Anyone who reads this book will be amazed by the unlimited imagination of man. The ways spies find to conceal and miniaturize their equipment are unbelievable. After reading this book, you'll never laugh at James Bond's gadgets. Those films don't show a fraction of it. I must say that this book's highest point is the graphic and design: the book is big, good for a coffe table, has a sleeve cover, the paper is of the finest possible, the pictures are clear, everything following the Dorling-Kindersley tradition. The introductory texts and the history of espionage I thought that were a little confuse and vague, so be warned: the book is remarkable by the equipment part (the longest section, more than half of it, I think), but if you want an insight look at history and info of espionage look out for another book. All in all, a good job by this Melton guy, he really got into the work of finding the stuff.

H. Keith Melton has literally produced "The Ultimate Spy Book!" This book is very informative on not only a large collection of tools of the trade, but chock-full of short write-ups on famous spies and missions performed during the days of spy and counterspy. Everything from silenced weapons to entry devices to sabotage devices. Almost every item listed is accompanied by color photos and a description of the item's application in wartime operations. No matter what your interest in the clandestine world of the Cold War is, this book is a must-have resource!

Very well researched and organized. Technically accurate. Just the right mix of history, technology, and crisp photography to give you that "you are there" feeling.

Many of the items Mr. Melton shares are so rare that one would never have the chance to see them (or even know of them) were it not for this book. The "fine wire kit" is one example of this.

The Ultimate Spy Book is not just for espionage groupies either. Ages 8 to 80+ everyone will find it fascinating.

As far as pain mgt books go, usually they are overally verbose and ridden with medical jargon that makes it difficult to understand the reason you are reading the book in the first place...why does this hurt and how can I make it stop hurting? Back Pain for Dummies was so practical and to the point that just reading it made my back pain lessen. I highly rec this book to anyone who experiences back pain, especially if they are fed up with the pain associated with some doctor try to over-explain something that could be done in 10 words or less. Back Pain for dummies definately implements the K.I.S.S. method for understanding back pain. Keep it simple and make the #@*! pain go away.

Having had back problems for almost 15 years, I have read just about every book available. Back Pain for Dummies is by far the best. It delivers very practical and easy-to-understand advice and practices that helped me more than a dozen chiropractors ever did. This book should be in the waiting room for every back specialist in the country. If I ever get to meet this Dr. Sinel, I'm going to give him the biggest bear hug ever (keeping my back straight, lifting with my legs...)

Sinel and Deardorff take a refreshingly humorous approach to dealing with one of the most pervasive medical problems in our country. This book is easy to read and provides a very comprehensive approach to dealing with back pain. I would consider it one of the best resources available in the field.

Intuition is more than just the name of a beagle. Intuition walks alongside all of us. It cries out, it licks our face, it will lead us out of danger and guide us to glorious places. We just need to learn to listen to it, trust it, unleash it.

Take the time to really read this book. It may appear simple on the surface, but there are so many important messages and layers for those willing to pay a little extra attention. (just take a look at the discussion group at the end)

Want to learn about life? Want to learn about business? Want to learn about motivation? Want to learn about spirituality? It's all in Free The Beagle.

Some books are forgotten days after being read. This story will stay with you for years to come.

p.s. Listening to the CD is even more fun than reading the book.

I have read Free the Beagle twice and listened to it 8 times (with my kids, coworkers, etc). I have bought eleven copies and only have one left. The book comes with a cd version of the 72 minute story that truly grips your attention and takes you on a journey. Not a word is wasted or misplaced. What seems like an absurd story at first, humbles you when you discover that you have been reading about yourself, your calling, your relationships, your career, your company (whatever you care to insert as a corresponding journey). This morning I caught myself looking in the classifieds for a beagle puppy. Find out why.

You know it's buried somewhere in your brain - the creativity that you once had as a child, back before you obediently slipped your arms into the straitjacket of conformity that bound you tighter and tighter while the years sped by. If you could only find a way to liberate the creativity again!

