Historically, Southern women have been type-case as fragile, codependent, incapable, overgrown children. Growing up in the South, it was always difficult to find role models from local history, or in the mass media.

"Mothers of Invention" shows us otherwise. It was amazing and inspiring to read about the struggles and revelations of these women. It touched me deeply, to think about the courage and strength it took for a previously sheltered woman to learn to take on more responsibility in a society that told her that her place was at home.

This book shows Southern women as gutsy and brave, a little like Scarlett O'Hara's spirit when she vowed, "I'll never be hungry again!"

In "Mothers of Invention," Drew Gilpin Faust explores the ways in which the Civil War transformed traditional gender roles among middle- and upper-class southern women. Gilpin theorizes that Confederate women certainly were aware of the effect that government policies had on their lives-even if the leaders, at times, were not-and that women's views conscription, home defense, economic production and slavery influenced and, ultimately, undermined their support for the war.

Her key point seems to be that the war overturned the "social contract" in which elite women accepted subordination and dependence for male protection and privilege. Although men were off protecting their homes in the abstract sense, women were left to deal with the day-to-day realities of food shortages and an invading army occupying their homes.

Narrowing exceptions to the draft, the military's refusals to grant furloughs in times of great family need, and government policies regarding food requisitions especially galled women. Faust puts a particularly interesting gender perspective on the draft exemption for those owning 20+ slaves. Normally, this exemption is viewed solely in class terms: "Rich man's war, poor man's fight." Faust, however, brings attention to the fear that white women experienced being left alone to manage large slave populations without a man's help. Women feared murder and uprisings from a slave population that was growing increasingly rebellious. The priority ultimately given to equitably treating draft-age white men and the burden of managing slaves led to a decline in women's support for the slave system and for the Confederacy, she argues.

In addition to slave management, Faust explores other ways in which the war caused elite white women to step into traditional male roles. From the very beginning, secession and the war led to much greater involvement by women in the public sphere. Although politics had been considered the province of men, secession was a topic that no one could stop discussing-women included. The banding together of women to support the war effort also proved a new experience for southern women. Unlike their northern sisters, southern women typically had not been involved in social organizations before the war.

Faust's book includes a fascinating discussion about attitudes toward the refugee experience. In particular, she notes that becoming a refugee was the civilian equivalent of buying a substitute for the draft. A refugee, the term implied, had the money and connections to make a planned departure from home-often to protect property. In support of this view, she cites the diary of Mary Lee of Winchester, who disdained the term refugee in favor of "displaced person" to describe those fleeing with little in the face of the enemy.

"Mothers of Invention" contains one of the most interesting analyses of the hoop skirt that I have seen. Faust notes that the trend for full skirts, ultimately supported by hoops, coincided with the Victorian ideals of domesticity and women's separate sphere. The caged crinoline or hoop offered women a portable enclosed private space and the wide skirts symbolized a circle in which women were protected. In an era where upper-class women's sexuality was repressed, the style also hid and reformed female anatomy. The conspicuous consumption of fabric and the difficulty performing physical labor in these skirts made a class statement as well.

"Mothers of Invention" provides a good overview of the different ways that the war affected southern women's lives, including changes within the household, relations between husbands and wives, paid employment outside the home, the likelihood that young women would remain single due to the deaths of so many young men, religious views on the war, increased educational opportunities for women, dealing with Yankee men, etc. Her accessible writing style and use of interesting quotes and numerous pictures make this a relatively quick read. The book is well-organized with subheadings that make locating important points quite easy.

For those interested in exploring the southern woman's war experience, this book would be a good starting point for gaining some good general knowledge. Readers should keep in mind, however, that Faust is focusing on elite and middle-class women, and that the experiences and attitudes she describes do not reflect the lives of lower-class women.

The subject matter is hard to find a book on, much less a good read, thus this book is a rarity, and it is very very well done.

