If three entrepreneurs from Chicago can create a smart product and at the same time beat corporate USA (and in some respect the corporate world) with such a magnificently creative idea, my hat goes of to the Spirit of the American way. I've been to many of the pubs on the CD over the years and treasure the fact that so many others can experience what I did with a few strokes of their keyboard. If you like adventure, travel smart and buy this CD-ROM.

A wonderful romp through the pubs of the U.K. I was feeling a little buzz from just reading about all that beer. I feel better prepared for my trip next month to London now that I've read this inspired CD.

This guide gives you an in-depth picture of historic inns and pubs all over Britain. I particularly like the detailed information on prices, menus, accommodations, and routes to the sites, all tailored to your interests. The photography is supurb, and the witty, engaging commentary alone would be worth the price of the CD. As a travelogue, a practical guide, and a mini-tour through British history, it's a delight!

This lovely little volume is a gift that keeps on giving. Its essays are simple, elegant, soulful, inspiring. And thought-provoking. You may well find yourself searching your own Christmas memories, and finding gems you had long forgotten. Which is what this book is all about -- seeing, hearing, remembering those things we take for granted, and cherishing them anew. This is a book to feed the heart, and the soul. And it's just the right size for stocking stuffing!

The kind of collection that is a great gift during the holidays for anyone - it reminds us of the spirit of the season and connects us to our past, our hopes, and the more important meaning of our lives! Great gift for family members, co-workers, neighbors and for anyone on your list!!

As I sit here gazing fondly at my musty, yellowed first edition DAW paperback of 'Nift the Lean' (did this book Ever come out in hardcover?), I still remember skulking up to the check out counter in a fashionably cool NYC bookstore in early '83. My companion did not want to be seen with me while I purchased this book because the cover art was 'embarassingly bad'. Well, his loss, because after reading a few paragraphs, I didn't care if there was dog's doo on the cover - I was buying it! Not a single review or word of praise was on the back or inside the cover. But someone else must have braved the snotty bookstore clerks, because, low and behold, next thing you know, it wins the world fantasy award. (My companion eats some serious crow, here.)

I've read a lot of fantasy (and science fiction, and science fantasy) over the years. Very few books in this genre hold a candle to Nift. Was there ever a story richer, more inventive or more delightfully horrifying than 'Fishing in the Demon-Sea'? Was there ever a character in all of dark fantasy as strange and evocative as the Privateer? Or an action sequence with more edge-or-your-seat excitement than the hell-ride down the mine shaft? (Did Steven Spielberg read this story before he made 'Temple of Doom' - you bet he did.)

After so many years it is baffling to come here and find that this book is still not recognized for a classic of dark fantasy. That it is Still out of print. All I can say is get your hands on a stinky, dog-eared copy of this book and read it - you can't have mine!

How many books have you read that begin with a eulogy for the title character? _Nifft the Lean_ starts with a promise of hard-edged, high-intensity dark fantasy, and then delivers in four masterful novelettes.

Set in a lurid, bizarre world reminiscent of Jack Vance's "Dying Earth", these stories relate how Nifft and various partners wager their very souls in the course of pursuing their "art". With atmosphere surpassing that of even the greatest masters of dark fantasy, Shea matches eerie visions with sheer horror to create his own flavor of sword and sorcery.

Shea is able to create a character in Nifft that transcends the common fantasy stereotypes often found in second rate fiction and role-playing game supplements. Nifft and his main partner, Barnar, are not tricksters, silly picaros, or slinking alley trash; they are mercenary hereos with their own amoral code of honor. Like Howard's Conan, and Leiber's Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser, Shea's characters are the kind of men who show disdain for wealth by stealing a fortune and then drinking it all away. The cosmology of Nifft's world is reminiscent of that found in the ancient epics of Gilgamesh, or Homer, where a man must strive to live boldly and well, since no paradise lies beyond death.

Where Shea truly shines is in his powers of description. Nifft, Barnar and the other characters tromp through a chaotic landscape rife with gruesome detail. Vivid settings, such as those encountered in the Land of Death, or the first Demon Subworld, are not easily forgotten. Shea also makes masterful use of perspective: one story being narrated by Nifft himself, others being third person accounts, or first person narrations by friends of Nifft, pretending to be Nifft... All in all, Shea provides us with a great variety of narrative styles.

Even those who normally disdain sword and sorcery type fiction as hackneyed and simplistic are urged to read _Nifft the Lean_. Shea brings a new level of intellegence to the genre rarely seen in recent decades. A man is drug forcibly down through the depths of hell. What is the final torture awaiting him there? Probably not what you think....

Shea, unfortunately not a very prolific author, has shown his mastery in this work (Nifft the Lean even won the World Fantasy award for best novel, 1983!). Be on the lookout for a new edition of this book in the fall, hopefully followed soon by a sequel!.

I really like this book because I can always use it to refer to any stat I'm looking for. It is a complete package. Has Everythin From rookies, to stars to All time records!

I first read Shea in the form of his award-winning story "Polyphemus". I read but little fantasy, prefering SF. Shea is a HELLUVA Science Fiction writer, but he is NOT the most prolific around! Trying to get Shea and Vernor Vinge to step up their output is a task dear to my heart!

This is an excellent, excellent book. The Nift stories are sort of a darker version of Jack Vance, with a similar level of creativity and gripping imagery.

