Steve Thompson clearly shares an emotional bond with the athletes and students that he gives his life to. He once said, "Life is not only about the 4.0, you need to stop and invest in relationships." Thank you, Steve.

This book is very similar in style and purpose to John Feinstein's "Season On The Brink". The author's main focus in planning this book was to present a day to day behind the scenes look at the 1999-2000 Alabama basketball team. And for the most part that is what Stephen Thompson writes about. What he didn't plan for was the team's loving and caring relationship with Robert Scott, one of the assistant coaches who is suffering from terminal stomach cancer. Despite horrible pain Scott is always there at practices and games and always there to provide emotional support for his young team doomed themselves to a season that would gradually come apart as player after player is lost due to injury. At one time, there were not enough players to even practice. Walk on players were used in games. Yet the team is able to pull off upset wins over ranked teams, Vanderbilt, Tennessee and hated rival Auburn and came close to beating another ranked team...Florida. As a basketball fan I love this book. Thompson takes you inside the locker room, insde the coaches meeting and planning sessions. This book is never mundane. The ending is poignant yet hopeful. This is not just a great baskeball book; it's a great book.

It has been said that sometimes you don't find a book, it finds you. "A Gift Before Dying" is a book that found me. If you're a basketball fan, I hope it finds you.

This book is AMAZING.I'm a film student and i have to say i learned more from this book than the past three years in school.

This book, shall we say, 'cuts to the chase scene' of what to look for in a good shot.

Rather than contain lots of useless trivia look so many other books on filmaking and editing ["here's what a movieola looks like...it was invented in 1272 by Sir Random Dingleberry...", etc.], this book describes in no uncertain terms what ABSOLUTELY MUST BE IN EACH AND EVERY SHOT -- so that the successful film-maker can build a story that flows smoothly. This book will help you to be artistic, but will also help you to avoid confusing your audience. A small book that is easily read in the space of an hour, the student or novice film-maker will find himself using it as a quick reference many times over. Highly recommended.

Although many books have been written about Great Lakes shipwrecks, Thompson's book offers a new perspective by analyzing the causes of wrecks on a large scale. One can see the various factors that made the Lakes particularly dangerous to navigators throughout their history. Thompson's research is equally impressive. Unlike many other books of the genre, Thompson has actually consulted, in most cases, primary archival sources, in developing his wreck accounts, rather than simply rehashing the work of other authors. Thompson's presentation avoids dry regurgitation of statistics and details through an accessible and entertaining writing style that makes the book a better read than similar books on the subject. Although the book is not comprehensive and contains a few forgiveable historical errors, it remains one of the best books on Great Lakes shipwrecks to come out in recent years.

If you are a maritime enthusiast, Great Lakes visitor, or a history buff then this book is a must own. The pictorials are excellent and each are followed by outstanding descriptions. This book outlines the Great Lakes shipwrecks and how unforgiving these lakes can be.

Let me make one thing perfectly clear: This book is a companion volume to GURPS Magic. In order to fully appreciate (and make the best use of) this book, you need GURPS Magic as well. Now that that is out of the way, on to the praises. This is where you will find the odder and more esoteric spells (as well as some of the more powerful ones) that Magic just didn't have room for, or that handn't been thought of yet. Some of these spells are exceptionally powerful, others are just plain sneaky, but all are useful. As I said before, the odder corners and more advanced levels of magic are more fully represented in this book, along with optional rules. Here you will find things like techno-magic, radiation spells, acid spells, spells to literally rain fire down upon your foes, a spells to create an imprisoning circle around your foes, spells to fascinate and control your enemy, and even a spell to plunge them into a morass of incapacitating pleasure. That little list only scratches the surface, my friends. Almost every school of magic in the GURPS system has additions in this book, and all of them are worth looking at. If you want to be the best magic-user that you can be, this book will help you on your way.

Used with GURPS Magic and the GURPS Basic Set it provides a complete, varied and well integrated set of spells for roleplaying. Without being tied to specific genres it still manages to offer a wide range of dramatic possibilies from which many a plot could be spawned.

This book contains great detail of what life, and society was like in Jesus's day. The explanations, and historical facts presented mostly in full colour are a captivating guide to understanding all the contemporary references in the Bible. I have not come across another book like it, if you can find one, grab it fast, as it's currently out of print (for some unknown reason)

I hope you can all read it, its an absolute treasure.

The book is organized by category and covers the spectrum of historical and cultural information useful for understanding Biblical passages. References in the margin direct the reader to appropriate Biblical passages where the information can be applied. There are numerous illustrations drawn from archeology. Many of these illustrations are taken for contempory sources and most of them are in color. This volume is useful to the studend, scholar and teacher. It is a crime that it is not in print.

All of the best lines from the great "film noir" classics are here. There's a line to cover just about every subject, and you can amaze, amuse or astound your friends by using these quotes in everyday conversation. And, in the process, you can discover some pretty great films, as well--there's a lot of gems in here, and not just big ones like "The Maltese Falcon" or "The Big Sleep." Check da others out--you'll be glad ya did!

The book hit me like a cold, hard slap in the face.

The book is handsome and filled with all kinds of noir lines and photos. It's very funny. After reading it, it made me go online and search for these great B&W jems on tape.

I love both of these books. I wish they would hurry up and translate some more, already!! I discovered them by accident and am finding myself giving them to all my friends. They are funny, silly, and wonderfully surreal, and totally satisfying. I keep reading them over again.

