"Powers of Ten" is one of the most influential science books ever printed. It taught me, and tens of thousands of other children, that a "sense of wonder" is something you can get from science, as well as from science fiction. I found it in a bookstore seven or eight years ago, and was immediately transported back to when I first read it, in my school library, at the age of ten. I was swept off my feet at ten years old, and the book can still sweep me off my feet today.

The original film was potent too; more so in the directness with which it expresses the scale of the world. But the book, with its annotations and additional pictures, has its own power. You can flip back and forth, and take as much time as you want absorbing the incredible range of scale in the universe.

The book's first picture is scaled at about a billion light years across--ten to the twenty-fifth metres. On this scale even super-clusters of galaxies are just clots of dust on a black background. The right hand side of each page, as you go through the book, zooms in by a factor of ten, and we dive into galaxy clusters, into our galaxy, our spiral arm, our solar system, through the moon's orbit and into the earth's atmosphere, down into North America, and then Chicago, and a picnicker asleep in a park. After twenty five pages we're at a human scale; the pictured scene is a metre across. But the camera continues to zoom in; to the picnicker's hand, through his skin to a lymphocyte, and on down through the cell nucleus to coils of DNA, to a carbon atom and through its electron cloud, and down to the nucleus and beyond. Sixteen pages from the picnicker have brought us to the quarks.

The left hand side of each page provides companion pictures and comments, some drawn from the history of science. For the nanometre picture there's a copy of John Dalton's two-hundred-year-old models of simple molecules; at the millimetre and tenth-millimetre scale there are pictures of radiolaria, seeds, and other microscopic beauties. All are interesting and informative.

I can't recommend this book too strongly--it's a fundamental work of scientific culture, and should be in every house. However, I particularly recommend that you buy this for any nine-to-fourteen-year-old child in your life; it's the best way I know to introduce a child to a love of science.

I've seen this book for the first time in 1985, when I was kid. It is still my all-time favorite.

Although the book does have lots of textual info pages, the core of the book is a series of 42 full-page pictures which depict the an ordinary picnic photo in different scales.

Starting from an ordinary dude resting on the grass, each page turn shows the scene from 10 times farther away. First we see the park he is picnicing on, then the entire city, and before you know it we are in deep space racing towards the outskirts of the Universe.

On the other side of the journey, each page turn magnifies the last picture tenfold. First by viewing a close-up view of the picnicing guy's hand, you quickly find yourself probing deeper and deeper through the realms of biology and chemistry right into the core of a single atom.

The really cool thing about the whole deal, is that all the images are centered at the same object: a single atom on the picnicing dude's hand.

In short, the idea is absolutely brilliant. The images chosen for the presentation is not perfect, but they are still amazing. Of-course, the film is much more impressive then the book, but you can't take a film with you to a camping trip...

This is a great book. Believe it or not, I walk my 5 year old son through the pictures. I am sure it is not meant for youngsters but it can be used like I am am doing.

The idea behind the book is on its smallest scale it is inside a qark inside an atomic nucleus, inside an atom, attached to a DNA molecule, inside a nucleus of a white blood cell, slightly below the skin on a hand of a man asleep at a picnic on some grass in Chicago....all the way to the scale of the universe. My son and I will transverse the middle 1/3 or 1/2 of the journey. He gets to pick his own bedtime books and he chooses this one out of hundreds once or twice a week.

The pictures make a great way to explain the concept of scale and various aspects of science. On the facing page of the main picture underconsideration are objects of the same scale. You can really see that the tail of a dinosaur is 10 times longer than a man.

For the adult, it is an easy introduction to various aspects of science all at different scales. It is not a super serious book - no math - simple explanations. But as a practicing scientist, I view it as vary factual.

Philip Wylie examines all today's social issues in this book. Sexual equality, alcohol/substance abuse, gay/lesbian issues, and the political turmoil of the era. William P. Gaunt, main character, examines his world when women disappear as does his wife from the alternate realm without men. It is must reading to enlighten yourself on the issues of today from a time when they were developing. My copy has shown its age, the book I've read most often since first buying a copy. It is tattered and I am searching for a replacement.

