I am a great fan of Shakespeare, so when I bought this book what I was expecting wasn't what I saw. I saw the most intriguing sonnets probaly ever known to man. It wasn't all about love and fear. It was involving a great many things. It had all the human feelings, sadness, happieness, hate, love, curiosity, fear, pain, grief, stress, and you get the ideal. I don't want to give it away so if you seem interested read this wounderful book.

I read these sonnets two a day over the summer, and I wish there were more than 154 of them so I could keep going into the fall. I think I'll pick up "The Tempest" next.

The poetry in this volume is beautiful, equisite and full of passion. What makes Shakespeare worth reading is the way he lets the world into his lines. His metaphors appeal deliciously to the senses, like a beam of sunlight through a high window in the afternoon, or the smell of a new cut lawn in the spring. Shakespeare's writing is immortal, not because a conspiracy of teachers got together and decided it should be, but because it is full of life, and nothing that is full of life can really ever die.

If you're not used to reading Elizabthean English or are put off by the thought of Shakespeare, this is a good place to start. This edition helpfully "translates" each sonnet into modern English on a facing page along with definitions for the more troubling words. Even with the help, I still don't think Shakespeare is all that easy to read. But anything you do in this world that makes you feel more passionate about life is a pretty good thing. If you give Shakespeare some of your time, he's bound to pay you back with plenty of interest.

This edition of Shakespear's sonnets is all you need to read and understand the great Bard.

A very nice feature is the paraphrasing of the sonnets in contemporary English and a translation into ordinary language of the more difficult words.

The edition is a paperback small enough to be carried around to read during one's leisure.

Apparently William Bennett is unfamiliar with the myriad wonderful books for children written in the last thirty years. The only exception are "famous" people writing now like Barbara Bush. Why not draw on the terrific current literature? My guess is because Bennett would have to pay for that, whereas the older work is in the public domain. What a lost opportunity to speak to kids in terms they can better relate to and to introduce parents to some fine contemporary writers. Of course, this book is actually pitched to parents, not kids, so I doubt appealing to kids is actually his real aim.

We're on our second read through of this book of children's morality tales.

With poems, short homilies and stories, Bill Bennett entertains young children as life's good lessons are imparted. The accompanying illustrations are visually delightful.

Some of the stories, because of word usage, appeal to a slightly older audience than my four and five year olds, but they can appreciate most of the vignettes. A good book that helps parents in childhood instruction.

This is an excellent book to read to your young ones (4+) The stories are old yet the principles are ageless. The children will curl up and live these tales. I find myself truely enjoying this special time. When they get to six or seven I would strongly recommend moving to the Book of Virtues by William J. Bennett. The stories will sweep you and the children away. MY childrens favorite time is reading these stories. They actually ask for the book and seldom does anything else draw such smiles and "Thank You Daddys". Enjoy the experience.

Symington (Tuck) Smythe and his friend Will Shakespear find that the theater business can be chancy. London's council has banned theater production and their company's tour of the countryside was largely a bust. Now, back in London, they rehearse, drink too much beer, and wait for something positive to happen. In the meantime, Tuck makes money using his blacksmith skills rather than his (dubious) theatrical ones and Shakespear writes sonets for the amusement of England's nobility (and for his own profit). In these hungry times, the apprentices of London frequently go wild, stealing, breaking heads, and generally causing problems.

A rich merchant from Genoa looks to be a godsend to the theater, but murder puts a definite damper on that plan. When a friend of Tuck and Shakespear is accused, the two must, once again, turn detective to uncover the true killer and free their friend.

Author Simon Hawke tells a charming tale. Fans of Shakespear will get a chuckle out of the way Hawke puts well known lines from the bard into the mouths of his characters--for Shakespear to adapt later in his famous plays. I found the early going to be interesting but slow--Hawke spends the first half of the book setting up the mystery, then swings into action in the second half of the book.

