Most of the designs in CELTIC AND OLD NORSE DESIGNS by Courtney Davis appear to have been copied from items found in and around archelogical sites that date from around 1,000 B.C.E. to about 1,000 C.E., now housed in museums. Davis does not inform the reader of the specific aspects of these pieces. In fact, her text is almost non-existent.

Some of the items shown appear to match items that precede Roman times, others seem to coincide with Roman and early Christian times, and others are very similar to items discoved in Anglo-Saxon tombs like Sutton Hoo, or Viking sites in Scandanavia and are thus contemporary with the early Middle Ages. Some designs are found on spoons, horse collars, or weather vanes, while others are taken from church sculpture or graveyard crosses.

As the elements shown are not categoried by historical period, or referenced or sourced, this is not the scholarly work that I hoped it might be. However, if you don't care it does not matter. I will be using the book for children's artwork projects this summer (i.e. coloring books).

This is a great resourse for those looking for charted scrollwork, knotwork and other Celtic or Norse motifs.

STRONGLY recommend this book as THE best source for Norse type designs! Bold and true, this book is highly usable to impart the Nordic of Old flavor to your work!

This is an anthology of detective stories in Victorian era, when Holmes and Watson were actively investigating. However, Holmes fans will still be rather disappointed because most are featuring rather commonplace detectives showing off in front of the dumb. Nevertheless, there is still some intelligence in the detectives, which is rarely found in their modern world collegues.

Sherlock Holmes stands as the paramount Victorian era fictional detective. Indeed, he serves as the standard by which to judge all detective fiction. Douglas Greene includes "The Adventure of the Copper Beeches" as the representative Holmes story. A young lady, much in need of work as a governess, comes to Holmes for his advice on whether to take a position with a rather disagreeable gentleman. Holmes senses danger, but the offer of a fabulous salary defeats any misgivings. Holmes and Watson must later spring to the aid of the damsel in distress, and the reader encounters a surprise or two as the climax unfolds.

When Holmes and Moriarty went over the Reichenbach falls, Arthur Morrison sprang into the breach with Martin Hewitt, an amateur detective who enjoyed a better relationship with Scotland Yard than Holmes ever did. In "The Case of the Lost Foreigner," Hewitt and his adoring biographer unravel a mystery reminiscent of (but not nearly as mysterious as) the mysteries confronted by Holmes and Watson

Move over V.I. Warshawski, Loveday Brooke, lady detective solves a corker of a mystery in "The Ghost of Fountain Lane," a story in which modern readers will find themselves at a disadvantage. Some of the clues depend on knowledge of turn-of-the-century religious practices.

We also find a Rudyard Kipling opus, "The Return of Imray," a mystery solved more by accident than design.

Kalad Persa, a Hindu mystic who sits smoking a hooka in the back room of a London detective agency, solves mysteries by divination. In "The Divination of the Zagury Capsules," he listens at a peep hole as the client tells her story and then tells the leg man what to do to solve the mystery. It reminded me somewhat of Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin. Although Persa's directions come trapped in mysticism, it's easy (at least by 20/20 hindsight) to see the chain of logical deduction that leads to the "divination."

Baroness Orczy, the creator of the Scarlet Pimpernell, also created the Old Man in the Corner. In "The York Mystery" the Old Man sits in his Corner at the restaurant and solves the conundrum of a scandalous murder merely from reading the newspaper accounts. The working out of the murderer's identity is a nice piece of deductive and inductive reasoning.

In "The Haverstock Hill Murder," Dorcas Dene, another lady detective, undertakes to clear a man arrested for murder on seemingly conclusive evidence. The task seems hopeless, but . . .

Dr. John Thorndyke has the honor of being probably the first truly scientific detective. In "The Dead Hand" he uses his knowledge of marine biology and marine geography to prove up a murder and capture the criminal. The plotline is a "Columbo" style inverted mystery in which we watch the villain perpetrate the seemingly perfect crime. Then Dr. Thorndyke goes to work and unravels the Gordian Knot. This has to be the best story of the lot.

Miss Florence Cusack, the foremost lady detective in Victorian England, solves the case of "Mr. Bovey's Unexpected Will" and finds his hidden legacy in a quite unexpected place.

"A Perverted Genius" presents a caper story in which the reader ought to easily discern the bad guy far ahead of the constabulary, but what happens next is quite paradoxical.

G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown, of all the detectives except Holmes, is the one a modern reader will most likely have heard of. In "The Eye of Apollo," Father Brown deductively solves an ingenious murder, but the case would never stand up in court. How can the villain be foiled and justice prevail? Read the story. Interestingly, Father Brown has a sidekick. He's a Scotland Yard detective named Hercule Flambeau! Now where have I heard a name like that before?