I first read this book about 40 years ago and loved it (read it at least 10 times while I had it in my possession)...passed it along to friends who loved it as well but always had it returned to me. Somewhere along the line, it was not returned. I didn't think anything of it until I wanted to re-read it and couldn't find it anywhere. In about 1985, I managed to borrow a copy from the library (had to wait 4 weeks, they got it from somewhere far, far away and I was only allowed to keep it for a week.) I even tried to copy it at work when my boss wasn't around but got caught. The ideas of independence, self-reliance, cooperation, love and interdependence as so well illustrated that they have stuck in my mind forever. You really care about the characters. This is a book that is really ageless (oh yes, some things are a little dated) but the premise remains perhaps more timely than ever. Everyone should HAVE to read it...they should have it in the schools. If anyone finds a source, please let me know.

I read this book once only about 40 years ago and had always intended to read it again. Unfortunately, my paperback fell apart after some 30 moves and four different countries and was basically beyond repair as whole chunks of pages went missing. I loved it and at the time, not being aware of the genre, didn't even know it classified as Science Fiction. The Disappearance ranks with Finley Wren, by the same author, as two of the finest books I've ever read. The issue of the separation of the sexes was novel then and remains a novel idea today. I have not seen the notion duplicated in any other novel and certainly nothing with the style of Philip Wylie. I would dearly love to buy another copy to read again. Incidentally, even though it's been some 40 years since I read it, I still remember much of the story vividly, which is more than one can say for some of the more forgettable novels around today.

I have the 1996 hardcover edition of this book and do not know what revisions have been made to this latest addition, however I imagine the text and content will be very similar.
I have found this book to be an excellent source of information on skyscapers in general and the buildings featured in particular.
It has a very easy to read format, witch follows the developement of the skyscraper, with two pages at a time dedicated to one building. This makes it ideal for flicking through and just reading here and there at what ever catches your eye. There are also small gerneral interest and overviews pages troughout the book that help to explain the developement of these buildings.
Not a lot of technical details also make this an easy read and ideal for younger readers.
This is one of the best books I have seen on the subject and I have no reservations recomending this book to anyone even remotely interested in these large buildings.

When I first saw this book, I knew that it had to be on my Christmas "wish list." Upon receiving it, my excitement knew no bounds for this is an exquisitely produced homage to the skyscrapers of the past, present, and future. All the famous are here, from the cover featuring the oft-photographed Chrysler Building in New York to The Twin Towers of the World Trade Center to The IBM Tower of San Francisco. Included are many less known mammoth structures from foreign lands, such as Malaysia's Petronas Towers, touted presently as the tallest of all, and the uniquely designed Bank of China in Hong Kong.

When one says, "The sky is the limit," the pages of this book showcase the adage perfectly.

By Jeffrey K. Herzer -- The jacket notes accurately describe the author's work as exploring "the interaction of text and image on the printed page". This book is wonderfully presented, a collage of big pictures and little treasures -- like under construction photos, sketches and diagrams, or other "trivia bits". You will find some new and precious treat every time you crack the cover. "Skyscrapers" is primarily a history of fifty important and world-famous skyscrapers, beginning with the Washington Monument and the Eiffel Tower & finishing with the Petronas Towers (Malaysia), the Jin Mao Building (Shanghai), and the planned Kuningan Persada Tower (Jakarta, Indonesia). A book about tall buildings should have tall pages...and this book is 18 inches tall and 7-1/2 inches wide. The format is entirely black & white, but most enjoyable. Ms. Dupre's text is short and direct and a perfect complement; it illuminates without getting bogged down in technicalities. Whether you're a skyscraper fanatic, an architect or engineer, or just plain fascinated with tall buildings, it matters not...this is a book everyone can enjoy.

