Dr. Klinenberg helps us as readers, citizens, and media-watchers reconceptualize heat waves as meterological disasters to social ones. He argues that such a reconceptualization allows us to understand that society is responsible and SHOULD be responsible for deaths. The brillant part of his book is that he does not pin the blame on any one person, one entity, or one organization. He shows how residents of neighborhoods, the spatial organizations of neighborhoods, politicians, local and national governments, the media, and even history play a role in why these deaths occurred and why the numbers were as significant as they are. Thus, we are all responsible!

The book looks at the phenomenon through more than just through the lens of statistics. His ethnographic work helps to look at the lives and qualitative nuances of the numbers. We hear the explanations and the critiques of the residents in the neighborhoods that were hit the hardest by the heat wave deaths. In addition, KLinenberg places their voices in conversation with reporters at the time, insiders of the Daly regime, public health officials, and even police officers. Therefore, we see the phenomenon from both the "official" and "unofficial" sources.

Anyone who is an activist, an academic, or a citizen of any American city should read this book. It will change your perspective on how urban areas really operate and SHOULD operate.

This book will make Dr. Klinenberg one of the foremost scholars of our time.

What weather phenomenon kills the most people in America? Hurricanes? Tornadoes? Floods? Add those up and they will still not total the deaths attributed to the real killer: heat waves. The other phenomena yield good pictures, and that is one reason you don't hear much about heat deaths. But according to Eric Klinenberg, an assistant professor of sociology at New York University, there is another, more subtle reason. Victims of a heat wave "are primarily social outcasts - the elderly, the poor, and the isolated - from whom we customarily turn away." In _Heat Wave: A Social Autopsy of Disaster in Chicago_ (University of Chicago Press), Klinenberg has looked at the week-long heat wave of July 1995, which killed over 700 people. (Another comparison: the famous Chicago fire of 1871 killed about three hundred.) In Chicago, the heat hit up to 106 degrees, with a heat index over 120. Cars broke down in the streets, and bridges, rails, and roads buckled. Even with the windows open, brick homes could heat up to 120 degrees. The heat killed, but it did not just kill randomly. In clear, objective, but often biting pages, Klinenberg shows the patterns of urban life that brought death to certain regions and certain social groups.

One group was the elderly, clearly disproportionately killed by the heat. This might be attributed simply to their bodies having fewer physiological resources to protect them. Indeed, the government of Chicago tried to explain the deaths of elders this way; the heat only culled those who were going to be dying soon anyway. There is no medical evidence that this was the case; they simply were unconnected with society, and when they died alone in their rooms, it was long before absences were noticed. Klinenberg argues forcefully that the Chicago government, at different levels, did not respond to the disaster as it would have a big fire or a train wreck. When deaths mounted, Mayor Daley was able to frame the issue as a "debate" about the rising number of deaths, when there was no scientific controversy about the matter. Human Services Commissioner Daniel Alvarez did a classic move of blaming the victim, saying, "We're talking about people who die because they neglect themselves. We did everything possible. But some people didn't want to even open their doors to us." The media also come in for criticism. They took up the artificial controversy generated by the mayor about whether the heat deaths were "real" or not. There was little analysis about which regions were being the most affected and why, and the official city version of how little could be done against an act of God was repeatedly parroted. By the time the reporters did a comprehensive story, it was "old news" and didn't run.

No one was more forgotten than forty-one victims whose bodies no one claimed or cared about. They languished in the county morgue until August, when they were buried in a huge common trench in a potter's field. Visiting the site in preparation for the book, Klinenberg learned that a few reporters had come now and then to see it, but no Chicagoans and no family members. Social and governmental forces can't control the heat, he reminds us, but they can make deaths easy to overlook and forget. His book is a pointed effort to keep that from happening.

Eric Klinenberg's new book "Heat Wave" gives readers a tremendous insight into the Chicago heat wave of 1995. He approaches this tragedy from several fronts. He begins with an account of what happened during the several days of stifling heat and continues with a look at the social impact of living and dying alone, why certain neighborhoods lost more people than others and exposes a city ill-prepared to handle the mounting number of deaths. Klinenberg continues with an assault on the politics of Chicago, the response of the mayor and those around him and finishes with an adept look at the media's role and response to the deaths of over 700 people.