"The Purple Emperor" may be the only murder story where the central characters are butterfly collectors and a knowledge of butterflies is essential to solving the mystery.

Jacques Futrelle created "The Thinking Machine," an armchair detective whose deductive powers exceeded those of Mycroft Holmes. Futrelle's story, "The Tragedy of the Life Raft," is the last Thinking Machine story, written shortly before Futrelle's death on the Titanic.

One of the big mysteries of this collection is how "The Story of Baelbrow" got included. It's a ghost story, and not a very god one. The one sour note in the book.

Having spent years combing the used bookstores from Maine to Florida for Victorian era detective fiction, I can vouch for the superlative quality of this collection. You would probably have to time-travel in order to find so many intriguing stories all in one place-including a rare gem by R. Austin Freeman which apparently has never been published before in the United States. The editor is Edgar award-winning author Douglas G. Greene, considered by many the foremost authority on classic detective fiction today. The introductory essay alone is worth the price of the book. Thanks again, Dover-and thanks again, Douglas Greene.

If you didn't know, this book is hard. I am a first year engineering student, and I felt lost through most of it. I gather it was intended for full-fledged physicists, but I was intrigued to read it anyway because of a philosophical thread running through the work. But beware--get ready for some Immanuel Kant and Einstein in only the introduction. This book is as much about the physics of time as the philosophy concerning subjectivity of time. Even though I didn't understand a lot of the probability or almost any of the quantum mechanics math, I still got some pleasure out of some of the more bizzare conclusions of the book. Did you know that for an isolated system (one not interacting with any others), time can't be said to have any direction? Furthermore, time as we know it is just a statistic. Another interesting fact is that on the quantum mechanical level, there is no such thing as time! If these things intrigue you (and you know what a double Riemann sum is) go for this book. Otherwise, be very afraid...

It is a beautiful but exterememly difficult book. It covers the concept of time and direction of time from the beginning up to current thinking. Author, being one of the founding fathers of philosophical quantum theory first introduces a good understanding of Thermodaynamics and Statiastical Physics and defines the order of events to lead into statistical definition of arrow of time. A lot of difficult concepts from Classsical Statistical Physics, Probability Theory, Relativity and Mathematical Logic as well as a good understanding of Quantum Physics is assumed to be in the bag of the reader, after all this book is not a Popular Science book. Although the author claims that knowledge of derivations of the formulas used are not critical to understand this study yet time to time the language and logic becames exteremely difficult. This is a must read book in this subject, may be many times or time and time over after increasing the understanding in other subjects that only tools in this book.

H.Reichenbach is undoubtly one of the most remarkable scientists that the world has ever witnessed. The interested mind is to be very strongly urged to read the book 'The direction of time' by him. Time is an essential concept to every physics student, as without it nature would be meaningless, and therefore the study of nature would be an empty pursuit. Whenever we wish to understand why we are in the 'world', say rather than in the planet MARS we have to understand thoroughly what actually happenned in the past, beginning from The Big Bang, that is, from the beginning of time. The book gives us a clear understanding into this inquiry ('TIME') developing both classical and quantum mechanical content of the concept of time starting from the first principles. The book carefully clarifies many confusing conceptions about time. For instance, the author clearly explains the contradictions lying in the famous Zeno's paradox which attemts to prove that time does not exist, in such a way that the physics student is now much more confident with such essential concepts as displacement and velocity. Also in the book, another essential concept of statistical physics ENTROPY is developed in a very systematic way and through this concept the direction of time is decisively established. Moreover, the issue of DETERMINACY or INDETERMINACY , an issue which is simply ignored in the text books or mentioned briefly in a few sentences as if it is self-evident and therefore does not need further elaboration, is discussed in depth, so both theoretical and experimental physicists have now a strong ground in arguing their proposals. I, as a physicist of 18 years of university lecturing experience, strongly recommend it to every single physics student or actually every single mind (student or not) who cares about the future, and who needs a decisive explanation (justification) for their potential steps to save (before being too late) our home THE WORLD WHICH WE NOW LIVE IN, only home only home and only home for us and for our childeren including of course our organic bodies, the animals and the plants. The direction of time and equally of The ENTROPY are the key concepts to understand what technology actually is, and to understand why it is inevitable to face more and more polluted environment as technology advances.

Okay Mr. "I love Everyman", I also am an AP High school student and am portraying Everyman in our High School production of the Everyman and trust me, the story is reptitious, boring, anti-climatic and fails to actually captivate an audience unless drastic revisions are incorporated. The morals are good, but the lines are superficial.

I found the play to be quite absorbing to read. Everyman is the explanation of medieval norms-this morality play does not work as a universal moral story. As such, this play is valuable to any historian studying the moral code of the middle ages.

