Bill Belleville's Deep Cuba book is part Cousteau adventure tale, part natural history, part cultural history, with a smattering of Hollywood documentary drama. It is enjoyable and engrossing to read- a must for those interested in protecting our fragile environments. Belleville's sensitivities and attention to detail give us greater understanding of the pristine waters and lands of Cuba, a place that seems so far away, yet is in reality right next door. Like many readers, I have grown up during a time when Cuba has been "off-limits." Ironically, this embargo has in many ways protected the environment by keeping masses of American tourists away. How lucky we are to be able to visit this magical place through Belleville's enlightening account.

Bill Belleville, author of "River of Lakes: A Journey on the St. Johns River," again takes us down to the water to quench our thirst for adventure. In "Deep Cuba," we set sail with him aboard an expedition vessel for a journey that plies the waters of both politics and discovery.

Through his poetic telling, the island's previously unexplored waters come to life, populated by everything from mysterious bioluminescent creatures and toothy sharks to the simple souls whose livelihoods come with the tides. We meet a variety of Cubans, among them a harbor master who boards the ship and skillfully guides it to port, two scientists who join the expedition in a rare show of cooperation between Cuba and the U.S., and a group of boys who frolic among the watery mangroves of a distant island during a break from their studies of becoming boat captains. And late in the book, there is Castro himself, who boards the ship with his inquisitive intellect.

We witness, too, the dynamics of an expedition driven by filmmaking -- in this case, a documentary for the Discovery Channel, which funded the voyage. Belleville lets his keen observations of the personalities of the expedition ebb and flow through the narrative, and it soon becomes apparent that relations between the filmmakers and scientists are at times as chilly as those between the U.S. and Cuba. We learn first-hand how science can take a back seat to the wants of filmmakers, even on such a rare expedition as this.

Throughout the book, there is much high adventure. Belleville descends 2,000 feet under the surface in a mini-sub, and he dives reefs and plunging ledges that teem with fish. In one harrowing chapter, he even loses his way during a night dive in open water.

The book is a page-turner, to be sure. But along the way there is much to be learned as Belleville weaves scientific findings and cultural observations seamlessly into the telling.

At the very least, this scientific expedition has found a happy marriage in word, if not on film.

When the author climbed aboard the research boat hired by a Discovery Channel film crew bound for Cuba, he gained entry to two engrossing stories. One covers the exploration of Cuba's coral reefs, sunken ships, and sharks, whose mysteries are elucidated live-on-location by Discovery's consultant scientists and cultural experts. This story is by turns exotic science, pure travelog, and just plain spooky - expedition members in a submersible find two complete sets of diving gear hundreds of feet below the safe diving range, in an area where divers were known to have disappeared. Belleville's deep dive in the little sub hangs in mid-book like a luminous bubble of science, poetry, and spookiness.

The second story is a weird tale of the making of a documentary film. It's unnerving to see the innards of the "documentary" process exposed. For instance, Belleville watches as the camera bypasses scientists who lack sex appeal or sound-bite savvy. Or, although Fidel Castro's visit to the expedition's ship makes great reading, it evidently makes bad vibes in Filmland, and is cut. And Belleville's account of the debate over whether the word "forbidden" should be used in the film title is hilarious.

These two narrative lines intertwine to weave a fascinating path around, and even into the throbbing and troubled heart of - gasp! - the forbidden island of Cuba.

This book has all the information I was looking for and much, much more. Very well written by somebody who obviously knows the biz. Lots and lots of valuable resources and tips. I'll be referring back to it for years to come.

I got this for my husband whose a musician. It is very practical, goes over things that Music Business books don't. It's written for the musician and by one who is successful.

I find this book to be an excellent resource for serious musicians. Those of us who want to make a living doing music in a professional way will benefit from the detailed advice in this book. Everything from alternate venues, to exact rates to expect/charge, to creating press kits, recording/selling cds successfully--it's all here. I use this book as a basis for everything I am doing now to create a successful solo music career. Nyree Belleville is a great Bodhissatva to all those interested in creating a successful music career based on solid business and people skills. HUGE encouragement for musicians in all walks of life!!

In recent years Christians have become increasingly polarized around the question of what and how women should serve in the church and in the world, with rival organizations, conferences, books and articles all catching the public eye. Competing explanations of scripture, of history, and of human nature all vie for attention, while on the ground, churches and Christian ministries find themselves in tension between members who not only disagree, but question the fidelity of those with whom they differ. Linda Belleville has served us well with a book that moves sure-footedly through the issues: she gathers and concisely presents evidence for the actual roles women played in New Testament times, sets well the context for understanding Biblical statements, and judiciously presents and weighs differing interpretations of crucial texts about women and about leadership in the church. This is a book to move the discussion forward, eliminating some points of contention, and clarifying what's at issue in others.