It's a very trustworthy read with no opinionated ego trips and an amazing amount of information. Drew Faust is the queen of primary sources. Everything you read by her is straight from an original. She truly does her research, then puts it in a form that is a delightful and captivating read. I found "Mother of Invention" to not only be incredibly informative (you'll learn quite a bit in one sentence) but and outstanding book that I vied to pick up even more than a novel.

There's something incredibly satisfying in reading a research book and actually really remembering it because you liked it.

As the characters spiral their way down through the depths of hell and toward the ultimate destiny of a fragmented humanity, so we as readers spiral through revelation and enjoyable action sequences in an exciting mix of horror, sci-fi, and myth. It tells the tale of three teams from rival empires. Their quest is one of discovery- to uncover the secrets of a race of Demons. Their only clues along this journey are the myths and beliefs of their own cultures that must have experienced the Demons first hand thousands of years in the past. The twist of this story is it's challenge of religious beliefs by the standards of science fiction. While Chalker strips away shrouds of biblical dogma, he quickly replaces it with sci-fi rationale. While this does have the effect of revealing the wizard as an old man behind a curtain, it validates the underpinnings of religion by giving substance to human myths. Whether you are deeply religious, anti-religious or just plain neutral on the subject like me, I think you'll enjoy the author's attempt to create a fantasy world where the tensions between science and theology can be bridged with rational observation. As we grow up in a society whose cultural beliefs are constantly challenged by the rigor of science, this book gives us a chance to look back to Sunday School and ask, "What if science could validate and explain all that bible mumbo-jumbo?" Such questions are answered with the help of characters representing three distinct viewpoints- Theological fanatics (The Mizlaplan Team), Capitalist businessmen (Exchange), and amoral opportunists (Mychol). Each viewpoint is further enhanced by each team-member who give the extreme, moderate, and even doubter's mindsets to each philosophy. This spectrum of viewpoints gives the reader a whole set of opinions to take with the plotline.

Unfortunately, this book cannot survive on ideas alone. His Empires, though intriguing, are one dimensional and thus unbelievable. Would you believe a Theocracy *completely* devoid of greed? How about a true capitalist society where everything is bought and sold, and nothing given? Governments and societies exist in a Universe filled with duality and contradiction, and thus the believable society must adapt to, and in fact embody such contradictions. This shallowness permeates the book where the characters- though varied- remain flat and predictable once their "rules" have been learned. Even the "scientific" revelations about demons and the occult are so simple and unfounded that it is hard to pick the "truth" out of the endless speculation that each character engages in throughout the three books. The lack of depth is sad, because it turns this series from an exploration to merely an appealing story. Sure, we've learned that the demons are aliens, that the arcane is really technical mastery and that the Bible is really historical text. But when there is little else revealed, it just becomes another retelling of human myths by a scientist- all that was profound about Dante's Inferno instead becomes a technical manual- much like watching a magic show with the technician whispering mirror locations in your ear. Had Chalker understood this, we'd see still more mystery behind the explanations that stimulate our imagination. If only he'd known that the incomprehensible aliens briefly mentioned in the beginning were more exciting than the demons whose simplistic goals make us wonder how they ever developed the complexity to intrigue our ancestors.

All that having been said, the series is a quick read sure to entertain you. If you go into it expecting depth, you'll be disappointed. But if you expect something to keep you turning pages while waiting for your flight to dock, it is right up your alley.

I have always been a fan of Jack L. Chalker. Most of his books have a similar theme, that of advanced alien civilisations that used to rule the universe. This trilogy though is different in that it provides a new twist to the familiar theme. Also his characters are well written, the philosophy is interesting, the plot is excellent and fast paced. Each of the three books has a unique flavour. Definitely a good read.

The entire Quintara Marathon is one mind-bending, surreal escapade after another. The first book is devoted almost entirely to character development, the second to development of the plot... and the third is the big one. Although the climax is sometimes almost as hard to understand as the last ten minutes of the movie 2001, don't let that daunt you. This book has something for everyone. Space opera, science fiction, science occult, fantasy, and crisises of faith.... I thoroughly enjoy this sort of 'gestalt' and if you do as well, then I don't believe you will be disappointed. Some people might be squicked by some of the religious overtones (undertones?), or the Ultimate Nature of the universe (some of the characters are squicked, as well!) but taken in the light of the story, this concept adds greatly to the plotline. Besides, it's a rousing good read!

