A helpful book to find one's own voice and style in writing based on personality preferences. It also has some practical suggestions for finding the right words regardless of the assignment and your workplace position.

George Eliot's colossal novel "Middlemarch" is a literary White Pages of a rural town in pre-Victorian England, portraying several of its citizens in all the glories and disgraces (mostly disgraces) regarding their lives, marriages, and personal and professional ambitions, while using the historical and political events of the time as a backdrop. This is one of the finest examples of a character-driven novel, where the plot is customized to the characters, rather than the other way around.

A major theme in this novel is marrying wrong. Dorothea Brooke, a girl with ideas of social reform -- one of her occupations is designing cottages for poor villagers -- marries the scholarly but stodgy Edward Casaubon, who is old enough to be her father, because she is attracted to his disciplined, erudite mind. However, Casaubon employs her as a sort of secretary and assistant and becomes increasingly demanding of her. Then there is the seemingly fairy-tale marriage of Tertius Lydgate, a brilliant and promising young physician, to Rosamond Vincy, spoiled daughter of the mayor of Middlemarch, a wealthy manufacturer. Rosamond's expensive tastes endanger their marriage financially and romantically. On the other hand, the marriage of Dorothea's younger sister Celia to the dapper Sir James Chettam is nothing but bubble-headed bliss because they both are too superficial to care for anything deeper than peerage and pulchritude.

The novel ties its characters together with a few interrelated plot threads, the most important of which concerns Casaubon's young second cousin, Will Ladislaw. Will and Casaubon have little respect for each other, and when Casaubon suspects that Will and Dorothea are attracted to each other, he places a stipulation in his will denying Dorothea his fortune upon his death if she marries Will. Moreover, Will has been cheated out of his own fortune by Middlemarch banker Nicholas Bulstrode, who finances the hospital that employs Lydgate. Lydgate's association with the dishonest Bulstrode threatens to cause him further disgrace and ostracize him from the town.

Meanwhile, Rosamond's brother Fred typifies the irresponsible young man with money problems who manages to reform himself and win the respect of the girl he loves. The irony is that Fred expected a great inheritance from a rich uncle who instead, on his deathbed, offered the money to his servant Mary Garth, who happens to be Fred's beloved. Now, Fred's only options are to join the clergy, which Mary would not approve of, or get a job -- with Mary's father.

More serious and intellectual than the works of her immediate forebear Dickens, Eliot's novel seems to strike out bold new territory for British fiction of the time, especially considering the progressive mindsets of characters like Dorothea and Lydgate who act in contrast to tradition-bound grunts like Casaubon and the other town doctors. Her sophisticated prose style of intricately structured sentences and deep psychological penetration appears to have been a huge influence on Henry James. Much more than the sum of its parts, though, "Middlemarch" leaves its reader with a distinct impression of a time and place and, on reflection, the rewarding feeling of having accepted the challenge of reading it.

Middlemarch by George Eliot. Highly recommended.

It seems that it's nearly impossible to talk about Middlemarch without mentioning its breadth and scope. The irony is that the entire novel takes place within the confines of this small community and within the sometimes-small minds of its various citizens.

Although a vast number of characters populate Middlemarch and its environs, each who speaks has a distinctive voice, yet does not fall into being mere type only. The horse dealer sounds like a horse dealer-but one with a particular background and perspective. The setting itself represents every type of town, suburb, village, or neighborhood where you'll find the complacent, the critical, the aspiring, the intellectual, the earthy, the wealthy, the poor, and the worker in between. As with many English novels, the setting, in this case Middlemarch, becomes as much a central character as any other, whether it's Dorothea or Lydgate.

The tapestry Eliot weaves is complex; one character's actions can affect the lives of others he or she may rarely meet, while the unknown behavior and works of Bulstrode in his youth decades ago eventually touch nearly all.

How the characters come together is sometimes obvious, sometimes subtle. Dorothy's interest in Causabon, although a puzzle to her friends and family, is painted in broad strokes to the reader; her later interest in Will Ladislaw, grows somewhat more delicately if based in the same altruistic roots. Mary Garth and Fred Vincy have, in their way, come together in their childhoods; they are still struggling with mutually agreeable terms that will allow both to acknowledge the love and affection that are already there. Lydgate and Rosamond are both more of a puzzle and less of one-a case of two opposed personalities with opposing views, opposing goals, and opposing personalities drawn together by that most capricious of matchmakers, proximity and circumstance, to form a union that will frustrate both and satisfy neither.

Against the background of these four sometimes difficult relationships (Dorothea and Causabon with its lack of love or eros, Dorothea and Will with the barriers set by Causabon's will and that of the Middlemarch society who frown on Will and Dorothea's association with him, Fred and Mary with her imposed restrictions to set him on the correct course in life before she can make a commitment to him, and Lydgate and Rosamond with their diametrical oppositions) is the long, happy marriage of Nicholas Bulstrode and his Vincy wife Harriet. Unlike the others, there are no visible barriers to their happiness, and they are happy as a couple-except for the events in Bulstrode's past that haunt him in the back of his mind and then at the front with the appearance of Raffles. The marriage survives the ensuing scandal, but the individuals-Nicholas and Harriet-become poor shadow of their former selves.

