Fast-paced and fun, this is a pretty good choice for fans of the really GOOD wooden ships & iron men stories. Lambdin isn't technically much of a writer and characterization is minimal but the pace is great and the author not only really seems to know his Age of Sail history. The anti-hero aspects of Lewrie make a pleasant break from his rivals who are generally perfect. Not as much of the fun bawdy sex in this one as in King's Coat, but its a plus. Comparisons to Patrick O'Brien or even C.S. Forester are embarrassing and stupid--this stuff is fun to read but Mr. Lambdin falls well short of the master..

I love ship action stories, especially spiced with humor and romance. But this one, my first Lambdin, was almost impossible to read because of all the errors. if the author can't get straight the difference between lie and lay, at least the editors could hire a copyeditor! And all those weird dialog tags--people just don't shrug, spit, glare, or hiss dialog. Every one of those is like a needle in the eyes, throwing me right out of the story, and totally unnecessary. Ditto the mistakes in foreign languages--though those are more understandable than the juvenile errors in basic English. I won't buy any more of these new, only used, unless someone tells me the writer finally got acquainted with a basic grammar and style manual.

It is early 1782 and Desperate, 20 guns, having 'retreated gracefully' from the Yorktown debacle is now in train with Admiral Hood's fleet running down to the Caribbean. Unfortunately, the Frogs are chasing under the command of the wily de Grasse, who didn't get where he is by avoiding encounters.
The action starts soon enough and de Grasse exploits every possibility to bring the Rosbifs to task, but fails miserably, leaving Desperate to pick off a 28 shadowing a message schooner. In the aftermath of the battle, Alan Lewrie is appointed master of the prize. The result of Alan's actions is unexpected promotion into the brig Shrike, a Dutch-built 12, as 1st luff under a wily old sea-dog as mad as a hatter.
Alan can't keep his mouth shut or his breeches buttoned-up, which leads to some unfortunate and raunchy interludes, affecting his earlier career, and, it seems, his future.
Not a series for those new to the genre, or with no nautical knowledge, as there is not the untarred landsman colleague to explain the intricacies of naval terminology to, as in Aubrey & Maturin.
But ... the above- and below-decks descriptions are among the best I've read, although Mr. Lambdin does rather overdo the vernacular and accents a bit too much for fluid reading, however it does add an extra touch of reality.
Luck plays its part again in the aftermath of another debacle, this time to good effect as Lewrie meets Nelson and receives his second promotion in a year.
A raunchier series than most, but well worth reading.*****

I use this book as a combo tutorial/reference guide. It's not a total beginner's guide. But if you have some experience with command-line Windows, DOS or any Unix at all, this book should prove adequate in guiding you through the 80-90% of Red Hat-specific Linux you'll want to learn. I like the book's conversational tone, the short tutorials, and some of the Web links that are sprinkled throughout the text. The book was written about the time RH 6.2 came out, so it's missing info on the latest features, but it's still useful to me as I am now running RH 7.2.

I think this book covers a large part of the typical kinds of tasks that a begining to intermediate Red Hat user will need to know in an adequate way. It's not a "Dummies" book, because it has more depth and includes a lot of useful references for further study. But you don't have to be an experienced Linux user, either.

Experts will moan that it's not a typical O'Reilly "Nutshell" book. But this book is for those who need more tutorials and a mild hand-holding for the hard stuff. I think it hits the "middle ground" in a useful way.

The book was written about the time RH 6.2 shipped. I am running RH 7.2 now and there is still a lot of info in this book is that is applicable.

I don't think the publisher updated it for RH 7+, but I don't know why. I have this book and older "Linux Unleashed" on my small shelf and find both of them are handy references.

Compre este libro con el objetivo de adquirir conocimiento relacionado a la administracion de servidores Red Hat, y sinceramente no he necesitado comprar otro. En 6 meses este libro me ha convertido en un buen administrador Red hat.
Pude hallar en el mismo toda la informacion necesaria para administrar sistemas internet sobre Red Hat. Si el libro no tiene cierta informacion, brinda un lugar donde hallarla.
Sus topicos sobre seguridad son tambien muy buenos aunque no profundos, ya que el libro no se orienta a ello.
Honestamente recomiendo el libro, como un libro general destinado a Administradores de Sistemas Red Hat, pero si deseas adquirir un profundo conocimiento sobre un area especifica del libro, deberas saltar a uno de los enlaces ofrecidos o adquirir otro libro adicional complementario.
Te recomiendo este libro si eres: novato en RedHat pero con solidos conocimientos en TCP/IP e Internetworking, tienes conocimientos sobre unix y deseas mejorarlos orientandolos a RedHat, eres un experto en NT/2000 y deseas un upgrade de tu nivel hacia RedHat.
Saludos y espero que mi revision te sirva.
Piyux

