Stew's latest book, Maximum Fitness, is a superbly done and well researched book offering the most detailed, creative, and decent workout yet. The 52 week program keeps you going strong all year long, changing up routines, offering numerous optional workouts, suggestions, and guidance along the way. Having completed the 12 Weeks to BUD/S workout, I can definitely attest to Stew's knowledge and expertise in physical training. Trust me, if you stick with his guidelines, you will see awesome progress no matter where you are, hard core SEAL wannabe or beginner just looking for a workout. The stretches and exercises are clearly described and shown through large photos. The workouts vary. Stew offers many hints and tips to push you throughout the book. There is nutritional advice as well. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book.

Maximum Fitness is a complete reference of well researched and time proven strategies to help anyone, regardless of fitness level, reach their maximum potential.

The workouts are based on a novel crosstraining approach. This approach incorporates calisthenics, weight training, swimming, biking, running, stretching and innovative time saver workouts one can perform anywhere and still maintain peak physical condition.

Mr. Smith's detailed and inspirational descriptions of the exercises, coupled with expertly photographed segments, produces a fine reference that the novice will easily comprehend. Also, the expert will be challenged like never before - try running three miles followed by swimming, abdominal, and chest exercises for thirty minutes, and then another three mile run! Maximum fitness in the only result!

Maximum Fitness is like having a personal trainer next to you during your workout 52 weeks a year. I have had a private lesson with Stew Smith recently and I can attest to his depth of knowledge, and sincerity with which he wants us all to reach maximum fitness.

I recieved this book shortly after it became availible. I've used numerous workout programs (including military training) and this one looks to be the best by far. LT Smith's 12 week program from his previous book put me in the best shape of my life and I can't wait to see the results once I'm done with this program. The 4 phase structure varies the workouts so you don't get bored with the program and every day is a bigger challenge than the day before. Outstanding book for those wanting to become a SEAL or just get into great shape.

This book outlines a proposal to integrate artificial intelligence and wireless technology into the World Wide Web in order to make it more powerful and more tuned to the real needs of the user. It is an interesting proposal, but omits discussion of some important issues. The book is targeted to an audience of developers, engineers, researchers, and IT managers who need to understand how to deliver, via wireless technology, intelligent processes and services.

Chapter 1 is an overview of the five areas that the authors feel are needed to form the Intelligent Wireless Web. All of these are viable and desired from a technical standpoint. However, from a human factors standpoint, one of them is somewhat troubling, namely the need for having voice activation for the user interface. This could be extremely annoying if one is working in the now popular cubicle environments, due to the noise level generated from user's speech. Privacy issues could arise too, since voice patterns are easily recorded. Making the transition from dumb/static Web applications to intelligent/dynamic ones is sorely needed, but voice activation/recognition should be the problem of those who are working in other areas of machine intelligence, such as robotics. Of course, if work environments evolve into more private scenarios, the author's proposals for voice activation could become viable.

Chapters 2 and 8 concern speech recognition. I did not read these chapters so their review will be omitted.

In chapter 3, the authors discuss how wireless technology could be integrated into peronal area networks (WPANs). The authors here exhibit a keen awareness both of the technology and the human factors involved in creating what they call a "Personal Space". Home automation will be slow-going perhaps at first, due to legacy systems now in place, but it is highly desirable from the standpoint of energy conservation and home security. To prevent government and other forms of malicious intrusion, wireless security will have to be top priority before the Intelligent Wireless Web is implemented.

Chapter 4 is an overview of the basics behind both wired and wireless networks, with the goal of merging them effectively. The authors are clearly advocating the use of LMDS for high-speed wireless access. However, they do not discuss any performance studies to give more weight to their arguments for LMDS. "Project Oxygen" is discussed as an approach to accomodate mobile and stationary devices, and for moving away from TCP as a congestion manager, but the discussion is too brief to be helpful.

In chapter 5, the authors discuss the status of mobile wireless, IP version 6, and Mobile IP. The authors are a little more quantitative in this chapter, mentioning for example the inability of TDMA to deal with bursty data flows, but no details are given. A fairly detailed overview of "third-generation" mobile wireless technologies is given however. Performance issues are not discussed though, and it would have been interesting if the authors would have included a discussion of MANET.

