If you already know the secondary literature on the Perry scheme, you know his model of undergraduate intellectual and moral development. Students move through Positions -- NOT "stages" -- as they mature, from a rigid dualistic view of knowledge ("right" vs. "wrong") through various forms of multiplicity -- there is no certainty & so all opinions have the same truth status -- until they reach relativism, in which Position they recognize that all knowledge is contextual. Moving beyond relativism, some become commited relativists, learning to live with competing & contradictory commitments. This is NOT a simple deterministic developmental scheme, as some students retreat from relativism, others deny or reject the implications of their positions, and the time spent in any one position is indeterminate.

What current users of the Perry scheme may not realize is how meticulous he was in constructing it. This book charts the origins of the project from his counseling of students at Harvard & Radcliffe in the early 1950s, through his creation of the Checklist of Educational Values in the mid-50s, to the semi-structured personal interviews with 109 students from the classes of '62 and '63. Although he never lost sight of his ultimate goal -- developing a tool to help people who counseled college students on their journey toward greater self-understanding -- he invested heavily in methodological innovations, creating valid and reliable measures toward that end. Working with a team of graduate assistants, he created interview & coding protocols that are a model of careful scholarly work.

Two other points about the book's value today: First, it contains extensive quotations from the actual recorded transcripts of the interviews, thus allowing us to see for ourselves the correspondence between the model's Position descriptions and the students' own words. Second, Perry's scheme was built on a very strong normative position. He firmly believed that intellectual and moral growth are desirable outcomes of a student's college years. He wrote of the courage students needed to assume the risks of forward movement toward higher Positions in his scheme.

In the last paragraphs, Perry called for a new model of education that would support students in their risk taking, and his call is just as relevant today as it was 30 years ago.

An excellent read for those interested in the literature of education and student development. The introduction, written by L. Lee Kenefelkamp, not only pays homage to Perry's work, but also places it's relevence in modern educational philosophies. A must have for anyone involved in education!

I found this book to be avarage as I started to read it. Many of what the author said I had heard before. But, when I got to the middle when he describes adult symptoms of a child abuse survivor it began to really get to me. Some of the things he described hit so close to home that my arms would get weak, my hands would tremble and if I'd been standing I probably would've colapsed. I recomend this to anyone who's gone through sexual abuse and/or those who love them. The author is extremely insightful and to the point. He has a way of bringing out the fears that dance around your head and showing you how to dispell, understand and deal with them. He never makes you feel that anything you've felt or thought as a survivor is wrong or monstrous. The only draw back I can see is that he refers to Christians a couple of times. I'm a Christian myself but I could see how this could turn off a person who is a survivor but not a Christian. That's the only reason I give it 4 stars instead of 5. I highly recommend this book.

Haunted Memories deals with the problem and results of childhood abuse, of which the author has firsthand experience. His training and work in Christian counseling enable him to present the subject with both psychological and spiritual insight, and offer guidance and hope to those in need. His careful description of the immediate and adulthood symptoms might lead one to conclude that everyone has at least some of these. However the author points out the differences between such general indications and the true warning signs of abuse.

This book is too nice.it presents the lifestyle of Emerson,the great philosopher in a very analytical way.

For thirty years I have coveted a battered copy of Bliss Perry's abbreviated edition of Emerson's Journals which my father carried in his sea bag during World War II. I first read this edition at age fifteen, and now most recently at age forty-four and continue to find much to startle and enlighten.

As a literary figure, Emerson towers over every other American writer. Not just through his own Essays and poetry is the arm of his influence so large, but chiefly through his influence on "disciples" like Thoreau, Whitman and a hundred others. His journals are the mother lode of this rich influence.

There are few greater books to carry in our own sea bags.

First, an important note: There seems to be 2 versions of this book floating around. One with 16 color plates and one that is all B&W. I learned this when I received mine and found that it was all B&W. Be sure you know which you are getting.
Also, many of the b&w images appear to be poor photocopies, either far too light or too dark.

This book is no doubt the authority. It is very well researched. But the way it is organized is rather dull. Each chapter basically lists and briefly discusses all the cards that were found from that particular country. It might have been more interesting if there was more discussion of how the different suites evolved or how the countries influenced each other.

This book is a well-researched, thorough and informative guide to the history of playing cards. I was especially interested in the medieval information, but found the entire work clear and easy to follow, while keeping up high standards of academic quality. I would recommend this work to anyone seriously interested in the history of the field. The Plates were also very helpful in illustrating the development and styles of cards through the centuries.

This book covers the very basic of philosophy and does its job well. It also provide some sample parodoxes though not extensive. Heavy reading in some area for philosophy is not my strong point. This books resonate with many philosophical discussion to be had. I enjoy most of the readings.

I used this book in an intro philosophy course in college and have been looking for it ever since. It presents original texts, plus thoughtful commentary and overviews that did not condense or simplify difficult topics. It is also incredibly thorough - if a work is part of the philosophical canon, it is in here, no matter how obscure. Now that I've found it again, its definitely going into my library as a standard reference text.