In response to Hank Adams review on Esther Ross, Stillaguamish Champion. Regarding the weakness ascribed to the book by Hank when Ruby is delving into comments made by Mad Bear about Dick Gregory. In footnote 6 of Chapter 7, a reference is made to the citation for Ruby's claim of Mad Bear's judgement of Gregory. The source cited is Arlington Times December 15, 1966: "Of the Nisquallies, the Tuscarora remarked that they had made a bad mistake by importing Dick Gregory, Negro comedian, to draw attention to their cause. (Gregory was arrested and brought to trial last month on a charge of illegal fishing.) The Indian and Negro problems are not the same. There is no parallel, Indians owned and occupied the land, while the Negro people were brought in as slaves of the white man. Therefore, he said, the Medicine Creek Treaty was not allowed at Gregory's trial." The authors properly cited their source of information before making the statement.

Esther Ross, Stillaguamish Champion, reads like a novel. It is the thirteenth book by Robert H. Ruby and John A. Brown, co-authors of several popular Pacific Northwest Indian ethnohistories. American Indian activist LaDonna Harris describes it as "A story about an American Indian woman who takes incredible risks." Esther's daring schemes for tribal identification were played out over fifty years (1926-1976).
Legislators who met up with Ross still mention the fiery-eyed Indian woman chief obsessed with the goal of federal recognition of the Stillaguamish people. The tribe was a signatory of the 1855 Point Elliott Treaty, yet without federal recognition the Stillaguamish could not carry into effect the treaty promises-rights to certain lands, use of certain waterways. Eventually the policy makers with whom Esther kept company by way of her frequent trips to the Capitol declared her a nuisance. Her long-winded speeches, highly repetitive, and her disregard for protocol irritated the officials; she would talk far beyond her allotted time, and she wouldn't go home.
Ruby and Brown invested almost a decade piecing together Esther's story after her son Frank offered them the five footlockers of primary documents and secondary source materials which Esther had kept. While the materials provided a close look at twentieth-century Indian politics and federal policy, the compelling subject was Esther Ross, a woman ordinary and extraordinary, complex and creative, tricky and tenacious as a bulldog.
Ruby points out that Ross "was a double minority, one-fourth Indian and a feminist before that word was coined." Hard to believe that this same Esther never knew she was Indian until near the end of her high school years. Her father was Norwegian, and Esther lived her girlhood in white Northern California society. Her mother, not noticeably Indian, did not enlighten her daughter regarding Stillaguamish blood quantum. Esther's father died when she was ten. When Esther was twenty-two, in response to a call from Indian relatives in distress, Esther and her mother moved to Washington State where Esther, ignorant of tribal history, decided to "uncover her identity."
To strengthen her quest Esther searched the vicinity of the Stillaguamish River for a legitimate source of land to qualify as a land base for her people. She sought ancestral burial grounds from the whites who owned and plowed them. Instead she was offered some bones from an exposed site. Applying her flair for the dramatic, Esther would spill these human bone fragments across the desk of governor Dan Evans in Olympia and later, display them in the national Capitol.
In pre-war days Esther's foot-going treks to visit Stillaguamish families increased the tribal membership to more than sixty, but post-war visits revealed a group more interested in award moneys than in Esther's larger goals.
During 1964 Esther's path crossed that of Herbert Holdridge, a retired brigadier general who advocated buying up Nevada desert land and turning it into a sovereign nation for American Indians. However, she had far greater interest in fishing rights for the Stillaguamish, a matter of sustenance and revenue. Joining the Poor People's Campaign (1968), Esther and her son Frank were bused to DC where Esther made her presence felt.
The Boldt Case would make the difference. The federal government was contesting the state of Washington's control of Indian fishing rights. The government attorney advised that Indians were entitled to fifty percent of the fish harvest; the state had ruled five percent. Judge George Boldt would try the case in Tacoma's U.S. District Court. And Esther Ross would have her "fifteen minutes." Fortunately for Esther-and the courtroom-David Getches represented Esther as special counsel. When she took the stand, he guided her through a review of Stillaguamish River history. Judge Boldt's ruling favored the tribes. The grumbling of non-Indian commercial fishers was heard for years, but the Stillaguamish had won the right to fish.
It would be difficult to add up the thousands and thousands of miles Esther Ross traveled during her fifty-year crusade for Stillaguamish recognition by the federal government. Or to say how many state capitols she visited, how many elected officials heard her speak-badgering, cajoling, but never threatening-on behalf of all unrecognized tribes who 120 years ago had chosen to stay on their homelands rather than accept the reserves chosen by white men. Their great-grandfathers had signed a treaty that would preserve fishing rights, but those rights had been denied the landless Indians. Esther became, eventually, champion for the whole, her mission self-sustained despite her meager income. Esther's complete and absolute dedication was not doubted. Perhaps this accounted for her supporters even among those persons who deplored her outrageous schemes.
Among such schemes was one that would temporarily disrupt the national Bicentennial pageant. The escapade began June, 1975 in Blaine, Washington, near the Canadian border, where three horse-drawn wagons and Western-clad riders headed for the 200th National Birthday Celebration, a 3000-mile trek to Valley Forge. It was son Frank's idea to set up an attack, to waylay the wagon train until the Secretary of the Interior unconditionally recognized the Stillaguamish tribe. Frank called television and radio stations, and Paul Harvey on his daily national newscast announced the impending attack. Indian activism of the 1970s was recalled-siege at Wounded Knee, takeover at Alcatraz, trouble at Fort Lawton. The "attack" might prove to be more than symbolic.
At Stillaguamish headquarters (Island Crossing), Frank stopped the wagons. And Esther, age 71, a wrinkled little woman wearing Indian clothing, stood in the middle of the road and read her speech. An assistant to the interior secretary assured Esther that the document granting tribal recognition would be ready in thirty days. Eight months then passed without word from the government, and a new secretary of the interior, Thomas Kleppe, was appointed.
Two years after the Boldt decision Esther "recruited" a steelhead trout from the Stillaguamish river to play a part in a scheme that stunk to high heaven. Needing to familiarize Kleppe with her drive for tribal recognition, she air-freighted him a frozen 18-pound trout labeled "Washington Salmon." The flying fish had begun to age en route; on arrival, dockers, holding their noses, wanted someone from Interior to take it off their hands immediately. Kleppe's response to Esther was to thank her and mention his preference for beef, saying he had given the beautiful fish to his neighbors.
Esther had problems within her tribe. They referred to her style of leadership as nepotism and resented her hiring whites as assistants. They challenged her right to increase, then decrease, the blood quantum for tribal enrollment to suit her personal intent. They openly wondered how much of tribal funds she was spending on herself. The Stillaguamish wanted Esther stripped of privileges and functions. It was more than two years since the promise made at the wagon train; push needed to become shove. Esther Ross sued the Department of Interior. Judge June L. Green heard the case. On October 27, 1976 Esther Ross' goal was achieved: the Stillaguamish had a recognized place in time.
During January, 1988 Esther began to sicken. Ever-protective son Frank cared for his mother until her death August 1, 1988, a month short of her 84th birthday.