It is in a town like Middlemarch that a woman like Dorothea will find it impossible to find approbation for her plans and Bulstrode will find the antagonism of those who have come to terms with their own worldly desires. It is in a town like Middlemarch that merely the raving words of a delirium tremens-afflicted Raffles can upset the respectable work of a respectable lifetime. The downfall of Bulstrode validates the town and its modernizing secular culture.

Middlemarch is a novel of insight into personality, motivations, social behaviours, and history. In the end, even the happiest characters have failed at most if not all of their youthful aspirations and have become variations on the Middlemarch theme-husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, day-to-day toilers rather than dreamers and achievers. Middlemarch is Everytown, where you will find an example or two of Everyone-and their dreams or lack thereof.

If you intend to glean the utmost from it, begin with an annotated, critical edition; while Eliot enjoyed a high enough level of erudition to reference the current events of 1830s England along with mythology, religion, quotations, and developments in science and medicine, most of us today cannot begin to follow them without assistance. Knowledge of these references will enrich the rich text of a rich mind.

Diane L. Schirf, 1 September 2002.

Virginia Woolf once said that "Middlemarch" was the first novel written for adults and she is correct. With the exception of Fielding's "Amelia" this is one of the first books to marry off its heroine before the first 150 pages and to let the audience realize the consequences of not examining the real nature of one's future mate.

The book is set in the reform period and all of the main characters are intent of carrying out some measure of reform. Dorothea Brooke wants to make poverty as appealling as wealth, Dr. Lydgate wants to reform medical care to eliminate diseases with the latest methods. Dorthea's uncle Mr. Brooke wants to get elected to parliament on the "reform ticket," Mr. Casaubon, who later marries Dorothea, wants to reform scholarship by producing something called "The Key to the World's Mythologies."

It probably will not spoil the book by revealing that none of these reforms are realized. All are wrecked by human nature and flaws in the characters themselves. The only person who succeeds is Mary Garth who manages to reform Fred Vincey who begins as a rascal, bellowing for something called a marrow bone for breakfast and then transforms into a likable figure. This I think is key to what is afoot in Middlemarch. Before society can really be reformed, human nature needs to be so regulated as to permit a more general reform of society. Some may dismiss this as a simplistic solution, but it is no more a simplistic approach than those theories that ignore human nature as they build castles in the air, just like the people of Middlemarch.

I must confess that I found this book slow going at first. I think that the key to the book is that Eliot does not consider any particular character as the mouthpiece of her ideas (for a while I thought Dorothea was meant to be Eliot herself, but she is too great an artist to make this kind of mistake). No, this is Eliot's best book and rightly so. She does not cheat in the characterization which is one of the strengths of the book. This makes her work shine through nearly 150 years later.

I think that Ron Chernow faced a difficult task in the writing of 'Titan'; taking one of the most controversial figures of American business and cultural history and delivering a profile that is relatively balanced and insightful. Although it was fairly apparent that Chernow resides in the "JDR was a benevolent robber baron" camp, he was successful. 'Titan' delivers a fascinating portrait of a complex individual. The contrast between Rockefeller's strict Baptist principles, as well as nearly monastic physical habits, and his aggressive pursuit of wealth through ruthless business practices was well illustrated. The two constants in his life revolved around wealth: its creation and its distribution. From his youth, Rockefeller expressed a desire to make money, and once he earned it, to distribute it charitably.

I think that what should be taken away from 'Titan' is that John D. Rockefeller was neither an angel nor a demon, but like most people, had a complex personality that included self-directed rationalizations for his actions. Granted, the scope of his accomplishments was wildly different from most peoples', but in the end he was like any other person: eager for success, concerned with the well-being of his family, and full of his own personality quirks and contradictions.

I am in awe of Ron Chernow for writing a long and thorough biography that I absolutely could not put down. Rarely have I finished such a long book in such a short period of time. Chernow manages to show how complex Rockefeller's personality and motives, were, and he helps us to avoid the all-too-easy cliches about the rich and powerful. Yet while revealing the complexity, he is never boring, didactic, or long-winded.

I found it interesting to compare Rockefeller and Standard Oil to Bill Gates and Microsoft. Both men are powerful, rich, misunderstood, certain that their actions are ethical and good for their country and the economy, and dedicated to helping those who are less fortunate. Both men vow(ed) to give away most of their fortune. Both have been attacked by their own government, and villified in the press. Both dominate media coverage of business. And, like Rockefeller, Gates is a brilliant strategist who defies easy cliches and shallow descriptions. You can see goodness in either man, and you can also see evil. The beauty of Chernow's biography is that he allows us to see both sides of Rockefeller, without ever landing on either side himself.

Regardless of my thoughts on the parallels, I highly recommend this bio. Four friends are receiving it as their Christmas gift from me.

