This is a book that collectors should have. As a beginner, I did not find it as interesting as the first volume. But it is well worth the money. If you could only have volume one or two, I would say get the first. But because they are both such inexpensive book, you should have both around. They are both well indexed. I found information about every carver that I was looking for listed in the index of either this or the first book.

In this valuable sequel to Volume I, McManus provides additional information and understanding of this unique art. There is no one better qualified to discuss these wonderful creations and their contemporary carvers. The author does so in a fashion that will fascinate and educate both the novice and experienced collector. One can only hope that McManus will continue with this exceptional series.

This handy little volume packs a lot in its pages. If you have been collecting and want to move beyond the "oh isn't this pretty" stage and know more about the pieces you have and the ones you are selecting, this is the volume for you. McManis clearly and concisely discusses the wide range of materials used in carving (from pipestone and turquoise to jet and glass) and the main carving families. The volume is filled with pictures that are modern (not recycled 70s and 80s photos as in some other books) and gloriously clear. This book is a companion to McManis' A Guide to Zuni Fetishes: Volume I: The Animals and the Carvers and the two work well together. Those new to fetishes (and collector's interested in a solid reference text) will want volume I to complete their education on this wonderful art form.

I really enjoyed the translations of Oriental wisdom and sayings into felinese by Mr. Kent. Typical sayings such as "If you want to climb a tree, you must begin at the bottom" and "The cat that knows others is clever, but the cat that knows himself is enlightened" brought smiles to my face.

Pawsibly the best primer on the market for comprehending the feline psyche. I always suspected there was more going on behind those half-closed eyes and langourously-swishing tails, than mere thoughts of kibble and gravy. And this book's a riot, too! Beware, Confucious. If Michael Kent gets inspired, you're...Confurcious?

This book is a must read for all cat lovers that provides a wonderful blend of philosophy and humor that will have you reflecting on life at one moment and laughing out loud the next. As the wise Meow Tzu so eloquently puts it "you can't keep a good cat down".

DH audio has an interesting audio series, Rolling Thunder, regarding stock car racing in the 1960's. This four-volume audio series (White Lightning, Road to Daytona, Race to Glory, On to Talladega, (all three-hour abridgements) narrated by Michael Skinner, brings the listener right into the pit. These audios have an historical background and well as the fictional one in these tales.

I have to admit I bought this book at a grocery store. The cover caught my attention and now I see there are others I have to order. Great, historically accurate book about racing. Surprised the publisher didn't make the author put in all the silly stuff most stories about NASCAR have. Or make them be negative about racing. Been a fan for thirty years and this is the way it is...good and bad!

I Think this book is a great sequal to the Rolling Thunder series. It depicts the action of a true racer, when Jodell is forced to let his cheif wrench in the cockpit of his car after a serios wreck at the new talledega track in Alabama. I find that the book follows history very well interluding a ficitional chacter with the likes of Richard Petty, David Pearson, Tiny Lund and other NASCAR legends. I would suggest this book to anyone who is interested in learning the roots of stock car racing to buy this book and any of the other Rolling Thunder books. I can't wait for #5 to come out.

This book is great for young children. The illustrations use bright vivid colors and the typing is large. The words and stories are very simple and somewhat repetitive so it is great for young children. My daughter is about to turn four and she LOVES this book

My 2-year old daugther LOVES this book!! Has had it almost a week and wants it read every nap and nigthtime! "Tell me the Jesus stories" is what she says! Only 5 parables but she doesn't mind the repeating! Now we're looking for a Volume Two...

This is in effect a continuation of the award-winning Read-Aloud series and is if anything the best of the bunch. It has the same size, very similar format, and same superb author and illustrator team. (It was also the last book illustrated by Kent Puckett before he died, so it is his legacy book.) Each of the five parables is introduced as a story Jesus told; like the parables in Scripture, all or most of them suggest the salvation story. The colors are probably a little bit brighter than in the Read-Aloud books but the illustrations are just as good. I have given it to several families with new babies as a gift, and my two-year-old nephew quickly chose it as his favorite book.

It is important to realize that the author is a radiation oncologist who is writing with a biased point of view. He does manage, however, to give the reader a fairly balanced overview in spite of his background and training.