My name is Sandra M. Allen, Chief Esther R. Ross Was my Mom and grandmother.

My brother David has received a history book for his birthday about yrs after grandma passed away in 1990 and we had noticed that the full information wasn't in it about Stillaguamish and this is when we decided to have Esther's(grandmas)story written.

I spent from birth till I was 16years old on the road with grandma and I had an education that I thought should be shared and here it is. To me Grandma was a role model and someone I wanted to live my life by and follow. In the book tells everything both good and bad in some eyes, but everyone has a opion. When my dad (Frank)and myself talked about it too me I wanted a book out because I wanted to have people read and see what she did and was able to do. To me she did more then she was ever given credit for. David and myself gave our education while growing up but in this book everyone can see why we are proud to have had the experience. I have finished high school and college this year will be going on to law school to finish grandmas work... I will be going for Land and Water rights and am very proud to have had her as a Mom and as a role model. My Father Chief Frank Allen passed away one week before seeing the cover of the book on May 14.2001 it was given to us at the gave site, this is to us a wonderful book and has everything in it that we wanted and to my brother David and myself we hope schools will use it and hope that it encourages people to not give up and that one person can make a difference. This women you all are reading about was a legend, role modle,history maker,mother,and friend. She had people who couldn't stand to be around her and she had people who couldn't wait to see her she was a honor to be around and I am proud to say this book is a 5 star. This wasn't to be about facts or to please everyone this book is from us to you the readers its not just one more book Ruby and Brown have written, this is a part of our lives and a way to keep it all together for our children and grandchildren and so on this is opening up our lives to you to share with you what kind of women she was, she was a loving, caring and I wouldn't be who I am today if it wasn't for her and my dad Frank Allen, I would have been like my other siblings out drinking and no education or just given up but my goal in life is to be like her and do as she would have me do. So please take the time and read about my mother/grandmother, and see why we wanted to share her life with you and I hope she can be a role model for you also or your children. I was with Esther till she was taken from us and went on to school and when I graduated I dedicated my diploma to my grandma and dad cause without them I wouldn't have had the wisdom or strength to try and be the most I could be....

