Mickey Mouse is one of the best recognized and well regarded symbols in the world. Children are even more willing to get inoculations if Mickey's face is on hand. Due to an aggressive merchandising bent, this Disney character has been transformed into almost every possible physical expression. The only things that I haven't seen done with Mickey are to turn him into buildings. Perhaps that will be next.

This book provides a primarily pictorial presentation of that history, from the original drawing by Ub Iwerks back in the 1920s through to the latest fashion in Mickey Mouse watches today. In between, you will see Mickey during his cartoon career (including a list of his appearances) beginning with his speaking role in Steamboat Willie on November 18, 1928, through the three different versions of the Mickey Mouse Club (I was disappointed that there were no large photographs of Annette!), his role as a greeter as the Disney theme parks (you'll be fascinated by how the costume evolved), to his evolution as a drawn figure (pupils within pupils made him more appealing).

The book is loosely themed around Mickey's initial appeal as a brainy, underdog hero . . . a sort of mouse David versus Goliath. There are brief references to the other Disney characters, including Minnie, Donald Duck, and Pluto.

Clearly, the picture's the thing in this book. You will see ads, balloons, comic strips, lots of watches, wordworking projects, flower and topiary representations at the theme parks, movie posters, movie stills, story boards, every conceivable kind of merchandise, photographs, conceptual art (including Andy Warhol), Mickey Mouse ears, magazine covers, and sketches.

Although the book has some exposition, it is on the light side. Serious fans of Mickey would want to know a lot more. So the ideal recipient for this book would be a young person who likes Mickey, but doesn't know very much about him.

Fans of Minnie will be very disappointed. She is almost totally ignored in the book. Since my daughter likes Minnie much better than Mickey, this would be a poor choice as a gift for her.

Those looking for the ultimate visual experience with Mickey will also find this book to be disappointing. Although it has a lot of attractive material, it could have had much, much more.

Like most compromises, the book fails to fully satisfy. I graded the book down accordingly although it is perfectly executed for its concept of providing a little background with a lot of images of Mickey.

After you finish enjoying this book, think about who you favorite cartoon character is. Why do you like that character? What traits of that character do you wish that you embodied? What other traits would make that character even more desirable?

Look for role models wherever you can find them!

I love the book it really tells how Mickey Mouse becomes a figure of American Icon and All around the world. Great Pictures, Great Story of a Great Mouse

Moonstruck and Five Corners are fun reads -- wry and off-beat. Also fun is the introduction written by Shanley, which describes the anxieties, fears, and dating experiences which helped him write these screenplays. Apparently, his writing is very personal. What is disappointing at times is his writing style. The author is a playwright by training and it often shows, particularly in Joe Versus the Volcano -- a very contrived and stagey screenplay.

Alright, let's face it: John Patrick Shanley is a genius. How else can you explain a reader's overwhelming mirth brought on by the simple turn of each page from his fine Oscar-winning screenplay "Moonstruck" nearly 14 years after the movie's release? Who could ever forget Loretta Castorini slapping Ronnie across the face shouting matter-of-factly "Snap out of it!" Or mom Rose, at the kitchen table bellowing "Your life's goin down the toilet!", and last but not least ornery but lovable Cosmo declaring "Everything is temporary!" It's a movie/literary lovers delight... And who could forget Shanley's elevator ride in "Five Corners"... or what Heinz did to his delusional, corinthian topped mother. (It's a shocker!)... Oh, and Joe floating on his trunks in the middle of the ocean, picking at his eukele. Aw, it was so much fun to be able to go back and experience these fine tales. Thank God someone had the sense to publish them. Shanley fans will not be disappointed.

Professor John Diggins's study is part history, part philosophy, and part polemic. The title of the book suggests a study of Abraham Lincoln and his impact on American values. The exploration of this subject alone is a formidable task, but Professor Diggins adds to it with his discussions of the American Revolution, the political philosophy of Locke, the observations on American character of de Tocqueville, the political economic theorizing of Veblen and Weber, the studies of American liberalism by Louis Hartz, and much more.

