This book contains much about Sumer and Akkad that is not neccessarily found in any other source. LW King gives credit to the many scholars of his time that contributed to the known history of Sumer. I believe that it is a great and beneficial source for any anceint history buff.

William Claxton's Jazz is the union of two art forms: photography and jazz music. It is a window into the hey-day of that truly American musical form. True, music can (and usually does) speak for itself, but when visual imagery is presented in such an honest and candid way, one is able to glimpse the artist, and at once feel the moment that has been captured on film. Whether caught up in a recording session, poring over a musical phrase, or simply enjoying the sound of the instrument that is their own, Claxton is able to portray the musician at work, at play, or at peace with his art form.

Of related interest: The Blue Note Years-The Jazz Photography of Francis Wolff

I read this in summer 2002 in its original 1969 hardcover (remaindered by a public library) and I am glad it's still available. Mr. Levy's book covers the period from Magna Carta to the drafting of the U.S. Constitution, and reveals that all the criminal rights we take for granted didn't spring full-grown from the Founding Fathers' heads but evolved through 500 years of common law. (The Founding Fathers did capture it in written, not just traditional common law, however). The right against self-incrimination, to not be compelled to testify against yourself, to be informed of the nature and cause of accusations against you, the rule of law over government itself -- all developed long before our Revolution and were well-rooted in England by the 16th Century.

Mr. Levy tells a vivid story, peopled with mighty figures like John Lilburne, the Puritan who faced down the Court of Star Chamber, and Sir Edward Coke, a jurist of that time who could declare to an arbitrary king that "Magna Charta is such a fellow that he will have no sovereign."

Mr. Levy also gives us a sense of how unique the Anglo-American common law -- the evolution of law built on cases, not just statutes -- is compared to its Roman and Napoleonic counterparts on the European continent. I read this before beginning law school in fall 2002 and this book was considerably helpful in Crim. Law and Crim. Procedure, where the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Amendments suffuse police and criminal process in the U.S.

Ordinary people, not just lawyers, will find this book timely given the current trend to brush off this longstanding heritage in the name of temporary wartime security. It's good to read of the deep roots of our law, and of its barrier between the individual and arbitrary official power.

An Excellent Book For All The Managers In Every Organisation....... A Must Read

These essays on the history of the law provide a wide range ofinsights; from the early Ranters who confronted moral laws in Englandto modern-day anecdotes about the Supreme Court. From a debate with Harvard University Press over the publication of his book on blasphemy to essays covering the origins of amendments, this provides an excellent set of legal experiences.

Worth it's weight in gold! At last, a work we can count on to bring a much needed and missed perspective. The editors have done a tremendous job and deserve our thanks. A real treasure.

It's an invaluable resource for mathematicians, physicists and for anyone that has ever encountered a series. It contains 1,146 series and their summations, designed to eliminate the hours or even days of wasted time and effort in summing commonly encountered series.

This is a fantastic book for ages 6 to 9, about Tituba, the slave from the West Indies whose harmless but very sincere and sacred pagan beliefs and practices sparked the Salem Witch Trials. Besides telling a little known story of black slave history, it is particularly refreshing to read about the persecution of nature worshipping people, and how easy it can be to be accused of witchcraft for having an animistic religion. By seeing Tituba on nearly every page, in contemplation and at work, I completely identified with her. For once, this telling doesn't concentrate on the hysterics of the young girls. My daughter couldn't put it down, and the illustrations deftly remind one of Tituba's connection to West Indian culture,while being set in puritan New England. It really is a must-have for those interested in women's and witch heritage.

I found this book extremely useful in college. It has great quotes and short stories on a varity of subjects, all in alphabetical order. It was the most useful in my speech classes and any class that required a paper.

Do you think that star trek VI The Undiscovered Country wasn't good enogh ending to the original star trek series and films?

If you dit, I must recommend this novel to you.

Although a bit too centered around the character of Kirk, this book gives room to all the regulars, when ST:TUC centered almoust completely around Kirk, McCoy, and of course Spock.

