William Berry has written a well-detailed, although brief, look at his attempted escape and captivity after the fall of Correigdor. While not a scholarly look at these events, the author gives a good account of his capture, escape and trek through the jungle, recapture and liberation by American servicemen from Bilibid prison in Manila. He painfully recounts the agony these men went through as they were crammed, up to 13 men at one time, into a 10 by 10 cell and forced to sit, without flinching, and stare at the wall all day.

As a recaptured prisoner, Berry and his two comrades somehow survive the war, as the usual penalty for escape is execution. They were sent to the maximum security prison in Manila for "special prisoners", and many prisoners stopped here only long enough to be sentenced and shot. Berry, who was a fledgling lawyer before enlisting in the Navy, saw these skills save his life and the lives of his friends when being sentenced, not so much his arguments, of course, but rather how he shaped it to fit his audience (A Japanese tribunal)

This book does not take long to read, but it is an interesting tale, and well worth the time invested. But, if you want greater scope and detail of Americans in Japanese captivity, read "Prisoners of the Japanese" by Gavan Daws, an extremely informative and well-written look at the horrors these men had to endure daily.

The author of this book is my grandfather. I found this book to be inspiring as I am also a soldier. I am in the Army and found this book to give me a greater appreciation of my profession as well as bring a greater understanding of my grandfather's life and why he is so proud. I would recommend this book to anyone who wishes to understand what POWs in the Philippines went through. I have lent my copy of his book to several of my friends and they all gave it great reviews as well.

One of the few true to life books written by a WWII POW. As a history buff I find the first hand accounts in this book of the authors experiances and the others he came in contact a first rate story of America's darkest time. A must for all those who want to know more about POW's of the Japanese.

Having been stationed in the Philippines and traveled to Battan and Corrigidor it brought the meaning of those visits a little sharper in focus.

Clyde Bresee experience as a youth in the South gives us a view that is not shaped by the Southern Culture but comes through as an objective on looker that understood the plight of the slave and the free men. Plantation Life after cotton and war.Priceless.

This book offers a delightful walk through the south of the 1930's. The culture is penetrated through a child's uncluttered horizon. Coupled with a mature sifting of events this book offers wonderful insight into the healing, fragile and unique culture of Charleston. Wonderfully written, this book offers a charming notch of history.

From the New York Times Book Review-- Mr. Bresee is a writer of distinction from whom we must hear more. His prose is transparent, supple and spare; he evokes unhurriedly the smells and textures of the Southern world of his boyhood; his account of the fading landed aristocracy his father worked among is both astringent and forgiving; he is honest in his own baffled hypocrisies over "color." Through the power of Mr. Bresee's writing we travel deep into the heart of a troubled culture and the "unexpected" ambiguous beauty of a childhood lived in it.

Describing the James Island Creek he played in as boy, Mr Bresee writes: "The tide was far out and we stood still for a few moments trying to see everything at once. To have this shoreline for a playground was almost unbelievable. This living, warm thing before us and a stream of moving water! The sloping plane of mud, popping in the hot sun; the black surface skimming with fiddler crabs that vanished like raindrops when we approached."

Those fiddler crabs vanished then -- but they are here, now, caught for us in the fragile but enduring net of langauge.--Andrew Harvey

From The Library Journal-- "Often humorous and even bittersweet, the book is a poignant reflection of the Southern customs, family life, school and race relations."

From the Cleveland Plain Dealer -- "Bresee's prose is cadanced and flowing...a moving look back at his formative years in an alien place."

"The Southern Heirloom Garden" is a rich and instructive work.

At the start of the book, William C. Welch and Greg Grant tell us that "gardening is one of the oldest, and richest, of our Southern folk arts."

The authors divide the book into two sections. The first section refreshingly explores French, German, Spanish, Native American, and African-American contributions to Southern gardening.

The Spanish, for instance, intensely developed and utilized small garden spaces, while African-Americans used brightly-colored flowers in the front yard as a sign of welcome.

This section also has a commendable essay on historic garden restoration in the South.

The second section addresses the plants "our ancestors used to build and enrich their gardens."

There are nearly 200 full-color photographs here, along with dozens of rare vintage engravings. While some of the pictures are a bit small, they are still informative.

Southern gardeners and historians will particularly enjoy this fine volume.

This is a really great book. I loved the essays on each plant. Greg Grant is very humorous. This is not just a coffee table book, although the pictures are beautiful. It offers advise and inspiration to those of us who will never have the "Southern Living Landscape" look.

