Fall-Down

Carlene Thompson has to be one of the best mystery writers around. I have just discovered her and have now ordered and started reading all of her books. She always keeps me guessing until the last pages. I can never out guess her. What a wonderful writer.

I loved this book! There were so many worthy suspects that you were never sure who the murderer was and then when it unravels at the end you are totally shocked! Great, fun read and hard to put down. This was the first Carlene Thompson book I have ever read and I loved it. I just ordered all her others. If you enjoy a good mystery mixed with a bit of romance, this book is for you!

Every book that Carlene Thompson is wonderful. I can hardly wait for her new books to come out. She is by far the best author. You will not be sorry.

Richard Nickels was a strange fellow, and I don't know if most people would be comfortable in his company. He desperately wanted to save what he considered to be Chicago's architectural landmarks, but in the end grew terribly disconsolate, finding few allies in Mayor Daley or others within the city's power structure. He managed to save many bits and pieces before the wrecker's ball arrived, some of which went to Southern Illinois University, but tons of which ended up in landfills after his death. Do you need this book? If it sickens you to see a beautiful old building torn down, then yes. If you read "Lost Chicago" and were amazed at the priceless treasures we've squandered, then yes. If you think the now burgeoning architectural salvage industry is a good thing, then yes. Nickels fought to save buildings, but when that failed, he saved everything he could. The book doesn't claim he was a pioneer or innovator in that regard, but then I haven't heard of anyone else who dedicated their life to the field. The Trading Room from the Stock Exchange Building - where Nickel's died - survives in the Art Institute of Chicago today only because of his efforts. We almost certainly owe him a far greater debt than the book has claimed, since he helped to publicize the threat to our architectural heritage and started building a consensus towards preservation and salvage. The book will amaze and annoy you. You'll learn much more about Nickels' personal life than you would want to know. You'll wish he had finished some of the writing projects he started. And you'll wonder how much more he might have accomplished if he had lived a bit longer. It's a book that makes you think, and one you won't soon forget. - tjm

I ate this book up! Nickel's photgraphs are outstanding, and his dedication to salvaging historical buildings is heroic. The historic preservation movement owes an enormous debt to this man.

The story of Richard Nickel, who loved buildings of Adler & Sullivan fame. A wonderfully well-written book. I saw it in the library, and to my own amazement, could not put it down when I got home. Even if you know little about archetecture, you will love this book for it's story, the life and love of Nickel. Who I call with slight tongue-in-cheek a nerd.

This book is hysterical! Real life is better than fiction, and in this case, a lot funnier! A compilation of funny stories and anecdotes from people across the country, dotted with a few true adventures from Liz's life. Help! is sure to tickle your funny bone, and reading it is a great way to spend an afternoon.

This was a good, clean fun book. I was reading it and the phone rang and I was laughing so hard I couldn't answer the phone. I enjoyd it! It is great for all ages!

All Fall Down is just as good as Midnight Cowboy...this novel touches one and delights the reader.

This book is a great book that even the kids can tell the story themselves! My son loves this book, and I will keep it forever for him, so we can have the many memories of the first book he ever told the story himself! Great fun!

A harrowing train journey set against an exotic background of spies and intrigue, a beautiful and accomplished heroine, dramatic surprises and distinguished and extraordinary characters; this book has it all. The main plot revolves about the political complexities developing in Europe and Russia around 1901, and while the action takes place chiefly in France, the main protagonist, Laura, is a well-born Englishwoman still too young to have been presented at court. From her British father she inherits down-to-earth commonsense, and from her Russian mother an instinctive love of Russia and sympathy with the Russian soul. Whenever we are in danger of being carried away by extravagant idealism and lofty speculation, Laura jumps in and effectively pricks the bubble.

Laura takes the train to Paris with her mother Tania, to visit her wealthy grandparents, exiled from St. Petersburg two years previously as a result of high political manoeuvres. Her sick grandmother needs urgent medical attention and Tania is very worried. Laura and the aging count, whose physical and spiritual size dwarfs that of any ordinary mortal, are packed off by train to stay with an American great-aunt somewhere on the coast. Kamensky, the count's devoted right-hand man, is at the last moment prevented from joining them by a trivial incident.

Soon after the train gets under way the carriage is invaded by an aristocratic but scruffy Russian who subjects the count and Laura to a long and involved narrative. He claims that the Tsar is scheming to lure Count Diakonov back to Russia for a mock trial, after which he will be left to languish and die in prison. He has been betrayed by trusted members within his household. Finally convinced, the count insists on leaving the train, has a heart attack on the station platform and dies later in a nearby hotel where he is installed in the state bedroom. Though fussed over by various well-meaning local dignitaries, Laura is fearful and very much alone.

Re-enter (a) Kamensky and (b) Laura's father, roused at the last moment from the House of Commons. We return on the train to Paris and further events take their exciting course.

One of the many interesting things about this book is that it came out in 1966, when Rebecca West was in her 70s, at the culmination of a long career, which suggests that she worked on it and had it in mind for a large part of her life. Her involvement with, and love for, Russian culture, history, and religion are readily apparent. The book is built around three great monologues: Chubinov's revelations in the train, the count's sublime meditations on his deathbed, and Kamensky's apology. While appreciating her grandfather's loyalty and devotion to the Tsar, his heroism as a solder, his wisdom as an administrator, his deep and all-embracing faith, his difficulty in discovering at the end any serious cause for self-reproach, Laura is under no illusions. How can he not see that he's done exactly as he pleased all his life?

