Fia Scheyer's book, "Out From Nassau", really captures the feel, sounds and smells of the Bahamas. Written with unusual sensitivity for the indigenous population, the book drives home the importance of human relationships. Ms. Scheyer's knowledge of the local seas as well as the local people, comes through on literally every page. And her weaving of this tale makes it amply clear what human values should be as Hannah makes her tough life choices. Good book!

I loved "Out From Nassau"! Fia Scheyer is a wonderful writer and did a marvelous job of creating and developing her characters. Having some knowledge of the Bahamas and its people I find the story of the out-islanders very authentic, as is the plot and the various relationships. I could hardly put it down! It is very readable. It is indeed a pleasure to find such a fine book.

Rufus Broadaway

This is a lovely facimile of a book hours in the bodleian library in oxford. This book of hours was made by "the master of Mary of Burgundy" in the early 16th century. In additon to the 'carpet pages' of this manuscript, various text pages are also reproduced. Many of the illustrated pages have gold leaf on them and an gold ink is used to reproduce this effect. My only complaint with this book is that this ink has in some places obscured details of the manuscript and made pages look heavier than I think they probably do in the orginal work.

If you have read any books on illuminated manuscripts in the past, you might be suprised by the number of pages you will recognise in this book. In size the book is quite small. Quite litrely the size of your palm, and this is a reflection on the actual size of the manuscript in Oxford. The publishers have tried to reproduce the facilmile as close as possible to the orginal where they could.

If you are interested in illumanated manuscipts this book is worth having.

Frankly, I was disappointed by "The Rackets". Thomas Kelly is an engaging writer with a fairly unique view of New York City and its social components, with an easy-to-read style and a healthy sense of social commentary. Unfortunately, he has major difficulty in resolving his plotlines; Kelly's means of wrapping things up is to start eliminating major characters, and not peacefully, either. This "last man standing" approach to writing was also evident in his previous work "Payback", another engrossing novel that falls apart towards the end.

Kelly is clearly an ambitious novelist, and we could sorely use a great urban novel for our time. "The Rackets" is not that book. One hopes that Kelly continues to grow as a writer because he certainly possesses an interesting voice. He seems to know and understand the world of which he writes, and his characters are engaging and believable. If only he could figure out where to take them in his stories.

Tom Kelly's characters are so real I expected them to jump off the pages of The Rackets and stick a gun to my head - or at least ask for my vote. I picked up the book after a long trip at ten o'clock one recent morning. I didn't put it down until I was finished reading it twelve hours later. And I didn't want it to end - the ultimate sign of a great story.

This book kicked ... . I was really impressed with the way the writer developed the characters and constructed the scenes. Some people write books. Tom Kelly, on the other hand, is a genuine writer. I already loaned it to a friend.

This is an attractive and useful book and worth the price.

However, for those hoping to get anything even vaguely approaching the detailed and absorbing AIA Guide to New York, which meticulously notes even fairly minor old buildings, be ready for disappointment. This is more akin to a tourist picture book than the AIA's New York City effort.

Real information on what to do, geared more for the adventurer.Maps nothing special.Brief history coverage. No real prices, only "budget, moderate." Not a complete travel guide, but gives good ideas of what to do on the islands. Use this for some non-touristy sites and to do's, but buy more complete guide for hotels and car rentals, etc. Covers all islands, though not real detailed.