A well illustrated book , numerous examples of what is known in pottery as " Egyptian Paste ". Ornaments , tiles ,cups, figurines and the ever present ,beads. More than enough colour photographs to satisfy the thirst . The 3 different processes of manufacturing Egyptian Paste objects are explained technically. Plus ,the many variations in the paste through the centuries. My only reason for not giving another star , not enough goblets .

I waited for some time to get my hands on this work. If you're interested in AE faience artistry - the pictures alone are worth it. A fine addition to the Egyptophile's library.

For many years, my friends and family have encouraged me in my obsession with Donald Ross courses. It all began innocuously enough, when the country club I joined to play tennis turned out to have a great course by Mr. Ross (Brae Burn Country Club in West Newton, Massachusetts). I learned to play golf later, and was hooked on Mr. Ross!

My friends and I have often talked about putting together a book that would be a guide to help others locate Ross courses to play on. This book was a happy surprise for me in fulfilling that long-held desire! The research is solid in this book, locating Donald Ross courses that others had erroneously ascribed to others. What happened in a few cases is that Mr. Ross did the design, but the implementation did not occur until later.

The book details over 100 courses and has over 150 color photographs plus many black-and-white images. Typically, the color images capture key perspectives of famous or top holes. The book's layout for each course is done over two pages. You get the ratings of the course, some history, several photographs, directions to the course (and on-line information), and condition. I especially liked the older photographs that showed famous players in important moments.

The course descriptions are relieved by occasional essays about Mr. Ross.

Living in the Boston area, I was pleased to see that there are 32 in New England I can enjoy, most of which I have yet to play on. I can also head south in the Winter and hit Florida (18), Georgia (5), South Carolina (4), and North Carolina (16).

If you don't know Mr. Ross, you should. He built Pinehurst No. 2, which is probably his best known effort. Mr. Ross's courses are well known for their elevated tees and greens, with tricky putting surfaces. A recent book about Mr. Ross commented that a poll by touring pros voted my home course as one of ten toughest to putt. There are almost no flat landing areas in the fairway. On the other hand, each shot is a fair test of golf for players of all levels. Many of these courses are considered today to be too short for the male pros, but many still serve as sites for important women's tournaments.

My only complaint about the book was that some of the photographs seemed wildly inappropriate. My favorite example is "Hooter Girls" at the Fort Myers Country Club. On the other hand, the photographs give the book a feeling not unlike a personal family album. Perhaps that's appropriate for all of us who are part of the large family of Ross fans.

After you have enjoyed this book (and hopefully played many of the courses), I suggest that you think about how you can leave joy for future generations as Mr. Ross has done for us.

What can your special contribution be?

Create indelible experiences!

Great Donald Ross Golf Courses You Can Play, (GDR) is the work of two authors - Paul R. Dunn and B.J. Dunn, residents of Pinehurst, North Carolina. Both are avid, albeit not stunning golfers. GDR resulted from several years of research into hundreds of golf courses in the United States, Canada and Cuba which have been identified as possible Ross creations. The authors interviewed hundreds of golf course managers, professionals, members and players seeking to pin down just which courses, claimed to be by Ross, really are by the Scottish-American golf course architect. Some courses didn't make the cut, because they could not prove a bona fide Ross provenance. The authors reviewed his business correspondence located at the Tufts Archive in Pinehurst, and received from many courses copies of Ross letters and course layout specifications. The book describes 2 courses in Colorado, one in Connecticut, 17 in Florida, 4 in Georgia, 2 in Indiana, 7 in Maine, 15 in Massachusetts, 5 in Michigan, 7 in New Hampshire, 1 in New Jersey, 6 in New York, 14 in North Carolina, 4 in Ohio, 5 in Pennsylvania, 2 in Rhode Island, 3 in South Carolina, 2 in Tennessee, and 5 in Virginia. These are either semi-private, public, resort courses and include two military courses - no private courses are included. The book only covers those courses open to public play. GDR offers beautiful four-color and black and white pictures of the courses and also some very rare antique photos from the Tin Whistles Collection of Pinehurst, NC. GDR tells who some of the famous players and celebs were that played these Ross masterpieces, and describes the courses in contemporary terms as well as provides the history of those courses where it is available. Over 300 golf courses were carefully researched in preparation of this authoritative book. One interesting course included in the book is the VinnyLinks of Nashville, TN. The Ross plans for a 9-hole course at Shelby Golf Course in Nashville were "misplaced" for over 70 years! When accidently discovered a decision was made to built the course, but as a Junior facility. This course has just opened. It is named in honor of Vince Gill a famous country music artist, golfer and strong promoter of junior golf. Another course included is the Wm. J. Devine Golf Course at Franklin Park in Dorchester, MA. This course had been written off as a Ross product by sports writer Paul Harber fo the Boston Globe who wrote, "Many people erroneously believe that Donald Ross laid it out. He didn't." Our research turned up old records that ascribe the creation of the course to Donald Ross. Alan Banks of the Olmstead Site in Boston called and informed us that in an April 19, 1922 issue of Golf Illustrated, Ross is called the course superintendent. The book also gives the reader new insights into the character and golf course philosophy of Donald Ross. The book is 296 pages in length, 9 X 12 inches in size, clothbound and published by Derrydale Press of Lanham, MD.

