and she stands on a lofty plane indeed.

Each Perceptualistic painting beckons the viewer to explore. That exploration might be an inner vision, a transporting to another world or level of awareness, an opening to endless possibilities and insights. In a way, these paintings are gateways to perception, and that perception may change with every viewing. Can you think of any other artist who can offer you such a journey? I cannot.

I thank John Grant for his warm and vibrant words, obviously written with much caring. I thank Jael for this incredible gift to the public, and for opening her heart and her life, if only for a glimpse, to those of us who can only dream of such creativity.

Final thanks must go to the publishers, not so much for having the boldness to go beyond the trite and conventional nature of many "artbooks," but for recognizing creative genius and giving the world an opportunity to share in it.

Jael is a genius. Her genius comes from the heart, the dwelling place of all true genius, and that is a wondrous gift to us all.

Open your heart and prepare to expand your universe, dear reader, and buy this book!

Profoundly thought provoking images
As a former webmaster for the Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists, I had the pleasure of working with Jael to produce one of ASFA's Chesley brochures. This led to my becoming her webmaster. Until that time I thought she was a very talented illustrator having only seen the images that she has painted for covers and interiors of science fiction and fantasy publications.

While putting together her webpage she introduced me to examples of artwork that were unlike anything I had seen with the SF/F genre. These images cannot be considered illustrations. They are more than that as they evoke emotions and thoughts that transcend the physical plane; transporting one into higher planes of existence and depicting mindscapes of such vast and incredible beauty that the mind finds itself at a loss for words. These vistas can not be described. They can only be experienced.

With the publication of this book everyone can now own reproductions of these of these pieces of 'Fine Art', painted by one of the finest artists alive today. A must own book for every collector.


Arigo: Surgeon of the Rusty Knife,
Published in Hardcover by Ty Crowell Co (June, 1974)
Author: John Grant, Fuller
Amazon base price: $19.50
Average review score:

Too good for words.
This book needs to be made into a serious full length movie on the order of "Gandhi".

Rigorous scientific documentation of paranormal medicine
According to this book and other information available on the Web:

Arigo was a Brazilian peasant, with no formal medical training, or other schooling past 3rd grade. He was able to diagnose and cure virtually any malady. He did diagnosis at a glance and prescribed modern pharmaceuticals -- often in combinations and doses that made no sense in conventional terms, but which worked in virtually all cases where this could be followed up by investigators. Arigo performed operations of kinds which have apparently never been duplicated by conventional physicians. For example, he commonly excised even those metastatic tumors that extensively infiltrated vital organs, amid blood vessels and nerves. He regularly removed cataracts with a kitchen knife by scraping the cornea and removing the lens -- and his patients were able to see well afterwards. Most operations were done within 5 to 60 seconds, without anesthesia or antiseptics, yet without pain or damage or infection to patients. He commonly treated up to 300 patients/day.

This sounds like a fairy tale, but was extensively documented by highly respected physicians and other scientists from America (led by Henry Puharich) and Brazil. They made detailed films, and performed on-the-spot diagnoses and examination of patients before and after treatment by Arigo. His "instant" diagnoses agreed with their diagnoses at least 96% of the time.

This is not only among the best-documented records of psychic healing, but among the most intruiging sets of evidence for psychic phenomena in general. Instead of just rehashing the same o same o notions of telepathy, clairvoyance, etc. it opens up entire new phenomena. In particular, it suggests a radically new perspective on the nature of disease and healing.

Granted, this perspective has something in common with notions of the so-called etheric body and how it can be operated on -- an approach common in Brazil, where physicians commonly combine so-called spiritist practices with modern medicine. (But Arigo's skill and the intelligence underlying it went far far beyond that of his peers.)

This is the so-called intellectual Karcec school of medicine, and is reputedly practiced by hundreds if not thousands of physicians who have graduated from top ranking medical schools [including American and European schools] and who publish regularly in professional journals.

The Kardec approach involves consultation with spirit physicians -- discarnate beings that were allegedly once alive on Earth -- through mediums. Arigo was unusual in that he was his own medium. His spirit helpers either gave him advice or used him like a puppet to perform treatments -- at which time he was in a trance.