Free the Beagle by Roy H. Williams points the way. It's an amazing allegory about you, your life, your responsibilities, and your relationships, and it has the power to teach you to see everything through new eyes. It's a can't-put-it-down book, a short novella that's both shallow enough for a child to wade in and deep enough for whale to swim in. It's about balancing your left brain (an order-seeking lawyer) and your right brain (a freedom-loving beagle) so that you can learn to access your creativity and be a more open, more productive and more positive human being. When you discover the principles in Free the Beagle, you've found the closest thing there is to operating instructions for your brain.

You'll read it quickly, and want to read it again. The style is spartan (though you might spot an extra adverb here and there), yet it is written in a way that the thinking reader will see layers of meaning begin to unfold. Few books with such an economy of words say so much.

Don't expect this to be another trite Who Moved My Cheese? But if you liked that book, you'll love Free the Beagle. If you hated Who Moved My Cheese? you'll especially love it. The time is right for Free the Beagle by Roy H. Williams, and the proof will be seen when it quickly becomes a best seller - one that people actually read! To top it off, an audio CD dramatization of the book is included in the miniscule price - so no one will have an excuse for not reading it.

Free the Beagle might be the best investment you'll make in a book this decade. Buy it now, and you'll be in-the-know when everyone is talking about it.

The Complete Works of Shakespeare edited by David Bevington

Bevington's edition of Shakespeare's plays is a popular choice, and not without good reason. But that doesn't make an ideal choice. The introduction to this one volume edition is ample with chapters on life in Shakespeare's England, the drama before Shakespeare, Shakespeare's life and work. These are good, but they tend to rely on older scholarship and they may not be current. For example Bevington repeats Hinman's claim that there were 1200 copies of the 1623 Folio printed. However later scholars think the number was quite a bit lower, around 750. It should be said that we don't know for sure how many copies of the 1623 folio were printed and either number could be correct.

Bevington's edition prints the plays by genre. We get a section of Comedies, Histories, Tragedies, Romances and the Poems. He puts "Troilus and Cressida" with the comedies, though we know the play was slated to appear with the tragedies in the 1623 folio. The play was never meant to appear with the comedies, and all the surviving Folios that have the play have it at the beginning of the tragedies.

Let's get down to brass tacks. You are not going to buy an edition of Shakespeare's works because of good introduction. You're going to buy one because the quality of the editing of the plays. Is it reliable? Is it accurate? For the most part this edition is reliable and accurate, but that does not mean it is accurate and reliable in every instance.

Modernized editions of Shakespeare's plays and poems are norm. Since the 18th century (and even before) editors of Shakespeare have modernized and regularized Shakespeare's plays and poems. There are good reasons for this modernization. There is the reader's ease of use and the correcting misprints and mislination. I have no problem with this regularization of spelling or punctuation. But when an editor goes beyond normalizing and modernizing--when an editor interferes with the text then I have a problem.

Let me give two examples of the editorial interference that I am writing about:

King Lear 2-1-14 (p. 1184)
Bevington has:
Edmund
The Duke be here tonight? The better! Best!
This weaves itself perforce into my business.

The Folio has:
Bast. The Duke be here to night? The better best,
This weaues it selfe perforce into my businesse,

Even allowences made for modernization of punctuation and grammar would not account for Bevington's "The better! Best." Bevington glosses this to mean "so much the better; in fact the best that could happen." Nice try, but "The better best" of the folio is a double comparative, (which is a regular feature of Early Modern English) and not two separate adjectival phrases. Interestingly, the Quarto printing of Lear prints this scene in prose, and there is no punctuation between "better" and "best" in that version either.

A few lines down Lear 2-1-19 Edmund continues
Bevington has:
Brother, a word. Descend. Brother, I say!
Enter Edgar

But Bevington has reversed the order. The Folio has:
Enter Edgar.
Brother, a word, discend; Brother I say,

Bevington does not say why he changed the order, though to be fair other modern editors have done the same thing.