In these days of trying the "Western grass garden" or the "English perennial border" it's particularly refreshing to study a book devoted to plants that happily grow in the Southern humidity and heat. While the opening chapters on historical gardens in the new world (French, Spanish, etc.) were interesting, the later chapters on plants were the most informative. When reading I could hear my Grandmother using the same commonplace names, like "paw-paw" and how to make jelly from the fruit. The challenge will now be to find some of these plants. (The authors admit some plants are only available from old gardens in the South). It remains one of my favorite garden books for its affectionate commentary on one of the oldest southern pastimes - our gardens and the talking and sharing of plants with loved ones.

Before the T2 Ultimate Edition DVD came out, this book was probably one of the most exhaustive sources of information regarding the movie, along with 'The Making of T2' paperback. It's basically the final draft of the screenplay along with production notes and anecdotes about each scene. There are also hundreds of mostly black-and-white stills that correspond to each scene as the script goes on. Also included are the many moments that were cut from the theatrical release, most of which, thankfully, has been restored in the Special Edition. This includes Sarah's dream with Kyle Reese, The Dysons at home, the garage head surgery, T-1000's "glitching", and several other notable omissions. And as you read the screenplay, you'll see that quite a few of the lines spoken in the film differ from what is written. Some of the final ad-libs and slight changes of premise are discussed in the scene notes, and the various reasons (if any) for the slight alterations.

The book also devotes a chapter to parts of previous drafts that included many scenes that were never filmed, mostly due to production costs, as well as notes and commentary about them. The most notable almost-scene is the time machine room, where the resistance sends Reese to 1984, and the second Terminator to 1994. Another abandoned moment is the T-1000 wreaking havoc at the Salceda camp (the trailer-park/junkyard-looking place in the desert) following the departure of the three heroes. This scene would've shown more T-1000 morphs and 'gags'. Like the photos that correspond with the final script, the storyboards of these lost moments are shown along with the script to give you an idea of what each scene would've looked like.

I found the most interesting part to be the introduction by co-writer/co-producer/director James Cameron. He talks about the grind of completing T2 in just a year, and probably his most profound revelation about himself: that writing the script is his least-favorite part of movie production. I found this little revelation to be rather ironic, because I always felt that his scriptwriting ability is his strongest suit. Well, maybe not with 'Titanic', but that's me.

Sadly, just about all of the stuff discussed in this trade paperback, and then some, has been incorporated into the Special Features disc of the Ultimate Edition DVD. If you've already entered the digital age of movie technology, this book is pretty much just a relic of the pre-DVD era.

'Late!

I really enjoyed Terminator 2. It had some great scenes that the movie left out - like scenes with Kyle in the future and in Sarah's dream. Also had more characterization because you could read what the characters were thinking. Would have liked to have had the scene where the "learning chip" is turned on put in the movie. Mr. Frakes described a poignant moment when Miles Dyson dies. Highly recommend this book to all T1, T2, and sci-fi fans. Enjoy!

James Camerons follow up to the Terminator has recieved both critical acclaim and criticism. I for one, loved the first Terminator movie. Terminator 2 was a worthy followup to the series. The action, the drama, the message, it was all there. Sure, some of his was hammered home, but its such a fun ride, you don't care. The screenplay itself is remarkable. It contains commentary and scenes that didn't make the final cut. For all you how need a testement to Camerons genius, this is it.

The first two volumes in this series are fascinating looks at Sturgeon's development, well worth reading for those who are already fans of his. The third is where Sturgeon really starts to hit his stride, though, and this fourth volume is the first that I can wholeheartedly recommend to those previously unfamiliar with his work. Not every story here is superb; some are a bit dull, and some are overlong and predictable. But there's enough excellent material here to make it a solid introduction to Sturgeon's work, and the fascinating end-notes on each story by Paul Williams will make you wonder why other authors' complete-works collections can't be as thoroughly researched or as interestingly annotated. "Maturity," the first story here, is a masterpiece in the old sense of the word: it marks Sturgeon's transition from journeyman to master, while prefiguring _Flowers for Algernon_ (and predating it by a good 20 years). Other high points of this collection include the non-fantastical "A Way Home," the horror story "The Professor's Teddy Bear," the hilarious "Tiny and the Monster," and "Thunder and Roses," which is still relevant after 55 years.

