This book was extremely helpful to me and my wife during her last pregnancy. It answered and clarrified a number of questions that we had in regards to 'old wives tales' and other myths of pregnancy. Very easy to read and highly recommended to expectant families or those planning to add to their family.

PREGNANCY MYTHS, by Author Michael D. Benson, M.D. provides an easy to read, informative guide to understanding many of the significant issues confronting pregnant women today. I would highly recommend this book to all pregnant women as well as women considering pregnancy. In addition, this book is a wonderful tool for the practicing obstetrician to help us understand many of our patients thoughts, ideas, and concerns during this emotional and exciting time in their lives.

During my three pregnancies, I have read many books about pregnancy's trials, tribulations, rewards and joys. I have just completed "Pregnancy Myths" and believe it is the most comprehensive and well thought out book I have read. "Myths" is an easy to use reference tool that gives quick reassurance when my husband or I have questions. I would strongly reccomend this book to all expectant parents.

I have tons of design books! Too many books! Of all the books this one travels with me everywhere I go just in case I need a little inspiration. Tibor and his pack of designers I believe have defined what design and communication is all about. They have pushed ideas to the point of rare novelty. With many of the designs in this book I can see that M&Co never stops asking the greatest of all creative questions: "What if?" There is only one thing I hate about the book - It makes me second guess everything that I do. Is it orginal? Is it "What if" enough? Am I following the creative line that is widely walked or have I grown enough spine to stray off the beaten path?

...Or am I just full of s**t?

Think Tibor Kalman. Think Bennetton's controversal advertising. Think COLORS Magazine (http://www.benetton.com/colors/). Creative advertising, copywriting and photography at its best.

Includes a biography of Tibor, some of his writing about design, countless visuals -- spreads from COLORS magazine, Tibor's ads, clock designs, promotional campaigns, etc.

This is an excellent book I recommend to everyone who has interest in photography, advertising, graphic design or promotion.

Buy it. Or go to a bookshop and spend the day with it.

I don't own this book--yet. I read it at the bookstore and I am waiting for amazon to release it so that I can get the 18 dollar off the 60 dollar list price. This is a great catalogue of all the work Tibor has done in his career. The book starts with a series of Tibor's saying and open into the 'catalogue' itself. Each of them contains very detailed description of the design process so it's a great read.

Good clean design by Bierut, as usual.

ESPN always puts out a good almanac, and this is of the same quality of years past. It provides data for the past year for all of the major sports (baseball, football - college/pro, basketball - college/pro, hockey), plus racing, soccer, amateur sports, world sports, and some business information, too. It's nice that it provides a lot of historical data, too, single-season and career records. It's probably not the guide if you want all of the historical baseball information ever (or something like that for any other sport), but it's authoritative in its scope of all sports.

Like any almanac, the yearly data quickly ages. I suppose I would rather them carry data for the 2000-01 NFL season, for example, rather than the 1999-2000 season, but I suppose that given the continuous nature of the sport seasons, they have to make a trade-off for one sport.

It's very good; I highly recommend it for any sports fan with a knack for trivia or who frequently finds themselves asking (or arguing) about records and statistics and superlatives.

I haven't missed the Information Please Sports Almanac during its entire run...For the true sports fan, this is the book to have...Stats, Who's Who, even Obituraries...And with the backing of THE sports leaders, ESPN, the wealth of knowledge and insight becomes that much deeper...You won't get EVERYTHING here (that's why each sport still has its own records manual), but you'll definitely get enough to keep you busy...

In my sports journalism career, I find it necessary to refer to this book often. I buy the new almanac every year - it never disappoints. Whether a reporter like me, or just a regular fan, its a good book to have.

I have used this book a lot while studying English and I think IT IS WORTH BUYING for everybody who regularly uses English language and wants to speak and write correctly.

Practical English Usage contains hundreds of entries on English grammar, from elementary to advanced topics and some entries on other issues (pronunciation, usage of problematic words, style etc.). The entries are well selected with and well indexed, so I found answers for the vast majority of questions I have ever tried to look up.

Keep in mind, however, that the book can be used primarily as a REFERENCE. It is NOT structured for systematic, regular study and it is too dry for that purpose.

If you want to learn English grammar, I recommend that you get this book, together with Basic English Grammar by Eastwood and Mackin (with the exercises). Use Eastwood and Mackin's book for systematic study and complement it with Swan's book whenever you have any specific question. These books together cover ALL you'll ever need on English grammar (except if you need to be a professional in the field - such as a translator, university professor etc.).

