(From Planeta Journal) - Ready to explore one of the world's most intriguing regions? Take your trip with Christopher Shaw who introduces readers to the Usumacinta River and its magnificent watershed that stretches across the Mexico-Guatemala border in his new book, Sacred Monkey River (New York: W.W. Norton, 2000).

Subtitled "A Canoe Trip with the Gods," this notable book traces the author's canoe trips running the great river. Unlike many adventure travel narratives in which the author plunges into an unknown terrain, Shaw aims for comprehension rather than searching for misadventure. The result is an account which combines the best of travel literature and environmental reporting.

Few travelers opt for the watery path, particularly with the threat of hijackings and shootings in such a remote area. But Shaw, an accomplished river guide and an enthusiast of the Maya culture, will not be deterred.

"In classical art, two gods pictured as canoeists, accompanied travelers on both actual and metaphysical journeys," Shaw explains. "Both gods paddle the souls of the dead to the Otherworld and the cosmic canoe -- the Milky Way -- across the sky."

Shaw also connects with the environmentalists in the region, including Fernando Ochoa and Ronald Nigh -- two pioneers in developing sustainable agricultural practices in the region.

The book is a veritable "Who's Who" in the region. Meet Scott Davis of Ceiba Adventures, Maya scholars Linda Schele and David Freidel, Moises Morales, the owner of El Pachan and Victor Perera, author of The Last Lords of Palenque.

The book is divided into 12 chapters and boasts the 1953 Franz Blom map of the Selva Lacandona on the inside book cover. What would be useful additions would be a map of the author's expeditions and an index of places and names.

Sacred Monkey River deserves a long shelf-life and it will no doubt be consulted for many years by travelers and environmentalists alike.

This is the real thing folks. No more cute travel stories that romanticize without substance, that Disneyize and exaggerate. This book is the story of the author's courageous and thoughtful trip through an amazingly historical place that is also presently complicated and important. However, the author comes at it from a personal angle: the cosmology of canoes. We learn the importance of canoe travel not only to the Maya but to the author and people in general. That connects to the Maya cosmology and culture, the sense of place that is inherent in living in a watershed and having your existence contingent to flowing water (whether you live in the Lacandon forest or Westchester County), the importance of the geography of the region to the people who live there, and then finally to how all this connects to the Zapatista movement and the modern, and not so modern (this thing is full of scholarly but apt historical asides) plight of the indigenous Maya. All along the way you get to like the author, in his sometimes goofy gringo ways but his omnipresent awareness of his own place within the experience. Sprinkle in healthy doses of heart-thumping whitewater in canoes with inexperienced bow-men, death defying swims, life-threatening bandits, and tight, musical prose, and you've got one heck of a book. I tell you what, Shaw's got it right, the same way Matthiesson did. I recommend this book extremely highly. I wish it were getting more publicity. Read it. Its important.

This book has been a genuine page turner for me, and as I approached the end I tried not to read too much at each sitting so I could prolong its pleasures.

It is for anyone interested in Mesoamerica, Mayan culture, canoeing as adventure, or boats as the movers of trade and ideas. Also for anyone who is lusting for an otherworld experience, metaphorically or actually, though trave, boating, psychogenic drugs, or all of the above. It is full of honest hard-nosed obserevation of nature and the specific nature of this area, and at the same time streches for and is able to peek at the"final" trip, perhaps as many civilizatins saw it, goin on a craft down a river or out to sea/see. shaw effortlessly intertwines some Spanish into his evocative--dare I use the word--poetic English, always aiming for and touching precision and clarity without sacrificing mystery. On, I believe, its deepest level, the language as well as the story drew me into the unknow, into the future, and of course the past as well.

I love it!
The combination of fun mazes and interesting text is unique, exciting, fun, entertaining.
My 6 year old daughter immediately tried out the mazes. (And I did too!)
Excellent for children and grown-ups!

This book is both unusual and perfectly suited for maze enthusiasts. There's nothing quite like it! It would make a perfect present for the right person.

This book is incredibly original and inspirational. The author's enthusiasm for beautiful mazes is highly contagious. Anyone who likes cool ideas and puzzles (or just want to know the difference between a labyrinth and a maze) should take a look at this book.

This book has the following strengths:
1. It is comprehensive, covering all aspects of Oracle Tuning.
2. New to Oracle tuning? This book will start you off right. It starts by covering how to approach tuning. Oracle is a very complex system and you can spend a lot of time on the wrong approach.
3. Experienced Oracle tuner? All the latest concepts like the Oracle Wait Facility are covered.
4. Very few books describe in detail how to tune SQL statements themselves. That is probably the strongest point of this book.
5. Very readable. I found myself unable to put the book down. Lawson includes a wealth of real-world experiences that add credibility to his suggestions.

