...From The Monitor...

Aztec, a firm epic story by Gary Jennings is so spectacular, that I would be willing to read it at one o'clock in the afternoon, middle of July, laying down shirtless on black asphalt. Impressed? Aztec is an epic historical fiction novel, often categorized with James Clavell's Shogun or the works of James A. Michener, which enraptures its audience with a firsthand vivid account of the 16th century life of the Mexicatl (Aztec) people in their city Tenochtitlan (present-day Mexico City). Jennings uses 'Mixtli' which is Nahuatl (language) for Dark Cloud, to tell the story of his life ab ovo. Mixtli tells his story to an audience consisting of friars, a bishop and scribes whom were charged by the King of Spain to write down verbatim the words that escaped Mixtli's mouth so that his august Majesty could know of the people (Aztecs) he had recently conquered.

Jennings reveals a people, a place, and a time period that is often forgotten. He takes you through religious ceremonies, sacrifices, and festivities that are completely alien to any of today. The myths, suppositions and lore of the Mexica people come alive through Mixtli's narration. Mixtli's life is exciting and diverse, he wears many hats: a scribe or 'word knower', a peddler of booty, a passionate and sometimes clumsy lover, a cartographer and a very unlikely warrior. Mixtli travels throughout his nation and to far off lands and experiences much through intention, and more often, through error. He learns various tongues along his travels and eventually picks up Spanish, which makes him a great but reluctant tool of the Spaniards. So much of Jennings' novel is comprised of such a wealth of sensible, believable information that it is easy to forget Aztec is a fictional account. I would be hard pressed to prove or disprove the elements of truth in Aztec. I can only rely on the experts: Professor J. Pino of Kent State University found Aztec's representation of culture and religion a "total horselaugh"; the Denver Post had this to say: "The history, geography, art, literature, and religion of the Aztecs are all here, along with a wealth of information about the people themselves and the way they went about the business of living." Now what? Even the 'experts' seem dubious. To any reader of historical fiction, it should be evident that certain liberties are taken regarding factual information; something may be added or subtracted, or even sugarcoated for effect, this is often called 'artistic licensing'.

Whether or not you believe Aztec is a grandiose misrepresentation of the Mexica people during Spain's occupation in Mexico during the 1500's, or an accurate story down to the letter about the ways and means of a great people, you simply cannot deny Jennings' skill of seizing readers' curiosity, welding their hands to the book. Although, I must admit there were times when I felt dirty reading portions where Mixtli nonchalantly addressed incest or grisly religious rituals, purportedly indigenous of the Aztec people, it has been the best read of the summer. In reading Aztec, I spent most of time admiring Lake Texacoco, enjoying walks through the great city of Tenochtitlan, and despising the "smelly" Spaniards for their 'divine' right to pursue "Gold, Glory and God". I could empathize with Mixtli in the good times and the bad.

However, when you pickup Aztec, don't expect a quick read, for it is 1000+ pages, but expect to live, or at least dream of life among the Mexica people for days to come. Jennings has finished this race first place.

Gary Jennings spent several years researching this book, and it shows. His intricate and detailed story, told by a fictional Mexicatl named Mixtli, follows Mixtli's longer-than-average life adventures: amorous, tragic, at times brutal or happy, through the years before the Spanish invasion and subsequent slaughter and enslavement of the Central American tribes. The details we learn about the advanced civilization of the Nauhatl tribes are surprising and I was relieved to see that at least some of this complicated culture has been rediscovered.

Mixtli sees and travels quite far through the lands now known as Mexico, and we are treated to descriptions of the many countries and tribes, their beliefs and customs that were later wiped out by the Spanish through intolerance, ignorance, and European diseases. What we see is a group of advanced cultures, with their own traditions, writing, mythologies, and science. Although elements of the culture seem barbaric to us (the human sacrifices, for example), the people were certainly no worse (and certainly more broad-minded) than the Spanish that killed and enslaved them. The explanations given for the seeming violence seem perfectly understandable: there is no greater honor than being sacrificed to one's God.

