MC

McCaffrey's foray into mainstream fiction is a departure from her usual fantasy/science fiction worlds, but to a horse lover, it's every bit as successful. I've read my copy of this book so many times that the pages are literally falling out.

The Lady is set in Ireland in the early 1970s. It is the story of Michael Carradyne, owner of Cornanagh Stud trapped in a loveless marriage; his daughter Catriona, a girl on the edge of womanhood who must come to terms with her parents' conflicting plans for her future; and Selena Healy, a wealthy neighbor who has realized too late that her heart belongs to horses and to Cornanagh.

The Lady is a horse-lover's dream. When I miss my own horses, I open this book and feel a little less homesick. McCaffrey has created characters so real that I have to fight the urge to look for them when I visit Ireland.

If you're not a lover of horses, this book may not be for you, but if you are, I wholeheartedly recommend it

It seems almost silly to review a book I've read as many times as I've read The Lady; however, I find myself enjoying each new "read" as much, if not more than I did the very first time I discovered the book and thought I'd share my thoughts.

The cover (at least the American paperback version) does not do this book justice. The artwork gives the impression of a dated romance novel, which this book is not. There's romance yes, but beyond that is the rich beauty and history of Ireland, her people and their passion for horses.

From the very first words, as the reader follows her directions to Cornanagh, Ms. McCaffrey invites you into her world and makes you feel a part of the story. You almost expect to be asked to enjoy a cup of tea.

No character is introduced gratuitiously, each has a purpose and moves the action along. She introducecs a wide variety of flavors to add to the mix; tinkers, aristocrats, farmers and just plain old horsemen. Each have a texture all their own - you almost feel as if you know them.

My poor first copy is so badly worn that I've begun the search for another to replace it - until the much anticipated sequel is written. I recommend The Lady as a change from Ms. McCaffrey's usual genre and eagerly look forward to her next invitation to visit with the Carradynes.

The Lady was my first non-science fiction/fantasy Anne McCaffrey experience, and I was totally hooked! She is truly a great storyteller, and this book had me riveted from the get-go; I found myself rooting for the characters here just as much as any of her Pern or otherwise books. If you`re looking for a good read, pick up The Lady and enjoy Anne just as much as you always have in her other storylines.

The book reads well. I finished it in a week. I do wish the author would have given a bit more information about his own family history and past. The fact that he is divorced and has other children is divulged quite late in the book. I think he could also have gone more in depth about his feelings and those of his brother firefigheters.

This 166 page volume written by a serving FDNY line officer gives a different perspective on the FDNY's heroic battle on 9/11 and the activities in the weeks that followed. The other books written previously on this tragic event were done mainly by senior officers and were partially "ghost" written by professional writers. John McCole is a young lieutenant in the FDNY and has served both as a firefighter and officer in various parts of the city, including a stunt as an instructor at the NYC Fire Academy. In this book, he tells of his own first hand experiences on that tragic day and in the following weeks as the search for the remains of those 343 brave men was conducted. He uses direct, no nonsense, first person language, in this very interesting volume. This book should be a must for anyone interested in the fire service and the tremendous and costly battle fought by the FDNY in an effort to save thousands of lives at the World Trade Center. The book is enriched by several pages of both color and black and white photos taken by the author on the day of the tragedy.

I didn't read the newspapers or watch TV from Sept. 11th till about October sometime 2001.

My husband flew out of Boston on that morning and even though he landed safely at La Guardia Airport about 10 min. before the first plane hit, I was still so shaken up that I didn't want to get any more upset. I am a humanitarian and that's what I do full time and on a daily basis. I had to have my wits about me so I got all of my news off of the internet for about 15 min. in the evening before going to bed.

But I was extremely interested in what happened at Ground Zero and I even went to volunteer there at the beginning of October.

I read SECOND TOWER'S DOWN in less than 48 hours.

John McCole tells what it was like both physically and emotionally to go through this tragedy from day one. How often do you get to speak with a firefighter and have him tell his story?

This is a MUST READ. I especially liked his descriptions of his family and his interrelationships with his fellow "brothers", the FDNY, New York's finest.

Men who tell what they are thinking and what they are doing and how it affects them and what their opinions are about everyday situations always fascinate me. But Sept.11th was an experience like we've never had before and to be able to listen in while John McCole tells you in simple words and ideas how he survived being there and seeing what he saw is worth sitting down and experiencing.

