This is the story of the Reverend Peter Jones,(1802-1856) (Kahkewaquonaby), a Methodist missionary and a Chief of the Mississauga.

Doanld B Smith, a History Professor at the University of Calgary, writes an important story of the conflict between the First Peoples and the Europeans in the first years of settlement of south-Central Ontario. We see this interesting man in the context of the British settlement in Canada at a time when the new nation to the south (the USA)were forcibly moving the Cherokees and other eastern tribes to west of the Mississippi. That this did not happen in Upper Canada is to an important extent due to the leadership of this one man who could interpret the Europeans and Native Peoples to each other.

At last, someone takes on the task of recording the history of the A-36 and those who flew her. Peter C. Smith has assembled in this volume accounts from the designers, builders, and pilots of this little-known offshoot of the P-51 family as well as an impressive selection of photos. From the design and construction, through training stateside and deployment in the Mediterranean and China-Burma-India theaters of operation, the author's narrative links the recollections of those who made history in this machine. He also addresses the many falsehoods that have somehow become accepted as fact regarding the combat use of the A-36, and properly points out that this is the aircraft that kept the Mustang alive as an Air Corps project. Overall, Mr. Smith displays a command of the subject that puts him above many of the other writers of aviation history, and I would have rated this a five-star effort if he didn't have several mis-identified photos of P-51B Mustangs labelled as A-36 Apaches. If this sounds like nit-picking, than feel free to cross out the four stars above and replace it with a full five. I have been a die-hard A-36 fan for many a year, and this is the best book thus far on this amazing dive bomber.

A good overview of US law. There are issues which are matters of opinion and not explained well enough (ex. ethics), and perhaps needn't be addressed at all in a law book. The examples and the references make it a worthy purchase overall.

Although the concise edition of the Times Atlas of the World was once just a smaller version of its bigger brother, this is no longer the case at all. The seventh edition is released with completely new mapping in a renewed style, where advanced computer techniques have played an increasingly important role. This atlas gives a reasonably balanced mapping of the world, although Europe gets still too much credit in a world where the role of Europe is decreasing in importance. Whereas the previous edition attempted to attain a rather uniform pattern of scale sizes (i.e., 1:6M, 1:3M), this edition moves toward the philosophy of the National Geographic, meaning that for each area to be mapped, an individual scale is chosen that fits the page best. The typefaces have improved considerably since the previous edition, although they could have been smaller and thus create space for more entries. This seventh edition is more voluminous than the sixth, but the index has not grown. The color scheme is rather di

This is a book about everything you need to know to start right with hamsters. Firstly there is a preface about the hamster itself, then appearance and colour variation. Next is the selection, this tells you where you should go and select a hamster, the best age to get one so you can tame it yourself, how to check whether the hamster you may want to choose is in good physical condition by looking for friendliness, good health, soft sleek fur, bright clear eyes and a general feel of solidity. A wet tail is also a sign of bad health. Then we come into housing, the cage should be deeply padded with a good absorbent material you may use wood shavings or a commercially prepared hamster litter. Try and find a cage equipped with an exercise wheel (for your hamster to get plenty of exercise). Then a page about feeding, how to feed them and what to feed them. Then a few more pages about taming, trainig, breeding, mutations and health. The best bits are the lovely photos of the hamsters and the diagrams because they really explain things properly. The book is well illusrated which children like to see. I recommend this book to people who have firstly got a new hamster and people who are going to get one. It's a book that explains things in large detail, so I think it should be in the age range of 8+. Over-all this book came in rather handy when I first got my hamster.

This remarkable book defines new territory between literary fiction and science fiction. It offers up a ringside seat to broad, concentric human and political themes that are likely to ring true many decades hence. The plot intricacies are tight, verging on being too clever, but Carey manages to lean towards the believable, producing a provocative and original book. I did not find the foreign words distracting or difficult, as did some readers. I think knowing more than one language helps. But don't let it deter you; Carey provides a glossary and footnotes to aid you in understanding the story.

The main character, Tristan Smith, has an unusual voice, not just in the physical sense, but in the sense of being the story-teller of not only the events he experienced, but also those he didn't, or was too young to remember. One cannot help but think him impulsive, willful, egotistical. It would be easy to dislike him, yet Carey must have realized Tristan's 'voice' could not have been otherwise, for he was both pampered and neglected and sheltered from normal human contact, an upbringing that protected him, on the one hand, but also impeded him socially, on the other. The reader will also appreciate the irony of a man's true character being glimpsed only when he wears a mask, and the truism that a nation's character is revealed by how they treat 'the least of these, my people.'

