Save your pennies for a copy of the 1952 edition (out of print) from a used book dealer. The 1913 edition uses a set of names known as "American Code" that botanists haven't used since the 1950's; the services of a professional taxonomist is practically required to update the changes, and few people will know what you're talking about if you use an "American Code" name for a plant. The 1952 edition updates all of that, and includes quite a few more species. In my opinion, Dover did a real disservice to botany by reissuing the 1913 edition. Kay Lancaster (plant taxonomist)

Good, inexpensive material for starting out in the study of vegetation.

Ayn Rand, author of "The Fountainhead" and "Atlas Shrugged," discovered more important philosophic truths than any other thinker of the 20th century. She held that morality is derived from the facts of reality. "Good" doesn't mean following the orders of an incomprehensible God or the whims of society. "Good" means "good for life." And since men can only survive by thinking and discovering what is needed for survival, she named rationality as the primary virtue. Recognizing that you can only prosper by thinking for yourself, constitutes the virtue of independence. Recognizing that you have to work for a living constitutes the virtue of productiveness. Being true to facts as a matter of principle, is the virtue of honesty. Being true to yourself is the virtue of integrity. Being rational in judging other men is the virtue of justice. And recognizing that you're able to live as a rational being and worthy to live, constitutes the virtue of pride.

During the 1960s Nathaniel Branden, who at that time was a brilliant thinker, formed a lecture organization to help spread Ayn Rand's ideas. I was one of the students who attended his courses on philosophy and psychology. No one suspected it at the time, and there was no independent confirmation of it until years after Miss Rand's death in 1982, but she and Nathaniel Branden had an affair. All relationship between them came to an end in 1968, when Miss Rand discovered that Branden was not practicing what he preached.

This is Nathaniel Branden's version of their relationship-or rather, one of his versions, for he's changed his story several times. Branden has never heard the adage "a gentleman never tells." Or perhaps he doesn't mind not being considered a gentleman.

This is a long book; but the reader should not lose sight of an essential fact. Branden confesses, on page after page, that he lied to Miss Rand and to others-not once, but repeatedly, for a number of years. His excuse-"she made me do it"-rings hollow, coming from a man who lectured on the virtues of honesty, integrity, and independence.

After confessing his prevarications and being so "candid," Branden expects us to believe what he's saying now. Instead, I suggest we ask the question: "How do we know you aren't still lying, given that you've had so much practice?"

The charming Dr. Branden explains in this sympathetic and heart-wrenching memoir how he was going to bed with three fantastic women simultaneously--his teacher, his wife, and his girlfriend--and, despite the complaisance of the husband of the teacher, and his own wife, and making an exciting living for everyone, and his own notable psychological acumen, simply blew it, and but good.Anyone who wishes to make like the Latin Lover should read this instruction manual of taking a simple matter to FUBAR--and beyond--with care.

Still, would those who laugh at Branden and Rand's romantic difficulties been cheered if it had all worked out? No, they would have been denouncing Rand and her menage a cinq as a threat to dull marriages everywhere, that's for sure.

What went wrong? I am reminded of the Spanish saying--repeated in the Dorsai series--that who annoys a philosopher annoys the lion in the den. The lioness got annoyed, particularly given her regimen of medicine that made her quite irritable.

Branden tells the tale better than expected of people who handled living a fantasy or perhaps a dream better than most. And anyone who has been torn by divided loves, and yet tried to make things work, will be with him. The rest was rotten luck and tuesday night quarterbacking.

This is Kenyon's first book. I recommend it to anyone looking for a different kind of horror story. Here's a ppka for Nate!!

This book tries to capture the concept of First Aid for the Boards for Step I. The tables are useful but the content is wanting. Get hold of it for your last few days of review before the test.

With the fall of Soviet Communism and the Capitalization of the remaining, obstensible, Communist states, this book is less important than it used to be...but is still a treasure trove. Want to find out what Marx was really like? Just how supremely hateful, racist and evil? Read this book.
The actual writing in not very good, but the research is impeccable; you will get the unvarnished Marx gems that American Intelligentsia has laundered.

This book is all summed up into honesty. In the book it states "Be true! Be true! Be true! Show freely to the world, it not your worst, yet some trait whereby the worst may be inferred!" In the book it shows how much better you can feel if you are just honest. Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale had committed such a sin and hadn't told anyone but when he did that day on the scaffold he fealt so much relief. Imagine seven years holding in your darkest sin, your biggest secret. It said that he had "a flush of triamph in his face, as one who, in the crisis of acutest pain, had won a victory." In some ways I would say that I liked this book but in others I do not like it at all. The reasons that I do not like this book is because when Nathaniel Hawthorne goes into great detail about some things I get distracted and I start thinking about something else. (Maybe that is just me and not the book) In the beginning of the book I just could not get into it. Maybe it was the big words or something but... The beggining I felt was very boring because it was not into the actual main part of the book. I found that I couldn't really stay focused on the book. The reason that I liked the book was because I could relate to a time when I had done something wrong and felt so terrible that I was almost to the point of throwing up and when I told someone I felt so much better. It took so much pressure off of my shoulders. The book was a pretty decent book but to really fully understand it I would read it atleast twice.