The book has a wonderfull motion picture kind of storytelling going on, wich is characteristic to all the star trek books written by William Shatner and Judith & Garfield Reeves-Steevens that I've read.

The book has an epic feeling to it, and when you combine that to the excellent characterization and to the plot that explores many aspects of the lives of the crew of the starship Enterprise, finally ending in an insightfull ending of the whole TOS movie era "as only Shatner can tell it", you have nothing less but a definite must-read.

The overuse of Kirk is the only problem, but then again, nobody complained about "All Good Things...", even if Picard was the only character satisfyingly portrayed in that last episode of TNG.

If you like TOS one bit, read this. And also don't forget the other star trek books by the same authors.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, William Shatner has written what I would proclaim as a piece of fine science fiction and Star Trek literature. The story begins with a great mysterious/emotional awe as it opens with Spock at the grave of his fallen friend James T. Kirk. Then, the story sky rockets as Mr. Spock recalls their last adventure in the final days of the beloved James Kirks life! The story starts with Kirk reliving a simulation on Tycho VI where he lost his girl friend and relives a challenging moment with arch-villian Androwar Drake. In the end Kirk awakes from a simulation and drags on his last day virtually hopeless until a new young lady enters his life. A half Romulan/Klingon hybrid she leads Kirk and virtually gives a desperate Kirk hungary for a last piece of action hope. Kirk's friends think he is crazy but Kirk does not listen. Instead he gets involved with the young women and leaves Starfleet to aide her in defense of her planet Chal. This young woman named Telani gives him the Enterprise after Kirk learns his arch-enemy Androwar Drake becomes the CiC of the Fleet and plans to blow the ship to dust. So, Kirk returns with the Enterprise and old friends Scott to the planet! But that is one half. Meanwhile Checkov and Uhura go on a mission to find out Klingon's are selling weapons of mass destruction. While there both Checkov and Uhura run into a rogue agent of Star Fleet Intell and get ditched and left to die until Captain Sulu rescues them. Then the crew goes to the new CiC and the old gang along with Spock and McCoy are assigned to hunt down Kirk! Well, in the end the two sides meet in epic battle that only the reader will have to find out! Shatner blows the fans away with a great book! Long life James T. Kirk!

I have read enough Star Trek novels to know the typical pattern ... Shatner has broken it. His book would have just been another installment of sci-fi action pulp, if not for some of the observations he made and details he observed. Yes, there is the obligatory bad guy and the conflict between good guys. But this time, Shatner added several elements that made the book irresistible.

First of all, the whole "growing old" bit that Kirk went through, his melancholy and observations regarding his continuing usefulness (or lack thereof) -- Shatner wrote about old age without sounding whiny, which is no small task. I am twenty-one years old, yet I could feel what he was going through. I've never been famous either (yet), but I felt like I understood what Kirk/Shatner was trying to say. He made it real, somehow.

Also, Shatner expanded on Kirk's "change the rules" behavior, and his near-obsessive need to live in the moment and beat the odds, elements vital to Kirk's status as hero. I had not been a Kirk fan until this book, because I'd never been inside his head; all I ever saw was the over-acting testosterone-charged character who spoke in small bursts. Shatner made me like and respect Kirk for his maturity and courage, which no one has ever done before.

Finally, the book came together on two fronts: action and philosophy (as all good Trek does). It blended perfectly - Kirk's quest for youth unravels even as he realizes all things must change, must die and become something new. Teilani grows up by learning to face up to the unknown, even as Kirk realizes that he can't move forward until he accepts where he is.

One last note regarding how Shatner treated Kirk's love interest: Shatner excelled as a novelist in his treatment of a character's perspective on love and romance. No other author I have read seems so capable of grasping what love means to a man, how it changes him and draws him together in new and fascinating ways. If for nothing else, I would have loved this book for his portrayal of the concept of love and relationships - not as an interesting diversion, but as an underpinning to one's entire philosophy of life.

This is Shatner's best book to date, eclipsed (in parts) only by his sequels.