If I had to suggest one book that would give the best summary of major Christian thought development from the start until 350 AD, I would suggest this book. It has samples of writings from the likes of Justin Martyr and Athanasius, grouped by author and then sub-grouped by topic. Its an excellent summary.

The title of this book is a bit misleading. Calling it the "Major Phase" makes it sound as if all the stories are from the same period in the career of Henry James. This isn't precisely true. Furthermore, the title story (The Cage) might lead one to suspect that all the stories are from his last period.

Now, I don't defer to many people in the level of my admiration for the work of this writer, but I am certainly aware that some stories in the book (e.g., "The Author of Beltraffio," "The Altar of the Dead") are easier going than "The Cage" or "The Beast in the Jungle" or "The Jolly Corner"--that is, stories written in James's "late manner."

However, the chronological presentation of these tales, as well as the excellent selection of material, makes a fine entrance to the world of his later novels. I'm thinking in particular of The Ambassadors, The Wings of the Dove, and The Golden Bowl.

So, if the only thing you have read by this author is Washington Square and Portrait of a Lady, and you aren't sure whether you want to dive into the writer's later work, this book is a good test.

An excellent introduction to the Desert Father's spirituality, lives, and way of life. Great for the beginner or the advanced in the study of God, love, solitude, contemplation, and faith. This should be on the shelf of every church library; Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant, and in the homes of every person who attains to a higher love and true communion with God.

Henry A. Harter has written one of those rare and unique books that comletely and exhaustively decribes the history and details of one of the most fabled railroads in the world. Not only do you read about the rich and famous that helped build this railroad (and all of it's privately owned spurs), but there are detailed plans showing locations and gauges of all the lengths of rails. Long gone RR stations are described in location and historical function. Although it can be a tad dry sometimes, one never loses the feeling of romantism regarding this great period of history.

I certainly hope that someone writes and updated version of this railroad including all the political and natural circumstances that have affected it since it went into disrepair after the 1980 Olympics. Until then, nothing matches this marvelously ,heavily researched book.

For anyone who loves old time tractors and agrcultural machinery this book is a must.

This book is terrific for kids who look to sports for role models. While from a different generation, these 4 athletes exemplify what being a leader is and are timeless in the positive effect they will have on children.

I am not a sportsman; I do not ride, hunt, fish, or shoot. However, I loved this book because the stories are universal; they illustrate life and human nature. I laughed and learned at the same time. Everyone will like this book, even if you do not engage in any of the sporting activities around which the stories take place. I also like the fact that you can start reading at any point in the book--you do not have to read the entire book in sequence, although you will want to read it again and again.

Marty Gervais shows there are no boundaries to the imagination. He writes this poignant tale of a young French Canadian woman who works in a hotel on the border. It is there she runs into Henry Miller who is staying in the hotel. She has already read his controversial book, Tropic of Cancer. It was contraband at the time, but living in Canada, she was able to read it. This takes place around the time that Miller was writing The Air Conditioned Nightmare. Gervais makes for a mysterious and intriguing tale, as he sets up this love affair of the imagination, this woman writing letters to Miller which she will never send . . .AT the end of her life, she reads about his death in the paper, and goes to the letters. What follows is this wonderful little book. It is filled with the colour of the times, the '30s on the border. It captures Miller perfectly in that swaggering and confident manner. It captures this farm girl image in the most touching and endearing way.

When I came across this book, I was extremely surprised. Among a well-known anthology of stories known the world over, there are "gay" tales! These tales are like the other tales of the 1001 Arabian Nights, with the invoking of Allah at the beginning of each story, and the dreamlike quality of the other Tales. Also included within the book are poems and verses, all gay-themed, of course. This book is highly recommended. Find it if you can.

In "Germany from Partition to Reunification" Henry Ashby Turner, Jr. presents a very well-written straightforward political history of modern Germany. In the first edition of his book, known as "The Two Germanies since 1945," Turner was praised for his knowledge of the German Democratic Republic, an area in which many American authors had been weak. Not long after the first edition was published in 1987, there was suddenly much more German History to take stock of with the fall of the Berlin Wall at the end of 1989. Turner does not let the reader down in his gripping, lean narration of the last suspense-filled months of the East German regime. Turner sprinkles pithy photographs throughout this book and writes in a concise, reader-friendly style. One criticism of the earlier edition was that it focused too narrowly on political history and gave short shrift to social and cultural elements. Turner did well to keep this book as a simple political history with marginal reference to social and cultural history. To include those elements in this work would have been an unweildy task that surely would have ballooned the size of the book and reduced the effectiveness that its conciseness and brevity afford it now. One weakness in the book, however, is the chart showing political institutions of the Federal Republic. While most of it makes sense, it is unclear what the exact relationship is between the State Parliaments and the Federal Assembly. The Federal Assembly is listed separately from the Bundestag. It should be explained more carefully on the chart what the relationships are between these particular bodies. In summary, however, the book is an excellent read.