The conquest by the Spanish, however heinous, is told in a straightforward and unbiased manner, taking into account information that has been lost or changed over the last 500 years. History comes alive as we hear of Cortes' gathering of other tribes against the ruling Mexica before he turned on them and subjected those tribes to the slavery they had forced upon the Mexica.

The language used in the story is florid and a little obsolete, in imitation of the style used a few hundred years ago, although it is eminently readable. Be forwarned that it takes about 100 or so pages before the book really starts going -- from there you will be hard-pressed to put it down! Once you finish, you will have a very different perspective on Mexico than you do today. I travel frequently to central Mexico, and have been seeing the area in a very different light. The current Mexicans have a confusing mix of cultures in their past; like the Germans, they need to look back and honor the best of what their heritage offers. This book may help them do just that.

I first read this book over a year and half ago. I have also read the psuedo-sequel, Aztec Autumn. There is no doubt that Jennings has captured the depth and intricacies of Aztec culture and society. His character Mixtli is memorable, as he takes us with him on his life journeys. Few characters in modern literature have the ability to capture the world around the them, and give us a unique perspective of their own soul. Nevertheless, Jennings has used a great deal of literary license in order to prove certain points. Mixtli's relationship with his sister, though poignant and touching, is tainted by incense, an Aztec cultural taboo which Jennings points out yet still uses in order to pull the characters into several crisis. Nevertheless, Jennings is very honest in his depiction of the Aztecs, other MesoAmerican cultures that Mixtli meets in his journeys, and the Spanish Conquistadores. Jennings nor Mixtli pass judgement, though there is a definite sadness, yet sarcasm in Mixtli's narration. I highly recommend this novel, though I will say it can be a difficult read. It can be gory, violent, but as I said earlier brutally honest.

I must just add my words of praise to all those before for this absorbing, entertaining and often confronting book. My friend Sue had long raved about Gary Jennings' writing, but I never indulged until she insisted I read her copy of Raptor (five years later, I realise I haven't returned it!).

Thorn is an unusual protagonist, and whether you love or hate him/her, one you will not forget in a hurry. Sometimes (and this is what lost one star) I would find myself thinking "Oh yeah? As if!" when Thorn got out of yet another scrap by demonstrating yet another skill. Like so many main characters in novels of this type, Thorn is just a little bit too amazing to be be entirely credible, and I found myself wondering how Theodoric, an actual historical character, possibly managed to rise to his greatness if Thorn was only a figment of Jennings' imagination!

However, once you take the leap of faith to accept that besides having ambiguous gender characteristics (although I always saw Thorn as essentially male) and considered an incredibly handsome man and an exceptionally beautiful woman, Thorn also had been endowed with superhuman strength and endurance, a strategic brain to rival any chess master, treachery, deviousness and guile second to none, survival skills and instincts of a bushman, and loyalty only to himself and Theodoric, you find yourself accepting the story for what it is, a competently written, entertaining, absorbing work of fiction, that brought with it some awareness of the past.

Like other reviewers, I was keen to find out more about Theodoric, and was interested in how Jennings showed Vandals have been vilified down through the ages.

The wonderful thing about good writers is that they can effortlessly and completely transport you so far in time and space, that returning to reality seems to be the really big leap. I was there, seeing, smelling, tasting everything. If you enjoy page-turning journeys into the distant past, off the top of my head I can recommend Noah Gordon's 'The Physician', Wilbur Smith's 'River God', Stephen Lawhead's 'Byzantium', and Judith Tarr's 'Pillar of Fire'. Of course, they all contain the occasional historical inaccuracies and super-talented progagonists endemic in this genre, but when you're still reading at 3am, who cares?

At first, when I started reading this book, I got sort of grossed out, but then I thought that Thorn couldn't help his ambigous nature and I kept on reading it.I found it fascinating, Thorn's both acceptance of himself and his shame seemed very real. He seemed like sort of a Forest Gump character to me. What I mean by that is that he wasn't exactly a freak or a monster, but he was simply and painfully human, with all his judgement's and prejudices stripped away, because he himself was unique. So I liked the character. I also liked some of the secondary characters, particularly Worm. The descriptions made me feel like I was right there. In this book, I felt, more than any of the other's I've read by Gary Jennings, he was able to strip away the curtain of time and clarify what it would have really been like to live back then. One sentence, particularly seems to evoke the entire mood, of a much darker time. That's when Jenning's describes the mideval world as mostly forest, with civilization scattered and hard to come by. It seemed to me that that must have been how it really was. I give it four stars only because the last 200 pages seemed to drag off and get very unbelievable. But beside that, this book stayed with me for a long time.

