As a teacher and avid learner in many areas of study, I find this book most disappointing. To begin with, the title is misleading. There is very little here that will teach you how to stop the vicious cycle that eventuates in the resetting of the body-mind's set points to levels far outside those norms safe for its continuting health. It is a dumb and ill-considered title, for, in fact, the book is a hodge-podge that has no audience in mind and no focus of presentation for any audience. The olla podrida I talk of is a mixture of the history of research in this area that might be appropriate to professionals in the medical field, some oversimplified discussion of physiological systems that, at best, would not educate the ignorant, and a jumble in between that might be OK, were it not hidden away where no reader can locate or focus upon it, plus a technical but woefully inadequate appendix, footnotes that meet no reference standards, an incomplete and poorly assembled index, and inadequately proofed text with a number of spelling mistakes, especially in technical words. It is no wonder that a major press would not take this work for publication. The only heart of the book is in the middle in a section called "Stress and the Cardiovascular system." Here we learn about the balance between sympathetic and parasympathetic systems and the "vagus brake." But though there is a reference in the index to "excitoxicity," a fundamentally important concept developed recently, we look vainly on the indicated page for any discussion of the topic. McEwen has difficulty teaching us about basic concepts that relate to the body-mind's drive for homeostasis in its physiological responses. Unfortunately for the field, a term coined in 1987 by University of Pennsylvania doctors (I cannot tell whether one of them was McEwen) is very misleading. "Allostasis" is the buzzword, and the reader will serve herself better by putting this word in the search engine and reading the resultant hits rather than reading this book. Too bad that the etyma in allo-stasis can have no such meaning as the practitioners in this field would have it mean: "The concept of "allostasis" (active responding of biological mediators that maintain homeostasis) leads to the concept of "allostatic load" (the wear and tear on the body due to overuse of allostasis by repeated stress or disregulation of the mediators-failure to shut them off when no longer needed)." Too bad the originators did not seek the help of a classics professor to help them coin the word. Perhaps the etyma in "allelostasis" or the like could be stretched to include what they want: a word of meaning like "homeostasis" but with the added notion that several systems of mediators inter-react to achieve the body-mind's set points.

This book is cutting edge. It catches up with what the scientific research has found for two decades -- that the origins of stress are not primarily external. It is largely psychological and the good news is that we can avoid the chronic and life threatening health problems caused by the long term activation of the stress mechanism by fostering our own mental health in simple ways. And the first step is to consider the possibility that stress is not the result of what people or events do to us, but is primarily due to our own thoughts, feelings and attitudes about people and events. This book is not based on one man's opinion, but rather on scientific findings. And the evidence is that we can shift our stress provoking attitudes fundamentally through strong social support, which simply means deepening of our connection with one another in meaningful ways, supporting one another in making a mindful shift out of stress. This book sees the stressed-out condition most of us experience as a wake-up call to evolve our consciousness by first taking responsibility for the stress in our lives and next having the courage to join with others in exploring ways of shifting it. It seems, as a culture, we need a 12-step program like AA but devoted to the crisis of stress.

Set like _Catseye_ in Norton's Council/Confederation universe, _Eye of the Monster_'s title is also drawn from a character's efforts to understand an alien perspective, but the story is set on the jungle planet Ishkur rather than a human colony world. Furthermore, unlike Troy Horan of _Catseye_, Rees Naper needs to understand the people of Ishkur not because they're potential allies, but because they're potential enemies.

The Ishkurians are intelligent reptiles, like crocodiles who walk upright, although "Croc" is what one of the mission kids calls "a degrade name". (The term "politically incorrect" didn't exist in 1962, when this novel was first published.) They're introduced so as to put distance between them and the audience; in fact, the notable thing on the morning the story opens is that none of them are around, or else the mission director wouldn't be brewing coffee - the smell makes Ishkurians queasy, and humans reciprocate with distaste for Ishkurian scent. The mission's eerie silence is broken by radio reports of the Patrol's ongoing withdrawal from Ishkur, giving fair warning to any offworld personnel who wish to leave as well.