... This book is a must have for Oracle optimization specialists. Though geared mainly for the beginning-to-intermediate tuner, there is much useful information and food for thought to be found here for the more experienced specialist. The author stresses the importance of using wait events for optimizing, not the superannuated ratio-based approach.

This book helps the reader get away from bad optimization habits. Medical diagnosis is often used as a metaphor for the process, and Lawson often uses this (and other useful metaphors) in the book. Although he doesn't use the phrase, his book follows an old diagnostics adage: "When you hear hoof beats, think horses, not zebras." In other words, if you have latching problems, don't start pursuing what underscore parameters you can change, look to the prosaic root of the problem (almost inevitably to be found in bad design and bad SQL, and once in a while skimpy or dodgy hardware).

There is often a temptation to fling yourself at one technical problem after another on a system, hoping that the effort will magically solve the problem along the way. Lawson sets a step-by-step framework for working with the technical problem, the business situation, and most importantly, the people involved.

Many people in our industry are convinced that you can gather a few ratios and run a few scripts and find out everything you need to optimize a system. Occasionally this is true. But in the vast majority of cases you can gather at least as much information from the junior DBA you talk to at lunch about 'why the system is really like that' than you get from Statspack and your CD of scripts. More importantly, people can tell you what is important to their business, what plans they have for the system, and what areas are their strong and weak points. A lot of engineers (and optimization is a field dominated by the engineering mindset) have no problems setting up elaborate instrumentation on a system under study, gathering data and transforming that data into a good, objective report. That's the 'science' part of the work, and Lawson shows you a lot of fast, down-and-dirty scripts that can help you do just that. But he also devotes several chapters to the 'art' of optimization, a realm that is often alien to the engineering approach. Here the black and white answers obtained from studying the database and its various subsystems encounter the harsh reality of human frailty and financial sensibilities. This part of tuning requires people skills more than any other aspect of the RDBMS industry with the possible exception of sales. Tuning assignments are often a matter of reconciling the angry with the clueless, and improving a system in spite of the owners' best efforts to keep it in a hosed state.

This book is clearly based on years of experience and observation, and will be a good resource for years to come. There are a few anachronistic moments and places that could benefit from 'the latest toys', but overall the book is up-to-date (examples of the former are the use of 'UNRECOVERABLE' instead of 'NOLOGGING' in a piece of syntax and the stress on ordering table joins rather than cajoling the optimizer into doing the job better. The latter shows up in such lapses as having no mention of the incredibly useful v$SQL_PLAN table in 9i).

I heartily recommend this book.

Christopher Lawson certainly masters the art of writing a very readable technical book. This is an outstanding book by an author with a lot of experience in the field who's taken the time to produce extensive examples.

Lawson makes several good points in his book that I wish beginner and "expert" DBAs would adopt: 1. No performance tuning tool can compensate for the lack of understanding of the Oracle database server. 2. Performance problems are usually not solved by changing int.ora parameteres and looking at cache hit ratios. 3. Learn how to use Oracle's wait event interface and you are very likely to identify your database bottleneck. 4. Understand SQL join techniques and how to read an execution plan and you'll become the Oracle Magician.

For the beginner DBA this is an excellent book to start with. The book is not a guide to new Oracle features; Oracle's own free documentation is where you should look for this. Get this book and accelerate you Oracle DBA career !

The Raven Who Spoke With God is a superbly written inspirational novel by Christopher Foster about a journey to hope and healing, and a look at nature through the eyes of a creature who is part of it. When a young raven loses his friends and family to a massacre, he is at first consumed with despair; his subsequent journey and adventures form a parable in this highly engaging narrative. The Raven Who Spoke With God is highly recommended reading, especially for those who prefer their fiction to showcase a deftly presented and spiritually uplifting message. Also highly recommended is Christopher Foster's previous novel, Winds Across The Sky.

In addition to relating a fine story, well written, Foster reveals a sesitive understanding of the challenges young people make as they grow up.
The main character struggles, endeavoring to make decisions in keeping with his integrity. Is this not true of most individuals as they try to make sense of a confusing world?
As a clinical psychologist, having worked with children and teens most of my professional life, I am very appreciative of The Raven Who Spoke With God. Congratulations are merited!

How often it takes a myth, a legend, or a fable to awaken awareness and reveal the truth we cannot otherwise see. Such a tale is THE RAVEN WHO SPOKE WITH GOD.

Beneath the beautiful cover lies a heartening story of a hero's journey. Joshua, the disheaartened raven asks himself, "What does it matter? I wanted to find the truth, but it was an illusion." Confessing to naivete, he feels he can only hope for a normal life--"you know, eat, sleep, and die." Haven't we each known similar disillusionment?

Sharing his quest will reward the reader with insight, raised consciousness, and hope for our universe.

