European-Union

This is a bit dry, if this is not your area of interests, but anyone who is curious about what's been going on in Europe should read this. The EU is a like nothing this world has ever seen before. This unique institution willl heavily influence global politics in the next century. It behoovs anyone interested in government to learn the basics of what the EU is all about.

As an undergraduate political science major, this book was immensely helpful to me. I read it before studying the EU during my junior year abroad. It's clear, uses easy language, and provides the necessary basics for understanding the institution. I highly recommend it.

The conceit of this book is that it is always the same day--November 1, 1993. It traces the lives of a number of different characters but, even though they age as the book progresses, the day is the same. It is an interesting structure but I don't see that it adds a lot to the story.

Additionally, there are many things that are hard to pin down. Beard is constantly giving lists of possibilities. For example "somewhere in the Kingdom, in Quarndon or Northampton or Newry or York, in Kirkcaldy or Yeovil or Lincoln or Neath" runs part of the first sentence of the novel. A couple paragraphs later it's "somewhere in the Kingdom, in Harlow or Widnes or Swansea or Ayr, in Reading or Glentoran or Nantwich or Hull." This is followed by many more place-name lists. And he doesn't just do this with places. We're given possible advertisements, sporting events, magazines, TV shows, and on and on with the lists. I found this to be very irritating after awhile and started breezing through these lists to get to the meat of the story.

And Beard does have something interesting to say here. He is saying something about how people tend to look for a sign to help them know whether they are living right rather than making decisions for themselves. Everybody in this novel is looking for a conversion experience (like Paul's on the road to Damascus--hence, the title) to know with absolute certainty that what they've chosen is the perfect thing. Of course, this leads these characters to empty lives.

And herein lies the main problem with this novel for me--the characters. They are somewhat interesting but mostly unlikable and then, in the last few pages of the novel, they all change. They all somehow overcome their inhibitions and do the right thing for themselves. The potential serial killer realizes his problems, the boy and girl overcome their fears and get together, and the man trapped indoors by panic attacks can go outside. Perhaps they all had the conversion experience they needed but I couldn't buy it. They just didn't seem like real people.

Like Geoff Nicholson's Bleeding London, Damascus relies on a great deal of intersecting between characters, times and places. Beard uses this very interesting technique as well as a non-linear timeline to tell a compelling and often hilarious story. His characters are incredibly well developed and his writing is accomplished.

This is probably one of the most refreshing books I've read to date. It's rich form kept me interested, allowing me to finish it within a week between long hours at school and tons of homework. The parallel lives of the two main characters--meeting at certain points in their lives without ever knowing it--helped culminate a lovely, almost innocent love story. It's a novel about stepping out of your rut in life, taking chances and risks. I bet the next day was November 2, 1993 :-)

If you enjoy reading the pervert writings of godless mercenaries who killed many millions of russians, you will like this book. In it you will see how to lie, pay and demoralize the bottom of society in order to achieve great murder and destruction rates. Both of these satanic maids (lenin and trotsky) had one goal - to destroy the nation that tolerated them. Not Russians themselves, they borrowed the pervert anti-capitalist marxism that FAILED to destroy the west.
Unfortunately they had more backers, more money and more luck in Russia. Make no mistake, if you fall into this hateful trap you will be used for the destruction of your own society. The powers of darkness are alive and well today. Be on the alert and may God blees you!

For the workers and farmers of Russia, winning political power in 1917 was a formidable enough job in itself. However, defending the new revolution quickly became a much more Herculean task.

From 1917-21, the new Soviet Republic battled imperialist invasion and counterrevolutionary forces in a civil war. The Kronstadt rebellion flared when it seemed the civil war was at a pause and the political and fighting capacities of the countries working people was near exhaustion.

There were many other rebellions during the period, but Kronstadt posed more serious implications for the existence of working class leadership heading the Soviet government.

Opponents of the October revolution saw Kronstadt as the closest point to Europe and a defenceless Petrograd. A central demand of the nearly 15,000 rebels was, "Soviets without Bolsheviks" which was a weak kneed way of calling for the overthrow of the workers and farmers government.

