european Books

The book of Mattli is a very convincent work in regional integration studies. His arguments is not based in a (traditional)economic approach where integration is viewed only for eliminating borders barriers.

Inside political science Mattli think in terms of the role of the regional leader, the external forces of economics and demands for regional rules as the driving forces of regionalism.

Chapter 2 and 3 are the best parts of the book, and i use these chapters in my courses of regional integration, in international relations area.

Mattli provides a thorough and careful study of regional integration in which he takes all previous theories, analyses them and synthesizes them into his own 'demand and supply' theory. If many questions about the current 'integrationist' trend were left unanswered, or poorly explained, by previous theories, both in economics and political-science; Mattli does a splendid job at explaining integration and its modus operandi. By looking at why many attempts at integration have failed and very few succeeded, and by looking at why and when 'outsider' countries attempt to become 'insiders', Mattli develops his demand-and-supply-side-conditions analysis of regional integration. His specialist knowledge of the current European integration (and previous historical attempts) is showcased in Chapter 4. This book provides a new, rich and logical framework for further studies on regional integration.

The editorial blurbs give the basic facts of Lola's life, but what they cannot convey is the verve with which Bruce Seymour tells her tales. A prefatory note acknowledges the game show Jeopardy as enabling him to write the book thanks to his winnings. His four years were well spent. Seymour, therefore, is no ordinary scholar on the tenure track. As a lawyer, he brings skill in analyzing documents and developing contexts within which Lola and her conquests could act within and beyond the force of the law.

He has certainly done his research, but this book wears it lightly and elegantly. Elegance for a girl from Cork who in less globalized times of instant celebrity and social networking could pose as a Spaniard, dance her way into the wallets and beds of countless besotted swains, and then, once dumped or dumping, move on to her next conquest seemingly for decades little the worse, at least on the surface, for wear. Lightly, or so she seemed, over years of unpredictable liaisons within the turmoil of 1848 and a Europe that threatened to topple the monarchies within which Lola worked her machinations and maximized her share of the winnings.

While not the dour, earnest, or sharpish stereotype of the early feminist, nonetheless she pioneered the right of a woman to be heard and her power--in and out of the boudoir being formidable--to be taken seriously by those in quite influential positions of celebrity and/or acclaim themselves. Lola early perfected her ability to live by her quick study of her suitors, her rivals, and their relative positions vis-a-vis her own advantage. The blackberried and suited type-A CEOs finding and then shattering a glass ceiling in later years also may find that her life anticipates the troubles and the triumphs of being the first woman to successfully make into fact what Becky Sharp in Thackeray's "Vanity Fair" displayed in fiction. Lola certainly does remind you of a storybook tale, in all its complications, subplots, and, well, climaxes.

This is one of my favorite books. It shows how to chart a life and from it extrapolate directions that intersect, far off, with our own condition-- as a good biography should do. Lola was one of the first mass media phenomenons. She spurred the newspapers to promote her and they were only too eager to do so. Of course, this could backfire, but she does, in her later years, appear to have thrived from no publicity is bad publicity. Yet, nearer her death, repentance did occur, and she follows again the narrative arc of so many 18 and 19c fictional protagonists.

She managed to give as good as she got. The press pumped her up and cast her aside as both would sell papers. Her notoriety, carefully cultivated, managed to ensure that for much of the 19th century's middle decades, she would remain prominent, as much so at least as the nobles and royals with whom she connived and cavorted.

Many of those enjoying via MySpace or YouTube through their Warholian fifteen minutes of fame today have Lola to thank as their unwitting predecessor. Yet Seymour neither exaggerates or diminishes her impact. His thorough research into primary and secondary sources allows him to compare what she herself wrote about her life with what happened, or as much as can be known 150 years later. This book, taking on a woman so wrapped up in whipped-up scandal and calculated brazenness, clever self-defence and bold self-aggrandizing, is a notable feat. For those in her potential audience today less hungry for today's spotlights, Lola's story, naturally, is also a cautionary tale in the personal and financial costs of so much controversy and backstabbing and maneuvering, in a time when she, as a lone woman, dared to take on the establishment with wit, intelligence, and shrewdness.