Philip Larkin no longer needs any introduction: he is widely recognised as one of the greatest English poets of the twentieth century.
His poetry may however not be to everyone's taste: there is no place for lace and flowers in Larkin. His work is more often than not dark and reflects the feelings of a man who probably felt everything was wasting away about him: not only his own life, but the world as a whole. Through his poems we discover a man who seems to have skipped childhood and adolescence and who finds himself at fifty having had life pass him by. Larkin's poetry expresses his sourness, his fears, his repressed anger, his spite, his general disgust with society and the modern world. And it does this in the most expressive of ways, never shying away from the words that seem necessary, however crude they might be. There is much beauty in his despair.
If you are sensitive to poetry, then you cannot avoid reading Larkin. Be warned however that you should not read Larkin to brighten up your life: the "happy poems" are few and far between. But read him nonetheless and decide afterwards whether his work is to your liking. He may just hit the spot on one of those lonely evenings when you feel yourself that everything just isn't as it should be. And after that, you will never be able to separate yourself from a copy of Philip Larkin's Collected Poems...

Philip Larkin once remarked that he felt the poet should take the reader by the hand and lead them right into the poem. Maybe that is just another way of saying that his poems are accessible and will touch you even when reading them for the first time.

Yes, Larkin does embody the somewhat grumpy spirit of post-war Britain, but like all good poetry they are about the something that seems to be missing in our lives. There are some feelings no writer has ever put more precisely. Formally rather conservative (rhyme, no daring metaphors), the vocabulary is utterly down to earth. "Talking in bed should be easiest," Larkin begins, only to find out that with the lengthening of the silence "It becomes stil more difficult to find / Words at once true and kind, / Or not untrue and not unkind."

The feelings expressed may not always be nice, nor is this much of a self-help book, so it is utterly opposed to the spirit of our times, but this "old-type natural fouled up-guy" will make you love poetry if you are not yet sure about whether your do ("to prove our almost-instinct almost true: / What will survive of us is love.") Get this European poet looking at himself as if he were a complete stranger as a contrast to you confessional poets!

This is the standard edition of Larkin's poetry. Larkin did not publish a great deal in his lifetime and the addition of a number of previously unpublished poems adds a good deal to his canon. Even with these additions, Larkin was not prolific and wrote no long poems. His reputation rests on a number of short poems written in a characteristic and deceptively simple style. Larkin achieved both accessibility and considerable power with direct, chiselled lyrics that use relatively simple words, metaphors, and allusions. His best poems deal with uncertainty, anxiety, the problems of aging, and aspects of personal disappointment. This wouldn't seem to be very promising but Larkin captures eloquently important aspects of life. There are also some fine and short nature poems. Easy to read and very rewarding.

Randolph Carter is Lovecraft's only hero. He is an expert dreamer, who passes at will through the Gates of Deeper Slumber and openly defies the mythos. He rides Night Gaunts and communicates with Ghouls, Zoots and Cats. In this way, the Randolph Carter series is entirely unlike Lovecraft's other weird tales. The reader actually gets the feeling that things will work out for Randolph Carter.

While to stories are different in tone, they are not different in content. In "Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath," Randolph Carter goes in search of Unknown Kadath, the mountainous home of the gods. In his long journey, he drifts in and out of other stories, encountering Richard Upton Pickman, the City of Celephais, the Cats of Ulthur and an enjoyable assortment of other characters. I advise you to read this story with other Lovecraft books at hand, to reference the cast of characters.

Other tales in this volume complete the quests of Randolph Carter, and tell the stories of other journeys through the Dreamlands. Each story is enjoyable, mixing fancy and horror in equal measure. I recommend this book to fans of "The Sandman."

This book was my introduction to the worlds of HP Lovecraft. I found it in the library, was enthralled for some reason by the title, and took it home to read it. Unfortunately, I took it back when I was done. It took me another eight years to find the Ballantine paperback, when a whole series of HPL was published. Because I remembered this book so fondly, I bought the whole series sight unseen, and have never had a second thought about that decision. tDQoUK is extremely accessible to readers of fantasy in particular, and readers in general. Lovecraft's imagination takes flight in his descriptions of the Dreamlands, with exotic creatures and locales abounding, and a strange little mission undertaken to petition the gods of that land. Strongly influenced by the work of Lord Dunsany, Lovecraft would never again write with such hope and beauty, though his writing would grow stronger as his mature voice emerged. This book is not horror, but high fantasy without elves and swords, rare in these days of Tolkienesque pastiche. Buy it, read it, and your imagination may never be the same again. Join me on the seven hundred steps to the gate of the Dreamlands, and don't forget to count. I'll see you in the Enchanted Wood.