"Dr. Faustus," the play by 16th century writer Christopher Marlowe, has been published as part of the Dover Thrift Edition series. The brief introduction to this version notes that the play was first published in 1604, and also discusses its relationship to a German text from 1587 known as the "Faustbuch." In his play Marlowe tells the story of the title character, a scholar who is "swollen with cunning." Faust dabbles in the dark arts of "magicians / And necromantic books," and literally makes a deal with the devil. These actions drive the tragedy forward.

This play is a curious mixture of Christian theology, tragedy, slapstick comedy, and colorful pageantry. It moves along fast, and contains some really beautiful and stately language.

"Dr. Faustus" is ultimately a cautionary tale about human pride and ambition. I must admit that in the end I find it less satisfying than some of the other great tragedies of the Elizabethan era, perhaps because this play relies less on universal human issues than on a culturally-bound theological contrivance. Still, it's a noteworthy play that, I believe, still holds relevance for contemporary audiences. ...

The story of the infamous Dr. Faustus shows depth on many levels. Marlowe explores the developing morality play genre while calling upon aspects of classic tragedy. The main character, Faustus, finds himself too intelligent for the sciences of mortal man, and pursues a god-like existence in exchange for his soul. Prodded and guided by Mephostiphiles, servant to Lucifer, Faustus explores aspects of nature and society that the common man only dreams about. The conflict within Faustus is the central focus of the play, and Marlowe challenges the reader to consider whether it is more worthwhile to pursue mortal prestige or eternal salvation

In the Faust legend, a man by the name of Faust or Faustus sells his soul to the devil for twenty-four years of worldly power. This legend has been told many times over by such writers as Goethe and Mann, but no doubt the most famous retelling, and probably the best, is the play, Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe.

The most prominent influence on Marlowe's version of the Faust legend was the social upheaval during the time period in which it was written. Doctor Faustus was probably first performed in 1594, a time of tremendous change in Europe. The Medieval times were over and the Renaissance was beginning, however, influences of both times can be found in the play. Doctor Faustus is a transitional play where beliefs from both time periods intermingle, sometimes with disastrous results.

Doctor Faustus, himself, is a man torn between two traditions. He is a man with medieval beliefs, but renaissance aspirations. When he first attempts to conjure Mephistopheles, Faustus believe that Mephistopheles was forced to come by his (Faustus's) words. In response, Mephistopheles says, "for when we hear one rack the name of God, abjure the Scriptures and his savior Christ, we fly in hope to get his glorious soul." Mephistopheles has, of course, come of his own accord, because he feels that there is a soul to be had. He states this blatantly, yet Faustus is clouded by his old beliefs and also by his desires.

From a medieval point of view, Doctor Faustus can be looked upon as a morality play; a play about one man who aspires beyond his God-given place in the world. On the other hand, from a renaissance perspective, this play is a tragedy. The Renaissance was a time of individuality unlike the Middle Ages where a man was trapped in whatever social class into which he was born. Faustus is "an essentially good man" by Renaissance ideals who believes he has reached the end of human knowledge and is thus justified is using the black arts to further his knowledge. As in most classical tragedies, his downfall is complete and is due to his pride.

After Faustus makes his deal with Lucifer, the question must be asked: Is there any way back for him? Faustus believes he is damned at the moment that he signs his name in blood, although he has many chances to repent during the course of the play. The first chance comes after his first conjuring. He says, "O something soundeth in mine ear, 'Abjure this magic, turn to God.' Aye, and Faustus will turn to God again. To God? He loves thee not." Something is pleading for Faustus to repent, but Faustus remains firm in believing God has already condemned him. Each time the Good Angel appears is yet another chance for Faustus to repent, but the Evil Angel continues to threaten him if he even thinks about repenting. If it were not possible for Faustus to save his soul, then the Evil Angel and his demons would have simply left Faustus alone to cry out in anguish to God.

