After looking through endless craft books on paper craft and not finding anything inspiring, this book appeared. It has great photograqphs and telling crtiques my the two editors and short blurbs from the artists regarding their works. It's stylish and modern and wonderfully artful. There are no how-to's in this book, it's simply a great collection of pieces from an overlooked art form.

For the beginner this is a decent INTRODUCTION to water gardens but it is loaded with inconsistencies, lacks definitions (a glossary), is illogical in many places and left me frustrated many times trying to understand the basic stuff. Again a decent introduction to water gardening but the serious "gardener" would be well advised to look to other sources.

lots of great tips in here for a beginner. this helped me out a lot

Excellent guide that I highly recommend. This is well organized, clear, complete and is very well illustrated. This is an excellent book on water gardening that will be particularly helpful to beginners, but also contains interesting and creative ideas for the more experienced water gardener.

I generally liked her other book, the Social Lives of Dogs, and in fact read it twice over the course of the previous year. I felt as though I learned a lot about canine behavior and their social organization. This book however was a terrible disappointment for me. I checked it out of the library after giving one as a gift to a friend, only to find that there was very little written about house cats (my primary interest), and all the talk of big cats and anecdotes from the author's many years in Africa seemed indulgent and not even terribly insightful for those interested in these topics.

I'd urge you to look for a copy in your local library or bookstore and scan through it before commitment to the cover price.

This book is filled with very interesting information on our feline friends. It starts from the prehestoric age and moves on to the modern day cats. It provides a lot of info on the big, domestic felines as well as their big wild cousins.

But apart from a very detailed and documented journey into the feline world, this book is filled with anectodes that will make you laugh, will make you sad and will make you think.

And one thing is certain: After having read this book, you'll never look the same way at your cat.

This is a book that anyone interested in natural history and/or animal behavior ought to read. The author has an almost poetic command of the English language combined with a thorough understanding of the methodologies of the social and natural sciences. Her (radical?) contention that animals, particularly cats, have culture - a series of learned and transmissible behaviors - is demonstrated to the point where it should at least be taken seriously by the scientific community, and perhaps to the point of being as proven as possible outside the established boundaries of scientific methodology. Her observations of the interactions of the Serengeti populations over time, both lions and people, have certainly convinced me that animals have culture. And at the same time they've broken my heart just a little bit more at what we humans are doing to one another and to the other species that share this world.

I have read this book at least four times, cover to cover, and smiled and wept a little and been further enlightened during each read. I've bought it as a gift for several friends and have two or three copies of my own at home. A reviewer said of this work: "Wonderful book. Formidable woman.", and that pretty well sums it up - her voice is quiet, but I believe you will find it resonating with you for a very long time indeed.

In its own small way, "The Tribe of Tiger" is every bit as much of a classic as "Origin of the Species" or "Silent Spring" (or "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats"!).

I originally meant to buy Exam Cram not Exam Prep. When using Exam Prep I thought it did not prepare me for the tests. I have used one of the Exam Cram books for TCP/IP and thought it prepared me quite well. If your looking to take your MCSE test buy EXAM CRAM not Exam Prep.

I've been teaching the MCSE courses and on of my students brought the Exam Crams and Exam Prep books in the class, asked me to read and rate them. After reading through these books, I found these books are just excellent. They are full of technical stuffs, written in real English, and in a readable manner. I have even "talked" to one of the authors of the book as well (and his name is Ed). Ed was expert in the field and he was very fun to" talk" to. I definitely would recommend the books to all my students, friends.

This is a fascinating examination of the behaviour of the author's own and very special pack, which is mainly comprised of huskies, the domesticated dog closest to the root ancestors of all our canine pals - the wolf. But the owner of a Dachshund or even a Labrador (now America's number one pick) will find less of relevance to understanding their companion. We follow Thomas as she ingeniously follows her huskies on hundred mile jaunts in and around the "wilds" of Cambridge. Massachusetts. We listen with great interest but a sense, mainly, of the strange, not the familiar, as her huskies are allowed to recapitulate the lifeways of their feral relatives right in the suburban back yards and city streets. As other reviewers have commented, one is constantly distracted by the thought of how irresponsible the "experiment" is of giving such latitude to any pet, let alone a breed so notoriously unpredictable and aggressive. Do we really want quasi-wolves roaming at will? In the end, despite the high quality of the writing, I personally gathered very much less than I'd expected (from the title and liner notes) towards any new insights about my "Fido".

