My only complaint about this book is that Asimov gets too strong in some of his personal opinions. (Harsh opinions of Banquo, Brutus, Richard II etc.) But aside from that I value this book highly. He helps us to see some things Shakespeare's original audience would be able to pick up on WITHOUT being told. This helps one to understand Shakespeare's plays more. Also for the most part he DOES avoid the absurd marxist views that tend to over simplify the anaylisis. He is especially helpful in the history plays. Understanding Shakespeare's historical plays depends to a large extent on knowing the facts that Shakespeare does not mention (but that the original audience would have known). He also offers educated speculation that offers deep insights. While I do not agree with him on EVERYTHING, his views are interesting.

I find this book quite helpful when being introduced to an unfamiliar Shakespearean play. The plot summaries, character descriptions, and surrounding histories--liberally sprinkled with explanatory quotes--are of great use in placing me in the correct frame of mind. I would recommend this to anyone looking to acquaint themselves with Shakespeare's works--especially the lesser-known plays--but are feeling daunted by what is perceived as high-brow content.

Asimov writes as if he were speaking directly to the reader. This not only makes the book easy to read, but lends a feeling of comfort to the experience. One feels as if a friend has taken their time out to give a helping hand.

This book makes me much more comfortable giving the extra effort that it takes, given the time--and sometimes language--barrier. Without it, it is doubtful I would have introduced myself to the minor plays, some of which I have come to like better than the more popular ones.

...is too concise, it pleases me not.*

Asimov presents, for each of the plays, a well-researched and fascinating social, political and historical background of their production along with a plot analysis with direct quotes (and etymologies). Many of the details presented appear either to have escaped the notice of standard Shakespearean commentators, or to be buried away.

His synopsis of KING LEAR is characteristic...

"Shakespeare wrote fifteen plays which, in one way or another, involve English history. Four of these are laid in the relatively dim time prior to the Norman conquest in 1066, and the one which deals with the oldest and the most purely legendary events is KING LEAR."

Asimov then traces the original Celtic tale to Geoffrey of Monmouth's "Historia Regum Britanniae" (1135), then through "The Faerie Queene", Holinshed's "Chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland", (1577), Edmund Spenser's play "The True Chronicle of King Lear", (1594), and finally to Shakespeare's version, first performed on 26th December, 1606.

1. Good example: Asimov describes why the name "Gloucester" may have been chosen for the father of the hero and villain, (Edgar and Edmund):

"The first Earl of Gloucester in actual history was Robert, a son of King Henry I of England. He lived from 1090 to 1145 and played a prominent role in the civil war that followed the death of Henry I. He was the chief supporter of Henry's daughter, Matilda, against the claims of Henry's nephew, Stephen.

"But since Robert of Gloucester was Henry's son, why was he not himself the claimant of the throne? Ah, it so happens he was Henry's bastard son and therefore unqualified to succeed. The Gloucester subplot is intimately concerned with the matter of a bastard son and perhaps that is why 'Earl of Gloucester' suggested itself to Shakespeare."

2. Bad example: Asimov may have tripped up on his astrology. At least one Shakespearean pundit has suggested that Edmund's birth under Ursa Major,("the Dragon's Tail"), was taken as ill-omened because of a malign/retrograde Martial-Venusian influence which would predispose a child born under it to villainy, according to the notions of the Elizabethan masses. Apparently, the constellations themselves were understood to express planetary influences, (if you're an astrologer, help me out here!):

"-MY FATHER COMPOUNDED WITH MY MOTHER UNDER THE DRAGON'S TAIL, AND MY NATIVITY WAS UNDER URSA MAJOR, SO THAT IT FOLLOWS I AM ROUGH AND LECHEROUS. FUT! I SHOULD HAVE BEEN THAT I AM, HAD THE MAIDENLIEST STAR IN THE FIRMAMAENT TWINKLED ON MY BASTARDIZING.

"The Dragon's Tail is a reference to the constellation of Draco, a winding string of moderately bright stars in the neighborhood of the north celestial pole... Astrologically, this is meaningless, since these constellations are not part of the zodiac and it is through the zodiac that the paths of the sun, moon, and planets make their way..."

What Asimov does NOT do here is discuss possible symbolic interpretations or textual criticisms of each play, (e.g., was King Lear really mad, was he incestuous, is this simply a morality play, a Platonic-Aristotelian conflict, or the perennial youth vs. maturity conflict? etc..).

Personally, I think the book is pure gold.