I admit that I bought the book to learn more about someone who was once the world's richest individual. I was neither interested in Rockefeller nor in the history of business. After reading this book, I must confess to being interested in both.
Chernow has done an excellent job examining several fascinating aspects of Rockefeller's life. The first, which figures largely throughout the book, is the disparity between Rockefeller's admirable piety and his almost sinister drive to attain wealth. Another is Rockefeller's relationship with his parents, especially his vagabond father. A third aspect, which was entirely unknown to me prior to reading this book, is the extent of Rockefeller's legacy, particularly that related to philanthropy in medicine and education. This last point ties in nicely with Chernow's examination into the lives of Rockefeller's children, especially John Jr., who inherits most of his father's wealth and carries on in his father's philanthropic footsteps rather than in business. Of all these areas, Chernow's focus on Rockefeller's rationalization of his business practices is the most engrossing. I'm a slow reader and it took me nearly a month to complete this book. But I cherish the hours I spent!

As an aside, I couldn't help but think of Microsoft as I read this book!

As someone who has always been facinated by the world of secret agents and the cold war, this book was a wonderful step in my education of what went on during that period. I have seen more than enough movies, and I have read a few fiction and non-fiction books about the era, but this was a fictional work of art. Although it is a short book, I often had to go back and reread parts because of the enormous complexity. From a literature standpoint, Le Carre's characters are so real that you don't need to try to imagine what they are really like; they simply are what they are while avoiding your prototypical characters. I would definately recommend this book for anyone with any interest in the cold war, spies, or simply good works of literature. A true classic.

John Le Carre's masterful novel, The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, has all the elements one could ever want from a great spy story. Le Carre brilliantly combines suspense, mystery, location, romance, and a story line that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page.
Keeping with the tradition of all well-written spy novels, the action of Le Carre's book grabs the reader from the first scene, and doesn't let go. Set in the midst of the Cold War in Germany, the author, a former spy himself, has no shortage of material to work with. He uses it all in creating a brilliant story of a spy who finds himself a part of a complicated plan in a spy war in which all the things he thinks he knows turn out to be lies. As this unwitting pawn in a dangerous game understands just how deeply the untruths he has been told run, the reader constantly finds himself wrongly guessing as to the extent of the circumstances the character is really in.
The reader stumbles in this manner until the very end, when the whole thing finally makes sense and an unthinkable conclusion is drawn. Here the brilliance of Le Carre's work realy shines, for the reader discovers he, just as the main character, has been led along a path of powerful deceit for the entire story. For those looking for a great spy novel, The Spy Who Came In From The Cold truly has it all.

This book defined a genre. From the elegance of the language, to the betrayal and harsh brutality of the plot's finale, this novel set the standard against which all other espionage fiction of the Cold War would be judged. Whatever the truth of the matter, Le Carre's fiction created a world which is so real that subsequent spy novels departed from its parameters at their peril.

The story at the heart of The Spy Who Came in from the Cold implicates all sides in the struggle in a hypocritical conspiriacy of betrayal and disloyalty. The message seems to be that no good deed goes unpunished and that things certainly are not what they seem.

A truely great book, with characters one cares for and a deftly plotted story that both surprises and distresses the reader. The message of the book is not a pleasant one, but then the reality of Cold War espionage was not pleasant either.

Professional Active Server Pages 3.0, by Alex Homer, is
a book on developing web applications using Active
Server Pages 3.0. This book goes in depth into
developing web applications with discussions and
examples on advanced topics such as, CDO/Microsoft
Exchange Server, ADO/Microsoft SQL Server, and
ADSI/Active Directory. Homer presents the reader with a
wealth of information on advanced enterprise level
topics based on Microsoft technologies. This book is
excellent for intermediate/advanced users who wish to
learn about Active Server Pages using Microsoft
technologies, however due to the fact Homer does not
goes in depth with fundamentals of programming Visual
Basic Script, this book should not be recommended to
novice developers.

Throughout the book, Homer discusses the importance of
COM/COM+ and what that technology can do for your web
application. He writes examples of a COM+ component in
Visual Basic and shows the user how to register/load
the component into memory along with utilizing the
functionality of them in an Active Server Page. Homer
further explores the features of Windows 2000 by
introducing the features of Active Directory and
explaining/demonstrating how ADSI can connect an Active
Server Page to the Active Directory. The book goes into
further detail on enterprise level topics by discussing
how CDO interfaces with Microsoft Exchange Server.
Using CDO, a developer can access all of users Exchange
account information including mail, contacts, calendar,
etc. The book ends with performance and security issues
for web applications running on a Windows 2000 Server
and how an administrator should configure a Windows
2000 Server for maximum performance and security.

The software/technologies the book uses are based on
products/technologies developed by Microsoft. Since
Active Server Pages is a Microsoft technology, it would
be reasonable to use only Microsoft
products/technologies. However, in the real world, many
businesses have heterogeneous environments with Oracle
database servers and JavaScript web developers. The
fact that this book only exposes the reader to vendor-
specific technologies could be a down fall, however
creates a centralized focus for the reader.

This book covers a wide spectrum of advanced knowledge
with Active Server Pages, however is completely based
around Microsoft technologies. Several other authors
composed this book, which helps the reader get a
dynamic flavor of knowledge from chapter to chapter as
one can see. Any intermediate/advanced web developer,
interested in enterprise web application development,
should purchase a copy of this book for reference
purposes.