The final indicator that Faustus could have been saved at any point over his twenty-four year bargain is given by Mephistopheles, himself, as Faustus's fate is sealed beyond irrevocability.

Christopher Marlowe's brilliant retelling of the Faust legend springs not only from his own creativity, but from the times in which he lived. Marlowe's life and times allowed him to create the greatest retelling of one of Western cultures more timeless stories. When put to words, the legend seems so simple, yet its possibilities and implications, as Marlowe proves, can be nothing less than monumental.

This is one of Kerouac's more interesting titles. It is a bit hard to follow at times and one must almost read it aloud in parts to understand the thought. He used nouns as adjectives, ones you wouldn't expect. This can be disorienting, but when read aloud the rhythm comes alive and Kerouac's intended voice can be heard. It deserves more than three stars, but it can seem overwhelming at times so I dock it points for that.

Jacks Dr Sax represents his thoughts,feelings and fantasies throughout his early years in Lowell. Masterfully told through pre-birth, present tense and future tense, Dr Sax weaves a tangled web of delight to those who take the plunge into the River called Kerouac. The chapter "The Night The Man With The Watermelon Died" is worth the price of admission alone. Thank God for Kerouac a good companion throughout lifes troubled waters.

This book is Keroauc sitting in on a mean late night
jazz jam session, writing and reciting verse while all
those around him are blowing madly. It is very
different from the mainstream Keroauc where he
talks about writing in this style. This book is the
style as it spins a story in and out of the rhealm of
the waking consciousness and reminds me of the way I
feel like after listening to some classic Miles.
Read this book and let in linger in your mind for a
while, it has that kind of depth to it.

Good advice, especially for beginners, however I knew most of this. Seems a little dated...never mentions the new oxygen cleaners or liquid detergent(she only talks about powdered detergent). Does offer good suggestions for generalized stain removal. Great for college students or newlyweds.

Lovely book for those who know not about laundry if ever there was a handly little reference book this is it. I enjoyed from beginning to end and refer to it often as well as my daughter. The best is the clothesline........

...Betty's Book of Laundry Secrets is a life saver. I bought it instantly upon seeing it at my local book store. After flipping through the pages I tossed it in my basket and brought it home. Full of tidbits like turn your pants inside out when ironing them, and then flip them outside out to iron in the crease. Or the right way to iron a shirt (I could never quite get it right), and why you should iron everything while damp.

Betty knows her laundry, and I'm SOOO glad I know about Betty. I cannot reccomend this book highly enough. My girlfriend loves it too. We take it to the laundry room with us just in case, often referring to it when we're not sure what pile to put what in, or what to wash in cold or hot, or what to hand wash (and how). Then an hour later we consult it on how to fold fitted sheets, or pants, or shirts.

I won't bother to review Goethe's "Faust". It's ability to withstand the test of time and invade our lexicon is proof enough of its greatness and worth more than anything I could say. However, I would like to comment specifically on the Norton Critical Edition.

I was not particularly satisfied by this edition. Having never read Faust before, I was expecting this edition to contain within its copious annotations helpful summaries of what was going on in the play. Particularly in Part II, where things are often quite disorienting, a first-time reader would often be lost without some outside help. Unfortunately, this edition, despite all the extras it added, didn't contain what I was looking for.

If you are deeply interested in Faust, and familiar with the story itself, the annotations are amazingly detailed, describing the sources and motivations that guided Goethe. If you are a casual reader, however, they will rarely help you understand what is going on if you get confused. This edition is geared towards the scholarly, not the casual.

