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Book reviews for "Richard,_John" sorted by average review score:

The Art of Richard Diebenkorn
Published in Hardcover by University of California Press (1997)
Authors: Jane Livingston, John Elderfield, Ruth Fine, Richard Diebenkorn, and Whitney Museum of American Art
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Great painter, Great book
After reading a few of the other reviews I felt like throwing my 2 cents worth. First of all, I am amazed and love the fact that Diebenkorn has recieved so much press. Its a shame he was shunned from the New York art world when he was alive.(Although, I don't think he was terribly upset by this) I didn't even hear of him untill I went to England to do my M.A.! I bought my first book of his then in 94'. I think its whitechaple press. In any case, this book is much more complete with great- great photos and essays. It is pure joy. The biggest problem I have with the book is trying to keep it out of my studio, so as not to get paint on it. If you happen to go to the San Francisco MOMA check out their nice collection of his work!

Real painting
For an art lover Diebenkorn has the rare gift of sharing the sensation of painting. Lucious, sensual and pricise color harmonies, and those rythmic intervals. For a european it is another one of those deserving american miracles that such an artist gets a catalog and museum exhibition like this. The text is as precise as Diebenkorns color harmonies, and shows in depth great concern and understanding of his art and time.

REALLY GOOD!
Im one of Diebenkorn's fans, and this book is whatever you want if you like colorism, and pure painting! highly recommended!


Paradise Lost (Anglistica and Americana, Vol 175)
Published in Hardcover by Lubrecht & Cramer Ltd (1995)
Authors: John Milton and Richard Bentley
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Continually Rewarding
Naxos audio maintain their high reputation with this excellent production of Milton's classic; wonderfully read by Anton Lesser, with Laura Paton as Eve.

Paradise Lost can be a difficult read. Personally, I could never get round to comitting myself to the book, but this reading really brings it to life, and is well worth spending the time and money. Milton creates many wonderous and fantastical images and characters. Satan is shown as a tragic hero, tormented by the innocence of Adam and Eve, and prompted to revenge. Milton actually uses his characters to play 'devil's advocate' (literally!) by asking many paradoxical questions of the biblical story. Considering this book was first printed at the height of the witchcraft paranoia of the seventeenth century, it's amazing he managed to get away with it.

Full of allegory and layers of meaning, this is a CD set you can enjoy again and again.

Did You Know...
Merritt Hughes was a Quaker??
Anyway, despite the date of publication (1962) which leaves the commentary a little outdated, in that it doesn't really address Stanley Fish or Joseph Wittreich or some other big Milton scholars' recent contributions to the subject, this edition is great, for beginning milton readers and more advanced alike. The introduction and footnotes are among the most complete available anywhere with good references to hebrew, classical, and other motifs within the poem. It addresses the ptolemic vs. copernican debate (sun round earth or earth round sun) and Milton's astronomy in some depth in the introduction, maybe beyond what will be interesting until you've finished the poem.
A timeless edition, I would say, which is why its still popular after 40 years, much better than the penguin classic edition.

i'm talking about the 'library bound' version here
Who are these presumptuous people who are reviewing Milton??? They just want to see themselves in print. I'm just reviewing the printing itself. I like it a lot. It's a small reddish hardcover. It is VERY plain. No forward, afterward, footnotes, line numbers, or ANYTHING. And that's what I wanted. It's just the poem! (with milton's beginning paragraphs of course). Pretty high quality job. I don't recommend it for the first time reader, but for more experienced ones that want to read it without dealing with everyone else's interpretations, etc. I want to read a poem not a textbook.


