The very essence of the Chan series in one convenient package! The shortcut to the humor and wit of Chan. Thanks Mr. Berlin for doing all the hard work and pulling all these together!

This book is a welcome addition to any Charlie Chan fan's library. There is finally a well-organized and comprehensive compendium of Charlie Chan's quotations and it is fun to read. In fact, you don't have to be a Chan fan to enjoy it since the aphorisms can often be general and not necessarily specific to the films. And the introductory text helps to explain the films where the sayings originated.

This book is intended to be a sequel to Albert Nolan's "Jesus Before Christianity," an effort which Nolan has gracefully endorsed. It is a look at how the first discipleship communities known as "churches" (from the Greek, ekklesiai, meaning "the called out") saw their commitment not as simply a Sunday morning battery charge for service to Empire, but as the formation of a Spirit-driven alternative society. It links these churches to their roots in biblical Israel's covenant with God to live differently from the "gentiles" (nations) surrounding them. The book draws on a diversity of New Testament texts in focusing on these themes:
1. prayer and worship
2. kinship
3. economics
4. healing, exorcism and public witness

Each of the six chapters contains reflection questions for personal or small group use. It concludes with a "thought experiment" on how these lessons might be lived out as church in our time.

I wrote this book to give Christians and folks considering Christianity an idea of what "church" was intended to mean in the early days: a complete society alternative to empire, with God reigning in the midst of the community. It is a "sequel" to Albert Nolan's "Jesus Before Christianity." What Nolan did for the Jesus of Palestine, I tried to do for the first disciples amidst the cities of the Greco-Roman world.

Each of the six chapters has reflection questions suitable for individual or small group use.

Besides the great pictures, this is an unpretentious and well-written work on cigars. I recommend it for all cigar lovers.

Lots of great pictures, and tons of info. Not your usual stuffy cigar book. The writing is really a lot of fun. I definately recommend it!!

Essential book to understanding Hughes, his empire, his paranoia and his bizarre final years in isolation. Also a must-read for info on Robert Maheu and Richard Nixon.

Michael Drosnin did an excellent job of deciphering all the memos that Howard Hughes exchanged with Robert Maheu (his chief of Las Vegas operations) and writing a cohesive story. He also interviewed many associates to obtain a true picture of what went on with Howard Hughes during his many years of self-imposed exile. I found it to be the most interesting and revealing book about Hughes that I have ever read. I worked for one of his companies for 30 years and I would highly recommend this book.

Wisely chosen and beautifully illustrated,this book shows how entertaining and exciting poetry can be. It instantly held the attention of my six year old. He wanted to write a thank you note to Lord Byron!

Michael Rosen's collection of poetry refuses to talk down to children. He has selected classic poems from the seventeenth century to modern day, poems (and poets) that children will hear references to for the rest of their lives. From Shakespeare to Shelley to T. S. Eliot and many more, Rosen has gathered a mixture of beautiful, fun, and significant poetry, complete with biographical information about each of the poets, as well as information on individual poems and poetic forms.

It is Paul Howard's lovely, intriging illustrations that will first grab your attention, however. His illustrations capture the mood of each poem and make them come alive for young readers.

A must for children who love poetry and for parents who want to share poetry with their children.

This book follows the action of the Napoleonic wars, where Clausewitz spent most of his life and his energy. Parkinson motivates Clausewitz's famous, later work, 'On War', by telling us of a man obsessed with fighting for the Fatherland against the French. As the pages turn, the reader empathizes with the Prussian Junker, who has trouble talking to women and even more hardship trying to reform the Prussian army. The final chapter concerns itself with 'On War' and its misinterpretation in the many wars following its publication. Parkison has a fluid writing style which makes the reading fast.

Clausewitz: A Biography by biographer Roger Parkinson relates the life and work of German officer and military theorist Carl Phillip Gottleib von Clausewitz (1780-1831) who is perhaps best known for his historic contribution to military studies titled "On War." Scrutinizing Clausewitz's life and ideas in the keenest detail, Clausewitz: A Biography is a classic and highly scholarly study of military theory, as well as a straightforward and very strongly recommended presentation of a great leader's life.

