Assembled & edited by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei, this first volume of HPL's selected letters spans his life from age 21 to age 33 (at the dissolution of his brief marriage). Most letters are addressed to the "Kleicomolo" circle, or to the individual members thereof: Reinhardt Kleiner, Ira Cole and Maurice Moe; or else to the others in the later "Gallomo" circle (Alfred Galpin, Lovecraft & M. Moe). Many additional letters to Mrs. Sarah Lovecraft, Annie Phillips Gamwell, Mrs. F.C. Clark, Sonia Greene, James Morton, Clark Ashton Smith, Frank Belknap Long, et al., add to the portrait of HPL's family and amateur press relationships during this formative period. Lovecraft discusses not only his then-current projects, but also his ideas and opinions in the realms of pictoral and literary art, architecture and furniture, culture, philosophy, science, political theory, religion, and the changing times. Several of his famous walking tours and other explorations are also recounted. All-in-all, the book is quite indispensible for the serious Lovecraft aficionado.

This is a handy if somewhat eclectic little collection, with works by some poets who are hard to find elsewhere, such as Henry Howard. If you don't have a copy of the long-out-of-print Hebel and Hudson anthology of English Renaissance Poetry, pick up this.

How often do you use words such as "feedback," "basically," or "simplistic" ? Are you sure you know exactly what they mean, and does the person being addressed interpret them in exactly the same sense that you are using them (provided you know what they mean, of course)? Communication skills are important, and this book deals with "weasel words," words that originally meant one thing and now mean quite another. With great wit, the author discusses 44 such words. It also alerts us that language changes, and we have to keep up with it along with other changes in the world.

Error in title for this book:

must be: "Pastoral Epistles", not "Pastoral & Pistles" ;-)

When I first got this long awaited addition to the ICC series, I was suprised to find that it is quite a bit easier to read than most others in this series. It is obvious that Dr. Marshall and the ICC editors intended it to be more user-friendly. I like the format and the size of the print. It is bound nicely, which is one of the reasons for the outrageous price. Dr. Marshall accompished this work in collaboration with Dr. Phillip Towner of Regent College. Towner has spent a good deal of his career in the Pastoral Epistles and I am looking forward to the release of his work on these letters in the NICNT series.

One of the negative aspects of this work (in my view), is Marshall's denial of Pauline authorship. I found his arguments unconvincing (especially after reading Knight and Mounce on Pauline authorship of the PE), and it seems to me that Marshall is too inclined to accept the consensus of liberal scholarship on this matter (e.g., Dibelius and Conzelmann).

Nevertheless, there is much gold to be mined in this work. Dr. Marshall is a brilliant man who is obviously "mighty in the scriptures." The introduction is excellent and the exegesis is thorough and lucid. If you can afford it, you should get it and use it along with Knight, Mounce and Fee.

Dr. Marshall tells us in his preface; "The chief aim has been the understanding of the flow of the argument and the exposition of the theology which it enshrines, so that the message of the letters emerges with all desirable clarity. At the same time I have commented in some detail on Greek syntax for the benefit of students who may appreciate all the help that they can get with the text. Organising the mass of material in what is now called a user-friendly manner has not been easy...."

Well, I am grateful for Dr. Marshall's successful effort. This is a work that abounds with careful thought and helpful insights. I must rank it along side of Knight and Mounce.

The pastorals have been often overlooked. Finally a superb technical commentary from an evangelical. Some will quibble with major and minor points (though clearly evangelical, he denies Pauline authorship for starters), there is so much that is illuminating in these pages. A real window into early christianity!

This book postulates alternative scenarios for world order/disorder as we begin the 21st century. It draws on an insightful analysis of the evolutionary history of feudal-states, to imperial nation-states, to the struggle between communist/fascist/parliamentary nation-states whose objective was to "better material welfare of its citizens." It shows how the parliamentary-state form of government emerged triumphant in 1990 with the collapse of communism and how it is now transforming itself into a market-state structure whose objective is to "maximize the opportunity of its people."