If you want to help your local fire department then get 10 copies and deliver them in person or by mail to the different fire houses. I'm sure they would appreciate it.

The work of Escher has captured the imagination of many people and in this book Bruno Ernst (a personal friend of Escher) expands our understanding of the artist. After a brief but concise biography, the author throughly analyses the most important facets of Escher's artistic output: the illusion in drawing, the use of perspective, the creation of impossible realities, simultaneous and contrasting realities, crystals, and the infinite. Escher was an artist who was unique in in his work, he stands by himself, and this book is a helping tool in understanding and appreciating the unparalleled magic of his work.

The greatness of this book on the work of M.C. Escher is that it shows how he worked up his ideas for various pieces. It also gives a thorough explanation of his thought and design process. It is truely a shame that this book has gone out of print. I sincerely hope that the publisher brings it back.

In The Magic Mirror of M.C. Escher, Bruno Ernst, an acquaintance of Escher's until Escher's death in 1972, presents a thorough summary of the life and work of Escher. Ernst devotes a chapter to the life of Escher, and uses the rest of the book to describe his amazing work. He includes the different themes and styles that Escher used, and devotes a good amount of space to each work discussed. The book is extremely thorough and includes large clear illustrations of the works themselves and also of earlier drafts of the works and mathematical descriptions to assist the reader. This is the most concise book of Escher and his work I have ever seen, and Ernst has done a fabulous job on it.

The first Pig Pig book I read is Pig Pig Grows Up. I didn't even know he had made other books. Pig Pig Goes to Camp wasn't as good as Pig Pig Grows Up but it was still really funny. It is a good introduction to sleep-away camp for kids ages 7 - 9. The one part that I didn't like although many people think it's funny is that the Camp Director sends Pig Pig home because he's having too much fun and is too popular. I think the idea was that he was sent home because of all his little Frog friends but it comes across the wrong way.

This children's book goes into detail of what it is like to spend time away at Camp. What camp is like from leaving mom to sleeping at camp, sharing time with friends at camp. It adds to the camp activities by having Pig Pig make friends with frog. He makes so many friends that the frogs keep multiplying everywhere he goes. Eventually he makes so many frog friends, they send him home early with some of his new buddies. A must read for a child going to camp with a sense of humor.

He's off to camp. Treat yourself and your little ones to this great McPhail book. Boys and girls alike will love this book. Pig Pig makes some interesting friends while attending camp. It's bound to put a smile on your face and a giggle in your throat.

This version of Stone Soup leaves a sour taste in my mouth. At the beginning I was especially disappointed that there were no polite words like please and thank you. The boy also tells instead of asking. The other thing I don't like is that the old woman basically lies about not having anything to eat. Both of these issues are bad examples for my child.

This could of been the greastest book since Mr. Bump. Its a classic that is a must read for all. Currently I am 17 years old and have read this about 42 times. I must say its still invigorating, to the point that I will explode...

Stone Soup is very fun reading. This is a great story because it keeps you interested from start to finish. This story tells of a young man who is off on a long walk and gets hungry. He goes to a little old lady's house and asks to be fed. After she turns him down he offers to make stone soup for them both. So the two boil a stone but soon add onions, carrots, beef bones, barley and many other things to make it taste better. The two then go on to share a very nice afternoon together before the young man heads out for another long walk. I really enjoyed the parts where the little old lady gathers all of the fancy things needed to make the soup. That's why I think that most other people should enjoy this book too.

To save beating around the bush - I loved this book! I come myself from a confused and complicated family arrangement (what with 'steps' and so forth!), and I think that Jen has a knack for capturing the exact feelings a child within this situation might feel. I've certainly felt many of the feelings that 'Tess' discussed. I disagree with the previous reviewer that associated 'Dreamcatcher' with only steroetypes. I think that, as far as any author really can, Jen managed to disregard the stereotypes that normally go with complicated family relationships (evil stepmother, jealous half sister, neurotic divorced woman). I really like the interesting twist of the two 'mothers' actually becoming friends. It was also refreshing to see strong girl and women characters within this work. The novel works as a great affirmation of the strength of women, and I am sure that it will inspire many young girls. Tess was particularly endearing to me, and i think an effective balance between her strength and vulnerability was reached here! The fact that both of the sisters had strong physical bodies, but were weak or scared within them, was an image that worked well throughout this novel. I would recommend this book to children and adults alike, with its relevance increasing as family situations complicate. It is also quick and fun to read - it's use of dialogue is particularly astute and funny!