Four volumes in and no clunkers yet, this guy had something special . . . and his Hugo and Nebula winning short story is still about thirty years away. Wow. If you've been following along all this time let me just say that this volume will give you more pleasures than any writer had any right to give you, most writers have a couple truly amazing short stories within them and while not everything Sturgeon wrote was genius the sheer amount of good stuff here is simply astounding. "Thunder and Roses" has to be one of the most humane stories ever written and others like "There is No Defense" or "The Professor and the Teddy Bear" (if it doesn't scare you, you must not have a pulse) stand up remarkably well. Again, you owe it to get every volume of this series and save it for the generations to come, we have so few literate writers these days and those few that we have deserve to be remembered and enjoyed. Sturgeon is one. Read him.

This guy knew how to write about love, in all of it's phases, yet never or rarely descended into mawkishness. And a lot of his considerable output is classic. Buy it if you have to skip lunch for a week. If you've never read Sturgeon before, you're in for a treat, language of a grace and power to rival Bradbury and a way of moving along jauntily that compares with Henry Kuttner (Lewis Padgett) and Alfred Bester.

This book is a natural page-turner which delves into the rise of a new "warrior cult" in the U.S. beginning in the mid-70's and gaining momentum in the 80's. Explores the (sometimes dangerous) sociological implications of this fascination with automatic weapons, camouflage clothing, violence, and the "lone warrior", although the author's reliance on Jungian and Freudian interpretations of this phenomenon goes a bit overboard at times. Nonetheless this is a valuable study overall. The assertion that this phenomenon is fulfilling a valid psychological need in its adherents, and suggestions of alternate ways of fulfilling these needs that do not glorify violence, should prove to be provocative and hopefully useful in working toward a less violent society.

This is probably one of the best primer books for anyone interested in the sociological aspects of masculinity in America. It is an easy read with tons of examples from relatively recent media sources. It reads like a novel but has a lot more to say. Any one interested in violence in media should put this at the top of their to read list.

This book was recommended to me in a politics chat room. When my friend described its topic with "paintball" "guns" "war movies" and "politics", I knew I had to read it (i had an interest in all of these things).

The book starts off describing how "New Warriors" (men with a "warrior" mentality in Post-Vietnam America) see and treat women/children/family, how they are effected by consumer culture of war/paramiltary books and movies, view guns.. paintball.

Presidents Nixon, Reagan, and Bush, along with Ollie North, Rambo, Charles Bronson, Chuck Norris all embrace or help create the New War. Mass murderers, assassins, and mercenaries are influenced by it as well.

I'd like to see Gibson tackle the topic again. 5 years later, we've got an enormous computer/video game warrior culture, where hundreds of thousands of young men spend hours each day blasting each other to bits on the Internet.

Fascinating, though too long. I recommend starting with Taylor's _Liberty Men and Great Proprietors_, which seems to have been less of a "labor of love."

The tale of James Fenimore Cooper's father on the New York frontier in the 1790s is an Horatio Alger story run amuck. Born to a poor Quaker farm family, William Cooper learned the craft of making and repairing wheels before reinventing himself as a land speculator, founder of Cooperstown, judge, congressman, patrician farmer and Federalist party powerhouse.

Alan Taylor's WILLIAM COOPER'S TOWN: POWER AND PERSUASION ON THE FRONTIER OF THE EARLY AMERICAN REPUBLIC is an outstanding biography of an archetypical American character, an extraordinary social history of life and politics on the late eighteenth-century frontier and a brilliant exercise in literary analysis.

This is a wonderful read. Taylor's lively prose, compelling narrative and original, fresh story sustained my interest from cover to cover. I never would have imagined such a dull title could cover such a marvelous book. WILLIAM COOPER'S TOWN certainly deserves the Pulitzer Prize it was awarded.

Taylor not only describes William Cooper's rise from rags to riches and even more meteoric fall but analyzes Cooper's political odyssey in America's frontier democratic workshop.

"As an ambitious man of great wealth but flawed gentility, Cooper became caught up in the great contest of postrevolutionary politics: whether power should belong to traditional gentlemen who styled themselves 'Fathers of the People' or to cruder democrats who acted out the new role of 'Friends of the People.'"

Taylor argues "Cooper faced a fundamental decision as he ventured into New York's contentious politics. Would he affiliate with the governor and the revolutionary politics of democratic assertion? Or would he endorse the traditional elitism championed by...Hamilton." "Brawny, ill educated, blunt spoken, and newly enriched," writes Taylor, "Cooper had more in common with George Clinton than with his aristocratic rivals." "For a rough-hewn, new man like Cooper, the democratic politics practiced by Clinton certainly offered an easier path to power. Yet, like Hamilton, Cooper wanted to escape his origins by winning acceptance into the genteel social circles where Clinton was anathema." Taylor concludes "Cooper's origins pulled him in one political direction, his longing in another."

