Bullocks Wilshire represented Los Angeles during the heyday of Hollywood. Ms. Davis presents a well-researched homage to this architectural wonder and social icon, which came to be the place to see and be seen by the movers and shakers, gods and godesses of the day. What could have been a great book ends on a dubious note. Ms. Davis, an Alumna of Southwestern School of Law, sounds the praises of her alma mater, which took over the building after the store's demise in 1993, turning it into a library.

This book can only hint however the magnificince of this Truly great department store. Very nicly done descriptions and captions of each room in the store. Gives a very vivid idea of the grandeur of each department in Bullocks. An elagantly presented book at no time is the reader board or not facinated with the history or the photographs and the variouse architectural drawings.

While combing through "Bullock's Wilshire", a great tome of space and imagination, I immedately felt as though I had been transformed back into history. This building reflects what's GOOD about Los Angeles and what's missing with the current batch of misappropriated, misaligned, and malcontented "plastic chic" we Angelinos replace great buildings with now. Ms. Davis gives an incredible insight into the era of the true department store. A true "good buy" for any architecture officianado.

This book is great and all, the only problem is, you have to make sure you know the words in shorthand already. This book doesn't waste any time and goes straight to the transcription, but that may not be so good for new users. Other than that, this book is great and really goes indepth with the way to transcipt your shorthand notes.

This book is VERY good for learning Gregg shorthand. It shows the forms clearly and has lists of brief forms. The sentences that are written in shorthand in the front of the book are written in English in the back for easy decoding. It explains shorthand very well, and is an all-around great book for learning to write in shorthand.

Years ago I went to secretarial school and learned shorthand. I use it to this day. It's a wonderful way to take notes when people are talking to you on the phone, reminder notes to do this or that, grocery lists, whatever.

Yes, it takes time, work, and drill to learn shorthand. Yes, it's worth your while! Once you know shorthand, you will never have to hide your gift list again .

It felt wonderful after many years to be making the Gregg characters again! This is a GREAT little book! If I could make one wish, though, I'd wish for the "Short Forms" and some examples of words used in sentences, or perhaps even illustrative dictation. But it's good to know that Gregg is still out there, making a difference.

At 39, and the second time around at taking shorthand (orig. took in high school in 1978) this book adds to the learning process and supplies help in several areas of brief forms, phrases and it greatly necessary when transcribing someone elses shorthand.

How we did without it before is unknown!

Reading the letters and communiques of Marcos contained in Shadows of Tender Fury made me feel incredibly sympathetic for the indigenous people of Chiapas. I felt outraged at the injustice done to them by the Mexican government and the rich ranchers in the area. I found Marcos' tone to be comical despite the dreadful situations he was writing about. For instance, he writes the elaborate PS's and rambles about things with little relevance and tells stories about animals, etc. This gives some lightness to the very heavy subject matter addressed in the book and adds some comic relief. I also thought it was kind of him to respond to everyone who wrote to him, even if they were small children. By the end of the book I liked Marcos' personality from what I glimpsed of it in his tone, and I was impressed at the noble cause he had taken on.

The one problem I had with this book is not a fault of the writer's but of the editor's. Marcos' letters are repetitive and long, and I feel that much could have been cut out and Shadows of Tender Fury would still be a good book that encompassed most of Marcos' letters and ideas. However, with so much repetition the book starts to get tedious. Some heavy editing would have made a big difference.

In general I think that Shadows of Tender Fury is an important contribution to Latin American literature because it details the fight of the Zapatistas and chronicles their events. It also draws support from a much larger community, for I read it in the northeastern US although it is occurring in southeastern Mexico. I did not know very much about the indigenous fight before reading this book so I am glad I did and recommend it to others.

(If you enjoyed my book review please see my others here at amazon.com under my username neeterskeeter. Or, visit my homepage neeterskeeter.com, or bellaonline.com, where I write the Feminism column, for more of my book reviews and writing. I welcome any comments via email. Thanks!)

Shadows of Tender Fury is one of the best compilations of Zapatista philosophy I have ever read. Subcomandante Marcos writes in a wonderfully satirical tone which reveals the problems suffered by the people of Chiapas and around the world. Reading the inspirational and optimistic words of Marcos gives one a better understanding of the struggles of the Zapatistas. This is excellent reading for the student who seeks truth.

