A well-presented book; and most interesting details of the artist's life an times. Slight disappointment in the plates - not all in colour and not full-page size. It is however, an extensive look at the artist and his work, I believe worth owning if you are interested in the genre. Not so interested myself in the sculpture side of his work and the small black and white photos of same do not show from all angles, but in general a good purchase.

As a med student, i found this book extremely useful in that it achieved the impossible: make molecular genetics easy to understand (no only memorize info). The explanations about the processes within such a small nucleus... $60 weel spent!

The introduction alone is a treasure trove of information regarding the state of horror, and the new and developing projects of many authors and editors. Mr. Jones has collected some gems from the likes of Caitlin R. Kiernan, Neil Gaiman, Tanith Lee, Harlan Ellison, and Kim Newman...and that's just to start. Neil Gaiman's, The Wedding Present is a tidy little story with a rather sardonic ending. I enjoyed Peter Straub's, Mr. Clubb & Mr. Cuff too. Harlan Ellison's, Objects of Desire in the Mirror are Closer Than They Appear. I believe my absolute favorite is Avram Davidson & Grania Davis', The Boss in the Wall though. I can't think of one story that I didn't enjoy but those were, I thought, especially well done.

Now We Are Sick is a collection of original poems by sf, Fantasy and horror writers. The quality is a bit mixed: some are really good (Terry Pratchett, Alan Moore, Gene Wolfe) some are gross (Harry Adam Knight, Kim Newman) and some are just silly (S.P.Somtow). The overall effect is funny. Just don't let any kids get near it, though.

The cover is by Gahan Wilson.

This is a good book for those who are beginning astronomy. It has a great deal of simple information.

I am a big fan of the Rough Guide series and of their philosophy of including socio-political commentary, to remind travelers that the world isn't just for show. And what the China guide does well it does VERY well, with great detail. But my wife and I took both this book and a competitor's guidebook for our monthlong China trip, and Rough Guide contained maybe 1/3 as many things to see and do, and left many places to stay off the list altogether. Worse, some maps were just plain wrong. A travel guidebook that you find yourself leaving in the hotel room is not a good one.

The second edition of this outstanding guidebook has been produced by people who were rightly content in general terms with the style and content of the first. Twelve pages of colour photographs have been added - calculated more to increase sales than to be of use to the traveller on the road.

Of the three sections, Part One, The Basics and Part Three, Contexts, are little changed. Between them, Part Two, The Guide, at 1005 pages is 76 pages longer. Regions which get an increase of twenty per cent or more are Dongbei, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hong Kong and Macau.

A few new routes have been added, including the roads from Chengdu to Shaanxi and from Mangshi south-east along the Burma border. The book notes the opening of western Sichuan and north-western Yunnan, but unfortunately and oddly provides little information about these important regions. In fact there is very little mention of a vast tract stretching generally south from the Xining-Lhasa road, through Qinghai, the Tibetan "Autonomous" Region and western Sichuan to north-western Yunnan.

Although that region warrants much more attention, it is inevitable that there will be some substantial regions that do receive little or no attention. All of north-eastern Sichuan/Chongqing, for example, is a blank. Perhaps it deserves to be; but a traveller is unlikely to find out unless he ventures there and explores for himself. This raises another unfortunate omission - any comprehensive account of which parts of China are still closed to foreign visitors without special permits. That matter is of little importance to travellers wishing to visit the "sights" listed in this guidebook, because few of those "sights" are in closed areas. That is, I expect, why the whole matter of what is closed amounts almost to a non-issue for the popular guidebooks. But it is certainly of importance to the traveller who, having reached this or that province with the help of a guidebook, wishes to go off to see what is in one of the blank areas. Comprehensive lists of what is closed are available, but hard to get, and available nowhere that I know of in English. Such a list, or better still a map of China showing the counties which are closed would be invaluable. That is exactly the kind of information that a guidebook of this kind should provide.

The great majority of the changes in this edition are in the detail - admission prices, opening hours, accommodation addresses and prices. Whether the new information is accurate will have to wait for on-the-road testing. But the very large number of detailed changes suggests that the revision has been thorough.