Survival Kit for Leaders
Published in Paperback by Skyward Publishing, Inc. (20 March, 2003)
Authors: John C. Kunich and Richard I. Lester
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Survival Kit for Leaders carries out its stated purpose
Survival Kit for Leaders is one of the rare books that actually carries out its stated purpose-that of providing a practical, interactive guide to developing relevant leadership skills. The authors know what it takes to teach contemporary leadership and they have used their considerable experience to design a learning system highly useful as an individual or a team survival kit. Every aspect of Survival Kit for Leaders has been prepared toward this end beginning with its purpose through executive summaries for each chapter, specific examples and applications, highly useful discussion questions that make the reader become deeply involved, and key points for the readers to learn and apply.

Survival Kit for Leaders has been organized into these relevant chapters that present the critical principles and concepts leaders need to learn, recall, and apply:

Leadership for a Survival Organization
Survival Thoughts for Leaders
Profile of a Leader
Leadership and the Art of Mentoring
Leadership and the Art of Feedback
Leadership and Management
Using the Law for Competitive Advantage
Time Management Techniques for the Effective Leader

These chapters engage both fledgling and experienced leaders and very effectively draw them into the development process. As a result, Survival Kit for Leaders becomes an individual seminar taught by not only the authors, but by the many successful leaders cited throughout the book.


Readability Difficulty Index

6 out of 10 (where 10 requires intense concentration). The book challenges the reader to engage in self-reflection, a task that goes beyond simply reading the book, but calls for interaction with and deeper understanding of its content.

Recommended Audience

Survival Kit for Leaders is primarily targeted at individual leaders, in all situations, to help them survive the challenges of the 21st Century. That said, it would be equally effective in a group setting as a focus for stimulating discussions.

Most Interesting Part

The book has many interesting illustrations that are right on target. For example, in Chapter 5, Leadership and the Art of Feedback, the authors use the term "FEEDBACK" as an acronym to stand for each of its component parts. This mnemonic helps readers relate the concept to their own situations. For example, in discussing "D" for "Dialogue-oriented," the authors not only illustrate how dialogue can be used appropriately in leadership situations, but also cite Stephen R. Covey's Seven Habits of Highly Effective People to reinforce the salient points. This technique is used very usefully throughout the book.

Most Insightful Part

The most insightful part was Chapter 3, Profile of a Leader, a case study of the leadership principles employed by Raoul Wallenberg, a Swedish citizen, during World War II. Wallenberg is believed to have saved 100,000 lives through his courageous and compassionate leadership. The chapter not only describes Wallenberg's heroic actions, but also does this in a manner that identifies leadership principles that we can apply to our less heroic lives. This chapter alone is worth the price of the book.

Most Unique Part

Many leadership books have discussion questions. What sets Survival Kit for Leaders apart are its finely crafted discussion questions. These questions not only challenge the reader to interact with the book, but do so in a manner that brings about the essence of its content. The questions also increase the book's flexibility as a seminar/classroom discussion vehicle.

Weaknesses of the Book

The authors' emphasis on "survival" may give some readers the impression that leadership is a matter of "getting by." Leadership is more than surviving leadership challenges; it is anticipating, meeting, and transcending these challenges. More might have been done to place the book's message in this broader context. The larger role of leadership is there, but it could have been much more explicit such as including discussion questions on the meaning of survival.

Memorable Quote

"Leadership styles resemble fingerprints in the sense that each is different and highly individualistic. Thus, in studying leadership styles, people should learn how to sort the good from the bad, the effective from the ineffective, from the perspective of their own unique personal qualities and circumstances. Through this process of shifting and selecting, through the lens of their own eyes, they can begin to develop the basics of their own leadership style." (p.35)

Why Read?

Survival Kit for Leaders is not one of the trivial "self-help" leadership tomes. It is a serious, finely crafted learning tool designed by experienced, pragmatic authors to help readers make significant process in their personal leadership development. . If you want to improve your leadership effectiveness, buy and use Survival Kit for Leaders

An important read for all who aspire to lead
Survival Kit for Leaders is clearly an exceptional book written with wisdom in a clear analytical style. This stimulating book is loaded with exciting stories of successful leaders and superb models including women and minorities. A very important book that absolutely should be required reading for leadership aspirants at all levels.

