In 1969 I had the pleasure to visit with Richard White a co-pilot in a B-17 during World War II. His plane was shot down over Berlin in 1944 and he spent some months in a German Stalag. He told me that if I really would like to know how it was that I should read this book. I have read it. It is awesome! It is written in a style that had me totally engrossed from start to finish.

I was born ten years to the day after the first 8th Air Force mission against Berlin (March 4, 1944). I was a fourteen year old boy when I first read Serenade to the Big Bird by Bert Stiles. I was touched deeply by this real life account by a real and genuine man - not a hero or a warrior - but a young man just doing his duty.

This book is ironic in the true sense of the word. Bert Stiles didn't know he was writing his masterpiece. He was just recording his thoughts about life, love, war and death - without the slightest bit of selfconciousness. What he delivers is brilliant; an honest look into the heart, mind and soul of a real citizen soldier, a twenty-three year old in world gone insane.

This small volume is packed with all the emotions of war. There are highs, lows, and the dull boredom of military existence. Through it all, Stiles expresses his humaness and shares his observations. His skillful writing lets the reader experience the pain of loosing buddys in combat as well as the simple pleasure of enjoying fresh strawberries in English countryside - all within a few pages. Hanging over the entire narrative is the readers awareness that Stiles is writing his own epitaph.

This book survived the war. Bert Stiles did not. He's buried in Belgium along with thousands of his comrades, a victim of the carnage he had to experience in order to create such a beautiful literary legacy.

Find this book and read it.

When Bert Stiles wrote this book, the war was still raging across the world. It was 1944, he had just completed a horrific tour of duty as a B17 co-pilot, and the memories were fresh in his mind. Even though Bert seemed to be a somewhat sensitive man, some of his words have a callous feel to them. He talks about the officers and enlisted men forming a baseball team, and "..after the Schweinfurt raid, we had to replace the whole infield"-Simply put, so many men had been killed on that mission, no one was left to play on the team. Bert was an intelligent man, a good writer, but he lacked the experience to know when to back out of the war. Passive, intelligent, creative people do not make good fighter pilots. Bert was killed in action shortly after writing his memoirs.

In 1945 I attended a public technical school in Toronto,Ontario,Canada. The earlier additions of this book were the basis of our four year course at that school. The book is a self teacher and can really teach and inprove the knowledge of anyone involved in the industrial electrical world. I became a chief electrical engineer for a major company through the school of hard knocks.This book always had a place on my desk. Each time I went to construction sites and someone would ask about certain technical details of the electrical industry I would always end the conversation with a recomendation to purchace this book. I am sure sorry to understand that the author is no longer with us ,but can understand this as I am 69 years old. Just in case this bit of history would get lost here is where the book started. Naydon worked for esthe ford motor company with another engineer called Gillman and both their names appeared on early edditions of the book. It was used as a training book for electricians who joined the Ford Motor Company. The book coveres a wide range of subjects which every electrician should know if he wants to get ahead. Sure hope this helps electricians and industrial engineers who might consider the purchace of this book

This wonderful story about a boy and his horse shows that special bond that can exist between a person and an animal. The illustrations enhance the story. Our family read an article in the Randolph (Vermont) Herald that tells the real story of John and Tom.

This book presents a serious, unbiased and well documented view on gunpowder-technology origins and evolution and its real significance in medieval and Renaissance land warfare. However, only the projectile weapons have a good coverage, and warfare (and use of gunpowder) at sea is almost totally forgotten! If its title reflected its contents this book would get SIX stars from me.

It didn't take long for me to be pleasantly surprised at the high level of scholarship and clearly presented facts, the sort of writing all too often lacking from this area of history. As the author notes, many technology historians, military historians, and arms and armor writers propagate continuing myths and assumptions that can't be supported when the facts are examined closely. Here, Hall does the topic justice and it is clear he did his homework. The chapter discussing the technology of gunpowder was especially interesting, and supports his case for the reasons firearms developed as they did. I recommend a trip to the Metropolitan Museum in New York to have a look at their firearms, where many aspects of his discussion will further illuminate the items on display.