As an AP student in high school, I have been exposed to a large variety of obscure literature and find it quite exhilerating to experience. Everyman presented a challenging read with a didactic message intertwined within its pages. As a nonpracticing Christian, I was awed by the lesson Everyman faced and became more aware of my own mortality.

But that, amazingly enough, is all it costs. I don't know how Dover does it, but I'm glad they do.

This probably should really get 3 1/2 stars; it's better than a "three", but I can't quite bring myself to give it four.

There are eight short pieces by Twain; there's "The Notorious Jumping Frog Of Calaveras County", doubtless the most famous story here, and "Journalism in Tennessee", a marvellous exaggeration of cutthroat frontier journalism that is, as so much of Twain's work is, reminiscent of Dickens. Then there's "About Barbers", which starts as a commentary on what we now call Murphy's Law, and then moves on to complain of barbers who are intent on cutting the customer's hair the way THEY want it, and to blazes with what the customer wants -- a complaint that seems still relevant even today. Then follows another story with a point unaffected by the passage of time: "A Literary Nightmare", a complaint about advertising jingles that cannot be driven out of the brain with an icepick. Then we have "The Stolen White Elephant", in which Twain directs his satire at the deductive powers of would-be Sherlock Holmeses, and a self-deprecatory tale of his own foolishness during the Civil War ("The Private History of a Campaign That Failed"). Next up is my personal favorite, "Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offences", in which he gives elaborate reasons, in great detail, why he disagrees with the common wisdom that James Fenimore Cooper is a great writer (or, for that matter, can write at all.) (Perhaps I should find "Pathfinder" and "Deerslayer" on the book list here, and transcribe his comments.) And he closes with "How To Tell A Story", in which he gives advice that seems to me to be good advice for would-be stand-up comics.

The humor in some of these stories is a bit unsubtle, but certainly if you are fond of Twain, and haven't all of these stories in some other collection, it's worth the price of admission for even the least of them.

This is a good short book for an hour or two plane, bus or train ride. It's not too difficult to read and pretty amusing. You'll read it with a smile on your face and the time will go back quickly.

I mean, hey, it's a dollar. God bless Dover Thrifts.

"Humorous Stories and Sketches," be Mark Twain, brings together 8 comic gems by this giant of American literature. At around 80 pages this Dover edition may be small in size, but it's big in laughs and wit.

The 8 pieces are "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County," "Journalism in Tennessee," "About Barbers," "A Literary Nightmare," "The Stolen White Elephant," "The Private History of a Campaign that Failed," "Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses," and "How to Tell a Story." Twain satirizes gamblers, journalists, police detectives, international diplomacy, the military, and other things.

Particularly effective is the Civil War narrative "The Private History"; it's funny and bitingly satirical, but also surprisingly poignant as Twain reflects on the brutality of war. For laugh-out-loud funny, however, the elephant story is my favorite. A perfect book both for literature courses or just for individual pleasure reading.

Crane has a delightfully light style of writing that can take the deepest and most sorrowful of situations, and somehow bring them light. His, "Maggie: A Girl of the Streets," is a wonderful depiction of life for a 19th century girl in New York. "The Open Boat" puts you on the ship; you can naturally feel the narration and flow with him as he crashes against the waves. A wonderful read for any interested in American or New York literature.

Stephen Crane died at the early age of 29, but in his writing he shows what he'd come through in life. I think his style is mature and hardened up, due to a life spent in difficult times. In "The Blue Hotel", he depicts a brief, brutal and enigmatic moment in the lives of several residents and migrants in Nebraska, a stupid and cruel fight in the midst of a snow blizzard.

The rest of the stories have to do with Civil War episodes and other moments in the US history. My favorite tale is the one that's on the cover of the book: the Open Boat. It is masterfully told, the story is tense, sad and exciting. The reader can feel the up and down movement of the boat, the cold wetness of the clothes, the seasickness the characters suffer, the desolation at every failure to approach the coast, the relationship between the characters, etc. It is a pity that Crane died so young, since in these short stories he shows himself as a talented, gifted and mature writer.

Crane proves to be an early American master of the short story. I found "Courage" to be plodding and obvious, but Crane's short stories rescue his literary reputation for me.

The stories are well paced with vivid characters and little epiphany by story's end.

Sheridan's phrase "school for scandal" is a grand metaphor for the gossipy London society of the late 1770's, and the longevity of the play that bears it as its title attests to its relevance in any place and time. Sheridan captures the inherent drama and humor in the truism that people are always talking about other people behind their backs and uses it as a foundation on which to devise a plot of intrigue.

The school's "principals" are Lady Sneerwell and a man named Snake, who like to collect gossip about their neighbors and others in London society; one of their cohorts is the brilliantly ironic character Mrs. Candour, who openly reprehends idle gossip but blithely participates in it anyway. One of their favorite subjects of gossip is the Surface brothers, Joseph and Charles. The popular perception is that Joseph is responsible and respectable, while Charles is a wastrel and a miscreant.