This book is interesting as one person's take on the behavior of her dogs; but certainly not a scientific study! What dog owner or pet owner isn't full of anecdotes regarding what their pet has done, or the many ways that our pets show us that they are thinking and feeling creatures? Plus, her background in studying wolves helped me to think more about the roots of the behavior of the dogs in my life. However, I disagree with her practice of letting the dogs roam free. Also, not spaying/neutering was just irresponsible, especially since she describes several unwanted pregnancies/litters; and there are literally millions of unwanted animals in this country alone. Regarding not using a leash, my own dog was roaming free in the park last year, suddenly got spooked, and ran onto a busy street and was hit by a car. The author was lucky that this did not happen to one of her dogs that she allowed to roam free. So, I tended to disagree with her practices, which I felt did not show enough concern for her animals; but her insights were interesting to consider.

I thought this book was a very enjoyable book to read. Thomas is a fascinating individual who does an excellent job of seeing right through dogs and making great observations. I especially loved following the lives of the dogs and the dog pack as a whole from when they are born to their emotional deaths. Those who commented that this book is lacking statistical information and scientific observations are really missing the point. If you want a boring book on dog pyschology get something else. But if you want an intriuging and fun book that really makes you think, get this. You'll love it.

Taylor's translation of Apuleius' "On the God of Socrates" is a beautiful translation, but his prose is slightly dated. It seems most apt for an academic setting, and I recommend it to classicists or those with a knowledge of the classical world.

As usual, for those who have the sympathy and inclination, Taylor once more scores high marks for this wonderful translation of Julian's remarks contra the Christians.

The observation that stays with me was how the Christians were often very good people, but seemed terribly ignorant: theirs was not a virtue in the grand Pythagorean or Platonic/Neoplatonic style. They had amazingly simplistic and crude ideas, yet for all that, in many cases, managed a high personal level of morality. (Try having an intelligent discussion with the average modern Christian proselyte of the inherent contradictions of Petrine Christianity and its roots in paganism, and you will understand Julian's remark.)

Of course, the complement to this was how the Christians often came from the absolute lowest and most disreputable strata of society. In the pagan mysteries, according to Plutarch, Plato et al, only those who were of pure heart and highly reputable character would be permitted to enter.

A good reference, but not one of the Taylor translations that I enjoy rereading.

If you have not been near a Biology syllabus in a while, this is the book for you. The authors do not assume that you know everything. The chapters cover all the major topics (the only supplementation you may need is diagrams such as those of plants). I found that the practice tests could have been better structured because the Ecology tests are separated from the Molecular tests without the common core section that's used in the actual exam. All in all, a good book - using this book alone I earned a score of 660!

The actual title of this volume is, "Two Treatises of Proclus the Neoplatonic Philosopher" which are, "Ten Doubts Concerning Providence and a Solution of those Doubts" and "On the Subsistence of Evil", translated by Thomas Taylor, presumably in the 1920's, but no original copyright for this reprint is given. The book itself reminds me of a workbook for school, since it is 8"x10.5", and the pages seem to be enlargements of a smaller old edition.I bought this as a companion for Pseudo-Dionysius, but at least as far as this edition goes, I'm in over my head. Not only is the translation done in an antique style, but the relatively sparse notes presume a knowledge of Latin and Greek, and are not geared to the general reader. Editorially, the reader is not given much help, in that the text is not subdivided except by occasional numbers, and no headings or other structural clues are given.All that being said, this difficult book let's me peek into a remote mind, struggling with concerns that are likewise remote from me, and wonder. It will definitely not be most readers' cup of tea, and it could be done better, but I'll keep it all the same.

As a member of the 101st Airborne Division,I was really looking forward to reading this book. I wanted to get some sort of insight into how the soldiers fought this war. The book focused entirely too much on the officers and 1/101st. I work in aviation & I know that there can't be too much that's interesting about that branch. What about the NCOs and enlisted guys that made everything happen? That's who the author should ave focused on. It took me months to finish reading this book, primarily because of the poorly written content. Don't waste your money on this piece of "literature."