If you enjoy tales of fantasy, qv the Hobbit series by JRR Tolkein or the Elric tales by Michael Moorcock, you must read this scarcely read tale of fantasy by american author H.P. Lovecraft. Understand from the first that this story is more sublime beauty than horror. The horrific cover on the del rey book, though compelling, mis-sells the story. This is a fantasy tale about a dreamer/adventurer who quests through an incredible dreamscape world on a quest to rediscover a fleeting dream city. The main character, Randolph Carter, is a hero of sorts in the Lovecraft universe and his adventures through the dreamlands are some of the most spectacular ever written in any tale of fantasy adventure. Encounters with fantastic creatures of dream and nightmare, compelling characters from ethereal kings and strange gods, to moon flying cats await you. Moreover, you will experience a new sensitivity to the power of beauty, dreams and forgotten childhood memories in a way only the master of the sublime can share. You will experience the imaginitive genius of Lovecraft fully in this often bizarre tale. Lovecraft's command of the English language make virtually every sentence a delight. "Dream-quest of Unknown Kadath" is a spectacularly unusual fantasy tale: the only thing that will haunt you is the power of the breathtaking beauty Lovecraft will paint for you in his commanding eloquence. It is perfectly paced, with no dragging areas, and somewhat of a quick read. A shame because you will wish as you near the end that the book was infinitely thicker. Do not miss this delight of fantasy storytelling! -Javier Roman

I don't drink beer. Never liked the taste and couldn't understand all the hoopla. This book was hilarious. Van Munching's insider viewpoint kept me interested from first chapter to last. His last chapter about Heineken USA's "change for change sake" was right on. Excellent read even for those of us who never understood the mystique of the frosty mug.

Hopefully, it's no surprise to you that American Mega-Breweries have been less than ethical in the representation of their products and in their business practices. If you were unaware of this, I'm going to level with you... it is true. And you should also know that there is no Santa Claus, Clinton did inhale, Elvis is dead and no one could have possibly slept with as many women as Magic Johnson claims he did. No matter how comfy you may make yourself by believing the unbelievable, harsh veracity is better than obstinate naivete.

When I saw a book about indescretion in the American Brewing Industry... well, I chocked it up as just another dissatisfied customer. Just another guy who was irritated at the brewing industry... fed up with the same boring stuff from mega-breweries, year after year. Another guy... well... like me. This assumption turned out to be wrong, but I still liked the book.

Two points were evident as I began reading Beer Blast : The Inside Story of the Brewing Industry's Bizarre Battles To Get Your Money by Philip Van Munching. Van Munching has been around the brewing industry his entire life and he isn't afraid to tell you about the seedy side. Also, he's a very entertaining writer. Along with his worldly understanding and privy information, Van Munching has a rare wit and sarcastic edge to his writing. Like a seasoned ringleader, he calls out the clowns and narrates their escapades and foolhardy, cutthroat behavior. He spotlights the circus that is the modern American brewing industry and makes it more exposed than Pee-Wee Herman in an adult movie theater. Once in a while he takes a covert jab at the typical American beer drinker for empowering these brew-twits to begin with, but it's all done with a wink and a nod, and is not to be taken too seriously.

Of course I can't be completely positive about anything. Ol' Phil is more than marginally partial to Heineken and it shows in an ugly, stagnant way. He and his family are responsible for bringing that particular Dutch swill to America... a crime our country's legal system has no applicable sentance to serve him. He amusingly admits that corn meal is used in brewing Heineken, but then goes on to rail about how Jim Koch was wrong for saying they brew Heineken with adjuncts. What is Corn Meal if it isn't an adjunct? I laughed. He also says that the purpose of the Reinheitsgebot German Purity Law was to keep foreign beer out of Germany. Well, not if the foreign beer avoided brewing with cheaper, barley expanding adjuncts! Like say, oh... for example... corn meal like is used in brewing HEINEKEN.

Despite this, and though I'm sure the stories he tells are embellished for the sake of entertainment, at the core, there is the undeniable truth that brewing companies are selling an image, and what you are buying is a beer. They simply think that you aren't smart enough to know the difference and with most American beer drinkers, they are right.