This IS the Survival Kit for Leaders - A MUST READ -
There are a myriad of different management books available today. This one is different. You already know why you need a new book on management or you wouldn't be looking into this book now. What was available before "The Survival Kit for Leaders" just didn't fill the need. We need to more than survive. We need to flourish and it's a jungle out there. This book provides a workable roadmap that can be used to navigate the pitfalls that can befall both new and veteran leaders and allow leaders to do more than just get by... this book will help direct you to success. The chapter on mentoring alone is worth the cost of the book. Do you know why you should be both a mentor AND be mentored? You will after reading this. After this read, not only will you want to mentor... you will actively want to FIND a mentor for yourself. Each chapter brings new level of revelation/insight to sometimes seemingly tired concepts. While you are setting your goals, make the first one to read this book. The time you spend reading "the Survival Kit for Leaders" will be an investment that everyone around you will benefit from. A good leader has an edge. A great leader has also read this book.


100 Years of Oz: A Century of Classic Images from the Wizard of Oz Collection of Willard Carroll
Published in Hardcover by Stewart, Tabori & Chang (1999)
Authors: John Fricke, Richard Glenn, Mark Hill, William Carroll, and Timothy Shaner
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5 STARS, AS BRIGHT AS THAT YELLOW BRICK ROAD!
Lions and tigers an bears? Oh my! Add Munchkins and Winged Monkeys and a Horse of a Different Color to the list. This is Oz Country, and things simply don't get better than this. To celebrate the centennial of the publication of L. Frank Baum's novel (and the 60th anniversary of the classic MGM flick), preeminent Oz historian John Fricke has written a glorious homage of all things fun and fantastical. Not only does the book offer a fascinating chronicle of the Ozian phenomenon, but the illustrations, culled from Willard Carroll's priceless collection of more than 10,000 museum-quality pieces, are breathtaking. Oh Auntie Em, there's no place like home . . . provided you're snuggled up in front a fire with this gem.

The best pictorial of "Oz" past and present
With Willard Carroll's Oz collection as a backdrop, John Fricke has cataloged the fabric of Frank Baum's stories of Oz. I am certain that Frank Baum could not have been aware this fabric would become a great tapestry upon which the world could identify what it meant to be human. Oz has permeated our society with its influence. It is found in our languages, our politics, human behavior, and is probably used more often as a simile than any other imagery in our language.

From the opening pages of this book to the last, the book is a compelling journey through Oz. The collection of Mr. Carroll's Oz memorabilia is so large that it is like trying to comprehend the distance between stars or that a few people actually have a billion dollars. This colligation of Oz collectibles somehow unites every civilization, geographic location, and human condition. It is one of the few things that have true universality.

After reading John Fricke's take on Oz, of course, based on Willard Carroll's collection, I am left wondering how history would be different were it not for Frank Baum's Oz?

The pictures are glorious, the layout intelligent and thoughtful-I will never see Oz in quite the same way again. John Fricke's writing is stellar. Willard Carroll's collection ---what can I say, WOW! 100 years of Oz is entertaining, educative and provides a new look at Frank Baum's Oz through the other end of the spyglass. This is a visit to a museum with a very knowledgeable guide through an unforgettable exhibit. Thanks for the tour. I'll be back again.

This book is a must for all collectors.

Fabulous!
"100 Years of Oz" is a delight for everyone who has ever fallen in love with "The Wizard of Oz" (which includes just about everyone.) The success of the book lays in John Fricke's capabilities as a writer. His words are consise, thoughtful, and honest. The photographs, likewise, catch the eye like flashes of brilliant light. It is not easy to take one of America's most chershed series of books, its favorite film, and 100 years of mechandising and condense it all into one volume. Thankfully, Mr. Fricke has done that- impeccably. Buy this book today. I highly recommend it to everyone as an example of first class research. Above all, it is a time capsule of memories. Fricke will long be heralded as "Oz"'s best friend. Congratulations to all who made this book such a beautiful addition to my library.