Chapter 6 is a general overview of artificial intelligence and how it might be applied to Web protocols. As in all discussions on AI, controversies and disagreements will arise in the mind of the reader, but the authors are fair in representing the main ideas, considering the relatively short length of the chapter. The discussion on distributed AI is the most relevant for the book.

In chapter 7 the authors continue the discussion on AI with the goal of seeing to what extent it can be incorporated into the Web. I was glad to see a discussion of the Cyc application in this chapter, even though it was very short. From the author's standpoint the Web currently does not really express intelligence, since it does not adapt, a necessary requirement for learning. A "learning algorithm" is defined as a process that extracts data from a database to serve as its input, and then performs a set of operations on the input, giving finally an output that represents learning. The authors feel that the Semantic Web holds much promise for building an intelligent Web, and outline several tools, such as XML and RDF, that assist in the construction of the Semantic Web. Particularly interesting is the discussion of the need for self-organization in order for the Web to be considered intelligent. The property of self-organization will also be the most problematic to implement, due to the extreme distrust that some now feel against software that has not been validated by a human. This is especially the case for those having to deal with medical records and information on human health.

So why even attempt to build the Intelligent Wireless Web? The authors attempt to answer this question in Chapter 9. They conclude, based on Moore's law, that wireless chip technology will allow cellular carriers to build networks for less than $100 per customer. They never however answer how much intelligent applications over the wireless Web will improve productivity. This can be accomplished to a large degree with simulation and mathematical modeling, but the authors do not do so.

Chapter 10 is an overview of the actual progress in developing the Intelligent Wireless Web. The challenges are considerable, not only from a technical standpoint in the creation of intelligent applications, but also because of legacy issues. The authors are aware of this and give a network schematic outlining an integrated wired/wireless network. Their concept of an Intelligent Wireless Web is a good one, but their justification for it, especially for the use of speech recognition, is somewhat weak. They need to perform a lot more modeling studies to see just how these smart applications are going to behave on the Web.

The Intelligent Wireless Web provides a comprehensive overview of the technologies that will combine to bring the wireless web to pervasive use. The book provides an explanation of the technology fundamentals, summarizing and explaining the jargon. A snapshot is provided of today's technology and enough information is provided that one can understand possible technology evolution over the next 5-10 years. For an professional working in this field, the book provides an overview of all aspects of the subject. For an investor, the book provides insights to technologies and companies that will be key players as the wireless web evolves. The book provides a wonderful who, what, where, when, why, and how explanation.

The layout includes graphics to summarize points made in the text and text boxes that provide background information on concepts that are addressed in the text. Many of the text boxes had information that I was aware of, but the format allowed me to easily skip this information and return to the text.

The wireless web is expected to eclipse the wired Internet and it is difficult to find books that treat the many emerging forms of this technology well. The book is easy to read, and ranges over both the practical and the theoretical in a well balanced and useful manner. With the many connections and devices forming the new wireless web, Peter Alesso and Craig Smith outline and describe the key underpinnings and implications that every technologist and business person should be aware of. This book is useful to business and technology planning. It details the relevant and hard to get information about the emerging wireless technology. With intelligence, it goes further to sensibly describe my favorite parts - the challenges and opportunities of each technology. I recommend it to any senior technology professional - aspiring or already practicing.

But it wasn't exactly a great read, either. My mother bought this book for me when I was about seven years old. Back then, I thought it was rather boring and hard to get into. Fifteen years later, I picked it up again, and my first impression remains the same. The author spends a great deal of time telling you how unusual, engaging, and unique her heroine is, but throughout the book, Rebecca's actions never back up the author's assessment. I felt this book was dry and flat. Who wants to read a book in which the climax revolves around children selling soap?
I found it all too similar to L.M. Montgomery's "Anne of Green Gables," in story and characters, except the "Anne" books are so much better!! Anne is the heroine who is unusual, engaging, and truly unique.