Although this sounds extraordinarily far fetched, the documentation is good enough to warrant serious thought. Alas, Arigo was killed in a car wreck before his work could be studied in enough detail for his methods to be passed on to other healers. Many healers aspire to emulate him, but apparently none has equalled his prowess and gentleness.

This is the kind of book I've been waiting for for 30 years. I only wish that the films and detailed medical records were available too.

It was all a bunch of sleigh of hand (magic type) tricks?
According to James (The Amazing) Randi, most if not all of what Arigo accomplished was mere sleigh of hand (magic) tricks with perhaps some of the placebo effect involved (people's expectations being met). While I tend to agree, I am puzzled as to some things which can't be explained away such as the thoracic surgery performed on Senator Betancourt, some leukemia cures on babies, and Arigo's use of the German language.


Tornado Watch Number 211
Published in Hardcover by William Morrow (September, 1987)
Author: John Grant Fuller
Amazon base price: $15.95
Average review score:

An excellent tornado book!
I have read this book several times over the years, and it holds my interest all the way to the end each time. It reads easily and quickly, and yet gives great detail to the horrific events of Friday, May 31st, 1985. This book is even more important to me because I live about 43 miles away from where the nearest tornado hit- Newton Falls, Ohio. If you are a severe storm and/or tornado buff, or just want to learn more about this particular tornado outbreak, this book is for you.

Best Tornado Book I have ever read!!
This is truely the best tornado book I ever read. I lived not far from several of where these tornadoes struck. An F4 tornado just passed south of my hometown, Warren PA, and struck Tionesta and Northern Forest County, killing 7. I found out about this rare, yet fascinating outbreak in PA. I recommend this book to be read by any tornado enthusiast.

The best tornado book ever
This is the best tornado book that I have ever read. This incident happened about 50 miles from my hometown which makes it more exiting yet.The author's chronological story from the start to end keeps the reader's interest through out the whole book. I am currently looking fo a copy of this book


Dragonhenge
Published in Hardcover by Sterling Publications (September, 2002)
Authors: Bob Eggleton and John Grant
Amazon base price: $20.97
List price: $29.95 (that's 30% off!)
Average review score:

Astonishing .... Sure to be a Classic!
I was blown away upon finally viewing and reading my copy of Dragonhenge. I had seen slides of some of the art, along with portions of the text as it was in final creative stages. But now, all together at last, it is a seemless and timeless masterpiece. Bob's glowing and stunning images flow beautifully within and around John's mesmerizing text, creating a visual and verbal feast for the imagination. This lovely book whispers the reality of the wisdom of the ancients, the dragon-like mythological beings who existed before the beginning of time itself. You must get a copy of this book.... no get several copies to share with everyone. It will become a classic!! Jael

Dragonhenge.. superb collaboration of two geniuses
Dragonhenge is a mesmerizing collaboration between Author John Grant and Artist Bob Eggleton. Both of these creators are well known for their many other ventures. John Grant/aka Paul Barnett, is a Chesley award winning art director, Editor, as well as being a brilliant and prolific Author. John Grant also wrote the lovely text for my book _Perceptualistics_. Then there's our Bob who's earned so many Hugo and Chesley Awards with his astonishing art through these many years.

Dragonhenge, however, is something starkly unique, a seamless blending of text and art, softly framing lyrical mythological tales, passed down for thousands of years by ' the master story tellers', "Dragons".... many of them having been created well before time itself. You must pick up a book. Be sure to read it under soft lights, where multi-layered shadows will reflect the glowing imagery, and where the words will leap off the page and enter your soul. It's a wonderful wonderful book. Jael

Dragonhenge
This is an extraordinary book; a book that takes a concept and builds legends around it. In reading it, you feel as though you have stumbled on a long-lost trove of lore from a vanished race.

The book is presented as a series of legends about a race of dragons, from their "how we came to be" origins tale through mythic explainations of where their powers came from and how their society developed. Eggleton's illustrations are beautiful, running from very tightly-sculpted depictions to much looser work that evokes a sense of time and space while presenting only form and color for the eyes.

This is a book that is sure to end up on all the dragon lovers' "wish list."