There is, of course, the usual and almost inevitable smattering of errors - Dehong described as an "Autonomous Region" (it is an autonomous prefecture) at page 810, Hubei abutting Sichuan (p503: it used to, but not since Chongqing was excised from Sichuan province in about 1997), the map on p773 showing part of Guanxi as incorporated in Guizhou province, Anhui not named on the map at p470, Macau omitted from the table of contents. An important error is the map on p898, showing the "Desert Highway" across the Taklamakan as joining the southern highway at Khotan, more than three hundred kilometres west of the actual junction, which is east of Minfeng (Niya).

I would have liked to see more attention to the regional maps rather than the twelve pages of pictures. The maps are, on the whole for their given scope, reasonably well done, fitting in well with the text. Their scale bars are sometimes awry, and maps of adjoining regions are sometimes incompatible - most notably the map of the north-west, which does not fit with the other maps at any scale.

So now I come to another special plea. Planning a trip through several regions calls for an overall map. In times gone by, fold-out or loose sheet maps were sometimes provided with guidebooks. Perhaps the practice was abandoned on the grounds of cost; it was not abandoned for lack of usefulness. Of course separate maps are available, but they are much less useful than a map would be if specially prepared for a particular guidebook - less useful because they include so many places not mentioned in the book, omit some that are, and in China may even use different names. After wrestling with adjustments to scales different from those indicated by scale bars I produced a single map of China from the regional maps in the new Rough Guide, and a most useful map it is for use in conjunction with the book.

When next I travel to China, the new edition of the Rough Guide will be the one I shall take, supplemented where needed and possible by information from other sources. ()

The Rough Guides are considered among the "cream of the crop" in the guidebook world, and this book is no exception. I used it extensively in the planning phase of my recent month-long trip to China, and it was very helpful.

The background sections of the book are outstanding, giving the reader a solid overview of Chinese history and culture. The primary sites of interest to travelers are adequately covered as well, and so the book is very helpful in planning one's itinerary.

The main drawback of the volume is it's weight. If you are backpacking in China, as I was, this book is pretty heavy to be lugging around. Therefore, unless you are staying in China more than a couple of weeks, you might consider looking at the smaller city guides.....or ripping the necessary sections out of this book and packing only those in your rucksack.

Highly recommended for pre-trip planning at home. Recommended for packing and taking to China *if* you are going on an extended trip to the country.

I havent read this book because I havent received my copy yet. It was explained that this book was only available via the market place. I've paid for my book and after 20 days it is yet to arrive and the seller refuses to contact me. NEVER buy anything via the marketplace.

Great instructional book for building a traditional style fireplace surround (title a bit misleading - the mantel is only the shelf above a fireplace - the surround is the mantel, columns, etc.) Limited, though in that it only covers one style surround with different variations.

If you like the style of fireplace surround on the cover of the book, then buy it. It steps you through building that style in "great" detail.

this book cleared up a lot of questions i had about building a mantel.written clearly so that most anyone could understand the sequence to get a very professional job.this was money well spent.

I wish publishers would stop saying Anne Rice is the 'queen of vampire literature'. She is not an author I care to read. Also, I'm not crazy about Tanith Lee. I always feel like I've missed the point of her stories. Halfway through this book I had to struggle to finish the stories. The first half of the book (other than the Anne Rice story) was fine, then the stories got weird/uncomfortable. That being said, if you like the vampire myth, there are a lot of good/great stories in this book. My favorite is Jack by Connie Willis. Oh, and how come Laurel K Hamilton didn't have a story in this collection?

In my quest to read all things vampire, I had purchased this book some few months ago. I kept putting off starting to read it, daunted not only by its size (624 pages) but also by the fact that all the stories were written by women and I feared the majority of them would be nothing more than "bodice rippers." The back cover of the book said there were stories by some of my favorite authors, some of those being Poppy Z. Brite, Nancy A. Collins, and Nancy Kilpatrick; and though I also like Anne Rice's works, I bristled at the publisher's reference to her as "the undisputed queen of vampire literature," which reference only gave me further pause in making a decision to read the book. If they considered her writing to be the epitome, then how could I possibly trust their judgment as to the rest of the stories contained in the anthology? Nevertheless, I decided to read it, at the very least thus decreasing my "to be read" book pile by 624 pages!

