Were Charles Conlon still alive, I would track him down and kiss his feet for capturing in such vivid detail the historic giants of baseball. The book features remarkable photos of the greatest baseball players of most of the first half of this century. Suitable for framing, the photos typically depict individual players and small groups, often in game action. The well preserved photographs provide an important window on a truly beautiful game and its players in an era when outfield fences were optional, and a "baseball club" was just that. My favorite of Conlon's gems shows Hall of Fame shortstop Honus Wagner gripping his bat. Under his fingernails is Pennsylvania coal dust. His chipped, oversized piece of lumber looks unwieldy by today's standards. And his sinuous forearms are testament to the power that we remember him by. Other photos are paired to show the dramatic impact of age and the outfield sun on players of yesterday. Picture Wes Chandler spunky at 25 and then battle weary at about 50 and you'll understand why so many players strive so hard for a moment in the sun: they want to enjoy it before it's all gone.

I have been a reader of baseball history for most of my 45 years, and I never heard of George S. Conlon. I know him now. This book is nothing less than fascinating. The photos are marvelous, but every printed word is interesting, starting with the preface. I could not put it down.

The centerpiece of all baseball photography books. You read about them. You marvel at their feats and accomplishments. So few photographs exist about them. What do they look like? Charles Conlon did history a service by just following his hobby. Truly a magnificent masterpiece. Not just photo's...History! We are all so very lucky to be blessed with such a collection. For those interested, there is a collection of hundreds of baseball cards featuring the photographic genius of Conlon. They are out of print now, but can still be found. The Conlon Collection from the Sporting News. You owe it to yourself to check it out. You owe it to yourself to own this book.

This is a very good book on reef aquarium keeping, I just wish that I would have known before hand that volume one is clams and stony corals, and that volume two is soft coral. This fact alone would have been helpful in determining which volume I needed first.

This book should be an example by which all other marine and reef aquarium books follow. Current and relavant information from cover to cover. This is the stuff you need to know if you are serious about being successful in this hobby. Great book but a great group of people.

The Reef Aquarium has information for all degrees of reef keepers. Being a first timer in the field,I found this book to be as vital as the tank itself. This book has all the information that you will need for a great tank. It goes into depth on information with regards to aquascaping, lighting, and water parameters. It also deals with the diseases and pests of the reef tank. When setting up a tank listen to one person or book. I recommend this book to be that one book.

Jesus said the greatest commandments are to love God and to love one another. While loving one another is not easy, at least it is somewhat tangible. However, loving a being that you cannot detect with your five physical senses such as God can seem almost impossible. Charles Colson, former Nixon henchman during the Watergate scandal and now current leader of Prison Ministries, writes a wonderful book about what it means to be a Christian and how we can learn to love God. Charles Colson is a gifted story teller who relates beautiful narratives about the truth of Christianity and the power of loving God. This is definitely a book that I highly recommend. It is in the top ten list of many Christians who have had the pleasure of reading it. God bless.

Jesus said the greatest commandments are to love God and to love one another. While loving one another is not easy, at least it is somewhat tangible. However, loving a being that you cannot detect with your five physical senses such as God can seem almost impossible. Charles Colson, former Nixon henchman during the Watergate scandal and now current leader of Prison Ministries, writes a wonderful book about what it means to be a Christian and how we can learn to love God. Charles Colson is a gifted story teller who relates beautiful narratives about the truth of Christianity and the power of loving God. This is definitely a book that I highly recommend. It is in the top ten list of many Christians who have had the pleasure of reading it. God bless.

Jesus said the greatest commandments are to love God and to love one another. While loving one another is not easy, at least it is somewhat tangible. However, loving a being that you cannot detect with your five physical senses such as God can seem almost impossible. Charles Colson, former Nixon henchman during the Watergate scandal and now current leader of Prison Ministries, writes a wonderful book about what it means to be a Christian and how we can learn to love God. Charles Colson is a gifted story teller who relates beautiful narratives about the truth of Christianity and the power of loving God. This is definitely a book that I highly recommend. It is in the top ten list of many Christians who have had the pleasure of reading it. God bless.

I am an avid mystery reader, and really loved Charles Gershon's book. The pace is fast, the characters are real, and the facts mix with fiction to form a compelling read. This would be a perfect book to take to the beach this summer.

Hopefully, by then, he'll have another I can take with me.