Professional Active Server Pages 3.0, by Alex Homer, is a book on developing web applications using Active Server Pages 3.0. This book goes in depth into developing web applications with discussions and examples on advanced topics such as, CDO/Microsoft Exchange Server, ADO/Microsoft SQL Server, and ADSI/Active Directory. Homer presents the reader with a wealth of information on advanced enterprise level topics based on Microsoft technologies. This book is excellent for intermediate/advanced users who wish to learn about Active Server Pages using Microsoft technologies, however due to the fact Homer does not goes in depth with fundamentals of programming Visual Basic Script, this book should not be recommended to novice developers.

Throughout the book, Homer discusses the importance of COM/COM+ and what that technology can do for your web application. He writes examples of a COM+ component in Visual Basic and shows the user how to register/load the component into memory along with utilizing the functionality of them in an Active Server Page. Homer further explores the features of Windows 2000 by introducing the features of Active Directory and explaining/demonstrating how ADSI can connect an Active Server Page to the Active Directory. The book goes into further detail on enterprise level topics by discussing how CDO interfaces with Microsoft Exchange Server. Using CDO, a developer can access all of users Exchange account information including mail, contacts, calendar, etc. The book ends with performance and security issues for web applications running on a Windows 2000 Server and how an administrator should configure a Windows 2000 Server for maximum performance and security.

The software/technologies the book uses are based on products/technologies developed by Microsoft. Since Active Server Pages is a Microsoft technology, it would be reasonable to use only Microsoft products/technologies. However, in the real world, many businesses have heterogeneous environments with Oracle database servers and JavaScript web developers. The fact that this book only exposes the reader to vendor-specific technologies could be a down fall, however creates a centralized focus for the reader.

This book covers a wide spectrum of advanced knowledge with Active Server Pages, however is completely based around Microsoft technologies. Several other authors composed this book, which helps the reader get a dynamic flavor of knowledge from chapter to chapter. Any intermediate/advanced web developer, interested in enterprise web application development, should purchase a copy of this book for reference purposes.

It is a very comphensive book that covers the basic of ASP 3.0 and other web technologies like XML, COM+, and ADSI, etc. I did hestitate before buying this book from the web since I was only playing with the beta version of Win2000 server. However I need to work with ASP and IIS, therefore I bought this book.

This book does cover lots of new things compared to Professional ASP 2.0 The new features of ASP 3.0 are briefly introduced in the chapter 1. There is a good coverage of ADO 2.5 in chpater 8. If you are familar with ASP 2.0, you can finish the first 10 chapters and can grasp the differences quickly. XML, IIS 5, active server components, COM/COM+, ASP Script Components, C++ component issues, ADSI and Active Directory, Message Queue Server, Collaboration Data Objects, Exchange Server integration, certificates, site load balancing, and ASP Object Model are introduced from chapter 11 to 27. These are heavy readings with minor typos. However these chapters worth the money.

I have the Beginning and Professional ASP 2.0 Wrox books and the OReilly ASP book. I like Wrox better since they use lots of examples and their teaching style is very practical. This is a must have ASP book for many web developers.

This book is not about pigs and horses and sheep on a farm. This book is not about pigs who take control over other animals. This book is not about animals revolting against Mr. Jones the farmer. This is a book about the Russian Revolution, and each of the characters in Animal Farm plays a role as someone else who really lived.

Old Major - Karl Marx. Invented communism, inspired revolution. Snowball the pig - Leon Trotsky. Wanted good for all the people, supported communism. Napoleon the pig - Joseph Stalin. Greedy for power. Squealer the pig - Propaganda. Boxer the horse - Oblivious, hard working, supporter. Moses the raven - Religion. Mr. Jones - Czar Nicholas II. (run out of his country after the people and Karl Marx revolted due to his poor leadership). Dogs - KGB Secret Police. The Sheep - Followers. Benjamin the donkey - Skeptical Russians.

THE SEVEN COMMANDMENTS
A large part of this analogy of the Russian Revolution is the hypocrisy involved. Napoleon and the pigs set rules, only to break and change them as they pleased. Seven Commandments were written to be followed as laws and rules to all the animals.
1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
2. Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.
3. No animal shall wear clothes.
4. No animal shall sleep in a bed.
5. No animal shall drink alcohol.
6. No animal shall kill another animal.
7. All animals are equal.
But by the end of the story the commandments are altered by the pigs. The law stating that whatever goes on two legs is an enemy is changed to the sheep's chanting of "Four legs good, two legs better!" after contact and trade with humans is made. After the pigs begin to sleep in the old house of Mr. Jones the farmer, the fourth commandment is changed to: No animal shall sleep in a bed WITH SHEETS. The law: "No animal shall drink alcohol" is changed to "No animal shall drink alcohol TO EXCESS." After Napoleon brutally kills many of the animals for disobedience and treachery, (even though they were killed for crimes they never committed), the law was changed to: No animal shall kill another animal WITHOUT CAUSE. At the end of the story, all seven commandments are erased, and replaced with a single commandment: ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL BUT SOME ANIMALS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS.

