I used the acid test for considering how well written a technical book is about my business - I gave it to my wife when she asked me some questions one day.

I have had this book on my shelf for several months and found it extremely valuable in doing some quick general research and in exploring a variety of concepts dealing with planned giving. Written for the small shop (in my opinion) that needs to develop a planned giving program, this is a well-written and easily read book covering A to Z.

Topics start with what is planned giving, move through defining and discussing philanthropy, setting up a planned giving program (first steps), pitfalls to avoid, marketing planned giving and even sample gift instruments. These are but a few of the chapters in what I think is an excellent starting point for someone new to planned gifts and how to promote them (or even a pro looking for some fresh ideas).

Ah yes, my wife. For her, this was a bit of a liberating experience - she now has a good grasp of what I do. She can converse with friends about the business of planned giving very comfortably with a much better understanding of the basics.

Everyone knows the name "Dracula," but the majority have only seen the legendary Transylvanian Count on the silver screen or through pop culture; few indeed have actually read the work that started it all.

One cannot claim to be a fan of vampire literature or of Dracula himself without having read Bram Stoker's tremendous work of gothic horror. Think that Dracula and other vampires can't be out in daylight? Wrong--they simply have no powers during the day, which you'd know if you read this extraordinary book.

Written in epistolary form (that is, as a series of letters and diary entries), the story is presented from the viewpoints of the main characters, from Jonathan Harker to his wife Mina to Dr. van Helsing. Rather than detracting from the story, this format breaks up what would otherwise be a rather long manuscript into manageable chunks and adds to the historical character of the novel.

Modern film interpretations have presented Stoker's story through the eyes of each producer, director, and screenwriter, with nearly all making wholesale changes--Mina Harker, for instance, is NOT the reborn lost love of Count Dracula as Francis Ford Coppola would have us believe. Many others who have "read" Dracula have done so through abridged texts that distort the story through omission. Pick up and read the story that started it all in its intended format... Bram Stoker's Dracula. You won't regret it.

Although this book was originally published many years ago it is still one of the most frightening horror stories ever published. Written in diary form it introduces the reader to the young English Lawyer Jonathan Harker, his wife to be Mina, the enigmatic Professor Van Helsing and various other colorful characters that make this story so deliciously scary.
At the heart of the story is the Vampire,Count Dracula of Transylvania who has decided to take residence in England and in doing so seals the fate of several people. One of the Count's first victim's is Mina's best friend Lucy who becomes a Vampire herself and suffers the fate of a stake through the heart and having her head cut off. Soon it is a race against time to stop Dracula getting his fangs into Mina as well, and only the brave Van Helsing and his trusty companions can save the day. Bram Stoker has written a very sexy and scary book for his time, and it is no wonder that Count Dracula's appeal in this form has not diminished over the years.

After having seen numerous treatments of the Dracula story, I wrongly assumed I new it pretty well. After stumbling through the first few chapters, I got the swing of its style. Mr. Stoker used a rather novel approach in creating this novel. The perspective of the story changes with each chapter. You read narrative from many different characters. Awkward at first, later it gives the impression of a balanced account of the events. It seems to make the events more believable. A note now forgotten by many is this was a "current" story when written. It was not a piece of colorful historical fiction.

The reader is not biased by the narrator's point of view. Anne Rice's "Interview with a Vampire" is told from Louis' perspective. That very story is given a different spin from Lestat in "The Vampire Lestat". With Dracula, all players are backing up everyone elses story. The chilling effect, is that it seems true. I was very pleased that a hundred year old story could hold such a grip on me. Actually, it was I that had the grip, a tight fisted one, on the book until I finished.

I bought this book because I was a fan Of Richard E. Grant and was not disappointed. It is fabulous. The author takes you through the enjoyments (Withnails and The Player)and the terrors(Hudson Hawk )of filmmaking and the everyday life that surrounds it. An unashamed name-dropper Grant puts you right in the middle of the backstage of the movies and does it with a style and wit that is unmatched and a real delight to read. Personlly enjoyable was reading about Age of Innocence, remembering when it was filmed in my area. Have read it three times already and have picked up something each time. If you enjoy it try Grant's novel, By Design, A Hollywood Novel.

What a treat this book is. For those of us who love him as an actor, he surprised us with a book all about his acting. It's witty, biting, and furiously funny, and what's more, involves people, scenes, movies and events that we can all relate to and identify with because they're real. It's not just a book for Richard E. Grant fans, it's a book for anyone who loves movies and likes to laugh. If you're in the least bit "Hollywood", it's a great read.

