First off, I must admit that I thoroughly enjoyed Part I and absolutely adored Henry V. Having said that, I found Part II to be enjoyable, yet perhaps leaving something to be desired - like more action. Falstaff and Prince Hal both come off as somewhat disingenuous and calculating Machiavellian individuals. Disappointingly, Falstaff speaks poorly of Prince Hal while unwittingly in his midst. Conversely, The Prince of Wales prematurely takes the crown before his King Henry IV's death as well as disassociating himself with Falstaff after he is crowned King. These instances, along with others throughout the play, show the self-serving tendencies of both characters.

However, we can proudly witness the maturation of the young King from wild & dissolute young Prince Hal into one of the most revered monarchs in English history, King Henry V. Part II remains an intriguing play due to its paradoxical nature, yet unfortunately rarely acted out today. Now that I have read Henry IV(I&II) for the first time, I gladly move on to one of my personal favorites, Henry V. I recommend both parts(Folger editions) for all Shakespeare enthusiasts - they have given me greater insight into the young Henry V - when he was more concerned with downing a pint of ale rather than downing the French at Agincourt.

2 Magnificent Quotes from Henry IV Part II -
"Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown." - King Henry IV
"He hath eaten me out of house and home." - Mistress Quickly

This is the play where Henry IV squashes the Percy rebellion but himself becomes ill and dies. So, Price Hal becomes King Henry V and this leads to the next play of that name.

The wonderful Falstaff is also on glorious display. This is also the play with the famous tavern scene (Act II, Scene IV) that can be read endlessly with new enjoyment.

Everyone has his or her own take on Falstaff and his treatment at the hands of Henry V, but I dislike it even though I understand it. Prince Hal and his transformation into Henry V is not someone I admire a lot. Nor is Falstaff's manner of living, but his wit is so sharp and his intelligence so vast that it is easy to still delight in him.

But, you certainly don't need me to tell you anything about Shakespeare. Like millions of other folks, I am in love with the writing. However, as all of us who read Shakespeare know, it isn't a simple issue. Most of us need help in understanding the text. There are many plays on words, many words no longer current in English and, besides, Shakespeare's vocabulary is richer than almost everyone else's who ever lived. There is also the issue of historical context, and the variations of text since the plays were never published in their author's lifetime.

For those of us who need that help and want to dig a bit deeper, the Arden editions of Shakespeare are just wonderful.

-Before the text of the play we get very readable and helpful essays discussing the sources and themes and other important issues about the play.

-In the text of the play we get as authoritative a text as exists with helpful notes about textual variations in other sources. We also get many many footnotes explaining unusual words or word plays or thematic points that would likely not be known by us reading in the 21st century.

-After the text we get excerpts from likely source materials used by Shakespeare and more background material to help us enrich our understanding and enjoyment of the play.

However, these extras are only available in the individual editions. If you buy the "Complete Plays" you get text and notes, but not the before and after material which add so much! Plus, the individual editions are easier to read from and handier to carry around.

This is the play where the Percy rebellion begins and centers around the Achilles like Hotspur. Eventually, Hotspur (Henry Percy) and Prince Hal (Henry Monmouth - later Henry V) battle in single combat.

We also get to see the contrast between these young men in temperament and character. King Henry wishes his son were more like Hotspur. Prince Hal realizes his own weaknesses and seems to try to assure himself (and us) that when the time comes he will change and all his youthful foolishness will be forgotten. Wouldn't that be a luxury we wish we could all have afforded when we were young?

Of course, Prince Hal's guide through the world of the cutpurse and highwayman is the Lord of Misrule, the incomparable Falstaff. His wit and gut are featured in full. When Prince Hal and Poins double-cross Falstaff & company, the follow on scenes are funny, but full of consequence even into the next play.

But, you certainly don't need me to tell you anything about Shakespeare. Like millions of other folks, I am in love with the writing. However, as all of us who read Shakespeare know, it isn't a simple issue. Most of us need help in understanding the text. There are many plays on words, many words no longer current in English and, besides, Shakespeare's vocabulary is richer than almost everyone else's who ever lived. There is also the issue of historical context, and the variations of text since the plays were never published in their author's lifetime.