Oddly enough, Rees' communication problems begin much nearer home. When his father, a Survey officer, was killed in the line of duty some years ago, Rees' uncle, Dr. Milo Naper, removed him from cadet school. As a mission man, Naper disapproves of the military mindset of the Services - Survey and the Patrol among them. He's quite vocal in expressing his good-riddance attitude toward the Patrol's departure, confident that relations with the Ishkurians will proceed much more smoothly once free of such ignorant clods. After all, Milo's worked on Ishkur for more than 20 years, and he *knows* some of the people reported - falsely, surely - as being involved in acts of aggression against offworlders. Rees still has the heart of a scout's son, taking the Patrol's warnings of a potential native uprising seriously.

Many offworlders have already left, not wishing to rely on Ishkurian goodwill - even some of Naper's own mission staff, including Vickery, the hunter Rees assists now that he's grown and earning his way. The few remaining offworlders have received personal assurances of friendship, particularly the Salariki trader Sakfor of the neighbouring trade outpost. (Salariki are prudent folk, after all.)

None of it was enough. Checking up on Vickery's animals (accompanied by tagalong Gordy, whose parents are colleagues of Rees' uncle), Rees finds the mutilated body of Vickery's pet nighthound. Being closer to their compound than to the mission, and knowing that Sakfor has his family with him, Rees moves fast to deliver a warning - but not fast enough. The smoke of the burning of Sakfor's trade goods is the least of the horror of the massacre taking place there. After acting to rescue any Salariki survivors - Gordy's needed to persuade Zannah, a little girl, out of hiding - Rees moves on to the main action of the story: trying to reach and evacuate the mission, followed by the survivors' efforts to reach safety - if any is to be had.

_Eye of the Monster_ lacks the depth and texture of some more famous pursuit-across-country Norton stories. Analyzing why _Eye of the Monster_ doesn't leave as strong an impression with me as most Norton stories do, I considered 3 of the pursuit-sequences in the novel _Witch World_ (Alizon, Verlaine, and Karsten) that I *do* find satisfactory. What _Eye of the Monster_ lacks is a deeper context beyond the desperate journey toward safety, such as the unfolding of a new world (as at the beginning of _Witch World_) or the overall situation beyond the problems of this particular group (the Kolder War in _Witch World_).

Rees' people - and through his eyes, readers - aren't learning about a new world; they've lived on Ishkur for some time. We see less of Rees' efforts to think like an Ishkurian than the title would lead one to expect, though to be fair he and his companions have more immediate problems for much of the story. I feel that we see and learn more of the Salariki of Sargol than of the people of Ishkur. Even the reasons behind the uprising aren't fully explored. Neither are those behind the Patrol's withdrawal, unless the reader is meant to infer that the Ishkur uprising occurred just before the Council/Confederation war broke out.

On the flip side, one of the strong points of _Eye of the Monster_ is that the story features the feline Salariki in major roles right alongside humans. (_Plague Ship_ is still *the* book to read for a window on Sargol; the fugitives here are in too much trouble to provide deep insight into their respective cultures.) Another point is that Rees isn't a galactic hero; he makes well-intentioned mistakes, for instance, in coping with young Gordy that have serious consequences.

Worth reading, but could have been a stronger book.

Andre Norton had already published more than forty novels when "Eye of the Monster" was released in 1962. This was well before Arnold Schwarznegger won his first Mr. Junior Europe title and went on to greater glory in his first film, "Hercules Goes to New York" (1970). However, Ms. Norton must have someone like him in mind to play the role of her hero, Rees Naper in "Eye of the Monster."

Rees goes crashing through Ishkurian jungles à la Arnold in "The Predator," blasting the alien 'Crocs' who went on a killing rampage of their own:

"Then the warning hit him; the musky, nauseatingly strong odor of Crocs in a killing rage. It could be that some were near now, or it could be the lingering reminder of a recent visit, or attack.

"Crouching low, he began to move towards the lab. On the office threshold he halted. A croc lay dead at his feet.

"The body pinned by darts to the desk inside was his uncle."

The author gives us a tense, thrill-a-minute tale as her hero rescues two children and a woman from what was left of a missionary camp and a trading station. However, "Eye of the Monster" is very atypical Norton, even though one of the children and the woman happen to be Salariki---the feline aliens first introduced in "Plague Ship (1956)." I think the author must have set herself the task of writing a pure "Bullard of the Space Patrol" SF thriller before immersing herself in the mysticism and magic of her 'Witch World' fantasies.