In contrast to Carey's book, we get a pretty steady diet of stories about handicapped people who triumph over impossible odds, who experience 'miracle healings,' who attain a magical status, who project what we want to see, that is, they appear to be happy because they are shunned if they honestly share their pain as well as their triumphs. Thus, I believe it took real courage to write and publish this book. Carey candidly, poignantly reveals a closeted inner life, the rarely revealed or imagined existence of a person with severe limitations, the stark, impossible-to-countenance realities that we simply avoid in our daily thoughts and deeds. In the tradition of a good storeyteller, the author punctuates these revelations by surrounding Tristan with artistic/acrobatic performers, humanity's most physically blessed individuals and by nations gripped in the same struggles for survival that people experience on an individual level. This backdrop emphasizes just how deeply Tristan's powerful inner soul cries out from inside his shell that he wants the same, feels the same, IS the same right down to his genes... Carey bares the pain, the challenge, in both the inner life and the political life of the beautiful versus the not beautiful, the big versus the small, the powerful versus the powerless in the colors of blood, and laser lights, and tarnished festivals that emphasize the moment over long-term everyday courtesies and, through the maturation and evolution of the character, through the small blessed events that we selectively choose to define our humanity and our lives, that give us the stamina and drive to endure, to go on, to hope.

This book is not for everyone. It is not for the reader of light entertainment. It is a book that goes beyond surface themes while still retaining the format of a personal story, told through unforgettable characters and events. If that intrigues you, I highly recommend this book.

A recent article in Canada's GLOBE AND MAIL referred to Peter Carey's THE UNUSUAL LIFE OF TRISTAN SMITH as "the best book ever written about U.S. cultural dominance over Canada, even if that's not what Carey had in mind." Once I read that, I knew I must find the book.

To my surprise, TRISTAN is far more than the above quote suggested (although it is accurate). Carey uses the cultural dominance of one fictional country over another as a launching pad for a terrific, semi-futuristic romp through the truly unusual life of Tristan Smith, an actor/juggler with more than a few problems.

Tristan is born and raised in Efica, a small, ignored colonial country that has been fighting a long battle to be free of the machinations of it's much larger neighbour and protector, Voorstand. (While Carey likely intended this as a metaphor to the relations of Australia and England [or New Zealand and Australia], the Canada/U.S. connection comes through loud and clear.) Tristan is born to an acting family, consisting of Felicity Smith (mother/actor), Bill (father/actor), Vincent (possible father/backer), and Wally (father figure/protector). It leads to much confusion and anarchy in Tristan's life, but it's nothing compared to his real handicap.

Tristan is deformed, in a way Carey refuses to clearly define, leaving it up to our imagination. He has translucent skin, mangled legs, malformed chest, no lips, and is quite small. Often, he refers to himself as a 'squid', if that helps in picturing his physique. He might have grown up to have his own life, but due to his dependance upon the kindness of others, he finds himself caught up in schemes and plans that soon lead to his being considered a traitor and possible liability by Voorstand authorities. It sounds confusing, but Carey moves the plot forward in an extremely logical fashion.

Being unable to function on his own, Tristan becomes the ultimate observer of life, and gains an understanding of human nature that may be ignored by its more active participants. But like humanity, Tristan longs to be loved, to be accepted, and when he inadvertently takes on the persona of a religious icon of Voorstand, he comes closer to his dream.

Carey must have realized that using real countries might alienate the reader, and has succeeded in creating two completely real fictional countries, both similar and distinctly different from our own. A religion, based on animals named Bruder Mouse, Bruder Duck, etc., has been devised to explain the increasingly bizarre behaviour of the citizens of both countries. Carey never goes into too much detail, allowing the reader to see the absurdity of the practices, and also pointing out the folly of our own beliefs. It reminded me of the astonishingly vague religion Philip K. Dick created for DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP?, a mish-mash of theories and modes that lends itself to the insanity of that paricular novel. TRISTIAN's religion involves lifelike cyborgs of animated characters, which run rampant through Voorstand, often bursting onto flames, yet adored and revered by the public. It is not so important that we understand it, as it is that the characters believe it.

There is also a political subplot that underlines the story, as Tristan's mother is an ardant and important supporter of Efica's Blue Party, a left wing organization that exists on a platform of increased freedom from Voorland's reach. This is contrary to the existing power of the Red Party, which is manipulated by Voorstand agents.

