I'm glad Hogan wrote this story. Inherit the Stars is on my top 10 favorites list, and after reading it I wanted more, and that's just what Hogan does in this 1978 sequel (second in a series). It takes off where the first novel ended and continues to challenge and explore accepted concepts of humankind. Hogan does what a Sci-Fi writer (or any writer for that matter) is supposed to do -- he takes an idea and pushes it outside the envelope. With science fiction, he doesn't just rehash a fantasy about aliens that's merely based on old familiar plots set in the future, what he does is actually push beyond what we accept as current science and beliefs and creates a plausible world and race. His aliens are unique, as only they should be, because they evolved in a different environment from Earth. Hogans characters combined with his creativity and knowledge of the aerospace industry add up to a good yarn. I wish the editors and publishers of modern Sci-Fi books and magazines would take notice of good Sci-Fi writers like Hogan.

I'm surprised it seems there are no reviews for this book yet. I read this book when it came out in 1983. I was electrified by Mr. Hogan's breathtaking ideas and sweeping concepts, from the origins of the human race to the possibilities of "what's out there..." No doubt I began some serious reading on these matters because of Mr. Hogan and how he inspired me -- I even did some music pieces thinking of some scenes of the book. Thanks you, Mr. Hogan. I think all young people, 15 to 25, should read this book in school sometime. After I read this, I read Inherit the Stars, and was totally amazed when Giants' Star came out. I think Hollywood got scared to do any of this material on film. It's far too large and overwhelming for that format. So read this book! This book is great fun and a great learning experience as well. The whole trilogy is one of the greatest works of this 20th Century that fades away. Lots of books will fade away, but the Trilogy will go on. Cheers to Mr. Hogan!

French crime writer Manchette's final novel was published in 1981 and now finally appears in English over twenty years later. Unmistakably influenced by Jean-Pierre Melville's brilliant 1967 film "Le Samourai", the story is about Martin, a professional hit man who wants to quit the business and return home to claim his childhood love. However, the mysterious government agency who hires him wants him to do just one last job... Of course this is an old story, and naturally Martin finds it's not so easy to just walk away. Having come from a miserable small town upbringing, he's proven himself in the big bad world and just wants to retire to a quiet beach somewhere with his old girlfriend. But this is the noir world of shattered illusions-as one character puts it, "You're dreaming, there are no more desert islands!" It doesn't take too much reading between the lines to uncover Manchette's larger political metaphor in the story of a kid who hires himself out to do someone else's killing for ten years only to find it's tainted him forever. The book is brutally dark, but if you like the whole nihilist crime thing, it's worth the two hours it takes to read. The lean story unfolds in rapid, flat prose without an ounce of sentimentality and it's not hard to see why Manchette quit writing after this. If your world view is that bleak, there's not a whole lot else to say, is there?

As one reviewer summed it up, this is Dashiel Hammett meets Guy Debord, and it's true; flat, spare prose with a sense of existential nihilism from which there is no escape. Fast, rough, violent reading, told in a matter-of-fact procedural manner. The ending is telegraphed rather obviously, but this is first rate work, and if you're into violent noirs, you should read it. What a film it would make, in the right hands!

Having read both the book and the other review of it here, I'm in wholehearted agreement. But I did encounter one small downside. James Bain recommends only one source for upholstery material -- and that turns out to be a wholesaler to the trade only. I haven't checked the other recommdnations, but you should be aware that there's a possible problem here, however minor.

This book is an excellent value. It is packed with useful techniques for restoring just about any kind of furniture. The entire book is in full-color. Each project and technique includes a material and equipment list as well as clear step-by-step instructions accompanied by small photos.

The book starts out with tips on where to purchase furniture and what to look for when you do. Then it gives you the basics of getting started including tools, finishing, cleaning, stripping, and treating infestation or wood rot. It also has a wonderful section on understanding wood with a nice chart on 15 wood types, their use, advantages and disadvantages.

Consolidation of furniture including deciding what parts to keep, dismantling a piece or simply making the furniture joints stronger follows. Consolidation sections specific to chairs, tables, and a chest of drawers provide useful details. They teach things like replacing a broken chair stretcher bar, evening chair legs, mending major cracks, replacing a table chassis, carving a new leg for a tripod table or repairing worn drawer slides. There are two additional sections on metal fittings and upholstery. Molding a backplate, antiquing new metal fittings and replacing a double stuffed seat are just a few of the techniques taught here.