Child Buyer: A Novel in the Form of Hearings Before the Standing Committee on Education, Welfare, and Public Morality of a Certain State Senate
Published in Hardcover by Random House (1960)
Author: John Richard Hersey
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For Sale: One Town's Humanity
Hersey was justly acclaimed for his fine journalist's eye that was so evident in his Hiroshima and A Bell for Adano. But his scathing social commentary of White Lotus and this book probably have not received the attention they deserve, perhaps because of the fantastic, science-fictional feel of their portrayed worlds.

Told strictly as the minutes of a state congressional hearing, this book details the events that follow when Mr. Wissy Jones, from United Lymphomiloid, arrives in the town of Peqoud and presents an offer to outright purchase an exceptional child, Barry Rudd, who is blessed with an extreme intelligence and a maturity beyond his years, for some unspecified project that will 'aid the national defense'.

As we proceed through the hearings, we are treated to some fine characterization of the witnesses, from the sharply opinionated and articulate principal of the school Barry attends to Barry's mumbling, street-wise but not too intelligent blue-collar friend. But the hearings also expose the first of Hersey's sharply satirical looks at our society as we see the conduct of the various senators running the hearing, obviously meant to remind the reader of the McCarthy hearings, with their forcible cutting off of any testimony that does not fit the pre-defined expectation of what the outcome of the hearing should be, denigration of witnesses' lifestyles, and panel members who clearly do not have the intelligence to even understand what testimony is given.

More horrifying, though, is the picture of the educational system presented, from the ivory-tower intellectual theories that have no relation to the classroom, to the constant attempts to make all students fit one pre-determined mold, to the administrative power struggles, to the bizarre web of psychological testing, to the clueless PTA, to the rigid and hypocritical moral code that schools use to bludgeon non-conforming students. Where in this morass is the place for the truly gifted child, or for that matter one who is intellectually challenged? Hersey's points strike like daggers, for even though this book was written more than forty years ago, our schools still have every problem that is shown here.

And what of the moral outrage that should adhere to the concept of selling a child? Once more, Hersey's pen is savage, showing how easily Barry's parents sell out for a few material goods, how the senators are converted by the mere statement that it's for the 'national defense', how the general township is so easily convinced to get rid of this 'different' kid, and, most poignantly, how even Barry, with full knowledge of what the program entails, reacts to the concept.

A very moralistic tale, told sharply and with defining moments of humanity, bringing a near surrealistic concept into the all-too-possible realm of reality.

A memorable classic that has taken on new meaning
Mr. Wissy Jones, from United Lymphomiloid, arrives in the New England town of Pequod on a corporate mission; he is to purchase children of exceptional intelligence. His matter-of-fact offer to buy Barry, a fat kid with a high IQ instigates a congressional inquiry.

Meanwhile, Jones skillfully garners support from every quarter in Pequod, from the pioneer-stock, six foot female principal of the elementary school and Barry's closest ally, to his own mother, a slatternly lower class housekeeper who's obviously the source of Barry's brains. Everyone has an opinion about Barry, usually not too good, ranging from jealousy, misunderstanding to just plain contempt (he's fat.) Meanwhile Barry and his street-wise blue collar friend seek to prevent his sale by a hilarious act of sexual misconduct.

What happens to the children purchased by U. Lymphomiloid is openly discussed by Wissy Jones during the trial. Yet despite the shocking revelation, Jones has manipulated the town to his side and even co-opts some surprising allies.

This isn't just an examination of an education system that strives to produce a bland mediocrity and mistrusts talent, it is the story of the intolerance of society for individuals and members of minority religions, race, anyone different than the mass average. There is a lot behind this readable book and it is fresher than every.

discrimination of a highly intelligent kid
Discrimination is declining in modern western societies. After struggles, there are now laws against discrimination of sex, race and religion. In some places there already are laws against the discrimination of homosexuals, and before long there will be laws against the discrimination of age groups (especially elderly). You can be sure of that.

