Market-return

Following up one of the best sci-fi adventure novels ever written, especially after such a lengthy absence, shows a lot of courage on Mike Resnick's part. Lucas didn't learn his lesson with Star Wars, and I was afraid that Mike might drop a bomb with the Return of Santiago. Thankfully he didn't. That isn't to say that the book doesn't have its problems, especially in comparison to the first novel, but at least it is a decent read.
The thing I liked the most about the book is that it is not what I expected it to be. What I expected was the further adventures of Santiago and Moonripple (and secretly, I still wish Return WAS that story as I thought Moonripple was fascinating). I truly expected the sequel to pick up right where the first book left off. Instead, Resnick shoots us into the future a hundred years after Santiago's death and begins his story in the heart of the Democracy with a small time crook named Danny Briggs. Danny is hiding from the police in the house of a family off on vacation when he finds the original manuscript of Black Orpheus, the poet of the Inner Frontier. In poring over the poem, he realizes that the part of Santiago had been played by more than one person and, ironically, the king of the outlaws had really been a champion of the rights of the people against the Democracy. In a moment of self revelation, Danny decides to move to the inner frontier, change his name to Dante and continue Orpheus' saga. To write such a poem, however, he needs a central figure, and only one will do--Santiago. Since one does not exist at the time, Danny and his rapidly growing circle of new companions on the Frontier decide to find and recruit one. The universe may need a man like Santiago, but how do you go about recreating a myth for modern times. Dante and his friends soon find it isn't as easy as it seems. Great spin on an interesting concept and a good sci-fi read.
I do have some reservations about the work, though. No matter how bad you want it to be, it isn't the original by a long shot. The pacing isn't as crisp, the story isn't as tight and the writing style just doesn't have the edge the first book possessed. The characters, while still colorful with interesting names, aren't nearly as memorable as the ones in the first work (and many are downright forgettable). The story is clever, but absent of surprise and if you didn't see the ending coming a mile away, well, I just don't see how you could miss it. There is just something missing here that was present in the original work and I'm not sure what it is. Void of the snappy patter and the absorbing moments and the breakneck plot pace, this book just seemed much more tame. There is also, and this annoyed me to no end, a moral to the story which Resnick pounds pretty heavily throughout the book. There is a definite preachy quality about good men standing up and being counted...if not you, whom...if not now, when...the ultimate evil is when good men stand by and do nothing...etc...etc. A little too much of the real world and the current global political situation seeps into this, what is supposed to be, fantasy work. The original book had an adventuresome Robin Hood morality to it that worked very well without beating you over the head with anything. Many times in some of the heavier handed passages, I saw the author's views intruding negatively into this work. Mike could have been a bit more subtle here.
Anyway, this is a decent book. It isn't great as some claim, and it isn't bad like some feared. It is a decent sequel as sequels go, and unlike the original work, this one definitely leaves the door open for a sequel of its own.

If you're not familiar with Mike Resnick's work, Santiago, pick it up and read it before reading this one. Even without reading the first book, this book is a lot of fun. Mike's storytelling is excellent, but it has gotten better over the years and I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan or who wants to read something entertaining.

It's been over a hundred years since the last Santiago surfaced and Danny Briggs, aka Dante Alighieri, discovers Black Orpheus's original poems in a house he broke into. This sets him on a quest of bringing back Santiago, the famed King of Outlaws who worked towards righting injustices.

Along the way, Dante meets people on the frontier such as the Virgil Soaring Hawk, Tyrannosaurus Barnes, the One Armed Bandit, Waltzin' Matilda. Moby Dick, and a host of other unforgetable characters. His search for Santiago takes him up against some of the baddest aliens in the galaxy.

If you're looking for sheer fun, this is the book!

Mike Resnick's Santiago is not only one of my all-time favorite science-fiction novels, but also one of the first genre books I read when growing up. As far as I'm concerned, it's about as close to a perfect adventure novel as any reader could hope for.

So I had mixed feelings about the sequel. Resnick had resisted writing one for nearly fifteen years, because the first book ended without any need for a follow-up. I was worried that this would just be a watered-down version of the first book (remember the sequels to Bill the Galactic Hero that Harry Harrison foisted on us?).

I'm so happy to report that I was wrong.

