This book provides a very very good overview of fossils in all categories -dinosaur, reptiles, sharks, mammals, ferns, problematica, etc.

Nicely done with a very good color image of a representative fossil, as well as classification, a drawing of what the animal would look like, and typical size. This is true for every specimen.

Certainly depth of information is limited, however is still represented in small descriptions of habitat, locale, feeding habits, and occasionally quips of special interest.

Drawback is simply that more dinosaurs, reptiles, mammals could be represented. An inordinate amount of specimens are mollusks, snails etc.

However, again this book still does a good job of showing the many types of specimens in the fossil record which does grow on you.

A more extensive library of possible fossils could have been optioned to show a more choice fossil selection in some cases.

Good amount of information (concisely represented), with images and drawings very professionally done.

A larger, more in depth hardcover edition would be welcome.

This is a pretty good book. Alexander Walker does a splendid job of presenting Rudolph Valentino's personal and professional lives. It shows the reader that "Rudy" was more than just a handsome face on the screen, but an intelligent and sensitive human being. Also includes some interesting info on Rudy's pre-Hollywood life. This is a good book to read if you'd like to learn more about Rudolph Valentino.

This reviewer is grateful that this book was not her first Dash mystery, because it would have been her last. Ms. Benjamin is too talented a writer to be judged on the basis of what one can only hope is a major and temporary lapse in judgment. If you're looking to try her work, go straight to her first book. In this book, Rachel Alexander comes off as not very likeable: wearing the victim's clothes and jewelry, sleeping with the victim's boyfriend, trying to live the victim's life....all of this has Rachel coming across as a rather sick voyeuristic woman...In fact, her treatment of the victim's boyfriend makes her a rather cruel and callous one. This reviewer does not understand the purpose behind having the victim's dog witness the crime or how the dog even figures into the plot at all. And not enough Dash in this book! Dash is but a secondary decoration in this book...and Rachel even goes out into a dangerous situation in the dead of night, and leaves him behind!!! The only good things I can say about the book is the writing style is good and you will be kept guessing as to what happened in the victim's last moment until the book's end; the problem is that by that point, you'll not care if Rachel herself winds up sharing the victim's fate. Ms. Benjamin is a better writer than this; her character needs rehabilitation after this book.....The readership deserves more Dash and less trash.....This reviewer's advice: Only resort to this Dash mystery when you've read all of the others......

This second book of Ms. Benjamin's was a huge improvement over her first book. At least in this book, the main focus is Lisa's alleged suicide and not the actual dog component of the book. However, as with the first book, I like the fact that Rachel throws herself into the case with tenacity. However, I think Rachel's concept of 'walking in Lisa's shoes' by going so far as to stay at Lisa's apartment, wear Lisa's clothes and jewelry, and doing all the activities that Lisa did was a little over the top. There's a big leap from putting yourself in somebody's place to completely taking over their life. The people who were part of Lisa's life who are Rachel's prime suspects are all odd and quirky, but it leant more to the story when trying to figure out which one did it and why.

Ah Rachel, she's really cool. As star detective of this first point of view tale, she knows how to keep things interesting. I thought I would hate her and the pursuit of who-done-it would be drab, but the way she handled a situation and her easygoing attitude made me like her instantly. The whole basis of the plot - a woman with everything supposedly does suicide doesn't strike a chord with her parents. They fetch Rachel P.I. to handle the case of their believed daughter's murder. Rachel then steps into the dojo shoes of Lisa's before life ; Lisa was into Tai Chi and went to the dojo regularly where her life ended. The gradual process of investigation was fun and mysterious. The people Rachel met who knew Lisa all seemed like probable suspects. The ending should have been more clear and longer. It doesn't state exactly who was the murder or why the person did it, but you figure who it is.

This biography presents the life and times of Peter Sellers like a case study of neurosis and unfulfillment. I don't doubt the accuracy of the "tortured soul" treatment the author pursues or the facts of the predicaments Sellers found himself in throughout his life. Failed projects and marriages, poor health and financial woes are on the record. The few instances of joyful periods the author provides though, including examples of sublime artistic creation, are brief and quickly segue into a dismal perspective of their futility. Doesn't seem to me an authentic or rounded depiction of a life, rather a oddly slanted portrayal of a most interesting performer.

Biographies (and autobiographies) suffer from one over-riding defect - no-one really knows anyone else completely, or even themselves, so to attempt to accurately describe a person's life is fraught with danger. Interviews with friends and relatives will still only give a slanted or emotionally-coloured idea, either for or against. Yet so many biographies confidently claim to be "authorised" or even finite - I wonder at their courage and impudence. However, if reading every biography you can get hold of about someone enables you to find a path somewhere in between all the lines, you might eventually begin to get a glimmer of what makes that person who he is. When that person is Peter Sellers, though, you must remember you shouldn't presume to try and pin down such a complicated genius of a man, and always mentally add "maybe" to all your "facts". This book tries hard and the author thinks he is being scrupulously fair, and it's not a bad effort. Just bear in mind that "authorised" in this case means by the Sellers estate, and that the author is a journalist and film critic.

To write about the life of Peter Sellers is such a complex undertaking that only the best writers should attempt it. To try to understand a man who didn't even understand himself is inviting hubris. However, Alexander Walker has been a film critic of a leading London newspaper for many years and should have some idea of what he's taking on, having met Peter Sellers on a number of occasions and apparently been privileged to have been considered a friend (any real friendship is a privilege). It certainly reads well, without all the distasteful "muck-raking" with which other authors have found it necessary to pad their offerings. How accurate any biography (or autobiography for that matter) is, can only be guessed at, but this book appears to be trying honestly to depict and evaluate a man whose genius is only now beginning to be appreciated - rarely in one's own time or country, sadly.

This is a paste-up job from beginning to end, bringing zero new material to the reader. Everything in the book has been written before, with a few anemic observations by the author. A total waste for anyone wanted to expand knowledge of la Davis. "Fasten Your Seatbelts" by Lawrence Quirk is far superior. Instead of an exciting read, Walker's tome is like sipping lukewarm tea.

If you are wanting to learn more about Bette Davis, this is a good place to start. However, If you are a well researched fan, you won't find anything new here. I do still recommend this book because the writing style is very fresh and easy to read. It also does make the her life "come alive" when compared to a lot of other biographies that tend to be so flat/dead. Also check out the biography of Vivien Leigh by the same author. That book was so good that I decided to give Alexander Walker another try - and read this one. It is difficult to find biographers that you can really enjoy. This is one I do. Again, like I said if you are a seasoned fan of Bette Davis, you won't find anything new in this book. If you are a first time reader of Bette Davis biographies this is an excellent place to start.

I came to know Aaron Henry when he was elected to serve in the Mississippi House in 1980. Initially I thought he was a doddering relic, yet pleasant enough, who tended to pontificate. He was in over his head and didn't really seem to have much interest in the legislative process and, as a result, was not highly regarded by his peers. He had a long history of arrests in city parks in the middle of the night, if you catch my drift. He made advances toward me and several other individuals--it was pathetic. Aaron Henry is indicative of the rotten core of the civil rights movement and liberal politicians in general--you don't have to look far for this. He ranks up there with Al Lowenstein and Bill Clinton. I believe this book is self serving and out of synch with reality.