Ed O'Brien (as always) has done a magnificiant job on another Sinatra book

Susan Loesser's biography of her father, Frank, does what it set out to do: Tell us about the man behind the songs. Unfortunately, that man wasn't as appealing as his music. I was disappointed to find out how Mr. Loesser treated his family and those he worked with. It seems that those who are most talented are often prima donnas personally, and Frank Loesser certainly fit that mold. HIs violent temper, condescending attitudes toward those who didn't meet his standards, and complete failure as a father comprised the dark side of Mr. Loesser. And that sailor's tongue! Hats off to the author for not glossing over these facts. She's frank (no pun intended) in expressing her disappointment with certain traits of her father.

However, there was a very bright side to Frank Loesser, and the book focuses primarily on this side of his life. His astounding command of the language in his lyrics and his entertaining personal letters highlight the brilliant talents that made him the household name he is.

Of particular note are the details surrounding his vision of such shows as Guys and Dolls, and his various friendships (with people such as John Steinbeck) and his conflicts (his disagreements with Frank Sinatra were entertaining to read). It's also fun to hear the fascinating personal anecdotes shared by Susan Loesser.

Early on, I found myself bored with the details of the Loesser family, but soon warmed up to the book, enjoying it greatly. Frank gave us some wonderful lyrics and music, and despite his personal shortcomings, his story is, as the title says, remarkable.

I highly recommend this well written, thoughtful, highly personal biography by Frank Loesser's daughter. If at all possible it is a good idea, I feel, to be playing through the "Frank Loesser Songbook" on your piano during the period you are reading this biography, as the combination of playing Frank Loesser's music on the piano in conjunction with reading his daughter's explanations of how the music came to be, is powerful to say the least. I had not realized until I read this book how important Frank Loesser is to Broadway. I now understand that Loesser is up there with Rogers/Hammerstein and Sondheim. Frank Loesser was larger than life. In my opinion we all owe a debt of gratitude to his daughter for writing a book about him that will live on to be the definitive, and only, book about this important man's amazing, interesting life.

This book shines from the Broadway History bookshelf. What appears as a modest portrait of Frank Loesser by his daughter, turns out to be a delightful history of Broadway. The beautifully researched stories of his productions are priceless. The lyrics, which lavishly illustrate Loesser's wonderful use of the language, are perfectly scattered throughout. The stories of the man himself, the era in which he worked, and the people who were part of his creative world, reveal the complexities and changing scene of Broadway production. Driven and demanding, he alienated Sinatra and slapped a leading lady; yet he meticulously crafted legendary shows like Guys and Dolls, and Most Happy Fella. Susan Loesser brings great warmth, an enormous amount of research and, obviously, a first-person sensibility to the story of this brilliant, funny, difficult, irascible, demanding, creative, and driven man. Frank Loesser told his casts "Loud is Better". This book is not loud, but it is wonderful.

The printing in the Amereon Edition of this book is poor. The pages look like faded xerox copies. This book contains no color plates, no dust jacket and is small in size. The book claims to be a limited edition. Well for a limited edition the four or so illustration plates are out of order and nowhere near the stories they belong to. If you want to buy this book, buy a better hardcover version. This book was copyrighted in 1903. It contains the roots of several ideas that really take off in Baum's OZ books. There are stories of changing heads, a large mechanical man and a little evil wizard guy who lives underground in a ruby mine ( a la the Gnome King). However none of the stories comes close to the OZ tales. The one story in this book that keeps me from giving a rating of one star is "The Land Of Civilized Monkeys". Has the Baum family sued that French guy who wrote Planet Of The Apes? If not they should. How about a story where a young man lands from the sky into a civilization run by apes. He is roped and caged as a wild animal. He is put on display and examined by ape scientists as the possible "missing link" from which the apes descended. Sound familiar?? Baum wrote it in 1903 or so.