These two changes just a few lines apart go beyond regularization or modernization. They interfere with the text as presented in the 1623 Folio. And Bevington does not explain the changes. So next time you pick up this or any other modernized edition you should ask yourself "am I really sure what I'm reading is what Shakespeare wrote?"

THE COMPLETE WORKS OF SHAKESPEARE. Updated Fourth Edition. Edited by David Bevington. 2000 pp. New York : Longman, 1997. ISBN 0-321-01254-2 (hbk.)

As complete Shakespeares go, the Bevington would seem have everything. Its book-length Introduction covers Life in Shakespeare's England; The Drama Before Shakespeare; London Theaters and Dramatic Companies; Shakespeare's Life and Work; Shakespeare's Language : His Development as Poet and Dramatist; Edition and Editors of Shakespeare; Shakespeare Criticism.

The texts follow in groups : Comedies; Histories; Tragedies; Romances (including 'The Two Noble Kinsmen'); Poems. Each play is given a separate Introduction adequate to the needs of a beginner, and the excellent and helpful brief notes at the bottom of each page, besides explaining individual words and lines, provide stage directions to help readers visualize the plays.

One extremely useful feature of the layout is that instead of being given the usual style of line numbering - 10, 20, 30, etc. - numbers occur _only_ at the end of lines which have been given footnotes - e.g., 9, 12, 16, 18, 32. Why no-one seems to have thought of doing this before I don't know, but it's a wonderful innovation that does away entirely with the tedious and time-wasting hassle of line counting, and the equally time-wasting frustration of searching through footnotes only to find that no note exists. If the line has a note you will know at once, and the notes are easy for the eye to locate as the keywords preceeding notes are in bold type.

The book - which is rounded out with three Appendices, a Royal Genealogy of England, Maps, Bibliography, Suggestions for Reading and Research, Textual Notes, Glossary of common words, and Index - also includes a 16-page section of striking color photographs.

The book is excellently printed in a semi-bold font that is exceptionally sharp, clear, and easy to read despite the show-through of its thin paper. It is a large heavy volume of full quarto size, stitched so that it opens flat, and bound, not with cloth, but with a soft decorative paper which wears out quickly at the edges and corners.

If it had been printed on a slightly better paper and bound in cloth, the Bevington would have been perfect. As it is, it's a fine piece of book-making nevertheless, and has been edited in such a way as to make the reading of Shakespeare as hassle-free and enjoyable an experience as possible. Strongly recommended for students and the general reader.

Last year for Christmas I asked my parents for some William Shakespeare's plays.Boy was I suprised!Not only does it have all of the plays,but also his Sonats,poems,and illistrations.Despite the fact that it's a large valuem and will need quite a bit off book space from you're self.You wont regret getting it.You will never need to get another book on William Shakespeare's plays and everything else ever again.It also has a list of dictonary for understanding the words better.

My Father bought Up Front when it was released and I read the cartoons numerous times. Later, I read the text. This book does more to capture the human experience of war than any other of its time. It prefigures and anticipates the recent oral history books such as, "The Good War", "D-Day" and most recently, "Citizen Soldier". The last two, by the way, are well worth the read. Through Willy and Joe, Maulden protrayed the absurdity and the eternal human spirit in the everyday events that make up so much of the experience of war. The cartoons alone make this a book which even the most casual student of WWII should read. His text captures the experience on the ground, the mud and cold, the rain and heat, the boredem and fear and the workman like approach to war that made up the GI's life. Get it. Read it.

This book is, without a doubt, the greatest book on the World War II infantryman ever written. Why? Because it was written by and infantryman, for infantrymen. Sgt. Bill Mauldin claims on the first page that his business is drawing, not writing, and that his text is only there to back up the cartoons. However, the text is some of the most endearing, personal, and excellent works on WWII ever. Mauldin brings the war down from the lofty views of Generals and reporters to the personal level, to the point of giving you a basic narration of the average day in the life of an infantryman. The cartoons, naturally, are the main power behind the book, and they are, even to this day, still hilarious. Hilarious, but at the same time showing you the gripes and hardships of the average GI during the war. If you want to experience World War II from the GI's perspective, read this book!