George Orwell's Animal Farm is a superb animation of the Russian Revolutioon. The book is amusing and interesting; it includes a comic element as it synonymously demonstrates the evolution from the proletariat revolution to a totalitarian government led by the swine of the society. Orwell successfully simplified the not-so-simple theory of class stratification and Karl Marx's proposed solution of communism. Orwell's method of conveyance is incredibly inventive. He uses satire in the form of a fairy tale to share his indignation for ideological doctrines that would, if allowed, lead to the eventual destruction of a society. Each character in the story is representative of someone who was involved in the Russian Revolution. Old Major is Marx, and inspires the proletariat revolution by motivating the over-worked animals and educating them on the ways of the human beings, who represent the bourgeoisie. Orwell's creativity convinces the reader that the animals on the farm are intellectual beings, revolting against the tyranny of the humans. Animal Farm offers itself as an example of a responsible criticism of Marxism. The story gives us a peek at the Utopian vision, and then offers a long look at what results from using a Marxist approach at achieving it. I strongly reccomend this book, as it is entertaining and educational. Orwell succeeded in creating a fairy tale that evokes both sadness and laughter, while causing us to feel sympathy and even empathy for the working class animals. The book escapes complexity, but its message does not.

Animal Farm is much, much more than a story about animals. These animals are used to portray Russian history. Seems weird doesn't it? But it makes sense! Everything in this book mirrors Russian history and the characters were created after Russian historical figures. It starts out with a pig named Old Major (who stands for Karl Marx) who sees visions of a wonderful revolution where animals will share everything and the world will be beautiful without any humans, especially Mr. Jones their master. Mr. Jones stands for Czar Nicholas II. They revolt from him and set up their own commandments, the Seven Commandments which includes things like "no animals shall wear clothings", "no animals shall sleep in a bed", "no animals shall consume alchohol", and "all animals are equal". The pigs, who are known as the smartest animals which is an actual fact, take over control of the farm. Napoleon stands for Stalin who wants a strong central government and wants to teach the young only while Snowball stands for Lenin who wants a democracy and to educate all of the people. The animals on the farm other than the pigs stand for common people. Boxer the horse stands for the physically strong people that aren't very smart. Benjamin the mule (Boxer's best friend) stands for the smart people who know what's going on, but are too stubborn to admit there is a problem. Clover stands for someone who's motherly and cares about every one else. The dogs stand for military people. The chickens stand for the smart, but weak people. The cats stand for the lazy people who don't want to do any work, but want to have rewards. Moses the Raven stands for religion with his talk of where animals go when they die (Sugar Candy Mountain). The sheep stand for the brainwashed people who can't think for themselves. Everything in this book happens for a reason. It's a weird story about how communism will never work because pigs will always be greedy pigs.

It's a really great story about talking animals, but it's an even better story when you take it apart and analyze and think to yourself, "but what if so and so got with so and so.... could they have stopped this from happening?" The ending of this book is a really freaky ending... Always remember "Two legs baaaaad, four legs better!"

This book is one of a number of Professor Challenger adventures of Sir A. C. Doyle. A noted zoologist (Challenger) has come across evidence that there is a plateau in South America that can be reached from deep in the Amazon rain forest in which prehistoric animals still exist. An expedition of four (Challenger, a sceptical zoologist named Summerlee, a noted hunter (Lord John Roxton), and Edward Malone, a journalist) sets out to verify this report. The arguing and interactions between the academics is interesting in that little seems to have changed in the last 87 years! It should be noted that Doyle isolates the plateau so that there is minimal interaction with the rest of the rain forest (thus, the dinosaurs can't escape). But, why couldn't the ptereodactyls spread out? This story was one of the earliest "Lost World" tales and has been made into a film a number of times. Other stories in this sub-genre owe much to Doyle and Challenger.

Professor George E. Challenger, noted scientist, says dinosaurs are still alive, and he knows where to find them. The scientific community says he's a madman or a fraud, or both. Challenger's only evidence is a bunch of blurry photographs. Fellow scientists say the photos are obviously doctored and the newspapers call it a fantasy. Boiling with rage, Challenger goes into seclusion. Anyone foolish enough to bring up the tender subject around him is liable to end up in the gutter outside his house, with a few extra lumps for the gutter press.

The only reporter brave, or stupid, enough to face the professor's wrath and get the story is Edward Malone, young, intrepid journalist for the Daily Gazette. At a boisterous scientific meeting, Professor Summerlee, a rival scientist, calls Challenger's bluff. Summerlee will return to South America and prove Challenger wrong. The young journalist volunteers to go along. Lord John Roxton, the famous hunter, can't miss an opportunity to return to the jungle and adds his name to expedition. Professor Challenger is happy they are taking him seriously, even if they don't all believe him. But what will they find in South America? A strange, living time capsule from the Jurassic period filled with pterodactyls and stegosaurs? Or will they only find vast tracks of endless jungles and Challenger's daydreams? Either way there will be danger and adventure for all.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote "The Lost World" in 1912 for the Strand magazine, the same magazine that published his Sherlock Holmes stories. It's a great Edwardian science-fiction adventure, although some may not like the British Imperialism and Darwinian racism. Still, in "The Lost World" Conan Doyle lets his hair down a little. Changing narrators from the earnest Doctor John Watson to the rash reporter Edward Malone makes for a big change. There is a good deal more humor. The students in the scientific meetings are forever yelling out jokes at the expense of nutty Professor Challenger. Affairs of the heart play a big role in Malone's life. He matures from a young swain out to impress his girlfriend to more of a wistful man-of-the-world by the end. It is a very different Conan Doyle than some are used to reading. Different, but just as good, maybe, dare I say it, even better.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created a classic dinosaur adventure story when he wrote The Lost World in 1912. The tale's narrator, Ned Malone is a newspaper reporter who joins an expedition to the wilds of the Amazon to impress his girlfriend. However, he scarcely anticipates the dangers he will confront when the expedition's leader, zoology professor George Challenger takes them to a plateau filled with dinosaurs and ape men.
Doyle's human characters are described much more richly than Michael Crichton's minimally interesting protagonists in Jurassic Park (1990), so the story hinges as much on Challenger's eccentricities as it does on dinosaur attacks or Ned Malone's quest for validation of his masculine bravado. A weakness is the lack of female characters worthy of more than passing note. Ned's fickle and heartless girlfriend makes only brief and displeasing appearances at the beginning and end of the tale. Crichton does no better with females.
Hopp's Dinosaur Wars, published in 2000, does a much better take on genders, giving equal weight to a young male/female pair who brave the dangers of dinosaurs loose in modern-day Montana. It seems that even dinosaur fiction has evolved over the years.

