Perhaps because of the narrower scope of this title compared to others in the Osprey series, Dr. Nicolle went into greater depth in writing this title. A good overview of the Mamluk state.The Mamluks were slaves taken from pagan populations and trained to be soldiers for Muslim leaders. They ended up overthrowing their ruler in Egypt and establishing their own state there. Mamluks would square off against the Christian crusaders in Syria as well as the Mongols. Minuses: poor maps and the stereotyping mentioned by the other reviewer. Pluses: Artwork and bibliography. One day Osprey will learn to devote at least one or two pages to decent maps!

This book is a basic run-though of the military history and organization of Mamluk Sultanate, and for such small size - it is pretty good.

As far as the bad side, paragraph 3, on page 7, particularly stood out as I was reading it.
There, author makes some remarks about Circassians, which are direct opposites of the facts, and reveal his very poor, or even nonexistent knowledge of Caucasus and it's indigenous inhabitants (the knowledge that is essential for those who want to understand Mamluks).

Here is the quote: "[Circassians] were essentially Europeans, mostly from the Christian regions of the Caucasus and Russia. Never particularly renowned for their military skills, they had long been regarded as a second-best source of manpower."

Let me break it down in three parts:

1st - "[Circassians] were essentially Europeans" - Here, what the author, as well as majority of westerners seem to be unaware of, is that physically, Caucasus is part of Asia, and that Caucasus' culture and it's indigenous inhabitants are ethnically part of Middle East.

2nd - "mostly from the Christian regions of the Caucasus and Russia" - Let me first say that this phrase is similar to something like "Turko-Mongolian tribes came from mostly Christian regions of Central Asian steppes and Scandinavia" - at the time when Circassians (and other North Caucasians as well, whom author does not mention) began to be recruited into armies of the Caliphate, neither Northern Caucasus nor Russia had any Christians. Russia became Christian in the 10th century, while Caucasus was Caliphate's recruiting ground since 7th and 8th centuries. The only real Christian regions in Caucasus are in Georgia and Armenia. The Circassians come from the North Western part of Caucasus, where they were always governed by the unwritten, traditional laws of honor and respect, known as "Khabza". Circassians were never organized by any religion, and before massive embrace of Islam in 18th and 19th century, were in their majority pagans (there were small number of Muslims, but not on a large scale, Christians were very rare, and certainly there weren't any "Christian REGIONS").

Next very important concern is how in the world the author managed to put Russia and Caucasus together? I hope that was just a typo. In authors defense one could say that Circassians were the first in Caucasus to have contact with the Russians (which has nothing to do with Circassians' origin anyway), but even that event did not take place until late 16th century, years after the Mamluk state fell to the Ottomans, and hundreds of years after Circassians were recruited for the armies of Caliphate.

3rd - "Never particularly renowned for their military skills." - Extremely false! Circassians (as well as other North Caucasians) ARE in fact PARTICULARLY known for military skill. Circassians were (and still are) very well known for chivalry, physical and mental strength, extraordinary endurance, blade fighting and wrestling skills. Also, due to historic reasons (constant attempts of invasion from foreigners) the overall militancy is present in culture of all of Caucasus.

Bottom line, if you have no idea what or who Mamluks were - this book can be used for a basic introduction, if you are aware of inaccuracies.

The text in paperback form was quite inexpensive. The book was organized into easily digestible chapters with insightful DSM classifications. The chapter on sexual disorders was quite explicit. Our instructor skipped it in lecture.

My summary says it all.Halls of the Arcanum stands as one of my all time favorite human books. They are so unique and it is written so well it is unbelievable, how it went out of print is beyond me. The compilation is worth it just for that. Acolyte is dry and not too good but hey its got hedge magic rules, which are fun for everybody, even Bastet. Well thats it i would give Arcanum 5+ stars and i can't tell you how good it is, just read it. Acolyte while not too great is not useless and is kinda worth the extra dough. Have fun.

The Aston Martin name became a legend due to the fact that the DB 5 was used in the James Bond movies Goldfinger, Thunderball and, later, Goldeneye. However, not many people outside the UK and the USA know much about the models covered in this book. These include the DBS V8, the V8, the Volante, the Vantage and the Virage. Also covered are the two V8-engined Lagondas. The later model, designed by William Towns was so idiosyncratic that one either loved or hated it, and its history makes for fascinating reading.

The book starts with a history of the company, featuring a short biography of the late Sir David Brown, who later became life president of Aston Martin. The origin of the V8 engine is also given in detail. A complete account of all the V8 models to date is also given, and one wonders how many people know that a Lagonda based on the V8 models, preceded the later William Towns-designed Lagonda by about three years. A fascinating chapter is the one about the Virage-based Zagato, which, unfortunately, was only built in small numbers.

If one can level criticism at this book, the first thing is that not even a photo is published of the Bulldog, which, admittedly, was only a concept model. However, the history of these cars is incomplete without information on this model. Secondly, there are not enough colour photographs, and those that are there, are only of the DBS V8, the Volante, the Lagonda and the Nimrod racing models. One only wonders why the other models, especially the V8 and the Vantage, which were proboably the best-known, are not featured.

In the final analysis, this is a good account of the history of the V8 Aston Martins, but it would probably have been better to concentrate on the V8, Volante and Vantage models. Having said that, this is a good buy for those who are not very familiar with these cars.

For twenty-five years, Kin Hubbard wrote a nationally syndicated daily one-panel cartoon with two epigrams. His work was admired by such luminaries as Groucho Marx, S.J. Perelman, James Whitcomb Riley, Franklin P. Adams, and others. His epigrams were good enough to merit five entries in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations. David S. Hawes has cherry-picked his best cartoons, epigrams, and short pieces into a hilarious volume that will leave you combing used book stores for copies of Abe Martin's annual books. What strikes me most about Hubbard's humor is not just the wipe-your-eyes laughter, but how little people have changed since he wrote these sentences.

This book really does show a unique perspective on Cats. I think that it would make a great addition to school classrooms as another way to introduce children to the animal kingdom.

This was a good book. I enjoyed learning the minutia of life in the 1500s and learning about Luther from Katarina's perspective. I'm not Lutheran, so knew little about his history. I was curious about the sexual innuendos about Katie and Ave...seemed a little gratuitous to me - and may be offensive to Lutherans, but I would certainly recommend this book to others.

A smashing read!

If only my intern therapist had read this book before she completely ruined my life...

Pick it up and give it a good flip-through.

Chronicles the rise of young boy through heady sea-faring days of our growing nation. Young man taken from home and hearth and placed at the hands of seasoned travelers and their time honored traditions. Its a world of true responsibility, where each member of the crew is a factor in the entire ships survival.

THis is a very brief history of post-war furniture and lighting design to accompany an exhibition at the Montreal Museum of Design. There are 5 essays, each on a decade of design starting in 1950. They are succinct, very well written, and interesting in that they look at the more general history of the period as well as covering the design movements. However, they are so short that you can read them all in a single sitting, which is what I just did. As I am quite ignorent of design history, it was extremely enlightening for me - I now feel ready for a bigger meal. It was the ideal preparation for a project I am embarking on on design. Furthermore, there are wonderful photos and features on many famous objects, all of which have solid descriptions of what the design innovation represented and what is new about them. All in all, it is a masterful book even if I expected just a bit more.

Recommmended to beginners in the field and as a reference.