I just finished reading "Blind Courage" for the second time. Bill Irwin's story offers a timeless story of courage, faith, and a triumphant spirit as he was the first "blind" person to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. I write "blind" because Bill may not have the sense of eyesight, but throughout the book has great insight into persons he meets along his walk, and relates the greatest insight into his own self and his strengths and weaknesses, on a hike (he was not an experienced hiker) all possible by his enduring faith in our Lord and his confidence in his Seeing Eye dog, Orient. The book flows well,doesn't sound "preachy", and reads quickly--almost too quickly as we want to hear more. This is a great story by a great man who spent his first almost 50 years in turmoil, broken relationships, and losing his eyesight, but he finds himself and encourages and uplifts others along his hike. By the way, if you have an opportunity to hear him speak, Bill Irwin is an outstanding public speaker with a great message and is a very friendly individual. In summary, read this book if you are looking for modern heroes and uplifting people of faith doing the "impossible" regardless of whether you enjoy "outdoor/hiking/camping" books or not.

My review of this book is one of pure joy and inspiration. From the moment I laid eyes on this book I knew it had a great message written in it. I meet Bill and Orient when they came to the Lititz Grace Brethern Church. Even after reading his story and hearing his testomony it was totally indescribleable. Bill is a wonderful speaker and Orient is just the most lovable dog you could ever know. To have a dog like that which leads you over that terrain from Georgia to Maine is a true friend.

They both had a good friend in the Lord and he truly lead them on a spititrual path and from all of this a remarkable story. Again I personally give this book FIVE STARS.

This man has an incredible story to share with you. It is a book that you cannot put down once you start reading it. It will give you encouragement and hope. He still hikes parts of the trail every year encouraging the people out there today.

Rabbi Katsof does a masterful job of keeping it simple and easy to understand. He writes like a wise father telling his children a story. I was captivated. I am not a religious person, yet I found myself with new questions and thoughts. I actually found myself praying at times while reading his book. To me that's like taking a giant step. I enjoyed it so much that I will read it again. Best of all I think his formula works for all religions. I heartily recommend this book for all ages & religions.

I could not put the book down once I started it. I am not a religious person, yet the message appealed to my spiritual side. What impressed me most about the book was that it has appeal for anyone.

This book is a must read for people of all faiths and backgrounds. I have found amongst the members of our community that people are looking for a way of getting closer to their Father in heaven. This books provides the tools.

This is an amazingly thorough reference that should be on the bookshelf of every banker and MBA student. Barrons does a very thorough job.

I found it wanting in only one area. Some of the newer products like total return swaps and credit derivatives whiched surged in volume last year aren't covered.

I highly recommend: "Credit Derivatives" by Tavakoli if you need more on these important banking products.

Working in an IT company catering to bankers I bought this book to help understand their lingo. I have to say it hasn't disappointed yet. It is also very up to date the latest IT/banking terms. If you were to read all the definitions in this book you would probably know more than you banker. A great reference. Buy it!

This can almost be considered an inexpensive textbook. It not only defines, but explains the terms in a simple, easy to understand format. Although in dictionary form, it consistently relates the terms to one another so the reader will understand how the concepts interwind. Includes financial and banking terms.

Robert Irwin is a wonderful artist, and this is a must-read for anybody interested in his work, or in his West Coast brand of conceptualism. But this book is also a fantastic biography in its own right - Weschler, who now works for the New Yorker, writes like an angel, and reading this book is a pleasure indeed. To say that this is one of the best biographies of an artist ever would be far too faint praise: this is one of the best biographies ever, period.

This was an amazing read. Not only did it open my eyes to the concept of abstract art, but it opened my eyes to a different way of thinking. I highly recommend this book.

Whether you know Irwin's work or not, are an art afficionado or not, this is a great read for the curious and perceptually
aware.Weschler translates visual concepts into easily understandable language. His writing is clear and insightful and never falls into boring art jargon. This is no simple task for Irwin's work which is all about looking is not necessarily transferable on paper, but ultimately Weschler's writing does it justice. Weschler gives insight not only into the mind and heart behind this work but the personality that comprises Robert
Irwin. The book is like being in a restaurant and overhearing a really interesting conversation at the adjacent table so you don't resist the urge to eavesdrop and you stay and listen 'till the end.