If you're amazed by what we as a people are learning, you'll be more amazed by how much we've forgotten. Set in the fifth century, Thorn, the hermaphroditic protagonist, travels from what is now France, across Europe, down to Constantinople and beyond. What his travels reveal about his (our) history, religion, sexual mores, life, death and everything in between is staggering. So is the amount of research Mr. Jennings must have done for this book. Coming in at just under 1000 pages, it's a story you don't want to end yet you can't wait to find out how it ends. If you're at all interested in ancient cultures or even the roots of the English language, you'll have a field day with this book. Read it, love it, be amazed by it

I had read two other books by Jennings (Raptor and Aztec) and think that this is the best of the three. This is a fascinating look at the journeys of Marco Polo through Asia. I learned a great deal of history through this book such as the origins of paper money, bombs, and European maps.

The book is loaded with fascinating characters with great names (Nostril and The Fondler for example). It is told in a manner that the reader feels they are traveling with Marco on his long treks. We can actually feel the tension and despair the characters feel as Marco tries to save a woman from the tortures of Fondler. The battle scenes are so vivid it seems that Mr. Jennings has literally transported the reader to the center of the action.

Not to be missed!

Jennings is a fantastic writer and his research is unparallelled. Although I actually liked 'Aztec' and 'Raptor' a little better, I still have to give this a '5'. The first section, covering Marco's boyhood in Venice, moved a little too slowly for me but as soon as he left to go adventuring with his stalwart, proper father and his over-the-top uncle, the story really took off. His descriptions of places, people and customs were fascinating. And at some points, I laughed out loud, especially when he described the obnoxious and dirty Bho (Tibetans) and the filth of India! Not at all politically correct but probably right on the mark! Marco had some wild adventures, endless intrigues and meets some remarkable characters. One I will not soon forget was the horrific "Fondler", the expert torturer in Kublai Khan's court. A true epic, colorful, sprawling and genuinely moving. I'm glad I found this paperback copy in a used book store. Jennings doesn't get a book out often, but when he does, it's worth the wait. Really outstanding.

For the curious and the adventurer at heart . . . this book is THE handbook of entertainment and information. It will make going back to a "Hum-Drum" job, like mine, most difficult. The would be journeyer will ask him/herself "Life is so short, why am doing this?!"
This is the my 3rd read of Jenning's masterpieces. I slowly savored this book for 7 weeks reading and re-reading again each fascinating part. This book is loaded with great adventure, betrayal, eroticism, humor, intrigue, wisdom and knowledge. I was so sad when I finished the book and realized that I had earmarked over 40 places where a valuable lesson or incredible event happened. So, I went back and even re-read them again! I never thought there could be another book as good as "Aztec" but The Journeyer is, indeed, in it's own unique way.
Although not an easy book to read (for the weak stomached!!!)a person just has to realize that however appalling to us American's certain cultures are, that's just the way they are. Being an Italian I particularly enjoyed Marco's childhood experiences in Venice and his dialogs with his father and uncle along the way.
His experience with "Mitzvah" bears serious consideration for all who read the book. You'll just have to read it to find out---it is well worth it.
One of my favorite parts was the way he so truly loved his darling "Echo" and they way they so vivdly communicated, in spite of what some would call a "handicap". What a lesson for those of us who live among disabled people.
Finally, his explanation of the views and beliefs of the Islamic religion is so educational and appropriate for today. No wonder they feel about those of us who worship Jesus Christ and support the Nation of Israel as they do. Jenning's experiences and research for this book make this clear. To them, we are filthy infidels. This book is a real eye-opener as to how the Christian and Jew is viewed by the Muslim world. Their beliefs about women are clearly defined, too. A muslim with daughters is considered "childless" for only male children matter. How sad.
Marco's reflections over his life and life itself at the end of the book are a truthful and deep ruminessence of what all men feel and think as they grow older and life begins to pass them by.
This is definately a mind expanding book that is pure enjoyment for the "arm chair" Journeyer!!!!

