James Barke being the prime exponent in his knowledge of Robert Burns, has produced books of such detail about the bards early life that the reader is drawn back into the past to the Ayrshire countryside where Burns is living. Although he is a womaniser and a sometimes drunkard, he has such charm and charisma that almost everyone with whom he comes into contact cannot help but like him.

He is constantly in debt but it never seems to get him down. He scribles his hopes thoughts on anything available. He describes his contemporaries in such visible terms that you can see the poverty or the luxury in which they live.

James Barke conveys all of this in enviable detail and makes a mockery of other attempts to recontruct the life af Robert Burns. This book and the others in the series are 'must reads' for all admirers of Burns works

As now involved in teaching class on the Formula, fascinated by the Leipzig Interim and Chemnitz' "Judgment on Certain Controversies." He states things so plainly and is not politically correct at all, e.g. "it is of utmost importance to establish what limits are to constitute the defining elements of this harmony. Often in the church not only princes and political advisors, but even theologians have sought harmony on the basis of human judgment which led people away from the purity of the Gospel. Therefore, it is necessary in the church that the rule for such harmony be the Word of God."

Wingert's translation of Luther's catechetical material as well as Melanchthon's Disputation, The Catalog of Testominies, Luther's sermon on descent into hell, and the Saxon Visitation ARticles of 1592.

This is great collection of wealth of background info which we Reformation students will sink our theological teeth into and be well rewarded, having greater perspective on the Confessions.

Translated by renown group of Lutheran scholars. Highly recommended.

One thing to watch out for is to make sure that the edition of the tables matches the edition of the text. I have the second edition of the book and the third edition of the tables. The authors removed eight tables in the third edition and instead of using the numbering system of the second edition, they switched to letters floowed by double letters after they ran through the alphabet.

There are many useful tables and explanations are given, so they can be used independently of the text. However, if you get the text you will want the tables. The tables are referenced in numerous interesting and instructive examples in the text.

In the Preface to the Second Edition the authors say that the tables are there for pedigogical reasons only and they chose not to include them in the text because in these days pocket calculators can often be used as replacements for tables. Nevertheless without realizing it the reader does become dependent on these tables to get a full understanding of the examples.

If you get the book get the tables also. If you just want to have a reference set of statistical tables they are useful but I much prefer the "Pocket Book of Statistical Tables" by Odeh and Owens.

How can you beat it? Three of the great classics of World War II in one volume!

Tales of the South Pacific, by James Michener, was a Pulitzer prize winning novel by one of the greatest authors of the twentieth century. Renowned for his detailed research, and for his storytelling ability, Michener has been described with every superlative in the book. This story may be his finest, and served as the basis for the Broadway musical and the movie, "South Pacific." The setting is a tropical paradise; windswept coral isles and the nurses, soldiers and sailors caught up by the war, and the inevitable romances that resulted.

Mr. Roberts, by Thomas Heggen, is the story of a much-loved navy lieutenant juxtaposed against the rigid, incompetent captain of a navy cargo vessel, the "Reluctant," whose duties take her from boredom to tedium and back again with little relief for the crew. The story is anything but boring, however, and the characters are unforgettable. In the movie version, Henry Fonda portrayed the herois Mr. Roberts movingly. The story mixes poignancy with satire, and is both hugely funny and profoundly tragic.

Battle Cry, by Leon Uris (another giant of literature), depicts life in the United States Marine Corps as it was during the great Pacific War. The story takes you from boot training to the foxholes with the fighting Marine Corps, who probably suffered more than any other branch of service in the Pacific in the early to middle 'forties. Faith, hope, and desire are all epitomized in this story, often described as the greatest novel ever written about the Marines.

Anyone interested in those days of Pacific conflict should have this book, unless they already have these three great stories in another form.

Joseph H. Pierre

This year, an elementary school building was named after James B. Morris by the Des Moines Independent School District in Iowa and I am certain that this book had the persuasive effect of helping that school board recognize the strength of character and fearless honesty which this man embodied.

Camilla Cosby recently opined that we are in danger of loosing a wealth of African American history and that we must strive to find ways to keep the memories of our unrecorded heroes alive. Though J.B. Morris was a long-time publisher of a major black newspaper, and his son and grandson continued the long tradition of "The Bystander," and it was for several decades a national impetus in the civil right movement and press, the personal stories of J.B., his fellow soldiers and friends and sometimes unwanted visitors is still a precious new historical gem which Richard Morris has presented quite fluently.

I think you'll find that this book represents far more than one family's journey and that this is a part of our journey as a national community, that these were key voices in their times, doing what they had to do for their country, their family and fellow citizen as simple Midwestern heroes in their own ways and times. You'll laugh and cry along with them as you share in their experiences and realize how far they helped us come.