So please share this with others and I hope the memories of our life with our mom/grandmother and father will live on. Dad and Grandma always were together and now they are together in peace.
I miss dad and grandma so Dearly but with this it makes it as they are here with us still and I can still her my grandmas voice when I read the book so many memories. Some people have a scrap book we have a history richer to us then gold that is what dad and grandma left me the richest person on earth a life time of fighting and tears and sweat to give me and my children and theirs an IDENTITY and its one we hold close to our hearts.

The Wealth of Choices is a very entertaining, highly readable introduction to how the internet will impact individual's lives. I would recommend this book if your have not read on this topic previously and would like to get your feet wet. The clear message that Murray delivers is that, for better or worse, your number of choices and responsibilities is going to explode in the future. He does this through numerous anecdotes in areas ranging from choosing your electricity supplier to choosing your hospital to choosing how to manage your retirement savings. Refreshingly, Murray notes not only the positive aspects of this increase in choices and responsibilities but also the downside (do you really want to spend a day figuring out who is lowest cost electricity provider?).

However, what this book does not provide is up-to-date practical advice for how to deal with the increase in choices. For example, the section on internet shopping is particularly dated, and fails to discuss tools such as price comparison shopping bots. Similarly, I would not base any financial decisions on the chapter on investing in the new economy. Much more thorough information on investing for the novice can be found in sources such as W.J. Bernstein's The Intelligent Asset Allocator, Siegel and Bernstein's Stocks for the Long Run, J. Bogle's Common Sense on Mutual Funds : New Imperatives for the Intelligent Investor or even online.......... This is probably the biggest flaw in The Wealth of Choices-there is no major listing of additional references to get more detailed information on any of the topics.

In short, borrow The Wealth of Choices from the library, get some ideas, but spend your money on more thorough books for a reference that you will return to over and over.

Alan S. Murray's book delves into the well-worn themes of globalization and digitization, but manages to differentiate itself from the rest of the New Economy flotilla by offering up specific, practical suggestions on how consumers and business owners can cope. Many of Murray's major points have been presented more effectively in other books, such as Tom Friedman's The Lexus and the Olive Tree. That said, his advice on health care, education and career advancement in the New Economy is useful and easy to understand. So we at getAbstract recommend this book less for its broad overview of the Internet Economy and more for its common-sense wisdom for daily life in a dotcom world. (One caveat: as a result of the recent technology slump, some of Murray's analysis is already somewhat dated.)

"It's a great moment to be alive. Make the most of it."

The book's basic premise is that the economy has changed so much that you have to change your assumptions in order to prosper in terms of your health and money.

The first chapter, Not My Father's Economy, sets this up by sharing the advice his father always gave him and suggesting that these rules no longer apply.

The second chapter is a quiz that lets you test how well you have adapted to the new economic realities. The quiz is on the main points in the rest of the book, so if you do well in any part of that section, you can skip the material on that subject when you get to it later on. A strength of this structure is that it customizes the book for each reader, regardless of how savvy or out of it they are about the new economy.

Then, he shares hiw own experiences in how the new economy has changed for him in chapter 3. You will meet many famous and fascinating figures, such as the Gardner brothers of Motley Fool fame.

Chapters 4-12 are devoted to shopping, health care, education, work, how to spend your time and attention, investing, starting a business, retirement, and privacy (one per chapter). In these chapters, he gives you tips for each area, on-line sources you can access to keep up-to-date, and suggests key operating principles.

Here's a summary of his perspective on the economy: "Today, the basic market principles of competition and choice have swept into every aspect of American life." "The world has gotten smaller; competition has gotten more intense; choices have become more plentiful." "Globalization, deregulation, and digitalization are turning the entire world into a modern version of the Istanbul bazaar." " . . . The power balance, for the first time in the history of capitalism, has shifted in the consumer's favor." He has trouble defining the new economy, and does so with a series of negatives. It isn't very effective, but a definition probably isn't very important for achieving the book's purposes.

