The book introduces the reader to 62 marvelous houses which exemplify the modern style. Architects represented include Gregory Ain, George Howe, Richard J. Neustra, Raphael S. Soriano, and many more. Detailed floor plans, exterior and interior photographs, and details of construction are included. The houses range in size from modest 1- or 2-bedroom homes to expansive, luxurious mansions.

This book is a spectacular introduction to the vocabulary of the modern period in architecture. The photographs and floor plans capture the bold interplay of geometric shapes, the experimentation with glass and other materials, the profusion of balconies and terraces, and above all, the concern with functionality that motivated the masters of the modern.

Co-authors James Ford and Katherine Morrow Ford have included a interesting introduction. Also included is a collection of brief statements by many of the featured architects.

This is a great book for those interested in American cultural history, interior design, home photography, and other subjects. But at its core this book is an excellent record of and tribute to one of the most remarkable movements in the history of home architecture.

The narration was original; the point of view of the devil, Jonathan Sarkos, was unique and also thought-provoking. He told Martin's story in an imaginative and interesting manner.

The humor of the novel was what struck me. Morrow uses satire to his advantage, coming up with crazy ideas about Bible stories that could have happened, knowing how depraved man (and God) is. "Any society that can create the 20th century has no need of a Prince of Darkness."

I loved this book.

You don't have to have read "Towing Jehovah" to enjoy this sequel, though that's an equally good book I'd recommend. Here you'll find what Swift and other great satirists may have written had they been children of the latter 20th century. Just as those writers were able to comment on current affairs and the human condition while keeping tongue firmly in cheek, so does Morrow. Martin Candle, Justice of the Peace of Abaddon, PA, follows in the footsteps of Job and decides to put God on trial at the World Court, though getting there is more than half the battle. Though many will object to the treatment of religious ideas and beliefs in this book, I think Morrow has written an insightful story about humanity and what motivates and sustains us all, be we atheist or religious zealot or the middle-of-the-road individual who wants to believe, but doesn't see much reason to. This is a book that serious philosophers will enjoy as much as the casual reader who wants to be merely entertained. Pick it up and remember that satire is not all fun and games.

James Morrow is an excellent storyteller to be sure. His novel is funny, touching, and often absurd. The first half was better than the second half, but overall I'd recommend this delightful little book. Give Morrow's book "Only Begotten Daughter" a shot too, it's quite good. He's funny, his characters are interesting, but more importantly he spins one heck of a good yarn.

Reviews for the City of Truth are mixed but the majority seem to feel the same as I: "while humerous, the novel presents a sad picture of a city that is unable to lie, even if means being offensive (Chuck McAllister, Georgia). The book covers some heavy topics such as: is it acceptable to lie and if so when. Even though the novel may be "bitingly funny with the edge to get its message agross (a New York Review), the novel also has its' serious side. Working as a deconstructionist, Jack Sperry, in an attempt to preserve the truth, is living a lie by performing a job not of his choosing. Rather than promoting the arts he love, he is destroying them because they would allow Veritasians to witness a society that allowed to express itself freely. He is also not being true to himself in his relationship with his family. By not being able to say "I love you" or "I care for you" because "love can be construed as a "misused notion, a one work lie." By not being able to admit to or talk about their feelings is acting out a lie. Complete honesty would be to admit his true feelings for Helen and Toby. The novella raises the question "Is lying ever justified?" In some cases to avoid telling the truth helps to ward off a difficult situation, as it does when Jack tries to maintain Toby's high spirits. In this case, the truth needed to be told wven though Toby was upset with the news. As stated previously, therefore, my sentiments appear to be in line with what most other readers think. It is truly an enjoyable, easy novel to read and understand.

If Veritas was weird, Satirev was surreal. Flying pigs, rivers of root beer, burning snow, money growing on trees...the oddities never stop. Sets a nice diversity of scene for the book...kind of like Shakespeare does in many of his plays (normal stuff happens in the home, magical stuff happens in the forest).