It would also make a great film!

I loved the book! I stayed up until after midnight to finish Dreamcatcher (that's what it's called in Australia), it was so good I couldn't put it down. Tess is exactly like one of my best friends, fabulous fun and not always right! I cried in the scene when her sister doesn't do the trampoline routine and you really hope the two mothers will be friends. The ending is incredibly exciting, it makes you think you really are there. The book is set for our Year 7 class and everyone thinks it's great.

Amanda

One of the strengths of the author's writing is her realistic portrayal of adolescent feelings and relationships. The setting is effective portrayed and I'd recommend this book as a 'good read'for male and females. I hope there will be a sequel.

As a person not-of-color (person of non-color?), I very much enjoyed Nathan McCall's insightful and unflinching essays on both white and black views in America. I consider his autobiography, "Makes Me Wanna Holler", to be a modern classic far surpassing other, more heralded books such as "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" in its ability to place the reader fully in the shoes of another person. "What's Going On" serves as both a powerful footnote to his debut and as a profound look at American race relations in its own right. McCall is a true student of the human condition.

The Author of the acclaimed bestseller "Makes Me Wanna Holler" strikes again with a collection of personal essays and observations entitled "What's Going On". Nathan McCall challenges readers to view the world through his eyes and share his experiences using a fluid writing style and substantive content.

Entering a new millennium, African Americans are faced with many so-called "hot button" topics. Many of these issues have been discussed and belabored at length. Some of these issues are so sensitive that authors, politicians, and community leaders will often shy away from them being careful not to damage hard earned notoriety. McCall is clearly not vying for first prize in any popularity contests; likewise, he makes sure to point out which of his views he knows will not be shared by many of his readers."What's Going On" addresses issues pertinent to blacks of this generation and his feelings regarding issues African Americans face in our daily lives.

While a book of personal opinion may not sound like an exciting read, "What's Going On" carries a heavyweight punch that travels from different ends of the spectrum and tends to surprise readers with every new chapter. In McCall's first book, the autobiography "Makes Me Wanna Holler", I was impressed with this authors journey from convicted felon to well traveled, acclaimed Washington Post Reporter. The autobiography was so inspirational to me that I jumped at the opportunity to read his newest creation. McCall's candor in all of the subject matter addressed is both poignant and refreshing. It's reasonable to assume that most African American readers will not agree with every single point, however it does provide an entertaining yet thought provoking look at modern day society.

I recommend "What's Going On" to the over 35 crowd, particularly those with a keen interest in current events. I also feel that these essays would make perfect topics for book club discussions. I give "What's Going On" a rating of 4.

This insightfull collections of essays didn't grab me in full, but it did give me a glimpse inside the world that shaped him into the man that he is today. His stories were intriguing and made me look at the world around me and notice the little things that could make the biggest impact on my life and how I viewed them. The best of the bunch was 1.)How he would get sex from young girls as a teenager, and now that he is the father of a daughter, he hopes that the boys her age will give her a better impression than he gave, 2.)His interaction with the little white baby in the take-out joint, and 3.)Driving with his friend and getting lost, only to find themselves on the property of a white-based church. Invest some time in Mr. Mcall's essays and it just might make you look around with a brand new set of eyes.

Perhaps a better title for this book would have been: The Penguin Atlas of Recent Mostly Military History: Europe 1815 to 1980. Much attention is given to military campaigns and political boundaries, but little is said of the populations within the borders, except when they are reduced to population figures. Since the book was published in 1982 and not updated since, you won't find any discussion of the important changes in the past two decades.

The writing style is usually engaging, although the author has the irritating tendency to view nations' developments as a contest to attain the greatest levels of population and industrial production.