The book covers the speeches and writings of Bolshevik leaders Lenin and Trotsky exposing the dangers involved and what was behind the motivations of the Kronstadt rebels and it's leaders. In later years, Trotsky takes on critics who label aspects of the Bolsheviks suppression of the Kronstadt rebellion as the beginning of Stalinism.

When over three hundred delegates to the Russian communist party congress volunteer to throw themselves - in the biting cold of the Russian winter -into the middle of a military battle you are not sure you are going to win and do just that. Then you know the mutineers at Kronstadt were up against a force much wider and deeper than the Bolsheviks.

This book of speeches and articles on the Kronstadt rebellion by Trotsky exposes the reality of this revolt, often used to discredit the October Revolution. Trotsky writes as the defender of the real revolution, against the real Kronstadt. The real Kronstadt of the revolt had lost many of the fighters who had led the revolution who had left to fight in the civil war on Land and sea. The real Kronstadt had tried to take advantage of their position as military to demand privileged conditions in a country where civil war and imperialist blockade had produced mass starvation. These are the speeches Trotsky used to summon the real revolution, include many of the real 1917 fighters of Kronstadt, to crush this counter revolutionary revolt.

I had been happy to read about a supposedly unabridged and very inexpensive edition of "Queen of Spades" and the Belkin tales, as (as a college instructor) I often assign "Queen of Spades" in courses on opera or Petersburg, or in which one would not neces sarily need the student to order a whole compilation of Pushkin's fiction, such as Norton's very solid COMPLETE PROSE TALES.

However, this edition is *far* from unabridged. The editor has taken it upon himself to cut not only ALL the epigraphs from ALL t he stories (an absurd economy which distorts the tone of these parodic stories) but also fails to provide the two-page "From the Editor" frame without which the purpose of the Belkin tales is obscured.

I would not recommend this edition even to the casua l reader who wished to get the true flavor of Pushkin's Sternean, self-referential prose works. 'eo

If someone comes to me and asks what I think true Russian

spirit is, I would say, "duel" is. Russian duel is very reckless

and even absurd because the percentage of survival is only 50%.

Each load their gun and go to the opposite end and they shoot

from distance in turn until either one is shot.

In the book, German,the main character, is a half-bood of

Russian and Germany. Due to his birth,mixed with German blood,

he is usually very realistic and doesn't believe in magic or

tricks. In numerous gatherings German never participates in the

card games but always watches people play. When he hears that

an old woman knows how to win the game he sniffs and ignores

it. But ironically it is he who arrives at the gate of her

house. However, it is not his intention but he himself is

dragged by some magical power.

As quite an ordinary and poor man, German believes in

diligence and reason, but not fantasy or fate. That's why he

never participates in any games. Their game is like a duel. The

players say some number and they take cards until either of

them get to reach the number and he wins. Then a new game

starts as if they already forgot about the former game. Usually

the loser loses a huge sum of money, which means that the

winner becomes enormous rich. In other words, the game actually

changes their lives in totally different ways.

Everyone who has read this book would never forget the last

scene of the Queen of Spades. Perhaps she really does say so,

or he only dreams or imagins. No one knows except Pushkin.

Bytheway, he is not telling something moral to persuade or

teach us. All he shows is something like Matrix, I guess. Maybe

the whole story is just a trick or magic or some parts are. The

judgement is up to the reader. We all are German in a way.

This book is a nice (don't forget cheap) adaptation and translation of Russia's most celebrated author, A.S.Pushkin. I imagine that other editions (hardcover and so on) are extremely expensive, so this book is a good introduction into the works of a classic and exceptionally talented writer. I have read much of Pushkin in Russian language, so I can honestly say that this book is true to the originals and it is worth spending your $3 on. NOTE: To people, who know that Pushkin is considered greatest RUSSIAN (emphasis on "russian") writer and expect to find real Russia in his writings: you won't find much of it here, for the fact that Pushkin wrote mainly about his upper-class contemporaries, who (pretty much like Pushkin himself) lost touch with real Russia, hence the revolution awhile later... If you want to feel some of Pushkin's russian spirit, you should try reading his poetry instead of the short stories.

I am a yoga teacher and I've been using the CD during my classes. My students love the music and I love introducing my students and class to a variety of sounds from different artists. The book is nice because it's simple to use and the pictures are beautiful.

