I have found a lot of great information in this book. It is very good if you are a novice and you want to get an average level of knowledge regarding building and improving cylinder heads, camshafts and valvetrains. On the other hand, the book won't be of much help to the amateur mechanic wanting to improve his car. It lacks a finer lever of detail. I have tried some of the performance tricks suggested in this book, on the cylinder head of a small European car (R12, 1397ccm): I did some valve unmasking and worked on the intake ports. Although it seems there's some performance increase, the result is not breathtaking. Still, following the suggestions in the book I succeeded to rebuilt an engine in such a way than, if it hasn't gained as much power as I expected, it definitely has gained reliability.

A little background on myself I am a double ASE Master Technician both Automobile and Medium/Heavy Truck with 2 Associates Degrees in Automotive and Diesel Technology. After thoroughly reading this book I felt that #1 it was worth far more than I paid for it for the information given; #2 the technical level begins by assuming the reader has little if any in depth understanding of the important inter-relationship of heads, cams and valve trains then takes the beginner to quite advance theory and understanding of very technical concepts needed to make real horsepower in internal combustion engines. If a person could understand all the ideas in this book they would know more than most automotive technicians about this subject. I felt the author's ability to convey some very complex ideas in an understandable way was the his strongpoint. For a complete understanding of how to make big horsepower one would have to know much more about ignition systems, engine blueprinting, induction and exhaust systems and materials selection. This is only one part of the total picture...but a very important part for sure! Hope this helps!

This is a kind of treatise on aesthetics, from the man who brought you "Frank Zappa: the Negative Dialectics of Poodle Play". Watson is about as far to the British left as you can get; it would be safe to say that he probably doesn't think much of Tony Blair. His book on Zappa made him infamous among Zappa fans for being too, duh, political, and this book is if anything even more stridently polemical in its attempt to change the way we think about culture. The really useful thing about it is that the art Watson prizes as being exemplary is not (as you might think) dourly socialist plays about the collapse of the revolution, but free improvised music and modernist poetry. He seeks out the furiously atonal and the densely elliptical as counterforces to the ubiquitous blandness and mindlessness of modern music and literature. He is contemptuous about the mainstream culture heroes; Michael Nyman and Brian Eno, many people's idea of avant-garde artists, get brushed off in a couple of sentences. Watson's ideal contemporary poet is JH Prynne, who after years of small-press obscurity has only recently had a major collection brought out by a mainstream publisher in the UK. (And amazing stuff it is too.) I'm not qualified to critique Watson's ideas, but there's food for difficult thought here.

This book (by Miles, not Watson) is a great place to start to learn the important points in Zappa history. It shows most of the famous pictures of Zappa throughout the years. The small, story-like presentation makes for fast reading and its fun to skip around. The book in no way attempts to analyse the modern day composer, just quotes or interviews. There is no Watson, Poodle Play here, just fun! Other books would better suit the long-time Zappaphile!

This book steps you through trouble-shooting, removing your engine, doing the actual overhaul or rebuild, and blueprinting. As a beginning weekend mechanic I found it to be informative and helpful. I would definitely recomend this for any curious beginner.

If you're short on time and space, then DON'T GET A DOG!!!!!!!!! Rescue organizations around the country will thank you. If you don't have the time to devote to the proper care of a dog, then you are just asking for trouble by getting one. Please think twice.

This book is in my top 5 of doggie books. If you work, and even if you don't, read this book. The writer lives on planet earth with the rest of us and our dogs. I wish I'd read it first and I may not have needed the 48 of the 50 others I read also. My dog has been saved. It turned back into a normal dog, and I once again live a normal life, after I followed the recommendations in this very easy to read book. It gives some very valuable insights into how to care for your dog on planet earth. The writer should be congratulated for promoting responsible dog ownership. Most writers are too busy promoting themselves.

I got this book in 94 or 95 and ultimately it changed my life. Previously I had thought, as a full-time worker in a rented house, I could not offer a home to any of the many unwanted dogs in the UK. This book encouraged me to look at the possibilities - arrange a neighbour to come to the house at lunchtime - ask the landlords nicely, having arranged 3rd party insurance for the dog - find out what dogs *were* happy to sleep in the day - arrange walks and training and toys for them when I was there - how to avoid separation anxiety - that sort of thing. I now have a middleaged retired racing greyhound and an elderly Whippet and foster retired (2 years old and up!) racing greyhounds. And somewhere down the line, dogs lives are saved. The book is realistic about dog ownership - the poo, the pee, the vomit, the hair, the chewed things, the barking, the exercise whatever the weather - and makes you face up to it. I would recommend it to *all* prospective dog owners, whether short of time & space or not - the quiz at the start on "whether you are suited" (q: the dog comes racing through the living room with your underwear in its mouth. Do you a) scold the dog b) laugh and do nothing c) gently take it from the dog, praise it, and remind yourself not to leave it on the bedroom floor in future?)

This book is guilty of trying to put FZ in clothing I am not sure he would wear.

I understand that FZ thought the book was 'good' but you can bet he never read this big paperwieght cover to cover.

Bird cage lining.

If this book was a singer it would be THE BEST OF GOLDENTHROAT.

A lot of words, and most of them for PHD's to muck about through. This book could have been about the space shuttle tragedy with the word Zappa put in here and there and nobody would have known the difference.