Hawke's London feels authentic, with dirt, wild apprentices, disease, and a sense of hope that the future may be brighter. Tuck is an interesting and sympathetic character--his love for the theater matched only by his lack of talent. MUCH ADO ABOUT MURDER is certain to generate some smiles.

Simon Hawke has posted his third episode in his William Shakespeare-Tuck Smythe medieval mystery series. As with the previous two, "Much Ado About Murder" is a fun read, a
story of derring-do, intrigue, comedy, romance, and did we mention murder?

Hawke's chief protagonist is, you guessed it, THE William Shakepeare. Much has been written about the Bard, but no one has made him out to be an Elizabethan solver of murders
and Hawke deserves the praise.

While not a heavy weight in the PD James or Ruth Rendell mysteries, nevertheless this series is well worth the time spent. And one does not need to be a Shakespearean authority to
enjoy the mystery. True, Hawke laces his prose with often clever references to the original Shakespeare, tossing in a lines here and there that, of course, "found" their way into one or more of the original plays.

In this series, Shakespeare has not yet completed one play, although he has now discovered he can at least pay the bills by writing sonnets on commision. Young twenty-ish
Will works as a minor actor for the Queen's Men, who, because of a current plague, are out of work and are only just managing to make ends meet. Shakespeare's friend Symington Smythe
II (Tuck) and he become involved when a friend (of a friend) is arrested for murder. The hunt is on, as this daring duo are convinced that the arrested man is innocent.

But the play's the thing, wherein they're bound to catch the conscience of the thing, and through diligence, brilliance, and cleverness, well, all's well that end's well, to coin a
phrase.

Indeed, "Much Ado About Murder" is a delightful book, whether one is versed in Shakespeare or not. Kudos to Hawke for creating such a series and here's to future episodes.

Third in the series of Shakespeare & Smythe mysteries, Simon Hawke has won me back over after my disappointment with novel number two, _The Slaying of The Shrew_. In _Much Ado About Murder_, Hawke has recaptured the sly wit and droll humor of his main characters, and writes a rather straight forward mystery that is most enjoyable. Instead of weaving a story filled with useless red herrings, he has used restraint and created a story that shows imagination and talent in it's very simplicity. A pleasant diversion told extremely well.

I bought this book earlier in the year. I saw it hyped on TV. After two recent massive failures costing at least 1/2 billion dollars total since my purchase of High Velocity Leadership..reading this book makes a person wince painfully. I am sure this new high risk management philosophy will be put on the grill when the U.S. Congress examines these failures. Thank God there were no human beings on these flights. Space exploration is the most dangerous, most high risk business ever conceived of by man short of war. After 42 years of this type of unforgiving scientific activity that has now largely been privitized and contracted out to the lowest bidder, it is time the U.S. reevaluates whether this is a successful policy or not. JPL head in-their-hands employees looking wistfully at their monitors are no longer cute or funny or sad. They own these failures along with President Clinton for cutting corners. This book, though describing one successful mission, actually becomes an insider's account how they dodged the bullets of risk in the fastest, cheapest, but clearly not the best way. Now every single Mars project and possibly a lot of other NASA projects are in mortal jepordy because of the project management philosophy described in this book. The authors can't have it both ways now. The whole world is watching. This book will be in the dollar or less bins at your local chain book store....and very soon...maybe before Christmas.

It is refreshing to see a book about one of NASA's unmanned successes. No wonder why the public is unaware of the JPL. This books gives a glimpse into the many obstacles Pathfinder had even before it left Earth. Muirhead tells the story in a very down-to-earth style. I was a bit disappointed in the frequent references into business applications on the "cheaper, better & faster" approach. At times it disrupted the flow of the book and gave an informercial taste to this book. I would also have liked a closing chpater on some of the scientific results of the little rover that gave us a very memorable Fourth of July in 1997. Overall, I recommend this tale of scientific exploration just because it gives the public information on space exploration that it wouldn't find elsewhere.