I first read this book when I was in 8th grade and I thought it was great. The same goes for "The Boggart", the only other Susan Cooper book I have read aside from "The Dark Is Rising" sequence. Anyway, like I said, I loved the book. The way it was written was amazing, I've read a great many books in my life so far, many of them by award-winning novelists who have written many books and have international recognition (Stephen King, Terry Brooks, and J.R.R Tolkien among them), and Susan Cooper stands among them for all they're worth. This book touches your mind in ways that many books cannot even come close to. It is simply incredible. And as the header suggest, I'm not in the agegroup of 9-12, and I still think the novel is excellent, even when I read it now at 22. So, don't be discouraged by the target agegroup, if you love great literature and reading about myths and legends, don't hesitate to pick up this marvelous book.

The Dark is Rising is a classic story of good vs. evil, or light vs. dark. In the story you follow a young English boy, Will Stanton, who was just going about his life, when he begins to realize strange things are happening around him. He is summoned by a mysterious man who tells him he is "the last of the Old Ones", the ones that can save the world from the powers of evil. As you go on, you read about having hope, and learning the right from the wrong. There is a powerful story of friendship demonstrated here, too. And the good thing about this book, and the series, is that if you think hard enough, you can relate them to real life: If you try hard enough, and you believe in yourself and know what you are doing is right, then you will win. It is also a story of learning how to believe that anything is possible. Will must be convinced that he is an Old One, and that there are such things as the Light and the Dark. He must accept that if he doesn't do something, and enter into this long-lasting quest, the Dark could win. He learns to believe in himself. I know that any fantasy reader would love this book, and I recommend it for any fantasy fan.

In the second book of Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising Series, Will Stanton turns 11 he discovers that he is not just an ordinary child but much more. He is one of the Old Ones, a group of immortals who dedicate themselves to fighting against the dark. And Will is not only the first one of these immortals born in 500 years, he is also the last. But becasue of this he's faced with a very large task against the dark. The Dark is rising and the only way to stop them is for Will to collect the 6 signs. Will will be able to collect all the 6 signs before the dark rises? In my opinion the Dark is rising was even better than Over Sea Under Stone! Like a lot of series I've seen (such The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, and also Harry Potter) the first book was more light hearted and the second one much more dark. Will Stanton is a wonderful charecter and it was great to see Merriman (Great-Uncle Merry) make a return. I reccomend this book to anyone who's read Over Sea Under Stone and wants to continue the series. I reccomend the series to fans of His Dark Materials, Chrestomanci, and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

I got this book shortly before getting "The Basics of Craftsmanship", and enjoyed the detailed discussion of wood types. However, I was looking for a little more "how-to" information. It's not enough to say how such-and-such a tool is good for ripping; as a beginner I want to know WHAT ripping is, and how to do it with different tools. I found that "Basics" gave more coverage to this kind of information. With all its pretty pictures I'll probably be more likely to put this book on my coffee table than in my shop.

This book is an A to Z guide describing topics as diverse as the type of woods, their uses, power and manual tools, fittings to be used, wood carving, veneering, joinery, designs etc etc.

I will guarantee that this is an investment - a fully illustrated (in colour) reference book - a complete manual.

I have used this book on various projects. This book tells you HOW to work wood efficiently without getting caught up in the details of the actual techniques. It tells you in laymans terms (for the layman also) how to accout for expansion of wood, the differences in types of woods, and dimensional analysis of the average piece of furniture, etc...

PROS

** Touches on nearly all aspects of woodworking.

** Tells you about the material that you are working with ... WOOD.

** Detailed dimensions of the average "good feeling" piece of furniture. EX: Counter top height of kitchen base cabinet is generally 36"

CONS

** If you are the type of person who likes project books, this has none.

Of C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia, "The Horse And His Boy" is probably my favorite. Venturing into exotic locations, with a likeable cast and a good thriller format, this is a pretty cool fantasy that gives some insights into what the cast of "Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" were doing during that time before they returned home.