Wallner makes an attempt to write a thorough review of the subject in a readable style. The weakest part of the book is the coverage given to the side effects of radiation treatment. Wallner clearly understates this important consequence. Another shortfall is that not enough space is given to a comparison of the disease-free suvival statistics between surgery and radiation. Anyone considering treatment needs to know the disease-free survival records of patients with different stages of disease under all of the major treatment options.

This is by far the best book on prostate cancer for patients, along with Kent Wallner's book for physician's "Prostate Brachytherapy Made Complicated". Kent has an amazing way of presenting very complicated, scientific material in a straight forward, easy to understand way. I personaly give all my patients a copy of Kent's book to help them understand their disease process, and treatment options.

I was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer in January of 1999. After the shock, I started doing research on the web to educate myself. I also went to our public library and read or scanned every book on the shelf about Prostate Cancer. This book is without doubt the best of all the books on the options for treatment for Prostate Cancer that I read. Clear and concise, written for the lay person with just enough technical jargon so that you can discuss PCa with a physician. The book explains PSA results, Gleason Scores and the Partin Tables that every man needs to know about to make an intelligent choice for treatment.

Don't let the comment about large print influence you one way or the other, it doesn't matter. If you want information, this is the book to read. I read it all in one long evening. 5 STARS!

"Quarter Moon Rising" is a quick-paced, fun to read book. The characters are raw, and the story is intricate without being overly complicated. While I'm not, nor have I ever been a police officer, I am a fan of the genre. This book ranks up at the top of my list, and I look forward to future releases by Perry.

A HOMICIDE DETECTIVE, WHO FAILED TO BE DEBRIEFED AFTER A TRAMATIC INCIDENT INVOLVING THE DEATH OF HIS PARTNER, STRUGGLES IN HIS PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL LIFE AND IN HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS UNTIL HE FACES AND DESTROYES THE DEMON THAT NEARLY DESTROYED HIM. AUTHOR PERRY WRITES FROM THE REALITY OF LIFE'S ESPERIENCES, STRIPPING OFF THE FACADE OF HUMAN NATURE, EXPOSING THE RAW BEHAVIOR AND EMOTIONS OF SELF-ABSORBED, OUR-OF-CONTROL PEOPLE. HE PROVIDES A LOOK INTO THE CONSCIENCELESS SOULS OF CRIMINALS AS THEY INFECT SOCIETY WITH THEIR VENOM, DISPLAYING A SENSELESS DISREGARD FOR HUMAN LIFE. HE EXPOSES THE POLITICS AND PRACTICES IN POLICE INVESTIGATIONS AND THE PRECARIOUS INTERACTIONS IN HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS. PERRY HAS A FAST MOVING INTRIGUING PLOT WITH MANY TWISTS AND TURNS THAT KEEP THE READER GLUED TO THE BOOK IN ANTICIPATION OF THE CONCLUSION. PICTURESQUE AND COLORFUL LANGUAGE KEEP THE STORY LIVELY AND ENGAGING. EACH CHAPTER ENDS IN SUSPENSE STIRRING A DESIRE TO PLUNGE INTO THE NEST CHAPTER WITH ANTICIPATION. THE STORY CRESCENDOS TO A BREATHTAKING CONCLUSION.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. THE POLICE COMMUNITY CAN EASILY IDENTIFY WITH THE STORY AND THE CHARACTERS.

RETIRED PORTLAND POLICE OFFICER, HERSCHEL LANGE

Kent Perry recently retired after serving 28 years with the Portland Police Bureau. As a detective, he investigated more than 100 homicides, and he has brought that gritty world to his first novel, a character-driven, police-procedural story that only a real cop could have written.

Kent has a wonderful sense of story, a knack for instant characterization and the ability to maintain tension from the first page to the last. Just try to put the book down during the last 40 or 50 pages.

Quarter Moon Rising is the story of a residential robbery that turns into a can of worms. Two people end up dead and millions of dollars in paintings are stolen, including one called Quarter Moon Rising.