As a teacher of English as a Foreign Language I use Michael Swan's book often. It is organized alphabetically by topic and provides clear explanations to various types of usage. Need to find out about the use of the subjunctive form in English or whether it is permitted to use they/them/their to refer to a single indefinite person? This reference can answer those as well as many other elementary or advanced questions that may come up. The only source of confusion I have found was his partial omitting the terms 0,1,2,3 and Mixed Conditional tenses, grouping these all instead under "if". Many students learn the conditional tenses using the 0-M system and find it quite handy and useful in learning the various structures and meanings. The author mentions types 1-3 on pages 245-6, and then goes on to insist quite correctly that there are many different structures for "if". However, he fails to mention the "0" and "M" conditionals, which would account for most of the rest (including conditional sentences that do not use "if"). In all this could be a rather minor irritant to at least some users of this book.

To repeat my view, this is an excellent reference and one I recommend to my advanced students.

I didn't read the book from the begining to the end, mainly I used it a reference when I got stuck with a word o prepositions (most of the time). My English teacher asked me to buy it because it would be very useful. I liked that every word mentioned comes with examples of its american, british, canadian or australian usage. It was convenient to me because I studied in a British English school, but I've only been to the USA, so I had trouble communicating because of the difference in vocabulary and spelling. This book helped me a lot. Laura Fernández

If you are even mildly interested to know how Herge choose his name or those of his characters, if you are kind of interested in the historical background to your favorite adventure or if you are a crazy Tintin fan and hunger for anything you can get your hands on, this book is for you!

I have enjoyed it a great deal and I know you will too!

Any successful series tends to spawn a Guide and most of the time they add minimal value to the original series. Not so here. Farr and Remi have collaborated to produce a companion to Tintin that actually enhances the comic strip and makes you re-read them with a new awareness. The layout of the book makes it easy for you to focus on individual adventures, providing a four to six page commentary on the development, accuracy and major plot points. There is an opening section on Herge himself and how Tintin developed over forty-odd years.
It is only after reading this I have realised how accurate Herge was with his subject matter. Again and again you suddenly realise that all the backing images, all the characters are founded on intricate real detail and people to create authenticity.
Quite simply, any fan of Tintin must read this book. It supplies answers to questions you'd never think of and opens you to a whole new side of the hero and his creator.

My family collected Tintin and Asterix books when I was growing up. My parents have a complete set as do several of my sisters. "Tintin: The Complete Companion" was the perfect gift for them.

"The Complete Companion" discusses the political, scientific, and sociological climate present when Herge wrote the Tintin books. It is very satisfactory to read about the state of space travel and to know where Herge was citing research and where he was leaping ahead.

This is not a story book but inquisitive minds from 8-88 will enjoy it.

I've been a big fan of the Tra Vigne restaurant for years. It's a fun place with fantastic food, and fun events such as wine tastings. I swear it has the best smelling food of any restaurant anywhere. It's delicious torture to wait for your food and get whiffs of the entrees going by.
It was with this excited expectation that I opened this book. And although I just received it as a birthday gift, I'm anxious to dig and try to recreate some of the fantstic food I've experienced in Michael's restaurant.
I can tell you already that this cookbook has a wonderful layout. For example, the table of contents (usually dreadfully dull) is a beautiful display of graphic design. Along one side are the seasons, and along the top different types of food. It's an unusual and neat way of showing this information and immediately leads the cook to think of seasonal meals and menus.
Some of the recipes in the book look surprisingly complex so this isn't a volume for beginners. But if they can help me recreate the great meals I've had in the restaurant without needing to travel to St. Helena they will be worth the extra effort.

I've had the Tra Vigne Cookbook for a year now, and I use it regularly. It's an attractive book, with beautiful photos and surprisingly intriguing introductions to the recipes. It's hard to stop browsing once you open the book, and it's harder to close the book without doing some cooking. The dishes are fantastic. The Chicken with Roasted Lemon and Rosemary Sauce is a favorite, as is the Fusilli Michelangelo. (Read the intro to either of these dishes and try to resist cooking them.)

The book is arranged seasonally, with chapters on essential ingredients for each season. Spring ingredients include asparagus, garlic, peas, and potatoes. Summer ingredients include corn, tomatoes, and bell peppers. And so on. I shop at a grocery store, not a farmers market, and I've had a less-than-happy relationship with vegetables since infancy, so I was skeptical of the whole seasonal-cooking thing at first. But I enjoy browsing through the new season's recipes as the year changes, and I've tried dishes and ingredients that are not usually a part of my diet. It's hard to object to broccoli when it's served in a creamy Very Green Soup sprinkled with crunchy gremolata.

It would have been nice in book a subtitled "Seasons in the California Wine Country" to have more information about wine. Few recipes actually use wine and there is no advice on what wines to pair with the food.