Focusing on military strategy and technology, and international law and politics, considered by Bobbitt as "the makers of history", he reviews the major European wars from 1494 to 1990 and the major peace agreements that ended them. He also devotes a chapter to the recent war in Bosnia.

His insight into the methods, motivations, skillfulness, and ineptitude of the major players gives us new perceptions on the use of geopolitical power. He uses all this background to consider our current and probable world problems and then, using methods pioneered by Royal Dutch/Shell Group Planning, relates them to three alternative scenarios of how these new market-states may evolve and deal with these issues.

At 827 pages plus notes it is not short, nor is it light reading, but it's lessons are imperative for people involved in government, the military, foreign relations, and global strategic thinking. I also highly recommended it for anyone who desires a thoughtful analysis of what is likely to be in store for our civilization in the days ahead.

Those who take the time to wade through this book are in for quite a learning experience. Bobbitt's unique melding of strategy and constitutionalism offers deep insights into the nature of the international system and the future of American power. The chapter on the War in Bosnia - comparing the reaction of the great powers to that of Kitty Genovese's neighbors as she was being murdered in Queens, NY - is gut-wrenching and thought-provoking, and constitutes one of the most engrossing 50 pages that I have ever read. The choices that Bobbitt offers policy-makers are stark and of fundamental importantce - it is a shame that few will take the time to consider the long-term implications of their often hasty short-term decision-making.

This is a most impressive work. It is monumental -- intellectual, deep thinking, not light reading at all. Bobbitt starts with a premise with which I most heartily agree: humanity is entering a whole new era. He sees an evolution of states over the past millennium, each associated with a type of warfare and international environment, transitioning from one to the next due to an epochal war...this is a masterful work. Reading his words, listening to his thoughts, seeing how he structures his arguments, grasping the depth and breadth of his vision and how he pulls it all together into a single, coherent set of ideas, I am struck by the averageness of my intellect and almost overwhelmed by his.
His is profound thinking with far-reaching implications. It strikes home in our post-9/11 awakening. (Its publication was coincidental.) It takes longer to read than its 800+ pages would indicate because one must often stop and ponder his words. If you are willing to take this book on, you will be well rewarded. A resounding 5 stars.

Philip K. Howard's The Collapse of the Common Good is largely a political treatise - one that makes no attempt to achieve an objective analysis of the subject at hand - the development of America's "culture of whiners". By "culture of whiners" I refer to the preponderance of legal cases in America and in Canada in which the plaintiff is someone whose own lack of common sense has led into a situation in which they find themselves unhappy. The reader can heap into this purposefully vague category the assorted idiots who burn themselves with coffee, get themselves fired through ignorance or sloth, fail to achieve what they believe to be their due or who injure themselves doing what no intelligent person would consider. In essence Howard's book decries the culture of "its not my fault" that has developed in most western democratic countries since the cultural morass of the decade of the sixties. As Howard is quick to point out, as society has embraced this "it's not my fault" mentality its members have searched for someone else to blame - that someone is usually someone with money - and to punish through the misuse of the courts.

Admittedly I'm on line with this thinking. In reading this book however even I couldn't countenance Howard's writing. Howard has a definite point in arguing that the judiciary is being forced to exceed its constitutional mandate in assigning fault in the absence of common sense. The problem with this book is that Howard largely eschews analysis in favour of rhetoric as he preaches to the converted. Arguing based on largely anecdotal evidence, Howard's increasingly shrill authorial voice not only undermines the importance of his message but serves to alienate even the most sympathetic reader. Strictly from an analytical point of view, the argument within The Collapse of the Common Good is even less palatable to the objective reader. Howard repeatedly focuses on the symptoms of the problems which he rails against without attempting to discern a cause. In short, Howard contents himself with flogging the dead horse of "political correctness" while ignoring the deeper question of from whence it came.

To the casual reader, reading The Collapse of the Common Good - How America's Lawsuit Culture Undermines our Freedom would be like listening to Paul Harvey if he had too many beers. Even a sympathetic reader is bound to be alienated by its shrill, repetitive tone and superficial content. Howard's book is not for the faint of heart nor left of centre, instead like Mao's little red book it is best in the hands of committed idealogues, to be waved a rallies and misquoted at length.