I first read this book 20 years ago, as a senior in high school. My uncle, a Korean war-era Ranger, gave it to me. My Dad, a Vietnam infantryman, liked it too. Sadly, I lost that old, faded copy somewhere along the years.

Imagine my joy to find a reprint! The book means much more now that I can understand it. I've got 13 years in the Army myself, in Infantry and Special Forces. I'm a Major now, and I pay close attention to what Mauldin writes about officers. I want to be the kind of officer that he respects: always putting the welfare of my men first, respecting my men, and leading from the front. His narrative and comments are a constant reminder to me of the responsibility I hold for my soldiers.

If you are from the World War II era, you already know about Willie and Joe, and there's nothing new I can tell you. If you are an old soldier and you somehow have missed this book, then you are in for a treat. If you are a young soldier, or a prospective soldier, or the family of a soldier, then you NEED to read this book. For anyone else, it's a great window into a world that, thanks to some brave men 50 years ago, you will hopefully never have to see.

Gitanjali is a sweet collection of poems and songs from Nobel Prize winning poet Rabindranath Tagore. These are songs that touch on love, faith, truth, life in general. Tagore has written from the heart. The wisdom contained in these works is startling. This is Eastern poetry that is a wonder to behold. Tagore embraces the personal as well as the universal. He encourages his people to transcend. I refer to this book variably over the years. Its alluring beauty has not faded in any way.

The word and the deed were never far from each other in Tagore's life and not surprisingly he advocated the Universal Man. He was a polymath: a poet, fiction writer, dramatist, painter, educator, political thinker, philosopher of science. He was also a genius in music, choreography, architecture, social service and statesmanship. Over six decades Tagore gave the world some 2,500 songs, more than 2,000 paintings and drawings, 28 volumes of poetry, drama, opera, short stories, novels, essays and diaries and a vast number of letters.

I would enthusiatically recommend this book by my favorite author. Like the Psalms of David, Gitanjali is a soothing balm to the spirit. I read this entire book in less than two hours and has been my long-trip travel companion ever since. The introduction to the book by W. B. Yeats is magical and all the poems in this book transcend your imagination. The variety and quality of the poems are unbelievable!

"Gitanjali" is a collection of prose poems by Indian author Rabindranath Tagore. The Dover Thrift Edition contains an introductory note on the life of Tagore, who lived from 1861 to 1941. According to this note, Tagore, who wrote poetry in Bengali, translated "Gitanjali" himself into English. The Dover edition also contains a 1912 introduction by William Butler Yeats.

This English version of "Gitanjali" is a series of prose poems that reflect on the interrelationships among the poet/speaker, the deity, and the world. Although Tagore had a Hindu background, the spirituality of this book is generally expressed in universal terms; I could imagine a Christian, a Buddhist, a Muslim, or an adherent of another tradition finding much in this book that would resonate with him or her.

The language in this book is often very beautiful. The imagery includes flowers, bird songs, clouds, the sun, etc.; one line about "the riotous excess of the grass" reminded me of Walt Whitman. Tagore's language is sensuous and sometimes embraces paradox. Like Whitman and Emily Dickinson, he sometimes seems to be resisting traditional religion and prophetically looking towards a new spirituality.

A sample of Tagore's style: "I surely know the hundred petals of a lotus will not remain closed for ever and the secret recess of its honey will be bared" (from section #98). As companion texts for this mystical volume I would recommend Jack Kerouac's "The Scripture of the Golden Eternity" and Juan Mascaro's translation of the Dhammapada.