The next section focuses on repairing and beautifying surfaces. This includes a great guide to solving common problems like white water marks, dents and scorch marks. Veneer repairs such fixing blisters and removing an old veneer and reusing it as are also covered. It then goes on to demonstrate several surface effects including French polishing, working with gesso, gilding, aging paint, staining, graining, marbling and waxing.

The last section includes 12 projects that use the techniques previously covered. In one project, clients need a sixth chair. They find one with a matching back but must replace the entire seating structure and reupholster it. In another project an empire-style night table needs its brass fitting replaced and its tambour door dismantled and refitted. It also needs new stain, French polish and wax.

The information here will enable you to take on some tough challenges with satisfying professional results as you restore or enhance fine furniture. To help with any project there is a nice list of suppliers in the back.

This book is a confusing set of devices and instructions for players and storytellers alike. It is hard to read and equally hard to understand--i found my High School government textbook easier to read than this. However, if you do want to give you Tremere scorcer/witch a bit more depth i would recomend this book, and its companion book.

I will rarely say in these reviews on Amazon.com that that "only X type of person should read this" but this review is one exception. I think this book has so much information, so many great ideas and guidelines, and clan background that it is really only useful for storytellers and maybe wouldbe writers who like the "world of darkness". I think a player would get a lot of ideas, many of which would not be compatible with a story from this book so the best way to combat that and still allow Tremere and other magic using Kindred to develop would be for storyteller and player to look at this book together. I think it does a good job of detailing how to design paths and rituals, a sample worksheet might help in this regard, but also in talking about the limitations of the practice of bloodmagic.

A book detailing the complex discipline of Thaumaturgy has been long needed. This is a really good one and while it doesn't solve all the problems created by the past handling of Thaumaturgy in VAMPIRE: THE MASQUERADE, it goes a long way toward clarifying and further developing the discipline.

The book discussed the history and theory of vampiric blood magic. We learn that it predates the Tremere, for example, and hear about basic principles of magical workings. There is discussion about the difference between a Tremere vampire and a True Mage (metaphysical, mostly, and assumes familiarity with MAGE- for more practical instructions on vampires and mages, see VAMPIRE: STORYTELLERS HANDBOOK), how non-Tremere might learn Thaumaturgy and some examples of arcane tomes. Most of it is clearly explained (with few exceptions like the unnecessarily ambiguous section about the difference between spirits and demons).

There are welcome sections outlining the Koldunic sorcery of the Tzimisce (finally!) and voodoo-derived traditions of Necromancy. Both the Assamites and the Setites have their own traditions of blood magic, detailed here. There are paths derived from Alchemy and Kaballah. Biothaumatugy is recycled from SECRETS OF THE BLACK HAND.

Unfortunately, while the material introduced here is superb, the book doesn't pull together the various little bits of Thaumaturgy scattered between VAMPIRE: THE MASQUERADE and VAMPIRE: DARK AGES. It just once again gives us more and better. It would have been nice, for example, to have an appendix showing which previously introduced paths and rituals are in which books. Furthermore, some storytellers seem intimidated about Thaumaturgy and disallow it as "too complicated". Step by step instructions (and a pep talk) might have been good, too. I should mention also that this book is about vampiric blood magic ONLY- no numinas or hedge magic more appropriate to allies like ghouls.

Mr. Hogan always does a good job with the science in his novels, but this one just wasn't a very interesting story. It's an enjoyable enough read, but it's not one I'll ever read again. Mr. Hoagn has written several novels that I've read 3 or 4 times, this just won't be one of them.

In this story Joe Corrigan finds himslef a misfit/outcast in a humorless world filled with identity-less humans. Eventually he realizes that he is inside a computer-simulated world that he helped create. He spends the rest of the novel trying to figure out what went wrong, can he leave, and should he leave. He finally solves the puzzle at the end of the novel, but the problem and the key/solution were obvious even before the author revealed that it was a simulation.