An amazing first effort. Gershon quickly draws the reader to his diverse characters. Before you know it, you're totally caught up in the intrigue and action. A story skillfully woven between past and present leads the reader to the realization that people and things are not always as first perceived. I really loved this book. The only disappointment was that it read so quickly and ended way too soon. Can't wait for the next one.

This is the best book I have read in many years - a wonderful story, well developed characters, tight dialogue. A young doctor who grew up in a small Southern town, raised by parents who were Holocaust survivors, is working successfully in a large city and finds himself surrounded by corruption. The author's style is reminiscent of John Grisham, Nelson Demille, and Leon Uris - three of my favorites. I enjoyed this book so much that I have given copies to friends, and everyone who has read it has raved. I impatiently await this talented author's next novel.

This book shows a side of Robert E. Lee that seems to have been lost in the history books. After the end of the Civil War, we hear little or nothing about General Lee. In truth, he died five years after the war ended, but he made the most of that time in trying to repair the damage done by the war. This book is an excellent chronicle of those years.

Lee lost most of his property during the war. He was a career soldier, and didn't have many prospects for employment. He hoped to move onto a farm and to live quietly in the country.

However, other plans were being made for him. The trustees of Washington College in Lexington, Virginia, voted unanimously to offer him a job as president of the college. Lee was not a professional educator (although he had served as superintendent of West Point), but the trustees believed that his leadership and integrity were just what the college needed to survive the harsh economy left by the war. For his part, Lee saw this as an opportunity to help young Southern men to become productive citizens.

The college's wager paid off. Enrollment grew each year that Lee spent at the helm. The college developed new programs, and Lee's stature and good reputation were such that Washington College received large donations from philanthropists, even in the Northern states. Lee took a personal interest in the students, learning to address them by name and taking responsibility for disciplinary measures.

Yet Lee's last five years were not years of unabated bliss. His health declined steadily, his wife was an invalid, his brother died, and his reputation suffered from some unjust attacks in Northern newspapers. Throughout it all, Lee held his head high and maintained his dignity, his character, and his principles.

Lee put much effort into healing the wounds left by the war. He appreciated the esteem in which he was held by his fellow Southerners, but he encouraged them to be loyal citizens of the United States of America. He never said a word against General U.S. Grant, and even rebuked an employee of Washington College who did. One of the most fascinating (and mysterious) episodes in the book is Lee's trip to Washington, D.C., to visit President Grant in the White House. No one else was present for the meeting, and so no one really knows what they discussed.

The book ends abruptly with an account of Lee's death, without going reporting on his funeral and his family's life without him. Even so, this book makes great reading and has fascinating insights into the private life of an American icon.

I have a real passion for the American Civil War and, if truth be told, I usually enjoy reading about it from a Southern perspective. I am though no Robert E. Lee worshipper and can see the good and the bad in the man and the soldier. He was not the perfect general and he did make mistakes (some very costly) but he is a fascinating character and any understanding of him leads to an appreciation of duty and honour. In those respects he was a paragon of virtue.

I'd read so much about Lee during the war that I needed something more, to find out what happened to him after the war. Charles B. Flood provided that "something" and I am so happy that I decided to go for this purchase. It was a snap decision but one I shall never regret.

The first ten chapters of the book are worth the price of purchase on their own, dealing as they do with the surrender of the marvellous Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox and the subsequent weeks and months as Lee made his way back to Richmond and waited to see what fate awaited him at the hands of the victorious Union.

I don't believe Flood was laying it on too thickly but the devotion felt towards Lee by his old soldiers (Pickett excepted of course) and the civilian population of the South are incredible. The stories of soldiers coming to see him before they set off on foot to return home are just so moving and Lee will not say no to anybody who wishes to see him.

After those opening incredible chapters things slow down somewhat and we learn of Lee's transition into what could be called a 'normal' life which sees him take up the presidency of the Lexington College in Virginia. It's not rivetting stuff by any stretch of the imagination but it's interesting and we gain a greater insight into what drives Robert E. Lee... duty and honour. He could have cashed in on his name a thousand times to retire a wealthy man, but he would not sell out and knows that his example, a dutiful one, will be followed by so many former Confederates in those dark post-war days.

Lee also refuses to incriminate his former comrades when pressed to do so and it is a measure of his standing even in the North that no-one dares to bring charges against him, despite the clamour from some sections of society that he be tried for treason.

