without a doubt, art wolfe, one of our foremost photographers, has outstanding wildlife work showcased here in color plate after color plate. this book's true value, however, arrives in the discussion between wolfe and martha hill, former picture editor of audubon magazine. for all but those already well-versed in the magazine and book trade, this dialogue will provide deep insights into how to photograph for publication. hill's comments on what does and does not work for various layouts is invaluable. i highly recommend this title.

This outstanding book features the breath-taking photography of Art Wolfe. Each of Art's photographs are discussed both by Art himself and Martha Hill, the former photo editor of Audubon magazine. It is interesting to see the "story" behind the photos: how Art set up the shot, what film was used, metering method, etc - and then see Martha's comments on the same photo from her photo editor perspective. A must have

The Art of Photographing Nature is probably not for the beginning photographer, but once you?ve learned how to manipulate the camera well enough to consistently make good, properly focussed exposures, you ought to look at this book if you?re interested in nature photography. And I do mean look, because that?s the way this book teaches.

This is a book about photographic composition, which is something a photographer must know well to make pictures that are more than snapshots. Technique is referred to, but if you want a how-to book get John Shaw?s ?Nature Photography Field Guide?

Although Hill claims the writing credits and Wolfe the photography credits, this is somewhat misleading. The form the book takes is to show a picture taken by Wolfe, or more often two, and then have both comment on the compositional choices. Since Wolfe is one of the greatest living nature photographers and since Hill is the former picture editor of Audubon Magazine, their commentary is illuminating. I found the comparison between two pictures of the same or similar subject matter, including why they found one better than the other, to be particularly insightful. It also adds to the discussion that each of them brings a slightly different sensibility to the pictures. There are even a few sets where the two disagree as to the better picture.

As I said before, this is not a technique book, but technique is examined as a way to enhance the composition. For example, in the section called ?Reading the Light?, the authors talk about how to find 18% gray, to get a standard exposure from a light meter. But than they talk about how to use that information to make pictures lighter or darker to enhance the subject.

There are various methods of teaching. Some teachers provide principals and then give examples. Others present the example and then derive lessons from the example. Most of us benefit by a combination of both approaches. Usually photography books take the former approach. Hill and Wolfe use the latter and this book does it as well as any nature photography book I?ve seen.

P.S. Even Wolfe?s second choice pictures are a pleasure to behold.

Robert Lacey's book is a well-researched book that gives valuable insights into the history of Saudi Arabia and the mindset of its ruling family. Unfortunately, it lacks critical distance and paints an overly flattering portrait of the House of Saud, and should be balanced by reading Said K. Aburish's "The Rise, Corruption and Coming Fall of the House of Saud".

My father worked with the USSR in the 70s and Saudi Arabia in the 80s, and he told me Saudi Arabia was the most stifling place he ever was in, even worse than communist Russia (this is not anti-muslim bigotry, by the way, I am one myself).

A lot has changed since this book was written, due to demographic pressure and the collapse of the oil-driven welfare state after Gulf War I, so this book should be used mostly as a reference for the period before 1980.

I'm not in a position to judge the quality of Lacey's data because I have no other books on Saudi Arabia. (Daniel Yergin's oil epic The Prize, though indispensable, is also out of date.) I find this book very entertaining to read. But in any case Lacey ought to consider writing an updated edition. With war looming on the horizon, terrorists coming from this country, and oil prices so unstable (partly due to Venezuela) we badly need to know more about this fascinating country. Saudi Arabia is a good deal more important than most countries. In particular the personalities of Crown Prince Abdullah and Defense Minister Prince Sultan need to be dwellt upon in more detail. We also need more info on the politics and economics of Saudi oil.

It reads like a novel, but it's history.

Abdul Aziz did for Saudi Arabia what George Washington and Thomas Jefferson did for the United States. Despite his personal flaws and his Wahabism, he deserved admiration and respect.

