If you are looking for detailed maps of the Roman Empire you will be disappointed. Only the major towns are listed, a far cry from the thousands that existed. The book is really not a map book but more of a reference book. There are a few maps but the majority of the book is written material with the addition of some nice pictures. For die hard history buffs like myself I would instead recommend the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World (ISBN 069103169X).

This Atlas is not just a picture book in the general sense, but rather a broad overview of the Roman World from the birth of the city of Rome to the rise of Justinian in the 6th century AD. Every part of the Roman World receives some attention and the result is an easy to read survey of the Roman World. In my opinion the best part of this book are the reconstructions of certain cities such as Alexandria and Palmyra as well as the beautifully illustrated maps(exactly what a historical atlas should have).

Although you won't find here the 'history' of Rome, you'll be travelling around the then civilized world. No customs, just a huge Empire encompassing almost all of Europe and parts of Asia and North Africa. The Emperor Hadrian traveled extensively across his Empire, he could have written it. We are able to see what he saw.

And everywhere there's so much to be seen ! Great theatres in Africa, amazing monuments in Asia, swimming pools, taverns, etc. Rome was the heart, but it's body was large and thrilling.

The geographical approach is a hit. You literally travel and arrive at the provinces. In each there's a guide waiting for you. If something is missing, it's because it is not there.

Compared with two other books of similar aim and scope, Baines' Ancient Egypt, and Levi's The Greek World, this is definitely the best. A pleasure to read and keep reading. You will end longing to physically retrace the travel, at least a part of it being the whole so vast.

A master work which starts off slowly and then fizzes into unexpected space. Pregnant with insight.

The Critical Edition of Q : A Synopsis Including the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Mark and Thomas.

This is an exceptionally clear and easy to use book.

The section on the history of "Q" research is a splendidly clear and concise review of the work done today and would bring you up to speed very quickly.

The layout of the synopsis in 8 columns is actually a great deal easier to understand than at first glance and quickly becomes user friendly.

The Synoptic Gospels, Q and other canonical texts are paralleled in Greek with the gospel of Thomas being paralleled in Coptic. Q is translated into French, German and English with the parallels of Thomas being translated into Greek, French, German and English.

I would not hesitate to recommend this work to anyone who is studying in this field or has an interest in it.

This newest updated version of Q is a MUST read for all!

Informative and thought provoking;for all serious thinkers..... this book clearly settles the case....once and for all.

Mike in Melbourne,Fla.

This book is a beautiful and simple way to read about Jesus' life. Great for people who find it hard to follow the Bible and also for those who need a fresh look at the life of Jesus.

All of the Girzone books I have read are wonderful. So refreshing and uplifting. Also, easy to read and understand.

I highly recommend this book.

Having read all of Fr. Girzone's other books, I thirst for each of his new offerings. This book did not disappoint me. His ability to inject warmth and a personal perspective transform the Gospels from a more historical context to making the reader feel as though they were part of a beautiful story.

Anyone who has felt a bit arm's length when reading Scripture will find that they are welcomed into God's story as part of it. Fr. Girzone's writings continue to help bring my God closer to me.....and for that I thank him.....eternally.

Lowell Rinker

It is a wonderful read! The story of Jesus pooled together by Fr. Girzone and the Friends of Jesus, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. A smooth telling of the life of Jesus that allows one who is a "beginner" or "expert" of the Gospels to envision the life of Jesus through a flowing account.

I enjoyed this book; the way John Matthews weaves the stories is wonderful. A refreshing change from his usual scholarly writing method. However, I couldn't help but feel that the idea of the monk writing the stories was perhaps taken from "The Way of Wyrd", by Brian Bates..
Perhaps it was an idea that both writers had independantly.

John Matthews is a poet and a scholar. In this translation, Mr. Matthews successfully invokes the spirit of the bard, taking these ancient Welsh tales and turning them into a readable, intelligable and excellent writing. The Song of Taliesin is so skillfully done, I recommend it to beginners, middlers and experts alike. Seek this book out if you have any interest in Celtic myth or culture.

This is a book I have bee waiting for for a long time. Both John and Caitlin Mathhews' more (overtly) scholarly books have hinted at the possibility of more primitive, more whole versions of the Celtic stories that we have - and here John fascinatingly reconstructs them. My favorite is 'The Battle of the Trees', which takes hints from the medieval poem 'Cad Goddeu' and fleshes them out into a prose narrative, creating in effect a 'Fifth Branch of the Mabinogi'. The character of Gwydion is as wily as ever. The excitement of reading these stories, as a Celticist in training, was not only in their elegant and evocative narratives, but in seeing where fragments had been stiched together seamlessly. I'm not sure that the Irish stories worked as well as the British/Welsh ones, but the marriage of scholarship and vision is astonishing, from the story born from the poem 'Preiddeu Annwn' 'The Journey to Deganwy' to the wonderful version of the story of Branwen.
Highly recommended to those who are familiar with Celtic literature and those who are just discovering it.