The picture that Flood paints of Lee is not always flattering though. He is shown to be a stubborn man in some respects and his family are always in awe of him, especially his daughters, of whom he is extremely possessive. So much so that all three will die spinsters!

One of the last things that Lee does before his death in 1870 is to go on a short trip into the deep south and that again provides an incredible picture of his standing in the old Confedracy. Though he craves privacy word gets out that he is on a train and telegrams break the news ahead of his journey. Consequently, thousands turn up just to get a glimpse of him, with old soldiers bringing their children (man of who have been named after Lee). It is a very moving account of just how deeply his people felt for him.

My only complaint is that I would have liked just a little more reaction to lee's death around the South. How did the people react? What did the papers say? That sort of thing. An omission that could easily have been avoided in my opinion.

All in all though a hearty well done to Charles B. Flood for an excellent biography of Lee's last years. If my review sounds a little soppy then believe me, the book isn't. It is a solid, fair and well constructed picture of the last years of Robert E. Lee's life. It may move you in ways you weren't expecting though!

This was a passionate story of the last five years of the life of one of our greatest American heroes. Finally, we have a look at what Lee accomplished AFTER the war! From the first chapter to the end, I was enthralled with the story of Lee's dedication to God and country. The author used interesting stories to detail Lee's character which made the book easy to read and immensely enjoyable. I judge this to be one of the very best biographies I've ever read.

Desmond and Moore go beyond some of the "psycho-history" poularizers that seem to hang on to the fringes of evolutionary biology these days, but there is still a whiff of the analyst's couch in too much of this book. The title gives away the bias from the first, so we can't say we weren't warned, but it is odd that Desmond and Moore seem to ignore the enormous amount of evidence (often in his own words) of Darwin the Contented Naturalist, Darwin the Excited Traveller (I strongly encourage anyone really interested in Darwin to go look at Phil Darlington's delightful cartoon of "Chas" Darwin "Hanging Out" at Cambridge in Darlington's wonderful "Evolution for Naturalists") Darwin the Family Man (read Raverat's Period Piece, etc.) The chapters continue in the same vein (Paradise & Punishment, Mental Rioting, Murder, Ugly Facts, etc.) and while they draw heavily on one side of Darwin and darwiniana it is only the one side. For my money Janet Browne's biography is head and shoulders above this -if only she would finish it!

Having read a few Darwin biographies, I've decided that this one is my favorite. The account is objective enough to keep my skepticism from acting up, and I actually agree with most of the analysis that usually prompts reviewers' complaints. If you've read Desmond's biography of T. H. Huxley, then count on this biography of Darwin to present less of the analyst's perspective and more the reporting flavor for which one would hope in reading a book collaboratively produced by Mr. Desmond and James Moore, a self-proclaimed "Darwin Biographer."

The wealth of information in this book about Darwin's life lent a great deal of insight to my perception, as a student of natural science and as someone who is interested in the history of science, of Darwinism, its origins, and its large-scale effects on biological thought as a whole. I heartily recommend this book to anyone who is interested in evolutionary biology and its history, and certainly to anyone who wants to better appreciate the life of a man whose work changed the way we understand life.

This is one hell of a riveting biography. I've often read biographies of really interesting people, but the writing is so turgid or lackluster, that I find myself wishing a better writer would tackle this story and do it right. Not so with this one, this is a phenomenal book.

A perfect blend of of travel journal and salute to public golf. Anyone with a high handicap, who has played with bare-chested strangers with even higher handicaps, on crowded bald fairways with bumpy greens, will appreciate this book.

slack is no slacker when it comes to writing about golf.....watching the americans come back at the ryder cup may have been more exciting, but nowhere near as entertaining as slack's masterpiece. i truly believe there is a medal waiting for him in stockholm thanks to his words in this book.. thelast book i read that came close in terms of sheer insight, humor and wit was james solomon's real world book of a couple of years ago. this should be mandatory reading for anyone who plays golf, knows someone who plays golf, or knows someone whose father once knew a guy whose buddy played golf. a must read.

If you've ever topped a drive off the first tee or missed a three-footer on 18 while trying record your career low round, you'll be able to identify with Charles Slack's golf game. When it comes to writing, though, he's scratch. One brief example will suffice. Describing the contrast between the front and back nines at the Ponce De Leon course in St. Augustine Florida, he says, "The back nine plunges into the jungle with the suddenness of a Disney ride, into a lush, dark, secretive world of mangrove swamps and ponds curving tantalizingly like lost lagoons. Moving from the ninght to the tenth holes is like putting down a volume of P.G. Wodehouse and picking up Heart of Darkness, all in one morning."