"How can you print a piece of your own soul," Dickinson, p. 51

This is the 2nd in the Krull and Hewitt's "Lives of ..." series. The book contains 19 chapters on 20 writers in birth order: Murasaki Shikibu (973?-1025?), Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616), William Shakespeare (1564-1616), Jane Austen (1775-1817), Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875), Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849), Charles Dickens (1812-1870), Charlotte & Emily Bronte (1816-1855 & 1818-1848), Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888), Mark Twain (1835-1910), Frances Hodgson Burnett (1849-1924), Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894), Jack London (1876-1916), Carl Sandburg (1878-1967), E. B. White (1899-1985), Zora Neale Hurston (1901?-1960), Langston Hughes (1902-1967), Isaac Bashevis Singer (1904-1991)

This is a perfect book for young adolescents and pre-teens who as they grow and mature frequently feel awkward. Krull introduces us to the idiosyncrasies of the literary. Some of the authors were loners, eccentric, a wee bit peculiar. Michael Jackson's behaviors might seem normal when held in comparison. Some retreated into themselves. Some sought out adventures. Some as adults were unsuccessful at the ordinary.

Some worked at a young age to support the family. Some took daily walks, very long daily walks. Some were not healthy and therefore wrote in bed. There were some similarities and some differences, but they all shared a singular conviction to write and write they each did well.

Hewitt's delightful portraits of the writers are precious. My favorite portrait is of Frances Hodgson Burnett of "The Secret Garden" fame. Her hat is the secret garden.

Given the high price of the book, I was surprised that Krull did not include a list of the authors' books and/or poems and the publication years. END

This book is a fun and informative book. The pictures are filled with humorous meanings and hidden information. The book keeps the reader's attention by keeping the included information short and simple, but also makes sure that the reader gets as much possible about the author. This book is great for kids and students to use as a report source as it is filled with great information. Kids would rather use this book as an information source rather than an encylopedia since the information is easy to understand. Authors in there are some you may not know, ( Murasaki Shikibu) and some well know ones ( Charles Dickens). I am glad I purchsed this book. I really liked the pictures which are so vibrant with color. This would make a great buy.

you can't complain when you're set in the world of the three laws of robotics with a beautiful young woman and a man without a memory--first rate pastiche by the two authors in the book. I loved it!

Many years ago, I read this series of books when they came out in paperback, while Asimov was still alive. I had forgotten how entertaining they were. All the classic elements, including continuity between different authors in the series exist. A must read for people who like a substantial, yet easy to read book. Definately not for those with a short attention span or someone who would rather see the movie then read the book.

The saga of Robot is continued in this novel, which can only be described as exellent, with a dose of brilliant, and a side of superlative. The story of Robot City is expressed through the further development of the characters Derec, a man who crash landed in the aptly named Robot City, a city run and inhabited entirely by robots. Having lost his memory in the crash landing, he takes the name of Derec, which is the manufacturer of his jump suit. Throughout his journey, he meets the mysterios Katherine. After a bout of being captured by extraterrestrials, and such other madcap antics, Derec and Katherine are deposited in Robot City together. It is here that the plot begins to thicken, and the character development becomes signifigant. This volume of the series is a perfect book for any science fiction fan, and perfectly expresses the three laws of Robotics and their applications in the real world.

This book was assigned reading for an advanced course in engineering physics. It is more of a history book, cartoon style, than a serious book on the physics of motion and gravity as observed by Galileo and Newton. I found the presentations on important topics to be painfully vague. You may get a few soundbites from this book, but thats about it.

The treatment of Galileo could have been more accurate and less crude, but I really like this book. Excellent presentation of both history and ideas in the context of history. I gave a copy to my wife, and also require my students to read it when I teach both elementary and modern physics (relativity).

Many of the stories were very good and certainly different takes on the traditional Arthurian legend. There were a couple that I really liked, like "The Dog's Story" (I think that's what it was called..something about a Dog) but most of them were, although well-written, a little too far-out for me.

This is one of those books that you wish you could read again for the first time; each story is so tightly wound and entertaining that every sense of the world around me fell away. One story in particular, by Esther M. Friesner called "The Three Queens" has stayed with me - partly because of the flow and imagery of her words, but also because she brings an entirely unique possibility into play in the Arthur/Mordred relationship that was extremely thought provoking. Then Friesner turns around and writes a very amusing tale about the very long wait for KA to wake up - (The Lady of the Lake is hilarious!) Most of the Arthurian short story anthologies which have come out recently are very good, but this book is one of my favorites. If you decide you like this one, try "An Invitation to Camelot", edited by Parke Godwin - one of my other favorites!

This is a noteworthy book for science fiction fans. The Time Travel team from Mojave Center goes back in time to Soviet Russia during World War II to find another component of MC governor.The action is paced well, and the story line is good. Definetely recommended for anyone who enjoys science fiction and history.

In this interesting and informative book, Isaac explores how today's YA literature is influenced by the classic stories found in Shakespeare's plays. Citing the fact that many of the plays have teenage characters and that they feature universal themes of love, sex, death, humor, and families, Isaac compares several plays side-by-side to modern novels written for teens. Hamlet, for example, is paralleled to Katherine Patterson's Bridge to Terabitha and to Lois Duncan's Killing Mr. Griffin. Such parallels are not always obvious at first, but Isaac presents a carefully thought out and well-written comparison for her selections. The book also takes a brief look at young adult life in that time period, and discusses several YA novels that are set in the Elizabethan era. Intended for English Literature teachers, this book will make entertaining reading for anyone with an interest in Shakespeare or just a love for modern YA fiction. I was familiar with the plays discussed but not with all of the corresponding novels, and I found Isaac's summaries and comparisons remarkably informative and understandable. This is a very interesting look at the common, timeless themes in literature, and Isaac does a marvelous job of presenting and explaining her choices for comparison. Highly recommended, essential for librarians working in schools where Shakespeare is a strong focus in English classes.