Best treatment of weapons and Renaissance-era warfare !!

Then this is the book for you! Bert Monroy shares techniques on how to create realistic digital paintings in Photoshop 7.0. This book has a wealth of information demonstrating techniques such as smoke blazing off a red stiletto shoe, weather precipitation such as fog hanging in trees and rain pouring down on buildings. In chapter 5 you will learn how to create weathered wood, bark on a tree and metal objects along with a host of other realistic textures. The chapters are well thought out and organized with corresponding screenshots throughout.

This book will best be served by the novice or intermediate user. Nonetheless, novice or expert you'll come away with a new fresh perspective on digital painting and an ability to express yourself in those paintings like never before.

I bought my first Bert Monroy book, The Official Adobe Photoshop Handbook, back in 1991. Co-written with David Biedny, it was the bible for Photoshop version 2.0. Eleven years later, I have three Monroy titles on my bookshelf. Photorealistic Techniques with Photoshop and Illustrator (1999) which remains one of my all time favorites and now his latest, Photoshop Studio. Why do I find these books so valuable? Because the books are more than paper creations. They reflect insight and intellect. They are delivered in full color -- not just cold text -- and they offer the artist the proof that wonderful things can happen with the digitals tools now available. It is said that just knowing something is possible is half the battle of doing a difficult thing. Viewing Bert's examples lets you know that yes! it's possible and that you can go even further. More than just fancy pictures - there is information. Bert covers The Art of Brush Making, Lights and Shadows, Creating Textures, Reflections and more. As a working artist, I come to this book with expectations - and Monroy delivers. I recommend this book for the intermediate and advanced users of Photoshop 7. Beginners building a library of Photoshop resources would do well to add this to their shopping list.

Bert Monroy is probably one of the most talented Photoshop users there is. If you've ever seen him on TechTV, you've seen how effortlessly he uses PS.

This book is full of amazing artwork Bert has done with Photoshop, along with a lot of tips and techniques from the master himself. You'll have a hard time believe that this book isn't just a collection of photos. Bert style is so photo-realistic it's jaw-dropping.

Definitely a must-have book for any PS enthusiast. Even if you don't plan to use PS for Photoreal artwork, there are techniques here that are applicable to other uses for PS but the book itself is worth the price just for the awe factor of Monroy's work.

The idea behind The Meaning of Liff, first published in 1983, as well as The Deeper Meaning of Liff, which followed seven years later, is actually quite simple. As the authors put it: there are hundreds of common experiences, feelings, situations and even objects which we all know and recognize, but for which no word exists. On the other hand, the world is littered with thousands of spare words doing nothing but loafing about on signposts pointing at places.

Douglas Adams - the one of the Hitch-Hikers Guide to the Galaxy fame - and John Lloyd have done their best trying to pair the two. Just for the gusto, here's an example of dictionary entry: Wyoming (ptcpl.vb.) Moving in hurried desperation from one cubicle to another in a public lavatory trying to find one which has a lock on the door, a seat on the bowl and no brown streaks on the seat.

Although The Deeper Meaning of Liff is significantly expanded in size over the original, I guess I would choose the latter. While The Meaning of Liff mostly covers place names from the Britain, the expansions seem to be predominantly reaching abroad, resulting in somewhat diluted compendium. After all, there is some logic that English place names are fitting best in an English dictionary, isn't it?

As said previously, this book (and the sibling) are hilarious fun for anglophiles and wordsmiths alike...

The book has become a bible to live a NORMAL life Knowing there are others out there who are sane but strange
Find the Yahoo club site "LIFF AS WE KNOW IT" to wallow in humour. Then send your own efforts (ie photo's and new WORDS)

This book is no better than any of the other graduate level marketing books that are available. You might think that since this book has 15 authors it might have something that books with only 3 authors lacks. But, if you thought this you'd be wrong. This book offers nothing new and its extremely high price makes it even less appealing.

This book combines the knowledge of excellent scholars of marketing in a clear and structured format which is accessible to undergraduates. In addition, the cases and other teaching materials provide excellent support.