Andre Norton (born Alice Mary Norton) was the first woman to receive the Gandalf Grand Master of Fantasy and the Nebula Grand Master Award, so you will still enjoy a well-crafted thriller in "Eye of the Monster." However Rees Naper is a more muscular, blaster-happy hero than her usual run of intuitive, plucky, sometimes handicapped main characters. I will even venture to guess that she got tired of Naper, since this book ends rather abruptly.

We never do learn why the Crocs went on a rampage or how they managed to steal and operate their advanced technology weapons. However, Naper and his band of survivors manage to escape the gristly fate of their former companions and kin.

This book is scarcely 120 pages long. Of the eight chapters, one chapter is reprinted material from two other authors, and another is co-authored. Yet this book costs forty dollars, and Norton makes her students buy it for her class. Nice way to sell copies; really nice. The editorial review is utterly right. This could be interesting material, and it is complex; but Norton's style is so dry and her writing so stodgy, dull, and even awkward, it virtually kills any interest one might have brought to the subject matter. Norton seems to believe in the mystical powers of information, and claims the study of information as the science to end all sciences. Ridiculous or not, she can't deliver her presentation in any kind of dynamic way. It's a pity. I would have hoped for a more interesting introduction to information science. Instead, I feel suspicious, disgusted, and cheated by having to have read this book. I believe my views probably represent an extreme. However, you're probably only reading this if you are being required to buy the book for a class, so my views are ultimately irrelevant, since they aren't really informing your purchasing decision. :-)

An excellent guide that provides basic introductions to web operations and organization, Melanie J. Norton's Introductory Concepts In Information Science uses recent research as well as scholarly and trade publications to provide a history of information science and the key concepts which have helped it advance. The depth of survey is startling for a slim-appearing title: it packs in a lot of basics and concepts.

I found myself bursting into laughter thoughout this book. I know some people may like the dialogue, but it really ruined the entire mood, if there was one, for me. If you want one word to describe the dialogue, it's 'inane'.

I borrowed this book from a friend who said it was pretty good (of course, she reads dictionaries for fun) and began reading. It seemed okay at first, albeit a bit boring. The further I got in this book, the more I wondered if this was some author's idea of a practical joke. The plot was crazy - there was very little of it and the little that existed was confusing and/or cliched. The characters are so wooden you could build a bridge out of 'em (sorry, random Monty Python quote).

Oh, and one of them is named Rhys. I loathe that name.

I would love to give you some examples of just how laughable this book really sounds, but I gave the book back looong ago. It's the only one I've actually returned to her within the same week I borrowed it, which tells you something. In fact, the only reason I finished it at all was that I was incredibly bored and that dialogue was hysterical.

All right, I'll stop harping on the dialogue.

The monster itself, which is not a monster after all, is thrown in there so randomly that I was left scratching my head (metaphorically) and staring at the book in surprise when I finished. Much of the plot seemed random, when I could follow it. I love fantasy, but books like these make me start to question my faith in the genre.

In closing, I hope the rest of the series is better than this...although I doubt it could be worse. If you're ever depressed and want something to cheer (or crack) you up, just pick up this book. They should rename it "How Not To Write A Fantasy Story".

This book is about an apprentice to the embroiderer Dame Araglas named Sarita and a ranger named Rhys and their adventure in Var-the-Outer.

As its name describes, this book contains many known works of famous writers from Europe, Asia, and a few from Latin America. I was to read Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert and I found in the introduction that the editors of this book gave away the ending in an attempt to summarize the plot. Thus I read over 200 pages knowing exactly what was the destiny of the main character!!! I do understand that many people do know the story, from beginning to end, but I also know that there are many others like me that have never read Madame Bovary. From now on I will avoid the introductions completely. It was cruel that editors from well known universities commit such atrocities. It clearly shows their lack of common sense and that even in the best universities people don't learn the basics.

Wide collection of works and translations. I really enjoyed the translation of Homer in the Iliad. Norton's Anthology has help transform literature from being boring to being fun.