Although at times the author writes in a dry style he nonetheless portrays the Chicago heat wave as a catastrophic failure on many levels. Klinenberg gets down to the root of some socio-economic problems that beset Chicago and tells us the "whys" of their causes. Many things stood out as I read this important and often scary book, but one thing kept coming through....although heat waves are discriminating killers the solutions are there if right decisions are made at the right times, by governments and citizens alike.

A sad and ironic end to "Heat Wave" is told in the form of a senior editor at The Chicago Tribune who decided to relate this tragedy from both a human and social side. As Chicago cooled down his work went on. Unfortunately, only a small part of the story was ever printed as the paper decided that in the chill of November few readers would be interested in a story that had occurred during the blistering heat only a few months before.

I highly recommend this book. It is a service to help us understand what happened during July of that year. As the author points out, this could happen again.

Savor this wonderful, funny, fabulous book. To say that it is sweet is, well, true, and yet, that doesn't quite catch the theme, as readers will know from the first page. This book is definitely on my top ten list-- I have enjoyed all of Eric Kraft's books about Peter Leroy and his family and friends, but this one is my all time favorite. My copy has made the rounds through over 10 friends and I've bought as many as gifts, and each and everyone of the readers has been delighted and enraptured by the story of Peter's grandparents and their romance. To be able to share this novel is truly wonderful. Thank you, Mr. Kraft!

I just remembered I owned this book, and I came in here to check out what I thought would be dozens of glowing reviews, but found only two! The story is original, funny and heartwarming, about two people who are madly in love, and spend their entire lives together with a secret each between them. There are parts of this book I would not dare to read in public, because I know I will break into hysterical laughter. I spent years forcing my friends to read it, and now I am trying to force strangers. You must read it! It's wonderful! And the photographs are priceless.

Eric Kraft draws you into the life of a totally off-the-wall but thoroughly lovable family, headed by Herb and Lorna. Through all the clever (if twisted) humor and odd but tasteful sexiness, the tremendous love of the title characters envelopes you.

This is by far Lew Welch's most intelligently written book and it was done as a graduation thesis for Reed College in 1950, when he was stil in his early 20's. This was an important time for Welch. He was still attempting to find his voice and was just then making his first contacts with William Carlos Williams. Later, when Welch became part of the Beat scene, he would look back at his own innocent days at Reed and try to recapture the excitement and importance of his explorations of Stein in his failed novel, I Leo. But this is not the voice of the hard-drinking, semi-messianic Lew that we find crowding out his talent in his later works; this is the voice of a subtle thinker saying (without the smoke and whistles of today's English departments) some important things about Stein. Considering the date, this is an amazing thesis. William Carlos Williams admitted that he had learned some important things from Lew's thesis, and it continues (now in book form competently edited by Eric Paul Shaffer--but please don't hand this perfomance to Shaffer--Lew Welch is clearly the star in this show) to remain of value for students of Stein's work. We only wish he could have continued to have written so lucidly and to have lived on to help us through some of the stranger developments of American criticism and poetry that now appear--unfortunately--to have become the norm.

Shaffer's stunner of an introduction, as well as the insight and organization of this book, made me see poetry in an entirely new light, as well as the brilliance of Lew Welch. Shaffer's work is extraordinary. I can't wait for the upcoming release of Shaffer's own work, PORTABLE PLANET. He is a very real talent!

Any one interested in the deeper mechanics of how our language makes meaning out of sound, and how sound itself is interesting into and unto itself should add this book to their collection. I have profitably reread Eric Paul Shaffer's introduction several times for his analysis of Welch's and Stein's interplay as artists and poets.

The Education of Mango is well organized and clearly written. Brotman provides sound information on cat behavior and training principles. The photographs and cartoons of Mango make the book. I keep the book around for my friends to see. I recommend the book to all animal lovers.

