The book cover states that the book is lavishly illustrated; the cover is but not the book. It is not up to Yale standards.The photographs are small and blurry, often the colors are incorrect.Please wait for a good Catalogue Raisonne. As for the text, so many years of good research wasted. The text is ponderous, poorly written with endless sentences full of quotes and inserts.The author is critical , judgemental and constantly makes assumptions or gives personal and mostly unsubstanciated opinions. It is another book for Art History students (the author is an Art History teacher) not for lovers of paintings. I returned the book to Amazon.

Both the serious art scholar and the general reader will appreciate this visual and textual treat of a book which is truly "The Art of Thomas Gainsborough." Many of the plates I had not seen reproduced in previous books on Gainsborough, and Rosenthal's view of Gainsborough, that he was much more serious an artist and business man than he or his contemporaries saw him. I first went through this book, feasting my eyes on all the plates(most of which are in color and beautifully reproduced), which are roughly divided between Gainsborough's portraits, which he painted to meet market demand and pay the bills and his landscapes which he painted for pleasure. Rosenthal's plates also include details from certain paintings, so that the reader can study Gainsborough's brushwork and see clearly why much of his work suffers when hung from the wrong height or is viewed too close to.

While this book is roughly chronological, it is not a biography of Gainsborough, it is a biography of his work. Rosenthal traces Gainsborough's art from his beginings in Sudbury, his training and apprenticeship, early work in London, move to Bath as a better market to make money and perfect his skill as a portrait painter, and final move to London, resulting in his popularity as a portrait painter, establishment as a painter-courtier to the Royal Family and unofficial portraitist to members of the same,the near annual battles with the hanging commitee of the Royal Academy on the proper hanging of his submitted works, which led to his breaking with the academy as a member, his failures to sell many of his beloved landscape paintings, and his first serious attempt to create a historical painting in the final months of his life.

Original to this work on Gainsborough is the central theme that Gainsborough, like his fellow English artists, had to paint to the market demands, which in England meant portraits sold, while landscapes and history paintings generally did not. That meant pleasing the clientele without "selling out," something Gainsborough found sometimes difficult to do. Artists also painted differently, often using brighter colors and altering the paintings afterwards, to get their work noticed at the annual Royal Academy exibitions. Rosenthal includes illustrations of these overcrowded exibitions(both in paintings exibited hung floor to ceiling, and the crowds of people viewing them)to give the reader an idea of why Gainsborough and other artists were often unhappy with the hanging committees decisions on where their paintings were hung.

Most fascinating is the chapter "Faces and Lives" where Rosenthal compares and contrasts not only Gainsborough's multiple portraits of the same subject, but also with portraits of the same subject done by his rival, and President of the Royal Academy, Sir Josah Reynolds. Reynold's more often painted his sitters in a historic style with the sitters' faces sometimes altered so that acquintances didn't recognize them while Gainsborough's sitters were easily recognizable, if flattered. The prime example of this differences between the two painters are their portraits, of the actress Sarah Siddons, reproduced side by side in the book. Reynolds painted her as the "Tragic Muse", on a throne-like chair, clad in classical draperies. Gainsborough's slightly later portrait depicted her perched on a dainty French chair, dressed in the latest fashion, gazing off into space(contemplating her newest role, perhaps?)with the only clue to her career, a crimson curtain draped as background.

I was inspired by the compilation of bird dog stories found within this book. If you enjoy the excitement, fear, despair, and elation associated with the training, ownership and running of all breeds of bird dogs, you will enjoy this book. The authors help you relive the moments you have endured with your own dogs in addition to helping you imagine the hunts you have yet to experience. This is a definite must read for bird dog enthusiasts.

I borrowed this book from a friend and had a tough time putting it down. Great stories from writers who truly love their dogs. A few of the essays are sad, but all of them allow us to share a part of a fellow dog lovers life with his best friend. Definitely a must read.

Ignatieff's credibility, particularly in the field of human rights, is forever tarnished by his marked appeasement of Serb ethnic cleansers in Bosnia several years ago. It is only because Bosnia was ignored, and those responsible never held accountable, that their appeasers still publish and get read. I recommend, for those who want some perpective on Ignatieff, to read his works pertaining to the Balkans written during the period 1992-1995.

Ignatieff offers a measured, limited, and explicitly political, i.e., dialogic, nondogmatic, nonmetaphysical, pragmatic, approach to human rights advocacy and questions of international jurisdiction. Excellent, compelling, convincing. I can't say I'm entirely convinced, mind you. One surprise is that I found Appiah's essay--I am a great admirer of Appiah and, in my estimation, his reply to Taylor in _Multiculturalism: The Politics of Recognition_ is among the finest essays ever written--unconvincing, particularly with regards to the question of "rights and majorities." On this, see Jeremy Waldron's _Law and Disagreement_.

As a die hard Redskins fan, I was very sorry to see this excellent concept so badly muffed. The idea behind this book is to cash in on the Washington Post vault, providing great photos and articles combined with new pieces by long-time Skins beat reporters to tie it all together. Sadly, whoever edited and proofread this thing reeeally dropped the ball. Sentences at the bottom of the page are repeated at the top of the next, photographs are mislabeled, pieces of sentences are missing, words are chopped off in the middle. Probably still of some value for the die hard Skins fan, but a real black eye for the Washington Post. If their newspaper were produced as shoddily, Richard Nixon would have finished his second term.

Yes, there are some typos and such in the early chapters but the book isn't as lousy as described in the 2-star review. Most of the problems are hyphen-ated words that are not at the end of a page or line. It is like the typeset was changed but the book was not reproofed.

