From all the books I've picked out of a bookshelf either on random or after having had them recomender to me, this is one of the best. This book was so inspiring. It outlined in a simple way the life and trials of blessed Mary MacKillop, and this Norwegian fell in love at once. If you want to learn more about this wonderful Aussie rolemodel, this is a great book to start with.

I bought this book for my 4 year old - who is really enthralled with sea life - especially Orcas. Its a great bed time reading book - 1 chapter at a time. Lots of facts that are interesting for adults too.

I once had the great, albeit far too brief, pleasure of working for Geoffrey O'Brien. I say this not only to reveal subjectivity on my part, when it comes to his work, but to proclaim that, in addition to his being a keen critic, a lapidary-sublime-limpid writer of prose, an accomplished poet, and a man with more than encyclopedic knowledge of everything from Beach Boys lyrics to Shape-Note singers to the work of obscure naturalist painters, I know that he is, as F. Scott Fitzgerald would say, "fun on a party."

Paraphrasing the man himself on the subject of Preston Sturges, to find so immediately, in _Castaways of the Image Planet_, "yodeling, bubble dancers, corsets, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 'My Indiana Home,' hypnotic catalepsy, and the remark 'in China they eat dogs," establishes that we are indeed in O'Brien territory. Since it is impossible to discuss his work without the use of eclectic compendia, allow me to add that only O'Brien could have penned this double-fistful of essays on topics as far-ranging as Japanese _Manga_, Orson Welles, the cinematography of Hong Kong and the PRC, Shakespeare, _Mad_, Brando, and the photography of Edward S. Curtis, and have the collective effort rise to such an exquisite acme above mere paean, homage, or pastiche.

Most importantly, though, this collection goes beyond critique in that it strikes a blow for thinking audience members everywhere against the static presumptions of our existing meta-culture. As O'Brien remarks in "Free Spirits," a meditation on the work of film critic James Harvey and the Golden Age of Hollywood romantic comedy, "film books these days, with their emphasis on semiotic codes and quantitative analysis, tend to reduce moviegoing to a rather impersonal experience, as if we brought nothing to our encounters with the screen and emerged from the dark imprinted with precisely identical patterns."

O'Brien lets the light and the air and the sheer pleasure of surrender to the screen, the page, the image--the spectacle--come romping back into the equation. He makes reading about these phenomena as moving and profound an experience as imbibing them first-hand. He lets you know that not only does someone else sitting in a library wing-chair or a plush seat in the darkened post-modern arena get it, he gets it in an incredibly cool and funny and enlightening way. Having this book of essays is like having sixteen great late-night café conversations with an effervescently witty and erudite friend on tap. My advice? Buy 'em, collect 'em, trade 'em with your friends. Once again, O'Brien is kiss-the-hem-of-his-garment good.

This publication gives anyone interested in the Catholic Church's social teaching a one stop tour of all the essential encyclicals and other writings that break open and build on the foundation of "Rerum Novarum".The translation of the encyclicals is well done and makes reading and understanding the message a lot easier than some previous translations. Over all a much needed and well done volumne.

Chi-hoon could be an 8-year-old girl almost anywhere--she is playful, imaginative, has an occasional disagreement with her older sister, and loves to visit her grandparents. The charm of this book is that we see Seoul, Korea through a young girl's eyes. This book is filled with snippets of Korean history and culture. We see Chi-hoon struggle to pay attention at a piano lesson, go to market with her mother, try to win a school prize, and play yut, a traditional Korean game, with her grandparents. In a particularly amusing scene, we see Chi-hoon persuade her grandfather to buy her cold noodle soup (a Korean specialty) against her parents' wishes. How many children and parents can identify with that scenario! :) This is a fantastic book for any age. Even the youngest children will enjoy the lovely photographs, and older children and adults will enjoy re-reading the text which contains gentle references to issues such as tremendous academic pressure (Chi-hoon's cousin will remain at home for an entire year to prepare for college entrance exams), the older generation's bias toward male children, and the age hierarchy (Chi-hoon wishes that she didn't have to call her older sister Oni, a title of respect). A must read!

I've read other books by O'Brien, and this one has a very different feel to it. I am a fan of the Apocalypse Agenda, and when I saw he had another book out I just had to get it. It's geared towards younger readers, so I got the book for my son. But once I began reading it myself, I have grown to love it.Its a must own for any dog lover. Furthermore, The pen and ink illustrations are wonderful, and really make the book complete. This is a great book for all ages, and I hope there is a sequel.

Found this book very useful for my first year Modern History course in the University of New England (Australia).

On all major topics in urology international specialists discuss those original papers, that influenced diagnosis and therapy the most. If YOU want to survive in discussions amongst your colleagues you definitely need this collection of papers describing landmarks like "Anderson-Hynes", "Burch", "Boari", "Whittacker-Test" and many many more.

I would definitly say that this book is worth every penny. It explains everything youd ever wanna know. Good work!

Following up her successful first book of poetry, author Baird has written more poetry about the weather--in particular, the northern plains weather she knows so well. The language is expressive and precise, but mostly the poems are great fun to read aloud. If you're a teacher, your classroom is sure to find great inspiration from this book. If you're a parent or grandparent, what fun you and your child will have talking about the weather after reading Baird's poems. Illustrator Patrick O'Brien's done another great job of illustrating the weather--a tough job, but he does it very well.