This book is a "must" for any person who loves, or will love, Bloomington, Indiana.

Bloomington, one of the premier communities in the United States, is a place that one visits and ends up staying because of its unmatched standard of living.

Offering the finest blend of small town ambiance and big city resources, Bloomington is home to Indiana University, which makes the community an oasis of sophistication in a traditional midwestern setting.

Located in the beautiful wooded, rolling hills of southern Indiana, the city, home to 65,000 Hoosiers, many who have left the hustle of large coastal cities to seek a higher quality of living, is a crown jewel of midwest communities.

The book captures all that is wonderful about Bloomington with stunning photographs and interesting, insightful text. Included are sections on the city's history, arts, sports, entertainment, businesses, educational institutions, economy, and volunteer activities.

Bloomington - A Contemporary Portrait, presented in quality large "coffee table" format, offers the perfect gift or purchase for the thousands of people who have a special place in their heart for Bloomington.

You won't be disappointed!

For so long time, people have though that centralized, unified and developed bureaucratic system is the most useful and efficient institution to produce and provide public service, even local public service. The efforts of Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis at Indiana University tell us that it is definitely wrong. Such system is among the most wasteful and unefficient systems. After so many years empirical research about local police service and metropolitan governance in USA, they strongly argue that over-lapping jurisdiction and polycentric governance are far more efficient than unified and centralized governance. In terms of its som much innovation, I would like to call it as a creative revolution in both theoretical and practical area of local public econoies. The more I would like to say is that this book has been translated into Chinese and the formal publication is forthcoming.

This book offers users an interactive tour of selected architecture in downtown Bloomington, Ill. It is by no means a complete guide to the history of the town, but helps to spark interest in readers and get them to look closely at their surroundings.
As historic preservation comes to the forefront in the downtown area, this book has served as a way of letting proponents of restoration see what they are working to preserve.

Film professor Lesley Stern has written what amounts to an enthusiastic love letter to the great postmodern film director, Martin Scorsese.

It's a good read, though text does not follow the usual stylistic protocol of essay or non-fiction book writing. Full of gushing observations about postmodernist connections between Scorsese's work and that of other film directors.

That's okay, because Scorsese is a brilliant postmodernist and pure film buff who happily steals (Hitchcock would be proud) from all kinds of filmic sources.

However so much fun reader will have, going after all the videos this book praises, the pace and path of the writing can be almost overwhelming. It is full of ricochets and breathless connections to all kinds of sources. I found it annoying, sometimes, how rather reactive the text could be... this is like this is connected to this is from this is similar to this, etc etc.

But I give it four stars because anyone who likes Scorsese will probably enjoy reading this.

The reader really gets a sense of Scorsese; the master of film direction. Beautifully written in extreme elegance. Whitty---well done...a must read!

I'm a resident of Bloomington, Illinois and vividly remember these murders. I personally know people involved in the investigation and followed it closely. We've visited the grave site and find it odd that there's not a space reserved for David. Even though I don't think he did it, who else could have? A good one for Unsolved Mysteries!!

Steve Vogel's accounting of the horrid Hendricks family murder was laced with controversy when it first came out. At the time, those following the crime believed David Hendricks was guilty, but Vogel's book challenged the thoroughness of the police, questioned their biases and their understanding of religious matters.

The story details the events surrounding the murder of three children and their mother, and whether or not the father was guilty. The father, out of town when the police discovered the bodies, claimed an alibi. The police determined, through statements from models he used for his catalog for his company, that perhaps David Hendricks was not faithful to his wife. No affairs were discovered, but the model statements still showed a poor light on Hendrick's commitment to his wife.

Hendricks was a lay leader in a relatively small, conservative group of evangelical Christians called the "Plymouth Brethren". The police did not realize that this group, though small, shared its basic theology with many Baptist denominations, as well as other better-known Christian groups. Instead, the police surmised that since divorce was discouraged in the Plymouth Brethren, Hendricks felt he needed to kill his family in order to be free of the marriage. Vogel describes the small-town ignorance of the police detectives and prosecutors by using their own trial testimoy. The prosecutor's logical jump was proposterous, but it played heavily into the trial.

The town, in a near OJ Simpson trial like frenzy, fed off the news, and the story became both local scandal and national news.

Confusing the matter was Hendrick's intense demeanor. He was well-read, and well-thought out, and by no means a man to react over-emotionally. His seemingly calm response, which may have been based on his faith or general personality, caused the police to see Hendricks cynically. Though they weren't country bumpkins, they weren't on the intellectual caliber of Hendricks, a star graduate of Northwestern University and inventor of a top-selling piece of medical equipment.