The Return of Santiago is probably the second-greatest adventure novel I've read. Resnick has recognized the two things that made the first book so much fun -- the poetry of Black Orpheus, and the quirky characters (and subjects of those poems) who populate the Inner Frontier of Resnick's future universe. Instead of a limp attempt at following up the saga of Songbird from the first novel, Resnick tells the tale of a petty thief a hundred years in the future, who sets out to be the new Black Orpheus and tell the tales of the Frontier.

Danny, our thief, rechristians himself "Dante Alighieri," and prompty finds a Virgil to guide him through the Frontier (from which Santiago has long vanished, we discover). After writing his first few poems, Dante realizes that what made Orpheus great was having a Santiago who affected the entire Frontier, and was known to all as the greatest outlaw (all the while fighting the corrupt Democracy). He decides, then, to go on a quest to find a new Santiago to provide him with fodder for his poetry.

Dante's quest, like Songbird's in the first book, takes him to dozens of planets, and introduces us to hundreds of fascinating, quirky characters. I'm hesitant to spoil any of Resnick's wonderful writing. Suffice to say, the book has characters who will make you laugh out loud, and ones who are truly horrifying.

As with the first book, the fun of this novel is the quest, not the reward. However, Resnick has improved as a writer over the decades, and this novel has a much more solid feeling ending than the original one did. No one will ever call this great literature, but The Return of Santiago will be remembered as one of the most enjoyable adventure novels in a long time.

This is perhaps the most atmospheric novel in the English language, but it is about so much more than dark nights and windswept meadows. Any one who does not see the heath as a symbol for those unchanging features of human life and society should spend a little less time watching "Friends" and the WCW and become acquainted with that wonderful old artistic medium THE BOOK....or may be all of you restless 15 year olds should just pay a little more attention in English class . Return of the Native is a book about pain, disappointment, loss, and relations between the classes.....about societal conventions and the frustrated longings they produce. The story would work just as well in a modern and/or American setting. Diggory could be a taxi driver, Eustacia a prostitute, and Clem an attorney....it would be splendid.

First, I must confess to being an avid Alan Rickman admirer. The man could read the local phone book and I'd gladly pay to hear it. Thusly, when I found he had done an unabridged set of audio tapes of one of my favorite books -- "The Return of the Native" -- I was thrilled.

"The Return of the Native" is a compelling and beautifully written story. I especially like the way Hardy makes Egdon Heath itself as much a character in the story as the human denizens of the area, breathing life into it through his wonderful word pictures and his special talent for creating moods. Hardy's vivid descriptions and excellent character development make this an enchanting adventure.

Add to this the velvet-smooth voice of Rickman, and you have a treat for the imagination and the ears.

Rickman gives each of the characters his (or her) own separate voice, and manages to do so without forgetting how each should sound. How he kept it straight, I'll never know (I, myself, record books on tape for an educational company and know how complicated that can be!)...what with the many inhabitants of Egdon Heath he had to work with...but, he did. Rickman also actually sang the songs from the book (and not badly, either), adding another dimension.

"The Return of the Native" (unabridged) is a must for anyone who loves good literature on tape, and for anyone who is a fan of Alan Rickman. This is a stunning production and well worth the investment!

Eustacia Vye is a witchy woman- she has an aura about her that is all consuming for some. This was a dramatic novel, one I saved for years to read on cold, solitary nights with the wind blowing outside. It is a bleak tale of intermingled love stories. Eustacia isn't easy to love but she is far more determined and interesting than other characters in the classic lit canon. Clym is compelling in a different way. This is a novel, for me, of the human capacity to misunderstand and blame rather than try to communicate the heart's true desires. Very, very moving.

The is a sequel to The Forever King and, like most sequels, it doesn't measure up. Pass it by.

I have just finished reading The Broken Sword and, although I haven't yet had the pleasure of reading Forever King (Yes, I know I'm not reading them in the right order!), I found this book to be one of the best tellings of the King Arthur legend I have yet read. Until reading this book I took for granted that any Round Table book I was to read would simply be the retelling of the same story, I was never so glad to be proven wrong as I was when I read The Broken Sword. I highly recommend this book to any who have enjoyed the King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table legend at any point throughout their life.