First of all, this is just a good old-fashioned, hard-boiled detective story. Cliff Janeway starts out as a Denver homicide detective, but Dunning wisely contrives to get him out on his own. Even when he's with the police though, he's none to powerful. He does not have an amoral partner backing him up. He's unlucky at love and he's not an epicure. He's tough, but he has sense enough to be scared of the folks who are truly dangerous. In short, Janeway is a throwback to the lone wolf investigators of yore.

But then there's the unique twist that makes what could have been merely a good series into a fascinating one : Cliff Janeway is a bookman. He collects first editions of American Literature, with a particular interest in Faulkner, and in recent years has given increasing thought to becoming a book dealer himself. Ultimately, when circumstances force him to leave the police department, he does indeed open his own store, Twice Told Books.

Without taking anything away from the book as a mystery, it really derives it's energy from the world of book collecting. The book is set in 1986, so the prices cited must be hopelessly outdated, but when he talks about first editions of Stephen King's novel Salem's Lot going from $10 to $100 in the space of just ten years, that's an attention grabber. It's especially interesting that the books of horror authors like King and popular authors, like Anne Tyler, have already increased so much in value. I recognize that normal people don't spend the amount of time that I do looking for good, cheap books, but I guarantee that as you read about the details of book collecting, you'll be glancing up at your own bookshelves to see if your's are first editions (with the dust jacket, and not Book of the Month Club editions.)

Thanks to this unique angle and the character filled bookman's subculture in which it's set, this is one of the better mysteries series of recent years.

GRADE : A

In this story we are introduced to a tough homicide detective named Cliff Janeway. Cliff also has a soft side -- the side of him that has a passion for the printed word and collectible books. The story opens with an investigation of the murder of a Denver bookscout (a person who finds treasure at resale shops and Salvation Army stores, among other places, & sells it to used collectible book dealers). Cliff suspects a vicious criminal that he has been after for years, Jackie Newton. Cliff and Jackie enter a spiral that changes their lives forever. However, nothing in this book is quite as it seems .... one important part of the mystery isn't solved until the very last page!

The author made his characters thoroughly believable & thoroughly likeable. Mixed into this well written mystery are details about collectible books woven skillfully into the story.

A friend loaned me the paperback and I enjoyed it so thoroughly that I ordered the hardcover available on Amazon -- the book is that good! Buy it, if you love books as much as I do, you'll really enjoy and treasure this book!

What could make a small-time bookscout a murder target? Cliff Janeway is a Denver supercop who loves rare books like Lt. Morse loves opera. As mysterious deaths haunt the Denver rare book trade Janeway makes the unlikely transition from burnt-out detective to bookshop owner. A gripping plot, believable characters and plenty of rare book lore will have you racing to the conclusion of this mystery and, inevitably, on to the sequel, The Bookman's Wake. Janeway's passion for collectible books will inspire many readers to daydream about opening a bookstore of their own and will likely lead others to seek out Nicholas Basbanes' 1995 comprehensive history of book collecting, A Gentle Madness.

You would need a heart of snow to not be moved by Steinbeck's story of an Oklahoma family that was forced to give up their homes in the hopes of finding a better life in California. Rarely have I ever come across a story so well crafted as the "Grapes of Wrath". Readers take heed; this is the novel by which all other American novels should be measured against.

Like Steinbeck's other big book, the main family spans three generations. Each character is so well fleshed out that it would be difficult to limit their hopes, trials, even existence to the confines of the written page. Even now, a year after having read this novel, the characters Tom and Rose of Sharon seem as real as anyone I've ever met. However, the character, to use the word broadly, that I particularly liked was the narrator.

Steinbeck's voice in this novel is incomparable. When times are exceedingly rough for the Joad Family; when it seems that just one more straw on the camel's back will break them, it is the narrator that crosses the line, revealing to us just how close the family is being pushed towards insanity. After the Joads pack up their belongings and begin the trek to California, the narrative shifts jarringly from the third person to that of a car salesman trying desperately to sell you a new car, literally. I remember thinking clearly that Steinbeck had lost his mind to do such a transition, but it works. Aspiring writers should take note on how to create such an underscore.