If you have a lot of time on your hands, then go ahead and get the book. But if you only have time to read a certain number of books this month, skip this one. (Sorry Mr. Hogan)

Realtime Interrupt is very much a typical James Hogan novel. His standard formula has been to take a technology that may be reachable in the near future, find a beliveable way to achieve it, and wrap a novel with interesting people and plot around the concept.

Realtime Interrupt tackles two problems at once, artificial intelligence, long a favorite subject of Hogan's, and virtual reality. Certain things, such as the fact that the world Joe wakes up in at the beginning is an artificial world, are made plain from the start, even if he takes a while to discover it. As such, it does echo some of the themes of The Matrix, but without the gunfights and (bleah) goth elements. In many ways this book is "anti-cyberpunk," with a lot of the themes and ideas in a "normal" world instead of a corporate-trash ridden dystopia.

As usual, the technology is fascinating, the characters are engaging, even they are not the most well rounded, the plot moves at a brisk, even pace, and the world (in this case Pittsburgh and Ireland) feels natural. Despite not having any real plot *twists*, it never quite went in the direction I was expecting, either. Joe is not the typical Hogan hero, having immersed himself in the world of political infighting before settling down in a more sedate role. Realtime Interrupt is a good book for anyone with an interest in technology and a nice understated yarn.

It's a bleeding shame that the moment I bought this book, it seemed to drop out of print. A shame, I say, because this is the book I would throw into the face of anyone who says that Mr. Hogan (or Hard SF writers in general) don't care about their characters, only about technology.

The beginning is slow going, if only because the main character hasn't figured out what is so painfully obvious from the title. But what seems boring and unnecessary in the first half becomes, suddenly (like a baseball bat SMACK! in the back of your head), completely necessary, integral, and absolutely fascinating.

REALTIME INTERRUPT is many things -- cyberpunk (kind of), mystery, thriller, puzzle-story. But at its center, it is a tale of being able to go back again and fix your mistakes. And the message is, quite simply, you can't go back again, even if you can -- but you can start over, and that's almost as good.

This book requires patience in the beginning, but once you're halfway through, you'll wish it was twice as long just so the author can infuriate you some more. If you can find it, read it.

This is quite simply an amazing book. As a programmer I have encountered many technical books and even more in the way of documentation and I have never found anything quite like this. The author has a unique style that is quite possibly the most forthcoming and concise presenation format one could find on the topic. In honor of this I shall write my review in the same style of the book:

1. My first book was Core Java 2 (Fundamentals). As a VB developer trying to learn Java, this was

the most elementary book offered by Sun. While the book promises much depth, lack of organization and clarity impeded my ability to work through it. In the second chapter one is already importing classes and fiddling with CLASSPATH variables.

2. In extreme contrast to this, On To Java focuses on syntax in a step by step format that thoroughly covers even the most basic Java "Hello World" type application. Upon this the author builds concepts such as data types, methods, classes and so on in a very methodical step-by-step format.

3. Although this material is more of a drawn out tutorial that focuses on a single application and develops it throughout, it's concise and deliberate format is something that I've found to be lacking in *all* other Java documentation I've perused, including the excellent material from the O'Reilly people.

4. Therefore this is a book for a person who wants a quick but thorough start on Java, who wants to be advised of even the most straight forward syntax before they begin importing classes and looking at sample applications and who wants to focus on the language rather than a specific vendor's product.

5. The limitation of this book is that it is *not* a reference by any means. After one has been through the material they will not draw on this book for supplementary input. However, the authors intention I'm quite sure is that this material is a primer- a preliminary step whereas the complete references are meant to augment one who is already versed in the basics, structure and syntax of Java. Moreover the JDK includes such documentation.

This is the best introduction to Java available. It is clear, concise, and very accurate. It takes the reader on a very carefully crafted odyssey of the Java language in easily digestible bits. It is uses proven pedagogical principles (Winston is an excellent teacher (based only on my readings of his books). In addition, Winston carefully develops sound SW engineer practices without being dogmatic. He also points out alternatives without being critical. He points out Java's advantages without sounding like an adolescent evangelist. Winston carefully and correctly uses the English language to make his points simply and directly. "On to Java" is easy to read and enables a learner new to Java to get a solid foundation painlessly and quickly.

Winston's "On to Java" is in a word...Awesome!

If you need an introduction to your first computer language or a starting point for a study of computer science you won't find a better Java book. As a bonus it is very affordable.