I didn't read The Forever King (yet), but I still really enjoyed this book. I thought it was a stand-alone novel until I started looking for other books by the authors.

The book opens by introducing us to characters that lived during the Middle Ages who have been reborn here in the modern world. Arthur is 13 years old, and he's being protected by Hal (Galahad) and Taliesin. They meet up with another young girl, Beatrice, who was once the Innocent. They're helped out by knights like Launcelot and they're being chased by ancient enemies. The story revolves around the Holy Grail which takes the form of a cup with the power to heal.

I thought this was a very creative take on the old King Arthur legend. The good characters are all very likeable and the bad characters are easy to hate. The fact that it was set in modern times made the characters easy to relate to and gave freshness to the book.

Regardless of the number of pages, this wasn't a very long read. I read it in one sitting on an airplane. But it left a feeling of satisfaction. I would recommend this book to people who enjoy the legend of King Arthur but want to see something different. I would also recommend it to fantasy fans who like it when the real world collides with the fantasy world.

This is just an addendum to a review I already wrote; some other reviewers point out that this is not a guide on how to pick stocks, and that is true. I would like to emphasize that the studies of past market behavior described in this book don't seem to point to any reliable method of picking individual stocks, or even evaluating fund managers in any statistically significant manner. This was not a problem for me; the main thrust of the book is that the stock market is the best (only) way to ensure that 'wealth' a) is not gobbled up by inflation and b) has a good chance of appreciating past inflation. With those simple goals in mind, investing in a whole-market index fund with a couple of more focused other index funds doesn't seem like such a bad idea. To really take advantage of the historical perspective offered in this book, it seems very important to keep dollar-cost averaging into these funds even (especially!) during market down times. If your time horizon is long enough, those relatively low-cost purchases will come back in a big way. If you just buy once, you can be sure that after 40 years that purchase will not have lost ground to inflation, but there is no guarantee on the state of the market at the time you need to cash out; to really take advantage of the performance of the market, you must keep buying into it through thick (more or less) but especially thin. In that regard, the secret to financial success is not so much picking x amount of 10-baggers as it is to keep putting money away through all financial conditions that you can manage.

Spend less, save more, and put your savings where they have the best chance to grow.

Siegel's third edition is the best introduction to the traditional assets classes (i.e., stocks and bonds) that I have ever read, hands-down. This book has two strengths: One, it is a rigorous empirical study of historical market returns and their components. Two, it is broad and accessible introduction to various investment theories and styles, economic influences (e.g., inflation, business cycles, economic data) and newer product categories like exchange-traded funds. This is an ambitiously broad anthology chock-full of important topics, so it serves as a great starting point for new students of investment theory. For example, his Chapter on "Gold, the Federal Reserve and Inflation" is a brief, helpful introduction to the history of monetary policy. Another great Chapter is "Market Volatility," which illustrates that market volatility has been remarkably stable over the long run, with some violent exceptions.

What I really love about Siegel is his intent: he wants to educate the average investor and he is not dogmatic. I understand that a handful of negative reviews arise from a credible concern that the stock market could be a lot more hazardous in the future than in the past, but Siegel is not blindly extrapolating into the future. It is pretty unfair to call this "naïve empiricism," by the way. His conclusion is more specific and relative: he believes stocks should outperform bonds, but they will downshift from the long-run historical pattern to outperform bonds by about 2%, give or take.

He reaches this conclusion by showing how the stock market has historically averaged roughly 7% percent in real returns over any long-run stretch. He then presents various alternative valuation models and shares his carefully qualified conclusion: that economic factors justify an modest upward revision in the price-earnings ratio (P-E ratio) to the low 20s, and from that starting point, we might look forward to real equity returns of "4 to 5 percent." Granted, he then goes on to discuss some factors that could well propel returns even higher, and one big unfavorable factor that could send them lower (i.e., the demographic problem of fewer investors in the developed world). But you get to see how his model works, and he serves up each assumption logically and in balanced form so that you can consider the conclusion for yourself. In this vein and offered as a minor critique at the margin, I happen to question his assumption that higher equity valuations per se lead to increased earnings (via cheaper stock offerings and hence cheaper investment capital) because I do not think you can necessarily assume that more capital leads to better investments. Also, he does not address or incorporate the dilution effects of employee stock options.