You're in for a treat if you can get your hands on this book.

If you are like me and you like books on the business of Hollywood you will love this one. I do not like books by Hollywood "insiders". They tend to write the books for nothing more than to pump themselves up and trash actors/studios, however books by journalists tend to be more even handed. Hit and Run is probably the best book on Hollywood ever written, The Devil's Cany is now second. What makes this book great is that it explains what the jobs of certain people are. For instance I didn't know what a second unit director was till I read this. Not to mention that the story about the adaptation of Bonfire of the Vanities makes for a great tale.

Julie Salamon was lucky enough to get in at the beginning of what was anticipated to be a great film, and turned out to be one of the biggest critical and financial failures for Warner Bros. The book Bonfire of the Vanities was so popular and written in such a style that taking on the task of adapting it to film was a true challenge and doomed to fail. And fail it did. Salamon also gives a background of the steps it takes to get a picture made from buying the rights of the book to marketing the finished picture. She details the different roles of the movie set, answering the age-old question, "What does a grip do?". You gather a great understanding of how difficult it is to make a picture by studio standards and how the hierarchy on the set works. Fascinating insight from an outsider let into the circus of making a major motion picture. Brian De Palma must curse the day he agreed to let her chronicle the journey.
Also, I have to recommend reading Tom Wolfe's Bonfire of the Vanities. You can understand why he wanted no part of making the film adaptaton of his infamous book.

Julie Salamon's book follows the making of the most anticpated film of 1990 and chronicles the problems, the fights, and the ensuing disppointments. A must read for anyone who wants to know how it really works, Salamon was there every step of the way throughout the pre-production, the filming, and the aftermath. Her descriptions of life on the set are accurate and not glossed over. She was there to give an honest account of a film that was going to be a huge hit but turned into one of the biggest failures Hollywood ever produced. If you are a movie buff, a gossip monger, or a huge fan of Tom Wolfe's book, you must pick this one up...if you can find it

This book is related to, but should not be considered a sequel to the author's book, "There Are No Secrets," about his studies with Chen Man Ching. It is, however, an excellent discussion of how the author incorporated his tai chi studies into his life and thoughts, and his growth as a martial artist. I recommend it highly as a companion to his earlier book.

The style is very similar to "There Are No Secrets" - it is equally entertaining and informative. There is some repetition from the first book, but in my opinion his first book contains so much information that it is nearly impossible to digest it all. I think it is helpful to hear a few of the same ideas rephrased or put in a different context.

The chapters on Tai Chi fencing were very interesting and original. You also learn more about Lowenthal's life during his Tai Chi training days and meet some of the other characters he trains with. His attempt to honestly portray both himself and the professor really makes Tai Chi feel like an art that should practiced by ordinary people and not just monks on some mountain.

The pictures are nice too!

Wolfe Lowenthals training under the famous Cheng Man-ching is to be envied for its depth and duration . He spent hours everyday for seven years seeking to plumb the depths of Cheng's Taichi, to inquire deeply within himself and of his teacher to try and exemplify its essence, in boxing as well as life. Lowenthal continues to grapple with the paradoxes of push hands obeying Master Cheng's instructions to the letter: "never use more than 4 ounces" Through tireless effort he achieves skill.

Authentic Kempo is presented in a straight-forward manner geared to the person who wants to use the book as a study guide in the excellent book Lessons From the Art of Kempo. After using this Kempo book as a study guide, I was very impressed. Having observed different Kempo styles, I found that this book's Kempo techniques are especially practical. The book is very well written, illustrated and laid out, which makes it easy to use as a learning tool. I plan to continue to use this book as a continued resource in following my interest in Kempo. This book is the best book of its type I have ever seen and I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to get more information on the art of Kempo.