No review could do this marvelous book justice, but I will attempt it. My mother bought the book for me some years ago because she thought it would be good for me to read classics. Thinking that it would be boring, I didn't read it for a long time. But a couple of days ago I was bored and picked it up. Soon, I fell under the same spell Rebecca cast over nearly every person she met. Around the age of 10 or 11, she was forced to leave her home, Sunnybrook Farm, to live in a brick house with her spinster aunts in Riverboro. Her aunts Jane and Miranda weren't used to young people, but they let Rebecca stay with them in order to help out her poor widowed mother who had 6 other children to care for. Rebecca charmed nearly all the citizens of Riverboro, Aunt Jane, and, in time, her strict, austere Aunt Miranda.

There were many things to love about the story. In fact, it has become one of my favorite books of all time. (and I am a voracious reader) The characters were all realistically and richly delineated. Rebecca especially came alive for me. She was such a talented, imaginative, caring girl. She was the kind of person that anyone would love to have as a friend. Actually, I would want to be her. I didn't want to stop reading about her adventures. The events played before my mind's eye like a movie. I traveled back in time, to 100 years ago. This is considered a children's book, but it has truths and insights that people of all ages can learn from. Several of the passages, the literary allusions, and Rebecca's poems were so beautiful that I had to reread them. The language was eloquent. As another reviewer said, the vocabulary wasn't "dumbed down" like the vocabularies of modern children's books, and there was a protagonist one could love.

The only part about the novel that I didn't like was that there isn't a sequel. I would love to find out what Rebecca's career turns out to be. I believe that she marries Mr. Ladd (a.k.a. "Mr. Aladdin"), but I wish we could know for sure.

Overall, I highly reccomend this book to readers of all ages. If you like books with wonderful supporting characters and an unusual, loveable heroine, treat yourself to "Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm".

When Rebeccca is sent to live with aunt Jane and aunt Miranda ,Rebecca realizes that the Brick House is not the same as Sunnybrook Farm.Rebecca likes aunt Jane and dislikes aunt Miranda. but when aunt Miranda dies ,Rebecca understands that aunt Mirada was not trying to hurt her. I loved the book so much that Iam rereading it over and over. what I liked best is that Rebecca and everyone else in the story are so real that I will never forget them.

The core premise of the book is that the key to achieving and sustaining significant change lies in changing people's basic ways of thinking. Those of us who have worked with organizations to achieve meaningful change, quickly come to realize that the central challenge is the engrained patterns of thought in the minds of people. That is the ultimate challenge that this work sets out to tackle.

The question one is left with, as with many books of this type, is not the value of the book (it is excellent), but How many leaders of change will read this volume, take its insights to heart, and ACT upon them?

The book is divided into three sections around the challenges of initiating, sustaining, and redesigning and rethinking. Within these sections are the ten key challenges to profound change. The notes from the field provide a record of organizational change initiatives and specific approaches taken by GE, Hewlett-Packard, British Petroleum, Ford, Dupont, and others. The book includes case histories, round-table discussions, team exercises, checklists, and solid guidance.

This work is densely packed with valuable insights, guidance, and developmental techniques. It offers enormous potential to receptive and motivated readers who are able to move from thought to action. Highly recommended. Reviewed by Gerry Stern, founder, Stern & Associates, author of Stern's Sourcefinder: The Master Directory to HR and Business Management Information & Resources, Stern's CyberSpace SourceFinder, and Stern's Compensation and Benefits SourceFinder.