This book is an easy to read and funny intructional tool for toilet training your cat. My cat completed the process in about 7 days with 100% accuracy. (Just think of all of the money that can be saved by not having to buy litter.) This is a must have for anyone trying to accomplish the task of feline toilet training. I have had cats all of my life and have never such an easy time in training one of them to anything, much less using the toilet. I highly advise using this book and wish that I would have known about it earlier. Thank you Dr. Brotman.

Dr. Brotman's book is amusing and appears to be quite thorough. The method used is detailed quite specifically, and includes product recommendations, how-tos, and tips and techniques for dealing with more reluctant felines. This is an easy read and although the layout appears a bit amateur with inconsistent margins and occasional missing punctuation, the large type makes for easy reference. The photographs in particular will delight cat lovers and toilet aficionados of all ages. Should Dr. Brotman ever direct his published toilet-training efforts at dogs, I will be the first to order.

Former professional boxer Jackie "Disaster" De Sesto manages Allegation Services, a crisis-management spin-doctor firm. His offices overlook the gaming floor of the Golden Prospect Casino in Atlantic City, owned by his prime customer and girlfriend, Angela Vanni, daughter of a deceased Mafia boss. Jackie Disaster and his team of Imps handle and often deliver scams and cons to paint a rosy picture of his clients regardless of the truth.

Millionaire Sally Naturale hires Jackie Disaster and associates to restore her and her firm's reputation. Murrin Connolly filed a lawsuit claiming that the organic soymilk that Sally's company produces caused her to miscarry. Expert Jonah Eastman suggests a two front attack. First Jackie Disaster and team need to destroy the credibility of Murrin with a negative dirt smearing campaign and second Sally must act contrite in public as a counter to her posh upper crust living style. Instead of smooth sailing, Jackie lives up to his nickname as nothing goes right especially when Sally vanishes. Jackie and the Imps begin a new counteroffensive.

JACKIE DISASTER is a superb satire that showcases a professional who uses any means including dirty tricks to provide counter cover for the rich and famous. The story line stuns the audience with its relative simplicity that paints a dirty image making game by the in crowd to protect their reputation. A cast, starting with the antihero and his cohorts including his father, niece, girlfriend, and new client make for a wild ride down the Jersey shore. To protect the image of Eric Dezenhall, a sequel is required.

Harriet Klausner

Last year, I read "Money Wanders" and I enjoyed it so much that I decided to pick up "Jackie Disaster." This book was even better than the first novel by this author. While both books were fun, (I actually laughed out loud many times) "Jackie Disaster" had a really well developed feel to it. The cast of characters was interesting, the plot ran smoothly without telegraphing the ending and I found myself completely caught up in the action. I definitely recommend this one-as well as "Money Wanders." Can't wait for Dezenhall's next book.

A clever skewering of mercenary, media-hungry "victims," czarinas of marketable "good taste," and Mafia wannabes by today's sharpest satirist of America's quest to reinvent itself. I especially loved the scenes where Jackie Disaster joins forces with the hero of Dezenhall's earlier (and equally perceptive) comic novel, Money Wanders, to trade insights and strategems in the quest to save New Jersey's Martha Stewart. The pace is a quick as the hero's wits.

Oscar Wilde entirely dedicates this play to the exploration of the way a woman can be saved from destruction in this society of appearances. A woman was the victim of an imbroglio in the past and abandoned her daughter. This woman comes back and the daughter ignores her relation to her. She is brought back into societry by the daughter's husband who knows the truth but does not want his wife to know it. But there is some kind of malediction that flies over the heads of these women. The daughter nearly does the same mistake as her mother but she is saved by her mother who accepts to be tainted in her daughter's place. Bus Oscar Wilde must think there is some kind of reward for a good deed and all is well that ends well, and this play has a happy ending. In spite of all the melodramatic sentimentalese atmosphere, Oscar Wilde definitely explores in this play the great disadvantage of a woman in society. Men can do nearly all they want. Women are extremely limited and have to walk a very straight and narrow line. Oscar Wilde seems to be ahead of his time as for the fate of women: he seems to aspire for real equality for them, though he shows in all possible ways that this is impossible in his society.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University of Perpignan

My first experience reading Oscar Wilde... and certainly not my last.