But the greatest thing about this book is the characterization. The main character, Jack Sperry, is willing to do whatever it takes to save his son. He leaves his wife, goes against his tortuos conditioning in order to lie to his son about his condition and keep the kid's spirits up.

Despite all the crazy scenery and funny truths in this story, it's really a novella about family and love and the bond between parents and children. Made me laugh and tugged my heart strings a little as well.

Otherwise, this is the standard textbook for game theory for political science. I'm inspired to read Schelling!

A few comments by the previous reviewer may be misunderstood by some readers. This is NOT a "general concepts" book - in other words this is NOT game theory for poets - not that I hold anything against poets. This book does require some undergraduate level mathematics, mainly differential and integral calculus. Those looking for rigorous formal proofs of all theorems will be disappointed, but this is a technical book with an emphasis on demonstrating the application of formal tools to common problems in political science. Some of the material such as the chapter on perfect and sequential equilibria can be quite challenging.

If you merely wish to get a sense of what formal political science is all about and do not intend to actually fire up the old calculator, I suggest Robert Axelrod's excellent book "The Evolution of Cooperation".

Great simple treatment of everything from basic Nash Equilibrium to more sophisticated concepts such as Bayesian information analysis.

The only potential disappointment of this book is if you know game theory well and are looking for something very sophisticated, this is not the book for you -- not because there's anything wrong with this book, but because it wasn't designed for that level.

The first third of the book is best, with child-of-god Julie Katz growing up in New Jersey with her Jewish father, lesbian almost-stepmother, and best friend. Thing go downhill in the middle third, when the adult Julie tries to figure out how to help people, and gets caught up in a web spun by Satan to create a new church. Julie makes some decisions which I just didn't buy about her character, and spends the last third of the book trying to make sense of what her earlier actions created: A fairly standard religious dystopia.

Though Morrow has clearly researched his source material deeply, he has trouble getting to the heart of his characters (Julie is, at best, something of a cipher), and his story isn't particularly effective. The strange "moral" of the story seems to be: If people are chastising you for not reaching your full potential, then lower your potential. Morrow doesn't seem to grasp the irony of this lesson, and the book ends up feeling profoundly unfulfilling.

If God is the Eternal Light, then why do His children live in such darkness? James Morrow wrestles with the age-old challenge of theodicy--how can an all-Good and all-Powerful Deity allow a world with suffering? His vehicle in this excursion is God's daughter, a fertilized ovum found in a male sperm donation, and brought to term in an artificial uterus.

The world is indeed a dark place, and Julie Katz, (That's "Miss God" to you!) seems to find herself in some of the darkest corners. Why is God so distant? Why are miracles so useless?

Religious fanatics and Devout Believers in Scientism both show up in bad form in this book. If you're an existentialist with a dark sense of humor, you'll love reading this. If you're a devout, evangelical Christian, I suspect you won't have as much fun.

Morrow writes well, he dares to tread on the teats of many a sacred cow, and he does so exquisitely well. For those who find their understanding of God and religion offended, I offer you this quote from Julie Katz "If somebody kick your right buttock, turn the other cheek." (p. 260)

Although the characters are somewhat charicaturish, they each have their own depth, motivation, and occasionally act to surprise the reader. The leading characters are more archetypal than human, and that is part of the book's power.

Morrow gets five stars for a solid, well engineered plot. Five stars for characters who live beyond the pages of the books & occasionally drift into our dreams. Five more stars for telling it well, with tongue firmly planted in cheek. Courage. Morrow gets about five billion stars for courage--after all, he's insulted every fundamentalist this side of Venus. Once Jerry Falwell gets done blaming the gays, pagans, ACLU & secular humanists for the World Trade Center disaster, he's likely to call for a Jihad against Morrow!

(If you'd like to respond to this review or discuss the book, please click on the "about me" link above and drop me an email. Thanks!)