My other favorite introductory level books are: "A Gentle Introduction to Symbolic Computing" by David Touretsky "A Taste of Smalltalk" (I have forgotten the author's name)

1999 Edition, Java 1.2: If you want to learn Java, get this book and get it now. I wasted my money on 10 other Java books before I bought this one and not ONE of them even came close to getting me to understand the Java language like this book did. It's easy and exciting to read as you learn more and more in each subsequent "how-to" section. If you want a book full of Java applets then buy one of the other 10,000 books out there, or visit a web site. If you want to learn Java, do yourself a favor and go buy this book.

During the first third of this book I was afraid it was going to end with ".. and they called their new planet EARTH!" Fortunately Hogan is much better than that.

I found problems with the necessary suspension of disbelief in a couple of areas which seemed to be unnecessary to the story. It it an intriging idea to have a self-aware machine build a self-aware bio-form (the star-child) out of component molecules based on nothing more than an imperfectly understood DNA record. The part that doesn't sit so well is the resulting person -- with utterly no connection to any human society -- could nonetheless end up with so much culturally in common with people living on a planet.

Hogan also skates over the massive problems that would accrue if you had a person raised in a sterile environment (no bacteria or viruses at all) and plonk them down into a fully functioning Earthlike ecology, even eating the local food. I'm no expert but I think it would be unlikely that such subjects would survive. At least not easily.

And if you would be interested in the star-child's first experiences with sex, you will be disappointed.

The part of the story about the machines were more believable, actually. I like the part where they developed multiple personalities to serve different functions: the Scientist, the Skeptic, the Mystic and so on.

Worth reading, but as I said it has shortcomings.

This book is a very imaginative piece of work. It gives a detailed account of how computers can function. This very well may be the way of the future. The computers evolved on their own, as have other robot models today, but they begun evolution from human set parameters. This is a very realistic way of this process happening. So, not only is the book creative with a great story line, it is a distinct possibility.

One of the best books ever written!

When Taya was eight, she discovered that she wasn't like the machines around her. Her robot friend, Kort, no matter how kind, couldn't tell the difference between a pretty shape and a not pretty shape. Kort then showed her the bio-bodies that had been engineered after her. When they are brought to life, they call her "queen".

Ten years later, the robots and their charges land on Azure, a planet similar to our earth. Here, they meet with violence and destruction, foreign behaviors to them. For the most part, the story is about the "Star Children" and their influence on the planet.

In deference to my longstanding crush on Patrick Stewart, my husband gave this to me as a joke, and a joke it is! If I were to gather up a pile of fanzines, tabloids and talk show video clips, I could have written this book (although I hope I would have proofread it a little better. The typos are legion.) The "authors" did nothing except cut and paste previously published material -- no additional research or interviews went into producing it. Faithfully repeating what Mr. Stewart said to Jay Leno is about as insightful as it gets. All my Amazon pals who gave this 5 stars might want to try reading a real biography some time!

Authors Hatfield and Burt sifted through mountains of press clippings and hours of interviews to give their readers a solid foundation of facts about the life of actor Patrick Stewart. These facts, however, are often couched in an "En-quiring minds want to know" writing style that does a great disservice, at times, to their subject as well as their own hard work. Tales of Stewart's violent childhood are harrowing enough without the Dickensian embellishments by Hatfield/Burt. The star's private life (an oxymoron?) as "documented" in tabloid headlines gets an extra dash of spice by the smirking account supplied by the authors. Stories of conflict with Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry show Stewart as a canny operator not unlike some of the Shakepearean villians he has portrayed. Hatfield and Burt didn't need to resort to tabloidization; the truth is colorful and fascinating enough. Stewart fans hungry for information will find facts and documentatio! n in plenty here, and overlook the dramatizations.

I found the biographical information on Stewart very interesting and well done. Plus, the book gives a great look at the happenings behind the scenes during the making of the Next Generation television series. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and had a hard time putting it down.

In his recent autobiography, Gardner Botsford tells that the mother of "Punch" Sulzberger of the NY Times experienced the stop in the mortuary rest room followed by the unexpected legacy that forms the climax of Donleavy's novelette.

Those who have read "The Ginger Man" will not be surprised by Donleavy's quirky style. Those who have not will find that book to be both much longer and much more rewarding.