Bill Belleville's sublime story of the St. John's River was a book I could not put down. A modern version of William Bartram's Travels, "River of Lakes" truly catches the history, geology and flavor of life along the St. John's River. For those of us who have grown up on the river, and who have played in its creeks and springs since childhood, it was an absolute joy to read. I hope that Belleville (who also makes films about rivers) makes a film about the St. John's based on this book. Hang up your hammock by the river, sit back and soak up the beauty of this poetic odyssey. If you haven't seen the St. John's before, you will want to now!

Bill Belleville invites you aboard an allegorical raft as he explores Florida's St. Johns River. I was glad I accepted his invitation. With him as your guide "discover" this river with its many surprises and wonderments. With Belleville you learn how much of the "old" has survived modern day Florida and how important it is to preserve what remains. It is a wonderfully written book and before you know it you are caught up in Belleville's storytelling and when his story is finished you wish there were more bends in the river to travel and more tales to read about.

Bill Belleville travels the length of the St. Johns River from south to north, a rarity for rivers in North America, by houseboat, kayak or whatever means necessary to travel the river and many lakes through which it traverses. The book is an excellent balance between the natural and human history of the river and the river valley. The human history focuses on the early settlers, the growth of agriculture and lumbering as well as the later growth of tourism. It disusses some current problems with pollution and sprawl. The unique nature of the St. Johns truly comes across in the descriptions of the natural history. It has narrow passages through subtropical vegetation and then goes through a number of lakes, large and small, all of which have their own personality and unique characteristics. To me, the most interesting part of the book were the dives into the cave from which the many spring come to the earth and are the point where manatees often gather. Well-written, lyrical with just enough ironic humor to make you enjoy the trip.

A fantastic book from a fantastic website. The stories from Europe seem strongest, including Bill Barich in Italy, Maxine Rose Schur in France, and Simon Winchester in Romania, but Wanderlust covers the entire globe, from 1st world to 3rd world, from the luxury of club med to the drug-fueled violence of Columbia.

While some stories lag behind, as should be expected with 40+ tales, there is certain to be something for everyone. One reviewer found Barry Yeoman's piece about lonliness in Spain and Karl Greenfeld struggle to stay sober in Thailand as two of the worst, but I would highlight the same pieces as two of my favorites.

For any wayward traveler forced to take a break from the road, salon.com's Wanderlust makes for a great escape.

Salon's "Wanderlust" section was always my favorite part of Salon -- even more so than "Sex":). This book is a marvelous collection of authentic writing, and answers the kinds of questions good travel writing asks -- what is it like to be drinking absinthe in Spain? to be penniless and in love in Paris? to be a cynic at Club Med? to try to stay sober in Thailand?

This is armchair travel at its very best.

"[I]f travel is like love, that is, in the end, mostly because it's a heightened state of awareness, in which we are mindful, receptive, undimmed by familiarity, and ready to be transformed."

So observes Pico Iyer at the end of his foreword to this magical collection, adding that the above is also the reason that "the best trips, like the best love affairs, never really end. "Anyone who has traveled at least a bit, who has loved at least once, or who is ready to be transformed should read this book. High praise is due Don George and Salon.com for gathering such a stirring and tantalizing collection of writings together: in forty short pieces not one dull or sappy note is struck.

For romance, the standouts of this collection are Maxine Rose Schur's "Passionate and Penniless in Paris," about the time she spent with her husband living in a van by the Quai de la Tournelle; Simon Winchester's "Romance in Romania" where the Rolls Royce he happens to be driving brings both him and a young Romanian girl into a beautiful moment that takes its romance from its very fleetingness; Iyer's own short, musical "Bewitched in Bali"; "Fade Into Blue," written in the third person by Amanda Jones; and most memorable of all, Laura Fraser's "Italian Affair," one of the most personal pieces in the book, but written completely in the second person (let's just say it begins with "Let's say your husband leaves you" and ends with her discovery of "la bella vita").