I guess I need to read it again, but on first examination (and trial) it looks like your basic intro book, which is exactly what I'm interested in. I also bought Mom a copy, since she's not wild about Pilates. If you have an interest in yoga at all, or your friends are telling you that you need it (like mine do) then this is a good place to start. Don't worry about the long foreign words; they're pretty well explained, although you might have to go look them up occasionally.

I found this book to be one of the best introductions to yoga I have ever encountered. I would recommend this title to anyone with even a passing interest in the subject. I have been involved in yoga my whole life and I felt I was even able to gain some new insight. The descriptions and pictures were so lovely in their layout. And the CD included was just the perfect icing to the cake! Very nice to use with the book or on it's own.

This book confirmed many things that I have long suspected. 'Democracy', as it stands, simply doesn't work.

John Redwood exposes the shallow hypocrisy at the heart of the New Labour 'Project'. The government's programme of ill-thought out constitutional changes can be harmful to Britain. Blair is a fraud; this book completely exposes his reliance on the politics of envy. All those who have been seduced by the Labour Lie Machine should read this book.

Being an outsider of European Intergration as asian, I can catch layout picture from this book about the EURO system. Even it will bring new future in major regions on focus economy and business. This book is not under academical theories only but also on practical issues. And the writing is not hard to read for non-inglish speaker.

It's a book about EURO which you'll find interesting. It is actually a collection of articles written by various industry specialists. It examines the impact of EURO on many areas like Bond Market, Equity Market & foreign exchange rate etc, it also illustrates the role of ECB.

It's recommended to students who want to have a quick grasp of knowledge in the EMU. It contains many graphs and diagrams which can raise your speed of reading. However, the impact of Euro on Equity market is a little bit too short.

Highly recommended to overseas students in Europe.

It is a highly informative book which is easy to follow due to its issue based approach. I use it as one of the recommended readings in a course on Business in Europe in a couple of Polytechnics. The only thing is that it is getting to be rather badly out of date.

A definate must for anyone studying European Business. This book explains the complexities of the European Union, from it's founding to the present day. Key topics include European Community Law, Regional Policies and Macroeconomic Integration. Aimed at all levels, this book provides a comprehensive overview of the topic in an easy to understand format with excellent case studies and reference material. I wouldn't have got through a HND without it!

It is a good book. If you are looking for an introduction without getting into long theoretical discussions. The merit of this book is its simplicity. It tells the story of the European Union without leaving any of the main topics out. It reads easily. Has a few very useful charts and photographs. Its up to date, year 2001; I could not find another book that would bring the reader up to the launching of the Euro! The only reason it does not get five stars is that it is only a short introductory study and as a consequence it lacks depths, otherwise its a great book!

Pinder launches into this short commentary with the in-depth historical foundation of the EU's formation. This is well brought up to date with the reasons for, and the outcome of, the different recent European Treaties. This is a must for anyone - who, like me, has/had a limited understanding of an important topic. A good concise introduction.

I have an extensive collection of Soviet posters and consider this book a good, even seminal, work on the subject, but the writing is horribly dull and mostly made of the well-nigh incomprehensible academic goop that made the idea of graduate school so unappealing. If you are interested in Soviet posters or propaganda posters as a general matter you would do better with "Persuasive Images" or any of several commercial sites that sell original posters on the net. This is not a general interest book and those looking for an interest collection of posters to view would do better elsewhere.

What's worse, though, is that the author describes in great detail about posters not even pictured in the book. Since these posters are not in general circulation, the author has done a great disservice by not providing more representations of the works which she discusses.

Still, it does have some interesting information about Soviet poster art, if you can manage to get through the bootstrap proto-feminist garbage about Soviet women...

I do not agree that this is a sociology of Soviet posters, in the sense that it is a "long range" cultural analysis of their meaning. I think that the book's highlight is exactly in drawing a connection between changes in artistic style and "short range" political events. So, in the early days of Soviet power- from Lenin's time down to collectivization - one has an Expressionistic, unreal style that tries, above all, to convince strikingly the viewer to support a given political "lime". After Stalin's consolidation as leader, one has a pseudo-realistic style praising the "actual" quality of living in the USSR, in order to obtain the passive acquiescence of the viewer. Very useful book. Can be used - with due guidance - at undergraduate level.