The lead detective, John DeSoto, must conduct his investigation while battling personal demons, an authoritarian captain and pressure from the media. Along the way, we meet a host of characters: cops, thieves, swindlers, tramps, brutal killers, and many others. Although some characters we see only briefly, with just a couple of sharply-written sentences, Kent fleshes them in so well that they instantly come alive.

Kent's writing really shines when he is describing violence: tight, raw and in your face, no doubt the result of personally seeing dozens upon dozens of victims and investigating the events that led to their last days on Earth.

He also does a wonderful job with dialogue, which can be a problem for new writers. His characters speak realistically and in character, all without drawing attention to the writing.

The paperback...runs 388 pages and at 5 ½ by 8 1/2, it's larger than the average paperback.

I highly recommend Quarter Moon Rising. Not because it's written by a fellow police officer, but because it's a darn good book.

i liked chees before this book. Now i just loves the stuff. thanks adam and rob.

I read this book expecting it to be a normal childrens book, short and sweet. I opened the cover and proceeded to read about the types of boys in the world, and although I am of the female gender, this applied to me as well, as I am one that KNOWS there are monsters. At that precise moment, I knew this would be a fabulous book. And it was. I could not put it down. The imagination of Mr Kent is quite vivid and intriguing and reminded me of my own monsters that I battled as a young girl. And although my children are grown I am passing this book along to them to read, for I know that they know about monsters as well!! Bravo to Mr Kent and Mr Smith. I was very pleased and surprised.

My kids and I absolutely love this book!! They haven't been this excited about a book we've read together since Harry Potter. Wonderful story, wonderful characters, wonderful book. I've been looking for other books by Robert Kent and Adam Smith, but so far I haven't found any. My kids and I read part of a book together every night at bed time and usually it takes us several nights to complete a chapter book like this one, but we read "Jim's Monster" straight through in a single night. Every time I'd start to put this book down and tell the kids it was time to go to sleep, my son, Devin, and my daughter, Dana, would lean forward in their beds and beg me not to stop. Usually I tell them no when it gets to be later, but this time I didn't want to stop either, so we kept on reading and we're going to read it again a few nights from now. The pictures are absolutely fantastic, like something Disney might do, and the writing is on par with Stephen King, only for kids. I was somewhat reminded of Roald Dahl, another of my kid's favorite authors. I simply cannot recomend this book enough. However, my other son, Donald, is only five, and I think the book may have been a little too scary for him. He sat near his brother and sister as we read, but I think he may have been too young yet for this story. But Devin is 7 and Dana is 9 and they both loved it. I'm 34 and I loved this book! Do yourself and your kids a favor and order this book right away. And, Mr. Kent, Mr Smith, if perchance you're reading this, you have four new fans here. We can't wait for your next book!!

The editor seems to have been more interested in collecting authors than collecting good short stories. The quality varies from fast-paced action to the long-winded writing style of Melville's "Billy Budd" which can put a reader to sleep. Both the title and the cover are misleading as not all the stories are about men o'war. Some stories are original to the collection, and some have been previously published. A few are extracted episodes from longer books, and can leave the reader adrift, having walked in on the middle of a longer story not knowing either the setting or the cast of characters.

The stories are in chronological order, and the collection should have ended with the next-to-last story which concerns the Battle of Navarino in 1827, the last major sea battle between sailing ships. The last story does not belong in the collection (being about a steam powered ram on the Mississippi River during the American Civil War). The editor would have done better including one of the Dr. Dogbody short stories.

From the late 18th century to the American Civil War this book covers the glory days of sea going warfare and adventures. Rare treats from old favorites and stories from some of the greatest authors of Maritime adventures make this book a must read for all lovers of historically based maritime fiction. The book also provides a handy guide to the authors' other books at the end to provide the reader who just couldn't get enough of the action the information to continue following the exploits of some of the characters. These storys are some of the best short stories I have had the pleasure of reading. Mr. Ashley has truly chosen some jems for publication in this book.