Despite the elegant presentations shown in the photos, none of the recipes are too difficult to try. They're just challenging enough for the amateur cook who likes to do a little more than the usual home cooking. The Tra Vigne Cookbook is a lot of fun, and the food is delicious.

His PBS show is incredible, his recipes are to die for, and he is gorgeous to boot. What other reasons are there for buying this book?

eliot is the greatest poet of the 20th century. His work has done more to usher in the myriad of styles that have come after his than any other writer to date. he is Modern poetry and the wasteland is the benchmark upon which all others should be judged. his blending of style and concept are stunning- his words and word choice amazing- that one man could craft such greatness and still go on to write more great works is simply amazing. this poem requires work- don't know about a guide but at least dedication to intelect and insight. as pound said nothing good comes easily and this poems is the best and should be worked at and understood because with understanding and appreciation of this great work comes an insight into the minds and mindset of many of the 20th centuries great writers and thinkers.

Literature scholars universally recognize Eliot's "Waste Land" as one of the most influential poems of the 20th century. The poem draws on a wealth of images, everything from classics of Western literature to Tarot cards, from anthropology to Eastern sacred texts. The title refers to the barren land of the Fisher King in Arthurian legend; both the king and the land eventually find redemption through the Holy Grail. Through a masterful use of language and symbols, Eliot brilliantly portrays the problem of meaning in the modern world --- and the way to deeper meaning!

Unfortunately, many of Eliot's references are arcane, and not easy for the lay reader to pursue. For example, few modern readers happen to have a copy of Webster's play "White Devil" or excerpts from Shackleton's account of the Antarctic expedition readily available on their shelves. Hence, the virtue of this particular edition: in addition to Eliot's original poem and original notes, this book includes the relevant passages from every single work Eliot quotes in the "Wasteland", all translated into English. For the first time I have seen in print, this book allows the reader to understand this magnificent poem in light of the full scope of its allusions. A triumphant achievement!

Simply put, THE WASTE LAND is one of the strangest, most complicated, and interesting poems ever written. Try reading an unannotated version of the poem and you will see why even TS Eliot scholars need a little help with some of the images and literary references Eliot uses. This NORTON CRITICAL EDITION of THE WASTE LAND is an essential book for any Eliot fan, new or old. It provides you with practically every single piece of literature, history, and music that inspired Eliot to write his manifesto of the Lost Generation. If you have any questions concerning THE WASTE LAND, this is the book you need...this is the book you want. Buy it and realize how well-read you are not.

apart from the magnificent photographs and compelling text,this book is powerful because it forces a reader to think about the shameful issue of america's prisons. at a time when most citizens would rather look at the latest celebrity du jour on the cover of every magazine, a work of art that presents real people -- most often old, a no-no in this society -- in grim situations should be applauded. "prisoners of age" peers into the abyss with courage and the result is the antithesis of fantasyland.

Prisoners of Age is visually and intellectually stimulating. I was fortunate enough to see the actual exhibition in San Fran. Having the book to peruse through at my leisure is a bonus and brings back the vividness of the photographs on display in Alcatraz while in addition providing some very interesting reading. I recommend it for personal or a gift purchase.

RIVETING!! Not only does this book graphically depict the often horrible treatment of America's aging prison population, but also serves as a sample of how Americans view the elderly in general. Our fast-paced, high-tech society places too much value on youthful vitality and pure intellect, not realizing the contribution that wisdom and decades of experience can bring to heighten our humanity and sensitivity for our fellow man. Even if you choose to ignore the deeper meaning of this book, the quality and impact of the photographs and artwork still make it a bargain for the price.

Chris

When the auteur myth took root it managed to both change the stature of directors and displace a lot of talented writers. While there's no doubt that Hitchcock is still a giant in cinema, many of the books written about him tend to focus only on Hitch's contribution. DeRosa's book provides fair balance and recognizes writer Joh Michael Hayes' contribution to a fruitful collaboration. The four pictures that Hayes worked on (Rear Window, The Trouble With Harry, To Catch A Thief and the remake of The Man Who Knew Too Much)are all among Hitch's best work as a director. This isn't to suggest that Hitch didn't contribute to story ideas; he would frequently sketch out a general plot but writers like Hayes (or Ernest Lehman to name another strong Hitch collaborator) would be left along to write the script once the basic plot was discussed.

DeRosa knows his stuff and his research is exhaustive. I would have to liked to have seen more storyboard to script comparisons and comments from other writers and directors but that probably would have changed the scope of the book (and the focus). Without tarnishing Hitch's reputation, Writing With Hitchcock makes a strong case for the importance of Hayes contribution to Hitch's film.

