Exiled in the Land of the Free provides an excellent and in depth coverage of issues extremely important to the American Indian nations within the United States. Some of the issues addressed are sovereingty, trust resposibility, and a critical look at the involvement of American Indians in the development of the USA's political system. The essays are extremely well written and quote many primary sources. It would be a very helpful tool for anyone who works in policy making decisions regarding American Indian nations.

A photo book every collector should grab before its price hits the roof. A sensitive, searing portrait of the life of two young boys as they hold off their photo-screwball of a father as he chases them across the page. Catch-it! A clever and beautiful use of album photography.

Lyon's first novel -- based on an excellent short story from his previously published collection -- is one of those rare books that made me laugh outloud and demand that people around me read specific passages to see if they too had the same warped sense of humor that Lyons and I seem to share.

The scenes set in the offices of Ionic, where Reilly and Evan torment a colleague, one Janet Scuto, are some of the best send ups of Dilbert Cubicalism since Douglas Coupland's Microserfs. When asked in a survey to suggest what they would like to see stocked in the office vending machines, Reilly and Evan suggest "handguns and Ecstasy."

The book would have ended well with the boomerang-return of Coco -- life on the lam from the mob was the low point of the story -- but the first two-thirds of the book are some of the best comic writing to be published since Barry Hannah's Geronimo Rex.

A great Boston novel from a great Boston writer!

I know you love to read, and I think I have something you'll really, really dislike. I just finished this book called Dog Days, by Daniel Lyons, and it changed my life. I've never read anything that so perfectly captures the shallow things I think and feel every day. You absolutely must borrow it.

I know you're a busy person, but this book is just incredible. (To me, that is.) I mean, it blew my mind. I haven't read a book this meaningful since Catcher In The Rye back in high school, when I stopped reading books assigned to me by people with good taste. If you just give the first few cliche-ridden pages a try, I swear you'll be so put off, you'll want to throw it away. But I won't allow that, because I'll continue to hound you about it for weeks.

Look, I have it right here, and I think it's perfect for me. It's this incredibly trite story about a man who can't connect with people, so he creates a world where he talks to his pets. Then, after a while, they start to talk back to him, only you don't know if they're actually talking to him or if it's all in his imagination. I mean, like I said, you probably will be able to put it down after the first few pages. After that, it really doesn't pick up.

I really wish you'd read it, because I've been dying to discuss it with somebody. My mind has been reeling ever since I finished it. It's like a combination of William S. Burroughs' stream-of-consciousness and J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy sensibility. It's a little "out there," and the narrative is a total mess, but it kind of just barely makes sense once you've finished and digested it.

Yes, it is a "pointless pile of claptrap." But why would you say such a thing? That kind of cynicism is just the sort of thing this book talks about. It says that people like you mask your real feelings with sarcasm and are incapable of genuine human expression. If anyone really needs to avoid this, it's you. You won't change your tune once you get to the part about the kleptomaniac monkey in the candy store. Or the part where the protagonist tearfully confesses his failings to a cat he's dressed as his mother.

Well, okay, I'm just going to leave it here, and you can pick it up. Go ahead. I'll turn my back so you won't feel guilty or foolish. My back is turned. Do you have it? No? I can't believe you're so closed-minded! The predictable twist ending alone is worth the 572 pages you have to plod through. Actually, it's not, but it was to me.

Dog Days is so much more than an endless string of cliches with a gimmicky ending slapped on, seemingly from out of nowhere. The characters are forgettable, too, failing to leap to life off the page. Like Salty, the wizened sea captain whose life of loneliness parallels that of the nameless protagonist. Or the ghost of Eva Braun, who tempts him and tries to keep him from doing good. It's a rich tapestry of bizarre, poorly established characters, implausible plot developments, and thinly veiled autobiographical conversations that a dumb guy like me can't help but fall in love with.

Well, if you change your mind, I'd be happy to loan it to you. That is, if I haven't loaned it to someone else by then. Right now, I'm reading the new John Gray book, which you'll find every bit as bad as you expect. I'll have to get it to you when I'm done.

This book can be read on many levels, but it really isn't a novel about the mob, or about a greyhound, or about cyberculture. It's a novel about a young man coming to terms with himself and deciding what matters in life.

What gives this book it's real power is that the author has done a creditable job of asking the big questions, the questions that we don't seem to have time for anymore. And the vehicle he's done it with stands up as good, fast paced, entertainment as well.