I had been studying Kempo for about a year and a half when my family moved to a small town. There was no place nearby for me to continue taking lessons, so I started practicing on my own while trying to learn more through books. It was very hard to learn out of books because the techniques were not generally well explained or illustrated. Then a while back I found a used copy of a book titled Lessons from the Art of Kempo that gave detailed explanations and photographs of how to do the techniques. It brought the study of Kempo together for me. This is a five start books all the way. I feel that I have found a new dimension of Kempo that was shown to me by the way the author described how Kempo is more than learning to fight, it is a way of improving your life. This book really does it for me!

Kempo started out for me to be a recreational activity chosen on a whim, but has turned into a prime interest outside of my work. I have been practicing Kempo for six years and over the last two years have read everything I could find on Kempo and related subjects. The best book I have found on Kempo is Fred Neff's Lessons From the Art of Kempo. He not only concisely explains real Kempo, but also shows how to do it in an orderly and understandable manner. Many people confusingly misunderstand the difference between Kung-fu, Kenpo and Kempo. This beautifully done book explains real Kempo as opposed to these other martial arts. If a person was limited to using one book to learn Kempo, then he would be well-served by choosing Lessons From the Art of Kempo.

I used to be a lousy drunk, sleep in a cardboard box and live off crusts from unfinished pizzas left on the sidewalk. Then I read "Uncanny," the brilliant new self-help book by F. Shawn Wolfe. It honestly changed my life. I've read it approximately 63 times since then. I'm sober, my new box is durable plastic and I'm growing new hair at my temples and crown. Thank you, Mister Wolfe. You are an American Hero. Peace Out.

Shawn Wolfe had a baby and it's head popped off! Out came a glowing foaming exponentially expanding font of Must Haves and Can't Live Withouts. It can only be stopped by duct taping this book to your forehead and taking to the streets this all important message, "Get Yours Today!"

There are days I am overcome with a sad nostalgia for the Past. I begin to feel suffocated by life's overblown pace and unfulfilled promises. Then there are days I pick up Uncanny and am met with an overwhelming sense of clarity, of purpose, and of blissful harmony with the Past, Present and Future. The art in Uncanny is the epitomy of timelessness. It is apparant that Wolfe is in total control of his own existence and the confidence with which he welcomes the reader into his World is incredibly selfless. In short, Uncanny: The Art & Design of Shawn Wolfe fulfills its promise and I highly recommend it!

If you're going to insist on having coffee-table books lying around your house, you might as well have one filled with lurid, hand-painted posters for movies like "Hell Comes to Frogtown," "The Fatal Flying Guillotines," or "Confessions of a Window Cleaner," right? Well, you've come to the right place, 'cause here is just such a book-filled with beautiful color reproductions of posters for these, and many other fine movies, straight outta... Ghana. For a period of about ten years, from the mid-'80s to the mid '90s, entrepreneurs in Ghana ran traveling movie screenings, featuring the latest (or not so latest) videos from America and elsewhere. Their agents would pull into town, rent a public viewing space, set up a TV and VCR running off a little generator, unfurl a poster, and voila-instant movie house. Here, presented for the first time in the West are several hundred of the posters, divided into sections with little one-page celebrity introductions, along with a few art expert essays. It depressingly comes as no surprise that of the 230 pages devoted to the posters, 200 are in the "action/adventure," "war and urban commando," "horror," "science fiction and fantasy," and "martial arts" sections, with only 30 pages on "comedy and drama." Interestingly, this last section is largely filled with homegrown films from Ghana and Nigeria, with very few American entries. Clearly, this is because American humor and drama don't export as well as guns, blood, and sex, which are universal-although this is left unstated.