After they had a falling out Hitch would frequently dismiss Hayes contributions to his films in print( such as in Truffaut's interview with Hitchcock. Hitch was generally pretty good about recognizing the importance of his collaborators)

Luckily that bitterness can't color the fine work of these well matched collaborators. This book along (with the inteviews Hayes granted for the DVD editions of their four films) finally puts it all into perspective. It also allows one to celebrate the great art and entertainment of Hitch and Hayes.

One of the most important writers to work side by side with Alfred Hitchcock was John Michael Hayes, who collaborated with the director on Rear Window, To Catch a Thief, The Trouble with Harry, and The Man Who Knew Too Much. These films made over a two-year period (1953-55) lifted Hitchcock to a level of popularity at a time when he seemed to be growing out of touch with his audience.

This fascinating book details the relationship between Hayes and Hitchcock, exploring how the two collaborated on the writing and production of the films. Relying on a mass of documents from studio records to Hitchcock's and Hayes' personal papers, as well as anecdotal accounts, Steven DeRosa chronicles the ups and downs of this collaboration, and then analyzes the films themselves. DeRosa presents a fresh and complex portrait of the director while also providing one of the best accounts of the process of writing for film and the indignities screenwriters often endure.

This book is about the successful teaming of Alfred Hitchcock and screenwriter John Michael Hayes. Hayes, a native New Englander, and recently a screenwriting professor at Dartmouth, wrote four films for Hitch, including Rear Window, To Catch a Thief and The Man Who Knew Too Much. They worked extraordinarily well together, Hitchcock bringing to the table his mastery of suspense and technique and Hayes his knack for sharp dialogue and strong characters. Predictably, ego, money and a battle for credit soon got in the way and ended their partnership. Steven DeRosa's research is impressive, and his style accessible, entertaining and informative.

This is truly an astounding, superbly compiled, book. Now, years later, we finally know the truth: Lyndon B. Johnson was not merely a tragic president who stuck to his guns and fought a war he mistakenly believed he could win (with various political restrictions on the military).

He was, this book proves beyond a shadow of a doubt in its lively transcripts of his secretly taped phone conversations, a tragic president who stuck to his guns and fought a war he firmly believed would be LOST no matter WHAT.

He didn't want to lose, but he didn't want to be the one to pull out, so he got in deeper and deeper, losing sleep and agonizing all the way -- and the consequences to his administration and the country were catastrophic.

There are a slew of reasons why you should read (or gift) this amazing book.

The main one: true, it does give you perhaps more than you wanted to know about LBJ (but I don't care WHAT some reviewers have said: I LOVE the many sections where he is flirting with and flattering Jackie Kennedy!)...but if you read it you get a clear idea of how a president operated -- and many parts of this book are so dramatic and gripping, they read like a movie script. In fact, I can see the Oliver Stone movie now.....

Historian Michael Beschloss makes it seem easy when you read it, but transcribing and annotating (so you know through footnotes what LBJ is referring to when he talks and get some historical context..and know when LBJ is spinning) these conversations taped between 1964 and 1965 could not have been easy. Yet, he gives you the meat and you get to "know" how LBJ thinks and, politically, works.

It shows Johnson, warts and all, as a man who could have been one of the top presidents because of his skills, will and sincere desire to serve. But it also shows a highly conflicted, contradictory, at times paranoid and highly depressed man. On the night of his monster landslide 1964 election he is angry and "down," steaming over Bobby Kennedy's influence, lack of political deference and possible future machinations. As he presses and manipulates to get his Great Society legislation passed, he's secretly leaking negative info on election opponent Barry Goldwater, keeping the lid on information regarding his number one aide's role in a sex scandal. He talks of victory in Vietnam, but repeatedly tells politicos and his wife that there is absolutely no way the U.S. can ever win, and he is tormented by his terrible choice and unwanted role. He wants to help the poor and the blacks, but will talk a little more "southern" if he has to while talking to someone who doesn't quite agree with him to make them think he's on their wavelength.

The famous Gulf of Tonkin resolution? Even Johnson believed it may not have happened. But he took the resolution in Congress and ran with it -- using it to justify the war he knew he the U.S. could not win.

In Feb. 1965 he told a Senator "a man can fight if he can see daylight down the road somewhere. But there ain't no daylight in Vietnam. Not a bit."

If you went back and contrasted his public pronouncements with what he was saying privately, it would be shocking: pep talks to the country (and troops) to the contrary, he never felt we could win. Meanwhile, he kissed J. Edgar Hoover's you-know-what to keep Hoover on his side (actually, they had been neighbors in Washington and Johnson had carefully wooed Hoover for years) in his battle against Goldwater, Kennedy and others.