Alternately ludicrous, entertaining, informative and pretentious, Ben Watson's book on Zappa is nothing if not different. The clue is in the title: "Negative Dialectics", Theodore Adorno is mentioned almost as often as Zappa himself is (but could he play guitar like him?). The thing about Zappa is that he may be probably the most intelligent man ever to strap on a guitar in rock 'n' roll history but (like Beefheart), he ain't no intellectual. Mr Watson however is, and he has uncovered a whole barrel-load of entertaining, but frankly ludicrous, philosophical, literary, political and psychoanalyical allusion and meanings in various Zappa songs and albums. The thing that makes me most suspicious of Mr Watson is the way the lamer an album is the more time he spends expounding on it's "actual" meaning - thus Apostrophe is compared to King Lear, I could go on - no wonder Frank and his missus were in stitches.

The fact that Watson has to spend so much time and hard work on Zappa's oeuvre post-1970 perhaps tells it's own story - the fact is Zappa stopped saying anything very interesting in his songs throughout the entirety of the 1970's, only the intervention of the PMRC into his increasing smug and self-refential universe helped reignite the kind of indignation and passion Zappa had displayed in the 60's.

Watson goes thru all sorts of ingenious and amusing contortions trying to defend or explain away his hero's often rancid social and sexual politics. He does at least nail Zappa's hopelessly petit bourgeois hatred of unions but struggles to convince on such gems of Zappa's back catalogue as "The Illionis Enema Bandit" (a glorification of a convicted sex offender) and gives up altogether on the truly repulsive "Jumbo Go Away". Unfortunately, Watson, as with most Zappa fanatics seems incapable of noticing their hero's often quite considerable clay feet. IMO his sexual politics are not surprising for a guy who grew up in the 50's and then experienced the 60's counter-culture's knuckle-dragging sexism at first hand - ...Zappa was a middle-aged rock star by the 80's, and he sounded it.

Towards the end of the book it becomes little more than a track-by-track review of each album - a trifle wearying if truth be told. Plus Watson is annoyingly self-aggrandizing at times, for instance mentioning that Zappa had introduced him at a party as "some kind of genius"!

Still, worth a look

Clearly not your typical rock an roll book, which tend to fall into the categories of either poorly written self-aggrandizing "autobiographies", or breathless anecdotes from managers, groupies, hangers-on, etc. Ben Watson's book is a thoughtful examination of Frank Zappa's lyrics and the overall meaning of his career.

Sadly, the book does not devote as much attention to Zappa's music, which most people would consider far more significant than the lyrics. Although many reviewers point out Watson's farcically "deep" reading of Zappa's lyrics, it is his relative disinterest in the music which is the book's greatest stumbling block.

That being said, there is an awful lot for hardcore Zappa fanatics to chew on here. In the end it's certainly worth the effort.

..if you're interested in learning. Buy a good one instead!!

This is and excellent textbook for a automotive student or some one who wants to learn a lot in a hurry. Layout like a textbook, not very entertaining.

I bought this for my son who was trying to solve a problem with his older Lincoln. He's a good mechanic but needed this book to lead him in the right direction. It totally solved his problem and saved him much frustration. He said it was one of the best books he's used.

The book was informative, however it lacked a certain sophistication which left many questions unanswered. Not enough time dedicated to flowers.

there was very little information on flower seeds, nor much in depth information.

Saving seeds is a time-honored tradition. This book tells you all you need to know about how to raise, harvest, and store seeds for the easiest-to-grow and most popular vegetables and ornamental plants. Answers hundreds of frequently asked gardening questions.

In the section on modifying, this book says you can't modify. Great! Thanks! What a waste. Don't buy this book. Send me email, you can have mine for free.

From the title, I was expecting a hands-on guide to hop-ups and modifications to Chrysler EFI systems. There are NONE, however. Not a bad guide to initiate someone into the world of Mopar EFI systems, but the title is terribly misleading! It's just a troubleshooting and shop manual. Period. And the factory year-specific manuals are way better.

Understanding and Maintaining your Chrysler Fuel Injection.
That should be the name of this book. If you want a book that really explains how Chrysler fuel injection systems work, in a fairly straigtforward manner - then this is a good book. Has a good section on how to approach fixing your car based upon which error codes you are getting.

I bought this book because I was designing a sub-1250 square feet house for my parents, which I have since finished. I thought the book had potential until I attempted to apply some of the ideas of the "winning" plan. The winning house is not 1250 square feet. Not even close. When I contacted Mr. Metz through his publisher for an explanation, his response was that he "couldn't care less if the houses featureed(sic) are a bit under or over the 1250 advertised." I think it says quite a bit that the editor doesn't think the title has to be accurate.
Moreover, I agree with some of the other reviews that questioned the merits of many of the designs in the book. If these are the best plans, what could possibly have been rejected? I found perhaps a half-dozen plans that had anything new to say architecturally.
This book is a waste of time and money. You can get close approximations of most of these plans from the Sunset books at the library, and you won't get lied to about the size.

Unless you like ultra modern home designs, skip this book. The plans are impractical, especially with respect to kitchen layouts. Most of the homes have no vestibules in their entrances, which are a neccessity in colder climates.

If you are tired of McMansions (and are comfortable reading floor plans), you will enjoy these clever and imaginative house plans. Many are designed for a specific area of the country - Florida, the urban south, the Colorado mountains, New England - which gives a flavor lacking in most generic designs. All feature the creative use of space and an emphasis on low-cost heating and cooling. I find these plans more interesting than those in Small House Designs (ed. Tremblay), also based on a competition. I am considering asking one of the architects to modify a plan for my site, as a vacation home now and a retirement home in a few years.