Dorthea Meding's recent translation is timely and of interest to both historians of this important subject, the resistance, or Widerstand, within Germany itself to the course of the war, and its effects upon Germans then, and in the future. It is a remarkeable achievement in addition of skillful interviewing with the almost all of the surviving spouses of the key players in the 1944 plot to not only end HItler's lilfe, but to rescue the country from the brutal bombing, and mass expulsions taking place in the East at this time. It is humorously recounted, often (in the case of Dietrich Bonheffer's widow), always involved in the person of these women their constant concern for their children, their roles, and their views of the importance of the conspiracy later for Germany, and for what would came after the ashes of 1945. The women interviewed are extremely individualistic, and spirited, although many of them are close now to their eighties, or older. this reviewer regards the book as an important contribution to womens' literature, as well as to the literature of the resistance of this time.

What you ever wanted to know about the wifes whose men died fighting against Hitler in the underground during the Third Reich. Very intimate, touching and informing.

Many accuse theology of being meaningless bickering over what we cannot verify. Von Balthasar happily topples those prejudices with this book, which is not only a profound look at the human condition and Scripture, but is also a strong challenge to the reader. The Christian and Anxiety starts with a chapter on what anxiety means in Scripture. This first Chapter alone would merit a purchase, as von Balthasar pulls together many threads from the Wisdom literature of the OT (e.g., Proverbs, Wisdom, Sirach, etc.) to give us a Scriptural review of anxiety. I found this very fruitful, and has caused me to go back to a couple books of the Bible for a new look. Von Balthasar then goes on in the next two chapters to reflect on the theological and philosophical underpinning of anxiety. This becomes tough, involved reading, and I'll be musing over this part of the book for some time, but you do come away with a new understanding about anxiety, which seems to be a very representative emotion for the modern West. Some books are difficult because the writing is poor, or the thoughts are disconnected, and some books are difficult because the author enters into a deep subject and does justice to it. The Christian and Anxiety fits in with the latter, and I highly recommend it as a worthy investment.

Clausewitz is notoriously difficult for the novice to master -- some would argue that no one has ever entirely "mastered" Clausewitz. Be that as it may, a legion of frustrated amateur strategists can attest to the difficulty of picking up Clausewitz's "On War" and trying to read it through without a guide. In the "Clausewitz" volume in the Past Masters series, the novice as well as the experienced strategist can gain an introduction to the master's life, experiences, and writings that will make the first reading intelligible and that will serve as a quick review of Clausewitz's main concepts in a format that can easily be read in an evening.

This is a book that should stand next to "On War" in every strategist's library.

Clausewitz: A Biography by biographer Roger Parkinson relates the life and work of German officer and military theorist Carl Phillip Gottleib von Clausewitz (1780-1831) who is perhaps best known for his historic contribution to military studies titled "On War." Scrutinizing Clausewitz's life and ideas in the keenest detail, Clausewitz: A Biography is a classic and highly scholarly study of military theory, as well as a straightforward and very strongly recommended presentation of a great leader's life.

Everybody knows the Neverending Story; almost no one knows that it was originally written in German! I've only been taking German for a year and I muddled through it all right, so it doesn't take any fabulous proficiency in the language--it's a wonderful book!

Humboldt's On Language stands as one of the main sources to fully understand the key ideas exposed by Chomsky in his generative paradigm. Throughout this book, not only does Humboldt resort to a great erudition on Malayan languages, but also he exposes his own theory of language development. This theory is very close to Chomsky's generative view of language creation. To sum up, Humboldt's On Language is a great introduction to those who want to know more about how we, human beings, use and create language.

Algeria gained independence from France July 5, 1962 when the Evian accords were signed. The country had been fighting a war of independence, led by the National Liberation Front, since the 1950's. More than one million Algerian's were killed and over two million have been internally displaced. On December 26, 1991, the Algeria's first multi-party general election took place. The military intervened in the election for fear that the Islamic Salvation Front would win the election. Early February 1992 a state of emergency was declared and since that time it's believed that over 100,000 Algerian's have been killed in the eight years of civil strife. Michael Von Graffenried photography and story are timely and incredible because it captures a people who are tired of conflict and who are struggling to stay alive.

Collaboratively researched and written by the husband and wife team of Michael Squires (Professor of English, Virginia Tech) and Lynn K. Talbot Professor of Spanish, Roanoke College), Living At The Edge: A Biography Of D. H. Lawrence & Frieda Von Richthofen is a thoughtful and searching biography of one of literature's most famous married couples. The vital relationship between D.H. Lawrence and Frieda von Richthofen, (and Frieda's influence Lawrence's writing), are revealed and documented in this exhaustive, scholarly history of both their lives, which is drawn from a wide variety of sources including Frieda's own letters. An excellent reference especially meant to complement literary collections of Lawrence's work, Living At The Edge is highly recommended reading for students of D.H. Lawrence and a superbly presented addition to academic reference collections.

The first half or so of this book is what makes it worthwhile. There we find Heidegger's best sustained discussion of Leibniz. To be sure, there are other discussions of Leibniz scattered throughout Heidegger's work (most notably in "The Principle of Reason") but here we find him attempting to elucidate Leibniz's metaphysics, not discuss aspects of Leibniz's work in connection with a broader theme. Heidegger's style of reading makes for excellent introductions to the thinkers he discusses. It's ironic that a writer who has a reputation for obtuseness and impenetrability can produce vividly clear discussions of other thinkers. It should be noted that Heidegger's "Die Frage nach dem Ding" (the English translation, long and sadly out of print, went by the name "What is a Thing?") is one of the best introductory books on Kant in any language. But Heidegger's approach: cut straight to the "question of Being" and show how the rest of a philosopher's work fits in with his basic metaphysical position, makes for a clear and striking interpretation, even if Leibniz scholars might find it a little over-aggressive in some details.