Aside from what I considered to be a weak title, everything else about the book was superlative and highly thought-provoking. It is obvious when when people were spreading the gospel of individual rights through our society, no one stopped to realize that the random and haphazard exercise of one person's individual rights often ran in direct contradiction to society's rights as a whole. As Mr. Howard says about juries for example: They are not thinking about the effect of their decision on society; they are merely thinking about the two litigants whose case they have been asked to decide. The problems created by this phenomenon are particularly evident when it comes to puntive damages. When plaintiff's lawyers urge jurors to "teach this company a lesson for their [supposedly] heinous conduct" the jurors can respond by blithely awarding tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars in punitive damages, and go to bed at night feeling that they have "served" society by their actions. And of course the great irony is that they have accomplished the exact opposite result. I don't know how much of an effect Mr. Howard's book will have. While it may not be readily apparent, the interest groups that have no interest whatsoever in adopting his suggestions--e.g. the American Bar Association, unions of all stripes and colors, libertarians (ironically) and even Congress to some extent--will act to make sure that the status quo remains the status quo. Nevertheless, I would be delighted to see all of America take his message to heart.

This book is much more than just a call for tort reform. Anyone can say that our society has become overly litigious but Howard goes a step beyond. The Lost art of Drawing the Line presents the full picture of what is wrong with our legal system, how it got that way and what we can do to fix it.

Howard traces the roots of our current legal problems back to the late 19th Century when the political spoils system was replaced with an impartial legal and bureaucratic approach. By replacing politics with a system of rules it was hoped that governmental dealings would be fairer. As anyone who has ever had to deal, or much worse work, with the stifling bureaucracy that grew out of this movement knows it is clear that somewhere along the way fairness went too far.

Howard uncovers the paradox of how our quest for individual rights has actually resulted in a diminution of our freedom. True, we can still do what ever we want by ourselves but we must walk on eggshells when dealing in groups, afraid to offend lest someone take us to court. Howard bravely goes one step further and examines the detrimental effects that the law has had on race relations. He notes that the ticking bomb of the race card has created a minefield of fear and bitterness in the modern workplace.

Whether intentional or not, The Lost Art of Drawing the Line serves as an excellent companion book to Robert Putnam's Bowling Alone. By getting to the core of why coming together to work for the common good has become such a risky proposition The Lost Art of Drawing the Line answers the question of why one would choose to bowl alone.

The book is not all doom and gloom. We still have a government of the people. And, as Howard proposes, if as a nation we are able to gather the national will to fix our system, no government can get in our way.

Read this book. And then recommend it to your friends.

The first edition of this book was published in 1994 but 'Techno Vision II' has been fully updated to incorporate the revolution impact of the Internet. The basic hypothesis of the book is the problem of disconnect. In most organisations, there is a fundamental disconnect between 'techies' and the rest of corporate management - a mismatch that is caused by disparities in training and temperament. Disconnect is so ingrained that few recognize it, despite it being one of most profound limitations to achieving improvements in productivity and competitiveness. The book examines in considerable detail the causes of disconnect and possible solutions. Bridging the gap between 'techies' and the rest of the corporate hiearchy is critical to the future of many organisations.

Wang tells of how CIOs and CEOs suffer from a communication disconnect, and ways to connect. He also introduces the reader to several current IT topics. I found parts of the book a thinly-veiled marketing tool for Computer Associates, the author's company. He also mis-formats URLs.

The Cheerleader in Chief of Clinton is able to effectively transmit all of that exceptional charisma and excitement right into this book! All of what he wrote sounded so genuine and interesting that I could hardly put it down! I hope he writes another book because I'll be the first one to buy it!

This man should be impeached for his sheer banality. I'm not even sure that a real person wrote this book--it reads more like something written by a computer with one of those auto-writing programs. Come to think of it, is Al Gore even a real person? Has anyone ever seen him do something like eat or drink in public, or is he just some sort of incorporeal, babbling hologram?

This is a fascinating look at how Vice-President Gore has worked to reduce the size of the federal government. It is easy to read and is very substantive. This book is a must read for every American!