A young girl named Shiina vacations in the summer with her grandparents and discovers a strange, star-shaped creature under the water just offshore. Swimming in an unsafe area, she nearly drowns, but the creature saves her and she secretly adopts it. Meanwhile, shape-changing "dragons" are making their presence known, causing chaos in the skies. And an older, disturbed girl Shiina meets in her kendo class may have a connection to her unearthly companion.

What does it all mean? "Starflight" provides the setup and introduces the characters, but answers will come later. SHADOW STAR begins like a lighthearted girl's adventure, but soon takes a darker turn. I am looking forward to seeing the mystery unfold in future volumes.

For those who have been following the serial in Dark Horse's SUPER MANGA BLAST, this collection reprints material from the first six issues.

It starts out looking a bit like Totoro, begins to look magical girl, then takes a left and heads straight for the twilight zone. This is great manga with real characters. Shiina is lighthearted but determined but very unlike Sailor Moon. Akira is disturbing, she makes this series definitely not for kids! There are secrets behind secrets in this story and I can't wait to see more.

i really like this manga, its about Shiina a normal girl who gets rescued by Hoshimaru, a strange starfish thing. this manga can be dark at times, and a little grusome, but its also very light in parts, and cute. i really enjoyed reading this, and the next book, and i recommend it.

Bazil and Relkin are back at it again only this time they must travel to the far off Empire of Ourhd. A demon god has been reborn and is terrorizing the empire. With a high witch and a trusty assitant at her side they can help the legonaries deafet the demon god.

I read this book with vigor, that's usually something i dont do. After i read the first book Bazil Broketail, i couldnt put this one down. The story didnt skip anything. when i started reading it it felt like i wasnt reading a new book. Plus i was also surprised by some characters that were there and, was glad to hear of new ones. although i thought the first book was better. this one is right up there. I did finish this book a while ago i just never got around to writing this review. look for my other review. Dragons of War, and Bazil Broketail

i was captivated by the plot and character descriptions. it was magnificente novel. i loved the continuation of the purple green in the bazil story.

An easy read that's the complete, one-stop reference for any business traveler. It has a strong emphasis on international travel, and great information on frequent flyer programs. I'm a seasoned traveller but still found the e-Book version of this book to be very helpful, particularly the information on how to score an an airline upgrade.

As a road warrior and Business Travel Columnist at BellaOnline.com, I found this book to be a companion on several biz trips.

I think most frequent flyers know a lot of the rules of air travel but not some of the hidden secrets airlines don't publically speak out loud. This book is fantastic for reference when you are stuck in the airport or need to discuss a point with airline staff. Showcasing rules and ideas. It's as if just knowing about these tips makes you a smarter traveler whether for business or pleasure.

Even a non-traveling friend found this book to useful on a vacation trip. I would recommend this book to anyone who travels (biz or pleasure) and to read before you fly or on your next trip. It's an easy read.

"The Unofficial Business Traveler's Pocket Guide: 165 Tips Even the Best Travelers May Not Know" is an absolute delight, and it lives up to its promise. For the Frequent Flyer there is much we can learn; for the less than Frequent Flyer, even more. This is perfect reading while on the airplane. The bite size chapters are a delight to taste, and the author's humor makes for an excellent dessert. I often found myself saying, "That's true, I just hadn't thought about it." But there is also plenty of material that I never would have thought about. I've bought several of the books for gifts to friends.

It is somewhat ironic that we have to turn to a contemporary Marxist historian for the best account of these godly people, on fire for liberty, justice, and equality.

And perhaps a secularising interpretation is best for contemporary readers, many of whom are probably not well enough grounded in Scripture to follow the original writings of these people. The allusions will be lost to them, and the original texts may just seem like pious screeds without practical application. The author's secularising interpretations will help them understand.

Some of these authors were definitely radical, and all may have been prone to getting carried away. When men become free to choose what they believe, some will inevitably choose things that seem wrong. I do think that the author tries too hard to suggest serious unorthodoxy on their part.

As a whole, though, they seem steeped in the spirit of the Hebrew prophets. The very notion of a Christian Left seems almost inconceivable to people in the USA today. The influence on the revolutionary generation in colonial America seems obvious as well. To hear the stories of these Diggers, Levellers, and Ranters is to point out a path not taken: an early and Christian counterculture.

Hill's book taught me an ironical lesson. I've been smugly complaisant about a country I long viewed as smugly complaisant. What I knew of England's history before Hill's work, I learned from the usual unreliable sources: school textbooks, TV, PBS, "thin red line" movies, Churchill's rodomontade, etc. In short, like other Americans, my image of a distant people was molded by all the approved sources of official fact, acceptable stereotype, and general misinformation. The result - the English are a highly dutiful people who dearly love their Queen mum, are respectably unimaginative and hardworking, make good detectives, but most of all, obediently march off to war in the name of the king, the East India Company, The Empire, NATO, or any other patriotic banner that keeps the rabble in line. That is, an orderly society on which to pattern an orderly profit-yielding planet.