Professor Diggins argues against those scholars who see Lincoln exclusively as a pragmatic policitican and claims that our Sixteenth President sought a foundational, non-relativistic source for our political values in the principle that all men are created equal, and in the right of all to work and to strive to own property and to better themselves. Lincolns' philosophy, Diggins claims, had its roots in the Declaration of Independence and in Lockean ideas. His reading of Lincoln is supported by discussions of numberous speeches and writings, most of which can be found in the wonderful two-volume Library of America edition of Lincoln's writings.

The broad targets of Professor Diggins's book are philosophical relativists. Much of the book, however, is devoted to a polemic against modern multiculturalism and deconstruction. Lincoln, the philosophy of consensus (one shared broadly by Americans irrespective of their interest group, race, sex, status), and the value of work motivated by material self-interest are defended as an integral part of the American vision, striven for by all and, paradoxically, expanding the scope of our liberties.

The book suffers, I think, from being overly ambitious and from its structure. The arguments are unduly repetitive and this, I think, hinders Professor Diggins from developing them with the depth they deserve. The book strays too far from Lincoln. While much of the discussion of other figures in the book is valuable and illuminating, particularly the discussion of Professor Hartz and of the Federalists, it moves too far from Lincoln or, more precisely, it gives the book a loose free-wheeling character with ideas suggested rather than sufficiently developed. Similarly, Professor Diggins's criticism of multiculturalism, with which I greatly sympathize, is not well integrated with the rest of the book. It is simply too much to do a political polemic, a study of Lincoln, and a treatment of American intellectual history in a single, relatively short volume.

These quibbles to one side, the work is well worth reading. It explores our American heritage, challenges prevailing orthodoxies and offers much for further study and reflection. This is a worthwhile exploration of important issues in the nature of our precious American experience.

This book presents an excellent and very articulate summary of not only President Lincoln, but the entire nation as a whole. It sure seems that John Diggins has been 'diggin' through a lot of material, and has come up with excellent research, and it shows in the quality of this publication. Two thumbs up!

Historical reviewer Carter was correct in putting Diggins in the synthesis camp. Diggins acknowledged the revisionist view on many events. He agreed with the revisionist view that Roosevelt could have done more to save Jews in the concentration camps. But Diggins also pointed out the traditionalist view that Roosevelt felt defeating the Nazi war machine was the best long-term salvation for the Jews.
He showed both sides over the debate on dropping the atomic bomb. He brought up the revisionists' opinions that Truman could have simply had a demonstration of the bomb on an island near Japan, and that the second bomb was dropped too soon after the first, not giving the Japanese government time to react. Yet Diggins also admitted that Japanese soldiers had not shown a willingness to surrender and that an invasion would have killed more people than the bombs killed. He wrote: 'The sorrow and the glory in this period of America's past are inseparable. To be worthy of truth, history must make us shudder as well as smile.' Diggins is a true synthesis historian.

Having been assigned this book for a UCLA history course, I expected the usual leftist slant. I found no such slant, however. This book was bold: chapters on not only the basics of the era (WWII, Korean War, McCarthyism), but on American social trends. The standard political history I thought I was to read turned into a unique blend of the political and social aspects of America through the "proud decades". Blasting away any such slant I cynically assumed would exist, the author writes on such figures as William F. Buckley, Jr. and F.A. Hayek. I must admit, such references are brief, but the fact that were indeed there says a lot about the work as a whole. I commend the author for producing a "one-stop shop" for America in the 40's through the 50's.

Northeastern University Press was kind enough to furnish two copies of this book to me and I saw exactly what several reviewers seized upon when they wrote on this collection of essays. Yes, the essays are not very well connected, as more than four people contributed bits and pieces to this work. No, the polish one normally sees in collections of this nature is missing. However, the themes that comes through are that race-class politics have and continue to be big part of the abolition movement of the death penalty in the United States. Unlike my colleagues, I am supporter in theory of punishing bad people who do terrible things. Unfortunately, executions in the US are undeniably flawed, fraught with corruption, and dependent on the worst sort of UnAmerican bias possible. After viewing my own book, I was again sickened by the evidence that innocent people have met their deaths at the hands of a governments that use my money and do their dirty, incompetent business in my name. Any real American should be outraged by the idea that the greatest system of justice in the world is being undermined by individuals who use executions to pave their personal career paths. When one remembers this, it is truly difficult to worry about a few factual errors or some editorial mistakes. If you are supporting the death penalty in the United States you had better think again-it's a serious mistake that is killing people. The condemned are not heroic or even innocent, just small people who make very serious mistakes, but it does not mean that they should be executed because they are poor, black, or without influential friends and families. If anyone doubts this logic just count the number of middle class or rich people on death rows in the country and you will know that abolition is the only answer possible if fair treatment is ever a reality.
(1/03)-If anyone cares, New York is soon to use its capital punishment law for the first time in several decades where a man will die at the hands of the state. This is no reason to celebrate. It's another example of a politician (Pataki) who used the lives of the poorest individuals among us to capitalize on. Governor, I hope you are happy.