After its publication 10 years ago, Clinical Urography immediately became the definitive multivolume text in uroradiology. With the additions of Dr. McClennan as co-editor and Drs. Dyer and Kenney as associate editors, the second edition actually consists of several textbooks combined into one, with contributions from around 220 authors, a substantial minority of whom are urologists.
Most of the authors are world-renowned authorities who have written about their particular areas of research and subspecialty expertise.

It is difficult to do justice to this monumental effort in a one-page review. The current edition is exceptionally well-organized and edited. The introductory section on imaging techniques is 600 pages alone, and there are entire and complete sections on developmental and congenital disorders and neuromuscular disorders, among many others. A comprehensive and highly practical section on interventional uroradiology is included. The chapter on obstructive uropathy is a small superb textbook itself, and the other chapters run the gamut from common topics, such as reflux, to obscure subjects, such as genitourinary tract brucellosis and amyloidosis.

Each chapter is extensively illustrated, and image quality, in general, is good to superior. I discovered virtually no content or typographic errors, which is particularly impressive given the length of the book, which is approximately 3,800 pages. Production values are uniformly high throughout the three volumes.

What is particularly surprising is how readable and highly practical Clinical Urography is. While it can be used as a reference work, individual chapters or long sections of the book can be read at a single sitting. There is excellent cross-referencing, and, in general, there is little repetition of material throughout the individual chapters and sections. Most of the chapters are extensively referenced, and the references, in general, have been updated.

There is an appropriate mixture of older imaging techniques and images and modern cross-sectional imaging techniques throughout the three volumes. Controversial or difficult topics, such as
renovascular hypertension, imaging of acquired renal cystic disease, and urinary incontinence, are handled in a comprehensive and balanced manner. There is excellent radiologic-pathologic correlation in the renal cystic and renal neoplastic sections. While there is not enough room to mention many of the highlights of the book, some chapters deserve special notice, including those on sonographic evaluation of the urinary tract, genitourinary tuberculosis, pediatric urinary tract infection, renal parenchymal disease, urethral and bladder trauma, and retroperitoneal fibrosis.

By design, there is a paucity of material on adult gynecologic imaging, although there is a sole chapter on gynecologic inflammatory disease. Individuals seeking comprehensive information in this area will have to refer to other textbooks. Other criticisms of the second edition are fairly minor. The chapter on radiation exposure is superficial and not geared to specific issues in urologic imaging. The chapter on conventional radiographs could have been shorter, and image quality could have been better. The chapter on lymphangiography is primarily of historic interest and could have been deleted. The discussion of scintigraphy of adrenal disease, with the exception of imaging of pheochromocytoma, is also primarily of historic interest. Also, in a few of the chapters (for example, "Retroperitoneal Tumors and Cysts"), the cases shown are fairly old and could have been updated.

The primary intended audience for the second edition of Clinical Urography is radiologists with a strong interest in the modern practice of uroradiology, as well as urologists, nephrologists, and pathologists who specialize in uropathology. The book also belongs in the libraries of all medical schools and radiology departments around the world. For a book of such depth and length, the list price of [price] is an absolute bargain.

The second edition of Clinical Urography more than achieves its stated goal in the preface, which is to serve as the source reference in urinary tract imaging. It is a testament to the incredible efforts of the late Dr. Howard Pollack, a co-editor, the associate editors, and all the varied contributors.

_________________
Douglas S. Katz, MD

After its initial publication in 1990, the first edition of Clinical Urography became the definitive textbook in urologic imaging. Both in breadth and depth, it was unequaled in its field. To perform the monumental task of updating this expansive work, Dr. Howard M. Pollack enlisted Dr. Bruce L. McClennan as coeditor and Drs. Ray Dyer and Philip J. Kenney as associate editors. A prestigious group of specialists, some of whom have authored uroradiology texts of their own, was then assembled to thoroughly report on the current practice of uroradiology.

Much has changed in uroradiology, as in every aspect of medicine, over the past 10 years. As a result, chapters in the first edition have been completely rewritten, and several new chapters have been added. Because this text includes both urologists and radiologists as contributors, the reader is able to gain a global overview of the diagnosis and treatment of urologic pathology because the text is not limited to just the imaging findings.

The section on interventional radiology is representative of the comprehensive nature of this text. This section alone contains 24 chapters ranging from percutaneous nephrostomies to lithotripsy. There is even a chapter on fetal obstructive uropathy.