Carey's talent lies in never hitting the reader over the head with the metaphors. Like the best novels, it can be read simply for pleasure's sake. It is only upon reflection do the deeper themes emerge. The Voorstanders' inability and unwillingness to comprehend the ways of Efica, and the Eficans' intolerance yet love for the ways of Voorstand, is a theme that can find parallels in almost every country you can think of.

THE UNUSUAL LIFE OF TRISTAN SMITH is an intimate portrayal of one individual. It is a political allegory. It is a retelling of the Christ parable, on par with Robert Heinlein's STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND. It is a particularly fine novel.

This is a book I read several years ago, and have recently revisited. It's weird, but haunting. I am a bit surprised (and proud?) that I seem to be the only one on the web to decode the politics and language of the book. As the other reviews make clear, the novel tells the story of a highly intelligent, observant, severely handicapped child growing up in an alternative-universe version of Earth in which Europe seems to be geographically intact, but the Western and Southern hemispheres are quite different. In the obvious place of North America is the Dutch-speaking nation of Voorstand, which economically and politically dominates the globe and is fighting an unspecified cold war of some sort. The novel concerns the politics and culture of an English-speaking Southern hemisphere island nation, which might be Carey's native Australia or perhaps New Zealand. The analogies and the political points are made clear by the coded language in the novel.

The big imperial power is called Voorstand (pseudo-Dutch for "stands for", get it? It "stands for"...the US. There is also a sexual connotation). The smaller Southern-hemisphere nation is called Efica, whose name is Dutch for the letters F, I and K, which spells something rude (and obvious) in Dutch. One of the ways in which Voorstand spreads its power is through its be-kind-to-animals religion, which is inextricably coupled with the entertainment industry called the Sirkus. The three central characters of this religion/entertainment are Bruder Mouse, Bruder Dog and Bruder Duck -- i.e. Mickey, Pluto and Donald. Don't worry, I am not ruining the plot with these observations. This is actually a wonderful book, but it helps to have some linguistic hints. It is a book about humanity, art and politics -- about freedom both political and artistic. Tristan, the central character, also "stands for" something: for how freedom survives, even though it occasionally falls humiliatingly flat on its face, in circumstances of oppression. What's great about the novel, though, is that it is not a tract, but a sprawling, complicated, often hilariously funny world delightfully different yet delightfully identical to ours. I love weird details like the sirens on trucks that sound when the drivers dare to exceed the speed limit.

The other bit of code is, of course, the reference to a much older sprawling work -- "The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy" (whose initials Tristan Smith shares). But don't worry, Carey's book is much more readable.

Fawn Brodie is a scholar with no ax to grind in this fairly accurate reconstruction of the life of Joseph Smith, the star-crossed founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. For Mormons, the book has always been considered a reproach to official church biographies about Smith, but recent historical findings weigh heavily in Brodie's favor in assessing the actual motives and activities behind the polygamist prophet of Mormonism who said "No man knows my history." Brodie's other tomes on historic figures constitute scholarly, careful analyses of their lives, as is also the case with this effort. The style is pedantic,and could benefit from updating, but the book is well organized and paced. For the serious investigator of Mormonism, Brodie's book is important because the story of Joseph Smith is told in an era before the current visibility and church-line biographies of Smith combined to obfuscate embarrassing or conflicting details in the life of this controversial and charismatic Mormon prophet. For anyone interested in a biography of Joseph Smith that does not have the approval of the LDS Church, yet remains respected among scholars and biographers,No Man Knows My History is a definitive, quotable, and invaluable resource.

One former LDS leader has said that Joseph Smith is either a true prophet, called by God, or he is the greatest liar and deceiver who has ever lived on the face of this earth. Fawn Brodie grew up as a Mormon, and I'm sure it pained her to uncover the facts that she did in her extensive research. (She was later excommunicated from the LDS Church, which I think is the wrong thing to do. She merely wrote a historical book; did the LDS leaders truly want her to repress the facts?) In No Man Knows my History, she uncovered the real Smith, the one who wanted to be prophet/military commander/president, etc. He is not the same person many Mormons have perceived him to be.

The research is sound and, while very historical (obviously, since that was Brodie's specialty), extremely readable. It kept my interest throughout the book. I think it behooves a person to be very critical when it comes to following any leader. If the leader is from God, I think this will prove itself. If he is not, then common sense says to leave and search after what is real truth. This truth is only found in the God of the Bible, not the God that Joseph Smith said was "once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned on yonder heavens." I think Brodie has gotten many followers of Joseph Smith to rethink their faith, and I am glad it is so very popular today.