Similarly, his case for "buy and hold" is balanced. The data in the Chapter on "Stocks and the Business Cycle" could in fact be used to advocate market timing. Siegel shows that successful timing (or more specifically, buying near the bottom) produces impressive returns. He just thinks it is really hard to predict business cycles.

This is the bible of traditional classes, and so I would note that there is no discussion of so-called alternative investments (e.g., hedge fund, private equity, real estates). Also, I missed the lack of an explicit discussion of asset allocation; can we maybe get that in the next edition?

Wharton finance professor Jeremy Siegel is one of the most credible, most astute stock market analysts in the world. He is not a mindless stock cheerleader; in fact, his March 14, 2000 Wall Street Journal article entitled "Why Big Cap Tech Stocks Are a Sucker's Bet" persuasively pointed out how the high tech stock emperor had no clothes, and helped burst the insanely overvalued tech bubble. This was at a time when the vast majority of Wall Street analysts were inventing new valuation methods to justify insane stock prices, while other more pessimistic analysts had declared an "irrational exuberance" years before the market actually topped.

"Stocks for the Long Run" is Siegel's seminal work (now in its third edition), an excellent introduction to investing for the average investor looking to save for retirement. If the SEC were to choose one book to force people to read before they were allowed to invest their money in the stock market, this book would be it. In fact, the people who lost their retirement money because it was all invested in one stock such as Enron or Worldcom (or a bunch of dot-coms), or who lost a fortune day trading when the market tanked, would have been so much better off if they had just read this book and applied its lessons. They would be better off, the market would be much less volatile, the allocation of capital would be more efficient, the economy would be stronger, and the world would be a better place, if only more people would read this book.

"Stocks for the Long Run" gives you all the knowledge you need to implement a solid investment strategy. Siegel educates and informs (this book will teach you all the basics you need to know to watch CNBC and to understand the market), and he packs his book with as much long-term data and supporting evidence as possible. He is a firm believer in the scientific method and data; he does not posit recommendations unless they are firmly supported by historical evidence.

The good news in the third edition (post 1990s/2000 bubble) is that the case for investing in stocks is still a strong one. Siegel presents extremely persuasive arguments why, long term, stocks hold their value and gain value better than any other type of investment (fundamentally, we must never lose sight of the fact that stocks are claims on real assets and the cash flows generated by enterprises). Surprisingly, stocks are lower risk, long-term, than bonds. Siegel presents some good arguments why stocks now deserve a higher-than-long-term-average P/E, but also shows how index investing (which he still heartily recommends) is distorting the market, and how our expectations for returns from stocks need to come down slightly. He correctly identifies TIPS as the best investment for those seeking short-term safety.

Siegel's main argument is that investors should get into stocks in such a way as to match the overall return of the market, which will provide them with a healthy long-term return on investment. He does show a number of ways to improve on that return and beat the market, such as by recognizing when the market is under and overvalued, thereby buying low and selling high. Thus, I would recommend that a new investor first read, study and apply "Stocks in the Long Run", and then move on to Ben Stein's "Yes You Can Time the Market" as a way to optimize the lessons from "Stocks in the Long Run".

Brian's return is a book about a 16 year old who has finally been rescued form the wilderness.The time is about a year later after Brian has been rescued form the wilderness of Canada. (I recommend you read the first three before reading this one our at least the first one).Brian can't stand living in the city and wants to return to the wilderness but if he dose he will bring a couple helpful items.The question is will he? If you liked The hatchet and the other two and would like to know the final ending of Brian's adventures i recommend this book.This book is not as action packed as the other three but is a very surprising and fun book to read.

Brian's Return is about a boy named Brian that in the past was stuck in the wilderness for a long time alone (if you didn't know that read Hatchet.) He diecides to go back after seeing an ex-cop, Caleb for counseling after an fight with a football jock. Before departing, he finds out the pilot can only take him so far and he'll have to canoe the rest of the way. Without telling his mom about this detail he starts preparing.
I think it's a great book for learning how to survive in the wilderness, but it's a good book for someone without a care in the world also. I didn't like the fact that there wasn't many characters in the book. The beginning is kinda boring until you get into the second chapter, but hang on to it. After that it gets better and better until the end. I wish it wouldn't have let off as if Gary Paulsen had to make a deadline. I wish he would make a followup to tell us what's next. But don't take my word for it, read it.