The book I read is called The Down and Up Fall By Johanna Hurwitz. It's mostly about a girl named Boliva who lives whith her Aunt and uncle. She already has two friends named Deek and Rory. During the book she meets a new friend named De De. After Bolivia finds kittens, De De brings over one of her friends woh is crazy about animals. His name is Aldo. Of course Derek and Rory don't like her two new friends so they act mean to them. Read to see how these kids end up. I enjoyed reading this book because it has pets in it and also because it's an interesting book to read. I think other kids around 10 years old would like this book.

I did not read the book. I listened to an audio tape of it from the Library of Congress. The book was so interesting that I listened to it a second time. (I went blind in one eye in 1998 and went legally blind in my other eye in 2003. I have a good bit of residual vision in one eye.) Like David who was sometimes thought to be drunk, I can be taken for drunk, too (one reason I use my cane). Telling the truth makes things so much easier, as he learned. (I tried awhile to not let on that I had vision problems even when I bumped into something.) There is nothing to be ashamed of! My favorite line in the book has to do with people asking how he is. He can tell that what they mean is how much longer he will be able to walk. He wants to reply, "The way you asked the question, I don't think I can live DOWN to your expectation." Way to go! I love it!

Finally, there's a comical side of MS! I started reading the book during a recent MS flare-up; even though I thought I'd started feeling worse both physically and mentally, I think this book was the best medicine I could've hoped for! Your comedy and writing are incredible. Thanks, David, for all you do for us MSer's!!

I thoroughly enjoyed reading David Lander's book. I laughed along with him. Having MS myself, I could truly relate to his
situation. He has a good outlook on life and is trying not to
let the MS get the best of him. He has quit a few interesting
things to say about MS and it's affects on the individual. I would recommend this book to anyone.

Thomas Lipinski is not only a good professor (I had him as Professor for a creative writing class at Edinboro University) but a good writer. At the end of the semester he gave the class an autographed copy of his first book published "The Fall Down Artist". I took it only because it was free, it didn't seem like my type of book. I later picked it up to read only to judge his writing ability since he spent 15 weeks judging mine, to my amazement I really enjoyed his book. It took a few chapters for things to grab my attention and keep me reading. The name of the book, along with the book description does the book an injustice, with a better name and description I am sure people would be grabbing for his book as a first pick to read. Also, a someone who grew up in and around Pittsburgh, I was very familiar with most, if not all of the locations that he used in his book, and I was able to identify the locations fairly easily. If you are from or around the "Burgh" this is a must read.

Carroll Dorsey emerges as an investigator who likes to do his job and do it right! It was such fun to open the pages of this book and climb inside Carroll Dorsey's Buick. From the very first chapter, we were busy travelling along the well described streets of Pittsburgh trying to unravel this mystery.Thomas Lipinski will take you into the dark alleys and bars of Pittsburgh and then reveal the corruption of high powered people. Lipinski will take you places and excite you as you see the city through a different but realistic lens. I couldn't wait to see what would happen next!I sipped coffee with Carroll Dorsey as he read through his office files and would later find myself "sloshing" down a Rolling Rock beer with him as I anticipated what was to come!Realizing the full involvement of his close family member left me yelling out and throwing this book against the wall; what an ending!

Carrol Dorsey is an investigator who likes to do his job and doit right! It was such fun to open the pages of this book and climbinside Carroll Dorsey's Buick; from the very first chapter, we were busy travelling along the weel described streets of Pittsburgh trying to unravel this mystery. Thomas Lipinski will take you into the dark alleys and bars of Pittsburgh and then reveal the corruption of high powered people. Lipinski will take you places and excite you as you see the city through a different but realistic lens. I couldn't wait to see what would happen next!I sipped coffee with Carrol Dorsey as he read through his office files and would later find myself sloshing down Rolling Rock beer with him as I anticipated what was to come!

Such is our morbid fascination that this book is inevitably more attractive than one called "Why Buildings Stay Up". That said, I think I have not only learned more about structural engineering than I would have done from a positive counterpart, but I have also learned vastly more about the other factors, human and natural, that influence the ultimate success or failure of structures.

The book is based on the same material as the late 1990s TV series of the same name, and having watched that series many of the incidents and issues were familiar to me. The advantage of the book is the ability to digest information at your own speed and refer back to earlier pages, but it has to be said that the TV series communicated some of the issues better, helped by animated graphics and by the better mutual support of both pictures and narrative.

Each chapter takes a topic, whether a human factor like the law, a type of construction such as the dome, or a cause of failure such as metal fatigue, and then illustrates the issues by consideration of a number of case studies, frequently including some notable successes as well as dramatic failures. In the case of failures the book always attempts to assess both the practical cause, and also any human cause, impact and implications.

The book is very well written, in an accessible style supported by some useful appendixes on structural engineering principles. However, sometimes the simple line drawings and verbal descriptions of a structure don't manage to communicate a full understanding, and more sophisticated illustrations might have helped.

Mario Salvadori died in 1997 (at the good age of 90), and the surviving author, Matthys Levy updated the book in 2002. My feelings on the update are mixed: the chapter on terrorism, culminating with the collapse of the New York Trade Centre towers on September 11th 2001 is excellent; but why did the author not acknowledge the brilliant success of efforts to stabilise the Leaning Tower of Pisa in the late 1990s?

Overall I heartily recommend this book to anyone with a serious or lay interest in structural engineering, and the many complex human and natural issues which influence it.

An entertaining book for readers who know about structures, and an educational book for lay readers, WHY BUILDINGS FALL DOWN is an interesting collection of case studies concerning building failures. Never condescending, but never too technical, it's a fun way to learn about architecture or structural engineering.

a good book explaining the details og building and bridge failures. im wondering why the author didnt include the word 'bridge' in the title since this book covers a lot of them. illustrations are very helpful as well