I bought this book at the Museum of Appalachia (also founded by the author) on my first visit to Tennessee. The book is almost entirely a transcript of a dialogue/interview between the author and Alex Stewart. At first, I thought this would be a strange format, but as I read on, I discovered that this would be the only way to authentically capture the mind and spirit of Alex on paper.

If you're not from the South, you might find Alex's dialect charminging unusual. A few times I had to read a passage over and over again to fully understand what words Alex was saying. Here is an example where it took me a while to realize that Alex meant "Lord" when kept saying "Law":

"They didn't have no men folks, but they had several children. Making liquor was the only way they had of making a living. Law, they had it hard."

The author cleverly asks questions to get Alex to reveal his pioneer wisdom. More than that, though, the author's selections and chapter arrangements helped to organize the sprawling encyclopedia of Alex's mind.

By the time I reached the end, I was sad to have the "conversation" over. I felt I had known Alex a bit personally, and I mourned at his passing. It was joyous reading while it lasted and my heart ached to know more of Alex.

This is a fabulous book I can't recommend enough. 10 STARS.

One reason I bought this book is because my Greatgrandmother was Alex's Aunt. I visited Alex as a child with my Parents and Grandmother. Alex was always sending my Grandmother items , such as walking canes. He made my mother a rolling pin, which she still has. Most of all the book gave me many names of my relatives that ive been searhing for.

I have read this book and it is all true. Alex was my great uncle. I remember as a child going to his house and striping cane for molasses. They would start early in the morning and work all day. Before uncle Alex died my father took me to see him. I'll never forget a small wooden carving he had of a racoon in a tree with two or three dogs at the base of the tree. He was a very gentle man with a lot of heart. I am very honored to have known this man and loved this man.

Nichols' translation of Gorgias is indeed impressive. I have heard and read other translations of Gorgias- but the word choice of those other translation is too unadmirable(like "knack"-a word that is not fitted with Platonic dialogues). Nichols keeps consistent and easily understandable words. He doesn't go about saying "smart" words- unlike others who seem to try and exhaust their vocab. before they finish the work.

This is one of my favorite Socratic dialogues. The evidence suggests that Plato wrote it soon after the execution of Socrates, and while I would not say there is a bitter edge to this Gorgias dialogue, I can definitely say that the exchanges do get a little lively at times. At one point, I could almost hear the voices of Socrates and Polus being raised as they argued. Another positive aspect of this dialogue is the fact that it is comparatively easy to understand. Socrates does not start spouting ideas about true Forms or using geometry to prove his points; the more esoteric, more advanced Platonic ideas are to be found in Plato's later writings. In many ways, this dialogue also serves as an introduction to Plato's masterpiece The Republic. Socrates' ideas on some things seem nascent at this point, and he actually contradicts some points he would later make, but the heart of Socratic thought lies within easy grasp in the pages of this dialogue.

The dialogue begins as a discussion about the true nature of oratory. The famed orator Gorgias is in town, and Socrates is most anxious to have a discussion with him. At first, Gorgias' younger friend Polus desires to speak for Gorgias, but he proves little match for Socrates. When Gorgias enters the discussion, Socrates treats him very well, as a respectable man with whom he disagrees, and Gorgias for his part is never flustered by Socrates' description of his art as a knack and as a form of pandering. Later, Callicles bravely jumps into the mix, and things really get interesting. Socrates seemingly admires Callicles' courage to state what he means without shame, yet he winds up getting Callicles to agree with his points in the end. What is it all about? The main points that Socrates makes are that it is better to suffer wrong than to do wrong, and that it is better for a man to be punished for his wrongs than to escape punishment. Implicit in his argument is the belief that all wrongdoing is the result of ignorance; following up on this idea, he declares that dictators and politicians who hold vast powers are the most miserable men of all. He goes so far as to describe Athenian heroes such as Pericles as bad men because the state was less healthy when they left office than when they took office, the proof being that such men eventually lost power and were even ostracized.