For those of us who need that help and want to dig a bit deeper, the Arden editions of Shakespeare are just wonderful.

-Before the text of the play we get very readable and helpful essays discussing the sources and themes and other important issues about the play.

-In the text of the play we get as authoritative a text as exists with helpful notes about textual variations in other sources. We also get many many footnotes explaining unusual words or word plays or thematic points that would likely not be known by us reading in the 21st century.

-After the text we get excerpts from likely source materials used by Shakespeare and more background material to help us enrich our understanding and enjoyment of the play.

However, these extras are only available in the individual editions. If you buy the "Complete Plays" you get text and notes, but not the before and after material which add so much! Plus, the individual editions are easier to read from and handier to carry around.

"King Solomon's Mines" was published in 1885, when the interior of Africa was still an unexplored, "dark" continent; thus, it was the first book to present the possibility of adventure in Africa to the European reading public. Riding on the tails of Robert Louis Stevenson's "Treasure Island," "King Solomon's Mines" made H. Rider Haggard famous. Much of what Haggard writes is based on his personal experience and observations in South Africa, where, unusual among the British colonizers, he learned Zulu, which gave him an insight lacking in his colleagues and contemporaries.

Although on the surface an adventure story for young boys, "King Solomon's Mines" raises interesting questions about the role of the colonists and their relationship with the African people on the eve of the great European scramble for Africa. Like the elephants that Quatermain and his group hunt and shoot down simply because they are there for the picking, so Africa and its riches presented itself to the Europeans as rich for exploitation. The question of "What is a gentleman?" runs throughout the narrative, leaving the European reader to discern whether Africans possessed a nobility and dignity comparable to the ancient Greeks and Biblical Hebrews. Haggard depicts the Zulu language as comparable to the richly metaphoric Old and Middle English languages.

"King Solomon's Mines" gives us a glimpse into a way of life that was shortly to disappear with the arrival of the Europeans.

I picked up Haggard's "King Solomon's Mines" to read on the train, knowing that it would be entertaining, and I wasn't disappointed. Moving quickly but without forsaking the kinds of detailed narration that bring a story to life, Haggard's novel is an engaging treasure hunt of the Indiana Jones variety.

The book is styled as a long chronicle written by safari-leader Allan Quatermain to his son, describing a hunt for the lost diamond mines of King Solomon in the heart of Africa. Haggard peppers the tale with nods to real life that go out of their way to convince us that everything we are reading is true--editorial comments purportedly added later, for example--and the result is a compellingly detailed read. It is clear that Haggard knew Africa well, and his framing of this knowledge within a focused and nicely spun-out plot pulls you right through the book to its climactic finale, which I should probably allow you, after you've traipsed across deserts and tamed native unrest with the narrator and his companions, to discover for yourself.

So, "King Solomon's Mines" is a well-constructed read, but another of its strong points, the humor that is so central to the story, forces a look at the bigger context. Haggard takes solid jokes (like Good's pasty white legs, for which he is assumed to be a god by the natives) and, like David Letterman, returns to them at intervals in a manner that always uses them in a new way but lets the reader think that he or she is on the inside, slyly being chucked on the shoulder by the narrator.

It's this penchant for humor that gets a little uncomfortable once you think about it, because you can't help but compare Haggard's novel here to another journey to the center of Africa written two decades later, Conrad's "Heart of Darkness," which is conspicuously devoid of laughter unless it's the very evil kind. Haggard's novel is immensely entertaining--I don't want to deny that for a second--but it glosses over some very real problems that Conrad is more careful about: imperialism and its disastrous universe of consequences.

I probably shouldn't stand in judgment of Haggard for his take on and his playing to the racial politics of his day, but I'm going to do it anyway because Haggard was, in his day, one of the most widely read writers writing. Adventures like "King Solomon's Mines" set the bar for the British male for decades and, if it taught him to be a gentleman and fair-player, it also grounded this ethos in the belief that he was superior both socially and racially. Thus is it the gentlemanly westerners who manage to import due process into African law in this novel, and thus does Captain Good's native love-interest ultimately recuse herself from his affections because, as a white man, he is like the sun. And what can possibly be good enough to mate with the sun?, she asks. Disturbing, in retrospect.