Of the FIFTH DISCIPLINE SERIES books, THE DANCE OF CHANGE is by far the most important for you to understand. THE FIFTH DISCIPLINE and THE FIFTH DISCIPLINE FIELDBOOK are wonderful, valuable books, but they largely avoid the tough question of how to sustain a Learning Organization initiative. Based on lots of experiences in different companies, THE DANCE OF CHANGE is the most realistic, thorough, thoughtful work on achieving large-scale organizational change that has ever been my pleasure to read. I immediately found it helpful in overcoming some of my bad habits (including falling in love with my own jargon rather than using common English). Since I first read the book about 9 months ago, I have found it affecting my consulting practice by causing me to focus more on lasting change, than immediate change. That's an important lesson for everyone. Like THE FIFTH DISCIPLINE FIELDBOOK, THE DANCE OF CHANGE allows you to focus on the areas where you need help the most. The beginning is a wonderful systems-dynamic analysis of how successful change occurs, and how it can be derailed. Like THE FIFTH DISCIPLINE FIELDBOOK, you do not need to read THE DANCE OF CHANGE from front to back. I found myself skipping around, and enjoyed the experience. Even if you do not want to have a Learning Organization, you will find THE DANCE OF CHANGE very valuable for giving you direction on how to achieve permanent, valuable changes. On the subject of achieving the strategy you wish to implement, I strongly urge you to also read THE BALANCED SCORECARD. These books are good complements to each other. For picking up on your most important issues, you will find Peter Drucker's MANAGEMENT CHALLENGES FOR THE 21ST CENTURY to be invaluable.

Perhaps many of those who had previously read The Fifth Discipline were not aware (until now) that Peter Senge later co-authored this book with Art Kleiner, Charlotte Roberts, Richard Ross, George Roth, and Bryan Smith. Why read The Dance of Change? Its in Learning Organizations." Yes, there are challenges. Lots of them...and many are indeed formidable. And yes, obviously, without momentum, efforts to energize or re-energize any organization will fail.

My own experience suggests that there will then be at least three whatever was undertaken was doomed to fail; also, therefore, that such efforts should never be undertaken again; finally, defenders of the status quo (whatever it may be) will become even more aggressive in their opposition to change in almost any form.

Of course, Senge understood full well when he wrote The Fifth Discipline that those who attempted to implement an appropriate (emphasis on "appropriate") combination of his ideas and suggestions would encounter all manner of resistance. In my opinion, that is why he then co-authored the Fieldbook. (I strongly suggest that it be read only after reading The Fifth Discipline.) Here is how The Dance of Change Change)

The Challenges of Initiating (Not Enough Time, No Help [Coaching and Support], Not Relevant, Walk the Talk)

The Challenges of Sustaining Transformation (Fear and Anxiety, Assessment and Measurement, True Believers and Nonbelievers)

The Challenges of Redesigning and Rethinking (Governance, Diffusion, Strategies Purpose)

As you can see, Senge and his co-authors provide a cohesive and comprehensive system with which to achieve and then sustain (emphasis on "sustain") "profound change." Once again, I want to stress the importance of carefully selecting what is most appropriate from this wealth of material. The selection process should be unhurried but expeditious. It should include only those who are wholeheartedly committed to achieving "profound change." Moreover, their number should not threaten effective communication and collaboration. My final suggestion (not necessarily Senge's) is to proceed with a "Big Picture" clearly in mind but to focus on the sequential completion of specific tasks according to plan. Like buildings, learning "blueprint," sufficient resources, materials of the highest quietly, inspiring leaders and effective managers, talented associates, and (most important) a shared commitment. Obviously, your organization will need its own "blueprint." Success or failure when implementing it will depend upon its own people. It cannot be otherwise. View The Dance of Change created by Senge and his co-authors, therefore, as an invaluable resource...and proceed accordingly.

You may also wish to consult Isaacs' Dialogue in which he addresses many of the same issues but from somewhat different perspectives. I also recommend Bennis and Biederman's Organizing Genius as well as O'Toole's Leading Change. Their own experiences, insights, and suggestions may also prove helpful to your efforts. I wish you great success!

This is a well-written and useful book about leading edge enterprise business technology. I work in workflow systems development and I think this book provides a thorough yet practical vision of the next generation of business process systems. This book will likely launch a thousand ships with many winners among them. You do not have to be highly technical to get a lot from this book. In fact, it is written for business managers who have some sense of enterprise IT and its impact, both good and bad, in corporations. The authors rightly emphasize some of the current failings in IT and stress that much of the problem is the inflexibility of systems to adapt in the rapidly changing climate of business. Managers need to have control of the overall business processes to adjust quickly, but cannot because business processes are often "baked" into existing IT applications. The authors point to many examples in business history and in current pioneering efforts to show that managing business processes is a determinative factor of success. While this may sound obvious, the solution offered is potentially profound. Business Process Management Systems, or BPMS, are already being sold and deployed in real life environments and yielding benefits. While the authors admit that their full vision will only be realized in the decades to come, there is much that can begin today. Since the book is not highly technical, the authors do not address some of the hairier issues in systems integration (entity ontology for example) but they do outline their key assumptions such as the requirement for legacy integration (one time per system) and the pressing need for business process engineering/analysts. They also assume widespread adoption of a single process definition language. This will of course happen but probably not until after the various players try to sway the market towards their own standards. There are very good appendixes for the technical person and business manager alike. I love the book and recommend it highly. This book is short, insightful and packed with information from a variety of disciplines that are woven together to support the authors' primary assertions about IT for the coming decade(s). What is exotic today could well become a necessity tomorrow.