Dover edition does have color plates, in fact "all 15 of the full-page color plates and all of the more than 100 line drawings prepared by Frank Ver Beck for the first two editions [1900 and 1903]." This is a collection of 14 "surprises." But Mo, the land where these stories all take place, is like Oz in many ways. It is a land of enchantment where marvelous tings hapen, where people do not die, and where animals can talk. The landscape of Mo abounds in things children love to ear, and everything anyone wants grows from its trees. It was published (as A New Wonderland) the same year as the original Wizard of Oz.

This was one of my favorite books as a child and having recently reread it, I must say it works on an adult level as well. It's very imaginative and funny and shows what Baum could do when he let his imagination run away with him. I think it's better than any of the Oz books.

Losson has written a book about a military leader and his division of the War Between the States, both of whom were nearly forgotten in the wealth of books about that war. Both a biography and a history, the author stays focused on his subjects, not letting the broader picture of the war distract him.

Benjamin Franklin Cheatham, a career soldier who served in the War with Mexico, commanded Hood's corps for a while. His entire career in the war was served in the western theater, most of it in and around Tennessee. The war wasn't just with the Yankees when Braxton Bragg commanded the corps, for the two men despised each other.

Cheatham was a man who found the going rough between the two wars, but made his mark in the later conflict, in spite of accusations against his character. After the war, he was more successful as a citizen than before, heading the Tennessee State Penitentiary system for time. However, over the years, with most interest in Lee, Grant, and the eastern theater, he was nearly forgotten

This book is well written and an easy read, but could have used the skill of a good proofreader. Typos and other errors are sometimes distracting. Readers interested in the Civil War, particularly the western theater, will find this an interesting account. They might also enjoy "Five Tragic Hours" by McDonough and Connelly, and "Shiloh: In Hell before Night" by McDonough.

This is an excellent book about a little-written about general. Although Frank Cheatham rose to the rank of major general, was active in Tennessee after the war, was one of the Western Theater's more colorful and controversial figures, and his division was considered one of best in the West, he and his division have not received much attention from writers. Losson has changed this and has written both an excellent bio of Cheatham and a good look at the men that made up his division. Another good thing about this book is that Losson focuses on Cheatham and his division, rather than straying to other generals or divisions. The book takes a good look at the battles, both military and political, that Cheatham fought. Overall, the book is excellent, reads well, has tons of diaries and letters, and is entertaining. However, I gave 4 stars rather than 5 because the text has many errors, whether it be spelling or grammatical. There are many of them and it gets annoying after a while. Other than that, a great read.

This book has given us a lot of valubable information concering the time period. we would strongly recommened this book to any one who wanted to learn more on the subject. 5 stars!

"This is simply the best book I've ever read on building a powerhouse brand. Delano has done a masterful job. You'll come away with a blue print for creating a 'great' brand name and what it takes to create what Delano calls an 'omnipowerful 'brand. Delano's client stories are a fascinating read. Believe me, this is a must read for anyone involved in brand management, marketing, advertising, sales, or public relations." -- Ann Trotter

I would like to congratuate Frank Delano on writing "The Omnipowerful Brand" book. I found the entire book captivating and full of valuable information. I believe proper branding and brand image is key to being successful in the market place. Your book provides the headlights in guiding the development of successful brand names and how to build a powerful brand image. As my company is just starting up, "The Omnipowerful Brand" will be referenced for many years. Thank you for providing this valuable information. I hope my competition doesn't read it. --

Frank Delano is unquestionably America's #1 Brand Specialist. He has proven it with his new book, "The OmniPowerful Brand". If you want to create a great brand name for your product, service or business venture, this book is a must read. But Delano doesn't stop there, and that is what makes this book the value of gold. Delano goes on to tell you how to turn a great brand name into the "Omnipowerful Brand" via advertising, brand slogans, and the internet. This book also reveals insights into the next dimension of brand marketing for the twenty-first century. If you are in marketing, product management, advertising, public relations, engineering, or market research, you have got to read this book. Delano's client stories will amaze you - they are fascinating and better than sex.

This book is very good to understand the works of Wright. The biography put always in parrallel his life with his works, so it is interesting to understand why he makes one project or another at a certain time. the books has also a good selection of photography and drawings not seen in must of the others books.