This gripping adventure story gets four stars by virtue of its great plot and skillful spinning-out of that plot. It misses the fifth star because it buys wholeheartedly into the myths on which centuries of imperial violence were founded. And no matter how enjoyable this novel is, it's hard to chase those ghosts away.

Surely a classic, this was Haggard's first foray into the literary field -- to prove he could do it better than some of his contemporaries. Having spent time in South Africa as a minor civil servant, he drew on his experiences of that land to impart a feel for the country in this short, but by no means small, tale of treasure hunting & adventure among unknown & exotic peoples. This is the story of an over the hill "white hunter" impressed into the service of two English gentlemen seeking the brother of one who had disappeared years before on the edge of a great desert in vain (or perhaps not so vain) pursuit of the fabled mines of King Solomon. Along the way they are joined by an enigmatic native guide who is much more than what he seems as they stumble across previously unexplored (@ least by Europeans) tracts of Africa & into a lost nation related, apparently, to the Zulus of southern Africa whom the English of that day so feared & respected. Drawn at once into the internal politics of these people & overawing them w/their European tricks, they are soon in deadly peril from the the cruel king of that country and the evil sorceress who conspires behind his throne. But there's no use telling too much of a tale like this in a review -- the interested reader is urged to read it for him or herself. It's quick & exciting & no more than what it seems: a fast paced adventure in strange parts, for those w/a taste to see how the great ones, like Haggard, did it. -- Stuart W. Mirsky (mirsky@ix.netcom.com

This book is an excellent refence book if one wants to use it in this manner. I have this book and have enjoyed it. The only problem I have is that there isn't any tapes that come with it so that a person can hear what the language sounds like. However, the author has remedied this with a slightly less expensive language learning set called "Colloquial Basque" that contains tapes so you can hear the Basque language spoken. This set happens to cost much less. If you want to find it here, just look up the title and you will be able to see the price for it here at amazon.com

There are no other Basque language textbooks to speak of, so this one is necessarily the best, because it is a competent attempt. If you're a serious learner, this book will put you a good ways towards achieving your goal.

This was a drop in quality in the series so far. The first three and H.M.S. Cockerel were better. In "Privateer", the story tends to wander from the focus that was a plus in the others. It isn't a bad book, none of the ones I've read in the series are. Lewrie is still an interesting character, and it's worth reading. It's just that it is a valley in a series of peaks to this point. I do look forward to reading the next in the series.

It's 1783 and Britain is in the depression 'between wars' and like an actress between jobs is hard-up and desperate to improve her lot.
Enter young Alan Lewrie, gulled into a commision on an East Indiaman with a hidden agenda of retribution against French privateers.
Alan, like most young men, keeps his brain in his groin and finds no shortage of willing bed-partners; but this lascivity leads to problems, the least of which is a pregnant maid. On the run, even 4th luff on the Indiaman looks an attractive prospect, with the chance to make money and a name for himself, but as they arrive in Calcutta, the past catches up with him.
He is thus privy to news that the rest of the young officers are denied, causing jealousy and unrest in the gunroom.

Mr.Lambdin strives to convey accents with a quaint use of spelling and punctuation - it usually works, but sometimes is a trifle heavy going. Otherwise, apart from one or two slips, the plot rolls along very nicely. There is initially markedly little naval action - but there is plenty of intrigue and double-dealing to keep one guessing all the way through. However, when the action does start, the below-decks detail is extremely well described, educating the reader in the minutiae of the proceedings.

I am not fond of the detailed amorous interludes, which do nothing for the plot, only rubbing in the fact that Alan is human and prey to all the vices that the world has to offer, to my mind a subtle hint works better than a blow-by-blow description which easily turns salacious if not handled well.

Having read most of the other authors in this genre, I can say that Mr.Lambdin is definitely not near the bottom of the list - as I read more, he may rise alongside Richard Woodman, James Nelson & Patrick O'Brien in my estimation.