James Fenimore Cooper's third novel, THE PIONEERS, is an ambivalent, fictionalized examination of his father's failure to measure up to the genteel stardards William Cooper set for himself and that his son James internalized. The father's longing became the son's demand.

Taylor analyzes the father-son relationship, strained by Williams decline before ever fully measuring up to the stardards he had set, and the son's fictionalized account of this relationship.

James Fenimore Cooper spent most of his adult life seeking the "natural aristocrat" his father wanted to be and compensating for his father's shortcomings. It is ironic that the person James Fenimore Cooper found to be the embodiment of the "natural aristocrat" his father had longed to be and that he had created in THE CRATER and his most famous character, Natty Bumppo, was the quintessential "Friend of the People"--Andrew Jackson.

I enjoyed this book immensely and give it my strongest recommendation!

This is the story of William Cooper, the founder of Cooperstown, New York, and of how his son, James Fenimore Cooper, used his father's life and experiences in his novels. Described in this way, this sounds like a narrow book, of interest mainly to specialists. But anyone interested in early America should read this book: it reveals truths not only about these two men but about the whole period. One of the key themes of the book is that the Revolution, which in a sense made William Cooper by pushing aside the old aristocracy of New York, also unmade him by creating an anti-aristocratic politics that ousted him and other Federalists in 1800. A fascinating minor detail: the city fathers, in their effort to maintain a proper tone in Cooperstown in the early 1800s, outlawed stick ball, the precursor of baseball.

This is an interesting and readable exploration of the "new Buddhism" in the West--that is, the meditation-oriented Buddhism (Zen, Tibetan, and Vipassana) practiced mainly by "converts," as opposed to the Buddhism practiced mainly by Asian immigrants and their offspring. Coleman, a sociologist and a practicing Buddhist, takes a look at the history, practices, teachings, demographics, problems, and trajectory of this new Buddhism. Although the book is ostensibly about "Western" Buddhism, it's actually mainly about American Buddhism, with occasional mentions of British Buddhism.

I think this book will especially be of interest to practitioners of the "new Buddhism" who want to learn more about our history and our fellow practitioners. It could also be used as a text in a college course on Buddhism or on American religion. (If you want to learn about all the major forms of Buddhism in the U.S., I would recommend Richard Hughes Seager's "Buddhism in America," which includes chapters on Jodo Shinshu and Soka Gakkai as well as Zen, Tibetan, and Theravada Buddhism.)

After an introductory chapter, Chs. 2 and 3 provide an excellent overview of the history of Buddhism in Asia and in the West, including the main schools, practices, and teachings. Coleman does an impressive job of covering the important points in a small space while also keeping it interesting. Ch. 4 discusses in detail the practices and beliefs of Zen, Tibetan, and Vipassana Buddhism and their similarities and differences. Ch. 5, "Sex, Power, and Conflict," explores issues of gender, sexual passion, and homosexuality in the history of Buddhism and in the new Buddhism and examines the scandals revolving around sex and power in Buddhist centers in the 1980s. Ch. 6 includes a look at the demographics of the new Buddhism. (I hadn't realized just how well educated and how liberal we are. Of Coleman's sample of 359 members of seven Buddhist centers, 83% were college graduates, and 51% had advanced degrees; 60% were Democrats, only 2.6% Republicans, and 9.9% Greens.) Ch. 6 also describes the typical path that Westerners follow into Buddhism and considers reasons for Buddhism's growing popularity. And Ch. 7 briefly considers the future of Buddhism in the West.

Professor Coleman's book combines sociology, history, and philsophy in studying how and why the ancient and varied Eastern teachings of Buddhism have gained a foothold in the United States. This is no dry academic treatise. Professor Coleman has himself been a practicing Buddhist for fifteen years and brings to the book something of his own understanding of and commitment to Buddhist practice.

It is important to understand the scope of Professor Coleman's study and his manner of investigation. His study of Buddhism in America is limited to those groups in which Americans have attempted to establish their own Buddhist communities based upon their understanding of the three Buddhist traditions that have become most common in the United States: Zen, Tibetan, and Vipassana (Theravada). The focus of American Buddhism, unlike some of its Asian counterparts is on meditation rather than on devotional ritual. The study thus excludes ethinc Buddhism, which consists predominantly of recent immigrants from Asia (although many Westerners also attend these predominantly immigrant sanghas), and forms of Buddhism such as Pure Land and Soka Gakki which do not emphasize meditiation and which appeal to a somewhat different group of Western practitioners. After so defining the scope of his study, Professor Coleman explains that he has conducted his investigation by means of an extensive survey (reprinted in the book), by reading the available literature, and by interviews.