Perry's first version of this biography of the Monty Python comedy team was published in 1983 and I read it in 1987. Some good friends who knew that I was python phanatic gave me this, not knowing of an earlier version--and how would they, because there is no indication on this book that it is a rewrite/reprint of anything. The indica page even states that this is a first edition and doesn't list the earlier book as the source of any material. Strange are the ways of publishers. The subject of Perry's writing deserves the update. The team has only grown in popularity over the intervening years and the members continue to entertain audiences with new work, from Gilliam's directing/writing career to Cleese's acting. The Life of Python reads like a biography of a rock band, which Python actually is more similar to than the traditional comedy group such as the Marx brothers. They are also, like the great rock groups of the sixties, now missing one member, making the chance of a true reformation impossible. Graham Chapman's death is not preventing Eric Idle from attempting a reunion "concert," this time to be presented in Las Vegas (the very idea of which appeals to the members' sense of humor).

The basic material of the book is to try to track each member of the group from their comedic beginnings to the formation of the troupe and then to the work following the cancellation of the TV series, all interwoven by time. Sounds like a mess, but it works. Perry interviewed all the members, sometimes more than once, and the book is liberally sprinkled with quotes. This new version has color photos as well as black and white, which fills the book (every page has a picture on it). This is probably the definitive biography of the group, although Kim "Howard" Johnson's The First 20X Years of Monty Python is a close second.

As a Monty Python follower, I love books like these. Although it's not full of hilarious lines, it does have great bios on all six members of the group. However, it starts with the pages completely out of order. This is apparently on purpose, but it doesn't help the book. I found it somehow easy to get into this book and read through the biographies. This book comes recommended, however, I always seem to get hold of such items right before they go out of stock. This one should still be out there. It's a treasure in my collection of Python books.

Having read this selection reminds me that the New York Review of Books, itself mostly second-rate, is still considerably better than the LRB. How often one wishes to take a pin to these self-obsignatory gasbags!

Don't believe me? Compare a better journal (yes, not a review but a journal) from better days: the Partisan Review during the 40's, for example.

For twenty years the London review of Books has invited the world's leading writers, thinkers and social commentators to contribute essay length articles on subjects as diverse as Kosovo, Cod, and Mimiesis in Plato's Republic. This anthology is just a small but tantalising selection of some of those pieces, but it whets the apetite and leaves the reader wanting more. The most intelligent writing of any publication, the LRB sets itself aside from its competition through its continued commitment to the freedom of its writers. Never short, and often quite challening, the LRB is controversial and forthright. This anthology represents the most independently minded collection of writing that can be found in any literary magazine, but for the LRB its all quite normal.

RUTLAND PLACE is dark and moody with an excellent sense of period and locale, as are all the Thomas and Charlotte Pitt books. And this time Perry has given us especially interesting characters. This book involves more than one mystery, with unusual solutions. It is not always the expected thing that happens in Anne Perry's books. That's one reason I like them. Thomas and Charlotte Pitt work separately and together this time, in about equal shares. There's even some light-hearted fun. And at 217 pages it's a good, quick read.

Another Pitt mystery that made me turn the pages. When Charlotte Pitt discovers that her mother has lost a locket, a keepsake of an indescretion, her first thoughts are to protect her family. Soon, this spirals into a world of secrets, lies, murder, and sexual misconduct. All conducted above stairs.

Once again, Charlotte and Emily are great characters, both with talents for solving a mystery, but different ways of doing it. Pitt, himself, is a great character.

My only complaint is my regular complaint... more Charlotte and Thomas together!

I had to read this book for an Asian and Middle Eastern History course at the University of Pennsylvania.This book is composed of many short stories like Mirza,Abji Khanom,etc.The writers are some of the best fiction writers Iran has produced.A good book is you like to read about fiction etc.This book gives you a good idea about writers in a foreign country and also about Iran.Some stories are about the secret actions of dissident Iranians as they challenge their own repressive government in order to bring democracy to their homeland.Others tell of the religious life in Iran.Overall, a good book for all people interested in History/Iran/Literature.

I found this book very interesting. Actually I bought the book to know more about Iran people and more or less I could see better. This anthology spread from 1921 to 1991, an enough comprehensive to review Iran literature, especially in short stories, a new genre in Iran literature.

The book contains only very basic information about tea itself, on the first few pages. Then the author presents a lot of recipes for flavoured teas, iced teas, and desserts.

I book isn't practical even for beginning tea connoiseurs, but is rather recommended to people who don't know anything about tea and only want or need to learn the very basics and a few recipes for sweets.

There are a few nice photos in the book (but then again most of them display the desserts or iced teas...)

Vegetarians beware: very few of the recipes are vegetarian.

I have many tea books and yet I keep going back to this one. It is easy to read, informative, and the recipes are great. I have tried many of them. The photography is wonderful. I love it