I am writing this review to call this book (and its companion, The Penguin Atlas of Modern History by the same author) to the attention of all the teachers and students of Advanced Placement Modern European History. Its conciseness, the entertaining nature of its narrative, and the lucidity of its well-conceived maps make it a wonderful supplement for whatever textbook you use for teaching and learning this subject matter. It can be used effectively throughout the year to make the bewildering detail of the successive epochs of European development more understandable by its clear pinpointing of the strategic objectives the various European states were aiming at. Its discussions are also so compact that they make excellent reviews before tests -- and before the big exam at the end of the year, especially. I can't recommend another work available in this field more highly. Criticism of the military and political emphases of McEvedy's narrative seem beside the point as these were instrumental in acquiring wealth and were, whether we like it or not, the basis of policy decisions for all European rulers. The introduction to this volume is particularly valuable as it challenges the universally accepted notion that Scientific and Industrial Revolutions occurred within an encapsulated time periods as a result of immediate causative factors. Here, McEvedy clearly states that the advantages European states enjoyed were not military, but cultural and administrative. These advantages were accumulated gradually. McEvedy's military/political emphasis is merely the result of his recognition that the acquisition of financial power is the objective of the modern state and that history is the resulting record of the means that shaped these ends. Lastly, one reason I find this work so useful because it is written by a British author with all the advantages that perspective entails for a view of Eurocentric history. Use this work for your APMEH courses!

Detailed Information should be provided taking the base year as 1815.Political boundaries should be drawn on the basis of langauge spoken taking a village/town as a unit.Detailed maps should also be available on display for review.

Back in college I decided to take a class in abnormal psychology as an elective. Patrick McGrath's novel "Spider" would've made good supplemental reading for that class. What we have here is the journal of one Dennis Clegg, a man in his early 30s who is living in a kind of halfway house for the mentally ill in London. Dennis, whom we learn is nicknamed "Spider," has returned to London after being institutionalized with acute schizophrenia for some 20 years. He has never truly recovered, however, and as this narrative progresses we vicariously experience his increasingly fragile grip on reality. What precipitated his illness seems to have been the death of his mother when he was 13 or so; yet the exact circumstances or her death are cloaked in Spider's own paranoid delusions and hallucinations.

In "Spider," Patrick McGrath has crafted an affecting yet tragic and depressing portrayal of madness. This is powerful, though not necessarily enjoyable, reading. Rumor has it that director David Cronenberg's next film is to be an adaptation of this novel; if he is successful in translating McGrath's novel to the screen, is should be quite a film.

This is my third Patrick McGrath's novel and my favourite so far. I've read 'Asylum' and 'Dr. Haggard's Disease' . The first is a haunting and dark love story --quite different, and very touching--, the second is interesting, however I don't know what happened, but I couldn't click with the book. But 'Spider' became my favourite, and it is unforgettable to me.

It is a story of man, named Dennis 'Spider' Cleg, a man who lives in a kind of halfway house for the mentally ill in London. As he is both protagonist and narrator, we are never sure of what he is talking about. Maybe things happened the way he says, maybe he is alucinating. Who knows? He is a man with mental problems that is followed by the image of his father killing his mother and bringing a whore to substitute for her. And we learn all that happened from Spider's sick mind. Until the surprising end.

I highly recommend this novel to readers who like dark thrillers, with psycological undertones. The characters are very well developed. Spider is a human being as any other, we can easily understand what happened to this man that led him to be the way he is.

Patrick McGrath's debut novel is in the spotlight once again more than a decade after its original publication, thanks to David Cronenberg's dark and deeply disturbing adaptation of "Spider" in which Ralph Fiennes delivers a finely calibrated tour de force in a virtually non-speaking role that shows us what great acting is all about. Except for its subtle timeline shift, the movie is uncannily faithful to McGrath's novel. I read the book after I watched the movie and scene after scene, it was almost identical, except that Cronenberg decided to leave out the scenes relating to Spider's period of incarceration in a nuthouse.

McGrath is a master of the dark, disturbing and macabre. He doesn't mess about and knows how to tell a good story. Brooding and deeply atmospheric, the reader believes what Spider tells him about his childhood, his relationship with his adored mother and hated father, his father's cheap and nasty affair with the neighbourhood barmaid and its fatal consequences. Although a little slow and repetitive when McGrath takes us through Spider's routine as he takes temporary refuge in a half-way house after his release, this is unavoidable and in fact a realistic depiction of the circular illusions in Spider's head. There's a twist - more than a little twist - at the end which isn't just clever but credible. Quite clearly, Spider didn't just turn loony from his father's beatings. There is just a whiff of a hint of the underlying cause in Cronenberg's movie - I won't say what it is - but I think it's a perceptive take on a less than pat ending.

Those who discovered McGrath through his later works like "Asylum" will find "Spider" an excellent novel. It deserves the attention it is now getting. Recommended.