"Vainly in the day time labored, pick and shovel, clink and strike." Goethe worked on Faust for much of his career, but composed some of the best of Part II in a time of life when most are in their rocking chairs or in the intensive care ward of the local nursing home. Goethe in his late seventies and early eighties would rise in the early dawn and compose some of the best poetry written. "I would elevate my mind to a kind of productivity which brought all this forth, in a full state of consciousness and which pleases me still, even though perhaps I could never swim again in such a river." It has been said that German poetry is difficult to translate or untranslatable, and this seems true with some translations of Faust, but the Norton contains a superb effort by Walter Arndt which appears always so on the mark that one suspects Arndt actually embellishes the German, but, rather than quibble over accuracy, it is all so good you will hardly care. Goethe builds upon the medieval Faust legend as a skeleton for his own writing in epic-poem style with various meter fashioned to fit the subject. Faust, weary of the ways of the world (one can almost hear the 60s hippy) embarks on a journey of self-discovery, skirt chasing and empire building finally ending in his 100th year in the ultimate trip, with a little help from his friend, Goethe. This composition is remarkable in innumerable ways. One can use a thesaurus of superlatives: wonderful imagery, perfect choice of words, peerless imagination, beautiful poetry, a unity to the whole which is memorable, as well as numerous wonderful scenes and lines, and always an intelligence that seems to absorb and understand everything. Of course, one can differ with Goethe philosophically. There are other angles from which to view life than Faust and his Mephistophelean foil. And Faust, which contains all the universal ingredients, can be faulted at times, dwelling too much on the antique philosophy, politics and literary questions which interested Goethe in his long life. But all this seems irrelevant to Faust as a work of art, permanently canonized for its beauty and writing alone, whatever disparagement or praise one might hold for its meaning or content. The Norton Edition is edited by Cyrus Hamlin whose interpretive notes are scholarly, contain a subtle respect for Goethe, and are in themselves a book worth reading. The selections of Goethe comment and scholarship range from the brilliant to the outer eliptics of literary criticism, and the included illustrations and Goethe letters on composition are a nice touch. The work of Hamlin and the Arndt translation which here frame Goethe as the main event make the Norton Critical Edition of Faust (2000) one of the better books one is likely to pick up.

Certainly, the sixty years Goethe spent writing volumes I & II paid off. Unlike Shakespeare, there is a moral lesson which sums the human experience regardless of one's actual circumstances. By illusion and yearning are we enmeshed in lifes toils, only to find the simplicity of innocence and life's early beauty, before we possessed, was the greatest of our soul. Though greatly influenced by Shakespeare, Goethe takes the life's tale to another level which is wrapped in other dimensions of past, present, and future, in addition to heavens and hells. The Faustian choice is one made everyday and is weaved into every moment, until death and afterwards.
An understanding of Indian philosophy (i.e., Buddhism, Hinduism) and the Sanskrit texts brings a deeper depth of understanding, with their complexity and breadth giving greater meaning to a highly mystical and even transcendental text.

Jeez...I went to an out-of-print bookstore (after reading Ferman's Devils/Boddekker's Demons) and found it in five minutes. While it was probably worth that much time invested, I don't know about seven years. The Company Man is a fairly enjoyable novel, but hardly a masterwork. A bit too much of the "aha, you may have THOUGHT X character was dead, but..." type plot twists for me. Also, I have to admit, I never really warmed to Birch as a character--I mean, I suppose he sort of redeems himself, but...well. The ending was a bit depressing too--I mean, sure he gets the girl and escapes and everything, but the world is still a horrible corporate nightmare; nothing's even slightly different. Also...why would Astradyne just let an ex-agent who rebelled against them go on his merry way? Isn't it inevitable that he's going to be the target of numerous assassination attempts, until one of them finally succeeds? A bit implausible all around; nonetheless a halfway decent read.

I read the Angel's Luck Trilogy while in college and immediately went on a search for this book. It took seven years of searching, but as soon as I found it, I bought it, read it and loved it. This is the best JCF book I've read to date. Cool action, slick suspense and engaging characters make this book a must!

I read Company Man in my early twenties and have been a major fan of Joe Faust ever since, despite not having been able to find any other novels by him. This was absolutely, in 30 years and hundreds of SF authors of reading, the best book I've ever read of overall SF. One of those sleeper novels that should be a cult classic. Have searched for more by him for years and hope one day he does more.

