This is the most amazing art book. In the central part of the book, Alex Grey presents the human being layer by layer. Starting with the skeleton, he adds the nervous & circulatory systems, the viscera, the musculature, and finally the skin. Materialist would stop there. But Alex Grey has the eyes of a mystic, and continues to depict the etheric & energetic components of humanity, right up to the Void of pure consciousness. He also includes deities from east & west, showing that they too "mirror" what we are in our depths. Many of the later frames are suitable as objects of meditation. The most talented energy-healer I know seems to know everything about people just by looking at them, and she says what she sees is what Alex Grey paints. This book contains art that can put a person in touch with her deepest and noblest possibilities. This book is nothing less than a gift to the human race!

This book is a masterpiece. The artist, Alex Grey, has created visions of mystical spiritual beauty-- visions captured and inscribed on the pages of this book.

I don't know of any artist whose work is more frequently included in slides shows and books about mind body healing, consciousness and spirituality.

Just this week, Newsweek did a cover story on neurotheology-- the study of the neurology of spiritual experiences, and two of Alex Grey's works of art were prominently featured in the magazine.

Grey paints with the detail and precision of a medical illustrator-- but one on mescaline. The images are both beautiful and shimmering with energies-- the kind of energies which connect human souls and spirits together, which connect the whole universe together.

I met Alex Grey while attending the Omega Arts week. He was teaching a course on visionary art-- expressing the sacred visually. It is to his credit that he is a popular teacher of this unique approach-- expressing the visionary and spiritual through art. It's amazing to see the great work he inspires in his students too.

Once you see this book, you'll probably need to buy more copies-- as gifts. But first, start off by buying one for yourself as a real treat.

There are several sequences of art in here. Plans are under way for the primary sequence's original works to be assembled into a kind of "temple" or special building which will house them. Grey has designed the whole building. You can learn more about it under the web site which is spelled out by his name then dot com.

I'll be the first to admit I had never heard of Alex Grey before. However, I am a fan of the music group Tool. The artwork on their new CD was done by Alex Grey. I never paid this much mind until I was in a book store a couple weeks ago and passed right by "Sacred Mirrors". I stopped, turned around, snatched it up and ran to the counter. Upon further reading I must say it is phenomenal..

The essays presented talk about Alex and his work. They provide an indepth look at his philosophies on transcendence. While enjoyable to read the real reason to buy the book is the art. I have never seen anything quite like Grey's work. It is bold and bright. His use of colors and their correspondence in the human body are simply amazing.

This book is definitely recommended for anyone who wants to view the human body; our physical, mental, and most importantly, our spiritual side, in a whole new light.

In the first book of the Westmark Trilogy, Theo asks, "Even if the cause (of war) is good, what does it do to the people who stand against it? And the people who follow it?" The answer to those questions is The Kestrel. Using a panorama of characters, Alexander shows war from all perspectives: from the leaders,' from the bystanders,' and from the soldiers.' Alexander draws on his own experiences of World War II to give the reader (of any age) insight into the moral complexities of war.

The main character is once again Theo. When Westmark is attacked by neighboring Regia, Theo is forced with a dilemma. Should he serve his love (Mickle) or should he serve his country? Eventually, Theo is compelled to join fighting along with Florian's forces because of a memory of his cowardice at the battle of Nierkeeping in "Westmark." Fighting a guerrilla-style war under the command of Justin, Theo begins to be baptised by fire. He sees comrade after comrade killed. He becomes filled with hatred for the enemy army. Eventually, he is given command and becomes Colonel Kestrel, a semblance of Theo who commits unspeakable acts in the name of war.

Alexander studies the morals of war through his characters. The reader is forced to examine psychological aspects of war in Theo. War is also shown through a leader's eyes with the examinations of Mickle, Theo, Justin, and Florian. The devastating effect of war on the countryside is shown from following Sparrow and Weasel.

The Kestrel is a brilliant continuation of the series. The plot is magnificent, and it has so much depth. The characterizations are excellent, and the issues studied are compelling. The Westmark Trilogy is a great piece of young adult literature. I've read some of the great war novels like All Quiet on the Western Front and The Red Badge of Courage, but the trilogy is better written and with more depth. Everyone really should read these excellent novels.

I really liked this book. I read it in only a couple hours because I could not put it down. It has a lot of battle and war, which inevitably makes it sad, but there's still some humorous parts, many times involving the "water rats"; Sparrow and Weasel.

