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Rose Zar's autobiography came to me soon after its original publication in 1983, and by the way of one of her former religious school students from Sinai Temple in South Bend, Indiana, who was a roommate of mine at the time in the American Southwest. I had heard of Rose prior to the arrival of this important book because of the fond vignettes shared by my roommate and of his circle of childhood friends who had grown up together in South Bend and who all had been her students. They were a small group of American born children and like most Jewish kids from Indiana; they had all gone away to college and with their diplomas had wandered across the state line to more cosmopolitian places. Of that small group one is a famous Beverly Hills jeweler, whose important gems adorn our favorite stars on Oscar night. My roommate was absorbed in his medical residency, when "In the Mouth of the Wolf" arrived from Indiana, and so I read the biography and each evening gave my friend a debriefing of the chapters read thereto by his former teacher.
Having known Holocaust survivors most of my life, or since I was able to acknowledge their history, I hadn't been able to comprehend their horrors. Rose made that horror palatable when portraying the night she hid in the bushes while a search patrol probed the foliage. Recalling childhood games of hide-and-seek and the heart pounding sensation when about to be discovered hinted at the horror of Rose's ordeal when her mission to remain hidden wasn't a game, but meant her survival. There were many poignant illustrations that made this tome a landmark in my personal library's shoah collection. This is a biography that I had shared with my late maternal Grandmother's retirement neighbors in Sun City, Arizona, both concentration camp survivors, who I had known all my life, but whose individual biographies including the horrors they each had suffered, I shall never know. Having read Mrs. Zar's telling story, and hearing their praises of her eloquence and motion picture recommendations, I bravely asked when they might write their own stories. Perhaps their answer was all I needed to know. They hadn't fared, as luckily as had Rose, who had indeed remained hidden in the mouth of the wolf. Israel, who had lost a young son and a previous wife, answered my query: "You have to believe what you write, and I still can not believe what happened!"
This is not only the story of a young European woman who survived the Holocaust, but that of a lady who became an educator in Indiana, and who has become a voice in the annuals of Hoosier Jewry and the 200 years of Jewish life that has existed in our state since the old Northwest period. She is one of many survivors, who found refuge in America and lives about the towns and cities of Indiana and across the land, but unlike some has a mission to teach and to tell of the genocide that befell the once thriving Jewries of Europe not so many years ago. A story that the too often isolationist heartland should know, and a tome that should be added to the 'Indiana Room' collections of all our state's community libraries. I donated a copy to my town's public collection as well as to my congregational library.
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There are some really memorable stories here, and somehow the creators manage to make each installment better than the last; It's tough to believe that there are 25 more volumes left; I for one can't wait to see what comes next. I highly recommend Lone Wolf and Cub; Not just for a good read, but also for it's fascinating insights into Japanese history and culture.
(17) "The White Path Between the Rivers" provides a rare but tantalizing look at the backstory of Lone Wolf and Cub, wherein we find out the grim details of Daigoro's birth and learn how Ogami Itto became the target of political intrigue. In helps answer why, in part, he refuses to stop walking the Assassin's Road. Koike and Kojima had been stingy with this look at the ronin's motivation, which is what makes these stories all the more special. (18) "The Virgin and the Whore" plays off the standard formula of these Assassin's Road stories as Ogami takes up the cause of a young prostitute. Of course, appearances are almost always deceiving in this stories. This is also one of those stories where the attention to historical detail is impressive, this time with regards to the practice of prostitution during Japan's Edo Period. (19) "Close Quarters" provides an assignment for the assassin that hinges on the economics of a han controlling a forest and presents another clever use of Diagoro by his father. The back of the volume includes the next installment of "The Ronin Report" by Tim Ervin-Gore looking at "bushido," the code of the warrior by which Lone Wolf lives his life.
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Several years later, and with a sense of higher literacy later, I am found sitting in my high school English class pulling out one of my favorite possessions from my dusty children stories-bookcase and regained my sense of wonder again for the first time since my innocent age of nine. It's a wonder that the edges wave not been torn as much as my other treasures, and looked upon it as some sort of holy artifact saved in my holy sanctuary now adorned by hundreds of photographs, oil paintings, and sketches of wolves I can know honestly blame the inspiration on this very story. Sometimes you have to wonder how something as insignificant as a children's story can effect your life.
"A Look to the North" is about, you could say, the story of a wolf pack introducing the pups from birth to adulthood. If your son or daughter takes interest in any animal, buy him or her this book. Neither of you will regret it.
Telling the story of Boulder, Scree, and Talus, three fictional wolf pups, it truly is a wolf pup diary, as there is a new page for every critical stage in wolfpuphood. You can learn something new about early months of wolf pups on every page, while the style and storyline of the book are brilliantly masked as fiction (for the porpose of the book appealing to young ones.)