Brian's Return, by Gary Paulsen, is an adventure/survival book about Brian's long-awaited return to the Canadian woods written by Paulsen, a three time Newberry Honor award winner. The story begins with Brian, a 16 year old boy trying to live a normal life. The hard part for him is, he spent 48 days in the Canadian woods after his pilot had a heart attack and it changed his perspective on life. He can't find joy in having his food put right in front of him, or talking about who was going out with whom. After beating up a football player, he sees a counselor named Caleb. Caleb listens to his beautiful descriptions, and tells Brian that the answer was to go back up into the wilderness. He creates a list and a plan for a hundred mile kayak trip to eventually visit the Smallhorns, who rescued him in Brian's Winter. Brian goes through yet another action packed wilderness experience in Brian's Return. This book would be a little hard for young kids to find the true meaning of, so ages 11 and up would be a good reccomended age. Anyone who enjoyed Hatchet and its other sequels will enjoy this book.

The rest of the series is really awesome but since the lately its been more about Jaina/Zekk and Jason/Tenel Ka's infatuations with each other. It'd be better if they just had more of the action than the mushy falling in love stuff. It is science fiction after all.

This is the first book in a new YJK trilogy, Under Black Sun, which will conclude (and had already done so) the Young Jedi Knights books. Ah yes, all good things must come to an end. But if this is any indication, it's goin' out with bang. It starts with Han and his kids going to Ord Mantell (where Han and Leia where almost captured by a pair of bounty hunters over twenty year before.) Han is there to judge a Blockade Runner race, and on the pace lap, the Falcon is nearly blown to space dust by a minefield planted by Black Sun. Anakin takes a piece of the mines to analyze it. Enter Anja Gallandro, however, and things get hot. She takes the piece of the mine, and faces down Han, who supposedly killed her father during his adventures twenty-five years before. Zekk, Tenel Ka, and Lowie enter the Lightning Rod in the race, and the YJK are reunited. Anja challenges Han to go to her war-torn planet, Anobis, where the farmers and miners are constantly at war, blaming each other for the conflict. The kids get split between the mining camps and the farming village, but are reunited and are able to sow the seeds of peace between the warring groups. Anja returns with the YJK to Yavin 4 to see if she had any Force potential, and the book concludes. The authors leave some interesting loose ends to tie up, which are drawn into neat little bow-ties at the end, except for a couple ;-) See my Crisis on Crystal Reef if you *really* don't get it.

Part of what fascinated me about this book right from the beginning was that all the kids, while still in character, seemed way older, and supposedly only a few months had passed between The Emperor's Plague and this book. It was an extremly well written book, with a well defined, understandable plot. In it, Jacen and Jaina and Anakin all go on a short vacation with their Dad (Han of course) to go and check out a really cool race on Ord Mantell. Once they get there they meet Anja Gallandro, a girl who hates Han because she believes he murdered her father. She plays on his guilt, and somehow convinces him to go try to right a bloody civil war on her home planet. Through an interesting chain of events they meet back up with there other friends (big surpise), as well as Anja who by the way is not only working for some evil smuggler guy, but also is addicted to some kind of drug. I also find it very interesting that all through this whole series Jacen is hung up on Tenel Ka, and now the instant some other pretty girl comes into the picture, he instantly forgets she ever even existed, and I sense the same thing beginning to happen to Zekk and Jaina too. This only serves even more to convince me that these budding relationships were silly to begin with, though I must admit I always enjoyed Jacen and Tenel Ka. As for Anja herself, well, she was cool and all but I found myself not really liking her much, and I just couldn't really care about her like I could the other characters. She just seemed more like a glorified and somewhat twisted version of an early Mara Jade to me. Another thing that bothered me was that even though Anakin was with them throughout the whole book, he was practicly ignored and it seemed as if they somehow forgot about him at some points. This was somewhat irritating because Anakin has always been my favorite of the Solo children. Besides those minor details though, this was an exellent book. I also think it is cool that a Star Wars book can deal with serious issues such as drug adiction. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves Star Wars, though it will probably make more sense if you have read the previous 11 first.