The Child Buyer is sketching the discrimination of people with extreem high IQ (HIQ's), something that isn't even an issue in real life (yet). Mediocracy rules the world.

The Child Buyer is a heart wrenching, but at times also hilarious, description of the trial in which must be decided if a HIQ young boy should be sold or not to a company, because that would be good for national security, even though the boy refuses to be merchandise. The book shows how the people of a small village abandon the boy in his lonely struggle, partly because they see him as uncomfortably different, partly because they think it's for his own good to be separated from the rest, and partly because it turns out to be in their own best financial interest if the cooperate...

Hersey has structured his book around the trial. It contains only the dialogue, that is recorded in the courtroom. This may seem odd in the beginning, and perhaps slowing things down a little when all the characters are introduced, but the author succeeds very well in showing the diffence in characters. And in exhibiting the gross stupidity of some of them, as well as the way people choose for there own wellfare, above anything else.

This book was way ahead of it's time, when it was published in 1960, and - unfortunatly - it still is.

I can highly recommend it.


Introduction to Calculus and Analysis
Published in Hardcover by Springer Verlag (1990)
Authors: Richard Courant and Fritz John
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simply the Best Calculus Book
An intuitive, rigorous and a beautifully conceptual approach to calculus is what distinguishes this book from the thousands of run-of-the-mill "Calculus I" textbooks published every year.

This is not surprising because 1) Courant and John were both important German-born mathematicians, both schooled in that great mathematical mecca, Gottingen, both making fundamental contributions to many classical branches of pure and applied mathematics. Courant is an especially important mathematician since he not only studied under the greats Minkowski and Hilbert - even serving as the latter's assistant - but founded the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences in New York, modelled on the Gottingen Mathematical Institute. 2) That typical German thoroughness and emphasis on the mastery of the "fundamental concepts", so dear to German textbooks, is evident in all sections of the book, particularly in the introductory material on the number continuum, functions, continuity etc.

The exercises at the end of chapters are substantial and excellent, and help to develop proof skills in students as well as a subtle mathematical intuition.

Mathematics is best learnt by studying books written by important mathematicians. Classic books like these should always serve to prove the truth of Abel's dictum that to master mathematics one should 'study the masters and not the pupils'.

You must have this.
My review of the first volume pretty much applies here as well. How many *calculus* texts have an introduction to complex variables, and the theory of analytic functions? This is the only one I've ever seen, and I don't think anyone else could make it more enriching than Courant. Useful material on vector calculus, the theory of matrices, and even introductory material on the *calculus of variations* (something we usually don't see at *all* in the undergrad curriculum) is included. It is refreshing to have an instructor like Courant, who doesn't assume we can't follow higher mathematical roads, but also doesn't sit at the other end of the spectrum, just waving a wand and "poof, here is the result".

Courant also published a standard reference work (also two volumes, I believe) on Mathematical Physics. While the level of mathematics required is post-grad, I was still able to read sizeable sections of it without getting lost.

We can only hope Dover decides to publish Courant's works one day, to make them a little more affordable. But still, you can buy both volumes of Courant's intro to calculus for about the same price as a modern calculus text that waters down the material, and on top of that, provides inadequate explanation for the material it does cover.