This terrific collection of short stories is a nautical gem. Each short story is alive with thundering cannon, snapping sails, crackling sea battles, splintered mizzenmasts and foaming waves. Each adventure is rich with characters and packed with unique information about life in the age of sail. A few lofty stories in this massive anthology rise above the others, Hornblower in a curious and dangerous adventure with stranded French sailors, Drinkwater coming to the rescue and with an introduction by the grand master himself, Alexander Kent. A worthy assembly of tales for those that follow the wake of adventure on the high seas. Check it out.

This is a good book which is a good reference for me. However, when I got the book and was working through some of the real world exercises. I wanted to download the files that are referenced by the book for the excercises. This is because the book explains more things related to the files than are in the snippets in the book. Anyway, I went to the site referenced and I am continuously getting the page of Death "page can not be displayed". Needless to say I am left wanting.

Love this book - as a seasoned web developer with heaps of experience I find this book a great reference tool, fantastic prompter when I'm struggling with XML techonologies, all round very well written and did I mention already PRACTICAL.
If your confused now or then by XML or you know nothing and want to learn from scratch then BUY this book.
Chapters are well defined and organised, it covers everything from css - to XSLT, client side, server side applications and good practices. Well written - without this book my XML nappies would be on the floor.

There are dozens of books on XML, the difference is that this is solely focused on the web and very practical oriented; it's not that much about XML theory but it's full of real world examples. The most valuable chapters in my opinion are the ones covering XML support inside the various browsers, the info about client-side XSLT, XML and CSS and DOM manipulation with JavaScript are something that you will not find elsewhere

This was a very strange book to read. Here is an writer, an eyewitness to some of the most interesting and dangerous moments in recent history. Yet he seems to have had little time to reflect on what he has experienced, so pressured has he been to get the film in and on air, to say someting quick and marketable. There is no doubt about this man's courage, his credentials as a journalist, or NBC's incompetent attempts to destroy him.(It makes one never to want to watch anything on NBC or buy anything from its owner GE) But for a man who has been through so much I fear that much of what he has to say has not been digested. He appears still very much wounded by his own sucessful lawsuit and the betrayal of an organization that he risked his life for. Yet as much as I want to admire the man, there is something dishonest about this book. I do not dispute the facts, but the book presentation sounds more like a public relations effort to recusitate his career- or a recapitulation of the notes he gathered for the trial. In every chapter there is the constant effort to prove to the reader how brave he and his friends are, how stupid and deceitful are his enemies. Everything is black and white, almost nothing new or interesting or thoughtful in between. I think in the years to come we may read something far better from Kent. Kent an interesting new kind of man-a product of the news business. I would say that anyone in the news media or even thinking about it -or anyone who draws his primary information about the world from the networks -should definitely read this book for its strengths as well as its weaknesses.(One will never watch TV news again with the same trust.) But as an insightful discussion of current events or autobiography, be forwarned.

I read this book expecting Arthur Kent to be arrogant but what I found was a dedicated journalist. Kent never wavered from his ethical standards. He took the giants at NBC to task for their disregard for him and others who believe that news should be reported with honesty and integrity--not for the corporate bottom line. His story is highly readable with the people he met in Afghanistan, Vietnam, Yugoslavia, and Tiananmen Square coming to life (and death) through Kent's compelling stories. When he files a lawsuit against the corporate giants, you too will be on his side. Kent deserved every cent he got. We should all put pressure on the media to give us worldwide news coverage presented by men and women who serve to provide us with the facts--not the sensation-packed news we see today. Marie Wilson (mwilson@kapla.com), Fountain Hills, Arizon

Arthur Kent takes you on his compelling journey as a foreign news correspondent. His story is told with candor and self-effacing humor. Going from the treetops of Afghanistan to that infamous rooftop in Dhahran, you will be consumed by the bloody chaos of the Tiananmen Square Massacre. Just when you think you can't be shocked anymore by scenes of war and destruction, political repression, natural disaster and apathy, the equally shocking truth of what goes on behind the scenes of broadcasting is exposed. This book makes you think, not just about what is happening in the world around us, but what or who determines how much we learn of it. Kent shows us the risks some journalists take everyday, in order to bring real news to us. We owe them more than just passively sitting in front of our T.V. sets accepting whatever the networks choose to feed us. It's nice to know that old cowboy movies aren't the only place where the guy wearing the white hat can still win the battle