Was I ever pleasantly surprised, especially after opening it up only to discover that Anne Rice's "The Master of Rampling Gate" was the first one in the book! Of the 34 stories in this anthology, only two or three failed to hold my full interest; and several presented very enjoyable, unique twists on the meaning of vampire. If asked to name my favorites, it would be difficult, but they would probably be "Services Rendered" by Louise Cooper (a story with an ending you can't help but figure out and yet it made me mentally shout, "No! No! No! Don't do it!" and enjoy it just the same); "Butternut and Blood" by Kathryn Ptacek (a story set in a makeshift field hospital during the Civil War and a bedridden soldier helplessly watching Death come closer each night); "Venus Rising on Water" by Tanith Lee (about something that comes to earth through a portal opened by an astrologer's telescope, and a really creepy painting!); "A North Light" by Gwyneth Jones (it's hard to figure out if there's really two or three vampires in this tale that takes place in an out-of-the-way B&B in Ireland!); and "Jack" by Connie Willis (an unforgettable, rather sad story set during the London Blitzkrieg). Overall, I found all the stories to be haunting more than horrifying, ethereal more than erotic. It struck me as a book I might give to friends to read as a way of introducing them to the vampire genre; there is so much more to it than Dracula, and I am so often ridiculed and misunderstood for my interest in it. I gave the book 4 stars because I enjoyed almost all of the stories in this anthology, and will most likely read several of them a second time or more.

This is a very mediocre product from the able hands of "Ded associates", so dont bother. Im sure that when they started this project they didnt intend on filling the pages with 'cut and paste' techniques, but thats exactly what they did.There are very few original ideas in this book and you cant escape from the "i have seen this somewhere else" feeling when going thru the book. As i said, The number of trully inspiring pages in this book is very low and the cover itself, which is a wonderfull illustration of the island is probably the best work in the entire project.

I picked up this book while I was traveling in Taiwan. The cover, I must say, is what captured my attention among all the other design books surrounding it.

The story which consists of writings by Stephen Jones is a strange but compelling mix. It a story about a man named Jack and his observations and journeys in the course of the day.

As a graphic designer, the designs and layout of the pages really compliment the writing and vice versa. Sometimes, the pages can get really overloaded with imagery and text and the next white empty space. Normally, I would be detracted from this but all this use of negative space, color, and imagery really add more depth to the story.

The buyer or reader must be aware of the story sometimes buried within the pages. Design books tend to be visual devices and I sometimes find myself flipping through pages of books like these too fast. Reading the writings in this book helps you understand the design decisions that Ded Associates made while conceiving and designing this book.

This book has two options read or view, we bought it for the second, stunning graphics / beautiful colors / cool space. 100% DED. Love it !!!!!!!

Perhaps the title of this book raised my expectations excessively, but I found this collection somewhat disappointing. There are definitely some good stories here, but for every good one, there is at least another which is either a) not a horror story, or b) not a good horror story.
First, the bright spots. The best story in the collection is Charlee Jacob's wonderful Halloween tale, "Flesh of leaves, bones of desire." This story is creepy, imaginative, and erotic, and has an internal logic to it which is quite satisfying. Ramsey Campbell's "No strings", is another good one: well-written and scary... Other fine stories are "Xenos beach" and "In the pubs of Old London."
Now, for the bad news. Many of the stories simply don't belong in a horror collection. "The Repulsion" is about a couple who are having relationship problems while on vacation (pretty scary, huh?), Dennis Etchison's "The Detailer", while well-written, is not a horror story but a detective story, in which the detective is a Mexican-American car wash attendant. It's good, but it doesn't belong here. Kim Newman's two entries both deal with modern vampires, who are fully recognized as such, in Hollywood (Dracula meets The Player). These stories try hard to be cute, but play more as Fantasy than Horror. There is also a story (I don't remember the name) about a group of old people in a small town in Montana. The scary climax: an old lady dies in her sleep (boo!).
The story I found most difficult to judge was "Forever Gramma" by Mick Garris. It is definitely horror, scary and well-told. But it is so repugnant in parts (it deals quite explicitly with geriatric necrophilia) as to border on some kind of bizzare pornography.
In conclusion, I found this collection a mixed bag in terms of both quality and appropriateness to the genre. I cannot fully recommend it.