It shows the effect war can have on different people, and also really makes you think about war, peace, revolution, and even the nature of man.

This is a really good book, and even though I liked Westmark a bit better, this continues the story well. I have not yet read The Beggar Queen, but will definatly be looking for it. Also, isn't it strange that while they are a trilogy, The Kestrel is out of print, though Westmark and Beggar Queen are still in print??

This is a tremendous book. Lloyd Alexander is a wonderful story-teller, and the Westmark trilogy is among his finest works. I read and re-read these books in Jr. High, and the Kestrel was my favorite of the three. Lloyd, if you read this, please bring back this book! It's been years since I read the Kestrel, but I think I'll have to fish out my worn copy of it and re-read it.

Another triumph by Solzenitsyn. A deeply humane book, in which the author weaves several tales around the central thread of a Soviet research establishment where the researchers are political prisoners. The stories in themselves are gripping, but what again holds the attention (as in the author's other works)is Solzhenitsyn's deeply profound portayal of the human cost of the repressive system, and how deeply it affected all of the citizens of the RSFSR, however exalted or mundane their place within that system. Particularly interesting were the depiction of Stalin and his relationships with his lackies, and the inner workings of Lubyanka Prison in central Moscow. The ending has a thought-provoking sting in the tale for us in the West. Recommended.

I was first introdced to Solzhenitsyn's works when I was a freshman in high school, far too many years ago in a little town. The book was the Volume 1 of The Gulag Archipelago. It was really an eye-opener for me in so many ways, given that it was the first "really serious" book that I'd read.

I believe that Solzhenitsyn is the best writer of the 20th century, or at least he's the top writer I've read so far (and I've read a lot of books). Maybe that's influenced by my early exposure, but I don't think so; I find his works just as compelling now as I did then.

The First Circle is one of his most "accessible" works (that is, you can just jump in and start reading) and probably one of his best. A very compelling story; his portraits of the various vile creatures of the Soviet government have been shown to be quite accurate, and the way the various plots intertwine and are resolved is wonderful.

The First Circle gives great insight into a culture totally foreign to most US citizens, as the book's a mixture of spy novel, guide to life in a Gulag camp, and brief introduction to Soviet society of the 1950s. A depressing place to be sure, but fascinating. Well worth reading.

What makes The First Circle such a great book (the best I've read by Solzhenitsyn) is how he reduces a political system and economic ideology to individual choices. It was a system built upon greed, jealousy, selfish pragmatism and fear, the vanity of Stalin, the petty rivalry between commanding officers, the desperate connivance of a prisoner who will turn against his fellow man in order to better his own lot. In other words, humanity.

The consequences were also human: the loss of the prime years of a man's life, a life without the love of a woman, a father worrying about the fate of his young daughter thousands of miles away. Solzhenitsyn does a masterful job of rendering the real world behind philosophy and ideology, the world the USSR lost sight of when they placed ends before means.

In the end, what is perhaps most frightening is that the face of evil is so banal.

"The Kalahari Typing School for Men" is the fourth novel in Alexander McCall Smith's spectacularly successful series about a lady detective in Botswana. Precious Ramotswe is facing new challenges. A rival detective agency opens up nearby, and Mma. Ramotswe is worried about the competition. The two orphans whom she and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni adopted are having problems. In addition, Mma. Ramotswe is worried about her assistant, Mma. Makutsi, who cannot seem to find a husband.

However, Mma. Ramotswe is an optimistic person by nature and she tries to set aside her worries. One way to forget her troubles is to take on new clients. Mma. Ramotswe accepts the case of a woman who suspects that her husband is being unfaithful. Another client is a wealthy man who wants Mma. Ramotswe to find two women whom he had wronged in the past. He wishes to apologize to them and make amends for his bad behavior.

As in his earlier books, Smith's writing is sweet, funny, understated and touching. Mma. Ramotswe again displays her keen insight into human nature and her empathy for those who are in pain. "The Kalahari Typing School for Men" is written simply but it is never simplistic. This novel will delight Alexander McCall Smith's fans, and it will make readers of this series impatient for the next installment.

