Dr. Penoel and his wife offer excellent advice about how to use essential oils at home to treat specific and sometimes difficult conditions. This is the first in what will likely be a series of such books. Although some of the equipment he recommends using is not readily available in the U.S., he offers suggestions for alternatives. Not necessarily for the beginning practitioner looking for general info but definitely of great use to people fairly experienced with essential oils or for those seeking specific details on how to use alternative methods for treating health problems--especially sinus infections and bronchitis. I have used his nasal rinse advice with much success.

This book is one of the best natural history books ever writen. Thomas Belt lived in Nicargua for 4 years during the last century and his travel with in the country descrived the way the tropics used to be 100 years ago. Since he wrote the book, 98% of the low land tropical dry forest have been deforested.

I found The Net Effect to be an outstanding primer on what has been done and what can be done in the area of grassroots lobbying on the Net.

Unlike so many books in the Internet/Computer field, this one does not try to sell itself with bulk. Many 400 page books contain maybe 50 pages of worthwile information and a lot of filler. This one follows the old maxim that it's better to teach a person to fish than give a person a fish. NetResearch gives a good overview of Internet research and teaches you how to think like a researcher. Since search tools constantly change, this book will not quickly become obsolete, because most search tool contain their own help pages to introduce the latest features. The understanding of how to choose and combine search methods and tools, however, is what this book is all about.

A variety of interesting articles concerning the neurobiology of neural networks. For example, one article by Gardner is "Static Determinants of Synaptic Strength". Although backpropagation as used in artificial neural networks is unlikely to be used by biological nervous systems, it is shown both in the buccal ganglia of Aplysia that synaptic strengths can be specified by postsynaptic neurons. As well, in the mammalian hippocampus, nitric oxide (NO) and arachidonic acid may serve as retrograde messengers from the postsynaptic cell for induction of long-term potentiation.

Although the target audiance is small for this book, the few hundred residents sitting for the written portion of the Neurosurgical boards will find this a very helpful study aid. The organization of the book closely mirrors that of the exam content. The major topical categories are represented; Neurobiology, anatomy, pathology, critical care, radiology and Neurosurgery. The book adopts a question based format, similar to that of the actual examination. The pathology and radiology sections are full of well reproduced black and white illustrations. The strength of this volume is that it emphasizes many of the exact topics found on the written test. As one who has sat for this exam I must recommend it most highly.

When I saw this play performed, I knew I wanted to direct it one day. A few years later, as we rehearsed this play, the cast and I discovered what a singular talent MacIvor is. Time after time, someone would remark, "This is such a rich script." Two threads weave through this stylish piece of modern theatre: memories of an idyllic summer at the beach that goes tragically wrong, and a present-day one upmanship contest between two men in (nearly) identical suits, judged by a referee in a blue bathing suit, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl on the beach. MacIvor is an absolute master of language, and this script shows his powers at their greatest.

It isn't simply that I buy everything Daniel Block publishes. I do. But, apart from the fact that he is a fine scholar, a clear-headed exegete and a solid communicator, this commentary is a must-buy for any student of the OT simply because it represents one of the few works out there on Judges. Until recently, Judges suffered from a drought of commentators. The last thorough treatment on Judges was written by Robert Boling for the Anchor series and that was back in 1975.

Block's commentary gives the reader both balanced and well-informed comments on the text's meaning as well as philological notes on the Hebrew (kept conveniently in the footnotes). It delves deeply for the more scholarly concerns, yet can be accessed by an informed layperson. Block's familiarity and usage of secondary sources, which are also listed in the footnotes, are invaluable for further study. While some quite commendable commentaries on Judges have recently appeared since Block's work, none have come close to eclipsing his fine contribution.

Only two books have astounded and disturbed me. One was a thin volume by Keynes, written just after WWI, which predicted Germany starting another war -- and giving facts and statistics which irrefutably demonstrated Keynes' argument. I was disturbed because the work had been largely ignored by those in a position to change conditions so that Germany need not start another war.

The second astounding and disturbing book is Brooks Adams' "The New Empire." Adams covers a lot of time (4000 b.c. - 1900 a.d.) and territory (Asia, Europe, America). He shows how shifting trade routes have caused great cities to rise, and to fall. He regards these cities as the seats of 'Empires.'

Adams -- younger brother of Henry Adams -- discusses these trade routes as connections among products, resources, and markets. When water traffic became less expensive than overland traffic, port cities became great centers. When the ocean routes began to be navigated, the center of 'Empire' shifted from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic countries, especially Spain, Holland, France and England. Adams discusses various wars as inevitable forms of economic clashes. In early times, Adams discusses the importance of metals. As he moves into the modern era, he looks at coal as essential. I would love to have his thoughts about oil. But the reader can extrapolate easily enough. It's scary.

Lots and lots of good historical stories, including Gengis Khan, the Russo-Japanese rivalry, and the rise of the USA as the center of the 'New Empire." He points out that if we don't stay flexible and energetic, China could become the new center.

He discusses political administrative efficiency as a factor in determining the cost of transport and production.

Why did I never see this book in eight years of university English lit studies?

You'll love Adams' sweeping conclusions and generalities. Buy this book! Read it. It's a keeper.