For those who like their economics in a qualitative form and in an abbreviated journalistic style, this book will be an excellent source of why the economy has and is changing.

For those who want to know how to get the best deal, this book is invaluable. While all of the other books about the Internet primarily focus on building a business or investing, this one shows how to use the Internet for everyday benefits for everyone. I am sure that many books will follow in this vein, but this is the first one I have seen done from this perspective. He also offers a web site where you can keep up-to-date on on-line sources.

But the real benefit is in helping you see where you may have stalled thinking about what you should be focusing on. The book is highly effective in showing you where to look and what questions to ask. For example, if 88 percent of mutual funds underperform the market averages, why do you own one that is not an index fund? I would give the book more than five stars if I could for this aspect.

The book's main weakness is that you cannot teach someone everything they need to know in each of the areas in a few pages. His reach exceeds his grasp in areas like investing, starting a business, privacy and retiring. Each subject area requires many books to fully understand. You should go find those books and study them. Don't take the advice here too literally.

I also thought that he misunderstands about education. He suggests going for the 'best' education, but seems to automatically equate that with 'brand name' education. Be a little more skeptical than that about the 'brand names' in education. Their product is not what it once was.

After you have read and absorbed the book's lessons, ask yourself how much of your time you really want to spend on making all of these new choices. Then decide which areas you will spend that time on. Even with the tips in this book, you will still find that you will have to ration your attention. I suggest you focus on health care, education, work (or business), and use whatever is left for shopping. But you should decide for yourself!

Taylor's work on Bismarck is strangely contradictory. While he often makes reference to issues in German history that only knowledgable readers would understand, he also deals with the subject matter in a very superficial manner. While I found the work engaging and quick to read, it left me with a lot more questions than answers.

If you are looking for an in-depth review of Bismarck's life, don't go here. But if you want a quick read that deals effectively with the greater issues of Bismarck's career, then this is it.

Arrogant, confrontational, self-absorbed: one would be hard pressed to determine if these characteristics should be found in A. J. P. Taylor's Bismarck: The Man and the Statesman or if they should be in his autobiography. Moreover, it is curious that many other distinguishing characteristics of Taylor's Bismarck are in many ways reflections of Taylor himself. This parallel could even be extended one step further to claim that Taylor's assessment of Bismarck might be similar to the present assessment of Taylor; that is, both must be praised for their remarkable achievements but praised in such a way that they would be opposed to it.
Taylor, England's most flamboyant historian,# often broke the traditional bounds of the field. He brought history to television, radio and the newspapers. He closed the gap of the historical wait period by writing a history of the origins of War World II in 1961. His flashiness aside, he produced many historical masterpieces including Bismarck. In this work he goes beyond the face value of Bismarck's recorded statements and examines the actions, and subsequently his motives, to find the true character of this monumental figure. He develops the notion of a opportunistic and self-centered Bismarck as opposed to loyal servant of the king whose great foresight brought the unity of Germany.
One major theme of the book is chance. It is argued that it was stoke of luck that allowed Bismarck even enter the field of politics, the bad health of another deputy. Even his great foreign policy was based on providence. Repeatedly Taylor asserts that Bismarck had no plan, rather he would let events unfold and then act from there. Furthermore, when Bismarck intentionally carried a line of policy through it would normally backfire causing him more harm. Taylor remarks, the genius of Bismarck lie not in brilliant initiatives but in being able to recover from past blunders.
Closely related to the theme of chance is the notion that Bismarck had no enduring principles. His own greatness was the only value that he held to as he morphed from reactionary to liberal to conservative. He proudly boasted to the Reichstag "I have no fixed opinions... there are no eternal truths" (138). Beside his own will, the only other exception of complete devotion was his family. However, this might even be challenged. One the boldest claims of the book is that some of Bismarck's landmark achievements, unification and social reform, came as by-products for his bid to stay in power. Explicitly, his main motive for introducing bills was to split the Emperor and Reichstag and thus increase his power; and similarly his main motive for foreign policy was to split the Great Powers to increase Germany and subsequently his power.
In many respects it is a difficult task writing the biography of a man who is a deceptive diplomat. Bismarck's documents and speeches are overflowing with contradictions. It seems that Bismarck's policies stemmed from the hope of a desired outcome instead of personal convictions. Nonetheless, the historian has the difficult task of sifting through the political jargon to find the true motives of this complicated person. Taylor largely discredits Bismarck's talk of humble servitude towards the monarch and instead supports the Bismarck's claim of his own greatness. However, how can one claim certitude with a man who has changed his memoirs repeatedly, had no scruples in contradicting facts, and supported so many opposing principles? This is a contributing fact to the case that this debate will go on. As it does, Taylor's work will do much to help guide those who seek the motives and beliefs or the real Bismarck.

