Rylander, a student of the famous Austrian animal behaviorist Konrad Lorenz, put forth considerable effort to extract noteworthy examples of innate and learned behavioral traits in Texas birds. All students of Texas birds and bird behavior should add this book to their library.
Jack Eitniear
Editor/Bulletin of the Texas Ornithological Society
and Occasional Publication Series

(...or adults that are just kids at heart!)

Peter Kent has put forth a wonderful children's book as both writer and illustrator of Behind Bars. It plays like a "Where's Waldo" of famous (and infamous) prisons throughout history. The Tower of London, Doge's Prison, the Bastille, Devil's Island, Alcatraz, and many more are intricately laid out across a two page spread with accompanying text briefly sharing notes of interest and tidbits of facts regarding the focused keep.

Within each picture there is an incarcerated cast to be located. Every prison will have it's kind jailer, the cruel jailer, the Governor (or head jailer), the prisoner that has adapted and made himself comfortable, and the one that's trying to get away. One will also find a prisoner's pet in each lock-up, as well.

I must admit, though, that my favorite part of the book is in locating the famous prisoner in each scene. Within the front and back covers is the Rogues' Gallery where you will find a listing of Who's Who among the illustrated fortresses for you to locate. Al Capone, Josef Stalin, and Sir Thomas More just to name a few.

All in all, this is a very unique and surprisingly fun (for it's topic) book. It may be a little morbid for the very young, but I definitely recommend it as a child will actually learn something historic while enjoying its game-like structure at the same time.

If you're tired of staying at Motel 6 on every trip, this book provides you with some great options throughout the Mid-Atlantic. The author really did his research, and he gives you a really detailed picture of every inn and hotel listed, from the most interesting dishes on the dinner menu to the exotic and/or amusing history behind some of the establishments.

"Then came the slow realization that the population dilemma was being caused not by some sudden increase in human fertility but by the unrelenting application of death control by public health physicians and medical missionaries throughout the world, with no concurrent effort being devoted to the other side of the equation."

"The challenge to all will be whether we can develop the will and discipline to accomplish this balance by voluntary means alone or whether society for its own health and preservation must impose involuntary restraints."

This book "can be read with profit by both novice and expert. It is my hope that it will provide youth with challenge and new purpose in abundance to substitute the goal of quality of life for quantity of life."

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This book is being used in several classrooms in the US, and is considered by many to still be ahead of its time.

I heard Rich Kent speak in my Children's Literature class about how he uses portfolios and independent studies to teach his high school english classes. He is a gifted writer and teacher and this book brings both of those facts through.

George O. Kent's book Bismarck And His Times details the path taken by Prussia that gradually led that nation to unification with other German states under Prime Minister and later Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. That path, however, did not lead the unified Germany towards political maturity, and led to its defeat in two world wars, notoriety for perpetuating the most shocking atrocities publicized in the world, and its division into two countries until eventual reunification in 1990. As a result, Bismarck's achievements were reanalyzed, with post-World War II assessments revealing considerable rust on the "Iron Chancellor"'s facade. Kent is one of those historians, arguing that Bismarck and his foreign and domestic policies were to blame for this tragedy, and the German nation, as well as the North German Confederation that preceded it, "was conceived too narrowly and maintained too rigidly for too long".

Consider the constitution of the North German Confederation created by Bismarck in 1866, a lopsided hybrid of an absolute monarchy and a constitutional state, with the executive and upper house holding most of the power. There was the Prussian king--later the Kaiser of Germany--and the members of the Upper House composed of representatives from the North German states. On the other side was the Reichstag, whose members were elected by male property owners, whose powers were limited to pass or defeat bills introduced by the king or Bismarck; the Reichstag could not introduce bills. In addition, the chancellor could not be brought down by a vote of no-confidence from the lower house, resulting in the dissolution of the government. Bismarck created this constitution mainly to benefit himself and to ensure the power of the king and God.

His defensive foreign policy, such as the three wars with Denmark (1864), Austria (1866), and France (1870), consolidated his power and that of Prussia at the expense of antagonizing and alienating certain countries. His alliance with countries was tied less to the Second Reich's interests than to his political survival. Bismarck's intrigues with Austria-Hungary and Russia led a train of in what was described as "the finest example of diplomatic deception".

Bismarck may have been a master tactician and strategist in his foreign agenda before 1871, but the opposite holds true in his domestic policies. He "was unable to tolerate opposing points of view, however sincere, and always considered opposition to his policies as personal attacks, motivated by selfish or group interests". To him, the word "loyal opposition" was a contradiction in terms.

Therein lies the problem. Bismarck was energized by having foes to fight and vanquish, as he did with the Danes, Austrians, and French. In his struggles against the Catholics and the Social Democratic Party, he appeared not to shift gears--he just kept on fighting when he should have switched gears into peace mode, or better still, rest on his laurels and retire.

What brought his downfall was his lust for power that went to such an extreme, that in the face of being dismissed by Kaiser Wilhelm II, he was prepared to set events that would bring victory to the SDP, Catholic Center, and hardline Conservatives, whose policies were counter to the Kaiser's, in the 1890 elections. He would then convince the princes of the Reich's constituent states that the empire had undergone political paralysis. A military coup, on the pretext of a Social Democrat uprising, would follow. SDP leaders would be arrested, martial law would be declared, and the Reichstag dissolved. Germany would then become a military dictatorship.

Kent's book has successfully depicted the flaws of Bismarck's mindset, in which he placed his personal political survival before the interests of the political entities he governed, and that is the rust that tarnished the image of the "Iron Chancellor."

My mother bought this book for me over twenty five years ago. I still own the original copy, though it is dog-eared, artistically marked with Crayolas, and gingerly held together by copious amounts of Scotch tape. I treasure this book because the message is universal and timeless: At times, we all feel unappreciated, overlooked, drab, blah-like. My mother, a single parent who worked her fingers to the bones, was often too tired to engage in the activities many stay-at-home Mom's engaged in with their children. I often felt overlooked in the hustle and bustle, daily scramble that was her life. She was aware of this and gave me THE BLAH By Jack Kent. The Blah tells the story of one little boy who feels terribly Blah like. His older brother, in a hurry and not paying attention, crushed his favorite crayon. His mother, distracted with her many motherly and domestic tasks, doesn't really listen to him. So, he draws pictures that tell the story of a group of beings called "Blah's". There is a King of The Blah's, an Awful Jostler who breaks crayons. It's a darling story and ends on a very loving and happy note. I know this book is hard to come by but it is a wonderful book for anyone child, especially those children who have single parents, super-mom's, or full-time working parents.

As I found this Book very useful for our studies. Actually this book was designed for senior level Business and Research students. I myself studying MBA in electronic commerce manage to see this book from my Tutor for few days. It contains lot of real time examples and large source of research information for everybody. Its wonderful for all of us. Yes I do recommend this book for all interested , I mean all fellow colleagues and other senior level maangers and academics as well.

Dinesh

A colleague had this book and we all used it on a regular basis because, as engineers, our job requires us to present everything with data. Therefore, we need to understand the statistics behind the data. This book is very easy to read and understand for those of us that have some statistical background but are not experts. It was a great reference for our group. Now that that colleague has left, we needed to get another copy!!

During the winter session of the American Library Assocation (ALA) conference, CENSORSHIP was voted one of the outstanding adult reference works of 1997. The award will be officially announced in May. The set's editor, R. Kent Rasmussen, is also the author of MARK TWAIN A TO Z, which won the same ALA award in 1996.