If you are looking for a collection of tales about Christmas, even in the far future where its meaning is lost in the past, well, this is the book. But, if you are looking for stories of hard science fiction about very imaginative futures, you should look for another book. Paulo Sunao, from BRAZIL

Something to please everyone here. I enjoyed some stories more than others as you will. Some really enjoyable and thoughtful writing here.

Sometimes the corporate environment is not tranquil. Managers hate workers, workers hate managers and nobody seems to understand or talk to anybody else. Author William Isaacs believes that's because people don't communicate very well. Companies that succeed have made effective, positive communication part of their culture. Dialogue is a two-way street and negative, ineffective dialogue can kill a company's prospects. Isaacs, a corporate consultant with a doctorate in philosophy, uses a very un-businesslike style to convey his ideas. The book is full of parables and company stories, and the whole mood feels more like a literary narrative, instead of a to-the-point business book. ...

When this book arrived on my doorstep, I tore into it as I usually do with nonfiction books of great interest: I read the first and last chapters, dove by intuition into various middle points, eyeballed the diagrams, and sighed. No quick read, here. This was going to require full attention, and a willingness on my part to 'walk' with the author through his description of that most familiar and elusive phenomenon, dialogue.

It has been well worth the walk.

Isaacs both knows his stuff and has done his homework. He participated with David Bohm and others in the early dialogue sessions, and remais quite true to the spirit and intent of Bohm's work. He also brings depth of experience with subsequent dialogue work, and breadth of supporting ideas from eclectic sources to his description of the practice of deepened and enriched conversation. Few have experimented with dialogue in as many settings, and few have linked this current practice with as many related disciplines as Isaacs has.

To me, Isaacs presents dialogue as a world view, moreso than a set of conversational skills and techniques, remarkable moments in communication, group pain relief, or organizational change practice (as I feel other authors have done). Yet dialogue may play an important role in all of the above, and he does offer practical examples and approaches to try.

As practitioner, researcher, and occasional critic of dialogue, I appreciated revisiting its deeper roots. I particularly liked the discussion of dialogue and the senses of seeing and hearing. I hadn't thought of listening as geographic, before! Nor had I thought of 'participation' in quite the way he describes. At several points, I found it helpful to stop, put the book down, and think through the implications. (Indeed, I may be a little slow, but even so, I recommend you read this book reflectively!)

I recommend looking over the diagrams in the appendix, pp. 418-420, and keeping finger or handy Amazon.com bookmark there for frequent reference as you read. I discovered them rather late, and wished I'd gotten to them earlier. They provide the map as you follow Isaacs rather deep into the territory.

There are many gems throughout for learning and reflection. Read, reflect, and be enriched!

Dialogue; traced to its Greek roots is a flow of meaning, an ability to take many different issues and opinions to a table and create something completely new out of the process. Communication is the center of our culture as human beings, yet we rarely make time for true communication in our society today. As a person that feels as if there is something missing in the conversations I hold in my life and in my career I found this book to be very insightful. I gained an understanding of my frustrations, some skills to apply, and a look at the direction in which I want to go in the future. As it is a complex book that applies to every part of my life (and yours!) I have chosen to simply include a few of my favorite quotes.

"Respect also means honoring people's boundries to the point of protecting them. If you respect someone, you do not intrude. At the same time, if you respect someone, you do not withhold yourself or distance yourself from them. I have heard many people claim they were respecting someone by leaving them alone, when in fact they were simpley distancing themselves from something they did not want to deal with. When we respect someone, we accept that they have thinks to teach us."..."Treat the person next to you as a teacher. What is it that they have to teach you that you do not now know? Listening to them in this way, you discover things that might surprise you."..."Respect is, in this sense, looking for what is highest and best in a person and treating them as a mystery that you can never fully comprehend. They are a part of the whole, and, in a very particular sense, a part of us." - PP 114-117

"Every conversation has its own acoustics. Each one takes place in an environment that has both physical, or external, dimensions as well as internal, or mental and emotional, dimensions. There is, in other words, an invisible architecture to the container. Most such structures are made for discussion, for thinking alone. We have very few designed for thinking together, for dialogue." - P 247

This is my favorite quote in the entire book, I see it in my relationships with the world each and every day: "The Internet can be seen as the attempt of your literate and isolated culture to somehow return to community. People seem to imagine that if we are all digitally connected, then we would all be in touch, and the great malaise of the age - the isolation, pace, disconnection that many of us feel - would be allayed. But so far the digital revolution is giving us connection but not contact"..."one simple touch of a human hand could far exceed all the impact of all the digital libraries in the land." - PP 388-389