Notable for their adventurous qualities are Bill Belleville's "Looking for Mr. Watson" in the heart of the Florida Everglades; Don Meredith's relaxed brush with death in "Sleeping With Elephants"; Jeffrey Tayler's not-so-relaxed brush with death in "Lost in the Sahara"; editor Don George's surprising fear of climbing Half-Dome in Yosemite while watching his 8- and 10-year-old children scamper up like squirrels--he not afraid for them, he's jealous of them; and Susan Hack's humorous "Tampax Nightmares."

Of course romance and adventure are not mutually exclusive, and many of the stories here exhibit both. The writers of SALON.COM'S WANDERLUST convey the sights, sounds, smells, tastes and feel of the places they go--both externally and inside their own heads. The reader is transported to all seven continents and several states of being (drunk on absinthe, crashing a motorcycle while on heroin, eating the ambrosial sauces of the Memphis World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest). It will be hard to read just a quarter of these stories and not want to make your plane reservations, stuff a new notebook into your backpack and just go.

I loved Murder in the Marais. That said, while I enjoyed Cara Black's new, second book featuring Aimee Leduc, I didn't love it. Certainly, it rolls along at a good clip. But my primary problem, aside from a too-large cast of characters, was a fair absence of emotion on Aimee's part about the things that happen to some of the characters. Aimee's feelings in this tale seem to be focused primarily on herself, and, as a result, there's an absence of impact on the reader when terrible things happen. There are some fine moments, particularly one scene involving a cellphone conversation with the four-year-old daughter of Aimee's "employer." But this is a story about serious events and the lack of the heroine's feelings for the people involved in these events does a disservice to the overall narrative.

It is none the less an entertaining, if somewhat difficult, book and I would recommend that newcomers to Black's work read Murder In the Marais first. She manages to set the Paris scene wonderfully well; its smells, its sights, the feel of the place. And for that alone I give the author high marks.

I loved this book...offbeat and showing a gritty, intriguing part of Paris that I would never have known about. The historical research by the author amazed me, but it never intruded on the story thanks to the skillful weaving and multiple storylines. The breadth of characters make it a book I want to read again. And again. The author takes the reader to a complex and layered Belleville, the old working class quartier of Paris where Edith Piaf sang on the streets which is now home to North Africans, Islamic fundamentalists and Algerian Nationalists. This was written before 9/11 but how prophetic.
I highly recommend this!

After reading Cara Black's Murder in the Marais, I eagerly awaited the publication of this novel. It did not disappoint. As in her first adventure, the protagonist Aimee Leduc takes the reader on a roller coaster ride through a Paris rich in atmospheric detail. This is a nail-biting tale written by a natural story teller whose research is impeccable. I'm looking forward to the next in the series, Murder in the Sentier.

carr does a first-rate job of analyzing these small illinois cities. . . which are really the epicenters of the surrounding area. This book reminded me a lot of Daniel Elazar's Cities of the Prairie books, demonstrating the continuing force of local political culture through time. I've lived in Galesburg and I live near Ottawa, and know something of the history of these cities, and she really does a handsome job of putting it all together.

This is a worthwhile addition to your lace library. The lace is great fun to do. The projects do not take too long to complete and the end result is very attractive. I only wish there were more patterns in the book, and perhaps a bit more guidance on alternative threads.

It's an interesting book and very well written. At times, it's as if the main character (a 10 year old boy) is trying to retell his life as a ten year old, when he's years older. Political, religious, sexual, and family issues are provoked, and Beyala writes masterfully.

As with previous "Counterpoints" books, this book is very technical, and the authors make much use of the original Greek and Hebrew biblical texts. The good parts of this book are very good -- meriting 5 stars easily for their coverage of the subject. Specifically, the essays by Keener and Belleville (promoting equality of roles in the church) and Schreiner (promoting male authority) are very well-researched and well-written. Anyone wanting a current understanding of the debate on gender roles in the church would do well to read the book for these essays alone.

I only give this book 3 stars, though, for 3 main reasons:
(1) The 4th essay, by Ann Bowman, really doesn't fit with the format of the book. She writes very compellingly on how women are equal to men before God, how women are equally called to serve in ministry, and how women are equally gifted with the same spiritual gifts. What she does NOT cover, though, is the specific roles that the Bible deems appropriate for women (which is what I thought the book was supposed to be about). In short, she spends all but about 7 pages writing on what everybody else would agree on anyway. She does a good job of establishing the equal value of women in the church, but contributes almost nothing to the discussion of what leadership roles they should occupy.

(2) The format of the book is different from earlier Counterpoints volumes, in that the authors do not respond to each other's articles. The editors simply ask each of the writers a series of questions after each essay, and then comment on each position. Gone are what I thought were some of the most insightful portions of previous Counterpoints books -- seeing writers POINT OUT THE WEAKNESSES of the other writers' positions. To resolve the controversy on women in ministry leadership, both sides need to interact with each other, rather than just each side stating its case.

