"The Papers of Ulysses S. Grant" is a project begun in 1962 for the purpose of publishing all the known letters written by Ulysses S. Grant. Volume one was published in 1967 and there are now twenty-four volumes in the series. People who follow Grant's career are aware of the inestimable value of this project. The Papers contain all known correspondence written by Grant and letters received by him. The editing of the series is unparalleled and the volumes represent primary source material at its apex.

Those who believe Grant was a "drunkard" or a "butcher" should read his own words, which show Grant's humor, pathos and unique personality. Masterfully edited by John Y. Simon, these volumes are a "must have" for anyone with an interest in U.S. Grant as a general, a politician and as a man

"The Papers of Ulysses S. Grant" is a project begun in 1962 for the purpose of publishing all the known letters written by Ulysses S. Grant. Volume one was published in 1967 and there are now twenty-four volumes in the series. People who follow Grant's career are aware of the inestimable value of this project. The Papers contain all known correspondence written by Grant and letters received by him. The editing of the series is unparalleled and the volumes represent primary source material at its apex.

Those who believe Grant was a "drunkard" or a "butcher" should read his own words, which show Grant's humor, pathos and unique personality. Masterfully edited by John Y. Simon, these volumes are a "must have" for anyone with an interest in U.S. Grant as a general, a politician and as a man

Each of the Novellas has a protagonist of unusual proportions, attempting to find something just slightly beyond himself or herself. While being a part of contemporary fiction, there is a certain historical perspective such as the disposed, wandering Jew of Aharon Appelfeld's "The Isles of St. George." Almost alone on this island, he wants to forget Europe, Israel,and his past. One of the most interesting characters in my opinion is Yani in David Grossman's "Yani on the Mountain." Here is a soldier left to oversee a mountain after the war of 1973. The mountain becomes a support, a challenge, something to be overcome, but his friend confronts him, "Hiding uphere on the mountain--armoring himself with hostility and contempt. Afraid. Afraid.." Benjamin Tammuz has one brother living his life vicariously through watching his brother's life unfold in a near-by house. "The Brother" is a thoughtful tale of envy, suppressed love, and hatred. In Yaakov Shabtai's "Uncle Peretz Takes Flight", a zany Jewish communist wants to save the world (which he doesn't even like very much), attending meetings during the day and coming home to climb up on the roof in preparation for flight. Altogether, this is a wonderful collection of stories.

A note to readers -- the first half of this book is more of a chronicle of WW I than an account of the Lusitania. If you're just a disaster buff, you'll probably like the Titanic stories better than this. The author explains in his final note that he deliberately focused on the historical context and meaning of this event rather than the minutia of the sinking itself (as he does in his Titanic book). I personally enjoyed the WWI refresher. There are still many unanswered questions about the ship's death -- did Churchill deliberately let it be struck to draw the US into battle? We may never know. The author does a nice job of putting this event in context. The sinking chapters are shorter than you'd think (heck, the ship went down in 18 minutes) but there is a lot of juicy background stuff here.

This textbook places the student in the role of a systems administrator and treats the learner as a competant computer user from the first chapter. The students like this approach. Included projects build from one chapter/topic to another. However, some of the practical exercises are a little too vague for the beginner. Projects seem to jump around from using a step-by-step approach to using an overview approach, even within the same project and without warning. Order of presentation of topic is genterally good but, Chapters 4 and 7 deal with the NDS. Chapters 5 and 8 deal mainly with the file system. This alternating of topics can be very confusing for the learner. Having taught one 14 week term with this text, I would recommend dealing with the NDS, then with the file system instead of jumping around like this. I am currently teaching from this text for the second time. Also, this book should only be adopted if the class will have exclusive use of atleast one Novell server because all exercises assume that the instructor setup disk has been used. It sets up the teaching server with the assumption that only one group uses the server simultaneously and exclusively. The author prepared the exercises for his own classes and they worked well for him. I, however, must share the teaching server with 4 other classes. In order to provide my students with precise step-by-step instructions geared towards our college teaching server, I had to create my own labs. It was the students who requested more detailed lab instructions. Overall this would be a great book, 5 stars if it were more consistent in project instructions and better organized in chapter sequences. C. Booth-Smith, Durham College

A very interesting book that is full of facts for the scientist interested in diseases of animal and humans. The format is simple and easy to understand.