Shasta is the son of a poor fisherman, and his life is pretty ordinary until a mighty Calormene (sort of a generic Mideastern civilization) Tarkaan comes to stay at his home. He overhears his father admit that he found the infant Shasta on a raft with a dead man, and the Tarkaan offers to buy him. That night, Shasta escapes with the Tarkaan's talking Narnian horse Bree, and by chance bumps into a runaway Calormene girl called Aravis, who also has a Narnia horse (Hwin).

The four plan to run away to the free land of Narnia. But they run into problems when they enter the city of Tashbaan -- the rotten son of the Tisroc (emperor) is planning to kidnap Queen Susan of Narnia and marry her whether she likes it or not. What's more, Shasta is caught up by the kings of Narnia, who think he's the prince of Archenland -- what's more, the prince looks exactly like Shasta. With the guidance of the mysterious Aslan, Shasta and Aravis must keep the Calormenes from attacking Narnia.

The later books in Lewis's series are probably a bit better than the first ones, literaturewise. This book introduces new and very interesting characters, as well as bringing back old ones like the kings and queens of Narnia, Tumnus, and Aslan, of course. The Christian subtext is probably faintest in this volume, and it's probably the least connected to the main storyline that runs through the series. But it's also a good exploration of stuff that Lewis had introduced, such as the Middle-Eastern Calormen kingdom, and the talking animals. And the writing is superb, especially the scene with Shasta near the tombs.

Aravis may be my favorite character in the Chronicles -- she's tough, decisive, independant, and smart. She's a bit reminiscent of J.R.R. Tolkien's Eowyn, or one of Lloyd Alexander's more serious heroines. Shasta is a nice twist on the boy-with-mysterious past, a likeable kid who is a bit in over his head but keeps working at it. Bree and Hwin are also likeable, with different personalities (Bree is more sarcastic, Hwin is meeker) and after awhile you may forget that they're horses.

Even taken outside the Chronicles (one of the early fantasy series, and one that helped spawn many of the staples of fantasy literature), this is an entertaining story for anybody who enjoys a good story.

This book differs from most of the other Narnia books in that it develops outside of Narnia in a very different setting. In the far-off land of Calormen, a poor young boy is living a miserable life as an orphan. The adventure begins as he escapes with another enslaved creature (a Talking horse from Narnia), and travels through many dangers to find his home and inadvertantly become a hero. The cast of characters are almost entirely unfamiliar to the rest of the Chronicles, with the exceptions of the Four Pevensies and Aslan. Nonetheless, each of the characters is as amusing and colorful as all of Lewis' others. It seemed as if some of the humor and vocabulary might be a little beyond some younger readers, but made for some delightful humor for those who pick up on it! It is interesting to see each of the main characters maturing in some significant way by Aslan's plan. The Christian themes are there as always, with a false god (Tash) proving to be a powerless idol; and a character that combines attributes of the "Doubting Thomas" and Peter, the Apostles. We also see how Aslan acts in ways that might not initially seem wise to the characters, but serve a greater purpose in the end: to teach, protect, etc. In the same way Christ works mysteriously in our lives, sometimes bringing difficult troubles and trials that work for our good despite first appearances. As in Romans 8:28, "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." Altogether, this is another of Lewis' excellent books, to be enjoyed as often as it is read.

C.S. Lewis is a genius, and this is one of the best out of the chronicles. I love this book, because it gives you a better understanding of how horrible Calormen was. In this story a young boy who was adopted by a Calormene fishermen escapes to Narnia with a talking horse Bree. On their dangerous journey, they meet a Tarkheena named Aravis and her horse Hwin. They are on an amazing adventure and have to face the challenges of getting through the busy city of Tashbaan and crossing the desert. Their most difficult challenge is to get to Archenland before the Calormen army to warn the king about their surprise attack. This book introduces new characters and has the lovable old ones. I recommend this book to anyone who can read!

Few stories are more popular among readers than the age old battle between good and evil, which is exemplified in the legend of King Arthur. Susan Cooper gives that scenario an imaginative twist with "Over Sea, Under Stone." It's a narrative sure to pique the imaginations of young ones, especially as read by popular British actor Alex Jennings.