Not all of the book is about the sad, deceitful slide into Vietnam. Many of the transcripts deal with his election campaign, domestic legislation etc....but by the end of this fast-moving volume Vietnam is devouring LBJ alive as it did the country -- and the innocence and joy of the early 1960s.

I read this book rather quickly. It was an INCREDIBLE experience. Read it and you'll be a very sad fly on the wall in the White House.

Reaching for Glory is a terrific book, Lyndon Johnson and his times in his own words. The book has two things going for it. First, it gives the reader the ultimate behind the scenes look at the Presidency - and don't forget the critical time portrayed, the aftermath of the assasination of a President, the struggle for civil rights, and the descent into Vietnam. Second, it has been expertly edited by crack Presidential historian Michael Beschloss. Beschloss has done a masterful job of giving helpful information and context is footnotes that never distract the reader. The big revelation in this book is the inner conflict that Johnson felt about escalating U.S. involvement in Vietnam. He knew the U.S. couldn't win; but he couldn't find a way to leave Vietnam while our troop levels still were low, without leaving himself exposed on the domestic political right. Think what you like about LBJ, and even discount what's on the tapes in case you think he was preening for posterity, the fact of the matter is that he was the victim of a cruel and ironic tragedy. I can't recommend this book enough to anyone who is interested in history.

In rating a book I feel I am usually rating the author as well. However, in books such as this that is based upon transcripts it is hard to truly rate the author. Mr. Beschloss' contribution was limited to doing research to explain the circumstances of the transcripts, choosing the transcripts to use, and the tedious task of transcribing. Original thought, though, is not part of the book. The actual content was provided by Lyndon Johnson and many of the major government movers and shakers of the mid-1960s.

I was a little disappointed and surprised at how "sanitized" the tapes were. I had always thought Johnson's vocabulary was one of the more profane and obscene of all presidents but in both this book and in "Taking Charge" you do not see much evidence of this.

As I read the transcripts I gained a new appreciation for the man. Although I inherited a dislike for the Kennedys and LBJ from my parents, I found myself impressed with many aspects of LBJ. Unlike many others then and now, he was not awed by the Kennedys -- he feared them but was not awed by them. I thought the transcripts of his conversations with Jackie Kennedy in the weeks after the assassination (left out of "Taking Charge" at the request of the Kennedy family) were interesting and even flirtatious as he tried to woo her and keep her friendly while Bobby was becoming less friendly.

I was impressed with the progression into that nightmare in southeast Asia as the President, his senior staff, and Congressional leaders all saw little good coming out of the Vietnam adventure, yet despite their misgivings could not avoid it. There were too many factors that made the decision to escalate that conflict the right choice in the mid-1960s although the risks were well known and the suspicions about the Joint Chiefs of Staff were apparent. Many are critical of President Johnson for publicly proclaiming the conflict as winnable while privately proclaiming the conflict as unwinnable -- yet sending many brave men there anyway. I still recall how the liberal news media proclaiming men such as Senators Church, McGovern, Fulbright, etc as being courageous for being critical of the administration's decision to escalate, but the decision to escalate was in itself was courageous. I also know that Bobby Kennedy was critical of LBJ and that many of President Kennedy's aides and supporters have proclaimed that if JFK had been allowed to serve two full terms we would have pulled out and avoided the problems that LBJ put us through. However, JFK was a politician too. JFK was going to delay any major withdrawals until after the 1964 elections so as to avoid the specter of losing Vietnam during an election campaign. After winning re-election, though, he may have felt compelled to maintain and escalate our involvement because the public was still supportive and to avoid the specter of losing Vietnam during the 1966 mid-term election campaign. After 1966 he may have felt compelled to maintain and escalate our involvement because the public was still supportive and to avoid the specter of losing Vietnam during the 1968 election campaign to choose his successor. And so it goes...

This book covers a short period of the Johnson years. It covers the 1964 campaign and election, the Walter Jenkins sex scandal of October 1964, the crisis in the Dominican Republic in spring 1965, the gradual escalation of forces in Vietnam, etc. I understand Mr. Beschloss is limiting this series to three books so the next book will have a lot to address including the 1966 mid-term elections, the continued escalation of Vietnam and increasing demonstrations against his policies there, race riots, the Pueblo incident, the TET offensive, his decision not to seek re-election, the campaign within the Democratic party to succeed him, the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy, the Chicago convention, the 1968 campaign, the transition to Richard Nixon, etc. Wow! That will be a lot to cover for one book!