★ Reviews for Hay,

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

The Five of Hearts: An Intimate Portrait of Henry Adams and His Friends, 1880-1918

Published in Hardcover by Clarkson N. Potter (June, 1990)

Author: Patricia O'Toole

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A Washington Salon - 1880-1910

The book is not intellectually deep, but is most enjoyable. It provides a view of a small American elite representing a transitional society between the late Civil War and early 19th century. It centers on five diverse people who, by chance, formed a unizue Washington social and intellectual salon mostly centering on themselves, but benefitting from each member's extensive contacts in the U.S. and France (to a lesser extent). The five were Henry Adams (descendant of two Presidents), his wife, Clover, John Hay (Secretary to Lincoln and Sec of State at the turn of the century), his wife, and Clarence King, the firs head of the U.S. Geological survey.

Adams and Hay built large homes on the north of Layafette Square which became the center of the salon (the sites are occupied by the Hay Adams Hotel).

The focus is on the personalities and interests of these unique characters, the depiction of life at the heart of our capitol, and references to art and architecture integral to Washington of that era, but which led to a broader influence along the east coast particularly. In a very concrete setting, the author deals with love, tragedy, and the political and intellectual curiosit which dominated these people's lives. None has really survived in the public consciousness, but all played significant roles in their time and deserve this interest in what made their lives.

The Way to the Salt Marsh: A John Hay Reader

Published in Paperback by University Press of New England (September, 1998)

Authors: John Hay and Christopher Merrill

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A John Hay "Greatest Hits"

If you're unfamiliar with this naturalist's writings, then you're in luck. This sampler contains essays from nine of his books, from _The Run_ (1959) to _In the Company of Light_ (1998), as well as several of Hay's poems and his John Burroughs Medal acceptance address. Here you will follow and see along with him as if on the same trail, gleaning tidbits of natural science in the process. Shorelines and wetlands are the main areas featured -- mostly in New England, and often in Cape Cod -- though a few forays take us to Florida and to the rainforest of Costa Rica. Read Hay's insights into the intricacies of salt-water habitats, and you're apt to see more the next time you go beach-combing yourself -- from the smallest creatures in the water to the larger ones winging above you. Here you will also run across Hay's astute environmental observations and admonishments:

"Every life that touches on another, or becomes a part of another, keeps the earth's fluidity in being." ("Homing," from _The Undiscovered Country_)

"We ought to be tuning up to what is around us, but our own static is too loud." ("Listening," from _The Undiscovered Country_)

"At times I think that all the plants, birds, fish, and every other living organism are waiting for our departure so that they can resume timeless engagement with the earth." ("Fire in the Plants," from _A Beginner's Faith in Things Unseen_)

This smorgasbord is a nice addition to any nature-lover's bookshelf and could inspire the reader to search out one or more of the featured titles to delve deeper into John Hay's work.

The Curious Naturalist

Published in Hardcover by National Geographic (June, 1994)

Authors: Jennifer G. Ackerman, Diane Ackerman, National Geographic Society, and John Hay

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Disappointed.

I bought this book thinking I'd find something wonderful by Diane Ackerman in it, and I did, but it's a short essay anthologized from her magnificent "A Natural History of the Senses." The other essays are good, but no one writes about nature the way Ackerman does. If you're an Ackerman fan, you're much better off buying "Senses" to learn how to watch the sky. Or two of my personal favorites: "The Rarest of the Rare" and "The Moon by Whale Light," which are both incredible hymns to endangered animals and ecosystems.

Great Essays, Lacking in Specifics

THE CURIOUS NATURALIST is an outstanding collection of well written, easy to read, and informative essays about the various biomes of the natural world. A famous naturalist examines each biome in detail, often detailing his or her account of the flora and fauna in that area with tidbits of personal experience. Excellent pictures, coupled with nature study techniques and field observation tools, enhance the book's descriptions and down-to-earth information on the biomes. A major drawback, however, is the book's lack of specifics; that is, there is not much mention of specific wildlife of observing nature in a specific region. After all, woodlands in the east coast are definitely different than those in California. Still, this was a helpful, engaging, and valuable book, which has aided me many a time in my own natural investigations. Great for beginners and experts alike.

A lesson on how to see the world...

I fell in love with this book's large, beautiful pictures and easy reading. This is not a book for someone who wants step by step information on how to do something, but for someone seeking to learn how to view nature around us so that we can then learn from it. This book has all the quality of a National Geographic magazine built-in. Essays on all kinds of environments discuss some weather, flora, and fauna, and their interactions. Great book for those who love the out-of-doors to cuddle up with. This one has a special spot on my shelf.

Combination Challenge

Published in Paperback by Hays Pub (October, 1991)

Authors: Lou Hays and John Hall

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not worth the money

I looked forward to getting this book. Imagine my regret when I found out that most of the positions in this book come from Fred Reinfelds combination books such as 1001 combinations and sacrifices. I thought I was getting a book that would offer ORIGINAL material. If the book was original this book would be a sure classic, but its nothing of the kind. I gave the book to charity and hopefully some good will come out of it. I should have listened to the previous reviewer about saving your money. If you want combination books Reinfelds are the best. Read his chess books and you will see why he was an early inductee to the chess hall of fame. He was an original and not taking material from other writers.