The quality games and propaganda wars American brewing companies have been waging with each other for years are enough to fill a book, so I'm not surprised that someone did write a book about it. What did surprise me was how intriguing a read it really was.

If you want to learn how to make beer in your basement, you'll need to find a different book. On the other hand, if you want to learn how "The People" are manipulated into changing their buying/drinking habits, then you need to check this book out. Written with an insider's view, Van Munching shows that beer not only is big business, it's a fun big business. From the early Revolutionary War days to the present, the growth and decline of many breweries are chronicled. It was fascinating to learn how the "Giants" came to be, and discover the true parentage of supposedly local brews. It is written in an easy to read style. Even if you do not drink beer, and are involoved in marketing in any way, this would be a good book to study. It tells "How" to market successfully, but even better (and much more humorously) how not to market.

This book may be a good choice if you're studying for an Electrician level test but I found the constant references to the NEC code both distracting and confusing. Text lacks any overview of electricity and any description of good wiring practices such as when and how to use wire nuts and which sizes to choose, etc. This book is filled with technical knowledge but is NOT a good choice for the "Do it Your-selfer"! I later wandered into Lowes and started browsing the books there and found the Black and Decker "Home wiring"... clearly superior for the "Do it your-selfer". Unless you're studying for a code test, save your money and get the Black and Decker "Home Wiring" book.

Don't sell yourself or family short, get this or another comparable book if you are going to tackle electrical work in your home.

This book is somewhat technical and that may put some folks off. However, it is only as technical as is needed to provide for safe installation of electrical wiring in the home. I appreciate the code references, as a do-it-yourself'er it is important to understand why it is done as it is, because no home project is ever an exact copy of problem in a book. This book is an essential part of a do-it-yourself'ers library, especially if you are going to take on any substantial projects.

This book is well worth its price. I am currently in the process of preparing a set of plans to get my building permit and start a major remodeling project. This book comes with a complete set of architectural plans at 1/4"=1' scale for a residence. The electrical floor plan is very complete and also provides a detailed panel schedule. The book goes through the wiring of each room for the example residence. NEC code issues are discussed as they arise in the planning of the wiring for each room. The text provides the details needed to perform the actual wiring task also. The book also suggests lighting suggestions for kitchen and bathroom and even includes several photos of lighting fixtures. Very impressive!

i got my version of this book (leather) 2 years ago. it's been great! it has character profiles, reading plans, an introduction to each book of the Bible, insights (short articles written like a clip from a magazine, helps you look at things in a new perspective) and highlights, which are little blue boxes through out this book that point out interesting facts & help explain a difficult verse. There is a section in the back marked with a blue tab called "Where to Find It." it has things like a glossary, a piece called Well-Known Biblical Events, or a Line-up of Rulers, then a short subject guide. right behind all that are the maps. i recomend this Bible because it really helped me understand it, and helps me see things you'd normally over look. By the way, i read somewhere if you read 3 chapters a day and 5 on Sundays, you should finish the whole Bible in about a year. Pretty cool, huh? anyway, i hope you seriously consider this book, it really is awesome!

Don't let let the word "Student" in the title fool you. This Bible is for anyone. As a 34 year old father of three, I find this Bible a refreshing change of pace. The three track reading plan is probably the best I have ever seen. I am currently reading Track Two, which is a six month sampling of every book in the Bible. You read two or three key chapters from each book,(one chapter a day) shorter books are one chapter, longer books can be as many as eight. (The lone exception is Mark, you read the entire book.) It gives a very good picture of the overall message of the Bible. Track One is a series of two week topical readings and Track Three takes you through the entire Bible in three years. You can do track three in one year very easily. The book introductions and in-text notes are extremely helpful. Philip Yancey and Tim Stafford bring original insight and make you think about what you are reading. I like the compact size because I can take it with me to the work.

Overall, I would say this is one of the best Bibles I have ever invested in.

Honestly, until this year I was never a very regular or interested bible reader. My Catholic bible has remained virtually untouched from Confirmation 5 years ago to the present. However, after deciding to make a complete commitment to God this year with my life, I decided I needed a bible I could actually read! Having no information really on this subject, I asked for a recommendation at my Christian book store and they steered me towards this bible. I couldn't be happier!

