Lavishly illustrated, this book tells a remarkable and little-known story about how denizens survived the Siege of Paris at the height of the Franco-Prussian War (1770-71). It looks at the war through the eyes of the artists who recorded it, and of some who even fought in it. Privileged artists like Degas, Manet, and Regnault suited up and mounted the ramparts, even as they recorded the struggle of day to day life with their charcoal and paint brushes. We encounter other artists--Courbet, Puvis de Chavannes, and Rosa Bonheur--who each served France in his or her own way.

Clayson is an excellent writer and storyteller. In her book, we encounter the endless bread lines, the staving masses who grew so hungry that even the elephant in the zoo was slaughtered and devoured; what role innovations in public lighting played, mail being sent by carrier pigeons that soared above the Prussian troops surrounding the city. Clayson is always sensitive to the role that gender plays in French culture, and we learn how gender roles were challenged during this stressful time. Vividly anecdotal and highly learned, this is the first book to explore the subject of life and art in Paris during one of the most critical moments in French history. A must for anyone interested in Paris or French art and history. And a pleasure to read.

Holli's story is honest, revealing and courageous! She describes in great detail what so many women go through. Most women, like Holli, think they're going crazy when symptoms erupt and they struggle to explain themselves to family and friends. Holli shares her journey of discovery in a well-organized and hopeful manner. She offers many insights from both a medical perspective and most importantly a spiritual perspective. She reveals how her faith in Christ, combined with the latest scientific research provided an answer to her battle with PMS and how each of us can find an answer that will work for us as well. Holli is a very inspiring woman.

The book consists of a series of research papers written by some of the best known economists on development planning. The paper by Kendrick and Taylor is one of the first example of using optimal control method in planning development. The paper by Tendulkar is an extensive study of application of linear programming method on foreign trade sector planning. The papers by Weisskopf, Clark, Blitzer, Marglin are some of the classic examples of application of mathematical programming in development economics. There are several applications on agriculture, spatial and regional planning and on education and social sectors. The book is a treasure house for students interested in the techniques and applications of mathematical methods on the most crucial problems of developments.

Even though it has been about 8 years since I first and last read this book (I was in 7th grade and I am now 21) I still find this book to be a very good pre-teen book.

I find the way that it desrcibes the events that lead up to the climax very intresting and how the author describes in detailed what happens a very good book to pre-teens.

I am a very hard person to keep my attention on anything. So to hold my attention so I would finish it in 1 night, it has to be a good book.

I recoment this book to those pre-teens who are into science fiction.

Among those who admire St. Thomas More, there are those who do so for the ultimate reason that guided his life: his sanctity. To these I heartily recommend Christopher Hollis's biography of Thomas More. Mr. Hollis understands the depth of the man, the historical context surrounding him but most importantly he understands More's intellect. This biography is the best effort I have read (including Roper's book on his father in law) to decipher a man who has been held as the first exponent of communism (through his Utopia) and a staunch defender of the Catholic Faith at the same time. The author uses all of Thomas More's writings to show that in the end, it was the desire to do God's Will, and to follow Christ that guided him. Therein lies the key to understanding this seemingly contradictory man. It is therefore the author's central thesis that without understanding this one can easily miss the whole point about Thomas More. Again, to the lovers of this great man, this book is a must read.

It's an easy to read book but if you are like me you will put it down on our lap at almost every page and reflect upon what you just read and why it struck a chord in your being. Hollis writes with authority and knowledge, compassion and understanding that addresses anxieties that lead to the path of individuation and wholeness in our modern day world. 'Tracking the Gods' is no exception to his library of books he's penned that are great. From mentioning Joseph Campbell to Kafka he illustrates his points with interseting background material. This book is a must for 'self-explorers', those that yearn for a deeper understanding of their work towards self understanding.

This fascinating book presents in loving detail the work of an artist who subtly commingles beauty and horror, angels and beasts. Traian Filip was born in Bucharest, Romania in 1955 and experienced the repression of the Ceausecu regime. In 1989, he arrived in New York and then settled in New Hope, Pennsylvania, where his work took on a new grace, but with an evident loneliness for his family in Romania. He took his own life in 1993. For most of his life he concentrated on intaglio etchings, later producing paintings on found materials. The book poignantly relates his personal history to his artistic production. It gives exellent renditions of many of his beautiful and intriguing etchings and paintings.