When, during a vacation in today's Cornwall, the Drew children discover an old manuscript in the attic of their rented house, they suddenly find themselves involved in an exciting and dangerous quest. Their very lives are jeopardized as they search for the grail, the one antidote to the power of evil called the Dark. Their Great Uncle Merry is on their side, but much of what he knows he isn't telling.

Ms. Cooper's prose is both concise and thrilling; Mr. Jennings's reading is superb.

After a couple of introductory chapters to lay a foundation, this tale explodes into a fast moving suspense drama with a touch of fantasy that readers of all ages are sure to love.

The Drew children Barney, Simon, and Jane are on holiday (British term for vacation) in Cornwall England with their parents and great-uncle Merriam Lyon. While exploring a hidden room in the old Grey House in which they are staying, they stumble across an ancient map that throws them into a desperate search for an ancient grail which will unlock power to war against the Dark side. The Dark forces (real life people) are also in hot pursuit of the much-coveted grail that links back to the days of King Arthur and a fierce battle between good and evil that has ensued for hundreds of years.

One chase scene mid-way through is as suspenseful as any that you will find even in adult fiction. Susan Cooper not only is talented at spinning yarns of intrigue, but also adept at creating real life characters that you almost feel you know.

Be sure to read the epilogue at the end for one additional big plot twist!

You will not be disappointed in this one.

Thanks for reading...

TRW

This book is so exciting, after you read it you will be looking back over your shoulder expecting a tall guy in black coming after you because you know too much about him. Hastings, as he's called appears in most of the other books in some form or another. The book begins in Cornwall, England, where three children find a strange parchment, and with the help of their Great-uncle Merry, try to find the treasure that it leads to without getting cought by the Dark. The treasure it leads to is a grail, one of the four things of power that the Light needs to stop the Dark before it takes over the world. This book has many high points in which you'll think that the Dark will win, like when Simon gets chased by Hastings on foot. Or when Barney gets kiddnapped by the Withers (some others from the Dark) and is put under a spell by Hastings, and almost gives him the location of the grail. If you read the other books after this one then you will smile at the familiarity that you see. Read this book, everyone! You'll love it!!!

Having read a wide variety of authors, I can say that I truly enjoy Archer's entertaining writing, with his abundant humorous and/or dramatic turns. This book is no exception. An American businessman has bilked four different men with an intricate scheme to the tune of $1,000,000. But one of the men is determined to get his money back.

Gathering the victims together, the four men develop individually elaborate plans to recoup their losses from the infamous Mr. Harvey. Each plan is exceptionally creative, daring, and very entertaining as they get all of their money back, not a penny more, not a penny less.

Archer's style creates a very reader-friendly text, with good pace. And the ending is outlandishly funny. A great read.

In some ways, this is my favourite Archer novel -- the plot and the characters are wonderful.

The book suffers from his lack of experience (it was his first published novel). The story is slow to get started (considering the length of the novel) and the ending is more contrived than the endings of his later books. Occasionally, the dialogue is stilted, and there are viewpoint shifts that happen without notice.

However, Archer is a great storyteller, and this story just keeps moving. Essentially, this is a revenge tale, in which four men swindled by a master con-artist decide to get back exactly what he stole from them. They embark on a series of scams in order to extract the money from the miscreant. The scams are just barely believable, and one of the strengths of the book is the way that the author drags you in and gets you to believe that these exotic plots can work.

This is an excellent short novel, with lots of light suspense and much to admire. It is well worth the time it takes to read.

Couldn't wait to read this each day and was sorry when I finished it because I didn't have the pleasure of anticipation the next day. Jeffrey Archer has woven a thoroughly enjoyable tale of a scoundral - Harvey - who cheats anyone anyway he can. Through an innocent third party, he manages to dupe four men out of a total of $1,000,000. One of these, a university professor, determines to follow his father's motto: don't get angry, get even. The professor puts together a dossier on Harvey and contacts the three other men and convinces them to come up with a way to get the money they lost back. (They had all invested in north sea oil shares that turned out to be worthless.) The schemes they develop and carry out are not only brilliant, but also very humorous reading. The delightful twist at the end had me laughing all through the last chapter. This book is skillfully written and sure to be enjoyed by Archer fans. Anyone who has not read his books, would surely become a fan after reading "Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less".