The Surface brothers' uncle, Sir Oliver Surface, returns to London after spending many years in India, hears the rumors about his nephews, and decides to verify them for the purpose of choosing an heir between the two. Since he has been gone so long that his nephews would not recognize him, he visits them incognito. Posing as a moneylender to Charles, and as a poor relative to Joseph, he discovers that his nephews are not quite of the natures he has been led to believe.

Sheridan employs some typical comedic devices like love triangles and hiding characters, but for the most part this is an inventive play that picks its targets well and hits the bullseye every time. Considering it was written at such a turbulent time in England's history, it's interesting that social satire still managed to break through greater national concerns and be successful and appreciated.

This book made it fun and delightful to follow how rumors and scandals are started. Anyone who wants a ligth hearted read in the style of a Shakespearean comedy, "School for Scandal" by Richard Sheridan is for you. It has the most entertaining characters, who anyone could recognize as being people they know and are friends with, and it pokes fun at soap-opera-like dramas that have forbidden loves and misleading coincidences. The situations that arise seem so unthinkable and impossible, and then you realize that you or someone you know has been there right down to the last detail. "School for Scandal" is a entertaining read for anyone who has ever passed on a rumor.

The aptly named Sir Oliver Surface would like to know which of his nephews is the more worthy, and, well, nothing is ever simple. This comedy of manners is one of the best ever written, and it rings true 225 years after its first performance thanks to its snide comments on English aristocrats and one-liners such as "I'm called away by particular business. But I leave my character behind me."

The Dover Thrift edition has no introduction or analysis. Intoduction and analysis are of course not necessary, but in some situations they are nice things to have.

This book is an excellent source of older style Hardange patterns. While there are no graphs, the pictures are clear enough that the Hardanger stitcher with some experience can easily handle the designs, which are typically more complex and more densely decorated than the current trends in Hrdanger. A must have for a Hardanger junkie!

I absolutely loved the designs but they were way too advanced for a beginner like me. I would like to see step-by-step instructions or a few samplers included with the harder patterns.

This is an excellant book for an adventurous novice and a delight for the advanced Hardanger enthusiast. There are no graphs but the pictures are clear and numerous, and there are some directions and close-up pictures of unusual motifs. The style of the work is unusual, densely rich and complex. For the advanced stitcher, a look at a different style of Hardanger and for the novice, an attainable goal to shoot for!

2289 Traditional Stencil Designs is the reprinting of two catalogues (circa 1918 & 1920) from "Excelsior" Fresco Stencils. It is a rich resource of ornamental motifs providing an invaluable record of American decorative tastes during the first quarter of the 20th Century. Restoration and Renovation enthusiasts will find some of the anonymous English and American inspired designs representative of the Aesthetic Movement and Early Arts and Crafts Movement useful for their projects. Lyrical and expressive motifs abound, along with French inspired friezes, Neo Classical laurel wreaths, architectural elements, festoons, medallions, rosettes, drops, cartouches, damask designs, and classic acanthus, egg and dart, and anthemion variations. The professional will delight in using document colorways to great affect. Subtle elegance of tone on tone designs produced from the 1880's to the turn of the century by Wm. Morris' original wood blocks are there for the masterly to emulate. These stencil designs are not for the faint of heart. They are small and do not have instructions. Many suites of companion designs offering wall, ceiling, and frieze groupings abound, but only for the practiced eye to locate. There are no arrows pointing the way. This book may be utilized to it's best advantage by professional artists, designers, and experienced stencilers who possess both a projector and a knowledge of document design. However, one needn't be a Renzo Mongiardino to produce a satisfying result. I was slow to warm to the book due to what I feel are a good many "dated" and clumsy designs that no wizard could dazzle. If only 25% of 2286 designs are of use to me, I'm content. I now own two copies. One for the projector, and one for the resource library. The cover art typifies the best of the book's content. It is not a fluke or teaser cover. Those finding this style of motif to their liking, will also enjoy the book's content.

This book has many beautiful stencil designs and is a good resource book for the professional stenciler. The designs are all copy right free. The only complaint I have is that some of the designs are printed very small and it can be quite difficult to enlarge it to the right size. Also some of the designs can be a little difficult for a beginner to cut themselves.This book is more suited for a professional or someone very experience in cutting their own stencils.

It would be fair to mention that the book was first published more than forty years ago, and that the most recent reference still dates back to the mid-fifties..

Aeroelasticity is one of those classic aeronautical references that presents material that is found nowhere else. It is the definitive work on scaling as applied to aircraft structures under aerodynamic loading. If you are serious about understanding the elastic behavior of an airplane's structure, you owe it to yourself to get this book and STUDY IT!