Too simple. Explain simple points in length boring stories. It wastes my money and time.

I generally will not trash a book that is targeted at the novice but this will be an exception. First, I am a novice at options investing so should have been right in the middle of the target market for this book. Fact is, I learned more just searching the Internet while I was waiting for the book to arrive than I learned from the book. It is just too simplistic. All the knowledge contained in this book could have been conveyed in a 20 page pamphlet rather than this 300+ page puff piece with its wide margins and large fonts. A true disappointment.

As an experienced options trader , I am familiar with the concept of writing covered calls to increase your returns. My main objective in buying this book was to be able to write in the money calls to improve my premiums in addition to avoid limiting my profits by mistiming the option sale resulting in the call option being excercised. Although this book explains the covered call concept well and is good for beginners as many reviewers mentioned it does not specifically address the technical indicators needed to assess the trend of a stock to allow a person to choose the right time to take action. My experience has shown that to be successful in writing calls you must be able to spot reversals in the trend of a stock.
Althouh some general aspects of timing are addressed in chapter 13 "timing the market vs time in the market" they are too gneral and not useful in implementing the strategies at the right time.
Many investors do not realize that a covered call strategy by itself would have cost you significant profits during the strong market of the late 90's and it is only good as long as the stock you write calls on does not move up strongly through the strike. A strategy like this without balance in using puts in combination would have resulted in severely limiting profits through the bull market.Although the author intended the book to be just for covered calls showing how a combination of puts and calls can be used together would be useful. Some of the fluff in the book could have been replaced by more meaty chapters.
All in all a good book for beginners.

The Return by:Sonia Levitin was pretty interesting but as you fist started reading it you probably wouldn't get that impresion. This noval is ablut a young girl named Desta that lives with her aunt,auncle,brother,ans sister. Her brother's name is Joas and hes the oldesrt out of them three. Her sister's name is Almaz and shes the youngest out of them three. Desta's aunt and auncle raised all three of them because their parents had died when they were very young.

They lived in Ethiopia a small village in Africa and are black Jews. There journey began when Desta finds out that the government is taking the black male Jews and making them figth in the war and then they would probably miss treat the black female Jews

So they decided to leave their village and start a journey toward Israel the Holy Land before it was to late. They leaft with a group from another village. Melake,Weizero Channa,and Dan were some people from the other village. Dan is suppose to marry Desta, Melake is Dan's cousin and Weizero Channa is their grandmother. They all start this very dangerous jouney but not everyone makes it only a few of them do.

I would recomment this book to people of lots of faith. Also for people that would like to and be interested in reading and learning about another religion. This book is a good book and if you would like to readi about a group of black Jews that get treated badly make their way to a better land and place were everyone get treated the same then you should read this book.

The Return by Sonia Levintin is about Desta a 12-year-old Ethiopian-Jewish girl that lives in a small village high in the mountains of Ethiopia with her older brother Joas, her younger sister Almaz, Desta's Aunt Kibret, her Uncle Tekle, and a few neighbors around her village. The other tribes hated them and called them Falasha, stranger. They often almost blamed Desta's people for everything that went wrong. The other tribes also tortured, beat, or sometimes even kill them. Other people would tell them to give up their religious beliefs and to join the rest of humanity, many did, but many refused and were killed, indeed they were a dying race.

It all began one morning in early spring a young boy named Dan from the next nearest village came to tell the villagers about the dream his wise grandmother Weizero Channa had. Weizero Channa says that her dream meant the ram was representing God, and he is calling them, His flock, to follow Him. He will lead them out to a land of plenty. The villagers did believe this dream of the wise old women.

Then the day came when they spotted a few travelers from outside the mountains that were heading in the direction of their village. When the travelers arrived they greeted the villagers. The man in lead was Petros and the people he brought with him were white Jews from America. Desta's people were in shock, but realized the white Jews were frendly. That's when the villagers told them about their pain and suffering. The white Jews told the people about Jerusalem and the freedom you have there. The travlers left and that's when it all started.