Beautiful, lovely, sexy and fascinating -- makes me want to do a little Spanish dancing and start an adventure.

Art deco buildings and details of them are categorized into chapters on department stores and shops, hotels, London transport facilities, civic buildings, residential buildings, and factories. There's also chapters on memorials and the decorative items of lamps, clocks, and signage. The book is mostly one of about 200 color photographs of all these subjects put together by an award-winning filmmaker from London. Schwartzman has a long familiarity with this dominant style of the 1920s and '30s from being introduced to it in walks around London with his parents when he was a young child. Art deco became an international style in the decades between the 20th-century's two world wars after being featured at a Paris exhibition in 1925. The many photographs display London's application of this style in varied ways from building design, their features, and public art down to clocks and napkin rings. Informative captions not only identify the numerous attractive London art deco objects shown, but also relate points of interest about them.

The best of London Deco captured by Arnold Schwartzman and in the same style as his previous excellent Deco LAndmarks: Art Deco Gems of Los Angeles. Both books work well because he took all the photos and so there is a consistency of color and composition. I thought one of the strengths of the LA book was the many photos of architectural detail work, whether inside a building or out and the same applies to this London edition.

All types of Deco buildings are covered though very little of residential buildings, apartment blocks in the city and individual houses in the suburbs, a good selection of these in the capital can be found in The Modern House Today. London Transport rightly gets a good showing with twenty photos and cinemas have a fine selection of detail that I bet passers-by never notice. One of the great Deco buildings in Britain is the Hoover Factory on the western outskirts, opened between 1932 and 1937 and now a supermarket, though the owners Tesco thankfully took the trouble to preserve all the original features. The amazing entrance suggests it might be the headquarters of Aztec Airways.

Overall a handsomely produced book and a lovely tribute to London Deco.

***FOR A LOOK INSIDE click 'customer images' under the cover.

This book is one of the best photographic books on London that I've seen! I'm an anglophile, and love London, so I collect books on England and Scotland. This book is a great value!

I am not much for writing reviews, but this book deserves to have at least 1 review. I found this book to be of great value! This book is very weighty, with nice thick pages. The book even includes full page fold-outs of photos that could not be contained in a single page (Total of 4 pages for each pullout photo). This book hits the sights of London that do not get a mention in other books, while including the top sights. Each sight gets at least a paragraph worth of description. If you want a book that does the above, then pick this book up!

This is a fascinating read - very well-researched and written. Even if you aren't a Beatles fan, you will find this book interesting!

This is a fantastic book written by an interesting and brilliant professor of English. I urge anyone interested in poetry or the Beatles or both to purchase this wonderful scholarly title. Any library would wish to have this wonderful book!

This story is about the first substantial penetration into Northern Germany, north of the Ardennes, near the ancient city of Aachen, past the dragons's teeth of the Siegfrid line and the capture of the Roer River. Crossing into Germany occurred on Sept 12th by the recon patrol of 3rd AD, just 5 days before the start of Market-Garden and will continue through the Battle of the Bulge and into Feb of 1945.
The story will evolve from a recon patrol to Corps involvement and then into several Corps; the author takes the story to Feb 1945 and include the British and Canadians with Operations Veritable and Grenade. Even omitting the bloody passages of the Hurtgen Forest, the author has written a splendid account of the battle for Aachen and the advance and capture of the Roer River. Its a balanced account that shows the bravery and determination of both armies. The fighting would escalate into October and November that will see 30,000 casualties for the US and equally large number for the Germans.
This was a thoroughly interesting and informative story. The author certainly did his homework for his coverage was excellent. The main theme was the tactical coverage of the fighting but on a secondary level, General Eisenhower's views on the war and his relationship with Monty and Bradley were also discussed on how those two would compete for Eisenhower's attention etc. Also the logistic and ammo shortages are discussed and the need to open Antwerp. The constant argument of wide front / narrow front was also stressed. In additions to good coverage of the engagements, the author also describes in detail the Armies, Corps, Divisions and Task Forces that are involved, describing the strengths and weaknesses of each unit. The battlefield is also explained in detail.
The brief introduction describes Aachen and the surroundings and the general state of the war on the west front at the time that helps set the stage. There are also a few simple but effective maps and some photos. There is also an extensive Notes chapter, a Bibliography and a Order of Battle list. A decent index ends the book.