"I must remember, thought Mma. Ramotswe, how fortunate I am in this life; at every moment, but especially now, sitting on the verandah of my house in Zebra Drive, and looking up at the high sky of Botswana, so empty that the blue is almost white. Here she was then, Precious Ramotswe, owner of Botswana's only detective agency, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency-an agency which by and large had lived up to its initial promise to provide satisfaction for its clients, although some of them, it must be said, could never be satisfied. And here she was too, somewhere in her late thirties, which as far as she was concerned was the very finest age to be; here she was with the house in Zebra Drive and two orphan children, a boy and a girl, bringing life and chatter into the home. These were blessings with which anybody should be content. With these things in one's life, one might well say that nothing more was needed." (Page 1)

So begins Alexander McCall Smith's latest book, THE KALAHARI TYPING SCHOOL FOR MEN. He has a wonderful African storytelling voice. Parts of the book are funny, sad, educational, and touching.

Mma. Ramotswe deals with real and moral problems. Although the troubles take place in Africa, they are universal and range from searching for people from the past, cheating spouses, looking for love, raising children, trying to improve one's financial status, trying to right a wrong, to dealing with competition, and more.

I enjoy the way Mma. Ramotswe solves her clients' problems as well as her own. There are no guns or high-speed chases. There is no fighting, cursing, or the likes. An element of danger and adventure exists in Mma. Ramotswe's work but the detective uses her wits and manners when dealing with others. The plot is always refreshing.

I love the way THE KALAHARI TYPING SCHOOL FOR MEN transports me to Mma. Ramotswe's world. I feel like I'm a part of the detective agency. I feel like I'm riding with Mma. Ramotswe in her little white van along the Botswana plains. I feel like I'm sharing a cup of red bush tea with her and Mma. Makutsi. I feel like I've tasted a slice of the cake that Mma. Potokwani always serves Mma. Ramotswe at the orphanage. I feel like I know the kind and gentle Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni. I feel like I'm in the same room with his funny mechanic apprentices.

Another good read.

Fafa Demasio

Alexander McCall Smith has written over 50 books from specialized works as The Criminal Law of Botswana, Forensic
Aspects of Sleep to Children's books. He currently is a Professor of Medical Law at Edinburgh University

The Kalahari Typing School For Men
Now that The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (UNTIL NOW, the only detective agency for ladies and others in Botswana) is established, its founder, Precious Ramotswe, can look upon her life with pride: she's reached her late thirties ("the finest age to be"), has a house, two children, a good fiancé -- Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni -- and many satisfied customers. But life is never without its problems. It turns out that her adopted son is responsible for the dead hoopoe bird in the garden; her assistant, Mma Makutsi, wants a husband and needs help with her idea to open the Kalahari Typing School for Men; yet Mma Ramotswe's sexist rival has no trouble opening his Satisfaction Guaranteed Detective Agency across town. Will Precious Ramotswe's delightfully cunning and profoundly moral methods save the day? Follow the continuing story of Botswana's first lady detective in the irresistible "Kalahari Typing School for Men".
Readers who haven't yet discovered Mma Ramotswe will enjoy discovering how her quiet humor, understated observations on life, and resolutely intuitive approach to detection promise to put Botswana on the sleuthing map for good.
IF there is a downside to this excellent series of enchanting mysteries, it is that it takes several years after a books initial release overseas to appear in US publication. Readers who are hooked on the lovable characters, beautiful setting and imaginative plots will be glad to know that The Full Cupboard of Life (the 5th in the series, is to be published by Polygon UK May 2003). And in a recent interview Alexander McCall Smith forsees even more books in the series! When will Mma Ramotswe and Mr J.L.B. Metekoni tie the knot (is that the correct phrase for getting married in Botswana?). What further adventures and Life's lessons will the group encounter and share with their readers? I for one CAN'T WAIT!!!

The Full Cupboard of Life (the 5th in the series, is to be published by Polygon UK May 2003)

I thoroughly enjoyed this book for it's unique and likable characters and exotic setting. The uniqueness of the mysteries
reflect a simpler lifestyle than many of us live and especially expect in a "mystery". TOTAL ENJOYMENT!
John Row

Carol Alexander's book does an excellent job of combining many of the disparate modelling techniques currently used in the financial markets while also providing many helpful real world examples. It thus successfully combines theory and application. The book is accessible to different types of users as it includes both in-depth qualitative analysis as well as quantitative ones.

I have found it very useful in my work when trying to understand different concepts in the financial market models. Personally, I believe the book is a helpful tool one does not want to pass up--not only for the ones involved in risk measurement, but also for those in the more general field of investment banking as myself.