Arrogant, confrontational, self-absorbed: one would be hard pressed to determine if these characteristics should be found in A. J. P. Taylor's Bismarck: The Man and the Statesman or if they should be in his autobiography. Moreover, it is curious that many other distinguishing characteristics of Taylor's Bismarck are in many ways reflections of Taylor himself. This parallel could even be extended one step further to claim that Taylor's assessment of Bismarck might be similar to the present assessment of Taylor; that is, both must be praised for their remarkable achievements but praised in such a way that they would be opposed to it.
Taylor, England's most flamboyant historian,# often broke the traditional bounds of the field. He brought history to television, radio and the newspapers. He closed the gap of the historical wait period by writing a history of the origins of War World II in 1961. His flashiness aside, he produced many historical masterpieces including Bismarck. In this work he goes beyond the face value of Bismarck's recorded statements and examines the actions, and subsequently his motives, to find the true character of this monumental figure. He develops the notion of a opportunistic and self-centered Bismarck as opposed to loyal servant of the king whose great foresight brought the unity of Germany.
One major theme of the book is chance. It is argued that it was stoke of luck that allowed Bismarck even enter the field of politics, the bad health of another deputy. Even his great foreign policy was based on providence. Repeatedly Taylor asserts that Bismarck had no plan, rather he would let events unfold and then act from there. Furthermore, when Bismarck intentionally carried a line of policy through it would normally backfire causing him more harm. Taylor remarks, the genius of Bismarck lie not in brilliant initiatives but in being able to recover from past blunders.
Closely related to the theme of chance is the notion that Bismarck had no enduring principles. His own greatness was the only value that he held to as he morphed from reactionary to liberal to conservative. He proudly boasted to the Reichstag "I have no fixed opinions... there are no eternal truths" (138). Beside his own will, the only other exception of complete devotion was his family. However, this might even be challenged. One the boldest claims of the book is that some of Bismarck's landmark achievements, unification and social reform, came as by-products for his bid to stay in power. Explicitly, his main motive for introducing bills was to split the Emperor and Reichstag and thus increase his power; and similarly his main motive for foreign policy was to split the Great Powers to increase Germany and subsequently his power.
In many respects it is a difficult task writing the biography of a man who is a deceptive diplomat. Bismarck's documents and speeches are overflowing with contradictions. It seems that Bismarck's policies stemmed from the hope of a desired outcome instead of personal convictions. Nonetheless, the historian has the difficult task of sifting through the political jargon to find the true motives of this complicated person. Taylor largely discredits Bismarck's talk of humble servitude towards the monarch and instead supports the Bismarck's claim of his own greatness. However, how can one claim certitude with a man who has changed his memoirs repeatedly, had no scruples in contradicting facts, and supported so many opposing principles? This is a contributing fact to the case that this debate will go on. As it does, Taylor's work will do much to help guide those who seek the motives and beliefs or the real Bismarck.

I found this book while on vacation in a beach house and I was looking forward to a good book to escape with. Too bad this wasn't the book. The plot was weak -- too cliched and too convenient. ...And Styles?? Jiri must not be that good of a terrorist if his two attempts on Styles still haven't finished the job. Maybe I missed something since most reviewers enjoyed the book. But as a German and History teacher, this novel really left something to be desired.

I was expecting big things from this thriller, set amidst the fall of the Berlin Wall and subsequent uprisings in Eastern Europe--and found it all rather disappointing in the end. One problem is that there were way too many characters bouncing around all over the place, and while some felt real, far too many others were simply too cardboard for me (especially the main villain Styles, and the spunky young reporter Jodie). Marks does manage to introduce the reader to the major events of those months, and captures the aura fairly well--but at the expense of any kind of plausibility in many of the characters' actions, and certainly at the expense of the weak plot. Although strong on atmosphere, overall comparisons to Greene and LeCarré are way off-track.

Rewarding reading for those interested in Eastern Europe and the reunification of Germany. Terrific characters and authentic atmosphere. A great start by a talented writer.