If you don't have any security background then this book is a good place to start. Be ready, however, for most of the links to be out of date (the book was published in 2002). This can be circumvented by a little help from Google to find the utilities you need for the exercises. There are also a few inaccuracies in the syntax provided. These can be resolved with help from "man" (i.e. 'man ipchains') or the help for the particular utility.

I really liked this book. I liked how it did not just inform you about these tools but actually had you use them to gain understanding. Any good systems/network admin should be familier with the tools in this book. Both UNIX and Windows admins will gain great experiance and understanding of their systems weaknesses.
I have read many books on "hacking" and security and this one is the only one that actually has you use these tools.
It is setup in a very easy to follow and understand format. This book is a must for EVERY Admin, not just for preparing you for a test. Even if you never take a security exam, this book will give you great intro and experience with the use of the tools described.

The GIAC Certification: Security Essentials Toolkit (GSEC) is an excellent reference to use for the SANS GSEC certification.

The book is quite different from most other, if not all certification prep guides. Rather than simply provide the reader with reference material and acronyms to memorize, the book has exercises that the reader uses for their preparation.

Each chapter has a separate hands-on exercise that is used to solidify the knowledge required for the exam. The exercises are well laid-out and organized, and proceed in a methodical way.

The only think I personally did not like about the book was its size, it is 11 x 8.5''. I found it to be cumbersome at times to use.

But its main point, content, is first rate. Anyone planning on obtaining GSEC certification should definitely invest the money- in the GIAC Certification: Security Essentials Toolkit, it is well worth it.

Everyone deals with grief at some point. "When Children Grieve" by John James and Russell Friedman is an amazingly helpful book. After the recent death of a dear friend, I needed help in understanding grief from a child's perspective. This easy to read book explains that it's healthy to grieve, and that adults need to allow children time to heal. "Children need to feel bad when their hearts are broken. Adults should never try to fix a child's loss."
Also, the book explains that grief doesn't just come from death, but instead can be motivated by divorce, pet loss, moving and even a parent's job loss. Grief stems from sudden change in ritualistic behavior. As adults, it is our role to facilitate the child's emotions by helping them discover "undelivered communications." This book teaches adults how to reach out to children and guide them through difficult times. It's a must read for all parents who want to encourage emotional growth and mental wellbeing in their children.

I am a conservative, grumpy, old, Lutheran pastor, vehemently opposed to all things "New Age." I despise the fads of pop-psychology. "Touchy-Feely" advice from so-called experts, who demand exorbitant fees, often makes me want to wretch. So, I approached this book filled with trepidation.

There was no need for my concerned.

Writing with extraordinary gentleness and common sense Mr. James, Mr. Friedman and Dr. Matthews have provided adults with an invaluable outline on how to shepherd the children in their lives through loss, grief and recovery. Every parent, grandparent, teacher, pastor, priest, rabbi, nurse or physician who expects the children in their lives to suffer the death of a pet, suffer the death of a relative, move or endure a divorce will benefit from reading this book.

Do yourself a favor. Read this book for the sake of the children whom you love. It is well worth the investment of your time.

Then, do yourself a second favor, and place a copy of this book in your church, synagogue or public library for the others who will grow by reading it.

After reading this book my eyes have been open to the conversations I have had with the children I teach and those that I come in contact with. I felt that this book is one that anyone in any profession could relate to. The book's focus is on how to help our child deal with grief or loss but I feel that it even teachs us, as adults, how to communicate with children in an every day conversation.

During the first 7 chapters the authors focus on the myths that we as adults communicate to our children, and inturn see the myths that were communicated to us as children. Everyone at some point in their life will deal with loss/grief of some sort and also helping someone they love deal with loss/grief. We all must be equipted with the knowledge of how to do this effectivly. This book is an easy reading book that at anytime can be pulled off your home library shelf and put to good use.

Very complete with history and lore as well as activites. Two thumbs up on this one. Great pictures too. Everything os presented in a very straightforrward way, no hokey stuff in there that would make you say "huh?" I love this book - made for a much more meaningful christmas for me this year.

The Winter Solstice (as with the solstices and equinoxes) hold a special place in our world because anyone can celebrate them. So many cultures and religions have customs, beliefs, rituals that occur on or around the Solstice.

This book highlights some well known and not so well know European Solstice and Yule customs. It also delves quite a bit into Christmas customs that were influenced by eariler Pagan ones. But the information in this book is extended outside the Euro realm and reaches many cultures - really emphasising a common bond between all people.

The book is nice enough to offer as a gift or a coffetable treasure. It has a wonderful layout and lots of beautiful pictures, drawings, and poems. In the back of the book it has a couple of Rituals/ Plays that are suitable for public Ritual or a seasonal play.

