There has been a lot of hoopla in recent years about the "Forgotten War" referring to the Korean War. This war was the first war fought by the forces of the West against the surrogate forces of the Red East. After a year of back and forth open mechanized warfare it settled down into a heavily fortified trench war similar to the Western Front of WW I.
It is also vilified and thought of as the first war the U.S. lost and there was a lot of political mud slinging at home about the causes and conduct of the war. But cool heads prevailed and it did not turn out to be act one of WW III. Everyone involved finally signed an armistice which continues to this day and though there have been border raids and incidents, general war has been avoided. While the south has prospered as part of the western world economic system the north still hunkers down menacingly behind its borders.
When I served it was just two plus years after the armistice and the Army was full of veterans of both WW II and Korea. The experience was remembered and contributed to some of the missteps later in Vietnam.

This book is a concise and handy refrence for turfgrass professionals. It is organized in three sections covering weeds, insects, and diseases. Unlike many other texts on pests that deal only with identification, Watschke et. al. actually go on to cover the more difficult issue of control strategies. The use of more color plates, and better placement of the color photos throughout the book would be nice. I'd rate it five stars were it not that all of the color plates are consolidated a center photo section. This may reduce costs, but in my opinion detracts greatly from ease of use.

This is a "replacement" for the owner's manual that is supplied with the 700si, 500si, 400si, or 300si series cameras from Minolta. As such, it clearly explains the features of each camera and provides some tips on how to use them. This book, however, is *NOT* a guide to general photography - it "extends" the owner's manual that comes with the camera.

It also explains in detail the differences between the various camera models. The only omission is a description of the model variations - for instance the 400si has two varients, a 430si (base model with date back) and a 450si (base model with date back and panoramic switch). There are similar varients in other models e.g. the 530si and 550si. If you have one of these varient cameras, this book is also applicable, it just doesn't tell you that!

The only negative is that the book tends to view life from the perspective of the 700si. the others are well covered, but sometimes you have to pick the information out of a discussion of the 700si.

The problem with books about history is that they are almost always an interpretation: the author's. At best the author is willing to share the conflicting evidence with his reader, at worst the author omits it and pretends it doesn't even exist. But even the most faithful author can't put everything in a book so a selection has to be made. That's why the critical reader ends up reading a lot of books about the same subject. To be able to grasp most of the material, evidence and theories that are circulating. That way he/she is able to form his/her own opinion about an issue. But if the issue is Thomas Jefferson & Sally Hemings the reader will likely end up digging through tons of material and will still be very confused and very indecisive. Until recently one of the only books on the topic worth reading was Anette Gordon-Reed's "Thomas Jefferson and Sally Heming: An American Controversy". Because of it's painstakingly revealing of the mistakes, omissions and lies that previous writers had committed and for it's refusal to take a final stand.

This book however was written after the 1999 DNA tests that revealed that Thomas Jefferson very likely fathered Sally's last child Eston. And that he didn't father Thomas C. Woodson. But one has to keep in mind that the recent testing still don't prove Jefferson's paternity exclusively. Another male relative from the Jefferson line could have fathered Sally's last child, since they share the same Y chromosome. The book offers a number of refreshing essays written by scholars. Each one of them looks at the relationship from his/her own field. Trying to describe and explain what this new evidence means to themselves and their previous writings and views on TJ. Sometimes describing how they fell into the trap that so many historians fell into when dealing with TJ. They also try to describe the way the American mind thought about TJ and how this new evidence will influence peoples views and opinions.

The strength of the book is that it has been written after the revealing DNA tests. It also presents a lot of authors, each with his/her specific knowledge, views and convictions. Rather than just one author. But the really weak point is that the book fails to give a clear outline and explanation of the recent DNA test. That's the chapter that it should have started with. Since that test is the core, the very foundation upon which all these "revisionist" writings build. And also because a test like this needs explanation: not everyone is familiar with cellular biology and what it really means.

Dr. Redpath is one of the few very good contemporary Thomistic philosophers. This book (I have the paperback) is a very, very good introduction to the thought of St. Thomas. The introduction is apologetic in nature, making neither excuse, nor exception. The first part gives a very solid (yet concise) biography of Aquinas. (Did you know how many times Thomas' corpse was exhumed?)

In explaining Thomistic philosophy, the book begins where it ought to - with the division of sciences, which naturally turns into a discussion of epistemology. And so on from there.

I think this book is for more advanced students than McInerny's Intros to Aquinas. Every point being made is not confused, but explained very rigorously. As the title of this review states: this is a simplified introduction - not a simplistic one. Lastly, the bibliography at the end of the book is, admittedly, very sparse.

"Not for Beginners Only" would be a better subtitle. My happy aquaintance with Lewis goes back many years, but I'd not thought to dig to see what other kinds of gems there were in his writings than those I'd first stumbled upon. Mine tends to be a Some-stuff-interests-me-and- other-stuff-doesn't kind of mentality.