This book is a great conclusion to a terrific series. I have enjoyed each of the novels in the Lost Regiment series, and they have been excellent in both conception and execution. Forstchen has masterfully handled key concepts like the importance of technology and economics in warfare while keeping the relationships and emotions of the men of war in the forefront of his stories.

While I am sorry to see the series end, it's good to know the author would rather leave the series at a logical conclusion than try to continue it for the money.

I would recommend The Gamestar Wars by the same author for those who liked this series.

Forstchen has truly created something that far surpasses anything that has come before and probably set the golden standard for the genre. Drake, Pournelle, Stirling, Niven, Saberhagen, and Forstchen's other books do not come close to this series. Rickety aerosteamers and land and sea ironclads, as primitive as they are, somehow have a superior eloquence in conveying the drama of war over the sophisticated spaceships, supersonic planes, or lasers which have up to this decade been the staple of other military science fiction. This concluding chapter itself is a true microcosm of what fans and admirers have come to expect from the series. While this means incredible battles, tense political interplay, fierce confrontations of personality and fate, surprising twists, and some heavy references to the importance of logistics, technology, and strategy, the book also carries with it some of the faults of the series; namely, the inconsistency with the characters' names begs for some coherent editorialism. True to form, Fortschen changes the Rus orthodox priest's name from Casmar to Casmir! At the end of the book one of the character's name is reshuffled in a pretty blatant mistake though it only happens once. I won't risk giving anything away, but readers will see it when they get there. However, as the series has always done, the tremendous story more than makes up for these annoyances. The conclusion to all the important threads is not COMPLETELY detailed, but the book does present a definitive conclusion to the Bantag War and the answer to humanity's future existence or extinction. By the end of the book readers will know which side won the war, what species will dominate the planet, and what the very GENERAL implications for the future of the Republic will be, so longtime readers need not despair on that account. I would have preferred a highly detailed account of the next 100 to 1000 years like one reviewer requested, but as it is, the last chapter which wraps things up is satisfying enough. Beyond that, Forstchen seems to have indicated that he is through with the Lost Regiment, and I commend him for letting this terrific series run its course and ending it with the dignity and the treatment it deserves. The new use for the aerosteamers in battle is some of the most exciting stuff I've read since the rocket barrage at Hispania or Timokin's charge at Rocky Hill! We've all wanted to see the humans on the offensive and wondering how much longer the Republic could hold out under the strain of constant war and here are the answers. This is the worthy conclusion I was looking for.

Oh, and the maps were very helpful.

I stopped everything to read this book the second I got it, and it was worth it. The strategy was understandable and realistic, the plot was fast-paced, and the battle scenes were gripping. Forstchen made a good choice when he decided not to make Colonel Keane the main character this time around. While I'm sad the series ended, the ultimate resolution is satisfying and was a strong finish to some of the best science or military fiction I've ever read.

The book is excellent because it presents physiology in a very straight forward and uncomplicated manner.The contents and emphasis is more than enough for USMLE though First Aid says that it is slightly weak in respiratory and Acid Base physiology .I found both to be adequate and Renal physiology particularly enjoyable.The book assumes that you have reasonably good basics to follow its outline format and the books relative lack of explanations. But if you had once learned and enjoyed physiology you will enjoy this book a lot and go through it fast.It may not be useful with the course work as different institutions present material in a different way and a review book without much explanation and a possible different approach may be confusing. Perhaps reading STARS Physiology book( I havent checked it) with the course and then using the review for the USMLE could be helpful.Best of luck with the exams.

I used this book to study for both the USMLE Step 1 and the COMLEX Step 1. The material covered, layout and concise format were invaluable, although the STARS Physiology book by the same author is better if you're not time crunched. The Board Review Series of board texts is excellent and the physiology version is one of the best. Worth the money and a great aide for 1st year students to use during physiology courses.