Brian K. Muirhead spins a great web of stories relating to the development and mission of the Mars Pathfinder. Against all odds regarding schedule and budget, he managed to keep his work teams focused on a shared vision towards a common goal. From initial proposal through early development into production and the actual mission, Brian and his team overcame obstacle after obstacle to make their dream of reaching and exploring Mars a reality. A must read for any manager of knowledge workers in the new global economy. The bible of faster, better, cheaper!

This book is technically competent, but goes right past the two most important factors; if you are developing XML, then you will probably be using Java, and that if you are developing applications (even with XML) on SQL server, then you are probably using COM+. Sorry.

This book is an excellent addition to the documentation provided with SQLXML, especially if you are just starting to use SQLXML. The book helps you decide if SQLXML is right for your situation. If it is, the book will continue to walk you through some real examples, covering some of the pros and cons of different methods. Being a developer, I highly recommend this book if you are using or considering to use SQLXML in a Microsoft environment.

This is what a technical publication should be. The book covers all aspects of SQLXML, from programming to administrative issues (including security concerns -- everyone needs to do more of that). It even discusses some of the other technologies out there, such as Oracle's integration with XML and the native xml datatype. If you are using or thinking of using SQLXML, I'd consider this book to be required reading.

The Folger Library series are your best Shakespeare source. They specialize in Shakespeares' greatest plays and are quality books that are perfect companion and translator to Shakespeare. It is loaded with page after page of translation from the Old English expressions that are no longer in use to our modern talk, and pictures as well as historic background information on th Elizabethan era and Shakespeares' life. Hamlet is without question Shakespeare's greatest tragedy, remaining in our theatrical culture to this very day. It has become a conversation piece for English professors, dramatists and screen actors (Mel Gibson tackled the role in 1991) and even psychologists, who claim that Hamlet had the Oedipal complex, especially when they read the scene in which Hamlet is in his mother's bedroom. What makes Hamlet so great ? Why does this old play still come alive when performed on the stage in the hands of the right actors ?

Shakespeare, believe it or not, was a people's person and knew about the human condition perhaps more than anyone in his day. Hamlet deals principally with obscession for revenge. Hamlet is a prince whose father has been murdered under the evil conspiracy from his uncle Claudius and even the support of his mother, Queen Gertrude. Depressed, wearing black all the time, and very much as solitary as any "Goth" would be in our day, Hamlet laments his situation, until his father's ghost appears and urges him to avenge his death. The mystery still remains, is this ghost real ? Is it, as many in Elizabetheans thought, a demon in disguise ? Or is it simply a figment of Hamlet's own emotions and desire for revenge. At any rate, Hamlet's father appears twice and Hamlet spends most of the play planning his revenge. His most striking line that reveals this consuming need is "The play's the thing, wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king!".

Pretending to be mad, he scorns even the love of the woman he genuinely loves, Ophelia, whose mind is shattered and heart is broken and who has an impressive mad scene. The deaths of Hamlet's friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, are also in Hamle'ts hands and a consequence of his revenge. The famous soliloquy in the play, is of course, "To be or not to be", taken on by such great actors as Lawrence Olivier and Orson Welles. Hamlet muses on the brevity of life and the suffering which can only cease through death, as he holds a skull and is evidently suicidal. Finally, the last scenes are the most dramatic. Hamlet duels with Laertes, Ophelia's brother, and with Claudius himself. The deaths of the main cast, including the Queen, goes to show how tragic the human desire for greed and revenge is.

This is Shakespeare's finest tragedy, and quality drama, best seen in a live stage performance, but that also works as a film. As for this book, as I said before, this is the Hamlet to have. You will become more acquianted with Hamlet and Shakespeare even more than taking a year's course with a teacher. This book itself is the teacher.

A tragedy by William Shakespeare, written around 1599-1601. Before the play opens, the king of Denmark has been murdered by his brother, Claudius, who has taken the throne and married the queen, Gertrude. The ghost of the dead king visits his son, Prince Hamlet, and urges him to avenge the murder. Hamlet, tormented by this revelation, appears to be mad and cruelly rejects Ophelia whom he loved. Using a troupe of visiting players to act out his father's death, the prince prompts Claudius to expose his own guilt. Hamlet then kills Ophelia's father Polonius in mistake for Claudius, and Claudius tries but fails to have Hamlet killed. Ophelia drowns herself in grief, and her brother Laertes fights a duel with Hamlet.