Following the Simpson trial was a bit of a closet pleasure (even that is strange to admit) and this book sort of follows that indulgence's path. Bender DOES capture what seems to be Simpson's "real" personality (or at least, persona), as well as the shallow show biz and celeb world. But this is counterbalanced by the overall effect coming off a little thin and sketchy. This also makes for a quick read, which helps. But there's no knockout. F. Harris

David Bender has written a remarkable book here, one which I sailed through in a single attentive sitting. With the freedom of a novelist, the freedom to speculate, the freedom from debates and arguments and political positions, Bender has written more human truth about the Simpson case than most other books on the topic. I was a consultant for the prosecution in the Simpson criminal case, and then for the Golman family attorneys in the civil case, and I know the case very, very well. I also came to know the man, the batterer, the murderer O.J Simpson, and no matter how you feel about his guilt or innocence, David Bender's book paints a picture of the fictional Simpson that is far clearer, and with more delicate brush-strokes than you'll ever likely see of the so-called "real" Simpson. Read the book for the pure enjoyment of the novel. If it adds some light to your impressions of the case, all the better. - Gavin de Becker, author THE GIFT OF FEA

When I first began to read "The Confession of O.J. Simpson", I admit that I was intrigued by the prospect of novel tying up all the lose ends of the case. While the "confession" is plausible and compelling, the great strength of this novel is its keen insights into Simpson's persona. The subtle dialog captures an OJ that is by turns a likable pitchman, a self pitying lost soul, and a cold manipulator. The novel also skillfully portrays our morbid fascination with Simpson's celebrity and OJ's own warped view of his star power. This book is a success on many levels. It can be enjoyed as a psychological thriller, a murder mystery, a social commentary, or a well written page turner. I highly recommend David Bender's "The Confession of O.J. Simpson."

Please, not again! We heard it before. Jesus from space. At least Simpson manages to be entertaining. Which is really what books like these are all about, since those looking to serious and intellectual analyses of important issues know to look elsewhere.

With this book you are drawn into another world, once you start reading it you can't stop. This book is suggestive. From the beginning you get involved in the problems and intrigues on a spaceship and it's like you are allowed to participate through a camera. The whole scenario is very well written and even if this has a link to one of the worlds biggest events it still the people on the spaceship that has the leading role. It stir up the birth of Jesus and what he achieved and you have to have a very open mind to be able to receive this message. You will have more questions then answers reading this. Did aliens really create Jesus? What proof do we have that the Christian believe is correct? Is it more to this we haven't yet revealed? What I like most about this story is the in question of the power that people have created through religion. The church`s complete power over people during the last 2000 years. This book can make people think and through that - as the message of this book says - start to believe in themselves. Even those who are strict religious should read this, you can be sure of your own answer and yet injoy this reading. Whatever viewpoint you have in these matters you will feel a disappointment when the book is finished. Let's hope there will be a continuation.

I bought this book because the subject is one of controversy and debate. After reading it I felt cheated by the fact the answers I wanted were not immediately obvious. It was then I began to look deeper and to not only question what was written but also what I personally believed. Then I realized my belief was built on the teaching of the past, the reality of life today and the future we are moving towards are built on the same foundation. I had my answer.
I hope and pray for a sequel.

Let me preface this review by saying that I am very familiar with Zizek and generally like his work. The Sublime Object of Ideology is a wonderful book as is his recent essay on September 11th. His tendency to quick and sloppy (though often brilliant) arguments is both elucidating and annoying. And for those who read enough of him, you'll notice he tends to recycle shamelessly whole passages from his works (read, for example, his essay on The Matrix side-by-side with the September 11th essay).

In this lecture on Lost Highway, Zizek reaches an all-time low. His argument is wild and often unclear (though incredibly entertaining) and filled with more pop culture than analysis. His central thesis - that you can't read Lynch as some sort of postmodern metaphysical flow - is right on the money, but darned if Zizek can present an alternate way to read him.

