Thelma Chang is a gifted writer that decided this story had to be told. And tell it, she does. I couldn't put this book down, I felt like I was there. This book should be required student reading for history. The men of the 442nd were valiant, brave men who withstood incredible odds!

I'd heard "I Can Never Forget" Men of the 100th/442nd by Thelma Chang was an award-winning book in Hawaii for non-fiction. I can see why.

The stories are poignant and ironic in this easy-to-read book, filled with dramatic and sometimes humorous photos. The old war photos especially are dramatic and touching. Unforgettable.

This is one of the best new books of poetry I have found in a long time. The title poem is the best explanation ( and the funniest ) for writing poetry you will ever find. The intro was written by Russia's greatest poet of the 20th century: Yevgeny Yevtushenko.
Please read it and send a copy to all your friends.

Keith Franklin's poetry goes straight for the heart, don't miss this book.

Fires, Fights, and Two Teenage Boys!
What do they have incoming? Well, you will soon find out if you read "Inferno of Fear" by Franklin W. Dixon. As Frank and Joe Hardy the main characters who play their role excellent from the beginning to the end of every book in the series. As the plot unfolds around their wilderness adventure through Alaska's Denali National Park they can sense another mystery approaching. The two-week trip then turns out to be much longer that they planed on. With a hike to a lookout of Mount McKinley turning explosive and the radiating heat with the ability to singe the hairs on the back of a persons neck in one second. Then burst into flames the other and start the 16th forest fire in a row from the past 3 months. Later you get to find out about helicopter crashes, smoke jumpers, and much, much, more. Even the sentence fluency is incredible with this story as it has the ability to paint pictures with the most common words that are used in everyday conversation. "Joe grabbed Alex under the water and surfaced with him in a swirl of blazing branches and splintered boards. The massive old evergreen hissed in the buckled wreckage of the dock." Pg. 11 That's only the beginning of the story and trust me it get better. With the suspense of the story taking you up and down over all a believe that once you pick it up, you have a hard time trying to find a stopping point that will not leave you hanging. As my self only was ably to find one point and read it in two pushes over two days. If you love mysteries and adventure do a twofer and put them together. The Hardy Boys is what you will come up with.

The Hardy Boys go to Denili Park in Alaska. Somebody keeps setting forest fires all over the park. The police think that the fires were set by paul, their trail leader. They know he is innocent.Jeff Rankin is also out to kill him with his gunmen because he thinks paul spoiled a businnes deal. The Hardy boys catch a smoke jumper causing the fires with bombs.Don't miss the rest of this story!

When the UPS man delivered this I was shocked at how huge it is! Four big volumes packed with the most incredible and interesting mechanisms in the world. I have read the first book from cover to cover and I have thumbed through the rest. I love this kind of stuff so these are the perfect books for me. If you are also into cool mechanical contraptions, you will also love these books!

This set of 4 volumes are chock-full of information on various mechanical devices, and how they work. The text explains how each device works, along with illustrations that point out what each part does in the mechanism. Since the all of the mechanisms are from real-world applications, the designs are proven. The organization of the 4 volumes are similar, for example: Cams & Special Cam Designs/Intermittent Motions.../Tripping or Stopping Mechanisms/Feeding Mechanisms/Etc. Also, the fact that the text is broken into 4 volumes, Its very convienient to browse through. I recommend this set to the beginner, up to the advanced application engineer, because most people don't have the time to re-invent the wheel.

I found Franklin's world in The Inquisitor to be very unique and new. Very early on in the book I was able to grasp all the concepts of this world. The morality of the races, the help/hindrance of science, The hierarchical race clasifications, it was all explained very cleary and concisely. I find it a relief to be able read a book and to fully understand the ideas the author is striving for. Definitely worth reading in my book (pun!)

FRANKLIN HAS CREATED A VIVID INSTELLAR SAGA WITH THIS NOVEL. INQUISITOR HAS EVERYTHING THAT YOU WOULD WANT IN A SF EPIC: INTRIQUE, MURDER, REVENGE AND A LITTLE ROMANCE. I ESPECIALLY ENJOY THE CHARACTER TORI WHO HELPS OUR HERO SOLVE THE MYSTERY AND SAVE HER ADOPTED WORLD.