Hamlet's dilemma is often seen as typical of those whose thoughtful nature prevents quick and decisive action.

Hamlet contains several fine examples of soliloquy, such as " To be or not to be" and Hamlet's earlier speech lamenting his mother's hasty remarriage and Claudius' reign which opens "O! that this too too solid flesh would melt". Much quoted lined "Neither a borrower nor a lender be", "Something is rotten in the stste of Denmark", "Brevity is the soul of wit", "To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;" The lady doth protest too much, methinks," and "Alas, poor Yorick". Arguably Shakespeare's finest play and one that can be read again and again.

If you could read only one thing in your lifetime Hamlet should be that one thing. It is Shakespeare's best work by far, and within its pages is more meaning than you could find within the pages of an entire library full of books, or plays as the case may be. A mere review, a couple words, cannot do Hamlet justice. At times I realize that the language of Shakespeare can be difficult that is why I recommend the Folger version because it helps to make the images expressed by Shakespeare's characters clear to the reader, and allows them to get their own deep personal meaning from Hamlet, Shakespeare's greatest work, with out being bogged down in trying to decipher and interpret his antiquarian English. Don't just listen to what I say, or read what I write, read the play on your own outside the cumbersome restraints of a classroom and see for yourself what I mean.

There's nothing new about debating a criminal's right to publish his story. Frank Abagnale Jr, hero of the excellent "Catch Me If You Can" movie, wrote two books about his escapades. Concentrate on the message, not the messenger, and you'll learn something from either Mitnick or Abagnale.

Mitnick's message is frightening: the easiest way to get what you want may be to ASK for it. "The Art of Deception" (TAOD) is built around dozens of realistic scenarios, showing how con men (and women) deceive victims and defeat security. It's easy to dismiss Mitnick's insights as trite. For example, it makes sense that "valuable information must be protected no matter what form it takes or where it is located. An organization's customer list has the same value whether in hardcopy form or an electronic file." (p. 227) This "Mitnick Message" seems obvious at first glance, but how many company's act on that truism?

"TAOD" shares technical, procedural, and psychological insights which aren't normally discussed by security personnel. Mitnick mentions secrets of the telecom system, like reprogramming caller ID on phone switches. He dances across company lines, shuttling information among secretaries, fax machines, voice mail, and other vulnerable parts of business life. His understanding of human nature shows he treats his craft seriously, believing security awareness is the best defense against social engineering. I found his "Security at a Glance" chapter indispensable, especially its 'Warning Signs of an Attack' and 'Responding to a Request for Information' sections.

Mitnick's security policy recommendations in chapter 16 appear to be squarely based on military information handling guidelines. I followed all of his ideas, like data classification, need to know, cover sheets, and so on, as a military intelligence officer in a top secret facility. The corporate world, particularly the financial sector, is implementing some of these practices already.

It's still too easy to defeat the technical defenses of many organizations. Those who do have their networks locked down leave social engineering and insider fraud as the best ways to steal information and money. As more organizations fall victim to "the art of deception," they will turn to the wisdom of books by Mitnick and others. While they won't follow Mitnick's advice to provide "copies of this book to all employees" (p. 257), they will learn how to improve their "human firewalls."

In The Art of Deception, Kevin D. Mitnick, a corporate security consultant who was once arrested for computer hacking, has written a fascinating book about how to control security lapses due to the "human element." With writer William L. Simon, he describes how con artists use social engineering to gain information by lying to pass themselves off as insiders. By being sensitive to human behavior and taking advantage of trust, they learn to bypass your security systems. The book teaches you how to ward off such threats and educate employees. Yet, problematically, this information could also help con artists be more sophisticated. In any case, this highly informative, engaging book includes sample conversations that open the door to information, along with tips about how various cons are used and what to do about them. We from getAbstract recommend this book to corporate officers, information managers, human resource directors and security personnel, but don't tell anybody.