As a middle school social studies teacher who teaches world cultures, I wanted to expose my students to the High Holy Days, I was seeking a colorful, fun and informative introduction to this most important time in the Jewish year. My mostly Christian students knew nothing of Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur which led me to choose a book that was very simple and straight forward. When I discovered Sound the Shofar, I knew that it was perfect.

The story centers on one family's celebration of the High Holy Days and focuses on the reasons behind some of the more allegorical traditions (such as blowing the shofar, dipping apples in honey...)My students did gain a basic understanding, but the book, in my opinion, is really meant for a much younger audience (perhaps kindergarten - second grade) although children through 10 will most likely enjoy it.

It's Rosh Hashana. Uncle jake is practicing the Shofar. All the relatives come for dinner. There are candles, wine, apples, honey, and a round challah. Even the cats lick up some honey for a sweet new year. At the synagogue the rabbi and cantor, a man and a woman (which is which? hehe), lead the congregation and a portly Uncle Jake sounds the Shafar. For Yom Kippur, there is a collection of canned goods for a food bank tzedakah contribution, and a chance to change our ways. Finally, it's evening, and Uncle Jake sounds the neillah Shofar

The Key West locale caused me to pick up this book and I was well-rewarded. In Gideon Lowry, John Leslie has created an intriguing detective. Korean War vet, lifetime native of the Keys, and a man who has faced quite a bit of personal tragedy, Lowry is a true original in a field where he detective is the true key(sorry!) to success. This tale of a lost and found chalice and a tragic suicide leads to an excellent mystery where the detective work makes sense and the characters ring true. This is the third book in the series but I will definitely check out this detective again.

I have become a fan of John Leslie as well as his Gideon Lowry series.

Set in Key West it is peopled with the quirky types found in the southern most piece of land in the USA. The native Key Westers (conchs) have a strong sense of place and are protective of their own and the town.

What appears to be suicide doesn't seem so to PI Gideon Lowry and off he goes to find the real answer. Along the way robbery, double dealing, smoke screens and red herrings turn up. The confusion mounts to the point where Gideon even wonders if his distant cousin (Judge Just Watson) is involved.

Many a twist and turn sprinkled amongst the picturesque Key West sunsets, ocean breezes and humid air. It's a fun read.

I guess John Leslie and Laurence Shames are my favorite Key West mystery writers and "Love For Sale" was a fast read. The characters are clearly defined, the pace is quick without be frantic and all in all the action is believable.

With Gideon's cousin getting married and sort of adopting his bride's twentysomething child it appears a couple of new continuing characters have been added and I look forward to their further adventures.

In "Love For Sale", John Leslie gives mystery fans what they have long been searching for: an extremely unique plot with a very engaging central character. Mr. Leslie also gives a sense of place that is almost haunting. His PI, Gideon Lowry, is one who will stay with the reader long after the novel has been finished.

This is a great reference for film-lovers. Especially if you enjoy viewing less main-stream films.

I'v just cheked out for THE DROWNING POOL ; again no star , and again ,the reasons why I appreciate STUART ROSENBERG are remarkable the same .(Has he a past, something like that?) Just that he couldn't pass two stars sounds kind of unfair. I will add something , yet : his sensitive aproaching of some kind , makes his movies that LIGHT , so any oter films appears heavy , incoherent or unclear. (inspite of their artistical values , of course )

Gensu2000 seems to think Halliwell's is "as stuffy as a film book can be" and comments on their horrifying undergrading of such groundbreaking cinematic productions as "Evil Dead" and "Braindead". Why surely these great films should be given four stars and placed on marble pedestals! Face it, most horror films are the paramount of lowbrow entertainment. And seemingly lowbrow people like Gensu2000 will enjoy them, as they are intended for that audience. And it's good that they have made a film review book for that type of person, such as the VideoHound book, but Gensu does not have to go around expressing his idiotic opinion. Laymen term the intelligentsia as "stuffy" because they have no understanding of what it is like to be intelligent. Keep quiet, Gensu, and go on watching your primitive ape movies, and reading their glowing reviews in your primitive ape film guide.

I have become a John Leslie fan via his Key West PI Gideon Lowry series. I stumbled upon "Bounty Hunter Blues" in a used book store and glad I picked it up. Written in 1990 it is now out of print, but a most worthwhile read. A nifty collection of characters, some of whom are most Runyonesque. A twisty plot where the bad guys get their due. The good guys get their rewards, some rather unique. The plot is resolved in a believable way.