Superior as an introductory calculus text!
I don't use the word "superior" lightly, but this book definitely warrants it. Courant was a first rate teacher and mathematician, and his brilliance shows in his exposition. The main obstacle to some readers may be that Courant does not follow the "cookbook calculus" approach that seems so rampant today, but actually bothers to prove his results. He does, however, reserve most of the more difficult proofs for the appendices at the end of the chapter, which is most appreciated. The result is an exciting read, yet rigorous. The reader is very well prepared for future courses in mathematical analysis, and even has a leg up on real analysis. While Courant's insistence on proof does mean that the student needs to have a basic grounding in proof methods, this is usually a standard part of the undergraduate curriclum. Anyone with a background in symbolic logic will instantly be able to follow the proof methods, and most discrete math courses have a section on proofs. In any event, ignorance of proof methods will not detract much from the book's value. Courant rightly recognizes that calculus should be taught in a logical, yet rigorous presentation from the beginning. The absence of this in modern texts mean that students learn how to manipulate formulas, but have no idea what makes the results they are assuming true. The "mechanics" of calculus and analysis, the most crucial thing to be learn, is missed. In particular, I enjoyed his presentation of integration *before* differentiation, which goes against the grain of basic calc texts, yet is historically and pedagogically correct. Integration actually paves the way for differentiation, and gives more motivation for the FTC. In addition, most texts on real analysis work in that order anyway, as an understanding of Lebesgue measure and integration is crucial to understanding the process of differentiation. In addition, I don't think I have ever before or since seen such a careful explanation of the theory of the logarithm or exponential functions. Again, the presentation makes it work, as just introducing the "exponential function", then a little later, the "log function" as the "inverse" of the exponential function is, to put it mildly, artificial and distasteful. The natural progression from the definite integral definition of the logarithm to the exponential function is displayed in its full glory.

In short, Courant manages to present some of the most crucial results of calculus and basic analysis without boring the reader to tears with arcane details, or worse, leaving the reader hanging on important theorems and ideas. This is a balance only a great mathematician could strike, and it is clear why this book remains a classic after almost 60 years.

Note: The second volume of this work covers the multivariable portion of calculus, and will be more difficult to follow without prior exposure to the subject. However, the introductions to the theory of matrices and the calculus of variations are very readable, and it is recommended that the reader take the time to peruse them. Also, don't miss the material on special functions, lightly touched on in the first volume, but explained in fuller detail in the second.


The Weaponless Warriors
Published in Paperback by Black Belt Communications, Inc. (1989)
Authors: Richard Kim, John Scurra, and Ed Ikuta
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A Wealth of Knowledge from a Great Historian
I enjoy Sensei Kim's wiritngs. This as a matter of fact, was the first book I had ever read by him and to this day I still enjoy reading it again and again from time to time.

Lessons in Stories
Richard Kim is excellent at relating stories of the grand masters of Karate. Each story contains one or more stories to be learned by the karateka. This book brings the past to life. Good reading for kyu ranks.

Very Positive for all Martial Arts
I purchased this book even though I am studying TaeKwon Do and not Karate. While the stories of the individuals featured were interesting I really learned a lot buy the lessons each chapter taught. Richard Kim does a terrific job of teaching the reader lessons, such as why it is important not to become a specialist in one area or why a student of Martial Arts should not study for glory but for personal satisfaction, as well as telling a great story. The book is short and to-the-point but also entertaining. I strongly encourage others to read this and will suggest it to the other students where I study.


John Singer Sargent : The Early Portraits (Volume One)
Published in Hardcover by Yale Univ Pr (1998)
Authors: Richard Ormond, Elaine Kilmurray, John Singer Sargent, and Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art
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Just Amazing........
This book is for Sargent lovers. His incredible talent oozes in these pages. I can't wait for Vol 2 of this beautiful production of Yale University Press. I got me a magnifying glass and have spent hours looking at the unbelievably grand flesh tones that Sargent commanded. You'll love reading the background data of these portrait commissions during Sargent's career. I would give it six stars if I could. See it to believe it.....if I could only paint like he did or anything barely close. One of my best of collection. Hurry up Yale and give us Vol 2.

i can't wait for vol 2!
i bought this book after seeing the sargent show at the met in new york. i have been studing it ever since. mr ormand, ms. kilmurray please hurry. you have brought the works of this great american master to life as no one has done before and i look forward in anticipation to vol 2.