This is a history of the 101st Airborne Division's role in the Gulf War.
It starts off by being incredibly schmaltzy. The author writes about his father, "My father wore the [division Screaming Eagle shoulder patch in WWII....] [O]nly the Screaming Eagle is engraved on his headstone, as it had been on his heart. I'd worn it in the jungle where it seemed a talisman and inspiration."
He goes on to describe incidents like one battalion commander publicly promising to his unit's families, "I'm going to bring every guy back alive ... every one of your husbands ... will come back alive." Is this a war or a camping trip? The schmaltz continues after the war as five division deaths are lamented. "Five from the ill-fated crew had settled all accounts on this earth.... We had been so fearful there would be many, many more. We had to be grateful.... But it was a guilty gratitude."
More serious problems in this long 440-page book include failing to put events in perspective. The author brings in many anecdotes, often in the form of lengthy quotes from soldiers he interviewed for the book, without letting the reader in on the secret of what this soldier's role was, what the unit was doing, why the unit was doing it, etc.
Not only is the author's writing style disjointed, but the author cannot get his tenses straight. He usually writes of these past events in the past tense, but then lapses into current tense, and even into future tense on occasion.
I enjoy the genre, but this particular book is a definite pass.

First off, this book stands alone as a work of excellence. What it is describing is the 101st Airborne (Air Assault) Division of the U.S. Army; its true to its subject matter--if the reader is bored or cannot understand its on him to ask himself if its he that is lacking in skill/understanding or the 101st is boring--which is highly doubtful. Second, books are not in a zero-sum competition with each other. There is no rule that says if I rate this book "5 stars" (which I do) another must be "4". What Col Taylor's book does is priceless--it describes the "Screaming Eagles" in Desert Storm better than any other book. Now I will explain why.

To the serious student of warfare Taylor explains candidly why the 101st has been left out of Small Scale Contingency operations like Panama because its helicopters use up too much fuel and cannot fly far and fast enough to get there compared to the 82d Airborne Division which airdrops from fixed-wing USAF aircraft. The 101st's helicopters have to be disassembled and placed inside USAF fixed-wing aircraft or shrink-wrapped and placed on slow-moving ships to "get there". For a good comparison of the pros/cons of America's infantry, I highly recommend Col Dan Bolger's Death Ground: America's Infantry in battle, which echoes Taylor's observations. The Division, tired of being "orphaned" went on a strategic lift diet and cut out as many ground vehicles as possible to speed their mobilization. This is not some remote experience---the problem of getting U.S. Army forces with 3-D maneuver capabilities to the battlefield are as current as TF Hawk's woes were in Albania. For Desert Storm, the crafty planners at Fort Campbell were ready, and their foresight resulted in their AH-64A Apaches leading the way for the entire war by destroying key Iraqi radars. We need to employ the same thinking-ahead mentality today.

The next learning point for the war student is the fuel logistics---this may be boring to a reader wanting a RAMBO story, but this demanded that a ground supply line of trucks be used to link-up with the 101st as it bounded forward into operating bases deep into Iraq. If you read this book for the details and to see how the leaders overcame the obstacles of fuel, weather and terrain to position themselves at the "back door" of the Iraqi retreat you would be reinspired to the creativity and humanity of the men in this great Division. What strikes up at you when you read this book is that once at Highway 9, the 101st lacked enough mobile infantry to keep that route closed to enemy escape, the tactic chosen was to use Apache gunships flying free to detect/attack from stand-offs targets of opportunity as the infantry basically secured the fuel dumps for the attack helicopters. With the benefit of 20-20 hindsight, its clear that had the "Screaming Eagle" Infantry been equipped with light Armored Fighting Vehicles like the German Airborne's Wiesels, massive amounts of fuel to use helicopters randomly could have been avoided by using this now mobile, "Air-Mech" infantry to deliberately/precisely close the ground routes out of Kuwait from the Iraqi Army. The third and "achilles heel" of the 101st is its foot-mobile-constrained infantry; and for this problem, the leaders came up short in Desert Storm because to fix it requires a new type of ground vehicle to be obtained as the Russian Airborne figured out long ago.

Overall, this book is entertaining and a very important document since it details procedures like how 2 HMMWVs were loaded INSIDE a CH-47D Chinook helicopter to effect more fuel-efficient and speedy travel. That these HMMWVs were not used as infantry carriers as a sort of "rat patrol", creating an "Air-Motorized" force is a question but one that is easily answered as noone wanted to take any risks on the ground with unarmored vehicles that may get Americans killed, though Army SOF did it to hunt for SCUD missiles farther west behind Iraqi lines. This makes it all the more important that the 101st acquire a small UH-60L helicopter-transportable AFV immediately so the next time we need "lightning" the voltage doesn't fizzle when it touches the ground.