For Socrates, happiness comes from being virtuous and self-disciplined. The orator can make a great speech and convince his peers that he is right, but he does this by inculcating belief rather than knowledge in the minds of his audience; he requires no knowledge to win such a debate, and as a result he tells the people what he knows they want to hear rather than what is truly best for them. Right and wrong are immaterial to the orator, Socrates charges. Callicles urges Socrates to give up his immature fixation on philosophy and become a public speaker; were he to be brought to court and charged with a wrong, Callicles tells him that he would be unable to defend himself. Much of the concluding pages consist of a wonderful defense by Socrates of his way of life. He agrees that a court could rather easily try and execute him, but if that were to happen, only his accusers would suffer for it. His thoughts are for the next world, and he has no fear of death because he believes a man with a clean, healthy soul such as his will be given immediate access to the isles of the blessed. The execution of Socrates was clearly on Plato's mind as he wrote this particular discourse.

I would recommend this dialogue to individuals seeking an introduction to Plato's philosophy. The entire discussion is clear throughout and easily comprehensible, and it proves interesting to see how some of Plato's thoughts changed between the years separating this dialogue and The Republic.

The single most impressive aspect of this dialogue is Socrates defense of the "good" against subjectivist arguments by Sophists; arguments which remain with us today albeit in different forms. Thus it is a truly relevant dialogue.

On the one hand, Socrates denies that an individual's supposed superiority determines right and wrong. In modern terms we'd call this the Nietzchean will to power argument. He cleverly kills the might-makes-right argument, by extreme individualists, by showing how ultimately the mob is more powerful than any individual. Thus this reasoning falls through. Yet, at the same time, Socrates denies that truth is determined by mere numbers or by popular vote. After all, Socrates wasn't condemned to death by a dictator or an aristocracy but by a democracy. Food for thought!

This is a nice translation in modern idiom and can be easily read in just a few sittings.

This 1965 textbook is arguably the most scholarly textbook ever written for communication engineers. Although the Proakis and Sklar (and also McKay) books are the standard textbooks for digital communications and estimation/detection theory nowadays; they don't even come close to this textbook. The Proakis textbook has gotten the unfortunate reputation as having the most comprehensive treatment regarding "hard-core" communication theory. However, the divergence between modern textbooks which are "practical" versus older textbooks which focus more on "theory" is very clear. Somewhere along the way, today's textbooks have truly lost much of the hard-core theory, and this book has it.

The Chapters are as follows: (1) Introduction (2) Probability Theory (3)Random Waveforms (4)Optimum Receiver Principles (5)Efficient Signaling for Message Sequences (6) Implementation of Coding Systems (7) Important Channel Models (8) Waveforms Communications and appendixes (A-D)

The chapter on probability is bar-none the most comprehensive I have ever seen in any digital communications book, and covers multidimensional pdf's and explains the significance of moments and other things you might only find in a book dedicated specifically to stochastic processes. The coverage of the topics on signal-spaces is fantastic, and the chapter on optimum receivers is also extremely thorough despite the age of this book. Wozencrafts treatment of "channel capacity" and the derivations which he provides are unlike anything in any other book, covering the sphere packing argument quite thoroughly (the only other author to ever get this comprehensive was Shannon himself, and Pierce in his 1960'is vintage book on information theory). His coverage of various important bounds is covered very well (i.e. Chernoff bound) such that even an undergraduate can understand it. Other chapters are equally well written. No, the book obviously is not as up to date as Sklar or Proakis and doesn't cover alot of the more "practical" aspects of modern communications.... but if you want a die-hard communication theory book... this is a classic must-have.

This book is the best "text book" ever written for graduate-level digital communications, though some contents of the latter half part of this book is outdated.

The highlight of this book is its excellence in explaning "signal space concept" and "sufficiency of observables for optimum detection". Forget other textbooks and references you have. Read this book. I haven't yet found any other book that has better explanation on these topics.

I used parts of this book in a digital communications course at UIUC. The book is written in a very lucid manner, atleast the chapters that I referred to - 3, 4 & 5. They provide a solid understanding to the subject material and it may seem mind boggling that even though the book was written way back in 1965 it is still a classic and is considered as one of the best references for optimum receiver principles. It makes for some smooth and sufficient reading (chaps. 3,4,5) when compared to other books such as that by Proakis etc. A must buy for any person in the Communication Area!