This was an important battle that is always in the shadows of Market-Graden and the Battle of the Bulge but the author has done a great job of bringing it to the forefront. I highly recommend this title to anybody interested in the "Bulge" and the crossing of the Rhine. I would like to suggest reading "Hell in Hurtgen Forest" by Robert Rush for it complements Mr Yeide's book.

The Longest Battle: September 1944 To February 1945, From Aachen To The Roer And Across by Harry Yeide (a Washington D.C. based international affairs analyst with the American government) is the day by day story of the American and Allied push against the Germans in the European Theatre that began on September 12, 1944 with an American patrol entering Nazi Germany southwest of the city of Aaschen and concluding several months later with American troops crossing the Roer river into the heartland of Germany. The conflict was an exceedingly bloody one that ended with a severe crippling of the German Wehrmacht forces from which they never recovered. Even though the war would continue until May of 1945, this extended confrontation that came to be called the Roer River campaign was critically vital to the eventual triumph of Allied forces, and would be the longest single military campaign of World War II. Harry Yeide's informed and informative history is superbly written and is an enthusiastically recommended addition to any personal or academic World War II history collection.

In this book, Richard Hough covers the historical angle very well; that's a requirement. He teaches the reader about naval conflict in World War II quite nicely. But his main accomplishment is to make it very interesting. This book is a good read; Hough makes it a pleasure to learn what he's teaching. Highly reccommended.

General accounts of WWII naval campaigns are not in short supply. Readers may wonder if the world needs another, especially a reprint first published in 1986. Yet it's a good one.

A straightforward chronicle, the book begins on September 3, 1939. The author points out that the 'phony war' that persisted till May 1940 was no such thing at sea. U-boat and surface actions strained the British navy to its limit. Vicious battles in spring 1940 failed to prevent Nazi occupation of Norway but destroyed so many German surface vessels that they ceased to present a strategic threat. English naval historian Hough spends a great deal of his book on the travails of his country: the U-boat war as well as the destruction of half a dozen German surface vessels, but these remain gripping stories. The author accepts the traditional view that the Allies won the Battle of the Atlantic by a whisker although Clay Blair (Hitler's U-boat War, Random House, 1996) insists the issue was never in doubt. Americans need reminding of the 1940-42 Mediterranean campaign which was definitely won by a whisker. Fighting to hold Malta and keep supplies from Axis forces in North Africa, the British devastated the Italian fleet but suffered terrible losses from U-boats and aircraft. Victory wasn't assured until Hitler transferred much of his air force to the Russian front.

On a different, gargantuan scale were the awesome fleet actions across the Pacific. Besides recounting the campaigns in all their Wagnerian detail, the author mentions a reason for the allied victory readers often forget: despite their willingness to die, Japanese naval leaders lacked the killer instinct. From Pearl Harbor to the Guadalcanal battles to Leyte Gulf, their admirals failed to press home their attacks or sailed off after a satisfying tactical victory.

Samuel Eliot Morison's massive but eminently readable work remains the benchmark, but this is a fine single volume history.

If you are panicking over an imminent assignment, or if you have a lecture to deliver tomorrow on the intricacies of World War I, pick up this book. This mine of information on all aspects of the First World War and its origins contains thousands of facts which are easily found, placed in context, and cross-referenced to provide a coherent overview of the military, economic and social history of the period. The book is a masterpiece of compression and succinct analysis. The scope and breadth of its treatment of this vast subject are very impressive. One would need to wade through dozens of dense monographs to find this information. If you need further guidance, Nicolson provides a detailed and up-to-date critical bibliography to help you through the reference maze.