Quite a few interesting tales in this collection. However, be forewarned.. there are relatively ( and surprisingly ) few legitimate horror stories in this year's addition. The vast majority of the tales are simply bizarre. However, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. One story in particular, "Xenos Beach", has left a lasting impression and caused many sleepless nights for me, lying in bed, staring at the ceiling and pondering the events which happen towards the end. Unfortunately, for every Xenos Beach, there's another completely ridiculous story, which certainly have no business in this collection... "Repulsed", comes to mind. If I want to read about a couple's marital problems, I'll read Ann Landers, thank you very much. However, even with this flaw, there are still more than a few interesting selections contained within which are well worth your time and money.

Volume XII is arguably one of the best so far in the Best New Horror series. Packed with 494 pages of 22 stories and novellas, and including a definitive necrology and intro to the state of horror in 2000, it is well worth a read. Here are just some, but by no means all, of the gems you'll find inside:

Kim Newman continues his Alternate History Anno Dracula series with the short story "Castle in the Desert" and the novella "The Other Side of Midnight". IMHO, The latter is one of Newman's best works so far. Using the narrative hard-boiled detective story style of James Ellroy and Raymond Chandler, Newman walks us through the Hollywood noir of the 1980s in a world where the Vampire has become grudgingly accepted by the human race. Newman's main character is a beautiful, but ancient vampire detective involved in a mystery surrounding the making of Orson Welles' remake of Dracula. Along the way we meet the likes of Lt. Columbo, Barbie the Vampire Slayer and other familiar real and imagined characters in a world where true film and tabloid history become twisted.

In "I have a Special Plan for this World", a story of Corporate Horror, Thomas Ligotti gives us a nihilistic vision of a Dark Dilbert's rapid, but futile rise up the corporate ladder after his mysterious fog-shrouded company moves to Murderville and all it's management are slowly killed off.

Several of the stories follow in the style of some familiar women writers of horror. Two stories, Tim Lebbon's "The Repulsion", and Kathryn Ptacek's "The Grotto", set in exotic Italian settings where the past is ever pervading on the present, display the slow, rising horror of simple situations devloving into nightmare reminiscent of some Daphne du Murier stories. The influence of Shirley Jackson can be felt in Terry Lamsley's superb "Climbing Down From Heaven" where two spinster sisters fall under the spell of their new Updikian neighbor, who is not only very mysterious, but an eligible bachelor as well.

Paul J. McAuley's "The Bone Orchard" is a chilling story in the vein of "The Sixth Sense" and "The Changeling" that takes place in a Whitechapel cemetery. Graham Joyce uses the subtle style of English Horror defined by Ramsey Campbell in a story of ghosts on an ancient Greek island in "Xenos Beach", while Campbell's own "No Strings" reveals the hidden face of the horror of the urban nightmare.

Chris Fowler takes us on a tour of women and historic pubs in "At Home in the Pubs of Old London" with a Serial Killer as guide.

And if you thought there was nothing new to say about the Living Dead, Mick Garris takes Zombiedom to a whole new level of "Schlock" in "Forever Gramma."

Of only two minor criticisms I have, the first concerns the editor's neglect to cite some of the most important work of the deceased in the Necrology (how can one not mention, for example, "Dr. Zhivago and Bridge on the River Kwai for Alec Guinness?). The other concerns the over use in the 72 page Introduction by the editor of the word eponymous ("..having the same name as the title.." Cambridge International Dictionary of English - online) in describing many of the book and film titles: I didn't count, but it was a lot! A good Thesaurus might have helped here.