Mr. Gurley's new book comes in a wave of books in this genre. What distinguishes his book is the obscure battle location - the Vosges mountains and the incredible amount of detail given within his platoon and company. The author must have kept a very complete diary to accomplish this feat. Also, the discussion of the ASTP program for training officers was new to me as well as the fact it was dissolved because of excessive casualties in the ETO. In retrospect, it seems a travesty that so many of America's best and brightest were shipped to the ETO as so much cannon fodder to serve in line companies in the infantry. This is a intensely personal account by the author and gives an in depth account of what it was like to serve in one of the late arriving divisions to the ETO - the 100th division. Description of training, transport, and eventual combat are excellent. The author seems quite proud of his service in the infantry - the real bloodletters in any war - as he quite deservedly should be. This is the story of real men, nonprofessional soldiers, in their journey through the hell of war and how they handled it (or didn't). These men are not glorified in this, but their story is the way it was, both the good and the bad. I would reccommend this book highly to someone wanting to gain insight into the day to day life of a combat infantryman in WW 2. This person could be your father or grandfather now and it would make you proud of the sacrifice they made for us and freedom.

This book is not your typical WWII memoir! It has many unique facets that distinguish it from all other memoirs. The previous words may make it seem I am the paid publicist (I am not) - so let me explain my unadulterated praise.

First, the story is one seldom heard. The 100th Infantry division missed all the famous battles - so this is a new story for most of us. The story takes Gurley from training in the USA, through a boat ride to Marseilles, and finally a month of combat in France's Vosges mountains.

The descriptions of the events are more detailed and interesting that most accounts. The author is a writer by profession and that skill produces a well-penned account. In addition, he has written about his unit in the past, giving him a wealth of material from which to draw.

But there are a couple of additions which make this book remarkable. The first is that we get an overview of the "big picture". Most personal accounts only present, appropriately, the view from the rifleman. But in this book we are given overviews of why each battle was fought and the tactics used to win the battle. Thus, the accounts are woven into a larger, more understandable whole rather than the usual series of fights for anonymous towns or patches of woods. Finally, the author has a graphic in the book showing the names of all members in his platoon and where they belonged in the organization. I greatly appreciated being able to place a name into the overall unit. Usually, you can understand who the authors friends are, but can seldom understand how all the non-coms and many enlisted men peripheral to a story fit in.

This book is outstanding in describing Gurley's battle experiences. This is possible through great writing and additional touches that allow the reader to really understand the whole story.

I agree completely with the prior review of this novel with one caveat. The book does not single out "old Mobile" for its most direct hits. The author is clear that the real culprits reside in new subdivisions even newer than they are. While he sees the foibles of the "old Mobile" cast of characters, he tends to view them with tolerance as opposed to the more scathing view he takes of those responsible for dismantling the Mobile which the author clearly loves. It may be akin to "Confederacy of Dunces" but it attempts to teach a few lessons along the way.

A wonderfully light-hearted spoof of venerated Mobile, Alabama society (i.e. "old Mobile"), inlcuding glimpses into the inner sanctums of Mobile's mystic Carnival krewes and the familes who populate them. "Isle of Joy" is to Mobile what "A Conferacy of Dunces" is to New Orleans. However, rather than narrating the story through the experiences of Igantius Riley, sophist/hot dog vendor, Daugherty relates the events through the whimsys of Mcquorquedale de la Rochefoucauld, a self-professed postmodernist of the first order. In a nutshell, "Isle of Joy" is intelligently written and a joy to read.

Every child should have a favorite aunt or uncle. Ms. Gaines's simple story reflects on the relationship between the niece and the aunt. It is obvious by their actions that there exists a strong bond between the two.

Children will relate to the easily recognizable activities involved in the preparation and execution of the trip. The story also demonstrates, in the subtle manner, the independence of women. I find that aspect of the book to be one of its strengths.

The illustrations clearly show the story's subject matter. Aunt Martha is a very attractive young woman who appears to be successful; the niece is an average child with braids and "glowing" eyes. Some of the drawings are reminiscent of camera angles.

In true picture book fashion, there is a minimum of words. However, this does not lessen the book's value. Given the proper motivation, the young reader can supply HIS/HER own words to the captivating illustrations on the pages.

Beautiful illustrations trace the journey of a young girl and her aunt as they travel to North Carolina in the aunt's new car. Very easy to read and a truly heartwarming story.

I am the parent of an African-American male entering kindergarten this fall, and this book is an excellent tool to help me deal with the school system. Thank you, Dr. Hale!

Thank you Dr. Hale for an excellent text on an issue of critical importance! This is a great text for teachers, administrators and parents.

This biography is an excellent introduction into the life of the composer Gustav Mahler. The creative process of his symphonies and his relationship with his wife, the free-spirited Alma, is revealed in great detail, and Franklin avoids any declaration of opinion, forming assumptions through thorough research. And the research comes from reliable resources (Alma's diaries, Mahler's letters, Bauer-Lechner's accounts), and Franklin is clear when the resource may not be all-together reliable.