The sheer range of subjects covered is extraordinary: What does the first performance of Stravinsky's 'Rite of Spring' tell us about the pre-war mindset? What was going on in Bosnia or Macedonia before the war? What were the terms of the Franco-Russian Alliance, and the Austrian ultimatum to Serbia? Who was the Austrian ambassador to Russia during the July Crisis of 1914? Why was the German Kaiser cruising on his yacht while Europe descended into chaos? What were the "Willy-Nicky' conversations? Were Russia or Austria-Hungary prepared for war? HOw were the Serbs able to defeat Austria? Why was the German war effort so disorganized? In which country did women, factory workers of the press fare best? How did Turkey, Italy, Bulgaria, Romania and Greece become involved? Who shot the editor of Le Figaro in the eve of the war? What did Winston Churchill do after he resigned in 1915? Who was Bolo Pasha? What was a 'woolly bear'? Why did the French turn to a 76-year-old journalist to lead them to victory? The answers are all here in this remarkable and comprehensive volume.

If you have a lecture to deliver tomorrow morning, or are stressed out over an imminent wartime assignment, this is the book you want. A mine of information on all aspects of World War I and its origins, Colin Nicolson's compendium contains thousands of facts about the war which are easily accessed, placed in context, and cross-referenced to provide a coherent overview of the military, economic, and social history of the period. The book is a masterpiece of compression and succinct analysis. The scope and breadth of its treatment of this vast subject are very impressive. One would need to wade through dozens of dense monographs to access the information presented here, but if you need guidance for further reading, Nicolson provides a detailed and up-to-date critical bibliography to guide you through the maze.

The sheer range of subjects covered is extraordinary: What does the first performance of Stravinsky's 'Rite of Spring' tell us about the pre-war mindset? What was going on in Bosnia or Macedonia before the war? What were the terms of the Franco-Russian Alliance, and the Austrian Ultimatum to Serbia? Who was the Austrian ambassador to Russia during the July Crisis of 1914? Why was the German Kaiser cruising on his yacht while Europe descended into chaos? What were the 'Willy-Nicky' conversations? Were Russia or Austria-Hungary prepared for war? How were the Serbs able to defeat Austria? Why was the German war effort so disorganized? In which country did women, factory workers or the press fare best? How did Turkey, Italy, Bulgaria, Romania and Greece become involved. Did attempts to end the war amount to anything? Who shot the editor of Le Figaro in the eve of the war? What did Winston Churchill do after he resigned in 1915? Who was Bolo Pasha? What was a 'woolly bear'? Why did the French turn to a 76-year-old journalist to lead them to victory? The answers to all these questions and many more can be found in this remarkable and comprehensive volume.

Annemarie Schimmel is an internationally recognized expert on Sufism in general and Rumi in particular. In this selection of poems of Rumi, she also shows herself to be a woman of excellent poetic sense in English.

Especially enjoyable in this small volume are poems that reflect the common origins of Judaism, Christianity and Islam: "... You be an ocean and throw out the boat! / You be a world and throw away the world! .............

If you enjoy Sufi poetry or Rumi, consider this book a must.

WHEN I FIRT SAW I WAS AFRAID TO TALK TO YOU , WHEN I TALKED TO YOU I WAS AFRAID TO LIKE YOU , WHEN I LIKED I WAS AFRAID TO LOVE YOU , NOW THAT I LOVE YOU I'M AFRAID TO LOSE YOU..

A truly excellent addition to any art enthusiast's collection of artists' books and mongraphs. This piece is a must-have for any fan of the artist's work...it fills in quite a few holes regarding Bacon in relation to his work and his working process. Even if you are unfamiliar with the artist's work, you will find Sylvester's prose will easily entice you into taking a good long look at one man's dark, yet triumphant take on humanity and the world we live in. Brilliant!

Few artists of the 20th century have engendered as much controversy while having such an enormous impact on coming to grips with personal demons on canvas as Francis Bacon. Once again the erudite scholar David Sylvester has written about his friend in a way that makes all other collections of images and gossips about Bacon pale in comparison. This book is a true "retrospective", not only because if can look at the entire output of this enormously gifted painter, but it puts Bacon in a perspective of comparison and study of influences that span all of art history. Sylvester manages all this with his usual eloquence of writing style. This book is an academic treatise, but is is also a biography that looks carefully and thoughtfully at the mad mind and paintings of Francis Bacon. Highly recommended for Bacon devotees as well as those who still seek to understand the past century's art journey.