I recently completed a film class. And while the rest of the class groaned at the required viewing of silent films, I warmed up to the story of McTeague. The silent film version was called "Greed".

Since that's basically what the book chronicles. The plot circles around, of course, the plight of Mac and Trina to reach the upper crust of society, but I believe some of the major conflict arises between the main characters and their inner drive to simply 'have more'.

I'm not sure if the book includes this reference but there was a bird cage that the film highlighted. It was one of the things that served as a symbol for greed. It was the only thing that was colored in the film, and it was bright gold. Mac wouldn't get rid of it even though they were living in a slum. Trina wouldn't even buy fresh meat simply so she could keep a few pennies for herself. Instead she bought old rotting meat. Yuck.

I just thought I'd let you people know that its also a silent film. The film was edited into a time period of maybe 2 and 1/2 hours. Maybe 3, I'm not sure. But Silent film is generally of epic proportions. They just didn't like to edit back then I guess.

Along with Stephen Crane, Frank Norris was one of the earliest writers in American naturalism--a tradition that eventually gave us Sinclair Lewis, Theodore Dreiser, and John Steinbeck. Influenced by social Darwinism and the French realists (especially Zola), their style tends to bluntness and away from romanticism and their view of civilization is marked by grimness. "McTeague" is considered Norris's classic work, and for good reason: its effect on later writers is obvious, and the book represents a shocking, bleak expose of greed and of the bestial nature of human beings.

McTeague is an unschooled, middle-class dentist who marries Trina, a daughter of German immigrants who is also the sweetheart of her distant cousin Marcus. Their lives are irrevocably changed when Trina wins $5,000 from a lottery, and their story is an examination of the resulting greed, miserliness, jealousies, intrigues, abuse, and homicide. Norris's worldview is not entirely gloomy, however: he introduces two endearing and unforgettable characters, Old Grannis and Miss Baker, an elderly couple whose only pleasure in the world is the knowledge of each other's existence on the other side of the shared wall of their two apartments. They are the antithesis of greed, and the simplicity of their desires provide much-needed comic (and, yes, romantic) relief.

The 21st-century reader, however, should be warned that Norris's ethnic stereotypes are not pretty. Zerkow, a Polish Jew, is a parsimonious junk peddler who has "bloodless lips" and "claw-like, prehensile fingers--the fingers of a man who accumulates, but never disburses." He dreams incessantly of gold, and is entranced by the long-lost (and undoubtedly imaginary) gold dinnerware described by a Mexican maid, Maria, whom he eventually marries in order to monopolize her memories of the treasure. Maria herself is a dim-witted and unrepentant petty thief, yet her portrayal is more sympathetic in its evocation of naivety and innocence and suffering. Yet it's difficult to overcome the cringe factor created by Norris's depiction of these two characters. (To confirm that I was not overreacting, I searched the Web and found that, unfortunately, these passages are cited or reprinted gleefully and favorably on a number of anti-Semitic and neo-Nazi sites.)

Happily, the remainder of the novel's characters are not so one-dimensional, yet all the main characters turn out to be, in their own way, as narrow-minded and greedy as Zerkow and Maria. There are two ways to see the disparity in the presentation of these characters. Critics tend to point out the Zerkow is presented first, as the archetype of greed--and that the remainder of the novel shows how McTeague, Trina, and Marcus are as greedy as Zerkow--or as "greedy as a Jew." The more charitable analysis reverses the perspective: that Norris mitigates his representation of Zerkow by demonstrating, in effect, that he is no different than anyone else--that all humans are basically brutes (a word Norris uses often).

Norris's novel is above all a stark condemnation of human baseness. The various characters pursue their inescapable and expected demise, and the suddenness and shock of the ending is breathtaking. The power of the novel's underlying message ultimately overwhelms its dated bigotry, and "McTeague" is still a must-read for anyone interested in American literature.

Frank Norris explained in "Mcteague" how uncontrollable forces are crafting the characters' destinys. For example, Norris explained that Mcteague loved Triana less after Triana first kissed him as a natural rule of human relationship. Other examples are that Mcteague murdered his wife because he let the beast in him dominates, and Triana lived in poverty even though she has five thousand dollar because her strong uncontrollabe desire to save did not let her use the money. "McTeague" holds the readers' interest by having suspense and descriptive language. It is a fun book to read.