The villagers thought about escaping, but also about the consequences they would face if they got caught. Joas started saving up money to go to Jerusalem and was determined to leave with Desta, but she refused because she didn't want to leave her homeland or family. The days went by and Desta began to think about escaping also. She then made up her mind and was determined to leave. When she told Joas, he then sorted out a plan for their escape. Joas, Desta, and her sister escape into the unknown and dangerous journey that lies with them. All three are courageous, brave, and have faith in themselves and have belief in finding their way to the Promised Land.

At first I couldn't get myself to be interested in the book or into it, but as soon as I continued on reading I became more curious and interested to see what happened next after each page. This was a great book to read and I truly recommend it to anyone that likes to read.

The Return by Sonia Levitin was a really good book. At first I did not want to read it but then as I read it, the book got better and better. It was very interesting to read how Desta lived.
The Return was about a young girl Desta who lived in a high mountain in Ethiopia. She lived with her aunt, uncle, her brother Joas, and her sister Almaz. Desta was Jewish and in Ethiopia the Ethiopians did not like the Jews. They wanted to keep the Jews away from them because they believed that Desta and her people were cursed and wherever they went they would bring bad luck. In Desta's village their soil was not that good so they did not have many crops. They also did not have much money. A lot of the people in Desta's village were leaving the village to go to Jerusalem "the promised land" where they would be free to do as they pleased. In Desta's village they were forbidden to leave and they were not free to do, as they wanted. Guards who made sure that they did not try to leave or get into trouble watched them. At night when no one was looking, some of the people took their families and their belongings and left to go on a long hike to Jerusalem. Desta's brother Joas wanted to leave their village and go to Jerusalem with Desta, Almaz and another group that was leaving. He asked Desta if she would come with him but she was not sure if she wanted to leave her aunt and uncle. She knew her aunt and uncle depended on her to help out but she also knew that they would not be able to come because they would not be able to make the long journey. After thinking for a long time however, she decided to go on the journey.
Weeks past and some strange people came to the village. Nobody knew who they were or what they were doing. Everyone got nervous. Instead of leaving the next day to meet the others in the next village like they planed, Desta's aunt told them to leave right away. So they left and they went as far as they could. They went to the village to meet with the others and the guide who would show them where to go. When they got there, they could not find the others. A lady told them that they already left because they heard that strangers were going to come and nobody knew who they were. The others left because they thought that if they waited for Desta and her family they would not be able to leave without getting caught. Joas told them that if they could walk really fast and not rest that maybe they could catch up. So they left.
After days of walking they thought that they saw the others. Joas told them to stay and not to move till he got back to see who was making a fire. So Almaz and Desta waited for him. After a couple of hours they saw a figure in the moonlight. It was Joas. He had been shot and was bleeding really badly. Desta tried to help but it was no use. Joas died. Desta could not stay there so she buried her brother and left to go on their long journey without him.
They were walking for days when they found a market. They needed food so they stopped and saw some of their friends Dan, Kess Haim, Melake and Weizero Channa from the group that they were supposed to have gone with. Desta and Almaz went with them and after more walking they finally reached the boarder. At the boarder they had to make a run for it because if they were caught they would be imprisoned and killed. They were going to make a run for it but then one of the guards came out. Dan ran and went right in front of the guard to distract him while everyone else ran. Dan was captured and the others made it to the other side. When Desta and everyone else stopped to take a rest, they realized what had happened and what Dan had done for them and their safety. They were really saddened by the loss of their friend but they went on. They found the camp that they were to go to where they would get shelter and food. They were there for weeks. After a while, a little boy told them about an airplane that would take them to Jerusalem. On the night that the plane was to come, Desta made sure that Almaz, Dan's grandmother and herself were first in line. They made it and got to Jerusalem. They stayed in a nice hotel and were well taken care of. They finally could start their new life were they would be free.
I thought that this book was really good, especially if you like books about the Jews and the struggles they went through

The Return Journey was the first book I have read written by the author Maeve Binchy. I did not like this book because it was a bunch of short stories about love, cheating, and other soap opera stuff that I don't like. The one story I liked in the book was The Wrong Suitcase it was about how two people Annie Grant and Alan Green who don't know each other go to London and then they go to baggage claim and pick up their suitcases by looking at the initials A.G that they have had enscribed on them. They each go back back to their hotels and open up the suitcases and find out that it is not theirs'. They each go through the suitcases to try to find the place where the other is staying. They end up finding both personal and professional information. They end up finding where the other is staying and they set a place to exchange them. They exchange them and our amazed how different they look then what they thought from the suitcase. I like this story because it is totally ironic that two strangers who have the same initials and suitcases where on the plane. The one story that reminded of a soap opera was Excitement because Rose who is married and her neighbor Ted who is also married and has kids go off together to have a affair. They each end up running into family, Rose runs into her mother and Ted runs into his wife's brother and his wife but that does not stop them from their excitement.