The NIV student bible is much more easily readable than traditional bibles. It also provides little boxes with extra information for many of the chapters. Probably my favorite feature of this bible is that it provides track 1, 2, and three reading programs which vary in lenght from 2 weeks to 3 years. If you haven't ever really been a serious bible reader, this directs you where to start and can give you an overview of the bible in a very short time.

The Word of God is powerful and amazing, and this bible provides wonderful access to it. I recommend the NIV study bible for people at all spiritual levels! Michelle

"The Marquis de Fraud" may entitle Phillip Reed to be called the American Dick Francis. Like the best of Francis' work, this book grabs the reader in the first few pages: an intriguing prologue, a horrific crime. Soon we meet the well-drawn characters who will come to matter to us as the plot twists and turns and pulls us along. Reed also does a fine job of creating a sense of place, the world of horse racing, especially the "backside" of the track. The characters are multi-dimensional; even the good guys have their dark recesses; and one of the finest characters of all is a horse named Epic Honor, who broke my heart. One word of caution for the reader on a strict schedule: I started reading this book at 3 pm. and couldn't put it down until I'd read it through. My sleepless night was well rewarded, though, as I came to feel I'd spent the time with good friends. I'll be looking forward to Phillip Reed's next work.

The Marquis de Fraud takes you on a wild journey where finance meets thoroughbred racing meets conman meets murder. Two regular guys are plunged into this thriller when a con man steals their horse and everything seems to get worse from there. At their lowest point they make a pact to get even and the fun begins. Mr. Reed captures the colorful world of horse racing and mixes it with the seedy world of conmen and greedy bad guys. The characters are exceptional and the bad guy is really bad. The book is a page turner with a great ending twist.

I really enjoyed the Marquis de Fraud. I've read Reed's other novels "Bird Dog" and "Low Rider", and all his novels have a common link: Casts of interesting characters, and fast paced story's that keep me turning the pages late into the night. Unlike his earlier books which revolved around Car Dealers, this book is centered around Horse Racing. Which I knew little about but found quite interesting.

Central to the story is a slime ball Con Man named Malcom, who rips people off using his Scottish charm, of their life's saving and investments. There's more, this guy has the audacity to steal a valuable race horse and take it where ? Of course there's good guys, somebody has to find this guy and deal with him. But It's a dangerous and bloody path. Well, read the book for yourself. You won't be disappointed !

This book is a very good introduction to transaction processing. It did a wonderful job of explaining concepts, and gave concise, clear examples. I would recommend this book as a primary text for anyone wanting to get an overview of the main TP ideas, with the Gray & Reuter book as a supplemental text. The book is very readable, too.

I'm reviewing books with the question, "What will be worthwhile for people who are testing web-based applications?" This is a solid and useful introduction to the person who is trying to figure out how a system is supposed to work together, where it might be broken, and therefore, what test cases might be interesting.

This is not to say that the book is written with a testing focus. It's just a clear, readable, approachable introduction to transaction processing.

Transaction processing is a daunting topic, and this is one of the few books that provides the basics in a clear, understandable manner without overwhelming the reader. Most of the book is focused solely on transaction processing, but it touches on queuing as well, which makes it the ideal first book for anyone who is seeking details that extend beyond pure TP.

I like the way that the authors use real products to reinforce key points made throughout the book. While some of the products are no longer mainstream (indeed, some were never mainstream), the fact that real world implementations are used makes the information realistic. If you are using CICS, MQSeries, Tuxedo or similar products this book will have even more value. I also like the way difficult topics, such as locking, high availability and database recovery are given entire chapters because these topics need to be thoroughly understood in order to completely understand transaction processing.

After reading this book you will be armed with sufficient knowledge to make intelligent choices in selecting the right approach for transaction processing in a system design, or to understand the nuts and bolts of any TPM that you are supporting. I also agree with Cem Kaner's earlier comments that this book is an ideal resource for software test professionals who need to understand the entire environment that they will be testing. If you want to go deeper into TP, I recommend "Transactional Information Systems: Theory, Algorithms, and the Practice of Concurrency Control" by Gerhard Weikum and Gottfried Vossen, which drills much further down into the details of both transaction processing and queuing systems.