Another quick example would be when the Joads pull into the gas station with the two clerks. The family had been struggling all day on the road to get the automobile to run, to stay on course, and to fight for survival. The chapter ends, however, with one of the clerks dropping a bead of sweat from his forehead onto a pink invoice sheet that he had been filling out. Hopefully, you get some sort of semblance of the subtlety in this novel.

Read the book, you'll love it.

This book brings one of the most inaccessible disasters of the 20th century, the Dust Bowl, into focus. What a mean coincidence that it had to happen when banks were going through tough times. This book, perhaps Steinbeck's best, brings the personal melodrama of Of Mice and Men on the road with a family of 14 Oklahomans. Meet the Joads, who have lived on the same land for many generations. They have killed for the land and have died for it. The bank has forclosed on the home loan, and they have been pushed out. Now they gather all they can carry with them, sell all they can't, and hit the road in a rickety car and with only about a hundred dollars and wild hopes. Grandma and Grampa are the stern, traditional voice of the family, Ma and Pa lead the family in their oddysey west, Uncle John is a booze hound with strength and grit, Noah is a strange individualist, Al is the testosterone filled young man, Tom is an ex-con who just happens to be the pragmatist and clearest thinker, Ruthie and Winfield are the wild kids, and Connie and Rose are newlyweds. I know I am forgetting someone. The book is divided into two parts: the journey to California and their heartbreaking quest to make a living. It just happens that they are members of an outcast society despised by everyone. Throughout the book they are run out of settlements, antagonized and harassed, and mistreated. A member of the oddysey is Jim Casy, a former preacher. Casy turns himself in for beating a deputy to keep Tom from getting turned in and in prison meets a man who wants to end the victimization of migrant workers. He wants to form unions. While protesting against a peach orchard (that the Joads just happen to be at) he is killed by corrupt deputies. The book is shattering in so many ways: the way the Joads are treated, how the migrants at large are treated by the cops and by the rich malevolents, and how the general people allowed themselves to be blinded by bitterness and hate. There are several deeply affecting passages: one where a bunch of oranges are dumped in a vacant area behind a Hooverville (where 'Okies' lived), then kerosene was dumped on them so that the impoverished Okies couldn't eat them; the part in which the deputies send in a starving guy to start a fight in a government camp so they can break it up (because the government camp is treating Okies like humans), one man owning a million acres and not even farming it, just owning it so he can say he owns it. These concepts of gluttony and cruelty are more than the poor migrants can take. I absolutely loved the book and think every person should read it: it shows what happens when ordinary people are hated, and how devastating and frivilous that hate can be.

Truthfully the only reason I read this novel is because it was part of my summer reading assignment this year for highschool. Somehow being told you HAVE to read a book rather than wanting to on your own makes the reading experience something to dread. Well all I can say is I am SO GLAD I HAD TO READ THIS!!!

This is probably one of the best books I have ever read. I have added it to my list of favorites way up there with Animal Farm (people think 'cause they read it in junior high it's for kids, WHATEVER!!)and Wuthering Heights. Every chapter is a feast for the mind. You can picture ever bead of sweat, every loss and tear as if it were right there in front of you. The story goes from humorous, to serious, to hopeful, to emotional so quickly you almost don't realize it's there till it hits you.

The story takes place in the 30's based on real events, following the fictional accounts of the Joad family. Apparently back then, there was a crisis where farmers had overworked their land to the point where the soil had been reduced to worthless dust annd could no longer grow crops. The bank then had to take it from them because, well, god forbid they lose any money. Thousands, maybe millions of people were kicked out from their homes, the homes that their grandfathers had built, where children had been born and lives been lived. They were forced to all move west to California, selling what little they had for cash, dreaming of a new life. Flyers promised work and good pay, but when only 10,000 workers are needed, and 100,000 see the flyers and come looking for work, what happens then?

This is a story of survival. Not like in that movie Cast Away where he's stranded on a deserted island with no food or anything, but a time not unlike today. A place filled with stores and restaurants and yet a man still can't feed his children and they are dying from malnutrition. How can you buy food if you don't have any money? and how can you make money if there aren't any jobs? "water water everywhere and not a drop to drink". And hungry men become desperate, which turns into fear, which becomes anger, and this makes teh Californians afraid. So wages drop to pay for security, to pay for more sheriffs and police and spies, and all the while this anger grows...

Like I said this is a wonderful book. I'm so glad I read it.
Some parts were so touching I actually cried a little. They weren't even necessarily sad but very moving. Anyway, I recommend this book to everyone as a great read. Yeah and to the person who said teenagers can't appreciate a book like this, I guess I just proved you wrong.

Having read Seamus Heaney's translation (which I have reviewed) of the original Beowulf, I came across Gardner's "Grendel" as a new spin on the same story. In the classic version, Beowulf is a strong warrior that arrives at a suffering realm of Hrothgar, an old Dane, who is being constantly assaulted by a strange monster called Grendel. The majority of the epic poem tells of battle, family history and how warriors celebrate (e.g. singing and drinking mead).

