A musician of Willson's considerable talent and achievements deserves a better book than this one, but unfortunately there is no other. This is really a chamber of commerce puff piece about the favorite son of Mason City, Iowa. There is no serious, detailed analysis of Willson's work. The style is that of newspaper Sunday supplements, repetitious and superficial. It is also sprinkled with errors. Some of them may be the result of careless proofreading, but others are clearly the author's mistakes. For example, Frank Morgan played the wizard not the tin man in "The Wizard of Oz"; Suppe's overture is "Light Cavalry" not "Light Calvary"; WACs were not in the Women's Air Corps, but Women's Army Corps; the famous "Command Performance" of "Dick Tracy in B-flat" was 60 minutes long, not 90, and bits of the dialogue are inaccurately quoted; and tape recording did not come to the US until after World War II. With this many easily spotted mistakes, one has to wonder about the accuracy of the entire book.

This wonderful biography is now available, and has been since December 2000. I understand the first printing is almost gone, but that a second printing is being ordered now. It is one of the finest musical biographies ever written, and I highly recommend it.

The author, John Skipper, can be contacted to sign your copy at sandras63@home.com. He signed mine and loves to talk about Willson and his work.

I will tell you flat out, I was the acquisitions editor for this book. It is the most enjoyable, exciting project I have worked on in years, and everyone interested in music, biography, success stories, and character should read it.

Everyone has heard of, seen, or been in, "The Music Man." This book tells you everything you ever wanted to know about the man who wrote it, and the man himself. It is utterly fascinating.

Meredith Willson marched into the hearts of Americans with unforgettable productions like The Music Man and The Unsinkable Molly Brown, and show tunes like "Seventy-Six Trombones." John C. Skipper's Meredith Willson: The Unsinkable Music Man is the first biography chronicling this remarkable American success story. Determined to make his mark on the world, the 18-year-old Willson left Iowa aboard a train bound for New York and fame and fortune with only a few dollars in his pocket and a bent piccolo in his travel bag. He returned as one of the most famous stars of his era. Many people think Willson's career began and ended with The Music Man. In fact, it spanned several decades and included radio and television. For example, Willson . . .

--Played flute and piccolo in the John Philip Sousa band in New York without a formal audition;

--Helped scientist Lee deForest develop an invention that led to sound for motion pictures;

--Worked as music director on several popular radio programs, including the Burns and Allen show;

--Wrote the music for The Great Dictator, Charlie Chaplin's first "talkie" movie;

--Wrote and recorded several number one songs, and another was recorded by the Beatles;

--Was the youngest conductor of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra;

--Won the first Grammy award ever presented.

Skipper chronicles Willson's entire life, from his fascinating childhood in Mason City ("River City") Iowa, to his final years in southern California. Meredith Willson: The Unsinkable Music Man is the amazing story of how a youngster with talent and tenacity, mindful of his father's challenge to be a pioneer (and possessed with what he would later call a streak of "Iowa stubborn") rose to become one of America's most famous and endearing musicians. It is a tale you will never forget.

"Primal Love" is thoughtful and thought-provoking. It attempts to explain our gender-based differences through the sciences of evolutionary biology and primate behavior. You can learn alot form those crazy bonobos. While this book did not engender quite the "aha moment" that Harville Hendrix's work did, it did give me quite a few insights into my rather conflicting attitudes about money. I found it to be just a tad skewed toward the male perspective. It would be interesting to read something on the same material written by a woman. I would recommend this book to anyone wishing to gain more insight into gender-based behavior.

Primal Love provides readers a wonderfully informative profile of our human sexuality (as males and females) by focusing not on theory that is based upon psychological "mombo-jumbo" but on the bio-anthropological roots that drive our sexual: desires, behavior and social interaction. For those people trying to evaluate and determine the reasons for their social sexual behavior, this book will give you the "peace of mind" knowing that our (especially male) desires and behavior stem from evolution, and nature's pre-programmed model of perpetuating our genes as a species. Simply knowing the roots driving our human sexuality allows us to better understand and our sexual behavior.

Explains the relationships between the sexes in the context of Evolutionary Psychology. I have recommended this book to several of my female friends who want to better understand why men are they way they are. This book provided me with some great insights and comfort at a time I was going through a painful breakup. Much more interesting, believable and useful than "Men Are From Mars and Women Are From Venus.