The annual "Best of the Superstars" series has been a mainstay of John Patrick and his StarBooksPress, providing a review of male idols and stars in TV, legit film, print ads and porn. And this 2002 is no different, with an excellent review of "who is gay" gossip for the year, the sexy stars of "Queer As Folk", those so-sexy A&F models, as well as trends in gay porn on video, DVD and the internet. It includes a directory of gay escort and other porn website URLs.

What sets this edition apart is that it was the last effort of John Patrick (author/editor of hundreds of gay porn books, anthologies and short stories) before his death, which could cause this to become a bit of a collector's item in the near future. Unlike most of StarBooksPress output, this annual series is never reprinted, meaning there is a limited number of copies available out there. Definitely a "keeper."

Many of us are reluctant to believe that paper usage, reduction, and elimination is a possibility. Today our lives revolve around the creation, transportation, duplication, etc. of paper. We are covered in the pile and it continues to grow at alarming rates. Beyond Paper provides an environmentally clean alternative that accelerates the speed of information, eliminates paper, and improves the quality of copies. Adobe Acrobat is a winner if not savior to many of our environmental problems while improving the bottom line. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to make their organization more efficient through the reduction and elimination of paper.

Bill Livingston / Resource Studios -- The Process Improvement Company

Does tracking in our public schools isolate children, keeping them from reaching their potential? How do first generation, black immigrants handle tracking? These are some of the questions R. Patrick Solomon attempts to answer in his ground breaking book, Black Resistance in High School.

Useing multicultural education theory from one of the pioneers, John U. Ogbu, Salomon shows how first generation West Indies immigrants rebel against school authority in Toronto Canada. Salomon's style of ethnographic writing combined with controversial theory make for an eye opening read.

Black Resistance in High School is a must for every student of education and anthropology.

I am currently doing an assignment on business process re-engineering. Many of the texts I have read so far have been thick on the theories and the benefits of re-engineering. As such, it comes across as cheap propagnada.

This book was different. In the first chapter, unlike other texts, it did not simply insists that TQM and other continuous process improvements are of the past and are not good enough for today's business environment. It explains how TQM has its place, if you are already a market leader. However, if you are way below, then TQM will not allow you to reach the apex before you are out of business. Re-engineering is the way.

This immediately pave the way for the rest of the book. The authors are balanced in their views and do not simply advertise the merits of re-engineering. They also cautioned throughout the text on the difficulties and pitfalls of re-engineering. I found their arguments more convincing than most authors.

The examples throughout the book were taken from different industries and prove a source for ideas for any re-engineering effort. The authors came across as extremely experienced in their work.

I would have given it five stars except the last chapter on the human aspect of re-engineering was rather dissapointing. I had expected to learn more from the authors about the very difficult human resource issues in re-engineering. Like most texts, the book mentioned difficulties and dished out textbook solutions without real solutions.

Still, it was one of the best re-engineering texts I have read and I believe it will help me greatly in my assignment.

I also believe that it is extremely useful for any managers or CEOs who want to re-engineer their business. Hammer's classic on re-engineering is not enough. You need to read this book for the practical advice and guiding framework if you are to have any chance for success in re-engineering.

Ambassador Melady has succesfully brought together prominnet catholics from various fields to present to the catholic community the vocation and calling that each of us has from God. The essays in this book show how each of us, no matter what our occupation or station in life, have a unique and important role as catholics.