(3) The final appendix, by editor Craig Blomberg, was well-intentioned but inappropriately placed. He states that his goal is to point out a 3rd alternative that combines the strengths of the other 2 views. But what ensues is an essay that is largely traditionalist / hierarchicalist in nature, and only in the last few pages briefly describes what may be a mediating view. Since this essay is presented last, and without any subsequent comment or review, it appears to the reader as "the definitive word" on the subject. But Blomberg's ideas are far from definitive. He summarily promotes some heriarchicalist positions, and summarily dismisses other egalitarian positions without always adequately defending why. It is a well-written essay, but I think it belongs more in the center of the book (or as a 3rd alternative of a book titled "Three Views of Women in Ministry"), so that those who might not agree with him could respond and comment. The structure of the book, as it is now, suggests that Blomberg has listened to both sides of the evidence and come up with the "correct" position. But I found myself questioning his conclusions numerous times because he did not adequately defend them.

My recommendation: Buy this book if you're interested in the topic of women in minsitry, but read it through and either take notes on it or underline the significant parts. Then go back later and re-read your notes or underlined parts, in a different order than how they are presented. (i.e., read the appendix first, then ch.3-4, then ch.1-2). This will keep the structure of the book from influencing you as much, enabling you to evaluate your own position on the basis of the biblical evidence alone.

This book is one in Zondervan's "Counterpoints" series. Each book in this series deals with a discrete topic in theology with contributors from differing evangelical point of view. Although the book is certainly worth reading, it shares the poor editing that has plagued some of the other Counterpoints books.

The editors are both professors at Denver Seminary. Prof. Blomberg is an advocate of the "complementarian" approach to women in the ministry (against) and Prof. Beck advocates the "egalitarian" approach (in favor). This leads to my first complaint. It seems to me that people who are opposed to women in the ministry should be called "traditionalists" and those in favor "feminists." However, the editors tell us that these terms are "pejorative." Then they go on to refer to the traditionalist view as "hierarchalist." So much for not offending anyone. (Another Amazon reviewer noted this as well.)

Moving on to the substance of the book, the essays by Profs. Keener, Belleville and Schreiner are quite good. Most of the relevant biblical passages are discussed and the reader will get a good understand of why each side takes the position it does. The big disappointment is Prof. Ann Bowman's essay. Although she discusses the question of women in ministry, it is more focused on the concept of Christian ministry. In addition, it contains discussion of her days in seminary, her missionary work in Sierra Leone, her friend Londa, etc. Maybe the editors felt obligated to have a woman defend the "hierarchalist" approach, but this essay is a dud. (Moreover, she argues that women can be "pastors," just not "senior pastors," so how traditional she is is an open question.) Finally, we get to the closing essays (two by the editors) and one by Prof. Blomberg. These don't add much and it would have been better to follow the approach used in some of the other Counterpoints books - have the authors respond to each other's position. In addition, every effort is made to downplay the significance of the issue - it "is not one of orthodoxy versus liberalism . . . or truth versus heresy." And of course, the truth is somewhere in the middle, etc. Yet if women do not belong in the ministry, then the willingness of some churches to purport to ordain them is one of the biggest cave-ins to modern culture in recent memory.

I have read a few of the other reviews on this book, and I must respectfully disagree with the idea of it being biased against the complementarian view. On the contrary, I feel the main text is very balanced, with the large appendix by Blomberg (a complementarian) tipping the scales towards the complementarian position.

I doubt if this work will change anyone's mind who already has a firm grasp of where he stands on this issue. It does, however, provide a fair and accurate presentation of both viewpoints so that they can be thoroughly examined. There are actually a total of five essays here; two essays by egalitarians, two essays by complementarians, and one large appendix by Blomberg, which is somewhat of a hybrid between the two positions.

As a complementarian, I have developed an even greater appreciation for the role of women in ministry as a result of reading this work. The spirit of Ann Bowman's remark (as a complementarian) is particularly memorable for me: "Rather than focusing on what women should not be doing, I believe it's important to focus on what they should be doing."

This work is the third title I have read in the Counterpoints series. Although the scholarly tone may be rather heavy for some laymen, pastors and teachers will be greatly benefited and enlightened by the presentations found here. I recommend it highly as a good, concise summary of today's viewpoints on the issue of women in ministry.