I particularly appreciated the way he handled the hot topic of the detrimental relationship between Mahler and Alma. He claims that the uneasy marriage is due to the fault of both. Mahler wanted Alma to be an ideal wife, but she desired to be free. Some could say that she was an early feminist, but Franklin doesn't make that assertion. The reader is left to form his own opinion.

The storytelling is often very lucid simply by the careful arrangement of primary accounts, be they newspaper articles, memoirs, letters or diary entries.

The book is not a threatening size, but the content is not something that can be absorbed all in one sitting. Two-hundred pages probably isn't enough to explain all of Mahler's life, but I believe everything of general import is mentioned in this book and analysis is thorough and journalistically sound.

The first glance of this biography told me that what I was about to read was an incredabley detailed and devoted branch of modern, biographical literature (warning, have some prior basic knowledge of Mahler before reading!) Dr. Franklin has certainly shined in this exploration, which cerculates the success of a once dreamy, inspirational child, who became a more practical intellectual both as a composer and conducter. The relationships between Mahler's life and his music are forefronted amongst a variety of primrary and secondary sources, including people most close to the impatient, hot-tempered perfectionist, contrasted with those who simply try to interperate his ideas. The course of development is fine-tuned, also, with several illustrated sources, indicating the places where Mahler had worked and their significances. Within this course embodies the causes and effects of his ideas. Austria-Hungary was riddled with anti-semites, which affected Mahler in more ways than one. Vienna, deaths, modernists, religion, nature, nationalism, and other aspects are explored due to their effect, making this exceptional innovator the eclectic, liberal idealist he would increasingly become. These aspects are brought to us honestly and without bias, which is one of Franklins' great assests. The biography is backed up extensively by quotes, especially from the accounts of de La Grange and auxiliary versions. An introduction prepares the reader with Franklin's task throughout the book, accompanied by the usual notes and useful aids, especially for readers wishing to pursue their interests towards other texts.
The special aspect of theis book is the story being told as it was, with the relationships between Mahler and his wife, the people he worked with, friends, family, and even counter-examinations, where no bias lies. The criticisms are presented to us as well as more valuable accounts recording Mahler's abnormal personality in a way in which we can truely get to grips with this man's philosophy, stringing his ideas in juxtaposition and calculating his aims and methods of going about them. If you like song, dance, long and flowing melodies and richly expressive harmonies, then you will certainly take to the nine symphonies of Mahler. Mahler's sense of colour ranks with the great masters of orchestration, and the spirit of song permeates his art, taking inspirations from cultures of countries like China, with the poems of Li Po. You can learn much more about his sources of inspiration, the times in which he composed, and how those times affected Mahler throughout this biography. Franklin brings forthe descriptions and induces two-way notions to get the reader thinking about these sources, as well as picturing Vienna at the turn of the century and the changing, post-romantic era.
Mahler's life is remarkable, and Peter Franklin has clearly gone to trouble not to offend the person that he was and became, acknowledging the borders that shield wrongs lines of thought. For example, Mahler's wife (Alma) insists "a person should remain a 'person' and not be frozen into a legend, turned into an insufferable plaster-bust". Although we tend to think of composers as slightly odd, abnormal and completely different to ourselves, we must remember that they're still human beings. Franklin injects other points which back this up, touching on Mahler's love for nature and spirit, as well as art, love and religion. I have presented enough of the core elements of the biography, and so what is left is to declare the book as an excellent portrayal, using a variety of techniques in order to capture Mahler the Musician, and the real Mahler, whom always questioned the relationship of his life and his music. The book tends to display thoughts of irony, especially about Mahler's death, and would suit any musicain wishing to broaden thier philosophical answers to why we, and issues like those in Mahler's competitive life, exist. Indeed, any philosopher with enough scape to facilitate a focussed examination of a famous composer would find this biography useful. The book, however, does tend to be slightly uneasy about its purpose (in relation to two major preoccupations which are induced by two statements highlighted in the introduction). Franklin acknowledges this, and says there lies a knot of wide "interrelated issues concerning notions about 'art' and 'genious' and the ways in which they were mediated in the individual experience and in public creative activity in nineteenth-century Europe". That does not mean, though, that one can't interperat Franklins' notions; I found that the concepts of the string of issues formed neater towards the end by re-examining the two statements previously mentioned. That way, synoptically, one can focuss and understand the purpose of the accounts and methods in which the author put them to us, so that we may assemble the notions to acheive the resolution which every reader desires. If you are intellectual enough to percept the outcomes of this intelligent journey, simply jump on board!