I first came across this book as an excerpt in Darwin Magazine. It immediately hit home. Business Process Management - the third wave" is NOT only aimed at experienced business leaders scouting the economic horizon, its for everyone as its themes are universal--in business and in IT.

The book is certainly NOT buzzword heavy, in fact the authors go to extreme lengths to make sure they dont talk down to non-technical readers. As they say, managing the processes of a company is about business AND technology (period). Smith and Fingar have made it UNDERSTANDABLE to BUSINESS PEOPLE for the first time (imho) WHY their IT systems often let them down and what they can do about it. Appendices are provided for people who want to geek out. But how Celia can say the book is abrasive beats me. It is so friendly, but at the same time focussed and inspirational. (Peter and Howard - I love the Zen stuff). Yes, they talk about "technology gods" and "cast in concrete" data stovepipes, but that's REALITY guys, that's WHY there is a business-IT divide today and why the third wave BPM could move us all forward, whether we are on the business side of the house or the IT side. I'm an obsessive process architect. These guys have hit the nail on the head.

Its true that Smith and Fingar lament the disruptive and "painful reengineering second wave advocated by their former colleague, James Champy." (Champy was CSC, Smith is CSC, for those who dont know). Well, as I said in my comments at Darwin, it looks like the industry is finally moving on and I am simply AMAZED at the clarity of the analysis in the Reengineering Chapter as to how modern BPM systems can now DO what the reengineering guys said they wanted to but gave no solution, other than to employ expensive consultants. Its just plain SILLY for Celia to say that what Smith and Fingar hope to achieve is to "cut IT entirely out of the business change loop". That's not what they say at all. They show how IT can provide BPM capabilities so that business people are EMPOWERED to manage their own affairs. The only thing that Celia says that IS correct is that "it behooves anyone who might be in a position to benefit from BPM -- or to get trampled by the BPM steamroller -- to familiarize themselves with the subject."

As I said at Darwin, its refreshing to see processes coming back center stage, but this time with TEETH. The books controversial elements may be missed by some readers, but will be understood by those that have REALLY worked at the intersection of business and IT. Clue, read the Epilog.

--- Yours truly, a frustrated (with data) business process analyst just starting to get some understanding of the potential of the third wave.

We have collectively read "BPM, the Third Wave" in our BPMS (Business Process Management System) company and can validate through literally hundreds of engagements we have had with leading companies that Fingar and Smith are both pragmatic and prophetic in their analysis.

Bottom line: this book is a great resource to understand the BPM space.

Don't be afraid of some of the supporting concepts that are there simply to logically prove their hypothesis. (Six Sigma, Process calculi, BPML, Pi-Calculus, etc. - each one is a book in it's own right!) While critical, they are not the core point of the book -- the coming transformation of where business value is going to be generated is.

Little note from the field...technology people are starting to really get it, and end up loving BPM once they actually see and work with one -- and are more empowered than ever to impact the organizations where they work because they can focus on VALUE ADDED tasks.

A true BPMS can get everyone involved in a business process focused on adding value, and that is the best job security you can ask for.

Smith and Fingar do not demonize the role of the IT professional in this book...they simply redefine it in a way that makes perfect sense. In fact, it is obvious in our experience that if you understand and implement a BPM strategy that everyone's role is enhanced from the business side to the IT side.

"Obliterating the IT/Business Divide" is not overstating it at all...