The Sword of the Sun (Joe Dever's Legends of Lone Wolf, No 4)
Published in Mass Market Paperback by Berkley Pub Group (April, 1991)
Authors: Joe Dever, John Grant, and Brian Williams
Amazon base price: $3.95
Average review score:

The WHOLE Series
Just for the record there are MORE than 12 books. Furthermore, yes, they are incredible. It's an ongoing adventure with a fantastic plot. I've used them to get my students into reading allowing them to DO something with their reading. But yes, there are more than 12, I DO in fact have them all and am NOT in fact interested in parting with them.

Great Series
The Lone Wolf series is a great series. I have all 12 books and am going through them all again. Get this book.

brillant book,period.
The book basically brings you right smack into the surreal world,whereby evil and good fight for control.I can say joe dever moves you with all the vivid memories of how lone wolf journeys through the land to arrive at durenor to get the sommerswerd.The book made me think about life in fact and could even control my feelings[angry,sad,etc.]with the vivid descriptions of the situations.UNFORTUNATELY the books are all out of print.I just wish joe dever would actually consider reprinting new issues,as i never had a chance to find out how lone wolf developed in the later issues.PLEASE DO REPUBLISH THE BOOKS.


Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters
Published in Hardcover by Hyperion (February, 1993)
Authors: John Grant and Dave Smith
Amazon base price: $45.00
Average review score:

Great Disney Resource
This is a definite must-have for any Disney fan. The book is divided into three basic sections: Characters in shorts, characters in television shows, and characters in features. Each category has a mention of every Disney character created until 1997 including interesting articles about them. This is also a great place to find information on lesser-known or forgotten Disney characters such as Spike the bee from a number of Donald Duck cartoons and Little Hans, a star of his own wartime propaganda film. Combine this with hundreds of pictures from the films and you have a book that is sure to be a favorite of any Disney fan.

No Disney fan should be without it!
First, while the title of this book is accurate, it is also misleading. This is no fluffy, flimsy book containing some fun descriptions of Disney characters from the latest popular films. This is an intense, in-depth look at EVERY Disney animated character since Walt began his career. The book is divided into two parts, "Shorts" and "Feature Films". The shorts have the usual gang, Donald, Mickey, Goofy, Pluto, and so on. After each characters bio is a list of every Disney short they've appeared in. Don't be worried or fooled by by this truly encyclopedic book - it is not a boring A to Z book. Color photos pop off of every page, including some from rarely seen Disney shorts. The feature films section not only includes detailed character bios, but plot summaries and "making of" details, cast and crew credits, and more. You buy this book, you will have a list of EVERY Disney short ever made (including the early "Alice" shorts and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit), every feature film in chronological order, and enough information about each one to be the champ of any Disney trivia game!

Wonderful reference book for Disney fans
This encyclopedia gives thoughtful, complete portrayals of every Disney character, from the shorts to the movies to the TV series. From the 9-page essay on Donald Duck to the paragraph or two on a minor character, it all makes for great reading. It is wonderful reference material and even as a good book; John Grant treats the characters like real people! It is very well reasearched, too. It's also got great animation stills of almost every character, too. Wonderful to read, browse through or look up stuff!


Who's Buried in Grant's Tomb: A Tour of Presidential Gravesites
Published in Paperback by PublicAffairs (06 May, 2003)
Authors: Brian Lamb, Richard Norton Smith, Douglas Brinkley, Carol Hellwig, Anne Bentzel, Karen Jarmon, John Splaine, Susan Swain, and Staff of C-Span
Amazon base price: $10.50
List price: $15.00 (that's 30% off!)
Average review score:

Fascinating
The one thing that ties all humans together, rich or poor, famous or unknown, powerful or helpless is death. To many Americans our Presidents are either marble figures (Washington, Jefferson...) or are little known familar names (Tyler, Harding...). This book does a great job of making ALL of our Presidents into human beings. The pictures, the writing, even the index pages are outstanding.

What better way to really understand a person than to know their final words. Or better yet to see their final resting places many of which were picked out by the individuals themselves. One can learn a lot about the true character of a person if you see monuments they designed for themselves.

I have visited many Presidential homes and several gravesites but after reading this book I have decided to make visiting all of the gravesites one of my goals in life.

It is strange that a book about death should bring history so alive. BUY THIS BOOK!

Excellent Book for People who love the Presidents!
This book is the only book I have ever read in less than 24 hours. It is, by far, the most interesting and best Non-Fiction book I have ever read. It is a must for Presidential Buffs like me!