Kevin Mitnick says "the term 'social engineering' is widely used within the computer security community to describe the techniques hackers use to deceive a trusted computer user within a company into revealing sensitive information, or trick an unsuspecting mark into performing actions that create a security hole for them to slip through." It's suitable that Mitnick, once vilified for his cracking exploits, has written a book about the human element of social engineering - that most subtle of information security threats.

Some readers may find a book on computer security penned by a convicted computer criminal blasphemous. Rather than focusing on the writer's past, it is clear that Mitnick wishes the book to be viewed as an attempt at redemption.

The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security states that even if an organization has the best information systems security policies and procedures; most tightly controlled firewall, encrypted traffic, DMZ's, hardened operating systems patched servers and more; all of these security controls can be obviated via social engineering.

Social engineering is a method of gaining someone's trust by lying to them and then abusing that trust for malicious purposes - primarily gaining access to systems. Every user in an organization, be it a receptionist or a systems administrator, needs to know that when someone requesting information has some knowledge about company procedures or uses the corporate vernacular, that alone should not be authorization to provide controlled information.

The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security spends most of its time discussing many different social engineering scenarios. At the end of each chapter, the book analyzes what went wrong and how the attack could have been prevented.

The book is quite absorbing and makes for fascinating reading. With chapter titles such as The Direct Attack; Just Asking for it; the Reverse Sting; and Using Sympathy, Guilt and Intimidation, readers will find the narratives interesting, and often they relate to daily life at work.

Fourteen of the 16 chapters give examples of social engineering covering many different corporate sectors, including financial, manufacturing, medical, and legal. Mitnick notes that while companies are busy rolling out firewalls and other security paraphernalia, there are often unaware of the threats of social engineering. The menace of social engineering is that it does not take any deep technical skills - no protocol decoders, no kernel recompiling, no port scans - just some smooth talk and a little confidence.

Most of the stories in the book detail elementary social engineering escapades, but chapter 14 details one particularly nasty story where a social engineer showed up on-site at a robotics company. With some glib talk, combined with some drinks at a fancy restaurant, he ultimately was able to get all of the design specifications for a leading-edge product.

In order for an organization to develop a successful training program against the threats of social engineering, they must understand why people are vulnerable to attack in the first place. Chapter 15 explains of how attackers take advantage of human nature. Only by identifying and understanding these tendencies (namely, Authority, Liking, Reciprocation, Consistency, Social Validation, and Scarcity), can companies ensure employees understand why social engineers can manipulate us all.

After more than 200 pages of horror stories, Part 4 (Chapters 15 and 16) details the need for information security awareness and training. But even with 100 pages of security policies and procedures (much of it based on ideas from Charles Cresson Wood's seminal book Information Security Policies Made Easy) the truth is that nothing in Mitnick's security advice is revolutionary - it's information security 101. Namely, educate end-users to the risks and threats of non-technical attacks.

While there are many books on nearly every aspect of information security, The Art of Deception is one of the first (Bruce Schneier's Secrets and Lies being another) to deal with the human aspect of security; a topic that has long been neglected. For too long, corporate America has been fixated with cryptographic key lengths, and not focused enough on the human element of security.

From a management perspective, The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security should be on the list of required reading. Mitnick has done an effective job of showing exactly what the greatest threat of attack is - people and their human nature.

Is William Hope Hodgson's 'The House on the Borderland' the creepiest, eeriest story ever written? It is sometimes described that way, although I cannot confirm it because I have yet to read every creepy or eerie story ever written. I have read a fair amount of H.P. Lovecraft, some Robert E. Howard, and many modern mass-market horror novels. Hodgson probably ranks somewhere in between those two regions. Written in the early part of the 20th century, this author's novel is an attempt to blend together horror, science fiction, and fantasy. Unfortunately, Hodgson later died in WWI, forever silencing a splendid talent. Without a doubt, Hodgson influenced later horror and fantasy authors with this jaunt through the spectral reaches of space and time.