The only thing to be careful about is if you are buying this book because you loved the other two Nift Books (Raiders of the Infernal Domain and Mines of Behemoth), because there is no new material in this book.

The Cheap Truth review of NIFFT THE LEAN says it betterthan I could possibly manage: "This is an important, even crucial book, with the lurid brilliance and craftsmanlike discipline of a Bosch canvas. Not to be missed."

As someone who has spent their entire professional life in politics, this book did not break any new ground. However, as someone who now teaches democracy in the former Soviet Union, I do like to read these types of books to order my normally scattered thoughts and be able to communicate ideas more effectively.

Shea's update of his orginal 1996 text is a very competent overview of most aspects of modern campaigning and is highly recommended for anyone working in the business or anyone who just wants to know how modern campaigns function. The book is highly modular, you can read various sections independently of each other. Shea pays close attention to research - a topic often given short shrift in many campaigns but deadly necessary in developing strategy. He covers well opposition research, precinct targeting by electoral history and polling (including the differences between different types of polls and why the ballot test is not necessarily the most useful. Something I can't get the Azeris to understand!!!)

Shea and Burton also explain the various aspects of paid and earned media strategy, including the use of "new" media. (I'm not sold on the use of the Net to move message, but it does have excellent fieldwork potential.) Their sections on fundraising and fieldwork are a bit skimpy, but certainly enlightening to people unfamiliar with the campaign operation.

All in all, Campaign Craft is a solid workhorse of a book, dutifully explaining in good detail the various aspects of a modern political operation. It's well recommended to anyone looking for an overview of the biz.

This book made me feel like I back in school (in a good way)! It was very informative and covered all the bases. I am about to begin a career in campaign management, and I think this book is one of my best resources. I got the most out of the section on fundraising.

This book is one of the first books I reccomend whenever anyone asks me for a primer on political campaign strategy. This book is not for true beginners - if you don't know how to run a get out the vote operation or organize your grassroots organization, buy this book AFTER you've read a book geared towards beginners.

If you know the basics though, this book will guide you through Political Campaign Strategy 201 - it is a great, intermediate level work.

I wrote "25 Fundraising Secrets - Raise More Money, Guaranteed" to give political candidates some great advice on fundraising for thier campaigns. I often tell readers of my book to check out Shea's book as well, which has an good fundraising strategy section that gives the basics, and compliments my "secrets" book well.

If you liked Nift the Lean by this author, you will definitely appreciate this book.

I'm a big fan of Michael Shea's Nifft books, but for me, this book beats 'em hands down. The mix of adventure and horror is very similar, but Shea really pulls out all the stops on this one. There are just too many bizarre and grotesquely fascinating things going on in this story to mention here. Just take my word for it, if you liked his other books, or enjoy reading Jack Vance, you will probably also love this book.

Having been a Nifft the Lean fan since the first book, I eagerly bought and devoured The Mines of Behemoth. In the final installment in the saga, The A'rak, however, I did not care for the changing between Nifft and Lagademe as narrators. That being said, I did enjoy every page and recommend it to all. A very vivid world, bizarre creatures and one of fantasy's most original heroes await you.

I have loved Shea's stories about Nifft the Lean since NIFFT THE LEAN, his first Nifft collection, came out in 1982. (I'd love to see what, say, George Lucas or Spielberg could do with "The Fishing of the Demon-Sea" or "Come, Then, Mortals, We Will Seek Her Soul," maybe starring Will Smith as the intrepid Nifft -- nbody else I can think of has quite the panache, the dash, the daring, the attitude, and the ability to clock somebody a good one before he, she, or it can do him serious damage that would go with Nifft.) _The A'rak_ continues in this same tradition. Not only is it a great adventure story, but it is one of the finest satires on our current political scene of any I've ever read. Long may Nifft wave!

Irish American Hero is a modern classic that reaches deep into a secret world. Many Americans have supported the Irish Republican Army and other groups for years. This may be the first and only book that looks at this world from the inside. If you want to fight a war on terrorism you should read this book. I'd suggest
President Bush buy a copy and study it. He needs to know that their is more going on than just "evil doers".
Don't pass up a chance to read this book.

When I first discovered this short novel I thought it might make an interesting St. Patrick's day gift for some Irish friend.
However, once I started to read it, I realized just how important a work this novel was going to be. After the attack on the World Trade Center I saw this novel as an exploration into the mind of a terrorist. Mr. Sheehan shows us why people hate and why they take action on their hate. He shows us the inside world of the terrorists and how they think and function with uncanny perception. If you have ever wondered why terrorists hate and why they kill then you must read this book. Mr. Sheehan has composed a masterpiece.

This book really opens up the world of terrorism. I thought at first this was just an "Irish" novel but it really explores the world of terrorism and its supporters. Sheehan really must have done his research. He knows how terroist cells work and operate and he even seems to know what goes on in the mind of a terrorist.

After the events of 9-11-01 this is a book everyone should read!

This book is simply bursting with information. From highly technical data and calculations on measuring reverberation time to the most effective way to erect a stud wall for best sound insulation.
I doesn't matter if you're not too keen on the technical stuff as the book in quite readable (and useful) whatever level of information you are looking to acquire.

The 12 case studies are also very useful and the writers have provided a variety of possible solutions in many cases depending on available budget.
p.s. You can stop hoarding egg boxes now!