Why should a business analyst (or any process owner) be forced to educate an application programmer on the multiple facets of a given business process, which then gets translated to a programming team, that then gets built into a technology stack, (new or extended) - put into production...only to find out that all of that investment was wasted because a key business condition changed, or worse? (And we wonder where all the money went...)

If you are an IT professional, it is critical you read and understand what is being said in this book so you can proactively manage your career to be that value-added player.

If you are coming at this from the business side...dramatic and sustainable competitive advantage is available to you as a result of BPM if you can grasp it.

This is one of those books that makes you wonder if anyone attempted to proof or edit it before publication. A couple of the exercises referred to in the workouts cannot be found in the exercise descriptions. Sometimes, the written descriptions of the exercises contradict the accompanying photographs. Don't get me wrong, the routines provide tough and credible workouts. But reading the book requires some interpretation and assumptions.

This book gives a simple but effective way to get in shape, using calisthetics, weights, running and boxing to achieve it. It offers three levels of training, all basically the same format but with different intensity levels.
I have used this book several times over the last 2 years and enjoy the workouts. I break up the daily routines into 3 segments-the calisthetic part in the morning, the weights in the afternoon and the ad work in the evening. On running days, a similar pattern-running in the morning, weights at lunch and ab work in the evening. The routines don't take long that way but adds to fat-burning and muscle-building without exhaustion.
There are some negative points: they show exercises that they don't use and suggest exercises that they don't show.
But overall, I recommend this book to everyone who wants to get in shape without joining a gym.

I bought this book 2 years ago and still use the routines. This is a good book for beginner to intermediate trainers who want variety. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to get in shape quickly and effectively.

I found this book very simple to follow and comprehend. In the past, I have run across books that are way too complicated and contain too much complexed unnecessary information. Once I picked this book up to read it, it was hard to put down. I found myself eager to learn more of these techniques. Fortunately, I have never been a victim of any violent crime and as a result am not sure if I would make the correct choices when it comes to defending myself. This book left me with a sense of assurance. I certainly feel like if a bad situation were to present itself, I can defend myself a lot better "now" than prior to reading this book. I liked the book so much and was so impressed with the way it was presented that I bragged about it to my co-workers and picked up extra copies for my sisters and mom at Christmas. I wanted to give them a "thoughtful" gift and also a sense of security. This is definitely a book that has self defense techniques that are so simple that even GRANDMA can learn them! If it's "instinctive" self defense techniques you are after, Common Sense Self Defense is the book for you. The authors of this book did an excellent job on the presentation of this book and made sure the audience would stay interested while reading its contents. Even though I was an amateur, the techniques were effortless. Thanks to this wonderful book my eyes are now open. The techniques are fun to practice too!!!!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.At first,I thought that it would be a book of 'how to' techniques but I was pleasantly surprised.This book really does teach and promote common sense.Of course, not all techniques could be presented in this book but the ones that were are very helpful.I appreciate the fact that this book doesn't promote a "gung-ho" attitude.The real key is to walk away or avoid situations where you could find yourself in a very precarious situation and to be alert of your surroundings.Only when it's absolutely warrented does it give tips on actual techniques to defend yourself and whether you may need to use excessive force.I have to tell you that a friend and I practiced a couple of these techniques and they actually worked.While I hope that I will not be a victim of a criminal attack, I do believe that the techniques that I've learned in this book will be very helpful not to mention practical.

This book is an execellent source for individuals with little self defense training. It gives you some basic defense techniques that you can practice on your own or with a partner. It is not overly complicated like some books I have read. The reader will not get bored or frustrated, but will enjoy reading and learning from the book. Even if you are experienced in self defense techniques, you will appreciate the quality of this book. It is the kind of book you will keep close by, as a reference.
In this day and age, every law abiding citizen should be conscious of threats that may be around them, and they should have some thought as to what tactic to take, in the event of a criminal attack. The police and other law enforcement can not be everywhere. You need to have some basic training to be able to defend yourself, or at least survive until help does arrive. Stop being a victim. Take control of your life and start by purchasing this book. You won't regret it.