For sheer feel, this is the best of the Lewrie lot. Lewrie alternates between rage and panic and indecision, just like real people.

By going far afield the writer helps to highlight some of the less-known aspects of the interwar period 1783-1794.

This time we managed to avoid the pornographic blow-by-blows of Lewrie's rutting with non-white women, though the smut remains while he's in England.

Overall the series is a disappointment.

Planning to cut loose from poor Phoebe with a cash settlement, Lewrie finds that is easier said than done. So off they go, with a surprising collection of her recent acquisitions, to find her accomodations in Corsica, Phoebe's homeland and Lewrie's next naval assignment. Once again Lambdin has done excellent research to cover a segment of the early Napoleonic Wars that has been neglected by most authors. The book develops as an excellent historical novel, mixing realistic accounts of well known historical figures with Lambdin's fictional characters. And what of poor Phoebe? The Contessa Aretino, a sharp businesswoman with a knack for turning a profit and a Corsican nationalist to boot? Well, now... And Le Hideux, an enemy from Lewrie's past reappearing to match wits and guns, will this be his end as Lewrie hunts him down? As with the other Lambdin books about Lewrie, the plot stands well by itself but, in this case, the previous book, H.M.S. Cockerel, should prob! ably be read first as a King's Commander is an obvious continuation of a tale. The ending of the tale is a little unfinished and leads into a necessary sequel.

Lewrie has almost more action this time in bed than in command of his ship. This is a great series that takes you back to the days of Wooden Ships and Iron Men but adds a fair blend of humor and lechery as well. The scene where Lewrie gets his uniform chewed off (figuratively) by a angered Nelson is very well done. Someday some clever producer will realize that with computer advancements you could film any of the Hornblower, Bolitho, Ramage or Lewrie series and make some splendid movies. If you like Hornblower you'll probably enjoy this series and check out the hard to find Dudley Pope series and the Alexander Kent series as well. I was greatly relieved to see that the story I'd heard that the series was over was false and am looking forward to the next one

Mr. Lambdin has done it again. "Our hero" as Mr. Lambdin sometimes refers to his primary character continues the maintenance and, yes, love of his engaging Corsican mistress (Phoebe) while remaining wholly in love with his wife, Caroline. He concludes that it is possible to love them both, but is consumed (from time to time) by a horrendous and heavy guilt and self -loathing at the fact. This does not stop him from admiring and entertaining lascivious thoughts of other women who cross his path. When not feeling guilty, he is Commander of HMS Sloop Jester, which he manages with much success. The people he encounters (Captain Horatio Nelson) and others, are people you come to know and care for because of Mr. Lambdin's remarkable ability to create and develop characters that jump off the page at you. His storytelling is first class, his plots are fascinating without being contrived, and his sense of humor sets him apart from others of the genre. It is clear that he is at pains to be accurate in the slang and colloquialisms of the time, and he is equally accurate in the technicalities of sailing, without letting those technicalities overwhelm the reader. His sense of the historical is made clear by his notes at the end of the book noting where he deviated slightly from what is possible, historically speaking, or elaborating on an historical character in the story by explaining why he attributed the personality to them that he did. This is altogether a superb book, written by a master storyteller, who clearly commands his craft. This is great stuff.

Judging by the other reviews here I'm clearly missing something.

I came to this book expecting an easy to read Sci-Fi pulp story, hopefully entertaining, at best uplifting. I almost got what I was expecting, but not quite.

To it's credit, it held my interest enough to actually finish it, and the internal logic and scientific concept was consistant and well-thought out enough to be believable. That's about the most positive thing I can find to say about it.

As I began to read I was so stricken with the clumsiness of the dialogue and the two dimensional gimmickry of the characterisation that I assumed this must be a very brave (and lucky to be published) first novel. Not sure if that's the case, but my hopes that there might be a powerful or clever twist that had contributed to it's acceptance by the Publishing House were sadly not to be realised.

There is a sense throughout that it might all be worth it, but the ending is so weak as to leave me resenting the time spent ploughing through the final chapters, misprints and all. I was amazed to find on completion that the author has gone on to pen a whole series based on the characters found in this book, each of which can be reduced to one 'interesting' personality trait.