Wilde's sardonic wit and ineffable satire had me enchanted from page one. Wilde writes with devastatingly appealing witticisms, and with a style and cleverness matched by few other authors. It is said that he is one of the more oft-quoted authors in the English language, and I now understand why.

In addition to axioms and aphorisms of pure genius, the plot both captivates and surprises the reader. Lady Windermere discovers that her husband has been cheating on her, and a folly of misunderstandings and poor advice then unfolds; all the while satirizing society.

This play is very interesting to read (according to me). I saw a lot of hypocracy and snobery of people in this play. But a lot of peole said that the plays of Oscar Wilde have no satire, means, there is no factor of politics, socials,etc. I think, what he wrote in this plays and other plays had something to critize the people in that time. I want more information about Lady Winderemere's Fan, I mean what is the background of Wilde wrote yhis novel. Is there any important effects so that he wrote this first play?

Mr. Newby has captured a way of life that for good or bad, no longer exists. His style of writing (along with many hair raising
photographs), depicts life aboard a square rigger the way it truly was; few amenities, almost ceaseless toil, and the ever
present dangers of falling from aloft or being washed overboard.
In this day of high tech everything, it might seem incredible
that many men would willingly endure such hardships. Yet ironically, most of these sailors frowned upon steamship crewmen
as being too soft!
To all of those "arm chair sailors" who may think that a seamens life
was carefree and romantic, I strongly urge them read this book
and dispell any such myths!

This book is just wonderful. Newby's prose is colorful without being judgemental - a quality too rarely found in modern adventure writing (the egocentric griping of Paul Theroux comes to mind). Here is a young man who accepts his new surroundings as they are, trying his best to fit in and never complaining too much when they don't live up to his personal standards. What's more, on a ship full of discomforts and frightening safety gaps, he resists the tiresome 20th-century urge to become a whistleblower. (Then again, perhaps the knowledge that he was witnessing a dying way of life made an expose pointless.)

As one would expect in such a cramped environment, observations of the other crewmembers form an important part of the narrative. That they are a dirty and rough lot is clear. Newby, however, handles the yawning social gulf between himself and the career seamen with general good humor, never resorting to national stereotyping to downgrade his adversaries (the crew was mostly Scandinavian). His description of being forced "op the rigging" by a loutish officer just minutes after arriving on board is a good example of this evenhandedness and should be ranked among the classic passages of travel writing. I can't see Theroux ever forgiving that kind of treatment.

Apart from the sheer height of the rigging, the greatest shock delivered by the book is the realization that this "vanished" way of life existed so recently. (In my case, only 25 years before I was born.) To use a cliché, it makes one stop and think. Although Newby goes to considerable pains to explain why the age of commercial sail had to end - indeed, was already past its time - you cannot help but explore the "what ifs". What if World War II hadn't scattered the fleet? What if the owners had found ways to reduce their operating costs by a few percentage points? Would it have made the difference? Would square riggers still have been plying the high seas on my sixteenth birthday? Could I have been another Eric Newby?

Again, just a wonderful book. Together with Laurens Van Der Post, Newby is my ticket to all things "vanished".

Unfortunately the unappealingly named "The Last Great Grain Race" might be left on the bookshelf if it were not for its companion volume of photographs more appropriately titled "Learning The Ropes; An Apprentice on the Last of the Windjammers," both by Eric Newby. Oddly these volumes were issued over forty years apart, Grain Race in 1956 and Ropes in 1999. (A recent volume of Grain Race was reissued in 1999, possibly to take advantage of the pictorial release.)

After a brief stint as an office clerk, Newby at eighteen signed on as an apprentice seaman for an around the world cargo voyage, with no nautical experience or skills other than a careful eye and superb memory for detail. "The Last Great Grain Race" is the story of one of the last four-masted barques, which in 1938 sailed from Ireland to Australia to pick up a cargo of grain and return to Ireland, a voyage which would take nine months. Ultimately it was to become the last voyage in such a vessel, as the impending war would change the world forever. We are fortunate that Newby was along to document the voyage. We are equally appreciative of his thoughtfulness in bringing his camera, as "Learning the Ropes" is the superb photo essay of this journey.