Parts of this book had me grinning ear to ear and at first I thought I was in for quite a romp through Dupont Circle and the lesbian social scene. Unfortunately, about halfway through, this book loses its sense of humor.

It's an interesting idea that Jackie (oh please how tired is *that* name in lesbian lit) has so many exes they form their own support group. But the problem is that forming the support group doesn't really help anyone do anything but get a date. All these great women become more and more pathetic.

When they decide to stage an intervention to stop Jackie's horrific and damaging womanizing, the author completely lost me. What happened to the humor? It was somewhat redeemed when they decided to create their own contingent in the Pride Parade. But by then the humor had an enforced gaiety to it.

One of the things that bothered me and I guess maybe an editor should have caught is that while all these women bemoan how awful Jackie's serial seduction habit is, none of them look around the room and ask "anyone got a disease I should know about?" Really -- hundreds of lovers and not one person asks the first question I'd want an answer to?

The story itself was well written but the underlying themes are what makes this book worth reading. 1) Loneliness and insecurity are not good enough reasons for a bad relationship. The void cannot be filled by illusions. 2) The past tends to be glorified in our minds which is what keeps us going back.
Very highly recommended for anyone who still has fond memories of an unhealthy relationship or whose mind and heart conflict on an ex.

I was skeptical at first about Jackie's Exes; wasn't sure it was something I'd be interested in. I read it on a recommendation and thought it was great. The style and content were refreshingly different from most lesbian literature available. It's worth the price, and the time spent reading. I'm very much looking forward to the sequel.

Yes, this book set the style and standard for the Western genre for years to come. Modern book/films such as Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove series and Clint Eastward's Unforgiven have quite rightly deconstructed and deflated the 'epic western hero' that "The Untamed" created. It is impossible in this day and age to take "Whistlin' Dan Barry" and the other larger than life gunslingers in this novel seriously. The wild Dan Barry, Master of wolves and horses - not to mention impossibly fast with a gun and strong as a panther - it does make you smile. That does not mean that it is not a great read however. I loved the book, even though I am simultaneausly reading a Larry McMurtry offering - an amusing contrast, but Brand does not suffer too much in the contrast. Max Brand's writing is actually very good, he is a master of action and continuity - superior by far in my view to Zane Grey - that other prolofic writer in this field. Read it - its great.
The price was right too - I read the free online version from litrix.com

More than any other western novel, even more than the better known "Riders of the Purple Sage" and "The Virginian", "The Untamed" created the modern conception of the west as a violent world of fairy tale. Brand crafts an elegant melodrama of exaggerated life through his sociopathic hero, Whistlin' Dan Barry, and infuses his story with the violence and passion of Greek tragedy. This synthesis created the twentieth-century image of the old west. Brand, who would write over 300 novels in his career, writes with an ease and power that makes every page a joy.

Frederick Faust (a.k.a. Max Brand and eighteen other psuedonyms) wrote and wrote and wrote and wrote -- 30 million plus words in his career -- and just about everything he turned out is worth reading. And "The Untamed" is one of his best. Forget "The Virginian" and Zane Grey's pokey novels, "The Untamed" is the fictionalized west that we know and love, where men and women were larger than life and strode across a fantasy world of death, lawlessness, and strange beauty. After reading this novel, pick any other Faust/Brand title and give it a try: I guarantee you that you won't find a dud.

A well-illustrated portrait of how easy it is to get swept away into the dark world of taboo and the flesh. As Ms. Faust has personal experience in the dungeon/SM world, the scenes are authentic, the mood almost tangible, and the characters fully developed and interesting. The only complaint I had was that I knew who the killer was too early into the book, so that took some of the fun out of it.

This book personifies the lost highway of youth and the sexy side of S & M and the errays of private jokers.

With a non-stop story and a heroine to die for, Christa Faust's debut novel shows the world that her talents aren't limited to S&M dungeons. Faust's words are as lush and ornate as the characters they describe; a bold and dangerous style for a bold and dangerous thriller. _Control Freak_ will have you tied up for days.