The story begins when two men make a fishing expedition into the hinterlands of Ireland. Near a tiny hamlet called Kraighten, the two encounter some of the strange local people who speak an unknown language. Further strangeness ensues when they realize that much of this area does not appear on any map. The two men explore the surrounding area, stumbling over an old garden near a yawning abyss. Then they discover the ruins of a large house on an outcropping of rock. While exploring these remains, one of the men discovers a damaged manuscript in the wreckage. Taking the book with them, the two travelers head back to camp, but not before experiencing some serious reservations about the area. A bubbling lake nearby scares them, as does unsettling sounds coming from somewhere in the vicinity. After hightailing it back to camp, they begin to read this mysterious journal. What follows constitutes the bulk of Hodgson's book, a deeply disturbing tale about an anonymous man who lived in the house and who experienced a series of events unexplainable by any rational means of discourse.

Some years before, this man lived in the house with his loyal dog and his spinster sister. He was a loner, more interested in spending his time reading books or rambling around his large gardens than throwing parties or hanging out with the local population. One night while lounging in his study, the man undergoes a strange out of body experience. He is transported to another dimension, where he finds an exact replica of his own house on a vast plain surrounded by enormous statues of deities, scary creatures who look like pigs, and a luminous mist of unknown origin. While this might be enough to scare any sane person out of his or her wits, our man continues to stay in the house after his astral experience.

More eeriness ensues: the nasty pig creatures crawl out of the abyss forming near the house and attempt to invade the premises. Closely following this horror is an inexplicable episode, which makes up most of the book, where the owner of the house experiences a breakdown of the very fabric of space and time. Hodgson writes about these events in minute detail, outlining every aspect of this fabulous trip beyond the limits of sensory perception. 'The House on the Borderland' ends with no fixed answers about the creepy manuscript. Moreover, the author makes sure to have the manuscript trail off in the middle of a horrible event, leaving the reader guessing as to the conclusions of this strange tale.

It is not difficult to see how this story influenced several big names in the horror business. Lovecraft definitely borrowed some of the themes here to create his Cthulhu mythos. The detached method of having the horrors told to us through a strange manuscript also finds expression in several other supernatural tales written well after Hodgson's book. In this respect, 'House on the Borderland' is a groundbreaking work worthy of continued reprinting. Any fan of Lovecraft, Blackwood, or any of the other godfathers of horror needs to read this book if for no other reason than to get a glimpse into where their favorite authors cribbed ideas from. This tale is not as scary as certain better known horror stories, but it does occasionally deliver some effective shocks to even the most jaded horror aficionado.

One of the book's failings was the author's attempts to depict the breakdown of time. This section reminded me of H.G. Wells. Moreover, this part of the story seemed to run on forever. I wanted the story to get back to the scariness of otherworldly beings and supernatural horrors.

Hodgson's book is a necessary read. Do not go in expecting straight horror, but acknowledge that you are about to read a great mix of several genres. Without William Hope Hodgson, who knows where the horror novel would be today.

A haunting and unforgetable story of deep, dark horror. Not your cheap, "blood and guts" hollywood horror, but real "you won't sleep" cosmic horror. A 2 part story of a man struggling against the horrors that lie outside his fortified house (the pig-men from the bowls of the earth) and the horrors that lie outside his fortified mind (the timeless, cosmic insignificance of life).

Much of the story relies on your imagination, with the threats and horror lurking millimeters from the written text, those readers blessed (cursed?) with a soul will never forget the fear that Hodgson implants.

Don't let the reviewers who don't understand the significance of the cosmic unravelling put you off, the "sci-fi" bit doesn't spoil the story, it's part 2 of the whole meaning of horror.

I envy anyone that wasn't horrified by this book, I wish I had their safe ignorant bliss.

Ohh, the horror...