First off, I must say that I enjoy researching jazz groups of the 1960's. I was, however, somewhat dissapointed with this particular selection. The facts are there, true. The ability to grasp the readers attention, however, was just not there. I found this book to be boring at times, and it appears to state fact after fact. It may be good for strictly definately lacking and does not captivate the research, but for your reading enjoyment, it is readers attention.

I have very mixed feelings about this book. First, the positives:

The book is very readable-- none of Hawthorne's tortured circumlocutions or heavy-handed doubt. The scenery and setting descriptions are remarkable, painting perfectly clear word pictures. The characters, especially Pearl, are interesting and worth getting to know.

But they're not Hawthorne's. If you just read this book for its own sake, it works fine, although it would help A LOT if you were previously to read the prequel [both to this book and to The Scarlet Letter], 'Hester,' by the same author. But to read it as a sequel to Hawthorne's masterpiece is to invite massive disappointment.

This 'Pearl' simply won't work as Hester's daughter. First of all, she doesn't leave Boston till she's twenty, whereas in The Scarlet Letter both she and her mother leave when Pearl is just seven. Secondly, she leaves her mother behind, whereas in SL it's stated very clearly that they left together. I have no idea why Bigsby decided to impose this alteration on the story, but it doesn't work-- it effectively prevents us from 'buying' the notion that this is a sequel.

But that's just the beginning of the problem. There's also the fact that this Pearl has insights that no young woman of the 1600s could possibly have-- insights that are appropriate to the 20th or 21st centuries, but not to Hawthorne's time in the mid 1800s, let alone the time of the story. The author tries very hard to 'explain' this inconsistency, but it just won't wash.

The biggest problem, though, is something else entirely. It was to do with organization and structure. The author is so in love with his own ability to draw humorous caricatures of minor characters [think Dickens to the 8th degree] that he spends massive numbers of pages indulging himself in this exercise-- so much so that by the time we are halfway through the book, we've just begun to encounter the central plot. And then the central plot itself could be summed up in about twelve words, which I won't because I'm opposed to spoilers. Suffice it to say that it isn't very profound, and is entirely predictable once all the characters are in place.

In short, Hawthorne is probably bored to death in his grave.

This book was unremarkable compared to the 10-12 others I have read regarding the subject of asthma. All are good, but all fall short in one respect: their recommendations (or lack of reccomendations) on natural treatments for Asthma. Most Asthma books don't recommend any holistic/herbal remedies; they only recommend pharmaceutical drugs. A few Asthma books like these do recommend natural remedies, but these remedies are often unproven, and can be dangerous if mixed with other drugs/alcohol. I am really disappointed in all Asthma books in general, because they most often do not recommend the three most important ORTHOMOLECULAR Asthma remedies: Calcium, Magnesium, and Vitamin C. Calcium is simply there to balance magnesium and to chelate with ascorbate (vitamin C) to make calcium ascorbate. Magnesium relaxes lungs and improves air flow. Last and certainly not least, vitamin C has potent antihistamine effects via inhibiton of mast cell degranulation, and also has bronchodilator effects via inhibition of phosphodiesterase. Taking several grams
a day of vitamin C (preferably buffered calcium ascorbate), along with some magnesium may completely inhibit mild asthma, and should significantly help moderate to severe asthma, with no known drug interactions (except perhaps with Theophylline, which inhibits the same phosphodiesterase enzyme that vitamin C does). This information is referenced in the Allergies/Asthma chapter of my book "The Failures of American Medicine", available here at Amazon.com ...

This book has to be taken in historical context to be understood and appreciated. First the setting took place in a very unique time. It was just after World War I and many young people were disillusioned with the human race. It also was a period of prohibition in much of the world. These situations combined created a magnetism for many creative types looking for an outlet and place to commune. The other significant idea which much be remembered as one reads the book is that this was the book that set a new style in literature. The sharp,quick narrative style was completely different than any American literature preceding it. This is indeed a somewhat rough read but keep in mind many years have passed in which this artistic style has been refined. If for nothing else read it for its historical portraition of post WWI Europe, and it artistic contribution to literature. Along the way you just might find a character or two you relate to, especially if you like wine. Cheers!

This book has to be taken in historical context to be understood and appreciated. First the setting took place in a very unique time. It was just after World War I and many young people were disillusioned with the human race. It also was a period of prohibition in much of the world. These situations combined created a magnetism for many creative types looking for an outlet and place to commune. The other significant idea which much be remembered as one reads the book is that this was the book that set a new style in literature. The sharp,quick narrative style was completely different than any American literature preceding it. This is indeed a somewhat rough read but keep in mind many years have passed in which this artistic style has been refined. If for nothing else read it for its historical portraition of post WWI Europe, and it artistic contribution to literature. Along the way you just might find a character or two you relate to, especially if you like wine. Cheers!

The Sun Also Rises is about a group of expatriated Americans who are in Paris. Jake Barnes has been emasculated in the war, and can therefore not physically express his love toward Brett. Brett is "dirty" and is incapable of staying with one person. Her "true love" died in the war, and she loves Jake, but they cannot be together because she needs what he can't give her physically.