That's one of the best review books I've ever read. It's very conscise and it contains pretty much everything you might need for the USMLE. The questions at the end of each chapter are NOT asking plain facts, but require quite some thinking, which in my opinion greatly helps one "consolidate" what he has learned. In addition its size lets you briefly review facts just before your exam. If you are studying physiology for the first time, or if you wish to have a more "in-depth" textbook, you might consider obtaining another great book -- "STARS Physiology" written by dr Costanzo.

A good book to keep in your collection, read and absorb the messages transmitted about the everyday life, and how to approach it and face it with all its varieties...

Easy to follow in the different chapters, and it actually gives us many new insights about a different culture and belief. The Shambhala is a complete method of living by itself with many followers in the far East, and expanding all over the world.

One book that will help for sure get you more organized, focused, and look at things a little differently.

Shambhala: The Sacred path of the Warrior is a book I read on whimsy. I read this book originally because of the relationship Trungpa had with Allen Ginsberg. I was curious so I picked up a copy of this book. It was enlightening because this is the real deal unlike a lot of the half baked Zen Buddhism invoked by many beatnik types. One need not drop acid to gain wisdom here. If you want the hokey, trippie hippie Buddhism, forget this book. Trungpa is writing of an ancient code of warriorship. It is an inward, spiritual journey drawn from the Tibetan warrior culture. One who reads this and learns the lessons it teaches will be assisted in overcoming self doubt and negativity. This is not a book of violence. It is really a guide towards overcoming violence. It is about learning mastery over oneself. I was inspired to be better after reading this book. It made me believe in the possibility of transcendence. That is saying something, too. It is a very motivational book.

"The Shambhala teachings are founded on the premise that there is basic human wisdom that can help to solve the world's problems. This wisdom does not belong to any one culture or religion, nor does it come only from the West or the East. Rather, it is a tradition of human warriorship that has existed in many cultures at many times throughout history". - Chogyam Trungpa

The book looks at the principles of warriorship, and this is non-aggressive, no swords and daggers here.

I read this book and it was like having spent my whole life walking from place to place. Then one day being given a bicycle to travel around. And one night, whilst asleep, dreaming of the awesome speed I was now able to travel at, someone sneaks into my garage and fits a turbo charged, jet powered, rocket engine.

I would recommend this book to anyone, and have been doing, if you are reading this now then your search is complete, there is no need to go any further. Put it in your shopping basket and get ready for the rollercoaster ride of your life.

While not forgetting his ancetors, Saul Williams uses a blues and jazz infused vocal style that touches on the sharp and the smooth of human relationships. This book and CD are simply beautiful, hauntingly so. It is dark, yet able to make its own light in the power struggle of a human life. I applaud his ability to transcend race. Many get so caught up in the past that there simply is no future, but Williams crosses this line and opens up his poetry like a creaking door, behind which, music plays. His topic is love and hate, sex and loneliness, but not your typical angst-filled drivel that so haunts the poetic world today. If I had to compare, I would say Langston Hughes. Quite simply, poetry at its best. Even if poetry leaves you dry, his ability to take poetry back to its oral roots makes music of breaths. Buy this book and CD set. You won't be sorry.

Some song writers were fighting for human rights before humans knew enough to fight for themselves. This is the kind of amazing thoughtfulness that comes out in Saul Williams book...She... The poetry is daring and unique. It will captivate anyone with a semi-open mind. If you go into this book close minded, I'm sure you won't appreciate the subtleness of some of the poems.

He has placed a subliminal message in the minds of us all. He's in your ear, in your books, and on your TV screens; each time with a classic sequence of metaphors. Saul Williams is the poet that we've all been waiting for; his words are a melodic metaphors of our inner thoughts: "Can we all be poets?" Each page of his book is remarkable. An actor, poet, and simply a genious!Williams is the rebirth of expressiveness in poetry. Long has it been since the world has seen, read, and heard one of our great poets; Saul Williams has made it all possible. Buy his book, listen to his CD, and watch his movies and get ready for the ride of your life. Fasten your seatbelts because it's going to be one Hell of a ride.