Market Models is an essential tool for practioners who would like to gain fundamental expertise on financial modeling. Aside from the practical view, Alexander's book has got such a clear and comprehensive reading that even the most inexpert individuals can get enthusiastically involved in learning issues related to risk management, investment analysis and financial forecasting. Recent econometric techniques on time series are brilliantly applied with real examples on the finance field. The book demonstrates that the author has a great knowledge on both a theoretical as well as a practical basis on market modeling and knows how to combine the two aspects in a very intelligent way. I considered this book to be a fundamental reference for either financial profesionals and academics.

Targeted towards practitioners concerned with model development, the book addresses key issues in market risk measurement, quantitative trading and investment analysis in a very systematic and clear exposition. I find it particularly reassuring that someone with the author's academic background and hands-on expertise has decided to undertake the responsibility of putting-up a comprehensive guide to financial modelling, from the basic use of financial data to statistical techniques selection and model implementing. Particular attention is paid to supporting each subject with real-world examples, both within the text and in the associated CD. Moreover, the spreadsheets contained by the CD can always represent a useful reference for building your own models. As I find this book really helpful for applied, but also academic model development, I recommend it highly.

This is the book that set the whole software patterns movement in motion. It's a great read. It made me realize how the builder blew it when they made my house. One small design change, the house is 1 ft too narrow makes it impossible to put a screen door on the front door. It made them build a extra platform which causes people to fall down into the living room.

On the other hand, if I was building a building I'd use his visualization techniques before I drew plans. But I wouldn't use this technique to actually construct a building. It would triple the cost. (The essence is to build it as you need it.)

On the other hand he explains why swiss barns look "alike" without the need for a design review committee. (Or barns in general.)

As for software, Design patterns give programmers a way to talk about problems and solutions without talking about code. Its a great idea and I use software patterns all the time. (Get the GOF book for actual software patterns.) Read this one to understand how they came onto this idea.

I bought this book because i am about to build a house. Coincidentally, i am also a senior software engineer and very familiar with design patterns in my field - i use them every day. They work very well for programming computers.

This book, however, literally takes the concept of living patterns to architecture, and, by extension of the act of creation, to life itself.

At the same time as being a great philosophical read, it's also a handy guide to building a house. Bonus points for the author: The book can be read in 15 minutes (reading the "detailed table of contents"), in one hour (reading only the headlines), or in the full. These modes of reading the book come from the author's emphasis of the whole over the parts, e.g. the whole is more than the sum of its parts.

I am not entirely sure that, as the author promises, i will now be able to go and build a house, without drawing a plan... but that this idealistic goal is in practice hard to attain does not make the incredibly deep insights in this book any less true or any less practical.

Like another reader said - the book changed the way i think about... everything!

Patterns as described in this book are far more refined than anything we use in computer science, and that he sees them in a much broader light. The central grandiose idea is the one of complete interconnectedness of the patterns - the whole, which is more than the sum of its parts.

``The Timeless Way of Building'' explains the idea of patterns in architecture. A pattern is a way to solve a specific problem, by bringing two conflicting forces into balance.

Here's a very simple example of a pattern. When a room has a window with a view, the window becomes a focal point: people are attracted to the window and want to look through it. The furniture in the room creates a second focal point: everyone is attracted toward whatever point the furniture aims them at (usually the center of the room or a TV). This makes people feel uncomfortable. They want to look out the window, and toward the other focus at the same time. If you rearrange the furniture, so that its focal point becomes the window, then everyone will suddenly notice that the room is much more ``comfortable''.

I applied that pattern to my own living room, by moving the TV under the window and rearranging the furniture, and I was amazed what a difference it made! That's a very simple example, and there are literally hundreds more in this book and its sequel. Simply reading them is fascinating; it will convince you that you can make your own home into something as wonderful in its own way as the Taj Mahal--which is Alexander's whole point.

In fact, the book's main idea is much more powerful than that. It applies to almost every aspect of life, not just to architecture. When a situation makes us unhappy, it is usually because we have two conflicting goals, and we aren't balancing them properly. Alexander's idea is to identify those ``conflicting forces'', and then find a solution which brings them into harmony. It's a simple concept, but once you appreciate it you realize how deep it really is.

This is definitely one of the best books on my shelf. It has really changed the way I look at...everything.

Alexander the Great's Art of Strategy is a book with multiple layers that will appeal to different senses and touch different nerves in the same reader at different times. On one level, it is a pure coming-of-age tale about a young boy who sets out to conquer the world (and just happens to succeed). How could a youth from the outlying and much disparaged province of Macedonia conquer Sparta and then rule all the Greek city states with power and authority-and then use that as a springboard to conquer the mighty Persians? Mentoring by Artistotle from the age of 13 certainly helped, but clearly Alexander's innate leadership skills-fueled by an ego and tempered by wisdom-were his calling card through life.