I read this book in my junior year of high school, and I have loved it ever since. I wrote my english paper on it, and got a pretty good grade. I have read it every year since then and will continue. If you like books that makes you feel like you are part of the story, then this is the perfect book for you.other wise, you should still read it.

I enjoyed this book very much. It is well-written, interesting and serious. It's a shame it is out of print now. It is one of those books which you will want to keep forever. In my opinion, Irwin Shaw is one of the best American writers.

I read this book my first semester in college. Since then I must read it atleast once a year. I love the way that the author describes the different attitudes of each individual in the same scene. This book must be read. To remind us of times before our own, and how much change can happen

Mr. John P. Irwin is a fantastic writer, despite the fact that he flunked eleventh grade. I never thought I'd catch myself reading a memoir, let alone liking it, and yet this book caught my attention from page one. Mr. Irwin utilizes excellent diction and displays clarity of thought in this book, as he tells the reader of his part in WWII. I loved reading this book as I believe many others will too.

Another River, Another Town, is the best World War II battle front account I have ever read. John P. Irwin has provided a wonderful memoir that allows the reader to feel the emotions and bewilderment of a typical teenager who found himself in furious combat for months. Knowing that the war was fought by young men who are experiencing life and the world for the first time under horrendous, confusing condidtions truly added to my understanding of this important period in history. This book is a fabulous addition to the literature of World War II.

"Another River, Another Town" by John P. Irwin, sub-titled "A Teenage Tank gunner Come of Age in Combat-1945." Random House, New York, 2002.

With the Battle of the Bulge, December 1944, there was a great demand on the United States Army for replacements in the European Theater of Operations. Pennsylvanian John P. Irwin had just completed tank gunner training in Fort Knox and was shipped to France. He was immediately put in charge, as ranking soldier, of a Sherman tank, and, after completing repairs, instructed to join up with the 3rd Armored Division. Running as a single tank, trying to catch the main column, Irwin and his crew promptly get lost. They end up in a German occupied town, and, happily for them, the Germans want to surrender. Corporal Irwin leads the German column back to American lines, where he is chewed out by Captain Harker for delivering unwanted prisoners! Thus begins Irwin's tour of duty in the closing period of World War II in Europe.

His book describes the relations among the five-man crew, the agony of having a tank shot out from underneath them, and the daily drudgery in going from town to town, river to river, bridge to bridge. Their replacement tank is one of the new Pershing Tanks, and Irwin describes how the Pershing's extra armor, its ability to fire while still moving and the Pershing's rapid gun turret movement saved them in many situations. (For a complete comparison of Sherman and Pershing, see, "Death Traps" by Belton Y. Cooper.) This book is well written and easy to read.

I am 43 and am having a hip replacement next week. After reading this book, I still have questions. I would have liked to see more about what takes place during a hip operation, as I have found better descriptions on the web than in this book. I would have liked more info on anesthesia choices. Also, I found myself having to sift through information on the knee (which I cared nothing about) to get to the information on the hip, often treated as an afterthought and dismissed with words like "the hip replacement follows the same general pattern as a knee replacement." I would have also liked some comments about cemented hips versus uncemented (he does talk about the knee) and the new ceramic hip, and in general, more specific information about the hip throughout the book. This book might have worked better if it had two sections, one for the hip and one for the knee. That would reduce the frustration of having to read through pages of knee information before finding out if the author thinks it is applicable to hips also (and mentally trying to separate the info). To sum up, I guess the book is worth it, but it is not everything you need to know.

In my quest to educate myself before my hip replacement, this was the first book I selected. The fact that the book addresses knee replacement as well is a plus, as I suspect that many who need hip replacement will at some time also need knee replacement. I enjoyed the detail of what to expect, the enthusiasm of the writer and the resulting feeling of "I can DO this!" Since I'll be recovering at my mom's, I sent a copy to her so she'll know what's going on.

Though I am only half way through this book, it is wonderfullywritten from the patient's point of view. The author had the samequestions, and the same fears that I did going into my own hip surgeries. He also gives a very detailed account of the entire process from deciding when to have the surgery through the recovery.

I recommend this book HIGHLY to anyone who needs or has already had joint replacement surgery!

Linda May-Bowser Founder, Totally Hip Support Group