It is littered with the sort of literary rule-breaking that requires an artist of much greater stature than this for justification. For instance, I accept that his use of dialogue so clumsy as to be (literally) sometimes in fictional alien tongues was an attempt to give his conceptual hybrid human/alien language an exotic feel... unfortunately it succeeded, in my case, only to irritate.

Probably the most interesting character is introduced in detail early in the story, only to play no further role. The Sci-Fi cliches come thick and fast.

A strong ending could, perhaps, have excused the weakness of the prose, but this, unfortunately, was simply not forthcoming.

I don't normally find it useful to contribute such negative reviews, but amidst the shining praise found here, I really felt there needed to be at least one dissenting voice to warn to potential first time reader.

The first of the 7 Flinx of the Commonwealth books. I don't think the Flinx books are actually an ordered series, rather they are just stories of Flinx and his minidrag Pip (a minidrag is a kind of lethal flying snake). In The Tar-Aiym Krang we are introduced to Flinx, a mind-reading orphan who lives off of his street act (and a little crime). Through some believable coincidences, Flinx ends up helping two scientists and a trader as they search for an ancient artifact, the Tar-Aiym Krang. Although the fact of the Krang is a little bit of an anti-climax, this book is a fine story and is also notable as the introduction of the entire Humanx Commonweath that Foster has returned to over and over.

The book that started it all. It is a must have, if you plan on reading Mid-Flinx and Reunion, A Pip and Flinx Novel. I might add that Alan Dean Foster's Midworld should also be enjoyed prior to reading Mid-Flinx. In all four books, Alan paints a tapestry full of vivid characters, larger than life environments and surprise endings. I highly recommend them!

Alan Wilson and Baram Blackett have been studying the real history of the two King Arthurs for over 40 years and their research is based only upon hard fact. Their work allows you to access every manuscript, visit every historic site and touch every stone and artefact.

Adrian Gilbert simply wrote up their voluminous research and put it into a more reader friendly style, for which we should be grateful.

No wonder the academics are scared of Wilson and Blackett. By using the ancient British (in the Welsh and Latin language) manuscripts they have been able to conclusively prove the existence of two King Arthurs, the reality of an early Christian church in Wales that predates St. Augustine (597) and, for example, that Southern Wales was the scene for Arthur 2nd's famous battle at Baedan (Mynydd Baedan). Note that modern Ordnance Survey maps omit many of the real and important historical sites. This happened as a result of the authors initial research.

Wilson and Blackett's research shows the deliberate and malicious misdating of ancient monuments and stones by supposed "experts" at the University of Wales, CADW and the Glamorgan-Gwent Archaelogical Trust Ltd, all of whom combined from the early 1980s to shut down the historians' project. Happily, with our full support, they soldier on in true Arthurian style!

The truth has always been that they are 100% correct in their conclusions and even Gilbert, ever the skeptic, has had to admit as much. Hence his late involvement in the Ancient British historical project.

Against the background of political intrigue and state-funded hostility to their work, many of us are eternally grateful that we will be able to pass on the true history of these lands and our people onto our children. We will be able to take them to see places in Wales and the West Midlands and stand in awe at sites where British history was made.

Latterly, we have begun to understand the migration histories of the Khumry-Welsh (wrongly spelled Cymry) who descended from Brutus. The reality of this "invisible kingdom", stretching from Wales through Europe to the middle East, is a remarkable story that logically follows from this important book.

Go out and BUY this book - it'll change your perception and you'll overdose on truth!

I really enjoyed reading The Holy Kingdom and although I'd be interested to read more about Prince Madoc in America this book acts as a great introduction to the work of Alan Wilson and Baram Blackett's Ancient British Historical Project.

I am heartened that the Holy Kingdom is now available in the USA; this project is of immense significance and if we are to flesh out the history of Madoc and Arthur in America in the sixth Century then we need to know where we're coming from...

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. It does indeed seem as if Adrian Gilbert caught on to Wilson and Blackett rather late and had an editorial role, whereas they have done all the meaningful research.