Still, there is a lot of good information in the book. I think it covers items that Loverro's book (very good as well) ignored or glossed over-- how Gibbs wanted to sign and trade Riggo and how Joe Jacoby ended up sticking around in that first camp. The Times summary makes it sound like Gibbs and Beathard were geniuses building a team. This book shows that they were also lucky geniuses. If you are a Skins fan, you should own this book.

I see there is also a newer edition out with the Synder years (ugh).

I'm rather surprised at the positive reviews of this book. It is, in my opinion, the poorest excuse for a Theory book I have ever seen. It is nothing more than a skeletal outline. The language is extremely dense with new terms. For example, the paragraph describing V7-I chord resolution uses the terms "leading" and "tendency" tones, having never introduced them before.

I have an Engineering degree, and am studying for a degree in music composition. This book is more difficult to read, and more poorly written, than most of the books I used in engineering school.

The thought of using this book for three semesters is excruciating. The authors were clearly more interested in showing off their knowledge, instead of teaching it.

Can you tell I hate this book?

Everyone in the class is utterly baffled, and some have just stopped coming to class, thinking that they are not smart enough to get music theory. This book has broken the spirit of young musicians. Way to go.

This text is an outstanding book on music theory. Complete with exercises, concise examples and reference materials packed into the 282 pages of this text. While not the complete reference manual for theory, it is a great general tool/text for education in music theory and the fundamentals of music notation, musical structure and musical form. Fat paced book covers all the details, and includes a reference section which details and demonstrates the handling of many musical techniques and analysis in a concise, direct way.

Highly recommended!

When I made the mistake of reading this tell-all book,It was clear to me that the writer was very bitter. The book tells us little that shock`s,and seems to have been a means of revenge towards Marlo Thomas. What is also odd, is that not one unkind word is written about Phil Donahue,leading the reader to believe he must not have any say in his own home.

This is a great book! A true story of Hollywood rich and excess! It seems only Carly Simon and Olympia Dukakis are the only other ones who know what life is really like in the Thomas-Donahue household! It's so funny, I'm reading it again today, It's amazing how rich people live, way different than poor little ole' me! I only live on ten thou a year, and Ive lived like this for 37 of them! He is very careful to put the plusses of Phil and Marlo also, I like the line Phil would use to be casual when being served, "at your leisure" I'm sure Phil loves this book, and although Marlo probably does'nt like to admit it, she's a good egg and laughs at it too! The part where Rena and Marlo Square off, is pure housekeeper torture laughs, this book is a must for any poor person or household help! What a Gas!

I wanted to like this book. I just finished the Dudley Warner Book, in the same classic gardening series, which I had savored like a good box of chocolates, rationing out a few pages, each day. But this one--oddly enough--depressed me slightly. It has a sad subplot. You have this stiff upper lip British Matron, who was married to Walter, who oppressed every good idea she had for their garden. She basically isn't able to implement her visions until he dies. But once he's dead you realize, in her humerous complaints, that she misses him. The rest is all gardening, without the breathtaking observations Charles Dudley Warner has, about plants, and without the richness of his language. Fish is an OK writer, but she's not great. I guess Charles Dudley Warner is an impossible act to follow. Warner has one chapter where General Ulysses Grant visits, then he realizes he must burn the chair he sat in. He's unbelievably funny. That book is full of life and a grand vision. Fish's book is somehow claustrophobic. Reading Warner's book, I feel like I'm in a most interesting place filled with surprises, in Fish's book I feel like I'm trapped in a garden, I'd rather exit. I've read about half of her book, and you'd have to pay me to finish it. I frown when I see it on the pile of books behind my comode.

WE MADE A GARDEN is a lovely little book by Margery Fish, an "elderly" English lady who with her husband (he who must be obeyed or cleverly deceived it seems) moved to a country manor and converted the mostly lawn areas into gardens of shrubs, flowers, and herbs. First published in the U.K. in the 1950s, the book has been republished as part of the 'Modern Library Garden Series' edited by Michael Pollan.

Fish's little book will be considered a gem by experienced gardeners who can picture the plants she names in the mind's eye, identify with her triumphs and failures, and appreciate a useful clues from an obviously seasoned hand. Garden veterans will also identify with the greedy gardener who never has enough space, the stubborn gardener who plants Nepeta despite it's runaway habits, the recalcitrant gardener who hides the verboten brilliant orange Lychnis chalcedonica at the back of the beds, and the disobedient gardener who leaves many openings in the cemented walkway hubby designed to thwart weeds.

The book may appear a bit dense to the new gardener as it describes activities such as composing flower beds, creating walkways, and engineering rock gardens with inferior rocks,with no illustrations, other than a few black and white photos-one of Mrs Fish on bended knee at work in her rock garden. However, all is not lost. Determined gardeners unfamiliar with the various plants Mrs Fish names can refer to a nursery catalogue since 60-70 percent of the plants available in the 1950s can be found contemporary mail order publications

This story has it all. The good guys all wear white and the bad guys are smeared in black. The reader is taken on a cleverly woven journey through the global financial system and the U.S. political system. Unfortunately, the financial plot becomes the story, and the characters all take a back seat to its development. As with so many other stories all of the drama unfolds in the final chapter alone. We never get to really identify with any of the main characters

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This is a popular text for your basic college TV and Radio intro class. I have used it for several years myself and it's a fine overview of the subject. Gets pretty technical on electronic stuff and has less on broadcast history and personalities (in my view). Also, since the death of one author the book has become more dated each year and will continue to do so unless they do a fairly significant rewrite.