This book is simply outstanding when it comes to figurative language. Shakespeare uses 7 stages to describe the human process of life. The whole book is an extended metaphor.The sound devices used are onopatopeia, alliteration, and parallelism. I would definitely recommend this book to people like Ms. Stewart and for people writing a paper on it like Shannon Van Dyke. Peace,

Sir John Gielgud must have one of the most well-trained, beautiful voices of any modern actor. His reading of passages from the world's greatest playwright (greatest author? greatest artist?) is a treat, one I've enjoyed over a dozen times without beginning to tire of. Although Gielgud is simply reading his favorite passages and sonnets with only minimal (and rather lame) introductions and transtitions, the greatness of the material still shines through. The lines alternately exude bitter sadness, biting humor, intense excitement, and always an unmatched understanding of what it means to be human. I'm glad that there are several passages from HAMLET, my favorite play, but less familiar passages are equally memorable--Clarence's recounting of a horrible dream foreshadowing his imminent death from RICHARD III, Leontes's bitterly jealous rant from WINTER'S TALE, Cassius's magnificent denunciation of Caesar from JULIUS CAESAR, and Prospero's renunciation of his magic from THE TEMPEST. The last passage works on several levels--as the resolution of the play of course, as Shakespeare's symbolic farewell to the "rough magic" of writing, and as a great actor's triumphant goodbye to the stage. Listening to Gielgud deliver these speeches is as close as we will likely ever come to hearing the words of the bard as they should be delivered, I can't recommend this tape too highly.

This book is good, but...some of the stories shouldn't be in it, and others that should be in it aren't. The JMS stories, which are critically acclaimed and heralded by fans are deserving, but it should also include Amazing Spider-Man # 37-39, just to finish out the storyline. The Jenkin's story, (The Big Score), was not the best thing Jenkin's had done, and should be replaced by his Mime silent issue. And the Ultimate DD/Punisher story arc was rather stupid, and should have been replaced by Jenkin's amazing Fusion story arc. However, the Coming Home story is nice, the Kingpin story spectacular, and the Flowers for Rhino story touching. If you'd rather go with the paperback additions, get ASM: Coming Home, PPSM: One small Break, ASM: Revelations, and SM's Tangled Web vol. 1.

Here, in one loaded volume, are some of the best told stories of any kind, in the last year. Whether these stories were told in comics, film, novels or television, very few matched this level of excellence.
Seriously. The script/screenplay/text and the art/cinematography/visuals I would put up against any type of media this year, or the last.
This represents a great value, as you get quite a few issues in a handsome volume.
The now-famous "issue 36" should be mandatory reading for anyone with at least one eyeball. It could possibly be the single best artistic/creative response to September 11th seen yet. There are images in the story as haunting as any from the site itself.
This is a book you'd be proud to own. And if this happens to be your first dip into modern comics, I envy your upcoming experience.

This book examines the Canary Islanders in three parts. Firstly, the author compares the physical anthropology of the islanders, particularly in comparison to the ancient inhabitants northwest Africa. Secondly, the prehistoric (i.e. pre-conquest) culture is examined, with a great deal of archaeological evidence considered. And thirdly, the travails that the islanders were subjected to by the French and Iberian invaders of the Fifteenth Century are recounted.

Sadly, the book is written in a dry, academic style. Also, the author begins the book convinced that the original Canary Islanders were northwestern African rebels exiled to the islands by Roman authorities in the Second and Third Centuries, and very little contrary evidence is even mentioned. And, as a third complaint, while the author mentions several ancient references to these "Happy Islands" (e.g. Pliny), he fails to examine them in any detail at all.

However, this book is an absolute goldmine of information on the pre-conquest Canary Islanders, and stands alone in this field. If you are interested in the ancient Canary Islanders, then you must read this book!

The Canary Islands, once believed to be the remains of Atlantis, are a major forum for discussion of cultural and biological evolution. The unusual appearance of the 'native' Canary Islanders (blond, tall, pale eyes) was noted by the Spanish invaders of the 15th century and has been extensively debated for some time.

Mercer's book is essential for a fuller understanding of the inhabitants of the prehistoric (=Prehispanic) Canary Islands. Social, biological and cultural evolution (based on archaeology) are all discussed, in addition to contemporary Spanish writers' commentaries on the prehispanic inhabitants. The geology, geography and natural history of the area is also reviewed.

Mercer is an exceptionally incisive writer, wide ranging in his approach but nonetheless extremely perceptive and rational in his analyses. This book, published in 1980, has not to my knowledge been bettered. Essential reading for both scholars of the Atlantic Island groups and anyone who wishes to look beyond the trashy 'Blackpool in the Sun' image presently suffered by the Canaries.