Let's hope this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship between the publishers and these British historians. Rich in detail, racy in its commentary and sober in its reflection, The Holy Kingdom takes you to the sites of every relevant King Arthur story and even provides a twist in the tale in its debunking of the current Glastonbury hoax...

This is a great book, in so many ways...

A vital book.

The smear of misread manuscripts is not new and one that various powerful interests have tried through the ages. Anhun, or Annhun Nigri, was indeed Arthur lst as the whole picture presented by an understanding of the interlocking Welsh genealogies shows.

Blackett and Wilson have stuck to the ancient record and tried to understand how one Arthur figure could have battled and beaten the Romans at Soissy in 383 and also defeated the Saxons circa 560. Obviously there were two men!

Annhun's story is the same at that of Arthur 1st, whose burial stone Blackett and Wilson discovered several years ago near Atherstone (Arthr's Twyn, or Arthur's burial site?) in the West Midland, within the Old Bury ancient site founded circa 250 AD as the record states. The legend on the stone read Artorius - in other words Arthur. The site is at the heart of an old Welsh kingdom where experts in place names like Margaret Gelling have clearly said "English and Welsh lived together".

Hence we should not be surprised that during a period of Welsh dominance, mistakenly described as the "latter period of Roman domination" (there was no such thing), Welsh place names, burial sites and other artefacts should be discovered in the modern West Midlands within the ancient bishopric of Lichfield.

So Annhun, who died circa 388 and who was a direct descendent of Arthur/Arthwys ll ap Meurig ap Tewdrig, was indeed a vitally important figure within the Khumric dynasty and whose authenticity is not in doubt. We now know that it was Arthur, specifically, due to the discovery of the stone and evidence presented very clearly, and unambiguously, in The Holy Kingdom.

You do not need to rely simply upon one manuscript with Blackett and Wilson; all references are stated and given in copious detail in The Holy Kingdom and are available to see. All Welsh historians dating back to at least 1760 (I have the books here) and back into the 1500s, moreover, (haven't got them!) stated that Arthur was a Welsh king. Their work was based upon manuscript research; many of the authors were theological types based at Oxford University.

Wilson and Blackett have allowed the past to speak and for an Arthurian "renaissance" to take place. They, it turns out, have led this new movement based on ancient and unimpeachable evidence.

This is a massively important book and one that I can only highly recommend. As a Welshman, and welsh speaker, living in Louisville, Kentucky, I understand the issues, the reasons for attacks on the author's work and the powerful interests that would rather this all just went away.

So please purchase the Holy Kingdom from amazon.com today!

This was my first exposure to a Sidney Sheldon book. While I bought it for 'light reading' for a flight I was taking, I had also read some reviews calling Sheldon a "master", etc. etc. I suppose I expected more than this plain, going-nowhere story.

This can be called one of the best books of the Great Author Sidney Sheldon. This book has all the aspects which Sidney Sheldon is famous For. Its got a great background, wonderful story line and a fantastic conclusion. It has all aspects a book should have like struggle, power, romance and sex. You would regret if you missed this.

I don't read books very much but I have one favorite writer.His name is Sidney Sheldon.I like his world. His book develops story very quickly so I'm always surprised the development and enjoy how it develops.All of his books are interesting very much and this time, I recommend one of them tytled "A Stranger in the Mirror".This story is written about inside HollyWood. We are all longing to stand the wonderful stage of HoolyWood among the beautiful lights and many audiences. But, it is a steep way to realize our dream. This story tells us that how mean and ruthless inside the beautiful HollyWood through the life of a young comedian and a young actress who dreamed to succeed in HollyWood. At first, they were full of hope but then they realized what a ruthless way we had to go to stand the HollyWood stage. To the goal, they did anything, sometime they betray their friends and lovers, sometime the use their sex. But the things they got in consequence of those ruthless behavior is neither eternal success nor happy life but only destruction of themselves. Through this story, we can get how man is stupid. Anyway, please read once.