" Breaking the Chains" By Aaron Clawson

Ron Suskind wrote the extraordinary book A Hope in the Unseen. Ron, a Wall Street Journal reporter, in search of a good story runs into and remarkable student struggling to succeed in Ballou High School, one of the worst inner city schools in Washington, D.C. In writing the book, Ron wanted to push the political message that urban inner-city schools do not get the funding needed for a proficient education. When the students of the inner-city schools graduate they have trouble competing with the more educated suburban graduates. Cedric, the main character of the book, tries to leave his social class by receiving straight A's as he pushes to attend an Ivy League college. His single mother Barbara raises Cedric, while his father is in and out of prison for dealing drugs. Its all Barbara can do to pay her bills and make her tithe to the church. Ballou, the school that Cedric attends, is full of gangs and the students who are there for an education are constantly being harassed. Cedric, although self motivated and a straight A student, has SAT scores much lower than that of students who attend the suburban schools. This makes it hard for Cedric to get into the college of his choice due to his high school's poor education. This story demonstrates how less proficient inner-city schools make it hard for a student to get a good education. It also shows the transition, a student goes through when they graduate from high school and continue life in college. This is a good book for high school students, college students and anyone who votes on their local taxes. It lets the reader get an understanding of the struggles gone through by lower class minority and inner city students. It also gives to reader a feeling of the transition from high school to college.

Ron Suskind's brilliant narration of a young boy's journey into higher, ivy-league education sheds insight into one of the most controversial education debates of today. Suskind does not offer up any answers to how to solve the problem of troubled inner-city schools and whether or not affirmative action is fair and/or effective, but simply weaves together the story of what it is like for Cedric to grow up, and be educated, in one of the country's worst public schools. This book reads like a work of fiction, and pulls you into Cedric and his family's world in Washington DC and beyond. An incredibly inspiring story that challenges the current discussions on how to improve the educational system, sheds light on how even resident's of the nation's capitol often are behind the rest of the country in being able to achieve their goals and dreams.

A wonderful read.

Riveting! Moving! Powerful! I read this book in two days, wanting to know more, still more, about these real life flesh-and-blood people, their struggles and their goals. Suskind does an extraordinary job of drawing the reader into Cedric's world, one of the best examples of this I've ever seen in non-fiction. Because all of the main characters are so clearly drawn, the context of Cedric's life comes into clear focus. I could feel the horror of his situation, the roller coaster of emotions in his unbelievable resolve and perseverance in climbing out of the ghetto, and then coping with the equally difficult hurdle of surviving in the "foreign" culture at Brown.

How fitting that Brown's motto is "In Deo Speramus"....In God We Hope!

A MUST-READ for educators, for students, for anyone who hopes to make a difference in another's life. It is a life-changing book, creating a new sensitivity and desire to support all the Cedrics of the world. I have ordered several copies with the hope of spreading the seeds of hope and inspiration this story conveys. DON'T MISS IT!!