Really glad I found this one. John Leslie's Gideon Lowry series is still in print and it is an enjoyable read.

Leslie may claim to be a philosopher, but he is an apocolist. He tediously rehashes almost every major thinkers thoughts and ideas concerning the mass destruction of the human race, brushing over many vital subjects, and subjecting the reader to in-depth analysis and over analysis of higholy improbable and highly theoretical situations whihc may or may not ever occurr. Not to mention that he takes as absolute a highly unregarded theory of ones place in time as being critical to how close one is to being in that population which is to be extincted. The title is highly misleading. Borrow it from the library and skim heavily, not too many salient points. For true enlightenment search the bibliography and pull up the origianl works and just cross reference them. This is nothing more than a compilation of other people's thoughts, with rarely one of Leslie's own.

Some of the reviews below miss the point of John Leslie's book. Professor Leslie is a utilitarian philosopher at the University of Guelph in Ontario, and as such he's written this book with the express objective of providing a warning to civilization of the dangers that lie ahead. In spite of what the book's title may initially suggest, the book is not the work of some gloomy apocalyptic doomsayer; rather, it is a sensible consideration of the perils that an advanced civilization like our own must overcome over the next crucial period to advance. It's easy to simply take civilization for granted, but Leslie's point is that its survival is not guaranteed, but depends on the choices that we make in the near future. Prof. Leslie asserts that if humanity can make it past the next few centuries then civilization will be in fairly good shape; it's the period soon to be upon us that will be so rocky, with dangers in everything from the spread of nuclear weapons to the practice of biological warfare, from impacting asteroids to poorly thought-out particle physics experiments gone awry, from chemical weapons to the biggest threat of all-- the destruction of earth's fragile ecosystem upon which we all rely, but so often do not recognize. What Leslie is calling for is wisdom, and for the practice of restraint and discipline on a societal scale, to avoid the petty squabbles and foolish waste of resources that we can no longer afford. Admittedly some of the methodology used in the book is flawed and has been shown to be problematic, but this does not belittle its value. The book suggests that it's time to "shape up" and to put into practice, those qualities associated with "higher functioning" and a truly advanced society, and to recognize the dangers ahead of time-- thus applying foresight and planning far ahead for crises, and averting them in the first place. The book is therefore an excellent "wake-up call" to move us out of complacency, and for this reason alone it is quite valuable.

The reviewer below misses the thrust of Leslie's argument. Initially, in the first two chapters of the book, he sets out to list ALL of the ways through which society could become extinct (a notion that has not been held in high esteem for policymaking relevance, anyway, in modern society). As such, he does borrow a lot from other authors. And, adding in, his lifting of the mathematical equation suggesting that we are near the end of 'our' time on the Earth makes mathematical sense, even if being totally anthropomorphic.... And the case is made, if you let it be, that we should probably start thinking about how we are going to 'go', and plan thereof....

Aside from that, this book is a riot. The first two chapters, though morbid, are a laugh. The book (setting aside the good philosophy) should be read just for the initial paranoia. It's all in good fun....

Though advertised as a continuation (i.e. 14th Edition)of the "Filmgoers companion" it is only a list of people in the movies. Gone are Halliwell's definitions of movie tradecraft and lists of themes, individual classics and personal notes. A fine actor like Lee J. Cobb gets a single line, while Jayne Mansfield, known more for her off screen antics, gets many more. The quotes from the movie personalities is a nice touch, but when I look up somebodies filmography I do not want to see etc. at the end of an incomplete list.

Leslie Halliwell(1929-1989) was the publisher of this informative and extremely enjoyable reference book on many of the cinema's most influental figures. What sets Halliwell's great book apart from the others is that it includes not only the most famous of today and yesterday's stars/writers/producers/directors, but a great many obscure, but no less important names in the industry as well. Halliwell's book is also unique in that it includes a list of technical terms that are extremely vital in the motion picture industry, as well as a list of popular film series, and a complete list of Academy Award winners. Whether you are looking to be informed or entertained, Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies serves both purposes well, and is a compulsive read guaranteed to give die-hard film buffs hours and hours of endless reading pleasure. The book, formerly known as The Filmgoer's Companion, is actually a companion piece to an older favorite, Halliwell's Film Guide, also strongly recommended for the serious film buff.

If you were to have only one book on the movies, this would be it. It has almost everything and everyone connected to movies. About the only changes I'd recommend would be larger type and sections on writers, directors, photographers, stunt men, etc.