The best things about Brodie's work:

1)She is accurate. Even though it's been decades since this book has been out, it is still a widely-read text. She is a competent historian, which is a must if you want to learn about things as they reflect reality.

2)She is readable. You can actually -enjoy- reading this one! It makes things much easier when a historian can write well, and Brodie does.

3)She has a fascinating subject. Joseph Smith is one interesting fellow, as evidenced by the successful church that has sprung up in Utah. For some orthodox Mormons, reading this may even be quite adventuresome, as they learn about Smith from another perspective! I think everyone can read this and be intrigued by a complex person.

If I have any complaint, it's that Brodie tries to psychoanalyze Smith too much. Obviously every biography is going to involve some speculation - unless you can actually interview the person yourself - but I thought she went too far at times in assuming she knew "why" Smith did certain things.

Overall I highly recommend the book and I think it is still after all these years the best biography on Smith you can get your hands on.

I purchased this book with the idea a boat cradle would be a unique gift from boat crazy Uncle Bill for my soon to be niece or nephew. Although not extensive, I do have some experience building strip built sea kayaks; very similar to the method used for the Bahama dinghy cradle discussed in the book.

Overall, the instructions are fairly clear and easy to follow. There are, however, a few pitfalls to avoid before construction starts. If you plan to enlarge the plans and patterns included in the back of the book with an architectural reprographics firm (as I did), be cautioned. The 600% enlargement specified by the book proved inaccurate. 548% brought them to scale without distortion and this was expensive (over $50). Once the plans were to scale, any stated measurements on the plans were not necessarily accurate so again, beware. Some measurements had to be coaxed from the plans and the exact placement of the transom mold still eludes me. Also a little confusing is that all the patterns are not square on the graph and, in fact, some patterns are not symmetrical. In particular the transom and rocker patterns. Purchasing the available full size plans may be the way to go.

Again the book is fairly well written as an instructional guide, even for someone like me with little boat building or woodcrafting experience. I'd have rated it much higher had the supporting plans and patterns better lent themselves to more rapid and better construction and less head scatching.

I've built the pram twice. Lots of fun! To build this boat you may have to learn a little about epoxy. Although it can be built without epoxy. I highly recommend buying the plans. If you already have the plans, then the book will help greatly in building the boat.

This book is a wonderful inspiration, and even the expectant moms can make the boat taking into account modifications to eliminate ANY exposure to the various toxins in epoxy etc. The boats are beautiful especially the historic examples. The instructions are excellent and diagrams clear. But be warned you may have trouble enlarging the plans. I went to all the blue print copying firms in a major metropolitan area and none of them had printing capabilities above 36" and I had no reply to the answer-phone messages left on the number to order plans. Time and time again. Otherwise it's got the be the best thing to focus on before baby arrives and nothing else can tell the baby(or mother) that you love them more!

I found this book tedious--the angst suffered by wealthy WASP New England families over problems that many ordinary people have to face (alcoholism, anorexia, depression, etc.) has been covered over and over in far better written books. To me the characters were shallow and underdeveloped by the author--we never know exactly why various family members ended up the way they did, almost nothing is known of the parents whom the author seems to indirectly blame for the children's troubles, and it is hard to identify with the son in his last year at Princeton with a hundred thousand dollar trust fund, deciding his life is ruined because his father tells him he doesn't have what it takes to become a pianist. If he were at all serious, he'd have set out to prove his father wrong. As a woman in the 1970s, I was told this by everyone (including parents) when it came to becoming a CPA, then a lawyer, then moving to New York, etc. I just can't sympathize, to this day, with rich WASP males who are born into the ruling class. Even if the author does, however, his characters come out flat and two dimensional, and at the end one wonders what the point was.

The above review states that there's a scene where the protagonist in the book is interviewed by a black reporter. That never happens, so I don't know what the reviewer's talking about. At any rate, Peter J. Smith has written a good book about families and the trials and tribulations they face. There are some hilarious laugh-out-loud moments in the book, especially in lines of dialogue. I enjoyed it thoroughly, as I did the author's previous effort "Make-Believe Ballrooms." I'm sure many people will see their own families portrayed in this book. It's pretty WASPY and New Englandy if you get my meaning