This book impells me to a much wider appreciation for Lewis by way of the author's logic and insightful discussions. It's a pleasurable read! In the past I've been put off by the phrase "in other words..." followed, as they tend to be, by the obvious. I'm thinking, "Yeah, yeah, let's get on with it." Not so with Peters. He says, "In other words" and offers me a truly fresh, deeper insight than was at first obvious. And I'm thinking, "Oh, yeah! Of course! Why didn't I think of that?" I so appreciated Peters' well-expressed views that I found myself thoroughly savoring his marvelous intro to the pr! evailing thoughts/ideas of the 19th century in his second chapter. ("Setting the Stage") Let's face it. Learning ought to be a joy, and Peters serves up a most palatable sociology. I came away with far more than I'd bargained for.

If you're looking for light summer reading, mindless and forgettable, a paperback you can toss without a second thought--you've got the wrong book.

If you're looking for something that catches and sticks with you, draws you into some real thought, and lifts you in the process, this is your book.

After reading Peters' "Simply C.S.Lewis: A Beginner's Guide to His Life and Works," I see the familiar in a gratifying new light, and want to reread. And it goes without saying that now I'm eager to get to treasures of Lewis's which I've overlooked in the past.

Few people living today know that President Thomas Jefferson launched two expeditions into the Louisiana territory purchased in 1803; Lewis and Clark to the north, Freeman and Custis to the south. Lewis and Clark have been covered thoroughly, even triumphally, because they completed their task. Freeman and Curtis have been ignored because they were intercepted by Spanish soldiers after exploring hundreds of miles of the Red River. Historian Dan Flores, drawing on both American and Spanish sources, performs a real service by describing this southern expedition and placing it within the context of its time (1806). Flores reminds us that the Spanish tried to stop Lewis and Clark too, but missed them. He shows us that the scheming General Wilkinson wanted the Freeman and Custis expedition to provoke a war with Spain, and nearly succeeded. Flores provides an introduction before the expedition's own account, and an epilogue after. His annotation of the expedition's documents is exceptionally thorough and often fascinating. The book includes numerous black and white illustrations and reproductions of several old maps. A modern map of the area would have been helpful. This book is one of an excellent series published by the University of Oklahoma Press.

This book teaches facts about the Hammerhead shark in a storybook format. The Hammerhead is born, swims away, then begins her life's work : searching for food. We learn why it is practical for Hammerhead to have such widely spaced eyes. Facts about other ocean creatures are included when they fit the story. The illustrations are realistic, including blood when Hammerhead scores dinner. I estimate this book is best for ages 4 - 8; short but informative.

We are still awaiting a truly great biography of T. E. Lawrence. Easily one of the most fascinating and complex individuals of the past century, Lawrence remains in many ways a cipher and an enigma. I found Peter Brent's volume in a used bookstore, and bought it for the superb illustrations as much as for the text. Luckily, the text provides a solid and useful treatment. Brent doesn't dissipate the mystery of Lawrence so much as introduce the reader to it. For instance, he juxtaposes Lawrence's apparent asexuality and revolt at physical contact with others with his pleasure in physical masochism, without a serious attempt to provide a solution to this mystery. He makes several suggestions that many of Lawrence's difficulties in life may have been related to a sense of being an illegitimate child and a consciousness of being rejected by his father's family, but he is not able to systematically relate this to specific instances of his life. At the same time, the book doesn't degenerate into psychobiography, something that could happen all too easily with someone as complex as Lawrence.

The bulk of the book deals with the Arab Revolt against Turkey, and Lawrence's role in it. The discussion is solid without being outstanding. Brent does a fine job of outlining the major issues in the conflict, describing the major figures in the conflict, and depicting the difficulties in any happy resolution. He treats Lawrence fairly, not minimizing his role, but not buying uncritically into the Lawrence legend. He neither tries to erect an idol nor destroy an icon. He also deals with Lawrence's life before WW I, and to a much lesser extent, his life after it. I wish the latter part of the book had been a bit fuller. I found the final years of Lawrence's life to be dealt with far too brusquely.

The illustrations make the book. There are photographs of nearly all the key figures, color reproductions of many of the illustrations from the original private edition of THE SEVEN PILLARS OF WISDOM (including a number of cartoonish depictions of Lawrence), and fascinating photographs of Lawrence from all stages of his life. Even if one did not wish to read the text, I could recommend this volume as a great visual companion volume to anyone reading THE SEVEN PILLARS OF WISDOM.

One of the clichés about Monticello is that few houses do so good a job revealing the personality of its builder. But clichés get to be such generally because there's truth to them, and that's definitely the case here. If Thomas Jefferson was one of the most interesting figures in American history (and I think that's unquestionably true), then Monticello may well be one of America's most interesting houses. And for this colorful book produced by the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, we are guided through the house and grounds by people who know their stuff.

Specifically, the chapters of this title are written by Monticello's director of restoration, the curator, the director of gardens and grounds, and other experts associated with the Foundation. Large, colorful photos are accompanied by informed commentary and all the requisite history, as well as documentation of the decades of restoration work it has taken to get the house and grounds to its current condition. A book doesn't make up for a visit in person -- if anything, I wished for more photos of the interior, especially of the book room and "cabinet." But for a general overview of the house, grounds, and collection, and an insight into the man himself, this book is hard to beat. I recommend it as a souvenir, as well as a nice companion to a Jefferson biography.