What is stated in most of the section introductions is fairly bland praise to the tune of "look how movies can cross cultures and have meaning even in Africa" and "see how these movies fit into the rich tradition of storytelling." Screenwriter Walter Hill at least has the honesty to say "many of these posters are more interesting than the films." The essays by the art experts attempting to place these posters in a larger historical context of African art manage to utterly fail. Particularly egregious is Deidre Evans-Pritchard's inane assertion that "Just as British television dramas are culturally repackaged for American audiences, so the hand-painted movie posters serve to claim the movies for the people of West Africa." The notion that one businessman paying an semiprofessional artist to paint an advertising poster for "Leprechaun 2" (page 199) so that other people will pay money to watch it somehow "claims" it, is patently silly. The critical difference with her analogy is that the advertising is slightly repackaged, the content certainly isn't. As I leafed through the book, seeing endless images of guns, bare breasts, blood, Rambo, Van Damme, Delta Force, and the like, I was vaguely unsettled. If, through cultural globalization, this is all they're getting from the U.S., what effect will it have on their cultural production, or on their perception of America? Whatever the answer-this is a great book to leave lying around your coffee table. A great companion to this is What It Is... What It Was, which is a slightly less lavish book on blaxploitation poster art.

In Ghana, paying cinema customer line up around a glorified TV set and watch the dross of American cinema, striaght-to-video stuff starring Jan Michael Vincent or Chuck Norris. And to publicize these films, artists paint posters in raging, primitive style with images not usually found in the films. The art is just incredible and horrendous (in the best meanings of the term) and one can only speculate on what cultural filters go into their making. THE coffee table book of the year.

It is certainly one of the three best books about Marilyn. As for the other two, one is Maurice Zolotow's book that was published while she was alive (many libraries have it) and Anthony Summers' paperback "Goddess" that's still in print after 13 years.

Mr. Wolfe fits together many pieces of the puzzle, such as the bizarre role Patricia Newcomb has played in covering up the murder for 35 years. As late as the 1990s, when elder statesman Ted Kennedy had given up running for president, Patricia helped Donald Spoto write a wimpy book that tried to exonerate the Kennedys in the murder. Wolfe takes it apart very well. It is clear that Patricia, who now handles publicity for Barbra Streisand, never will divulge the truth unless a good district attorney puts her under oath.

May I please liberate us Marilyn fans from the book review format here and ask a question? Someone please post a "book review" to explain the following. Mr. Wolfe goes on for many pages about Eunice Murray, Ralph Greenson, Henry Weinstein and Walter Bernstein all belonging to the Communist Party. It's the one part of the mystery I don't get. Did these people's party memberships make them pro-Kennedy, anti-Kennedy or some shades in between? All right then, forget Weinstein and Bernstein, who were busy making silly film comedies that few people watch today. Why would Murray and Greenson, who spent so much time spying on Marilyn, do that for the sake of the Communist Party?

Also, Mr. Wolfe neglects to explain something about the day of the murder. Did Dr. Greenson push that needle into her chest with the intent to kill her? Maybe he was unaware of the drug that Bobby Kennedy and intelligence agent James Hamilton had given her a short time earlier. Maybe Dr. Greenson was trying to resuscitate Marilyn, and his needle hit the wrong place. We don't read about him using needles in other parts of this book or in any other Marilyn book. Maybe he was your typical 1960s psychoanalyst who spent 99 percent of his practice talking with patients and giving them pills, which they voluntarily swallowed. So the cause of Marilyn's death could be the homicidal dose given by RFK and Mr. Hamilton complicated by the clumsy resuscitation effort of Greenson. Mr. Wolfe doesn't explain how or if Greenson allied himself with the Kennedys before the moment of death. All we get is an alliance that started immediately after the death. True, an LAPD officer stopped their car for speeding as they sped away from Marilyn's house that night.

But that still makes it possible that Greenson accidentally finished her off, totally unaware of Bobby, and *then* Bobby approached him to say, "It's not your fault, doc, you just help us cover it up, please. The public is too stupid to understand your diagnosis of her mental state, so we'll make Mrs. Murray look like a kindly bespectacled old lady with no connection to show business or politics. Reporters aren't going to ask her about us Kennedys, J. Edgar Hoover, the telephone company records, Frank Sinatra, etc. Let Mrs. Murray and the coroner handle everything. They'll bore the Dickens out of everyone and the reporters will go away after a few days."