The Beatles were more than just a rock band. In historical context, they were part of a huge government engineered social event which has been overseen through the years by secret societies and unknown branches of U.S. and British governments. The engineering continues to evolve today.

As John Lennon has stated, one moment they were playing all kinds of seedy bars, strip joints, and dance clubs across the UK and Europe. A gritty covers band with an attitude and ability to play. The next thing he knew, they were meeting the Queen of England and heads of state across the globe as they toured. Transforming them from a heavy rock band into a cute, loveable teen sensation almost overnight was what their manager Brian Epstein did, as he promised if they did this they'd be rich beyond their dreams and be bigger than Elvis. But it went way beyond even that as their importance ballooned into political issue and their effect on the 'youth culture'. Heads of state took notice of their citizen's enchantment with the band. The 'clean' image Epstein marketed got them into family rooms around the globe; where for the band was where the money they were promised was; and for Tavistock, a worldwide opportunity to capture the minds of the entire world's youth.

What the Beatles got themselves into through Epstein's contracts and guidance, unbeknownst to them, was a role in the New World Order's plans to test out mass mind control. You'll learn about England's top secret Tavistock facilities (which as predicted in the book, now monitors all communications passing in and out of England), and how it secretly helped engineer the Beatles 'invasion' of the U.S. and then the world and why. A discussion of the Beatles' early music, and it's hypnotic "12-atonal" quality attempts to explain the reason their music seems to elicit senses within the brain common in many humans, especially those in a certain age group.

The subject of the group's decision to use and publicize their use of LSD and cannabis marijuana as they began to move in their own direction beyond their manager's initial Beatlemania-era "cute" image, and into the psychedelic-rock/hard rock era, is discussed in detail. Previously unpublished photos of the band using LSD and them performing at their last concerts appear in the book for the first time.

Secret documents are exposed from FBI, CIA files. Social engineering, the mark of the beast, Waco, black choppers, militia, mind control, the drug trade, Nazi connections, UFO and alien appearances, backwards messages. The modern multimedia presentation of music and marketing began here.

The book is not extremely organized in a comprehensible manner. It's best to take this book a chapter at a time. It seems the author may have crammed too much in one book that might have been meant for three since it says this is a trilogy. However you will learn so much more than you may want to know about how the Beatles fit into the cosmic conspiracy that you'll scare yourself. I think every major conspiracy theory is touched upon.

The book seems to weave in and out in this manner, to some great stories about the Beatles on tour and behind the scenes, with previously unpublished photos.

If any of this sounds slightly interesting, believe me, it is quite fascinating, and you should read this book immediately. What you think and saw was happening on the outside, was happening because of some very bizarre coincidences.

Interesting addendum: In 1996 An episode of the TV series "Dark Skies" was based on this book's chapter about the Beatles' first U.S. appearance on a live broadcast of the Ed Sullivan Show in February of 1964. Seen by 73 million viewers across the nation, (that's almost everyone who had a television set then), it was the perfect time to implant the message and test mass mind control. Was it Tavistock who masterminded it all? This book has the answers, and raises even more questions that still don't but one day we may know the answer as more government documents become declassified regarding these operations. (I'm hoping to see parts 2 and 3 of this trilogy get published with all of the events in Beatles and world history that have taken place since the book first came out in 1996.)

I"m glad to meet R. Lipack . His book look like
a nightmare .. but it is only a true analysis of
the real world you're living today ....
Big Brother is alive now , more terrific than
you can imagine...
Thanks Mister Lipack for open our eyes.

This is a reasonably good, though dry, effort at examining the life of the mellifluous-voiced British actor, James Mason. The book is paced well and there is a fair amount of information on most of his movies. However, there is a lack of information on Mason's personal life, especially regarding his unusual first marriage to the ascerbic Pamela Mason.

Though Pamela Mason was a loud-mouthed and shrewish adulteress, she was also extremely witty and interesting in her own right. Anyone who recalls her appearences on L.A. TV shows from the 60's and 70's will still chuckle at her endless tirades, usually ending with the predictable sentence, "James was so dull."

This book actually provides convincing evidence that James *was* boring. Mason comes off as depressed, rigid, indecisive and inrodinately unhappy. He makes many poor choices and instead of getting over them and getting on with his life, he broods about the negative consequences of his actions. For example, he moves to Hollywood and instantly detests California and American life, yet he inexplicably continues to live in the States for another 15 years. Hello, James... what was the problem?

It is never explained why James stayed with Pamela for so many years, even when he was miserable in her presence and unhappy living in America. When he finally does divorce her, he ends up shilling out millions in alimony and making a succession of wretched movies in order to pay off Pamela.