For as long as I can remember I have been aware of Richard E. Grant. He seemed like one of those perfect working actors. Always doing good work but in either small films or small roles, never quite becoming famous with a capital "F". This book, a diary of his work, chronicles Grant's career from the, relative, beginning. When he was "Swazi boy" (Grant was born and raised in Swaziland, not England) struggling through auditions, always that close to his "big break". Grant recalls his experiences with great insight and even more humour. He has something to say about everybody (I think he, not Kevin Bacon, is the hub of Hollywood. He seems to have worked with everyone). Grant is an insider but always on the fringe of the action, always aware of how ridiculous the business is. The book, which takes you from Withnail and I through Spice World and beyond, is hilarious. Particularly touching are the entries about his marriage and how it ha! s been affected by his career. Grant has written a brilliant, entirely entertaining book.

Before I read this, I'd heard a lot of bad things about it, but I decided to try it anyways.

I loved it. It was something new and different, and kept me excited.

Once again, Lestat is the main character. He's getting tired of his immortality, so he decides to trade bodies with the Body Thief, Raglan James, for a few days. Lestat is so eager to be mortal again that he fails to see Raglan for what he really is: a clever, lying thief.

Lestat finally realizes how blessed he was to be immortal. As a mortal man, he gets very sick and almost dies (he's also haunted by Claudia, his dead vampire child, in his dreams).

With the help of his mortal friend David Talbot, Lestat attempts to get his immortal body back from Raglan.

The only thing that disappointed me was that it didn't have the same...feel...as the previous books. I seem to prefer the 1700's settings like there was in "Interview With the Vampire".

There is also a big part at the end, but I wouldn't want to spoil it for anybody. : )

Instead of filling the fourth installment in the Vampire Chronicles with various histories on ancient vampires and myths, this story takes place present-day. There's real action involved, no discussions of heroic or tragic battles. Lestat puts it best when he muses, "...I've been a man of action. Grief is a waste, and so is fear. And action is what you will get here, as soon as I get through this introduction." (2) This is entirely Lestat's story. The book is filled with his devilish plots and ideas, and there is little involvement from other vampires. He has always been a creature of impulse, and this story allows his character to really develop those ideas.
The setting is Miami, and Lestat has been troubled lately by disturbing dreams of Claudia and his mortal friend, David Talbot. Lestat is the same ancient, mischievous youth that he's always been; only now he has a body that can withstand any kind of torture he may put it through. So he becomes bored with his immortal life. He looks for a release. And he is soon in touch with the Body Thief, who has an interesting proposition.
Rice's story did not get weighed-down in lengthy passages discussing the history of the vampires, as some of the previous novels in the series had. I was completely captivated until the end, and I found the ending was remarkable, very true to the character of Lestat. This book was full of surprises, drama, and mystery. It answered so many questions about her characters, but asked so many about our own. I also really enjoyed some of Lestat's observations on every-day human life. When he finally gets what he thinks he wants (a day in the life of a mortal body), he finds it repulsive. The only reason Interview is better than this book is Interview is told by Louis. What can I say, Rice has convinced me to hate Lestat (but that's a good thing)!
If you're an avid reader of the Vampire Chronicles, I'm assuming you'll read this book without a prompt. If you've dabbled in the series, don't skip over this book! And if you're new to Anne Rice's world of the vampires, you can start here because you won't get bogged down with history. (But for your sake, eventually read Interview with a Vampire because you'll be doing yourself a disservice if you miss out!)

The gratification you get from reading a phanominally outstanding book comes to you again thanks to The Tale of the Body Thief, Anne Rice's fourth installment of the Vampire Chronicles. Anne Rice's words dance in your head as she vividly describes image after image in this fantastic book. Your appetite will be satisfied as she calms your cravings for action and intrigue. The whole cast of vampires are here along with a few fresh faces. The spotlight is once again on Lestat as he is faced with an overwhelming delima. The book begins a little drull, with the suicide attempt by Lestat, but but soon picks up the pace. It is a bit boring to be reintroduced to the same characters, but if this is your first Anne Rice book, you will be gratefull for this. Two- fourths through the story it begins to lag a bit due to Lestat seeming to be clueless. Then Anne Rice turns up the action when the body thief is introduced. Hang on, you are about to take a roller-coaster ride through the depths of excitement! The fun begins when Lestat... becomes human?! Yes, it is true! Now Lestat's only problem is trying to get back his vampiric body. There are some outstanding cliffhangers near the end of this story. Some will give you chills and some will leave you puzzled. I would love to go into further detail, but I do not want to spoil anything for those of you who have not read this book yet. Besides, I want you to experience this book for yourself. Just reading Anne Rice's name on the cover of this book should give you goosebumps from excitement. While there are some that disagree with reading this book, they are happier to watch T.V. rather than be open to an author's magnificent talents. As you can see, I am very pleased with this book and I highly recommend it. Look no further for what you crave.