This book is a nice translation from Shakespeare's language in Macbeth to the modern easy to read language of today. As a student myself, I recommend this book to other students studying Macbeth, if they feel they do not understand exact phrases from the play. If you are already good at 'translating' the lines from the play i do not recommend this book as strongly...... but still........ it helped me a great deal with my assignments.

Yes I know when you think of Shakesperre you think of either Romeo and Juliet or Hamlet. However, this is my personal favorite of all his plays. Easier to understand then something like Hamlet yet it has all the plot and intrigue and is the first very dark and scary book I think I ever read. The moral questions that MacBeth and Lady MacBeth have towards themselves are real ones and it only gets better as the book goes on. As MacBeth slowly loses his grip on reality, but ends his life as honorably as he could, I could feel for him even though he was obviously changing into a villain. I think this should be one of the first Shakesperrian plays a person should read since it is not only his best, but also one of his easiest to understand. After reading Romeo and Juliet I didn't think I could get into Shakesperre. MacBeth woke me up from that. A must read classic for everyone.

This book has to be my favorite. I love shakespeare and have read close to everything except King Lear. And from all my experience in reading shakespeare MACBETH has to be my most favored except for the Taming of the Shrew. How they show Macbeth as a coward at parts and Lady Macbeth stronger is one Libral thing you will not find in old english. This book is perfect for young readers because they can understand it in the Modern English sides so everyone can enjoy the great tales to know and learn.

I really did enjoy this book. more than the amount of stars that i gave it. the character is alan lewrie. a rogue and unlikly hero, he is thrown into his majesty's service by circumstance and tries to make the best of it. the action is fast paced and exciting. it does get graphic at times with the effects of splinters and cannon balls. i enjoy how the hero is not all prim and proper made a good refreshing change from hornblower. my only real complaint is the sex. it is heavy and very un-necessary to the overall story. just thrown in to fill some pages. but apart from that the story is interesting and worth a read. but keep in mind that this book is not for everyone and if you are thinking of buying it for your kids then i strongly recommend looking at the hornblower series. otherwise pick it up and give it a read.

I read a lot of military fiction, and this is by far the best British naval series I've ever read. I would call this "Flashman Goes to Sea," since it has the same sort of ribald approach and a scoundrel hero who succeeds in spite of himself. Written by an American, the series, especially in the first few novels, has a distinctly American point of view. I read with interest the review from the writer who was critical of the "homophobic" bias of the author. While I'll admit that the protagonist, Lewrie, is a homophobe, this is not out of character for him, as he has suffered from the perfidies of his half-sibling, who is gay, and at the time he seems shocked and disgusted by his apparently homosexual superior officer, he is still shy of his 20th birthday. I, on the other hand, liked the descriptions of life aboard ship; the strong battle scenes; the fact that Lewrie is not the perfect little hero; and the glimpses of British Colonial life in both America and the West Indies. For anyone who likes naval fiction, I heartily recommend this series. I have just started the series by Patrick O'Brian, and the Lewrie books are far more "modern" and exciting, at least to me.

The first of a growing series of books about a reluctant Royal Navy hero. I had previously read all of the later books in the series, with the exception of this book and the 2nd in the series, "the French Adirmal" (which is due for reprinting in '99), when I found this one. Thankfully it's being reprinted. It is quite humerous, and bawdy at times, but with plenty of naval action which takes place at the beginning of the American Revolution. Alan Lewry, the hero, is forced to join the Royal Navy at 17, due to some falsely accused improprieties (he was actually framed) which occured at home. Alan is whisked away into the rude and very different routines of shipboard life in the late 1700's, learning a new trade, while trying to live long enough to get back at the people who forced him into the navy. Every time he gets a leg up, so he thinks, his other leg is kicked out from beneath him. At times, it's better than the O'Brian series, only because it seems more real - with an added dose of humor. Although not written in the English spoken in the 18th century, it's far easier to follow. The action is brisk and brutal, as it must have been at the time. A great series, and if you don't mind the bawdyness, one well worth reading. There's plenty to laugh at and more adventure than you can wish for. Once started, it's really hard to put down. The series will grow on you. And you'll be buying them all and wishing Mr. Lambdin would come out with the next book.

Greg Toth