The book gives a brief history of Buddhism in the United States beginning in the late Nineteenth Century. Some of this ground was covered in Rick Fields's book "How the Swans Came to the Lake." This is followed by one of the clearest brief summaries I have read of the history of Asian Buddhism and of the multiplicity of schools and traditions that confront the American beginning a study of Buddhism.

The book then proceeds to discuss practice and beliefs at several prominent sanghas in the United States representing each of the Zen, Tibetan and Vipassana traditions. Coleman obviously understands his material from the inside, as well as from academic research, and he conveys it well.

There is a great deal in the book on the difficulties that Western Buddhism has encountered, many of which are of its own making in the establishment of a new religious approach in the United States. He describes the conflicts and scandals involving sex and power that plagued much of the American Buddhist community in the 1980s. He offers his views on the source of these embarrassments as well as opinions on how they may be avoided as Buddhism may continue to develop in our country.

Beyond the factual analysis, the best portions of the book are those in the beginning chapter and in the concluding chapters in which Coleman analyses the appeal of Buddhism to the educated, upper-middle class, politically left of center, and generally caucasian individuals that tend to be predominant in the Buddhist movements under consideration. He offers a multi-level analysis based upon the withering of old class distinctions resulting from democracy, the industrial revolution, and post-modernism. These developments have tended to result in a secularization of society and in an attempt by individuals to attempt to construct an identity, or sense of self for themselves. It is when a person comes to the view that in searching for selfhood, he or she is acting in a misdirected way that the person may be ready to learn from Buddhism which teaches, as Coleman rightly points out, the absence of a self and identifies the belief in a fixed self as the source of suffering and error.

Coleman recognizes the difficulties in the Buddhist transplant to the West, ranging from the problems with new ideas to more mundane matters such as finding the time to meditiate and go on retreat in the face of demanding work lives and family commitments. He does see Buddhism as having something to teach the West and cautiously predicts a continued growth of a distinctly American form of Buddhism.

This is a good, thoughtful discussion of Western Buddhism that can be read with benefit by those new to the subject and by those who have been involved with Buddhism for many years.

If there is one criticism I shall make it right in the beginning: No mention was made of "Zen in the art of archery" by Eugen Herrigel which of course was the first in a never ending succession of "Zen in the art of..." books. This is important to me as this was the first exposure I had to Buddhism more than 30 years ago and is thus the beginning of my history as a westerner interested in Buddhism. What was so meaningful for me in this book was that it gave my endeavors a place and context within the evolution of Buddhism in the west and thus helped me reconnect with that part of myself with renewed enthusiasm and confidence, knowing I am not allone. It has encouraged me to take up my regular practice again and motivated me to read further. This is a very personal appraisal but I am shure there are more people like myself who once were involved and are lacking context and direction. It will help you to make sense of it all.

this work provides valuable insight into the workings of the human experience. i would recommend it to the novice or the professional alike, and have yet to find its equal.

I have read this book and it is a very readable book.I also know the author personally.i rate this book a 10.

A fascinating account of the science and history of smell and attraction. I found it very readible and varied, never dull, yet packed with scientific information. I highly recommend it for scientist and lay person alike.

I had great hopes for this comic novel with the comparisons made to Hiaasen on the book jacket- unfortunately the psuedonymous Wolf doesn't quite compare. Some of the offbeat, bizarre characters are present (ie, an ANGRY kangaroo in downtown Detroit) but I felt they could have been used to a fuller effect. I liked some of the dialogue and the pace was fine (kept me reading) but it just didn't have enough laughs for me to recommend it. However, at least I now know why Hoffa is never going to be found.

... for mystery fans, tough guy fiction fans, mafia wannabes (you lookin' at me?) and anyone who enjoys a well-written novel with unique, quirky characters. The only other author who comes to mind is Elmore Leonard.

Give this book a try - I can't wait for his next effort.

I was not sure about this book but the title caught my eye.After the first three pages I was hooked.The characters are so well written,I thought they were in the room with me.When the Don's will was viewed,I laughed till my side hurt. If you are looking for one of the great works of fiction you will have to look elsewhere. But if you want a book that is light,funny and just plain fun this is the one for you!I read it in a day.