What's most unforgivable about this work, however, is that he's continuously jumbling Lost Highway's plot. He mixes up characters, screws up dialogue, and rearranges the order of narrative events. Despite the mess, he still makes some keen and evocative points, but nothing to excuse his sloppiness.

Interviews with Zizek reveal him as an anxiety-ridden, very lazy man, who is not above lying to his students to get out of working with them. (He's admitted to filling in office-hour signup sheets with imaginary names in big lecture classes so as not to have to meet with students). I won't discount his genius as a thinker and entertainer, but this terrible piece on Lynch is only emblematic of his thinking in general. Zizek fans and Lynch fans alike, stay away from it!

This is my first exposure to the work of Slavoj Zizek, but it probably will not be my last. Undeniably studied, Zizek is able to write with an unusual fusion of irreverent pop-cultural wit and stuffy intellectual jargon. That makes this breezy (43 page) study easy to read and profoundly deep at the same time. But don't mistake "profoundly deep" for "profoundly revealing" or "profoundly correct", as it is none of the above.

A self-proclaimed Lacanian, Zizek makes a case for an anti-Fruedian, anti-Jungian psychoanalytic interpretation of what is perhaps David Lynch's most obscure feature film since Eraserhead. As published on Amazon.com and elsewhere, I prefer a Jungian interpretation of Lost Highway, and for good reason: it fits extremely well. To deny this is to deny the evidence of one's own eyes.

All the same, Zizek's intellect is beyond dispute, and his reading of Lost Highway should be of great interest to film theorists and serious David Lynch fans alike.

When I first saw "Lost Highway," I almost immediately dismissed it as far too unhinged and complex to analyize. It was at turns fascinating and familiar, then frustrating and detached. I was simply amazed at the ability of Lynch to create a narrative that seemed so disjointed, and yet oddly and strangely complete.

Slavoj Zizek however, has no trouble distilling the tale to what he believes are its basic elements. He views the tale through the lens of Jacques Lacan, (A Freudian revisionist.) He exhaustively discusses the implications of Fred's impotence and (possible) fantasy of violence and escape, and the construction of a fantasy that includes a virile version of himself, and a disjointededly evil "Father" figure in Mr. Eddy. He boils the tale down to the implications of such contructions and their inherent and necessary failure, because the very fears that call them into play tear them apart. (As seen by the re-introduction of dark haired Renee and Fred's Physical form in the second half of the film.)

He also addresses other aspects of the work, first, as the title suggests, he discusses this work as a film that addresses both a "known" reality, (the convoluted plot) and an ineffable, yet unconsciously addressable sort of hyper reality (the "Real" meaning behind the work.) He does this by exploring many themes, reducing them often to cliche's drawn from popular culture. He looks at Renee/Alice's role as femme fatale in a "neo-noir" setting, the issues of male construction of phallic fantasy and sexual objectivism, the role of ultimate evil and impossible beauty in the Lynch catalogue, and he finally hails Lost Highway as an example of what movies can become in the future, a sort of hypertexed jungle of possibilities and superimposed realities, where the viewer can control (or believe they can control,) the outcome of the film.

He really helped me appreciate the forces at play (whether they are intentionally placed there by the author or no,) in a film that I already thoroughly enjoyed. He lets me explore the aspects of this film that "Spoke" to me on a level that I could not previously express, and yet somehow I understood.

Finally, a word on the craft aspect of this book. This is less a paperback book than it is a pamphlet or portfolio. Nonetheless, the 40 pages of essay are meaty enough for several readings, and the issues covered will have you watching Lost Highway about eight more times, and getting more and more out of it as you pick up on moments in the plot that help you expound on Zizek's ideas. It is well worth the price, and easily accessable to the reader that has no knowledge of Freud or Lacan. Zizek is an outstanding writer. He does not insult his reader in an attempt to dumb his subject down, nor does he fill his prose with lengthy words that leave one scrambling for the dictionary.