Alexander's leadership skills were not all instinctual or natural. Much of his success was grounded in a strategic approach to every battle, every campaign, every conquest, which gave him and his men the conviction that they could out-think and out-perform the enemy at every turn. What makes Alexander's strategic military thinking of value to today's business leaders was that many of his actions are grounded in basic logistics. How do you bring 3,000 men with supply animals and cargo trains across the Hindu Kush mountains? By establishing forward supply bases so that the men can move without carrying supplies. How will men react if their ships are burned and they can't afford to lose in battle to the Persians? They will attack with vengeance.

It is the study of Alexander's leadership styles-his various penchants for boldness, simplicity, quickness, surprise, willingness to embrace new cultures, and a willingness to attack with force but an aversion to inflicting unnecessary pain and destruction-that is the most engaging aspect of the book. In each case, mini case studies from the present business (or military) world show how Alexander's timeless strategies have been and can be applied to gain a competitive advantage.

Finally, the book is a sweeping historical tale that covers a mere 20 years, but follows Alexander's inexorable surge from Greece to Egypt to Persia, across Afghanistan and into India. He dies of natural causes on the way back to Macedonia at the age of 32, his men weary from years away from home, but laden with riches and multicultural inheritances and leaving behind a legacy that exists to this day. Reading this book against the backdrop of current events in the Mideast, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India, one longs for a world leader with the political skills of an Alexander the Great.

At last! A book on leadership and strategy that translates the techniques of one of the world's greatest heroes into a practical and learnable agenda for the aspiring yet mortal manage The modern day examples tie up very neatly the insights from Alexander with the way modern managers have successfully applied his strategies and leadership techniques.
In fact, Bose goes further than this by combining the suspense of the storyteller, the psychological insight of the biographer, and the wise advice of a mentor.
My favourite book on Alexander, and my favourite book of the year so far. A classic.

This is a beautifully written book, with a great story and numerous lessons in strategy. There is a certain mystery to the book because Bose keeps you guessing as to how he is going to tie the story of Alexander that he is telling with the lessons in business and politics. I had great fun reading the book. I especially enjoyed the chapter where he talks about the seige of Tyre,-considered the greatest in world history and ties it with globalization. A terrific book.

Just back from 2 week guided tour to Costa Rica. This was a tour featured as "Nature's Museum" and led by a trained biologist that was good on bird ID, though his time was demanded more for logistics and keeping everyone of our 26 tourists happy by hitting the majors such as monkeys, butterflys, and birds like Quetzels, Motmots, and Toucans. I found the Stiles and Skutch guide to be most helpful. Recommend that a new user, read all of the general information just prior to a visit to the country. Also read in advance, the descriptions of bird families and look thru the plates to get a feel for birds you might see. Then when in the field, you can easily scan the plates, and check out the narrative descriptions, including their habits and ranges. Though this was not a bird trip, we did pick up 150 species that we felt comfortable on ID and perhaps a dozen unknowns mostly because of only flighting glimpes. About half were first called out by the local guides and the others by ourselves with help of the book. I find this book's info. on bird ranges to be most useful especially for neotropical migrants for which our North American guides generally ignore wintering areas south of US. One note of caution, is that the color plates aren't always perfect, for instance the tree swallow is too green, the palm tanager a bit too drab, and variants are not shown. Looks like there is room for a next generation "Sibleyian" guide to birds in central America.

If you have a more casual interest in birds, you may be more happy with "A Pocket Wildlife Guide" for Costa Rica, published by Rainforests Pub.,... commonly available locally in Costa Rica. It has nice color plates of common birds, butterflys, reptiles, and mammals.

This is a lavishly illustrated book with all of Costa Rica's 830 bird species depicted in color on 52 plates. This is also a valuable book if you visit any of Costa Rica's neighbouring countries. The book is not only a field guide, but it is also a guide to birding in Costa Rica. The species accounts are highly informative and set out in a simple format. Although the plates are a bit cramped and the illustrations are small, they are clear and well drawn.This book is a must for any birder visiting Central America.

Excellent book, invaluable for field and in-hand identification of birds in Costa Rica. If I could offer criticism, we need a more up to date edition (many species' range information needs updating a little) and species with strong population clines need more plates (eg Caribbean versus Pacific races). For birders visiting in the winter an extra book for US species (I recommend The North American Bird Guide by David Sibley) will compliment Stiles & Skutch for many variable and eclipse plumage migrants.