This book can be enjoyed by anyone but definitely appeals to Pagans or curious/ liberal Christians.

I almost didn't buy this book because it had Christmas in the title and I supposed it would not have much in the way of the pagan holiday. I was very wrong. This is the best book I have ever read on the solstice. It tells of celebrating Yule before Christianity abducted it. "The Winter Solstice" has the look of an arty, coffee table book but it is definitely worth the read. It offers a couple of small rituals and some great phrases for ceremonies. It is more of a scholary history than a magickal book. I cannot wait to read it again next December to get me in the Yule spirit!

This book was a good source for what I was looking for andf the words and things were easy to understand. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did

This text (as one of three source books written by John Matthews) is an absolute must-have for anyone interested in Celtic history and religion. So many current books have absolutely no historical basis and focus solely for a New Age or occult audience that has no wish to understand historical context or who the bards and druids really were in their own society. This book is actually more of an anthology on the subject of Celtic bards, but the extensive commentary is also very useful. Robin Williamson (of the Incredible String Band) writes a brilliant introduction as well. I can't wait to get the Druids' Source Book and the Celtic Seers' Source Book too -- I enjoyed this text as both a student of Celtic history and as someone interested in modern Celtic spirituality.

When I bought this book, I was so excited to begin my meditations focusing on Morgan, Igraine, Guinevere and Nimue. I didn't even get through the book. The meditations themselves are unique, but the book itself wasn't at all what I expected.

Instead of developing the connection with each of the women associated in the Authurian Legend, I felt "turned off" due to the technical slant of comparing different versions of the authurian myths and trying to put together some elements that were not included in all of the versions. I felt disconnected, like there was no sense of cohesion tying together the women I so respect. I wanted to learn more about the women in the legends, to feel like i was sitting across from them, having a conversation over a hot cup of tea. Instead, it felt like a cold, technical research paper not at all bringing to life the legends of the past. In short, I was deeply disappointed-- MZB is my favorite author, and I respect the Matthew's other works.

Like the Grail, the reward this book offers is apparently not available to all, judging from the variation of reviews. Personally, I found the painstaking research and revelation of parallels between various historical sources enlightening in the extreme. Through the work of John and Caitlin Mathews, the reconstruction of truths long lost to us comes to us as a precious gift. If ever there were a literary representation of "racial memory," this book must have at least a strong claim on this title.
I have been fascinated by Arthurian legend since my youth, but have never appreciated it before as I do now as a consequence of reading this wonderful work. If you can apply your intellect and your spirit in synergy and not in conflict, I suggest that you might find as much treasure in this book as I have.

I have always had an interest in mythology and Arthurian legend and have found that few books really touch on the individual personalities or archetypes of the women of Arthurian legend beyond the usual over dramatized stereotypes of "Morgan = Evil sorceress, or confused seeker", "Morgause = "Malignant Manipulator, Power-monger", "Guenevere = Insecure Harlot".

"Ladies of the Lake" give these women back the power taken from them by traditional legend and modern retellings and allows the reader to see them in a richly spiritual and human light. I found that like book "The Goddess in Everywoman", each "lady" carries attributes that most women can relate to in some form or another. There are 9 attributes examined:
1. Energizer
2. Measurer
3. Protector
4. Initiator
5. Challenger
6. Deliverer
7. Weaver
8. Preserver
9. Empowerer

I for one am pleased to see a book such as this that gives a fresh look at women who have been underrated in many tellings of Arthurian legend. While many books will touch upon the aspects and strengths of each of Arthur's many knights, this book gives the same, long awaited look at the women of the legends. I love many of the retellings of the Arthurian legends, such as the "Mists of Avalon" and subsequent books in the series by Marion Zimmer bradley and this book seems to give a lot more insight into the personalities and spiritual arttributes behind the traditional ladies.

I would recommend this to anyone interested in Arthurian Legend or who want to know more about the women of the Arthurian legend from a unique perspective.

Matthews does a wonderful job of pulling together different treatises throughout history on how the world has and does view Druidism. This is a very dry read, but is filled with great information.

I read a review where an individual stated that "this work was outdated'. Well the ancient druids certainly 'are' and here is a good collection of their history! It seems the more and more I read reviews of Matthews work I come across the complaint that its "dry history'. While this may be true there are also gems within the desert if one cares to look. Also all the books that I've ever read about "druid magic, techniques, shamanism etc...I have found to be worthless and just a dressed up version of wicca. The Encyclopedia of Celtic Wisdom is another example of fine writing and research. Once again we must remember this was"an oral tradition".

John Matthews is the editor of this book and has put a lot of work into collecting different material on the Druids. Some of the matterial used is difficult to find as it is out of print, or is an abridged form of larger writings.

It contains material from Caesar to Ross Nichols. Also, there is a list of further readings, and major Druid orders if your interested.