Really not worth reading. Poorly written but more than that the author never forms conclusions. Re: OJ he was a 'consultant' for the defense so his 'objectivity' is severely compromised. He suspects OJ is innocent but offers no other idea as to what happened. He suggests a UFO autopsy may or may not be real. He is inconclusive in suggesting Vince Foster killed himself. When it's not downright unbelievable it's downright boring. Further he fawns at everyone including Lee, Ito, and the Today Show hosts; he's nice enough too to put in a good word for his wife. Don't bother.

I found this book to be a waste of my time. The fist in many book that I have read about the O.J. Trial.
I found the first review from "Reader in Somerville, N.J." to be a waste of time also since they put the same review...word for word in every review they give. How can that help you with a book when a person just repeats thier views over & over for every book. Answer=It can't.

These chapters came from cases where his knowledge was crucial in exposing official mistakes of showing weaknesses by the prosecution. The accuracy and fairness of crime lab evidence are entirely dependent on proper identification, protection, and transfer of evidence from the crime scene. The Introduction explains how a seeming accident was found to be murder by analyzing the entrance wound and the position of the shotgun. Forensic pathology investigates sudden, violent, or unexplained deaths. 75% of all deaths are from natural causes, 75% of the rest are accidental. About 1.5% are suicides and homicides. Many of the most controversial cases on record have involved medical examiner systems, due to political influence (p.9).

Chapter 1 deals with the Trial of OJ Simpson, and the evidence for guilt or innocence. One of the biggest mistakes was to not get a forensic pathologist to the scene immediately; important evidence was lost forever (p.34). Nicole's stomach contents were discarded; if empty, then 3 or more hours elapsed since her last meal. Page 43 tells of the high error rate in laboratory testing of blood and other specimens. Nicole's uncorroborated diary wrote of being followed to a "Payless shoe store". Would a fan of fashion and style ever go there? Page 49 says there is NO regulation on DNA testing, or of the astronomical percentage estimates. Page 59 tells that two weeks after the murders there was no blood on those socks; weeks later there was! Page 67 says no cuts were seen on OJ's hands on the flight to Chicago. Page 70 tells of Cochran's wearing that knitted cap; to me, it looked like a child's cap.

Chapter 2 discusses the suicide of Vincent Foster, and how rumor mongers blew it up into a fantasy (p.81). Chapter 3 tells of his investigations into the aftermath of Waco. This was a tragedy that never should have occurred (p.100). Chapter 4 tells of a shoot-out in Cleveland; the coroner's staff was guilty of deliberate, willful, and clever deception (p.114). Chapter 5 tells of a shooting in Chicago where "this whole operation may have been nothing more than a political assassination" (p.131). The State Attorney and the police officers involved in the raid were charged, and found at fault (p.134). Chapter 6 deals with the 1989 Oakland earthquake. Many who died would be alive if state and local emergency management officials had done their jobs quickly and efficiently (p.142). The autopsy reports were done by the lowest bidder, and the reports had the lowest quality (p.146). Chapter 7 tells of the nightclub fire in 1977 Cincinnati. Many did not die of burns or smoke inhalation, but from invisible and odorless toxic fumes (p.162).

Chapter 8 explains why a fall from a high building was homicide and not suicide or an accident. Chapter 9 investigated the mysterious death of a government opponent; it was an accident. Chapter 10 tells of the unexpected death of a government official; it was a natural death. Chapter 11 tells of the execution of a maid that caused an international incident. Chapter 12 deals with the swine flu panic of 1976, a result from using "Legionnaires Disease" to allocate money and authority to the CDC and FDA (p.231). At least 52 people died after receiving swine flu vaccine. Chapter 13 tells of a man serving a life sentence for stabbing his wife and her parents. Fingerprints found at the scene did not match the suspect, the victims, or those who were in the house before the murders (p.247). After the State forced the defense lawyer off the case, he was convicted at the third trial (p.258)! Pages 259-60 tell why a jury will convict even if the evidence is unconvincing! Chapter 14 tells of his viewing of an 18 minute videotape of an autopsy on an unknown being. He could not say it was a hoax.