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Book reviews for "Nettelbeck,_Fred_Arthur" sorted by average review score:

Building the Panama Canal: Chronicles from National Geographic (Cultural & Geographical Exploration Series/Chronicles from National geograpHic)
Published in Library Binding by Chelsea House Pub (Library) (1999)
Authors: Arthur Meier Schlesinger, Fred L. Israel, and National Geographic Society
Amazon base price: $21.95
Average review score:

Building the Panama Canal
This book relates the history of the Panama Canal. It describes how it was planned and built. It includes a political and economical background. Also it explores the health aspects of the project and its impact on humans and animals.

This books includes many photographs from this era. Some are clear, but many are not. It also includes an index. Although this book will be useful for children that are researching the topic, it will not be easy for them to use due to the vocabulary and low interest level. Buy if you need information on this subject.

Part of the Cultural and Geographical Exploration series by National Geographic.


Electronic Filter Design Handbook/Book and Disk
Published in Hardcover by McGraw Hill Text (1995)
Authors: Arthur B. Williams and Fred Taylor
Amazon base price: $89.95
Average review score:

Bought this for my father
As the title says, this book was purchased for my father who is an electrical engineer. So far as I can tell, the book was a real hit with him.


Running for President : The Candidates and Their Images (1900-1992)
Published in Hardcover by MacMillan Library Reference (1995)
Authors: Arthur Meier Schlesinger, Fred L. Israel, and David J. Frent
Amazon base price: $115.00
Average review score:

An excellent reference on American political history
An incredibly well-researched reference, layed out beautifully, enhanced with photos of funny and fascinating political memorabilia; informative, as well as entertaining and lively. A great addition to any school or general library, or to the collection of any avid student or fan of American political and popular culture.


Tales of Terror and Mystery
Published in Audio Cassette by Blackstone Audiobooks (1998)
Authors: Arthur Conan Doyle and Fred Williams
Amazon base price: $44.95
Average review score:

From the Creator of Sherlock Holmes
The first thing I would like to mention is that this book is not at the level of any of the Sherlock Holmes's short stories, it is worse than the worst Sherlock Holmes's short stories collection (maybe the "His Last Bow," since it had the lowest number of short stories as compared to the other collections).

Let us explore the book story by story:

1. The Horror of the Heights: (3 stars)
This was not the best short story I ever read, said this plainly. It tells about a pilot trying to prove that there is a jungle up in the sky, above all the heights explored by human beings, and that jungle had creatures that like to mutilate humans once they see them. More than that I would be spoiling the plot.

2. The Leather Funnel: (2 stars)
This is even a worse story. It speaks about the separating line between our world and dreamland. It simply asserts that you can see the past in your dreams, provided that you have something related to that past, just like a leather funnel, for example.

3. The New Catacomb: (4 stars)
The first story to my liking. The good feature about this story is that it gives a twist of plot at the end. It starts with 2 archeologists in Rome, chatting about a catacomb discovered by one of them. In order for the latter to tell the former about the location of the catacomb he wanted to know about some private secret. In the catacomb a strange and interesting twist of plot takes place and the story ends in the best manner a writer can bring to end. Do not take me wrong, I figured this twist from the second page of the story, and I hope you do not, so that you can enjoy the ending.

4. The Case of Lady Sannox: (5 stars)
This story introduces some elements of the Islamic orient (the middle east, if you please). It introduces the reader to a reckless gentleman, who is more of a ladies man. He is, as usual to that type of people, always broke. A Turk offers him money to cure his wife in a strange way. What is so interesting in the story? Of course the twist at the end, and that what made me give it 5 stars ... I did not figure it out until I reached 2 pages before the last one.

5. The Brazilian Cat: (4 stars)
This story was not bad at all, it might have been better than "The Case of Lady Sannox," in terms of the plot and characters. The reason I give it less stars than the other one is that Doyle speaks a lot, he explains many things, relevant and irrelevant. It speaks about a broken young lad - a character which appears frequently in the writings of Doyle - who is the direct heir of a miser uncle. He has got a second relative who had just come from Brazil, so he visited him to beg some money from him. There he is introduced to the relatives pet, a Brazilian cat. Saying more would kill the story, and beware, for there is a twist at the end.

6. The Lost Special: (2 stars)
Where did a train disappear? I thought it would give me a very strange way, like it flied in the sky or something, but the way it disappeared was not insightful.
7. The Beetle Hunter: (3 stars)
An advertisement in the newspaper asks for someone very interested in Beetles, preferably an expert. The hero of the story applies and then is introduced to another expert in Beetles; a master, if you please. There is a twist at the end.

8. The Man with the Watches: (3 stars)
An attempt to depart the realm of Sherlock Holmes, and to forsake his way of deduction. Here you must make a big assumption, and if it fits the crime, then it might actually be the right plot. But in this case it is not. A man and a woman enter a train, both of them disappear, and what remains is the body of a different man, what happened? The answer was more than I could imagine.

9. The Jappaned Box: (1 star)
This is totally unworthy of Doyle. I am not going to say anything about it, you read it and see that it might have impressed people a hundred years ago but not anymore.

10. The Black Doctor: (3 stars)
In a line with the Sherlock Holmes's adventures. A brunet comes to town and work as a doctor, he gets engaged to a lady and then, all of a sudden, he decides to forsake everything and leave the town, what is the reason? It will amaze you, to some extent.