John Grisham, a mindnumbing hack of a writer, isn't even in the same league with Lyons; though one might understand why the Grisham fan below sells Lyons short. The comparison with Elmore Leonard is a little more apropos, but Leonard trades in a different currency than Lyons. Lyons' primary characters are people you might know, or want to, while Leonard's are the sort of two dimensional automotons from televisionland you suffer silently every day in the world.

The transitions that bother some of the reviewers below are actually accomplished quite seamlessly. I'd submit that the complaints are really that the book you finish reading here is not the book you started out reading. Lyons leads you from what looks like a yuppie computer novel to what looks like a comedic novel to what looks like a crime novel/love story. And finally, at the end you realize that all along it's been all of these and a coming of age story, done with humor, finesse, understanding, and insight. In other words, it's a bit like life itself.

Lyons is the kind of writer who has the talent and the instincts to help recreate the novel as meaningful art, in the terms of our times. If he's willing to risk it and if enough people buy his books to motivate the publishing houses to give him the chance.

The depth of place and character displayed in "The Last Good Man" intensifies the experience of Mr. Lyons' much-loved and wildly humorous first novel, "Dog Days." If you read that book, this collection of stories offers you the same, quirky humor, some of the same characters in different situations, and the short story that grew into the novel. If you have yet to read "Dog Days," I encourage you to see the reviews for Mr. Lyons' novel on Amazon.com. You will not be disappointed.

In "The Last Good Man," Mr. Lyons is generous. He invites us into the secret fears and desires of his characters; we move quite close to them. The stories deal with questions of separation, jealousy, temptation, selfishness, violence and corruption. Our nearness to the characters pulls us into these questions, and we come away asking what we might do in similar circumstances. These stories are about dark and edgy subjects, but they are not draining. Instead, they are accessible, provoking, even uplifting. After we read them, we feel better for having read them, we take them with us as we move through our day and, like a slightly mysterious memory, we hold onto them for a long time.

I just got back from a month in Mexico. The book was probably quite impressive back in the early 90's. However, many of the hotels and restaurants listed in the book have gotten so much business that they have lost what good attributes they originally had. Also, many of the prices quoted in the book were way off. The book prices were frequently one-half what the concierge or waiter quoted. The peso has not changed enough for a 5 dollar hotel room to become 12 or 15. Perhaps that is the risk one finds with any guidebook.

Museum hours were consistently incorrect, especially for Mondays, weekends and evenings.

This book might keep you out of trouble, but it is not the guide for a budget traveler.

Lonely planet guides are absolutely invaluable for the independant adventurous budget-minded traveler, and LP Mexico is no exception. Included are informative sections on pre-departure info, cultural tips, etc. I travelled extensively throughout Mexico with the 5th edition last year, and it really got me to explore some of the remote places I otherwise wouldn't have found- such as the silver towns of Guanajuato, Zacatecas and Taxco. Plus, out of the way beaches, hard-to-find ruins, centotes, you name it. They're covered. Don't borrow you'r friend's old dog-eared copy of the 3rd of 4th edition. Spend the money on the latest edition, because price info is almost always out of date within months after printing, and an older edition is usually hopelessly out of date. I found myself disregarding their accommodations recommendations, because once a place finds its way into the LP Guide, their visitor traffic usually increases exponentially, the staff gets surly, and prices go up. If you're just going to Cancun, Mazatlan, etc, skip this book, but if you're not afraid to venture out into the 'real mexico', grab it.

I have just returned to Norway after backpacking around in Latin America for a year (of course accompanied by the Lonely Planet book). I do not claim to be an expert, but I do know what I am looking for in a travel guide.

The Mexico guide is a good, complete guide. Filled with information, history and beautiful pictures about almost every corner of this gorgeous country. Reading the whole book gives you a good update on your history and geography knowledge! (Something to do if you are trekking around by bus like I did!)

I have always been satisfied with the LP guides. The information given is good, just what you need to get around. The only negative with this book (and the reason I give it 4 and not 5 stars) is that it was completely outdated on prices etc. Another thing (that goes for most of the travel guides) is that many of the hotels that are listed in the book has gotten so much (too much?) business so that the service is down to a minimum. This we found especially in Isla Mujeres where the price was the double of what the book said, and really lousy customer service, if any.