For all the terrific essays, books, guides, museum publications and primers for the beginning art lover, this generously illustrated, thoughtful book presents one of the most practical and informative manuals on how to look at and truly see paintings. The authors have divided this survey of painting not in the usual hisorical context, but instead they show us the various types of paintings and how to approach them and get the most out of the viewing experience. By selecting categories such as Religious painting, Myth and Allegory, The Nude, History painting, Portraiture, Landscape, Still Life, and even Abstract painting they present samples from across the entire history of Western art, pointing out the hows and whys artists chose and painted each subject. Religious painting, for example, uses examples from Giotto, Tiepolo, Michelangelo, Bosch and Rembrandt to Max Ernst, Dali, Gauguin, Stanley Spencer and Jackson Pollock. By concentraiting on the subject of the painting we are guided into an understanding of the evolution of that type of painting and the result is that we are encouraged to look at every school and every period of history in a refreshed light. The section on landscape shows that the beginnings of this genre can be found in the backgrounds of the medieval frescoes and progresses through various periods until the Landscape itself is the main subject. The many interpretations of myths, allegories, Self Portraits, components of still life paintings are all explored and documented in the most user-friendly way. This book is invaluable for teachers of Art Appreciation, for those people who want to know what to look for when they visit museums, and for artists who want a different slant on the history of composition. The color reproductions are plentiful and of excellent quality. This is a fine addition to the library of art lovers and afficiandos, students and hedonists! A worthwhile investment, and a fine reference book and tool.

This book, which is now out of print, published in 1986 by Harper and Row. Attributed to the authors of Hollis and Sibley, although on the book there is no credit other than in the acknowledgements. Regardless however, this is a fun book posing as Mickey's biography from his earliest times in Steamboat Willie and with Walt to the days of all his shorts and his feature film debut in Fantasia. The book also discusses Mickeys appearances in all the merchandising of the days, from watches to clocks to books to comic books, music, ornaments and then the last appearance; Mickey's Christmas Carol. Fun to read and enjoyable and sure to please any Mickey or Disney fan.

Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O'Connor and her brother, H. Alan Day, tell the story of growing up in the harsh yet beautiful land of the Lazy B Ranch in Arizona. The book is organized as a series of vignettes ranging from character sketches of the cowboys who spent their lives on the ranch to rain to the BLM.

I loved this book. I first became aware of it during a trip to southern Arizona. The authors describe a way of life -- on an isolated cattle ranch -- that is almost extinct. I knew that water was important in such a land, but I didn't know that the majority of the time of the owners and employees of the ranch was spent in maintaining the wells, windmills and pumps that provided that water.

I also enjoyed comparing the book to Jimmy Carter's An Hour Before Daybreak, his memoir of his childhood in rural south Georgia during a similar time period.

I loved reading this beautiful, gritty account of the remote Arizona cattle ranch where O'Connor and her brother grew up. The book is a portrait of the Lazy B ranch and the family and cowboys who created and sustained it for over a century. O'Connor's account is unromantized and yet touching, and it succeeds in vividly revealing a bygone way of life from the old West.

We see the the daily rhythms and activities of ranch life, the ongoing struggles of the Day family to keep the ranch afloat, and portraits of the colorful, rugged cowboys who worked at the Lazy B for most of their lives. And we hear the perspectives and fond recollections of the young girl (O'Connor) and her brother who grew up there.

If you are drawn to the West, you'll enjoy this book as much as I did.

Despite her status as the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court and her background as a Stanford graduate and prominent lawyer, Sandra Day O'Connor was not--repeat NOT--a child of privilege. Granted her Daddy ran a cattle ranch spanning two states and she never really wanted for anything, but the childhood which she relates (with her co-author, brother Alan) in "Lazy B" was a most challenging, liberating, independence-building one indeed.

Her grandparents started this life and her parents took over--running a huge cattle ranch, raising three children and instilling traditional values of frugality, self-reliance and hard work. We learn about her dad, DA; her mom, MO; and several interesting, independent cowboys, among them Rastus, Jim Brister, Bug Quinn and Claude Tipets. Just names in a review, these lonely, uneducated, but remarkable men take on real life--real cowboys in the twentieth century! Here's an example: Brister, to tame an unruly horse, wrestles it to the ground in a display of awesome strength--while sitting on its back!!

Sandra accompanies her dad on his treks around the huge ranch fixing windmills, rounding up cattle, fixing fences, and, in general, doing the work of the ranch. She is an important part in the running of the ranch. Her father barely acknwledges her when she is late delivering lunch to the men working far from the homestead--despte the fact that she has had to change a flat tire on the ancient truck with its frozen lugnuts all by herself.

The book stays focused on her childhood, her family and the ranch. We learn about her adult life, including her appointment to the Supreme Court in just a few pages. At first I was surprised at such a cursory treatment of such an important career. But in learning about her childhood upbringing on the Lazy B we really learn all about the adult Sandra Day O'Connor. This is an interesting read both as biography and as the evocation of a vanished time and place. I recommend it highly.