Simply amazing
Now, all art books should be judged by the standard this publication sets. All colored reproductions. To reproduce paintings in black and white is just criminal, and the people responsible for this book understands that. I simply can't wait for the rest of the volumes. I can't think of another artist more deserving of this royal treatment(Well, if they can do this for J.W. Waterhouse, I'd die happy).


The Structure of Magic: A Book About Language and Therapy
Published in Paperback by Science & Behavior Books (1990)
Authors: Richard Bandler and John Grinder
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Awesome!!
Even though I was familiar of the material before I got this book, I was still amazed. This book is a must for anyone who wishes to communicate more effectively. I have many uses for it. I bought both I and II. You really need both to appreciate the scope of this awesome technology.

Excellent book
Fascinating book about strucutre of language, how people represent their external world within their mind, how their speech reflects their representation of the world, and how therapists can use the speech patterns to help people improve their lives.

It's a neurolinguistic programming book, based on the work of some very gifted psychotherapists and hypnotists.

Start Your NLP Voyage Here
The Structure of Magic, along with Noam Chomsky's work on Language (Knowledge of Language, Language and Thought, Language and Mind) are the bedrock documents of neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), a rhetorical/psychological/spiritual discipline much misunderstood and much mis-appropriated by various well-meaning folks and charlatans alike, the most famous of whom is Anthony Robbins.

If you're serious about understanding where NLP comes from, begin with this book and with Chomsky. Since Structure of Magic relies on an understanding of transformational grammar, it may be necessary to read Chomsky (and a good textbook on transgrammar) first.

Additionally, you may find it valuable to have a general psycholinguistics text handy, and to have at least a passing understanding of psychoanalytic/psychological therapeutic technique (since Structure of Magic looks at the practices of particularly highly-performant psychologists/analysts).

Once you're mastered this material, you'll discover that most of the other texts on NLP either miss key aspects of the discipline, or appropriate NLP's vocabulary and models for peculiar and sometimes suspect ends.

A hard read, in the final analysis, but well worth it.


Basic Photographic Materials and Processes
Published in Paperback by Focal Press (1990)
Authors: Leslie D. Stroebel, John Compton, Ira Current, and Richard D. Zakia
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wealth of information in a cheap jacket
No question, content wise this one tops most pubs on the subject. Especially helpful for those who like reading into it. In a sense it could replace all of Ansel Adams books. In some respects it makes photographic process easier to understand, easier to anticipate inconsistancies and sure should help better ones' photography (Ansel is still a required reading though as his language is simply superior to anything out there). At $... it also should be better published (photographs are just cheap looking). All in all information far outweighs printing shortfalls.

A good book with a lot of details
All the technical details of photography have been covered. The review questions at the end of the each chapter are helpful too. I feel one can surely save a lot of film after reading this book. And there are quite a few b&w photogrpahs which are quite interesting.

The admirable book
The book "Basic Photographic Materials and Processes" is separated on 16 chapters. Very useful chapters for everybody, both for beginners and professionals are chapters: 1) Light and Photometry, 4) Photographic Sensitometry, 5) Photography Optics (there is an instruction how to build the pinhole camera with exact calculation a diameter for different pinhole cameras and how make the lens testing), 8) Black and white Photographic Developments (with a paragraph about anti-foggants, special black-and-white process), 10) Tone Reproduction (Objective tone-reproduction curves for motion pictures, transparency etc., Luminance values of an outdoor scene, Flare factor, The making of negative, The making of Positive, the equations for average gradient for different quadrants of tone-reproduction diagram, ......), 11) Micro Image Evaluation (with much examples og graininess of films of different producers), 13) Filters with their influencies on different sort of films, 14) Color, 15) Color Reproduction and 16) Digital photography. This book is very useful and its content is very comprehensive one. I photograph since 1960 and I admire Mr. Anselm Adams, that is to say I very, very recommend this book for one, who has serious interest about photography and different cameras with their optics. The book has many pictures, useful tables and diagrams. (Rene Novak, studio ER67, ...)


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