There are 60 illustrations, excellent paintings, with the accompanying text that inspired it. The colours are very well down, and each painting is brilliantly done in terms of publication. There are nine artists represented. These are:

Inger Edelfeldt: 7 paintings

Tony Galuidi: 2 paintings

Roger Garland: 10 paintings

Robert Goldsmith: 2 paintings

Michael Hague: 7 paintings

John Howe:10 paintings

Alan Lee: 10 paintings

Ted Nasmith: 10 paintings

Caro Emery Phenix: 2 paintings

My personal favorite is John Howe. He brings out a lot of dark imagery. I don't know why, but Hague's stuff just does not appeal to me. I have seen him do Lewis's Pilgrim's Regress, and some other stuff, and I just don't like his style (also saw his illustrations for WIZARD OF OX). His are of THE HOBBIT. Galuidi has almost a computer generated quality, and his work is especially intriguing, although there are only 2 of his paintings in this collection. Lee is good. All in all, this is a fair book, collecting the paintings of artisits brining about their own vision of Tolkien's classic saga. Over all, a four star book (bumped up one star because of Howe's supreme quality).

This is a collection of 50+ paintings based on various works by Tolkien, which fans of Tolkien will no doubt enjoy. It may be of speial interest to those who watched the movies (and who hasn't, who read Tolkien...) as you can clearly see how some of these paintings are replicated in Jackson's movies; it takes but a moment to catch it in the film, but if you see the pictures enough you'll recognize it.

The quality of the paintings are uneven, and each one has its favorite. Like many people, I find Hague lacking, but also Edelfeldt, who isn't bad but whose style is not unique enough in my opinion.

My favorites, on the other hand, are Howe, Garland, Nasmith, Lee and Galuidi. Garland, my favorite, has a unique and glowing, almost 'mystical' style that does the book justice. Howe's pictures are also intriguing and beautiful, and feel true to the book (and thankfully, he seems to dominate the book in terms of the number of contributions). Nasmith has some splendid landscape pictures, though his vision of the characters leave something to be desired (especially of a fat, distorted Boromir!) Galuidi's sci-fi, computerized style may not appeal to some, but I find them interesting. Finally, Lee's soft watercolors are very appealing, and his vision of the characters is near-perfect (especially Galadriel and Gandalf).

"Tolkien's World" is a very handsome book: large, hardcover, sleeve-cover, fine print and paper. It consists on a serie of paintings divided by books (The Hobbit, LOTR, Silmarillion, etc.) printed in the largest scale possible and with great definition. Beside the picture there is the passage of the book which inspired the painting. In the end there are one-page texts about or written by each of the artists, explaining their influences and relation with Tolkien works. My favorite artist is, without a doubt, Ted Nasmith, that draws very realistic pictures. Second place is John Howe, with his dark and intriguin style. All in all, a pretty nice book. I was very satisfied with it and it helped me to figure the places and events of LOTR. Be aware that there's a book that is kind of a sequel to this one: "Realms of Tolkien: Images of Middle-Earth", which I'm planning to get. It is written on its purchasing info that the author is Ted Nasmith, so is the cover authory. Lucky me.

Told in the first person, this is the tragic story of the life of the social climbing Roxana - it reads (as I suppose it was intended to read) as a guilt-ridden confession.

Abandoned (with her five children) by her profligate and irresponsible husband, Roxana rises to wealth by a series of affairs with well-connected men. Not to give away the ending, but the achievement of wealth does not result in anything like happiness.

Due to the way she was treated, Roxana has a highly critical view of marriage, and advocates equal rights for women. Although he puts such opinions in Roxana's mouth, Defoe makes it clear that (for the time) these were extreme views - Roxana goes too far in her cynicism and amorality. I thought that Defoe's point was that women should be treated far more humanely than they were, but not that they should be treated as equals.

Defoe also explores interesting issues surrounding the moral effects of both extreme poverty and great wealth: "... for tho' Poverty and Want is an irresistible Temptation to the Poor, Vanity and Great Things are as irresistible to others..."

In the edition I was reading, the editor had done his best to maintain Defoe's original spelling and style. You have therefore to put up with the peculiarities and inconsistencies of Defoe's grammar and spelling. Either you're into this or you're not, but I prefered it that way. The lack of chapters or other breaks in the text was a bother: I don't know enough about the literature of Defoe's time to judge whether that was normal, or whether Defoe deliberately avoided the use of such "artificial" stylistic devices in order to maintain the feeling that this was someone giving her confession. Unless you're able to sit down and read the novel at one sitting (I wasn't) it means that you have to judge carefully when to create your own breaks.