How much you enjoy this book probably depends on how much of a Wrightaphile you are. It is not an easy read, but is the best book I have read about his "organic" architecture philosophy. It also emphasizes how much his mother played a part in his life in appreciating nature and developing the foundations for his later architecture. Some times I felt like I was getting the Olgivanna marketing slant, but overall I felt she was very true to his vision of architecture. You will learn a to appreciate what Wright was attempting to do even if you don't agree with whether he actually accomplished it.

This book (by Miles, not Watson) is a great place to start to learn the important points in Zappa history. It shows most of the famous pictures of Zappa throughout the years. The small, story-like presentation makes for fast reading and its fun to skip around. The book in no way attempts to analyse the modern day composer, just quotes or interviews. There is no Watson, Poodle Play here, just fun! Other books would better suit the long-time Zappaphile!

A far future of Mankind, with all the science, polititcs, religion, and all the corruption one might expect. Strong characters, an ingenious plot, and a gripping setting. If you like the first one, you'll love the rest.

The narrative jumps from one absurdity to the next. Two-thirds in, I tossed it into the trash can. The plot is forced, the characters are contrived, the decisions Tyler makes are unbelievable and naive, especially for a judge who has some inkling of how savy criminals think.

That Julia's mother would never tell her daughter who her father is is another ridiculous assumption. And that no one would question why Margo/Julia would sign away her billion dollar interest in the inheritance to some unknown corporation--and no one would question that?--is beyond even ridiculous.

This book is a super insult to my tiny intelligence. I hope the author will think out his story more effectively in the future. He has a fine talent, but is wasting it by writing super-pulp fiction like this.

Sidney Sheldon, the best author in the world, will not disappoint any of his readers with this book. Morning, Noon, and Night is another intriguing, fast-paced thriller. There are innumerable plot twists, and the end is no less shocking. As with most of Sheldon's books, every chapter ended with a cliffhanger, keeping the reader interested in what the next chapter will bring.

This book revolves around a very wealthy and influential family known as the Stanfords. When the father dies, his children, the three heirs to the fortune, are shocked to find that they may have and illegitimate sister with whom they must share their wealth. This family carries out all of the major components of a great action novel: murder, revenge, greed, blackmail, and a splash of romance.

Although shorter than the average Sidney Sheldon novel, Morning Noon and Night has no less an impact. The short nature of the book actually gives it a sense of urgency. A combination of these elements kept me constantly reading. I finished this book in a little more than four hours.

Morning, Noon, and Night is a masterpiece, even for an author as brilliant as sheldon. No Sheldon fan will be disappointed with this work.

I have never read a book like,"Morning, Noon, and Night." Sidney Sheldon did an exquisite job on the plot. The story revolved around a billion dollar man named Harry Stanford. He had four children. Three by his wife and one by another woman he had an affair with. Harry was brutal towards his children. He had no faith in them and had no love for them. His wife committed suicide no longer after Harry's affair. She could tolerate his abuse no longer. Stanford was in for it big time. Many people were out to get him. Only, the outcome of his death is the most crucial part of the book. I will put it this way: Stanford had a will that was being divided three ways, or maybe even four.

The content was a definate pleasure in the story. Fraud, suicide, murder, drugs, sex,and swearing were main points. The most surprising of all the themes is undeniably the fraud. Sidney Sheldon described the fraud so flawlessly, that even the closest reader could not have caught the drift. His tricks on your mind threw the curves desired in a priceless novel. The suicides were undoubtfully enormous cases of irony. Irony just makes a story twice as much fun. Last but not least, advanced audiences aren't left out. The sexuality and sexual themes were existant and quite vivid. These themes makes a premium read that much better.

I definately, recommend this book,"Morning, Noon, and Night", to anyone and everyone. Sheldon, unmistakenably, has the most original style I have ever seen a writer have. Sheldon has major capacity and skills. It's a quick read, because it never drops to a broing read. Also, a reader must read and comprehend most details. It always leaves you thinking and guessing. This book, is one of the best I have ever read, and I do indeed recommend this book to everyone who is literate.