In Harum Scarum, I am reminded of Blood Music, the book where some strange scientific experiment goes waaaay out of control. Except this is much less nihilistic, and in fact the story goes totally over the top in just the right way. It's a kind of anti-Scooby Doo thing: instead of pulling the mask off of old man Carlson -- aw, you gotta read it yourself. I loved it. It was hilarious, a total find.

What makes a comic book a chef-d'oeuvre ? Suspense ? Action ? Humour ? Pretty pictures ? Witty dialogues ? Well, everything and much more appears in Harum Scarum, by one of the best European cartoonists. - The scene takes place in France at the beginning of the century. The someday-famous McConey, a naive student, is unwillingly attracted in zillions of adventures : he'll meet a mad scientist, an ambitious journalist, a rather curious police officer, as well as burglars, snipers, lizard-looking monsters, time-travel machines, terrorists and so on. Amazingly enough, this all makes sense in Trondheim's World, where characters never lose neither their self-control nor their sense of humour. This book may please children of every age, and also adults (even more, maybe) : there's MUCH more in this comic book than in an usual cartoon. You'll be amazed !

In a very basic sense, the Hero's Guide is like an advanced expansion of the Revised Core Rulebook, but it's much more than that. The main purpose of this book is to provide tools for the player- and it definitely delivers. Gamers looking for long sections of background and history are advised to go elsewhere, but considering all that it offers, I'd consider this book a must-have for any serious player.

First off, the Hero's Guide follows in the high-quality style of other recent products such as the Ultimate Alien Anthology and Coruscant And The Core Worlds. Like its cousins this book is full-color and hardcover. One immediately notices the large amount of original artwork and still photos. The main index is organized alphabetically by topic, which makes finding most things mercifully simple. This book is well presented, easy on the eyes, and fun to read, but of course that's not why it deserves a spot on your bookshelf.

This book is simply filled to the brim with a vast array of new game rules and character options.

The main standouts are the chapters on Feats and Prestige Classes. In terms of Feats, over 120 new feats are offered, including feats for six distinct martial arts disciplines as well as feats depicting the seven forms of lightsaber combat. There is also a wide selection of faction-related feats. With such a wide selection even the pickiest player should be able to find something that fits his or her character.

Players will also like the selection of nearly 30 new prestige classes. Many of them are tied to specific factions, and some are definitely harder to qualify for than others, but they represent such a wealth of progression options that just about anybody should be satisfied. The full list includes: Chief Engineer, Infiltrator, Loyal Protector, Martial Arts Master, Master Duelist, Outlaw Slicer, Priest, Sharpshooter, Treasure Hunter, Antarian Ranger, Black Sun Enforcer, Black Sun Vigo, Master Spy, CorSec Officer, Corporate Troubleshooter, ISB Special Agent, Crime Broker, Mistryl Shadow Guard, Lord of the Expanse, Rebel Organizer, Sienar Engineer, Baran Do Sage, Matukai Adept, Zeison Sha Warrior, Espionage Droid, and Berzerker Droid.

Noticeably absent are the Jensaarai Warrior and the Dathomiri Witch, but at least the Jensaarai has an official entry in Dungeon Magazine 98 (Polyhedron 157).

The Hero's Guide also showcases the concept of character archetypes. Basically, an archetype is a multiclass character that replaces certain class features with ones that better fit a desired character concept. This sets a welcome precedent: if it doesn't fit, change it!

Also introduced is the concept of Sympathy. Sympathy is similar to and works in conjunction with Reputation, but it only applies when dealing with members of a faction with which you have Sympathy. Unlike Reputation, however, Sympathy can go up or down based on a character's actions.

In addition to all this there is a chapter devoted to character creation, another that discusses new uses for existing skills, a selection of new equipment (including the long-awaited rules for cybernetics), a chapter on new combat moves, a chapter that discusses the Force, and finally a chapter devoted to Droids.

After having read through it several times, I simply can't find a bad thing to say about this book. It may very well be the best SWRPG sourcebook published so far. Hats off to the authors and the entire team who put it together.

And if you still aren't satisfied, the Star Wars RPG section of the Wizards of the Coast website has a web enhancement for the Hero's Guide that includes even more archetypes and prestige classes.

To be perfectly honest, I hate Star Wars. I think the movies [are bad] and are completely uninteresting. But this book is a different story altogether. It brings to life what the movies can't. The writing is superb. Highly Recommended!!

This publication receives 5 stars for usefullness. If you are planning a course around the theme of the Hero's Journey (ala Joseph Campbell) or looking for curriculum support that will help your students understand archytpes in fiction, this book is for you. There are many ready-to-copy handouts, including a student workbook. Source material, rubrics, and clear lesson objectives are included. Better yet, the driving purpose behind these materials is for students to connect litertature to thier own lives. As they learn to see the patterns in stories, they see that each of thier lives is also a journey full of chanllenges and trials. Great material for a capstone course.

I was fortunate enough to have a seminar with Mr. Harris and I must say that this book changed my life and many others who read it. The ideas contained within it are very powerful and profound, giving anyone a new look at the things in their life. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone no matter what their age, or academic level.

A great reference for anyone who wants to add some depth to any holiday topic they are doing. Plus there are some celebrations that most of us don't even know about. The information is presented in informative and understandable style for older children to adults. I've used a few of the topics as additional information for some of my holiday cartoons on my website. One thing I thought a bit odd, it did not include Mardi Gras. Hmm? :)

This new edition of Sue Ellen Thompson's Holiday Symbols informatively surveys over 900 symbols associated with over 200 holidays around the world, providing an important reference to the origins, customs, traditions and histories of each and explaining the basics of each holiday.