Before the movie, before the television series, before all the spin offs, there was just the play. The story is a classic spin on the buddy plot. Oscar Madison is a successful sports writer who happens to be best friends with Felix Unger, a newswriter for CBS. Each week Oscar has five of his buddies over for a Friday night game of poker. However, on one fateful night Felix fails to appear in time for the game. It turns out Felix has just been thrown out by his wife and has no place to go. Feeling sorry for his old friend, Oscar invites Felix to stay with him and be his roommate. What ensues is a classic Neil Simon look at friendship that will endure for ages.

When you pair David Paymer and Nathan Lane as Felix and Oscar in the Odd Couple, you are in for a comic tour de force that over stretches its material. With a supporting cast which includes Dan Castellaneta and Yeardley Smith (both from The Simpsons) and Linda Purl, the cast is almost perfect. This production is a little too visual in a few of its jokes. However, on the whole, it unscrupulously grabs the audio listener by his ears and shakes him with laughter.

Nathan Lane is delightful as Oscar Madison. I also enjoyed hearing Dan Castellanata ("Homer Simpson") as Murray, and Yeardley Smith ("Lisa Simpson") as Cecily Pigeon.

This tape is well done. The sound effects create an atmosphere that draws in the listener. The actors are dramatic, but not overly so. The short stories themselves are well written, delivering edge-of-the-chair suspense (or knee-slapping comedy, as the case may be).

As most net surfers are aware the Sci-Fi Channel's web site has included a section devoted to science fiction radio drama...Seeing Ear Theatre. One aspect of which includes originally produced productions cerated especially for the site and which has featured performances by many well-known SF actors as Micheal O'Hare,Mark Hamill,Marina Sirtis,and others. With a few exceptions, a lot of the dramas are based on recent short stories by SF writers such as Terry Bisson, Allen Steele, John Kessel and Gergory Benford. With the release of this audiobook editon(which includes introductions by SF's resident angry young{sic}man Harlan Ellison)now one can listen to these stories anytime you want. The best stories(IMO)are the Three Odd Comedies and The Death of Captain Future (which despite the pulpish-sounding title is a darkly humorous tale set in the future history of Steele's previous works such as Orbital Decay and Clarke County,Space). If you like audio drama-- especially newly produced audio drama...you'll love this collection and you may also want to check out Vol. 2 which should be on sale soon(I know I can't wait).

WOW what a story! Brian Smith could sell this as a short story by itself it is so good IMO. I just wish they sold a hard copy of these writings--not just audio! I have been reading Sci Fi for a long time. This guy is great! Reminds me of 2001, a space odyssey a bit. Worth the price just for this one folks! I noticed there are no other books by Brian Smith for sale on Amazon. What's up with that? He needs to write books, and Amazon needs to sell them--geez, do I make myself clear?

Unfortunately, I had the impression that this book was knocked off without much thought in order to make a bit of money.
This writer can do so much better.

"A Year in Provence" is one of my all-time favorite books. I spent a semester in Aix-en-Provence when I was in college and fell in love with the region . . . and Mr. Mayle does a wonderful job of bringing the tastes, smells, sights, and sounds of Provence into your living room. "Hotel Pastis" is his first (I believe) work of fiction set in Provence, and it does not disappoint. The story succeeds on so many levels, the characters are described so well that you expect to recognize them walking down the street. Mr. Mayle's talent is in creating these characters, and richly describing them so perfectly, without rambling on for pages on end. The prose is never boring, the story is always jam-packed and exciting, the characters always have so many different levels and layers, and they are all somehow interconnected with each other. The book is fun -- you aren't going to find anything serious or thought-provoking here -- and absolutely wonderful. "Hotel Pastis" is like vacationing in Provence -- it is an enjoyable experience, and you will find yourself re-reading it so you can re-visit with an old friend. I highly recommend it!

Peter Mayle escorts the reader to the Provence countryside in this easy to read, relaxing novel. The story is not complicated enabling the reader to create a mental image of the surrounding scenery. Seated comfortably in a garden setting during a clear Spring afternoon with a glass of wine is how this novel is best enjoyed. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a relaxing read in Provence. "A Year in Provence" is another exceptionally written and highly recommended Peter Mayle novel.