Newby apparently was a very skilled photographer. Oddly, he only briefly mentions his possession of a camera in "The Last Great Grain Race." He never lets on that his is so actively chronicling events and shipmates throughout the voyage. Though Newby does an excellent job describing what is like to climb aloft in all kinds of weather, the black and white photographs take the reader aloft as well and provide the narrative even with more impact and grace.

The crew is as varied and colorful as one might expect the conditions are harsh and oftentimes dangerous; the work is unrelenting, demanding and dangerous in its own right. Newby works alongside seasoned veterans and never shirks.

Grain Race however does have its limitations. There is a tremendous amount of technical detail that can often leave the reader literally at sea. For example "There were still the sheets of the topmast staysails to be shifted over the stays and sheeted home, the main and mizzen courses to be reset, and the yards trimmed to the Mate's satisfaction with the brace whips." Newby does provide a graphic of the sail plan and running rigging (79 reference points), but these are only of marginal assistance.

Another shortcoming is the language barrier Newby faces. This is a Finnish crew and commands are rarely given in English. Newby and the reader often have to work out the language; if the reader misses the first context or explanation then subsequent uses of the terminology will be lost, a glossary might have helped here. Newby does faithfully record dialects especially when he is being spoken to in occasionally recognizable English and these dialogues are often amusingly recounted.

Eric Newby should seriously consider issuing both in a single volume and one has to wonder why this wasn't done when Grain Race was first issued or at least when "Learning the Ropes" was released a couple of years ago. It is interesting to speculate on the length of time between the original release of Grain Race and the very vivid and informative photographs. Regardless it was worth the wait.

Grain Race the narrative and Grain Race the photographs make for an enjoyable double read.

(...)I was never much of a poetry fan. Until I met Shaffer's poetry that is.

I met him at (a bookstore) on Maui and was invited to his poetry reading. With two young children I rarely made it out of the house in the evening, but something compelled me to go. Listening to him read his work was excellent! I've bought all he's written ever since.

If you want to read poetry that is light yet insightful, keen and at times biting, buy Eric Paul Shaffer's "Living at the Monestery, Working in the Kitchen." You'll read it over and over again.

I have never been much of a poetry reader--mostly because I have often found it to be obtuse or irrelevant. My opinion changed, though, after reading Eric Shaffer's work. I loved PORTABLE PLANET (his first collection of poems), and LIVING IN THE MONASTERY, WORKING IN THE KITCHEN was even better! His poetry is fresh, humorous and filled with simple images that manage to evoke complex emotions. "Will good and evil deeds be weighed?/Who ponders such nonsense is lost." -- simple truth, eloquently stated. Buy this book and forget your preconceived notions about poetry. Eric Shaffer will blow them out of the water!

Eric Paul Shaffer, a scholar of Lew Welch, Gertrude Stein and William Shakespeare, turns his reckless eye to the far east and examines the life and personality of Shih-te, friend of that bear of a poet, Han-shan, and an accomplished poet himself. Many of Shaffer's re-creations of Shih-te's work are poignantly funny as he takes out his wrath, his rapier wit, on the monks of the monastery where he works as a cook. These monks, you see, take themselves far too seriously for Shih-te's taste. Not Han-shan, not even Shih-te himself, escape Shih-te's ire for very long, as the poet-cook considers his entire world fair game. Shaffer is a poet of uncommon elegance and subtlety, and enough of a roughneck to keep his work deeply-rooted and gritty. Shaffer's best since "Rattlesnake Rider" (sadly out of print), and even better the second time through!

The book "A homeland for Eric" By Ramsey Jackson was a wonderful novel that I was upset to finish. It was so good that I had to read it all in one sitting, which was no chore. It kept me turning the pages, and I found myself relating to one of the characters before I realized it. It is a novel that expresses the importance of family, and life that is often taken for granted. It made me question my values and look at things in a different perspective. I recommend this novel to anyone who is interested in a parable that will help them direct and balance their realtions with their loved ones and their careers. Though I have currently read it only once, this story will be a beacon for me throught my career, helping me focus on what is really important in life.