The version of this classic I read was a translation into modern English by Nevill Coghill. As you can see above, I awarded Chaucer (and the translation) five stars; but I do have a criticism. This translation (and many other publications of Chaucer) do not contain the two prose tales ("The Tale of Melibee" and "The Parson's Tale"). These are rarely read and I understand the publisher's and the translator's desire to keep the book to a managable size. Still, that should be the readers decision and no one else's. I had to go to the University library and get a complete copy in order to read those sections. As I mentioned, this copy is a translation into modern English. However, I do recommend that readers take a look at the Middle English version, at least of the Prologue. Many years ago, when I was in high school, my teacher had the entire class memorize the first part of the Prologue in the original Middle English. Almost forty years later, I still know it. I am always stunned at how beautiful, fluid, and melodic the poetry is, even if you don't understand the words. Twenty-nine pilgrims meet in the Tabard Inn in Southwark on their way to Canterbury. The host suggests that the pilgrims tell four stories each in order to shorten the trip (the work is incomplete in that only twenty-four stories are told). The tales are linked by narrative exchanges and each tale is presented in the manner and style of the character providing the story. This book was a major influence on literature. In fact, the development of the "short story" format owes much to these tales. All of the elements needed in a successful short story are present: flow of diction and freedom from artifice, faultless technical details and lightness of touch, and a graphic style which propels the story. In poetry, Chaucer introduced into English what will become known as rime royal (seven-line stanza riming ababbcc), the eight-line stanza (riming ababbcbc), and the heroic couplet. His poetry is noted for being melodious and fluid and has influenced a great many later poets. He has a remarkable talent for imagery and description. With respect to humor, which often receives the most negative responses from a certain group of readers (as witnessed by some of the comments below), there are at least three types: good humor which produces a laugh and is unexpected and unpredictable (for example, the description of the Prioress in the Prologue), satire (for example, the Wife of Bath's confession in the Prologue to her tale), and course humor, which is always meant to keep with the salty character of the teller of the tale or with the gross character of the tale itself. I am really stunned at the comments of the reviewer from London (of June 21, 1999). He/she clearly has no idea of the influence of the work nor on the reasons why Chaucer chose to present the humor the way he has. T. Keene of May 17 gave the work only three stars, presumably because it was once banned in Lake City, Florida. (Does that mean it would get fewer stars if it hadn't been banned?) Perhaps our London reviewer will be more comfortable moving to Lake City! Another reviewer suggested that "The Canterbury Tales" was only a classic because it had been around a long time. No! Chaucer's own contemporaries (for example, Gower, Lydgate, and Hoccleve) acknowledged his genius. My goodness, even science fiction books acknowledge the Tales (for example, Dan Simmons' "Hyperion," which won the 1990 Hugo Award for best science fiction novel of the year, is based on the Tales). These brief entries are too short to review all of the tales. Let me just descibe the first two. Other readers might consider reviewing the other tales in later responses. In "The Knight's Tale," the Theban cousins Palamon and Arcite, while prisoners of the King of Athens (Theseus), fall in love with Emelyn, sister of Hippolyta and sister-in-law to Theseus. Their rivalry for Emelyn destroys their friendship. They compete for her in a tournament with different Greek gods supporting the two combatants. Arcite, supported by Mars, wins but soon dies from a fall from his horse (due to the intervention of Venus and Saturn). Both Palamon and Emelyn mourn Arcite, after which they are united. It is the basis of "The Two Noble Kinsmen" by Fletcher and Shakespeare. "The Miller's Tale" is a ribald tale about a husband, the carpenter John, who is deceived by the scholar Nicholas and the carpenter's wife Alison that a second flood is due. In this tale, a prospective lover is deceived into kissing a lady in an unusual location. And, recalling the response from our reviewer from London, apparently this Tale should not be read by people from London (or Lake City)!

The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer is one of the first great works of literature in the English language and are good reading for a number of reasons. They are written in "old English", however, and read like a foreign language for most of us. Barbara Cohen's adapted translation gives us four of the tales in contemporary English and therefore provides an excellent introduction to Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. Cohen's tales retain Chaucer's colorful insight into fourteenth century England including life as a knight, the horror of the plague, and the religous hypocrisy of the age. The illustrations by Trina Schart Hyman are vivid and tell a story all by themselves. I use Cohen's book as a supplement to teaching medieval history and literature to 7th and 8th graders.

The biggest hurdle in reading Chaucer is the language. Trying to read his work in Middle English is impossible without really good footnotes, and some of the "translations" are even worse--they're written in a high-blown, pompous style that takes all the fun out of the stories.

All this being so, I was delighted to find the Puffin Classics version retold by Geraldine McCaughrean! The tales are told in an easy-to-read, flowing style that captures the bawdy humor of the originals, without being over-crass (this is a children's book, after all.) I found myself often laughing out loud, and wishing I'd found this version much sooner, because it makes Chaucer fun to read! I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to try Chaucer but feels intimidated by the scholarly-looking versions available in the "Literature and Classics" sections. You won't become expert in reading Middle English, but you WILL see why The Canterbury Tales has such a wonderful reputation!