The full-color pictures only add to the fun of this book, and the detials in them are breathtaking! The pictures alone are enough to tell the story to the very youngest readers, but the words give something the pictures cannot, as do almost all books that I have seen.
Note that older readers will also enjoy JULIE OF THE WOLVES and it's two sequels, JULIE and then JULIE'S WOLF PACK, by Jean Craighead George, the author of LOOK TO THE NORTH: A WOLF PUP DIARY.
And now I have no more to say, so, as ends the introduction....
Why do I love them so? They are wonderful. Look to the north and you will love them, too.
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But my research shows me that the wolf is a noble animal -- I so try to portray "Kai-No" and his relationship with Trapper; they are huge, powerful specimens of their species. And though each is sort of a fugitive from his own kind, they form a bond that enables them to survive in the cruel arctic climate.
They do encounter some frightening experiences... I hope you will read about them and enjoy them...
Finding a secluded valley in the Far North gives the man and the wolf introduction to a world only dreamt of heretofore... no killing in this valley (well, except for fish). But the strange couple have many obstacles to overcome. And they do overcome one of the strangest events ever included in a "Far North" story... only "The Alaska Incident" comes close.
This reader had never tackled an "e-book" before, but the author and publisher have come up with a new development that is easy on the reading... you can select a print size and color, and even a scroll speed that lets you read as you wish, without touching the computer. And you can even mark your place...
Congratulations, Blue Knight Enterprises, for a great yarn!
I highly recommend this book to everyone. A truly great fantasy book. Gemmell will keep you on the edge of your seat.
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However, two little mistakes occur. The Holy Office was renamed and reorganised in 1965 AD (2. Vatican Council), and the Vatican still holds a huge collection of Inquisition documents. Most libraries even had been opened to the public in 1998. Both facts can provide new interesting story hooks.
Farooq.Abdullah@Assamites.de
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that I decided to wait until the entire series was released to finish reading it. After the first three volumes, I didn't really believe they could keep up the same level of quality, and it turns out I was right.
Volume 4 blows the previous three away.
It's worth reading just for the heartbreaking Daigoro solo story, "Parting Frost", where the toddler sets out in search of his father and makes a very powerful enemy of his own. The other three stories are nothing to sneeze at either, and in addition to great entertainment, the creators also provide some important lessons about the history and culture of Japan in pain-free ways that don't even give you time to realize you've been learning; Perfect for Gaijin's like me!
I can't imagine how this series can possibly get any better. Stay tuned.....
(20) "The Bell Warden" gives its title to the volume, but it is the third best story in the volume. The current bell warden of the capital's nine bells wants the assassin to cut off the right arm of his three successors as a test. Each of the three is an expert with a different weapon, but also weapons that are different from anything we have seen to date. (This volume's "Ronin Report" essay by Tim Ervin-Gore in the back is "Weapons Glossary: Part One," which helps to explain more about these weapons). This story becomes a series of three fights, albeit unlike what we are used to it the series.
(21) "Unfaithful Retainers" sets the tone for the other three stories in this volume in which Ogami Itto becomes something of a secondary character for most of the story. This tale involves the new class of Orisuke that arose during this period to serve samurai families without sharing the values of samurai society. The assassin has a mission regarding the Orisuke, but when he encounters two young girls about to kill themselves. Curious about what they would do so, he listens to their story and then comes up with a startling suggestion. The climax involves another one of Lone Wolf's complex strategems to put his prey where he wants him.
(22) "Parting Frost" is the most unforgettable story in this volume. Left to wait patiently for the return of his father, Daigoro has run out of food and decides to search for Lone Wolf. Going to a Buddhist temple because his father often meditates at such place, Daigoro finds a samurai who is stunned to see "Shishogan," the eyes of a swordman alive in the moment between life and death (i.e., Ogami's eyes). Seeking to solve the mystery of how such eyes could belong to a child, the samurai observe Daigoro's actions. A stunning story, totally unforgettable. But this is only Volume 4 and the thought that there are stories down the road that might be better than this one is mind-blowing. But every time I think I have read the best "Lone Wolf and Cub" story, there is one even better in the next volume. Daigoro says little, but Koike shares with us the child's thoughts and we discover what he has learned from watching his father. A fascinating character study made all the more poignant by Daigoro's ability to remain in some ways a child, despite all he has seen and endured.
(23) "Perfomer" offers an intriguing mystery regarding a woman whose body is tatooed in a most eye-catching way. The woman also happens to be an expert sword fighting and apparently the next target of Assassin Lone Wolf and Cub. But once again, there is more to meet the eye regarding this situation. These stories started off with a key element being the brilliant strategems by which the Assassin gained access to his victim. But by this point in the epic the situations are becoming equally complex as Koike and Kojima take their stories to the next level. This is the second best story in this volume, which continues the amazing progression that each is superior to its predecessor.
I continue to read these stories, one a night before going to sleep. These stories live up to their well deserved reputation as one of the great efforts in the history of comics.