I know virtually nothing about Lord Byron, except that he was a 19th-century English poet, so I can't say how accurate "Lord of the Dead" is in regard to certain parts of his life shown in here. But Byron fans should like this one since he's cast as the main character--as a vampire, of all things--narrating his past to his single captive audience, Rebecca Carville. His existence in "Lord of the Dead" basically consists of him traveling all over Europe, which does become monotonous after awhile. Yet it's in Greece, where he's traveling with his companion Hobhouse, that he is unwillingly turned into a vampire by Vakhel Pasha. Byron also happens to be in love with the Pasha's young runaway slave, Haidee, which is part of the reason why he kills the Pasha and then escapes the rabid village with her--only to face tragedy a short time later.

The book started out ok, so I was a little confused by all of the low reviews; however, as I continued reading, I understood why. After the first couple chapters, the book seems to fizzle out, especially after Byron kills the Pasha for the first time (yes, he has to attempt this more than once; I guess some people don't understand the meaning of "immortality.") Then comes Byron's internal struggle with his new existence--as well as his acquaintance with other fellow vampires--which doesn't really add anything new to the vampire myth. I wondered exactly how Rebecca could sit there and listen for all 341 pages and not become bored herself. About 100 pages could have been removed from "Lord of the Dead" and it wouldn't have harmed the story a bit; in fact, it would have probably improved it.

And like a few reviewers before me, I did notice some similarities between Anne Rice's "Interview With the Vampire" (because of how the book's told in story form) and Bram Stoker's "Dracula" (when Byron is brought to Vakhel Pasha's dark, mountainous castle). And like in most vampire novels, there's blood-drinking and casual sex (as expected with the notorious Byron) in this one as well, though it's relatively reserved for the most part, except for a few scenes that involve things like meat hooks, homosexuality, and incest--but none of them were very erotic or exciting, in my opinion. In summary: This isn't a book I'd necessarily recommend, unless you're a really big fan of Lord Byron and vampires.

The premise of Byron scholar Tom Holland's first novel is that the Romantic poet became a vampire during a trip to Greece with his friend J.C. Hobhouse in 1810, after meeting the mysterious and evil Turkish lord Vakhel Pasha. Byron's story is related by the poet himself, framed within the modern-day search of one of his descendants, Rebecca Ruthven, for his lost memoirs. The author demonstrates a thorough knowledge of the life and works of his subject, using documented facts and quotes from the writings of Byron and his associates to give weight to the story's theme. The story is somewhat weakened by the use of the frame format and the first-person narration, as the character of Rebecca is never fully developed and, although she appears early in the book as a protagonist, her ultimate role is merely that of listener. Fans of Byron and the other Romantics should find this approach intriguing, but might also want to read "The Stress of Her Regard" by Tim Powers, which is considerably more bizarre

Lord of the Dead is an interesting, fictional view of vampires and temptation which focuses on the imaginary life of the famous poet, Lord Byron. As soon as you delve into the book, you are taken into fairly present-day London with a girl named Rebecca. She speaks to a man, interested in the keys that he holds to a tomb. Mainly after some manuscripts that might be found in the tomb, which may hold information about her mother, Rebecca finally is given the keys by the man, and off she goes to the tomb. What she finds in the tomb is more than she expected, though: Lord Byron himself. After asking if perhaps he knows something as to what happened to her mother, Rebecca is then told the story of his life. He retells his life from top to bottom, speaking of how he and his cohort, Hobhouse, roam the lands of Europe, running into unusual people and trying to find the answers to Byron's many questions. What he doesn't realize is that what he has become destroys those that he is closest to.
Wonderfully written, Lord of the Dead makes for a good read, chock-full of unexpected twists and turns in the plot line as well as highly-detailed scenes which makes the story come to life. Truly an interesting page-turner with unusual scenarios and characters, the book is mainly recommended for those who enjoy adventure and action, as well as tales of vampires and fans of Lord Byron himself.

I was disappointed in this book especially since the title contained the word "Refresher". Instead of the book focusing on IFR flying and new techniques, the book turned out to be a collection of short stories and dialog about IFR flying as told by the author.

For a better "refresher" on IFR flying, I would recommend "Instrument Flying" (4th edition) by Richard L. Taylor, which is better orgainized, and does give tips on the art of instrument flying.

I bought this book to use as an IFR refresher without really looking into the content. When I actually got around to reading the book, I was at first disappointed because I had expected a technical review of the hands on techniques for IFR flight.

After reading the first chapter I got the point. Apart from the pretty good read and interesting actual examples, I realized that one of the most important aspects to IFR flight is good pilot judgement.

Poor judgement is what kills most pilots (and passengers) and IFR flight is a most risky activity. Not that technical skill is not important, it is. But pilot judgement skills are often neglected and under appreciated.

The book is well written and the accounts of both personal flights (from two different perspectives) and industry accidents are very instructive and interesting.

Highly recommended for those wanting to go beyond the basic skills. This book is not for new IFR students. I am recommending this book to my experienced students.