Ultimately, the real tragedy is that a man as intelligent, urbane and handsome as James Mason (not to mention his stupendous voice!) handled his career in such a haphazard way. He was a marvelous screen actor, but wasted his talent in many potboilers. This book doesn't really explain these poor choices and doesn't reveal enough about Mason's private life.

I really enjoyed this biography by Sheridan Morley on James Mason. It is really good, and tells much about his life, but more about his career. It's a very good read though, and you will learn about him from it. It's well written and really is an interesting read for any fan of James Mason.

I have read a lot of books on the JFK assissination.

This book caught my eye for that reason. However, once I began reading it, this book kept my attention. It read like a novel. I liked that, it was a switch from the usual fact presented like facts JFK conspiracy books. I liked that about this book. It certainly had me convinced that this guy had something to do with the JFK murder. It made me wonder why we didn't do more then in regards to this guy.

The book was gory when talking about the dismemberment of his mother and father. I really didn't like that. I'm not sure that it added much to the book except some length. However, it did make me realize that this was the type of man who would do what he thought needed to be done and might certainly shoot at a president.

This book is very interesting and those interested in reading about the JFK assassination would do well to consider reading this book. It is an easy one to skip over with the massive amounts of books available to read. However, the novel like feel of this does not detract from the research completed and conclusions drawn in this book.

I have read quite a lot of books about the Kennedy assassination but this one is the best by far. It is well written and reads like a thriller.

At the end of the book a groundsheet of the Rogers' house is shown. This helps to understand the description of the crime and the search through the house by the two police officers. What I miss is a groundsheet of the parsonage. From the description it is not possible for me to imagine how it looked like. It plays an important role so I think it would better the book if it was printed too. A thing that makes me curious is: what did the authors put on their trail? Where they one of those informed by Marietta Gerhart?

Normally I'm not into historical non-fiction, but I'll make an exception for this book. _The Ninth Man_ tells what was happening in America during the 1940's with a personal twist that brings the facts to life. I encourage the purchase of this book, it is not for all ages but is defiantly a must read for anyone interested in spies and WWII.

Lots of fun. Corresponds to the historical record on the 8 Nazi spies almost perfectly, but still reads like a good spy novel.

I would have given this book at least four stars if it didn't include Garth Ennis's three-part story The Thousand. It introduced a really silly villain who was supposed to bully Peter Parker as a kid. I hate it when characters who are supposedly part of the backstory come out of nowhere and I hate it even more when they are just silly. He had no motivation for wanting to kill Spiderman and take his place. The plot was just lame, which is a shame because Garth Ennis is one of the greatest comic writers ever. Having said that, John McCrea's art is brilliant! He uses a different style that I have never seen him use before. It relies less on shading and more on simple linework and colouring effects.
Thankfully, it gets much better from here on. Greg Rucka of Detective Comics fame offers the best story of the collection with the simple yet effective Kingpin story Severence package. Its offers an interesting insight into the way the Kingpin runs his organisation and has one of the best portrayals of the character ever.
Flowers for Rhino, based on the brilliant short story Flowers for Algernon, is one of the few instances that the Rhino is portrayed as a character you can feel for. Its a love story, believe it or not, in which the Rhino gains intelligence.
This book collects the first few stories from Marvel's Tangled Web series, which is one of the best Spider-man books in a long time. The still going on and the stories are still excellent so you might want to search for individual issues if they are not reprinted in trade paperback form.

Marvel Comics have been resurrecting the sales and popularity of their flagship character, Spider-Man, in the past year. It seems so obvious, but a big part of the character's resurgence has been due to the quality of writers and artists employed on the various monthly books. Tangled Web falls outside the "ongoing continuity" of the two main "core" titles, Amazing Spider-Man and Peter Parker, telling self-contained stories that focus on Spider-Man's world, as opposed to the lead character himself. The first volume of Tangled Web stories make up this book and within the pages you'll find the single best comic book produced this year. That story is the one-issue "Severance Package", a tale of the New York underworld. The Kingpin of Crime summons one of his hitmen, who has failed to carry out an order due to Spider-Man's interference. This story is the essence of Tangled Web: the people on the edges of the Spider-Man story, some never seen before, others (such as the Rhino, featured in the third story in this collection) who have been, at best, second-rate supporting characters, but in these stories become interesting characters in their own right. Fans of crime fiction should buy this book - it ranks alongside other current gritty mainstream comics such as Powers and 100 Bullets.