Fade

I read this book because my 12-year-old only-child male godchild's father has a brain tumor and I wondered if this book might address any issues that he is facing. It does; in a beautiful and uplifting way that makes its dying father-character's suicide understandable and a kind of affirmation of life. It also treats with unsentimental compassion the mother's denial that the man she has held at the center of her world could be dying.

This story throws together the father and only-daughter characters in the crucible of the father's terminal illness in such a way that they finally connect and she accepts the humanness of her parents while *blossoming out of* her own perfectionism and fear to risk being human herself. Heartwarming. Moving. Courage-inspiring.

I read it straight through in one sitting. Compellingly written!

I was moved to tears toward the end, not by sadness but because I identify with the courage and vulnerability it takes to be human and to accept the limitations and recognize the oh-so-human, flawed love that we earthlings bring to our life-journeys.

This has got to be the best book I've ever read. It's really deep, and sometimes depressing. I feel for Sienna. It's one of the only books I was ever really in to. Great great great book. I love it.

I picked up this book by chance while wandering around my local library for a good book. Though I enjoy the romance genre more than others, this book touched me so much and had me crying so much from beginning to end. This book is for anyone especially for people who feel that they're parents don't love them cause as you'll read that your parents always love you they just have trouble showing sometimes as the main charcter of this book discovered. Go Pick up this book! Trust me it's amazing!

Written by/for the Brits, but a must have if you plan to visit the Western battlefields (From the Channel at Calais, Ypres, Mons, Cambrai, Amiens to Verdun). I used it in the fall of 2001 to visit the Ypres area, and really loved the detailed explanations and tours. Found places I would not have had without the book.

This book is filled with magnificent photographs of memorials in Belgium and France. I read the whole thing, altho one ordinarily doesn't read a guidebook word for word. After I read it I said :"I now can probably save the expense of a tour of battlefields. Included in the book is a lesser known poem by John McCrae which starts out: O Guns, fall silent till the dead men hear Above their heads the legions passing on! (Those fought their fight in time of bitter fear, And died not knowing how the day had gone.)

O flashing muzzles, pause, and let them see The coming down that streaks the sky afar; Then let your might chorus witness be To them, and Ceasar, that we still make war.

Tell them, O guns, that we have heard their call, That we have sworn, and will not turn aside, That we will onward til we win or fall, That we will keep the faith for which they died.

Bid them be patient, and someday, anon, They shall feel earth enwrapt in silence deep, Shall greet, in wonderment, the quiet dawn, And in content may turn them to their sleep.

For anyone interested in the business machinations of the Hollywood film studios, this is a must. The absorbing story of how the film studio that once boasted 'more stars than there are in heaven' ended up a 1980's corporate wreck. Starts out in 1969 when billionaire Kirk Kerkorian bought MGM, chronicles the few ups (and many downs), finishing up with the studio's sale to Giancarlo Paretti and Mr. Bart's assertion that 'an era ends when its dreams are exhausted. MGM's era has clearly ended'. I quite agree with this but MGM seems determined to cling to life,feeding on the fading memories of its glorious past. Excellent stuff! If you read this, Mr. Bart, it's a great book but how about an updated version, to take account of the new period of Kerkorian's ownership?

If you are, or you enjoy getting a glimpse of how Hollywood really works, then this little gem is a must read. Bart's straighforward style and insider's viewpoint keeps this book going, and your interest level up. While it may be a little dated, the realities in the book continue to ring true today in what is going on in the film industry.

Researched, compiled, and arranged by Paul Donnelley, Fade To Black: A Book Of Movie Obituaries is the newly revised and expanded edition of a practical Cinematic Studies resource and reference, adding 100 new entries to the chronicles of the lives and deaths of over 1,000 movie personalities. Each separate entry efficiently condenses the individual's life into a single column or page of informative text. Big stars as well as crucial supporting characters from the history of film, (including scandals, success, great power, and hidden secrets preserved until after death) pack the pages of this fact-filled and enthusiastically recommended compendium.

I really enjoyed this book. While I have no specific insight as to how the author really chose the subjects for inclusion in this book, he certainly appears to have extracted a lively (though dead) group of celebrities from all strata of the movie industry.
This book was well-researched and provided lots of juicy tidbits about the lives and deaths of the celebrity dead contained within. Unlike many books which promised but failed to deliver the goods, this book was well worth the purchase price. I consider this a worthy sucessor to the out-of-print Hollywood Album I & II which were compilations of NY Times obituaries. And best of all, you finally do find out exactly what happened to many of your favorite actors and actresses. Can it get much better!

Keisling (The Meltdown) lets his mordant wit run rampant through this voluminous, entertaining novel, set in the Cold War-preoccupied 1970s. This is the story of a 17-year-old high school drop-out and wannabe rock star who believes he's the reincarnation of Buddy Holly -- hence the book's title, taken from Holly's hit song. That story, however, is woven together with two others -- one concerning the development of Prometheus, a super computer capable of world destruction, and the other about a megalomaniacal but unimportant career army officer who misunderstands an order given long ago by a paranoid president. All of this is wonderfully written--there are some memorable characters and lots of satire, whimsy, and irony....At moments the book is reminiscent of John Barth's early work. --Jo Manning, Univ. of Miami

This book has it all--rock and roll, crazy generals trying to blow up the world with nuclear weapons, action, suspense, you name it. A real page-turner, the plot is more fun than a barrel full of monkeys.

This is a wonderful book. The writer knows the era and the songs inside and out. His analysis is incisive, thorough, and original. He is always fair. He comes up with some insights that will make you look at the music and the songwriters with fresh eyes and ears.

this is very well-researched and written. The author must have spent a long time on this book. This is a great reference book and you'll find that you use it much more often then you think.

"Before the Last Shadow Fades" is volume three in a series by Shadow Poetry and is, for the most part, an excellent read. Poets have a talent for painting masterpieces with words as is the case of Jerry Quinn's description of "Loneliness" in only 19 words and in the recollections of youth as recalled in "In the Distance" by Charles Griffith and in "Early Mornings Were Best" by Jeanne Hyland Johnson. Limited space here does not allow me to list all the featured poets in this review. I enjoyed this book so much that I ordered the first two in the Shadow series. I highly recommend "Before the Last Shadow Fades".

This is Björk's excellent debut as a soloartist (hence the title). The album ranges from dance floor tracks such as 'Big Time Sensuality' to the emotional like 'Anchor song'. It is a touching, moving album that every one ought to have (make sure it contains 'Play Dead', as this is an excellent bonus track). Brilliant

IMHO this stands with the best of Turow, RN Patterson, Martini, W. Friedman, & J. Amiel in courtroom dramas.

Combining a satisfying plot with sparkling dialog & sharply drawn characters, this book ranks as one of the best of its genre.

Absolutely the finest of FASA's Shadowrun fiction, this one has it all. No BS game-speak, a killer plot, believeable (if not exactly likeable) characters. Great setting as well, expecially for the overall texture and subculture; Smith's Newark is a character in and of itself. Compared to earlier SR novels (including Smith's Striper Assassin), this was the first that impressed me as a viable story outside of the SR mythos; FTB can stand on its own in the sci-fi/cyberpunk genre. I recommend this book to all new players of the game, as an intro to a non-comic book version of the SR world. I was particularly impressed by the lack of plot devices; the story isn't some cutesy mystery or heroic fantasy with a pat ending. It reminded me somewhat of Ellroy's books. I also recommend Smith's "Who Hunts the Hunter" and "Steel Rain". A must-read for all non-munchkin Shadowrunners and GMs; this book makes the GM screen's characters come to life (heh heh).