This novel derives most of its genuinely creepy effect from all of the unanswered questions that will flow through your brain for days after you read it...who built that damn house? What exactly is it made out of? How is the "Recluse" able to have visions of the far future just by residing in the mansion? Does somebody (or some thing) WANT the protagonist to have these visions? If so, why? What is the significance of the violent, besieging swine-men and how can they exist in the "real world" of the 1900s and billions of years in the future (when the Earth is a frozen and dead sphere in a darkened solar system) at the same time? Who (or what?) created the swine-men? What do the gigantic statues of the ancient and evil mythological gods of Earth legend (Set, Kali, etc.) glimpsed in the "amphitheatre" have to do with the story? Hodgson (to his credit and to incredible effect) never gives the reader obvious answers to these questions in this skillfully crafted tale of terror that makes full use of mankind's fear of the unknown. To be sure, Hodgson knew all of the answers, but he wanted us to have fun (for the rest of our lives, no doubt) trying to figure out exactly what he was getting at. Hodgson was an author of startling originality, and "House..." is far more frightening than any other work penned by any of his contemporaries (Stoker, Wells, James, and numerous others) and it's easy to see why Lovecraft admired him so much...so why don't more horror and sci-fi fans know who he is? I'm clueless, so somebody please fill me in. Lovecraft fans will no doubt notice that Hodgson's "Universal Sun" (as seen in the terrifying visions of the Recluse, as it sends forth "messengers" into the void after all of creation has been destroyed) is the obvious prototype of HPL's Azathoth. This novel left me eagerly looking forward to reading more Hodgson books ("Nightland", "Boats of the Glen Carrig", others). It's a damn shame that he was killed in the First World War, because he would have certainly cranked out more ground-breaking horror classics.

I found the basic idea of the book to be excellent and very true to life, however, I cannot say the same for the characters, Felicia in particular. Beyond her frustration, we are never privy to any of her emotions. What did she think of her plight? Why did she never worry that Johnny, her lover, might reject her? I feel that the author made a mistake by never writing in Felicia's viewpoint during her scenes with Mr. Hilditch. We certainly know many of his feeling and thoughts concerning Felicia, but never, never any of her thoughts about her sinister friend. ...

The character of Mr. Hilditch is very well developed, unfortunately more so than the main character. I felt that too much of the book (one quarter) was devoted to Mr. Hilditch's downward spiral. It almost becomes a completely different story.

As a previous reviewer mentioned, the author's practice on going back and the forth between past and present was confusing.

The frightening thing about this exquisite mystery by William Trevor isn't anything found in a typical detective or police mystery; there is no theft, no murder, no crime, at least not at first. The truly horrifying thing in the mystery is the unknown, for we don't know what is going to happen next. We wonder if a murder is to occur, or if we are about to discover some gut-wrenching fact about the main male character, Mr. Hilditch. The book makes you feel as if something is coming around every corner; so much reading time is spent waiting, anxiously, anticipating the next move. The two characters make quite a pair, one searching desperately for her lover, and essentially her family, and the other, searching for something to replace the family he no longer has. The truly strange thing about Mr. Hilditch is his normalcy. He seems a very nice, hard working, grandfather figure, until we learn of his crimes. Pity seems to be given to Felicia, even though I think she is undeserving of it. It was unintelligent of her to leave home alone, go to another country, and then associate with a strange man she knew nothing about. Although we are probably supposed to feel for this unsuspecting, sweet, innocent girl, I almost felt more sympathy for Mr. Hilditch and for the nightmare of a life he is living. All in all, an interesting mystery that kept me guessing at every turn, but certainly not one of my favorites.

Trevor does an execptional job of captivating the reader and telling the story from the two main characters (Felicia and Hilditch). One cannot help but feel sad after reading this novel. All involved appear to be victims at various times and on various levels. Felicia, the victim of death (her mothers) and a jilted lover and Hilditch. Hilditch a victim of his mother and his need for "friendship".

Trevor will keep you reading and feeling throughout the book. Do not expect to feel good after reading this novel. A great book for a book group discussion.