My book group read this and though it was certainly the shortest book we have read, it led to the longest discussion we've ever had. The protagonist is a women whose husband leaves her for a younger woman. Because of this and some bad decisions on her part she loses her house, country club membership, friends, kids...status in her community and ends up living in a small room in New York, working at a store for minimum wage. She is miserable. Through a very unusual series of events, she regains her wealth only to realize that it's not the money that made her happy, it was her former life and she can not have that back. The ending leaves you thinking for a long, long time. This book is written as the woman thinks and Donleavy's writing style is hard to get used to at first. It is almost as if you are inside her head. This is a book to pass along to friends so that you can talk about it for hours.

Our book club chose this book because we all loved the title and could definately relate to the desire to use clean restrooms. This novella traces the ups and downs in Jocelyn's life after her husband leaves her to live with his girlfiend in an apartment on West 67th Street. Jocelyn was educated at Bryn Mawr and lives in a beautiful home on Winnapoopoo Road in Scarsdale, but now her life is about to change dramatically. The book is often sad, sometimes bawdy and always entertaining. I would definately recommend this book and would like to order another by Donleavy.

Financed by a rich oligarchy losing their power and influence in a prosperous and peaceful 21st century, Project Overlord decides to create a world more to its liking. A world in the past, a world where Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party are more than just obscure players in German political history.

They succeed, and the novel opens in 1974 with an America grimly preparing to fight the final battle against the Nazi menace which spans the globe. The Proteus team -- commandos, physicists, and politicians from that doomed world -- travels back to 1939. There they will attempt to reshape history with political manipulation and atomic weapons.

Hogan not only does a nice job of building an alternate timeline which diverges from ours in 1930's Germany, but he also details the history of Nazi aggression in our world and constructs, through the Proteus team's efforts, a secret history of our timeline. Or is it? Hogan, establishing the mutability of history, keeps the reader guessing as to the outcome of what seems to be our past.

Along the way, he not only gives us the expected historical figures of Churchill and Roosevelt, but also physicists Albert Einstein, Enrico Fermi, and Edward Teller. And there's an odd young writer named Isaac Asimov hanging about too.

I have one minor complaint with this novel. Hogan belabors the explanation of the quantam mechanics he uses to move the plot. However, his detailed explanation was probably necessary for those for whom this is their first exposure to the idea, presumably a fair number of the technothriller and alternate history crowd who should like this book as well as Hogan's usual science fiction reader.

I'm not a history buff and I know very little of pre-war British politics, but The Proteus Operation has planted a seed in me to learn more. Who can say SF is worthless? That being said, I believe Mr. Hogan has done an admirable job explaining WW2-era history (three separate timelines worth!) so that readers don't become too confused, nor does it bog down.

Time Travel is a favorite SF conceit and I love the idea of it; the power it enables those who are time travellers, but there are a lot of problems that our human minds based in this reality can't really resolve. One of the ways to rationalize time travel is with the alternate universes theory (which Hogan has used before in "Thrice Upon a Time" 1980). While this makes it easier to understand, it has its own problems. To Hogan's credit he has created lots of compelling solutions for these. I enjoyed the time travel mechanics very much and I liked the story and plot development.

The characters are a bit forgettable and the famous ones are too quaint, but the plot moves along well enough that it doesn't bring down the quality of your time spent with the book. My biggest gripe is that towards the end I lost my suspension of disbelief. There are many twists and turns in the story, which make it more and more exciting as it progresses, but the showdown near the end at Hammerhead just spoiled it for me with one big coincidence and too many convenient happenings.

I had to force my way through the final part of the book as my interest had completely waned. The good score of 4/5 stars is based on how much fun I had up until that point and how it has interested me in discovering more about this era in history.

James Hogan writes a well-written alternative history novel based on the premise "What if Hitler and the Germans 'won' WW2 due to American isolationism? JFK is the US President and America stands alone, the rest of the world dominated by the Nazis, the Japanese militarists, or Italian facists. The US government, being in a desparate situation, send a team back into time to change history. In doing so, the author explores the concept of "changing history" -- is time travel really travelling to a parallel universe? The plot is interspliced with plausible expla- nations of how Hitler came to power and how he could have won WW2. For alternative history buffs, I recommend it