Although "Roxana" had plenty of points of interest, I felt that it was over-long. Defoe had made his case long before the end, and although the ending is shocking and tragic, the pathway there could have been shorter.

This novel follows the progress of a woman who is left by her husband with only her servant. She vows never to be poor again, and climbs her way back up the social ladder by using men and her body. The novel, while possibly intended as a conduct book to show women what happens to those who sin, reads today as a portrait of a woman trapped between society's views and her own upward movement. A very interesting, and at times disturbing, read.

Daniel Defoe has a way with words, lovely piece of words. I would advise you to read this book slowly to eat up the words.

I don't know why he would call this book really, really, really, really, weird stories. The stories are ok and the writing not so bad. But not worth reading.

Not Shirley's best work but worth the price of the purchase. Some of his stories seemed little more than pointless vignettes, drug or booze addled memories or simple nonsense. But when Shirley is on his game (more misses than hits) its the genuine stuff. I think a little more editing before a rush to publish may have payed dividends or at least discarding half of the stories in favor of quality over quantity.

This was my first John Shirley experience. It has left me both eager and afraid to track down more of his work. I'm eager to read more Shirley because he is master of stories. He can write in any genre. His stories are fascinating. I like them. I'm afraid to read more Shirley because the stories are so engrossing that I lose track of time. That, and the fact, that many of his stories are quite disturbing.

As other reviewers have noted, this collection is not made up of all winners. In any collection of nearly 40 stories, there will be some poorer stories. While this collection does not have any bad stories, there are several short vignettes that perhaps should have been left out of this collection.

Several of the stories in this collection left me reeling. 'Lot Five...' is a marvelous story that really defies description. There are several acolytes of a cult-like leader who are attempting to wend their way through a maze of doors, hallways, and security guards to reach the guru. I loved this story. It was weird and horrific at the same time.

Another of my favorites was '...And the Angel with Television Eyes', a story about a tele-screen actor who's been plagued with bizarre dreams. He wakes one morning to find an iron griffin on his balcony. The griffin tells him that he's being summoned by some sort of ethereal lords. Before the actor can act on the summons he's kidnapped by hideous harpies and taken to a rooftop balcony where a metal man, Lord Thanatos, tells him that the griffin is attempting to trick the actor. A large battle ensues in which the actor learns of his true identity and the large mystery behind the events of his morning. I am excited to hear that Mr. Shirley has recently completed a novel expansion of this story, due in 2002.

As the title of the collection indicates, many of the stories in this collection are very weird. In fact, the stories are organized by their weirdness. The first section is Really Weird Stories. The second is Really, Really Weird Stories...and so on.

Those of us who love weird fiction, and you know who you are, should pick up this collection. It's full of great weirdness. I should point out that many of the stories in this collection contain explicit sexual content, so if that's not your thing, stay away. On the whole, I found this collection to be a mind-blowing trip through the works of a brilliant author, John Shirley. Immediately after finishing this book, I jumped online and ordered several other Shirley titles. I fully expect to enjoy them as much as I did this one. Recommended.

It is a nice book but my only complaint is that the birds in it are limited. It did not have indigo buntings and rose breasted grosbeaks, etc.
Also, some of the descriptions do not seem accurate, eg differences between a yellow fronted canary and a yellow eye canary are not highlighted, and the female distinguishing markings are also not covered. The description on the song is also not accurate. I was disappointed with the book because I expected a lot more for the price I paid.

Overall, a good reference to the finches and sparrows of the world. However, those interested chiefly in the sparrows of the New World are advised to look elsewhere, as only the sparrows of the Old World genuses Passer, etc. are included in this work. I repeat: THERE ARE NO NEW WORLD SPARROWS (or towhees, buntings, juncos, etc.) IN THIS BOOK.

Also, I am not sure that all of the munias and mannikins of the genus Lonchura are included, as this book lists only 34, while another book specifically on that subject claims 41. Taxonomic hair-splitting or an omission by the authors of this book?

The Galapagos finches are omitted as well.

Buyer beware.

I am a breeder and distributor of different finches and this book has been the best resource I have been able to find. The picture plates are finely detailed including many sub-species of each type of finch. It even covers some finches that are too rare to be covered in any other book. There is detailed information on each species including, but not limited to, regional location (including migration and breeding maps), identification, differences between sub-species, availability, habitat requirements, food eaten, and scientific and local names. I really want someone to make a book as well done covering Weavers, Whydas, and Buntings. If you are looking to identify species and sub-species of finches then this is probably the only book you will need--period.