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Much of this book deals with Latin American literature. Stavans' essays are informative, and frequently rich in intriguing insights. But I often found his style pompous and arrogant. I particularly disliked his many nasty comments about other Latino/Hispanic writers: he calls Mario Vargas Llosa a "dilettante" (in "Two Peruvians"); he dismisses Cherrie Moraga's work as "highly predictable and often stale" ("Art and Anger"); he refers to the career of Gabriel Garcia Marquez as "curiously disappointing," and says that this author's "Story of a Shipwrecked Sailor" is "forgettable and poorly structured" ("The Master of Aracataca"). Some of his cruelest comments are directed at Octavio Paz, whom he accuses of having a "relentless need to be worshiped and applauded." I have no doubt that many educated readers will disagree with these and other highly subjective statements.

Other essays in the collection are also troublesome. "The Latin Phallus: A Survey" contains interesting comments on such gay Latin American writers as Reinaldo Arenas and Jose Lezama Lima. But the essay as a whole is poorly structured (to steal one of Stavans' phrases) and ultimately unsatisfying.

Still, there are many good points in this collection. I was particularly intrigued by "Tongue Snatcher," about Argentine-born Hector Bianciotti, who writes in his adopted language of French. Overall, I recommend "Art and Anger" to those interested in Latin American studies, but I suggest that it be read with a critical eye.

The thrust of the book is to look at the phases a market can go through and to develop an approach for trading the phase now in evidence. Sweeneys also present concepts for turning a loss generated by a phase change into a profitable reversal. This concept builds on the authors' other work, Maximum Adverse Excursion. The concepts are fully explained and a methodology is used to illustrate each. The authors are careful to note that the method used may not be what they use and may not be optimum, but rather is presented for illustrative purposes.

At the outset I thought this work appropriate for only intermediate and experienced traders. Now I'm not so sure. Beginning traders, if they go back to this work from time to time, may be able to save themselves some time and grief.

I certainly recommend the book; I am uncertain whether I should post five stars or only four.

ron davis,CMT

My own trading style relies somewhat on technical analysis but is also heavily influenced by fundamentals and market psychology. What I found most attractive in Pring's candlesticks was the way in which he focused on what this or that pattern revealed about the attitudes of market participants not just from day to day, but more importantly during the day. As a swing trader, I find this approach absolutely essential in detecting shifts in sentiment on a relatively short term basis, but in a broader context than within the electronic strictures of pure day trading.

Above all else, I give Pring credit for simplifying this analytical technique down to its basic components and including excellent descriptions and charts. While I'm inclined to conclude that most Technical Analysis books are overpriced, I believe that any book that can give the trader reliable new tools is ultimately worth the price. I believe this book fits in that category. I recommend this volume to anyone who desires more than rudimentary knowledge of candlestick charting. I doubt that any discussion of candlestick charting extending beyond Pring's teaching would really add much to the topic. I highly recommend this particular volume.

It's recommended to students who want to have a quick grasp of knowledge in the EMU. It contains many graphs and diagrams which can raise your speed of reading. However, the impact of Euro on Equity market is a little bit too short.

Highly recommended to overseas students in Europe.

Good if you need stuff on public, centralizing models. Pretty poor if you want to read up on the evolution of e-markets.

I particulary enjoyed the section by Tempkin at Forrester Research. It provided a powerful look at how the Internet would ultimately impact businesses. While I'm not totaly convinced that the Internet will completely change how big, established businesses operate, his chapter was extremely thought provoking and should probably be read by any business executive thinking about what eBusiness will mean to them.