When I finsh reading this book it really interest me. This book really touches the readers thoughts and feelings. It has romance, drama, little bit of comedyand more. When I'm half done reading finishing the book, I felt that I didn't want to stop reading because I want to learn of whats going to happen next. I would really recomend this book to anyone because Its a powerful book and for me a pretty rare book, I would recomend a reader to buy this book.

Your 4th block student,
Elbert Clemente
To my teacher Miss Stone

1)Later in the story when Eric's family was in Africa, he decided to go to his friend Ost to crossover and he chose to leave his family for the trip. Later the thing that really happen to Eric is he was very illed and he died.

2)The impact that the scientific careers have upon the family is Eric's dad doesn't have time for his family especially his sister Nees. So the dad make it up to his family that they will go to Africa with him for his research since he is anthropologist.

3)The microscope observation that Eric should do before he ate the meat is to check if there is dirty stuff in it like maggots for example. Also he should of ckeck the meat if its fresh or not because the meat can be rotten and he should smell it if its good enough to eat the meat.

This is from your 4th block student,
Elbert Clemente (biology)
to my teacher Miss. Stone

This is a very nice book and the one we used in my Old Norse class at BYU, and the selections are all very good, very interesting. However, I agree with the reviewer that this is, despite the title, hardly the best introdruction to the language.

What I recommend is this: Get yourself Stefán Einarsson's fine book, "Icelandic: Grammar, Texts, Glossary", which is set up in lessons for the beginner and which you can get real cheap here at Amazon. That book is modern Icelandic, so the readings aren't about Egill Skallagrímsson or Snorri's Edda, but not only is the Old Norse spirit very much alive in modern Iceland (and all the people very familiar with the old stories), but the language has changed extraordinarily little in the last thousand years (very very minor things), so that if you learn modern Icelandic even reasonably well (which you will from Einarsson), you can easily pick up the sagas with no problem.

Then, when you've finished with his book, you can get Gordon, which will be much more enjoyable then. Alternatively, you can get the texts of lots of the sagas online from Icelandic sites and get hardcopy English versions here at Amazon to use as "ponies". (Hrafnkels saga is a good one to start with, or Snorra Edda.) Good luck!

Please don't send away 30 dollars thinking that this book is going to teach you to read Old Norse / Old Icelandic. If you're hoping for a basic grammar, with graded lessons, you're going to be disappointed. This is an excellent work, an indispensable work, but it's a reader for those who have already learned the basics of Old Icelandic.

After a brief introduction to Scandinavian history, the Viking expansion, and saga literature, the author gives about 160 pages of West Norse, normalized into classical Icelandic. Most of the selections are from the sagas, and they are well annotated, and a full vocabulary is included in the back of the book. There is also a section on what he calls "East Norse" (the Old Norse particular to Denmark, Norway and Sweden), and a small section dealing with the language of the runic inscriptions.

There is a 40 or 50 page section where he presents the grammar, but it's more along the lines of an outline of the grammar. It's sufficient for someone who already has a good knowledge of Old English, OHG, or Gothic, but my hat's off to anyone with the determination to acquire a reading knowledge of the language from this grammatical sketch alone.

There's the rub: where DO you get the introduction to Old Icelandic that will enable you to use this book with benefit? The superb learning grammar "Old Icelandic: an Introductory Course" by Valfells and Cathey is out of print. Kenneth Chapman wrote "Graded Readings and Exercises in Old Icelandic" about 35 years ago, but that's disappeared as well. Until either of those works is reprinted, or a new introduction is written, it's going to be tough.

But none of this is meant to take anything away from Gordon's work; it's a wonderful, scholarly work. Problem is, you really do need to have something of a background before you use it.

G.V. Gordon's book is an excellent introduction to the Old Norse Language. It explains the intricacies of Norse grammar lucidly, and is very easy to work with. The fact that one cannot obtain it here, is really unfortunate; however, on the positive side, I know for a fact that at least one other major internet site has it.