MR imaging of the urinary tract has undergone substantial change since the publication of the first edition. State-of-the-art MR images and techniques are included in many of the chapters. Color
Doppler sonography is also contained in the appropriate chapters. Nuclear medicine evaluation of the urinary tract is thoroughly covered, which is difficult to accomplish in more focused books.
Cutting-edge techniques, such as positron emission tomography scanning, are discussed.

Overall, the quality of the more than 4000 images is outstanding. The text is very readable. References are exhaustive and would be an excellent aid in scholarly research in the field.

This three-volume tome should be in every hospital library as well as every departmental library for both radiology and urology. Specialists in uroradiology will find it to be an invaluable resource.

Shortly after this reference work was completed, Dr. Pollack unfortunately passed away. The second edition of Clinical Urography is a fitting tribute to his legacy, which is one of uncompromising pursuit of excellence in the diagnosis and treatment of urologic disease in patients everywhere.

__________________________

Mark S. Ridlen

Brown University School of Medicine Rhode Island Hospital Providence, RI 02903

As an avid diver in the Puget Sound, I have found this book to be very useful. It features great photos to help me identify the fishes that I encounter while underwater. The format is easy to use because it is geared toward the underwater naturalist. I recommend it to all my diver friends.

As a freediver along the coast north and south from San Francisco, I frequently refer to this book for reference of the fish I find in the kelp beds. I am able to find every fish I saw in the water in this book. The color photos are great for that purpose. Other books in my collection are sometime visually vague due to the lack of photographic images (paintings and/or black & white sketches). In ths book the text along with the pictures are also informational: distinctive features, description, abundance & distribution, habitat & behavior, reaction to divers.

All the Einstein life is very intersting! For the 20st centuryworld life the 1900-1909 Einstein period is the apex of his scientificcontributions, specially for three papers: those about the Brownian Movement, the Photoelectric Effects and Eletromagnetic Effects when there is a referencial change. All three papers brought to ous news interpretations of those phenomena and revealed the Einstein interpretation capacity of visible and not-visible world. The paper about Photoelectric Effects presented a new quantum views of ligh and material interaction while the Eletromagnetic Effects showed the principles of Special Relativity, a theme that transverse the 20st century and arrive at 21st century without popular technology applications. This book brings a opened, stimulant, and helpful explanations - great lectures - about the principals Einstein ideas. Maybe this book is the first to point closely the life and thinking of a science men.

Readers-

One might question why you might purchase a book such as this. Well the answer is quite simple. Logic. Now when I say logic I don't mean the logic of the words themselves rather the logic that you might read such an impressive work.

Einstien was a genius in his time, a genius yet to be surpassed (in the authority of Science that is). His works are timeless, classic examples of the scientific process and this particular is a well-balanced example.

Written during the years of the 1910s this volume's works depict a dedication to science even through the war in Europe.

A Must Read!

Justin Smith

Howard Rahtz has made community policing accessible for the beat cop. His handbook cites real-world examples of how community policing works. He also cites research to back the examples, but he doesn't get bogged down in statistics or academics. This is a primer. Every new cop should read this in the police academy. Every veteran cop should too. And supervisors should refer to it regularly.
I've taught community policing classes for years. This handbook does in less than 150 pages what I've tried to get done in hours and hours of classes. This handbook explains in simple terms that community policing is a philosphy of action. It makes the SARA model of problem solving easy to understand. Howard Rahtz obviously knows his topic and he writes in easy to read, street cop language.
This book doesn't belong on the shelf. It should be on your desk, in your briefcase, or in your hands. And it should be read by every community leader, from the elected officials to those volunteers who are so vital to making community policing work.

As a reader who is not a policeman, I enjoyed Lt. Rahtz's book from a police story perspective. The anecdotes of the force were entertaining as well as instructive. In my humble opinion, the description of the community oriented police work probably is what most recruits believe their job will be like. Every recruit enters the force with a great attitude - gung ho and wanting to make a difference. What happens next - chasing radio and 911 calls - wears down many cops until the reasons they joined the force are forgotten.

With the recent unrest in Cincinnati, maybe the city will listen to one of its own and expand community policing.