That's exactly what happened. Robert Slatzer and two newspaper people did some digging in 1962 (Florabel Muir and Joe Hyams, both based in New York), but no one published anything then.

Can anyone shed light on these issues of the Communist connection and Dr. Greenson's motive? The odds are great that never again will we get a book that addresses these issues. Future books on Marilyn will focus on her movies. Norman Jeffries, Eunice Murray and Ralph Greenson are all dead. Patricia Newcomb is still a professional liar, now doing damage control for Barbra Streisand. (Patricia doesn't want Bahh - bra to make a fool of herself over Vice President Lieberman.)

So, in the absence of another book on the Marilyn murder, and in the absence of a magazine or television piece, could someone please explain what the Communist memberships of Eunice Murray and Ralph Greenson have to do with Marilyn's death? And what was he doing with that needle as the Schaefer ambulance crew watched helplessly? Please post a "book review" with your thoughts. Thank you. If you haven't read the book, please do so. You can order it via the Web.

Even before I read this I was convinced that Bobby and JFK had something to do with Marilyn's Death. This book just help to bring the rest of the general public or at least, the fans who have read it, closer to the truth. The truth that Marilyn didn't commit suicide. This book really went into a lot of detail to show that it couldn't have been suicide. It went into too much detail also, of things that didn't pertain to marilyn or her death, that was the only thing I didn't like about it. Who cares about arthur miller's problems? I read enough about him in the other most recent Marilyn bio, if you could call it that. This book gave you alot of facts, some that shocked me greatly. The Cal-Neva weekend was gut wrenching to read. I feel that us true fans know that marilyn isn't a suicide victim, but a victim of murder. cold-blooded murder.. I never had much respect for the Kennedys before but after reading this, I find them repulsive. If they didn't want to her know about all those political things going on, and their plans, why did they tell her? What makes me truly ill, is there will never be justice done for marilyn. maybe by me and other fans that believe the same thing. But the Kennedys did a really good job at getting rid of evidence, and covering up so well that there is no way it could ever be proved. I am glad that this book was written, it was well written and it has helped me find some answers about MM's untimely death. thank you, donald wolfe!

I've always been somewhat ambivalent about the conspiracy theories surrounding Marilyn's death & have vacillated between the foul play line & that she took an accidental overdose. I read Anthony Summers' "Goddess" when it was first published & was certainly of the conviction that there was indeed foul play. Having just read the first part of this book & skipped to the end missing out the biographical element of the middle section, I am yet again convinced that at best there was one huge cover-up to protect RFK and at worst that he actually had a direct hand in the deed or was at least present when the fatal barbiturate dose was adminstered. Earlier books I've read have all indeed questioned the validity of Marilyn's bedroom being the scene of death, no water present, the body lying in an unusual position, no evidence of convulsions or vomit which is usually the case with overdoses etc etc etc

It is certainly difficult to refute the evidence presented in this book & the various testimonies that have only just come to light, ie those of Norman Jeffries (this I had never read about before & I've read numerous MM biogs) and of the ambulence driver James Hall. The events that the author concludes took place that night are totally plausible, but what is surprising is the fact that this disparate group of people present when MM died all conspired over the years & colluded in this cover up. The numerous versions of the suicide theory are all fatally flawed & key witnesses such as Eunice Murray the housekeeper have constantly changed their stories over the years - lending them no crediblity whatsoever. However, it is unfortunate that we will never ever know for sure as RFK, Ralph Greenson & Peter Lawford all took their secrets to the grave with them.

This is indeed a compelling read, although sometimes I found I was so bombarded with facts that it was a little difficult to absorb.

If you're an MM fan, then read this book & Anthony Summers'"Goddess".

. . .but there were a number of reasons it doesn't score 5 stars, at least in the mind of this reviewer.