Good, but try Winning Chess Tactics for Juniors first

If your rating is below 1700, try Winning Chess Tactics for Juniors first. It's an edited version of Combination Challenge, but with just 1-3 move problems from that book. It's not in a kiddie format, althought it's a smaller book-- the problems just have fewer moves than Combination Challenge and there aren't as many problems in it. In the forward of Winning Chess Tactics for Juniors it says to do this book 3 times and not to move on to Combination Challenge until you're around USCF 1700.

Excellent Training Book for Practicing Tactics

This is an excellent training book for practicing tactics. There are over 1,110 diagrams sorted by theme; pins, forks, skewers, overloading, back rank weakness, Queen Sacrifices, etc.

This is not a primer. Beofre tackling this book you should read an introductory tactics book such as "Winning Chess Tactics" by GM Seirawan.

Once you are acquainted with all of the different themes, use this book for further practice.

There are enough diagrams to keep you busy for months (even years).

The intended audience for this book is most likely players rated between around 1400-2000 USCF.

The main beef that some of the other reviewers seem to have is that the book contains most of the same problems as Reinfelds "1001 Winning Chess Sacrifices and Combinations". My response is "so what?". If you are comfortable with descriptive notation then buy that book. But for those folks who either don't know descriptive notation, or who actually prefer solving problems in algebraic notation then this is your book.

As far as the occasional error or ambiguity in a few solutions - I'm sorry but I have not seen a tactics book that is completely free of these errors. This book is no exception.

Overall, you would be hard-pressed to find a better tactics review book.

Twelve and One Half Keys

Published in Paperback by Forest of Peace Books (June, 1981)

Authors: Edward Hays and John J. Pilch

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I guess I'm not mystical enough...

... because I thought this book was terrible. If you like an author to get to the point, or even to tell you what he's thinking (even if it takes half the book to get to that point), you'll be disappointed, because the stories in this book get odder and odder. Calling them abstract would be an understatement, and one will feel as if they're lying down on a couch speaking to a psychiatrist. Hays tries to get you to come to conclusions by asking yourself questions and seeking the answers within you. Which might not be such a bad idea, if you knew what the heck the stories in this book were half-way about. I was not impressed. The stories were way off the wall, and I just didn't have the patience to sit there and tease out whatever glimmer of personal reflection these stories might represent for me.

To be truthful, I bought the book because John J. Pilch was affiliated with it. I tried and tried to find out how he was responsible for this book, but there isn't even a foreword by him, and I couldn't see if he wrote any of the stories or not. Pilch is a Christian, and so I was hoping that this book would be Christian in nature... it isn't as far as I can tell. But then again, I couldn't tell much from this book anyways.

RUN, do not WALK, to buy this book: YESTERDAY!

The only reason I give this book a "10" is that the scale doesn't go any higher. Ed Hays is a wonderful spiritual writer: he deals with ancient truths in new and refreshing ways, such that they are accessible to anyone who can read them. You don't need a doctorate in theology to understand and enjoy Hays' books, just the time to read them and think them over.

The last of the short stories in this book, "The Tin Box," is well worth the price of the whole book all by itself.

This is an excellent book for anyone interested in deepening his or her spiritual life, and especially for anyone with the time for quiet reflection (you'll need it, once you've read a few of the stories).

A word to the wise, though: A little Hays goes a long way! This is a book to be savoured, a page at a time, not gobbled whole and put back on the shelf.

Give it a try--I can promise you won't regret it!

Essentials of Accounting for Governmental and Not-For-Profit Organizations

Published in Paperback by McGraw-Hill/Irwin (July, 1998)

Authors: John H. Engstrom and Leon Edwards Hay

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Frustration

This is a truly horrible book. It's written so poorly that the only way it can be used is as a look-up reference. If you don't have a really good instructor for Not-for-profit accounting, find one using a different book. You won't get much out of this.
The 7th Edition is just as bad as the 6th.

Worst Text I ever had to read

If it was possible to give this book a negetive star review I would. It has no organization, no structure, and makes no sense. It is by far the worst text I have ever had to read. Although the author is a professor, he must be a very bad one. He has no grasp on how students learn, and makes no attempt to link information together. He uses the same example throughout the entire text. As if in chapter 9, you rememeber what entry 14, is in chapter 3. A horrible book. It is easier to read the GASB statements than it is this book. DO NOT BUY IT!!

WARNING! Reading this book may cause extreme drowsiness.

WARNING! This book may cause drowsiness. Do not attempt to operate heavy machinery after reading this book.

It's too bad the author has absolutely no literary skills whatsoever. I'm no great author myself but you'd think by the time they got to the fifth edition all the errors would be gone and they would have improved upon the existing text. I guess the editors must have let this one slip through without actually reading what they were going to be publishing.

If you are unfortunate enough to have to buy this book then you will be dumber for having read it and may God have mercy on your soul.