This is a great book
For years I have wanted to tour World War One battlefields, and finally I came upon Before Endeavours Fade: A Guide to Battlefields of the First World War, by Rose E. B. Coombs. I read it cover to cover and felt doing so was the next best thing to touring those sites. When I finished reading this book, cover to cover, I thought this is better than going to each birthplace! It is certainly a lot easier, and I found it extremely satisfying to see each gravesite, all in the course of a couple hours, and to learn so many interesting things, like: What state has the most Presidential graves? Why is there a picture of David Rice Atchison's gravestone in this book? What President lived the shortest time after leaving office? If these sort of questions intrigue you, as they do me, get this book and revel in all the fascinating things you can learn from it.


The day of St Anthony's Fire
Published in Unknown Binding by Hutchinson ()
Author: John Grant Fuller
Amazon base price: $
Average review score:

The Day of St. Anthony's Fire
This book caught my eye in the college library while I was researching the topic. I didn't put it down for the two days it took me to read it. It covers not only "historical ergotism" (which has been deemed the culprit of the Salem Witch trials and other witch hunts by some) but also the case of the 1950's Pt. St. Esprit poisoning in France, which was attributed by the local authorities to a mercury pesticide. Read it, be absolutely amazed, not only at the events, but at the "official judgement" and subsequent injustice of the later rulings towards the poisoned survivors of that fateful night. I also recommend Mary Matossion's Poisons of the Past for more info on historical ergotism.

Fascinating mystery, well-told human drama
This is an amazing book. The historical account is fascinating. I am also floored by how well Fuller wove in a multitude of personal stories, gave a rich account of a very complex incident, then beautifully encapsulated the 15-year legal tragedy that followed the original tragedy. You don't come across stories like this every day, and you certainly don't often come across treatments of them that are this good.

It's not written at a sixth-grade level -- a plus for me -- but nowadays I doubt an editor would let Fuller get away with all the French phrases and excerpts he put in the book. Back then I suppose authors could assume they had a more sophisticated readership. I liked the sprinkling of French, sometimes even original letters (translated to English, of course), but if you don't know any French at all, you might want to read this with a dictionary at hand.

An in-depth analysis of ergotism in France in 1951
This is an extensive analysis by a journalist of the outbreak of ergot poisoning in Pont St.Esprit, France (Provence) in 1951. It is based on personal interviews and documents, as well as on discussions with the doctors involved. It is perhaps the most complete case study of mass ergot poisoning in literature. It is very valuable to any historian wishing to understand one of the most feared and puzzling diseases of the Middle Ages.


Paul J. Stankard: Homage to Nature
Published in Hardcover by Harry N Abrams (October, 1996)
Authors: Ulysses Grant Dietz and John Bigelow Taylor
Amazon base price: $27.97
List price: $39.95 (that's 30% off!)
Average review score:

Finally! How does he do that?
While I wouldn't consider myself a "paperweight" fan, I admire Paul Stankard's work immensely.

For so long I've wondered, "how does he accomplish such wonderful things?". This book cannot show his unique genius nor how his imagination works, but it does show just enough of his techniques to sate my never ending curiosity.

You can see how a thistle is built. There are gorgeous pictures of how a glass bee is build and attached to a honey comb. Here are the dragonflies, the orchids and those amazing root people!

The book is filled with full color pictures, and many wonderful detail views. In Paul Stankard's case, "God is in the details".

I admired Paul Stankard's work before I read this book. I admire his ability ever so much more now that I've seen the immesurable detail that goes into each piece.

If you like paperweights - BUY THIS BOOK!
Filled with beautifully detailed photographs of Paul Stankard's paperweights as well as excellent closeups of the making of his flowers and other paperweight inclusions. It also includes an interesting background on Paul's career and philosophy, but the multitude of wonderful color photographs of his extraordinary work are what make this book truly special.

Mindblowing photography and artistry
You will not be able to stop the "oohs" and "aahs" . The artist has developed a style unlike anyone else and the photographs are so detail you feel like you have become part of the piece. A work of art in and of itself.


Legendary Lighthouses (Volume I)
Published in Paperback by Globe Pequot Pr (October, 1998)
Authors: John Grant and Ray Jones
Amazon base price: $24.95

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