The first major difference in Gardner's novel when compared to the original poem is the starting point. Gardner starts with Grendel as a being cured with isolation, with only his mother for company. This fact is probably what makes the reader the most sympathetic with Grendel. Grendel's mother is incapable of speech or language, so she cannot truly be a companion for her son. Like the original poem, there is no physical description ever given for Grendel's race and few clues about their origin. There is some suggestion that that they are the spawn of Cain; a cursed version of humanity. The cover illustration provides the reader with some idea but something more specific in terms of Grendel's origin would definitely have been appreciated.

The depiction of Grendel reminds the reader of the way Shelley depicted the Creature Frankenstein in her 19th century novel, "Frankenstein." He is rejected by humanity when he tries to join them, he is unique (as mentioned above, Grendel's mother cannot really provide a real relationship) and eventually he turns to violence. The thing about Grendel that prevents the reader from being truly sympathetic is his casual killing. Initially, he kills for food and generally stays away from man. Then, as he starts to learn more about men and find out how they treat him, he starts to attack Hrothgar's meadhall every night, murdering a few men and then withdrawing.

Aside from the nearly continuous violence in the novel, there are many passages where Grendel and other characters reflect on life and reality. There is one memorable scene where a warrior manages to get into Grendel's lair but he is injured and weakened by the process of getting in. He then asks Grendel to kill him, so that he will have fulfilled his heroic duties. The discussion of what makes a hero worthy provides some insight into the culture that originally produced, "Beowulf" over a thousand years ago. Unfortunately for the hero, Grendel does not kill him and to add insult to injury, takes him back to Hrothgar's meadhall to live out his days.

There is also a strange encounter between a dragon and Grendel (this is a not in the original poem anywhere) where they discuss time, metaphysics and reality. The dragon is shown to be a quasi-divine in his knowledge and is almost omniscient. He struggles to impart any knowledge to Grendel as he finds it difficult to communicate at a level that Grendel could comprehend.

The main events of the poem, Beowulf's battles, have a comparatively minor part in the novel. In fact, only about the last 10-15 pages even include Beowulf in any way at all. Indeed, Beowulf is such a minor role that he is not even named. Only readers of the original tale will recognize him.

My overall impression of the novel is not favorable. It is excellent as far as exploring the psyche of a monster and what contributes to making a monster, a monster. Its philosophical speculations are vague and depressing. For those in search of a novel comparable in many ways to Frankenstein, this is probably one of your best bets. I would strongly recommend Seamus Heaney's translation of Beowulf for the causal reader, not interested in a scholarly accurate translation, who only wants to experience one of the first major pieces of English literature.

I was required to read Beowulf in school, but not Grendel; I found it in a bookstore and picked it because I was intrigued by an alternate Beowulf, especially since the villian is a monster with nothing but bloodlust and brute strength, and I wanted to see what Gardener would do.

Grendel is interesting in many ways: the style, which is very modern and of course a great contrast with Beowulf's epic poetry; the way the characters are remade; and the way the theme and message of the book depends largely on your outlook while reading it (as you can tell from these reviews). And even though it does spring from that epic Anglo-Saxon poem which students have come to love and hate, you can love Grendel even if you're more in that "hate" area. I actually liked Beowulf while I was studying it, even though I was a little put off by the theme of heroism (in other words, fighting and killing) as the great aspiration. This just made me enjoy Grendel, with its nihilistic musings and criticism of the Dane's beliefs, a little more.

I can't really describe all the different themes and nuances of this book, but the thing that impressed me most was that Grendel, despite being a monster who lives for the kill, is more human than anything else. His ultimate quest is to define himself, and a meaning to life, and this stays with him until the surreal scene in which he dies. His voice is also a very young one; like a teenager, as someone pointed out. He feels like the only thinking being in the universe, and that it it in fact revolves around him and is only an illusion created by his mind. Not new thoughts, but it's the context that makes this book interesting.

The best review I can give is just: read it for yourself.

What if you could see into the mind of Grendel, the terrifying creature of the night from Beowulf? Well, with this book by John Gardner, you can. Brutal at times, irreverent at others, and very cynical at others, Grendel wanders around for many years watching the development of the various human tribes and the emergence of Hrothgar as a sort of king among them. He spends twelve years in a unique relationship with the king, trying first to make friends with the Danes (he is attacked) and later making raids and killing the most drunken of Hrothgar's thanes. The notorious coward Unferth (the one who later insults Beowulf) is also developed here--Grendel has such contempt and pity for Unferth that he will not kill him (thus giving him a hero's death) despite Unferth's repeated attempts to fight him.

In the poem Beowulf, Grendel is a very flat character. He is, in fact, the epitome of evil, unfeeling and cruel. He comes, he kills and eats people, he leaves. Then he comes back. This book gives Grendel a personality. He knows he is a member of the fallen (Cain's) race, and accepts that fact. He is lonely, and cannot even get companionship from his mother, who has long ceased to communicate. In fact, his only real 'friends' are the Danes he kills. Still, he knows he is dependent on Hrothgar's survival. 'If I murdered the last of the Scyldings,' he muses, 'what would I live for?'

This book gives excellent insight into the character of Grendel, and will definitely change the way you look at the poem Beowulf. Gardner's Grendel is a creature who determines to kill Beowulf for the honor of Hrothgar, so that his thanes will not have been outdone by a newcomer. I highly recommend this short work for anyone interested in the great old English epic.