11. The Jew's Breastplate: (3 stars)
A Jewish masterpiece is being perturbed. The old manager of a museum steps aside to give the honor to the new one. The new manager is bedazzled with the strange occurrences. There is a twist at the end, but not that admirable.

12. The Nightmare Room: (2 stars)
Totally unworthy of Doyle. The story is about 2 guys fighting over a woman. There is a twist at the end, but it turns everything allover. It is a wicked twist, if I may say.

And anyway, this book is worth reading, you are not going to bored reading it.


The History of the Third Parties (Your Government & How It Works)
Published in Library Binding by Chelsea House Pub (Library) (2000)
Authors: Norma Jean Lutz, Fred L. Israel, and Arthur Meier, Jr. Schlesinger
Amazon base price: $20.75
Average review score:

Inaccurate and unfocused
Norma Jean Lutz's The History of Third Parties is more apt to confuse than inform the young adult reader. This six chapter, 60-page title is not only unfocused, but critical information about United States government and history is absent.

Lutz neglects to explain the structures and laws under which political parties and elections operate. While the book uses "third-party" to describe minor parties, it fails to enumerate the two major parties and to indicate when they are in power. The greatest confusion comes in the section that describes members of the free-soil movement joining the new Republican Party in 1854. What were the major two parties before the mid-nineteenth century? Lutz doesn't tell the reader.

Lutz enumerates the "Third-Party Hurdles" which have limited the success of minor parties in the U.S. In this section, there is no description of the Electoral College. There is no explanation of "winner take all" elections. An understanding of the system's basic structure is fundamental to comprehending the challenges faced by minor parties. This material is not too advanced for the young adult reader, and the absence of such information promotes confusion rather than clarity.

Another shortcoming is the intermixing of terms. Descriptions of political parties, independent candidates, political factions, and social movements are treated synonymously. The book opens with a chapter dedicated to Ross Perot's 1992 presidential bid and Jesse Ventura's gubernatorial victory. Descriptions of Perot's personally funded candidacy and the Reform Party are commingled; no clarifications are made between individual candidates and the institutions of a political parties. Later in the book, abolitionists are described as a political party rather than a movement. While having many political implications, the abolitionist movement crossed many party and social lines.

Throughout the book, historical descriptions of political unfoldings are weak. Rather than presenting past actions or statements, Lutz attributes emotions and attitudes to significant political actors. In discussing conflicts between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, Lutz writes that President Washington "was greatly distressed over the conflict". There is no further mention of anything the president said or did in response. Rather the description continues that Jefferson "felt" and "believed" in the rights of men and that the ordinary people "hated" the Federalists (pp. 18-19). No writings, letters, or journals are cited to support these assertions. While these may be an accurate descriptions of their sentiments, it is not a sufficient substitute for describing their actions and public statements.

Imprecise language and inadequately defined terms leave readers guessing meanings throughout the book. A glossary provides definitions to only 12 terms. In one paragraph, readers are referred to the glossary for the term "political convention" but not referred anywhere to find out what or who "the Barnburners" and "Hunkers" might be. Phrases that might be unknown or unclear to young people are often used. To describe Roosevelt's entry in to the presidential race, Lutz only writes he "threw his hat in the ring" (p. 44). Unquantified descriptions such as "paupers' wages" and "unimaginable wealth" are meaningless to many as well (p. 33).

The most egregious issues of language are those that reflect racial and ethnic bias. The opening sentence of a section on the American party reads, "Yet another problem that arose during the 1840s and 1850s was that of record numbers of immigrants coming to this county." (p. 30) This anti-immigrant tone is further reflected in a discussion of the temperance movement, "More powerful were the large groups of immigrant drinkers. Theirs was the voice that moved the major parties." (p. 39) Certainly Irish and German immigrants were neither the central political force nor the only anti-temperance voice in the later half of the 19th century. Other potentially insensitive word usage includes "tramps" and "hoboes" instead of " the unemployed" and "homeless" (p. 34).

The History of Third Parties leaves more questions than answers for readers. The book meanders through U.S. political history uninformed and without focus. Look elsewhere for a history of minor parties and political movements in the U.S.


Camelot Contract: Ripping Off the Government Under Good King Arthur
Published in Paperback by Pennon Pr (1987)
Author: Fred D. Baldwin
Amazon base price: $6.95
Average review score:
No reviews found.

Abraham Lincoln - Calvin Coolidge
Published in Library Binding by Mason Crest Publishers (2002)
Authors: Mason Crest Publishers, Fred L. Israel, and Arthur Meier, Jr. Schlesinger
Amazon base price: $5.00
Average review score:
No reviews found.

American machinists' handbook and dictionary of shop terms, a reference book of machine shop and drawing room data, methods and definitions
Published in Unknown Binding by ()
Authors: Fred Herbert Colvin and Frank Arthur Stanley
Amazon base price: $
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Ancient Civilizations of the Aztecs and Maya: Chronicles from National Geographic (Cultural and Geographical Exploration)
Published in Library Binding by Chelsea House Pub (Library) (1999)
Authors: Arthur Meier Schlesinger, Fred L. Israel, National Geographic Society (U.S.), and National Geographic Society
Amazon base price: $22.95
Average review score:
No reviews found.

The Ancient Incas: Chronicles from National Geographic (Cultural and Geographical Exploration.)
Published in Library Binding by Chelsea House Pub (Library) (1999)
Authors: Arthur Meier Schlesinger, Fred L. Israel, Hiram Bingham, National Geographic Society (U.S.), and National Geographic Society
Amazon base price: $22.95
Average review score:
No reviews found.

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