I usually don't like short stories as much as novels, but this book was a wonderful surprise. I loved The Return Journey and highly recommend it! Often short stories seem unsatisfying to me; if I like them, I am frustrated by their stopping too soon. That didn't happen with this book. I found these glimpses into the lives of the various characters to be intriguing and thought-provoking--and just the right length. Somehow Maeve Binchy has provided just enough for the stories to be absolutely satisfying and complete--although you may find yourself lost in your own thoughts afterwards! Each story deals with a journey. If you've ever wondered what human tale lies behind the sad or excited face of a stranger met on the road, or been curious about an unlikely pair of travel companions--you may enjoy this set of stories. I think the book would be just perfect to tuck in a suitcase for a vacation. The stories would also do well on your nighttable to read before bedtime--and then dream of your own trip! If you're the type of person who likes to sit with a cup of tea and daydream next to a sea with "twenty different shades of green and blue"--and wonders about that person over there who is sitting on a rock doing the same: try this book!

When I first started reading this book, I never realized it was one of short stories. As usual Maeve Binchy fleshes out the characters and you can understand very quickly what is going on.

What I like about each of these stories, is that it shows a point of view, of a character at a pin point of time. That pin point of time, is a crossroads. They can opt to continue on, in their well worn rut or they can make decisions that change their lives. These are not earthshattering choices, but ones that define their character.

If you don't want to settle into a book that will take a while to read, and you've never read Maeve Binchy, here is a good taste. I liked it especially well, as when I read it, I had little time available to read, it gave me just enough story to ponder on, each time I read.

Excellent bunch of stories.

This is the sequel to Bova's "Mars" novel, which was a more-than-tolerable read. This novel was barely worth finishing. Essentially, Bova is plumping against the notion that those awful Earth capitalists might exploit Mars by wanting to go there. The politics in the first novel were asinine, in this one just plain wierd. Somehow Bova has an American Indian tribe claiming the rights to most of Mars, thereby keeping the great unwashed capitalist masses away from Mars. Yeah, like that's going to happen.

Bova's Left-wing political slant is worse in this novel than it was in "Mars." It gets worse, by the way, in "Venus" which I was unable to finish, and therefore have not reviewed.

I gave this book 2 stars because I was able to finish it. Not recommended though.

I enjoyed Mars by ben Bova and was eager to read the sequel to learn the secrets that planet Mars has to offer humanity. I was disappointed to find that this book is merely a repeat of Mars with a different cast of characters.

Jamie Waterman, the geologist from the first mission to Mars, heads up the second team to see if Mars can be lucrative for business. As in the previous novel, Jamie has problems with male team members and hits the sack with a female team member. It seems tha Mr. Bova hit on a good thing and simply stuck with it.

The highlight of this book was discovering that the cliff dwellings that Jamie thought he saw in the first book were real. The decsriptions of the cliff dwellings were wonderful and make you imagine that there was life on Mars at one time in history. What a scary concept.

"Red Perspective" meaning from that of one who belives that Mars should be kept in it's pristine condition, untouched by man(except for a select few scientists) for all time to protect whatever life mayor may not be there.

However, although I personally disagree with that perspective, I found this to be a riviting book which I couldn't put down. Yet another mission to mars, and Jamie finally gets to see if his cliff dwelling is just a figment of his imagination, or ruins left by ancient martians, long dead. This mission is also fraught with accidents, which one of the crew belives is a sabouteur. Almost unthinkable in the close-knit group of scientists.

Mars is the next frontier to be explored, mapped, and colonised(I hope) in this century. Until we get there, reading an excellent account such as this, and others give food for thought of what to do once we get there.