The book is filled with wonderful insights like that one and reminds us on nearly every page of the real reasons why golfers love this sometimes maddening, often magical, game. For those of us who never will have the pleasure of sharing a round with Charles Slack, this book is a delightful substitute.

"Knowing Scripture" is an absolute must for all Christians. The reader will learn how someone is to approach scripture and read it properly. R.C. Sproul takes academic subjects like Hermeneutics and makes them easy to understand, equiping the reader with the right tools to study the bible.

Many Christians, as well as skeptics, are unfamiliar with the rules of biblical interpretation and therefore, regardless on which side of the fence the reader is on religious issues, all groups can benefit from this book.

_Knowing Scripture_ by R. C. Sproul is my favorite Bible study aid. I use it as a steady reference. I recommend this text not only to Christians but to anyone studying the Bible as a text. This book is very useful for a broad spectrum of Bible students from the beginning Christian reader to the seasoned theologian to the nonChristian approaching the Bible as a historical, literary work.

While Sproul holds that the Bible is the inspired word of God, this is not a fundamentalist text. Thoughtful analysis and interpretation are taken on with an eye to culture, author intent, literary style, and other factors. This book is a priceless vault of information and tools. Common pitfalls in Bible study are dealt with and explained. It is a short, easy read in a friendly conversational style but has great depths of information to plumb...look at is as a key that opens the door to a new level of intelligent Bible study. I cannot stress how well written and very useful this book is. When you hand someone a new Bible, toss in a copy of _Knowing Scripture_, too. I recommend this book with the greatest intensity.

Sproul combines theological insights with his very familar humor in order to teach us some basics in deeper reading of the Bible. Since the Bible is a book that gets deeper as one grows taller, most spiritually "tall" teachers seem to write yet another deep book to daunt the study of scripture. On the contrary, R.C. is an excellent teacher, encourager, and writer who first dispels the fear of studying the Bible. Then he immediately points to the importance of studying the Bible, and does an overview of how to interpret and apply scripture in most biblical way possible. His colorful examples are helpful. I am also thankful for his list of further readings in the last chapter (after reading this book, I felt like buying them all!). In almost all of his books I've read, R.C. seems to struggle in trying to be less scholar-like for the sake of the general audience. But only being human =), he cannot hold back his brilliance; and at times R.C. pushes us to think! But he is gentle and very reasonable. This book is short, but very nice. Thus, for leasure or study in group; for scholars and laymen...I highly recommend this book. Both will learn a lot--if not in content, then in sheer style!

If you haven't visited Sanibel Island, you'll probably have limited interest in this story. The other reviews are correct - it's easy reading - but that doesn't make this a 5-star book. The story is about the relationship that develops between two strangers over the course of 6 mornings spent fishing from a pier. Unfortunately, one of characters is not developed nearly enough to make the relationship credible. Overall, the book is a pleasant read if you have been to the island and are familiar with the landmarks that play a critical role in the story. But much better character development would be necessary to make it a really good book.

Having spent time on Sanibel Island and feeling like it is the one place on earth that I can find the real inner strength I need to survive until I revisit the Island, I enjoyed the book immensely. The reader who has already enjoyed the sunrises and sunsets on Sanibel and Captiva will be able to imagine that he is standing on the pier listening to a lonely, wise man quietly teaching a younger man what the real meaning of life is.

I am a native of S.W. Florida. As a child, I spent every Saturday at the Sanibel pier fishing with my friends. Now as a busy attorney I enjoy the pier whenever I can sneak a weekend at Sanibel. I have always met different characters at the pier and have always been entertained by their stories. In the book an unusual friendship between a retired charter boat captain and an overworked, streesed out divorce attorney produce unsettling views into their lives. These views are sometimes brutally honest and eye-opening. While this dialogue is taking place, the author accurately discribes the natural beauty of Sanibel. You can almost smell the salt water and hear the waves as the story progresses. The story of these two friends produces a roller-coaster ride through the different emotions that culminates in an unexpected, controversial ending. It leaves you asking yourself "What would I have done?" I look forward to his next book.