Thanks to Hill, I now count Gerrard Winstanley as one of my personal heroes. Because I now know that for one brief, shining period of English history, the spirit of that man and others like him stormed the heavens, smashed the idols, and brought forth the vision of a better society. One that can join with the best of other national inheritances. (There were even disreputable rumors that women might be capable human beings.) It's almost exciting to follow the heroic efforts of the Diggers, Ranters, Levelers, and other assorted itinerants, visionaries, and Biblical scholars, all trying to throw off the oppressive weight of God, King, and the Rising Professional Class. They failed. But England and the rest of us are surely the worse for it. This is hidden history at its best, a magnifying glass held to the beliefs and thoughts of people whose beliefs and thoughts are usually passed over in the grand sweep of events. Yet whose ideas and visions were bold enough to threaten the traditional order and challenge the course of our world.

Judging from the personal data, it looks like the good professor has probably passed back into the biosphere along with those whose words and deeds he did so much to resurrect. I think Hill identified with his subject, though the text is properly sober, scholarly, and certainly not uncritical. Judging from his published works, he's clearly expert in 17th century England and writes for a readership he expects to be also knowledgeable. So my advice is to not be like me, ignorant of the larger events of that period, but to prepare the landscape with a general survey. Whether you identify with his subject or not, the effort is worth it.

For those who think that anti-establishmentarianism started with Woodstock or the Punk scene this book is a must read. Christopher Hill shows the roots of the modern left and the populist movement going back to the English Revolution of the 1600's. He shows a variety of different groups that rocked the status of the era, including movements for land reform and quite radical notions about religion.

If you want to understand American history, this book is a must read because many of these movements could be seen later in the American Revolutionary war. It may also surprise many that the friendly face you see on a box of Quaker Oats has more in common with counter-culture rather than corporate culture.

Hill sticks to his theme and writes well. While filled with footnotes, this book was very easy on the eye. In addition he manages to show how these movements change over time. Never a dull page here!

Battledragon was an excellent book. It is a continuation of the Bazil Broketail series. It is not as good as the other five books because it lacks the drama the other books have. I rate all the other books 5 stars. Although my name is also the title of the book, it does not refer to this book alone, but all the books and the dragons themselves, being that they are "battledragons". I hope that Rowley writes a sequel to his last book, because there needs to be one.

the best book in the bazil broketail series lots of action definitly christopher rowleys best work yet.

This is a nother great book from the Bazil Broketail series. I have been reading science fiction and fantasy all my life, but these books are truly in a league of their own. Never will you see another series like this.

The system that worked so well for the original DC Superheroes game has its FIFTH edition, but now its called Blood of Heroes Special Edition. Rules wise, it has everyting needed to play all sorts of superheroes, as more powers, skills, and common sense is involved in this edition. However, the reason I only give this 4 stars is because of the new setting that Pulsar games had to use because the DC liscense was unavailable to it. Without established heroes, the game settings just fall thru. Still, it is not that hard to find old DC sourcebooks in used-game bins at gaming stores, so you can still use that setting.

This would also be the ideal book to use in creation of a Transformers RPG setting, as the exp[onential system would work well when dealing with those in power level from Bumblebee to Fortress Maximus.

Note that this system would be lousy to use if everybody just played pure humans, as the skills just do not diversify other characters from your own.

Still, a great RPG.

Other than Godlike, I've seen every damn SHRPG out there, and they all suck. The rules are too heavy (Champions), the system is inherently flawed (Abberant), or you feel like you need to do the hokey-pokey (MSH). DC Heroes (the same product as this) changed my mind about the entire genre. MEGS definately hit the nail on the head when it comes to SH gaming. My only prob is this: the new rules in BoH are sometimes fraudulent (fake new powers that any moron could have made out of the old powers, and the fact you can now play villians-the worst gaming experience possible. Imagine robbing a bank, only to fight superheroes, then robbing another bank. There's barely anywhere to go). Still beats the pants off the other SHRPGs, so I give it the highest praise.

In the old days, back when we only had the New Kids on the Block as a boy band, and there were only two brands of Star Trek, Classic and New Trek, Mayfair came out with the Mayfair Exponential Gaming System. A sleeker, more streamlined, play-wise, version of the Champions game - though it's easier to build your own Champions character.

However, MEGS has far more comprehensive rules for roleplaying, suggestions for awards, and lovely things like hero points for last ditch efforts, and its powers are even more customizable than Champions, if such a thing is possible. The Blood of Heroes adds even more refinements to what weaknesses there were.

My only complaint was that they always wrote Superman as impossible to touch, especially when the dude had the Superspeed Power which accounted for his extreme dexterity stunts. Give this game a try. You'll find it's worth it, especially for the exciting new characters.