At issue in the trial was if Hendricks had the opportunity to have been at home at the time of the murders. He claimed no, the police claimed yes. The key evidence was the time of death as determined by the digestion of food the children ate. If that could be verified, then the suspect Hendricks was either cleared or very likely the culprit.

I fully recommend "Reasonable Doubt" for readers looking to think in this older, yet continually popular true crime book.

Anthony Trendl

Couldn't put this book down! A definite read for those true crime fans who like to think for themselves.

An update to the book is in order since much has happened since it was first published.

Still worth it to own!

Bravo to the author for not letting anyone sway his opinions in this case. He is truly objective in this book, giving both sides their time to "present their cases"...

Pick it up, you won't be sorry.

This was an attempt at being clever. It provided many colorful examples of the things most urban dwellers come to realize by age 10. Packed full of common sense observations that could enlighten only the typical unaware suburban consumer.

I believe this book was an effort by the author (likely a typical suburban consumer) to share a recent personal discovery, US Econimic Policy = Careless Consumerism.

Though I am certain that the author was entertained, as clever as this book was written; with its lack meaningful insight, it makes better fiction that anything.

This book is more than a description of the Mall of America, more than an analysis of economics or a sociological treatise. It's all of these, with excursions into history, philosophy, and theology; interviews with people both "normal" and quirky; and amusing nuggets of observation about things as diverse as superheroes and buying clothing for your wife.

For example, one chapter, "The Whirlwind," begins with quotes from Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Book of Job. It moves through our attempts to control the weather (knots tied by Shetland Island fishermen, the Weather Modification Advisory Board), and touches on both George Washington and the Donner Party, arriving finally at Minnesota weather and the reason for Malls. The chapter ends with the story of the eccentric entrepreneur behind the Rainforest Cafe: "For the time being, Steve Schussler, who studied Darwin in the school of hard knocks, has found a niche in its neon jungle."

On a trip to the Mall with Eric Nelson be prepared for unexpected encounters and surprising insights. You'll return home entertained and satisfied.

It's not often that a piece of nonfiction sets me to pondering at the same time it entertains and instructs, but that's the nature of this wondrous book on Minnesota's mall of malls. Eric Nelson is a magician here, conjuring up surprises -- sparkling background tidbits connected tightly or loosely to this giant shopping community -- before our very eyes. Carefully researched, thoughtfully linked to issues important to our consumerist culture, sprinkled with astute sketches of people who spend or make their money at the mall, this book helps make sense of why this overwhelming midwestern biosphere became an overwhelming success.

One should read this collection of essays, not for answers to the great philosophical questions in art, but for inspiration. Mulvey's polemics, filled with unsupported assertions and often strange conclusions, are not philosophically sound. These essays, however, are provocative and one cannot help but respond, either in sympathy or in rejection to her works. A risk taker, she gives birth to ideas that have transcended the boundaries of third-wave feminist criticism and have found their way into mainstream theory. Mulvey is a must read for feminist theorists and critics in the visual, literary, theatrical and filmic arts.

Henry Glassie has done it again! Professor Glassie's contributions to the field of material culture studies are well known in the field, and this work is no exception. In this book, Glassie takes a look at pottery manufacturing in 6 regions of the world -- Turkey, Bangladesh, the American Southwest and Georgia (U.S.), Japan and Sweden. However, Glassie does not simply look at ceramic production. Instead, the art and tradition embodied in clay, and the lives of the potters themselves, are at issue for Glassie. In addition to being a great introduction to pottery production in these regions, this book provides marvelous photographs of potters and their craft. This is an excellent book for professionals potters, archaeologists, or anyone interested in pottery, ceramics, or living traditions!

This is a charming little paperback. It features about 35 full-page and some smaller erotic images in all media. They are mostly black and white. For the person who requires a complete library on the topic, it is of course a necessity. However, it seems a bit pricey for the general reader considering how few images are included.

mr rohdie is very impressed with himself. he does indeed possess great knowledge of italian culture and film. unfortuinately, he writes in such dense academic language, and seems incapable of constructing a sentence without attempting to make it as difficult to read as possible. This book is a first class example of a nod to academia, with no concern for the reader whatsoever. I recommend reading the first sentence of any paragraph, deciding whether it seems like it will actually contain any information, or if it will be an excuse for rohdie to douse the readrer in esoteric references. If it the former, read on. If it is the latter, and it most certainly willl be, skip the paragraph. No information will be contained therein.

pasolini is a fascinating figure. I hope someone actually arites a book about him someday...