This book discusses a topic that is a grab bag of different disciplines and has nice illustrations but i dont know if it is worth close to $100. Anyone who has significant work history intuitively knows a bulk of the material in this book. The book could be condensed to include the hard data and scientific findings and leave out much of the intuitively obvious commentary. This book is no worse than scores of similar textbooks on 'soft'topics but with the way prices are going many students are captive buyers,forced to buy textbooks at the teacher's request for perhaps questions used in the book for grading purposes while the general info can readily be found in college libraries.

The book may be a good choice for a scholar of OB. If you are a graduate student like I am, you may find it difficult to follow and overloaded with scientific terms. To my mind, the simpler the better, which this book is not.

After having this book (1st ed.) on my shelf for several years, I am compelled to write a review. This book seldom provides answers to any of my NT questions. Recently, after installing a remote disk drive, I encountered a STOP error (fatal error) upon startup. The error message said something about an IRQ problem. The only mention of IRQ in the book's index refers to a single paragraph in the glossary. There was nothing on errors, debugging, system errors, dump files, log files ... anything that would help me understand the problem. This has been my experience every time I open this book. It more likely to infuriate than to inform. However, at nearly 900 pages it does make a good bookend.

I've used this book over the years with enthusiasm. Even though it is somewhat out of date, Norton's books, as always, make it easy to understand what he has to say.

This fictionalized account of the life of Emperor Norton fails utterly to convey any sense of the man who is an icon in the San Francisco Bay Area. Reading this artless book is neither enjoyable nor informative.

Some excerpts from an interview with Malaclypse the Younger by THE GREATER METROPOLITAN YORBA LINDA HERALD-NEWS-SUN-TRIBUNE-JOURNAL-DISPATCH-POST AND SAN FRANCISCO DISCORDIAN SOCIETY CABAL BULLETIN AND INTERGALACTIC REPORT & POPE POOP.

GREATER POOP: Are you really serious or what? MAL-2: Sometimes I take humor seriously. Sometimes I take seriousness humorously. Either way it is irrelevant.

GP: Maybe you are just crazy. M2: Indeed! But do not reject these teaching as false because I am crazy. The reason that I am crazy is because they are true.

GP: Is Eris true? M2: Everything is true. GP: Even false things? M2: Even false things are true. GP: How can that be? M2: I don't know man, I didn't do it.

GP: Why do you deal with so many negatives? M2: To dissolve them. GP: Will you develop that point? M2: No.

GP: Is there an essential meaning behind POEE? M2: There is a Zen Story about a student who asked a Master to explain the meaning of Buddhism. The Master's reply was "Three pounds of flax." GP: Is that the answer to my question? M2: No, of course not. That is just illustrative. The answer to your question is FIVE TONS OF FLAX!

Do not buy this book. I adopted it as a text book for a course I am teaching but have found typos in just about every poem I have read in it. Some you can figure out:

"How sweet--while warn airs lull us, blowling lowly"

"Warn" is supposed to be "warm." But others are really confusing:

"Thro' many a women acanthus-wreath divine!"

"Women" is supposed to be "woven." I checked these in the first edition of the Norton Critical--the first edition has the correct lines. I guess Norton just scanned the first edition and put it on the shelves as a second "edition" without even editing it.

Very sloppy work--please don't buy the book. The texts are well selected--it is nice to have The Princess available. And the critical readings are also well chosen. But the texts are hardly readible.

Publisher New York Thomas Y.Crowell & Co. 13 Aster Place. Calf bound Complete edition. Tennyson only. no publishing date. Poems such as Battle of Brunanburh,the princess. The Holy Grail etc. Very old. unable to varify worth.

Irish-born comedian Graham Norton in this very small book gives us his pick of his favorite gay icons. Each little biography includes a picture of the favorite star, drag queen, singer, actor or performer. I enjoyed several of his picks like k.d.lang, Divine, Grace Jones, Alain Delon, Madonna, etc. I highly disagreed with his picks of Jeffrey Dahmer, Francis Farmer, Roger Moore, and Liberace. Some of his picks are meant to be controversial, and they are. This is just one of a series of books put out about 20th Century Icons. Graham's royalties from this book go the Terrance Higgins Trust, the UK's leading HIV and AIDS Charity. A good cause. I found this book enjoyable, especially the gay icons that I personally chose. An interesting little book!