"Leaving Disneyland", is a debut novel by Alexander Parsons. The book is extremely good first work, especially when the author has tackled an environment he has only read about. He gives appropriate credit to his source for the prison he creates, but if you have read works by true inmates you will be impressed with the authenticity he brings to his novel. It is easy to forget this is a work of fiction.

Doc Kane is the man we follow throughout the book. He is on the verge of a parole hearing that will likely lead to his release after 16 years. A new cellmate and some favors are all that stand in his way. Readers that would suggest this tale is cliché, and the questions it poses rhetorical, have not given the book a fair reading. The book is about much more than a man who faces the trials of possibly leaving prison, only to be tagged with an electronic band and monitored as closely outside of the penitentiary as he was within its walls.

The book for me was about the pervasiveness of the jail Doc Kane lives in. Whether inside a 5x9 cell, or walking the streets electronically tagged, he never regains his freedom. The Washington streets he returns to are populated by the same gangs, and the same equally fragile codes of honor that are as lethal while incarcerated or when he "freely" walks the streets. The daily prison routine is replaced by a parole officer, who has every bit as much control and power, to send him back to prison, as the guards in the penitentiary had to punish him.

Work is a condition of parole, but how high are the chances of employment when a job application is filled out? And even if a job is there how much does it differ in mindless routine from the one he left in prison? The friends of 16 years even if they too are paroled are off limits to him as a meeting would send him back inside.

And then there are his own perceived demons and they are every bit as real and problematic as any he has faced before. Virtually every diversion, which would be legal for him to enjoy, because of his parole are denied to him. The book is a great commentary on just what being let out of prison means for the vast majority of those who spend time there. This is not about a so-called, "Club Fed", where white-collar criminals worst issues are boredom and their loss of face in their former world. The latter is often not even at issue; just think about, "The Junk Bond King".

The story of Kane(Doc) is vivid and real. The plot kept me at the edge of my seat, or in this case, bed. I wouldn't get out until I found out if Doc(Kane) would ever get out of prison after serving 16 years of a 20 year sentence, and if so, would he fall back into is old life of drug dealing once on the streets of DC where Crack was the new form of hustle by young cocky dealers barely out of grade school.

There were no small characters, no small roles in this story. Every piece a valuable connection to the puzzle. ENCORE!!!
Will be looking for more from Alexander Parsons

Parsons cadence and style will no doubt leave many novelists muttering, "Why can't I write this good?!" This book asks it's reader to examine themselves, a probe into the gray area between Right and Wrong, Truth and Illusion, all through the shoes of released convict Doc Kane. The rugged humor here keeps the pages turning, and the humanity of the characters will resonate long after the covers are closed. Intelligent and dark, "Leaving Disneyland" proves to be a tremendous debut. Bravo Mr. Parsons.

This is on of those books. Like My Sixty Memorable Games or My System, you just won't be able really to understand this game until you read it. Bottvinik thought that the study of Alekhine's (and Capablanca's) games should make up the backbone of one's chess learning. Yet don't think of this book as a mere obligatory read. The games are enchanting: You will find reading this book demanding, but you will also find it fun! The author of this book is one of the four or five greatest players of all time and it shows! His games, esp. those against Reti at Baden Baden, Rabinovich, and Nimzowitch, rank as some of the greatest ever played.

This book is actually two separate books, bound together in one volume. Considering the price, this book is an absolute bargain if you are looking for a good collection of annotated games.

Even though the price is very low, the games annotated in this collection are incredible. Alekhine spent a great deal of time and care to annotate the games and to point out blunders, side lines, and highlights of each position. His annotations are clear and approachable and will appeal to the novice and master alike. Plodding through these games on an actually board is a pleasure as well.

The book is in descriptive notation instead of algebraic; if you can handle this, and you want a collection of very well-annotated games by one of the very best players of all time, then this book will fill the need beautifully.

No, I didn't know him, but this was one of the first chess books I ever owned. I lost it years ago, and have just ordered it again. I think there is something heavy and physical, brutal in Alekhine's play: more direct than Petrosian, less sparkling than Tal. Whatever--this is a fantastic book. I hate descriptive notation like any lazy s.o.b.; here's my suggestion: with a pencil write the algebraic notation just above the old form notation. This also forces you to concentrate on the game more. Every chess player should be very familiar with Alekhine, and this is a great book to do just that.