Ever deliberately found other things to do rather than complete the last few pages of a novel because you were enjoying it so much you couldn't bear to be finished?
Ever considered NOT returning it to the library?
That's how I've been with `A Good Family' by Peter J. Smith...
Twenty years ago, despite my urban background, I would have ENJOYED this book, set on an American island, with the seascape ever invading and dictating the narrative..but I would not have understood it! Twenty years ago, still enveloped in my teaching career, I wouild have RECOGNIZED the people, (for this is partly a novel about TEACHERS), but their disillusionment, their searching for meaning, I would have skimmed over, knowing no better.
Twenty years ago there would not have been the sudden shock of recognition, the sense, almost, of deja vu! Twenty years ago, still carving out a career for myself in a male-dominated field, I had not begun to miss, to mourn, the babies my children had been, the loss of their childhood, which had passsed in a flash, while I had been otherwise engaged!
Twenty years ago,still seemingly in control of their lives, still smug in my matriarchal reign, I could have no premonition of the divisions and disruptions which their adulthood would bring to our family .
And Peter J. Smith's `good family;' is a real family, make no mistake! Only childless adults who were `Only Children' could fail to relate to the Knowles family's `Christmas from Hell', when their mother bought each of them a Timber Wolf adoption certificate...except for the new daughter-in-law, who scored a cashmere sweater to match her eyes!
Perfectly well-adjusted citizens, with a perfectly `normal' family background, will recognise the cut-and-thrust of sibling dialogue, the jockeying-for-position, influence and approval, the fearsome domination of the parent, no matter how well-intentioned!
And despite what my reviewing collegues, (younger than I, I think), have to say, this, to me, is a SAD book. It is a book about living, and learning,..and, inevitably, losing......and about growing up, the great defeat which awaits us all!
But perhaps this book helps us to recognise and acknowledge that universal grief, and to reach some form of acceptance.
`A Good Family'. A good read, and no mistake!!!

If you are really interested in what happened between Turks and Armenians in 1915,i can suggest you to read Heath Lowry's The Story Behind Ambassador Morgenthau's Story.Professor Heath Lowry is a well-known historian in Princeton University and in his book,he proves Ambassador Morgenthau's Story wrong scientifically,shows how the book is based on rumors.A must to read for those who are interested in this matter...

The book is advisable only when one reads it with Heath W. Lowry' s "The Story Behind Ambassador Morgenthau' s Story", published by ISIS Press, Istanbul in 1990. As Dr. Lowry describes:

"The answer is simple and relates to the fact that Morgenthau was writing a piece of wartime propaganda with the expressly stated purpose of mobilising support for President Wilson's war effort. He consciously down played the close relationships he enjoyed with the Young Turk leadership throughout his sojourn in Constantinople and sacrificed truth for the greater good of helping to generate anti-Turkish sentiment which would transform itself into pro-war sentiment."

Unfortunately the American public opinion during that time was based on such sources as the services of Dragaman (translators) between the officials of the Ottoman Empire and the American Ambassador. And these dragaman were not Ottoman Turks but Ottoman Armenians and Ottoman Greeks both were in conflict with the Ottoman Empire. Ambassador Morgenthau used two of them, two Armenians, namely Hagop S. Andonian (personal secretary) and Arshag K. Schmavonian (legal assistant). The printed copy however went through severe war time propaganda editing by the US Secretary of State, Robert Lensing and Pulitzer award winning author, Burton J. Hendrick.

One of the most dramatic incidents and the diversion of the facts were about the life insurance benefits of the deceased Armenian insurers of an American Insurance company. The book claims that Talaat, the Ottoman Interior Minister, made a request to him that the Ambassador should help to facilitate payment the insurance benefits to the Ottoman Treasury, as there were no heirs to the insurers! However, Dr. Lowry proved that after reading the actual dated letters, the request of the Ottoman Minister was to stop the American Insurance Company from transferring their capital funds from Ottoman Empire to France, and thereby preserving sufficient capitalization for any benefits claims. Such diversion of the facts is extremely dangerous.

It is therefore an important document about the wartime journalism and subsequent unfortunate diversions of the facts to base Armenian claims of 1915. We could only be grateful to Dr. Lowry that he shed light into the story with his review of the original letters stored in FDR Library and in the National Achieves.

Ambassador Morgenthau has always been one of the most reliable sources on the Armenian Genocide. No surprise that so many attempts have been made to tarnish his image, or to question his testimonies on the terrible crime committed by the Ottoman Empire against its Christian Armenian subjects. Yet, the Morgenthau version of the 1915 events is abslutely irrefutable, and I strongly recommend this book to those interested in finding out what has really happened during the agony of the "ill man of Europe".