Long before his name would be known around the world, Ernest Hemingway made an early appearance in this 1923 yearbook of "Best Short Stories." Editor O'Brien was so impressed with the young writer's submission, "My Old Man," he dedicated the entire volume to him. Unfortunately, he misspelled "Hemingway" as "Hemenway" on the dedication page, on the story itself, and in the copyright. This book is a rare and interesting curiosity piece, most notable for its Hemingway connection, rather than the quality of its other stories.

This workbook was very helpful. It has excellent examples for assessing and addressing the multiple intelligences of students. The ideas for book responses are delightful!

This is a very well written, easy to follow, and interesting book to read. I read it and briefed my Maritime Strategy class on it at the Naval Postgraduate School, and I really enjoyed reading it. It covers the Naval Arms Control process through the Washington Conference, the Geneva Conference, the 1930 and 1936 London Conferences, and it draws out some very important implications those conferences had on the outcome of World War II. The only minor drawback to this book is that it focuses almost exclusively on capital ships. The author makes mention of the auxiliary ships and submarines here and there, but pays little attention to the underlying themes. I don't recall reading anything about the British persistence in seeking the abolition of submarines or the regulation of submarine conduct that eventually came out in the 1936 London Proces-Verbal (taken verbatim from Article 22 of the 1930 London Naval Treaty). Overall, I think this is an excellent book for anyone who wants to learn about arms race issues or the naval arms limitation conferences.

In 1998, Paul McKaughan, executive director of the Evangelical Fellowship of Mission Agencies (EFMA) with former missionaries William and Dellanna O'Brien published the results of an extensive research project "Choosing a Future for U.S. Missions." They brought mission agency executives, denominational leaders, pastors and theologians to a workshop and a series of focus groups around the premise that missions as now known is at a crossroads and needs to change if it is to be faithful to the Great Commission.

In this study an appeal is made for mission agencies and churches to recognize how 21st Century missions is changing. Among other things, local congregations are increasingly dissatisfied with simply being passive partners in fund raising appeals to send missionaries to other world areas where, in some instances, Christianity is now growing faster than in their own neighborhoods.

McKaughan and the O'Briens question whether the "missionary-drivenness" that characterized 19th and 20th century missions "will produce real missions" for the future. They suggest, "Real mission drivenness will help us escape the prison of dollars and finances, but a missionary approach may never do so." Missionaries as "professional Christians" are no substitute for the witness of mission driven local congregations. "The role of the mission agency has changed from being the 'door' of missions to being the 'facilitator' of local churches."

The authors offer an agenda for organizational and spiritual renewal that they believe has the possibility of joining congregations everywhere in a mission-driven church for the 21th century. A must read for those concerned about future mission efforts and the local church's chaning role in global missions!

If you are studying Debussy or have an intense interest in his works, this is one of the most useful books you can find. It is not, however, a very interesting source for biographical details. In the preface to this 1933 study, Vallas writes, "In this book...I have avoided all biographical details the publication of which might be deemed premature and indiscreet. The secrets of his private life belong to those who shared it and who bear [sic] his name." Vallas, in fact, barely touches on many details that are now considered quite important, such as the fact that his first wife committed suicide not long after they separated. The biography he gives is factually correct, but dry compared to the more recent "anything goes" style.

This book is, however, a treasure trove of articles. Vallas thoroughly documents the reception of every major Debussy work. His own analytical commentary is breif but insightful. In addition, he has compiled an 83-page, dated listing of the opening bars of every piece Debussy in known to have written. The translation is awkward at times, but readable.

This book is an amazing resource, just not the most entertaining read. The original articles are interesting in that they show the public reation toward early modernism. Highly recommended if you are studying Debussy.

Helps a collector get a better understanding in the identification process and the approximate value of toy trains. This will allow the person to know what they are purchasing and/or bidding on. I have volume 3 and just ordered volume 4. A must for beginners.

'December Bride' begins grimly with a wedding between two middle-aged farmfolk in an empty church. Outside, a curious band of onlookers lurk in the cemetary. In this opening sequence, the novel's Big Themes are set up - The Land, Family, Death, Religion, Community. Bell than switches back a quarter of a century to chart how this scanario came to be. Andrew Echlin, benevolent patriarch of a large lake-side farmstead in turn-of-the-20th-century Northern Ireland, widower father of two sons (silent Hamilton and impetuous Frank), hires labouring tenant Martha Gomartin and her 30-year-old daughter Sarah as domestic servants. After Andrew's death in a boating accident, both men enjoy Sarah's favours, producing a baby of uncertain parentage. Despite the ineffectual efforts of a disapproving clergy, and the scandalised hostility of the community, Sarah refuses to marry either brother, and effectively takes over the running of the household. This menage-a-trois is seen as a direct affront to Puritan Protestant Ulster values; as minister Sorleyson muses: 'One had obligations to one's fellow-men. Of what avail was virtue if lust and irresponsibility were to be crowned with contentment?'

Bell uses as an epigraph a verse by Thomas Hardy, and it is to the latter's novels that 'Bride' bears most resemblance, with its focus on austere agricultural life, on the influence of the weather and the land on characters, on the confict between the eternal cycle of the seasons and the brutal transience of individual lives. Dialect (in this case Ulster-Scots) is richly employed, both in dialogue and in the detailed descriptons of farming life; the transgressive behaviour of individuals and families are contrasted with the norms of the wider community. As in Hardy, Bell favours dramatic set-pieces, often self-contained; he is also alert to the shifting emotions and contradictions of characters. Although the book's pleasures pertain to the 19th century novel, the writing is tauter; 'Bride' is ultimately not as relentlessly bleak or fatalistic as Hardy, despite that opening scene, the brooding or portentous atmosphere of many sequences, and the shattering violence or accidents that break out.

'Bride' is a canonical text in Irish literature, looked at for insight into the bitter history of Northern Ireland and the 'Ulster mentality', with the Troubles breaking out less then two decades after its publication (1951). And it is true that the tensions between Protestants and Catholics are a feature, that the issue of land and its control is crucial, that events seem to take place around important historical dates. But to reduce this novel to its academia-friendly bones not only misses the subversive, non-nationalist narrative of a servant girl and her disruptive sexuality taking control of a powerful farmstead, but also minimises Bell's gifts as a novelist, his psychological acuity, the visual and verbal poetry of his scene-setting, and the power of extended sequences, such as that of a near-senile widower lost in the crowded Belfast streets with his beloved dog.

This is without a doubt the best way to learn the drums without hassle. It is a very easy book to read and has everything it could teach you about drums. It is without a doubt the easiest and best way to learn.

The 3 R's have undergone an incredible transformation in the past few years as old concepts of teaching have given way to experimental methods that sometimes backfire (phonics, for example) All contemporary educators will find this bibliographic reference to primary sources invaluable in their efforts to accommodate modern techniques with traditional approaches. This book covers books written between 1990 and 1998, but texts of older yet still valuable materials are also included. Librarians, teachers, and educational administrators will find a wealth of information in this comprehensive book.

Overall I was quite pleased with this guide. It provided accurate information for transportaion details, hotels and restaurants and gave good basic introductions to the sites and cities, as well as what to expect in the culture. The city maps were accurate and the maps of ancient egyptian monuments were helpful and enough for me, though anyone with a serious interest in them will want to pick up something extra (the guide recommends titles). DOn't rely on the arabic section at the back - if you need to teach yourself any arabic for a trip you'd do best to buy an egytian arabic phrasebook as the rough guides section is small and can mislead your pronounciation.