There is no doubt that Wolfe has written a very, very good "novel" (history, really) about the great test pilots of the 1950's and especially the Mercury 7 astronauts. He as gone far to try to make the story as accurate and honest as possible. For this, he should be commended. And frankly, the book was just plain fun to read, especially for someone (like myself) who is a staunch supporter of the space program.

However, I was put off by Wolfe's casual writing style. Yes, it's a personal beef -- but this is a personal review, and I just didn't resonate with him stylistically! More serious, though, to my mind, was what the book 'did' -- and that is, to seriously deconstruct a myth. The men (and their families) depicted in the book, were (and to a certain extent, still are) heros in the minds of many Americans -- in a time when American badly needed heros. And to my mind, Wolfe trimmed those heros down to size. I'm not convinced that this was necessary -- or a good idea.

No, I'm not naive. I realize that ALL heros have feet of clay. I'm just not sure that it is appropriate -- or healthy -- to exploit that clay.

Tom Wolfe's rollicking style (exclamation points!) can take a little getting used to, but once you settle in, you'll find that this is not just a fun-to-read book, but a well-written one too.

First, Wolfe clearly did his research, filling the story with details and facts which prove illuminating (I do wish he included dates more frequently; sometimes it's hard to tell when an event is taking place). His detailed descriptions of the flights of Alan Shepard, John Glenn and Chuck Yeager practically put you in the pilot's seat.

Second, he manages to capture the emotions and feelings of the time, showing the competitive nature that drove the astronauts, how their wives wanted respect, and how the public adored their new space heroes.

Finally, he ties it all together with some good philosophical insights. The Right Stuff! Single Warrior Combat!

My only lament about the book is that Tom Wolfe makes it look so easy. Too many writers since then have tried to imitate his style -- but without doing the fundamental research that makes a good story. The result can be tedious and superficial writing.

I opened this book with a limited interest in the Space Race, jet pilots, or Tom Wolfe, but have become fascinated by all three. This is an extremely well written, exciting, fast paced novel that takes place during the early days of space flight and focuses on the personalities who drove our pursuit to beat the Russians. It contains subtle criticism of the space program and the people inside it, which is a nice subplot to the story, but the adventure and energy is what makes this a great book. I will again read Wolfe and want to learn more about the history of the space program now, and when a book inspires these kind of reactions I can not help but recommend it to anyone who asks for a suggestion.

This is an interesting and attractive introductory book on animals of the Northwest for young readers. However, since it's written at about 3.5 reading level, it may be too difficult for its intended audience.

Also, it's a bit of a stretch as an alphabet book, since the alphabet is merely used as a vehicle for tying the photos and text together. It works for single words like bear, coyote, deer and eagle, however most children won't relate to fir tree as an "F" word, since the noun is actually "tree." This quirk surfaces again with listings like Haida totem pole for the letter "H," Northern spotted owl for "N," and Mt. Rainier for "R." It gets stretched further when Xerophyllum tenax appears for "X," and then the child is told it's "the scientific name for bear grass."

Having said that, students love to listen this book and look at the pictures. It works well as a read-aloud and a discussion starter. I used successfully as a companion book with "Northwest Animal Babies" for first grade students in our elementary school library. This should be in every school library in the Pacific Northwest.

Really nice pictures that kids can relate to, clear and self explanatory. Text gives a bit of information about the animals and other things mentioned. Good for young readers. Good lead into for animal study.

This is the alphabet the Pacific Northwest way: A is for auklet, B for black bear, C for coyote...from Alaska thru British Columbia & Washington down to Oregon, the natural world is featured in glorious photos & simple, illustrative text. Lovely full-color, full page photos of an eagle, a Haida totem pole with a glorious stag before it, a misty enchanting view of Mount Ranier, a mountainside of Xerophyllum tenax. A wonderful way to learn our ABCs. .................