From the time of her uncle's death, Jane Eyre's existence at Gateshead has become unbearable. Her aunt dotes on her own three children and never lets Jane forget that she is living off of the Reeds's charity. After frightening her Aunt Reed with her willfulness and ingratitude, Jane is sent to Lowood School where she continues to exist for eight years.

After placing an advertisement in a paper, she is hired on as a governess at Thornfield where she meets and falls in love with Edward Fairfax Rochester. But a series of odd and dangerous events which take place at Thornfield succeed in tearing them apart until Jane realizes that she must journey alone or else compromise her own sense of self forever.

Jane Eyre is a novel about a woman who comes to realize that she must hold on to herself. Bronte's heroine is strong, willful, and isolated. Her hero is constantly referring to her in an otherworldly sense. But what he sees is otherworldly is simply a strong independent streak. This independence is what the author seems to urge women to cultivate through the character of Jane Eyre. Bronte reinforces the strength of Jane's character by making her plain. By doing this, she forces us to realize the beauty of her character rather than her looks. She has none to recommend her and no fortune to appeal to a man so the reader is certain that it is her character which appeals to Rochester.

The road towards a happy ending is not easy for Rochester and Jane. In fact, even before discovering the truth about the woman in the attic, Jane has taken measures to preserve herself by writing to her uncle in Madeira even though she tells Rochester that she has no family aside from the Reeds, whose connection to her she is forced to admit when Aunt Reed calls for her. This perpetuates the unraveling of their happiness. From the point of separation, however, Bronte sets Jane on the road to self-discovery. With her Rivers cousins, whom she discovers after leaving Thornfield, she comes to realize her full capacity as a cousin, a teacher, and her potential as a servant of God.

By the story's end, when Bronte has led her title character back to a devastated Thornfield, Jane is truly independent in both character as well as finance. There is a role reversal which the reader discovers. No longer is Rochester offering to take care of her, it is Jane, rather, who is in the position of power as she becomes Rochester's helpmeet from the time of their reunion.

Uncommon story for the era. Imagine... an INDEPENDANT woman!

A classic American text, long out of print; if it weren't for the curse word "abridged," deserving of a perfect 5. The Puritans' first twenty-plus years are nowhere better served than in this rational, calm man who spent the better part of his life trying to steer a course between fanaticism and worldly involvement. Anybody who wants to understand how mainstream American culture began needs to acquaint themselves with this seminal work -- if you can handle the omissions.

Richard Dunn's long-awaited scholarly edition of John Winthrop's journal was well worth the wait. He presents a text as close to the original as it is now possible to come, with clear editorial method, solid supporting notes and a helpful introduction. The only legitimate complaint is that the index could be more comprehensive. This is, and will doubtless long remain, the only entirely recommendable edition of the Winthrop journal, one of the great early American sources.

Please note: THIS REVIEW was written referring to the full, UNabridged hardcover edition, now out of print: that is the only version truly useful for scholarly purposes. The abridgement is useful for college classes, and is well-done, but any true student of colonial New England must acquire the full version. (The abridgment does, oddly, have an index that is sometimes superior, however.)

If you like road trip romances, love triangles (one heroine facing two suitors), a bit of adventure, and an unusual theme, try this book. Heroine Miriam Jacobson is Jewish but a British subject. She is asked by a Rothschild in Paris to help two fellow Britons out with a dangerous but patriotic attempt to get gold to Wellington's armies in Spain. During the trip, Miriam learns more about herself and the two men who soon begin vying for her attention.

This is a rare Regency with a Jewish heroine. Others in this genre are Star Sapphire by Rebecca Danton (Fawcett 1979), although the heroine of that book marries a Gentile (a marquess) at the beginning, and the recently published A Question of Honor by Nita Abrams. Carola Dunn treats the situation of Jews in British society and on the continent with sensitivity, and her heroine (and one of the suitors who is Jewish) act in consistency with their upbringing.

Miss Jacobsen's Journey, long out-of-print, is now available as an e-book (published from Belgrave House). Get it here or look for it at your public library. If you liked this book, you might want to try Bk 2 (His Lordship's Reward) or Bk 3 (The Captain's Inheritance) to learn more about Miriam's future life.

This book is one of Carola Dunn's best. Unfortunately it is also out of print. Fortunately, Belgrave House has issued an electronic version (available only in the Rocket format here). If you don't want to read electronic books, try your local library.

If you are looking for slightly off-beat romances set in the Regency period, I would recommend this, along with her THE FORTUNE HUNTERS. This book is unusual and off-beat because the heroine is Jewish, and as someone else put it, there are two heroes. [Obviously, only one of them will get the girl, though]. The story is also a road trip through Napoleonic France, even through the three - the heroine and the two men accompanying her - are all British subjects. If that were not unusual enough, there is a real adventure based on military necessity thrown into the plot.

You might argue that it is impossible for British subjects to be traipsing through France at this time, and that it is impossible for a book to have two heroes. To the first, I can only suggest that you read this book which makes the case believably that a well-educated and multilingual Jewish heroine can pass as Swiss French. [I won't tell you what identities are adopted by her two companions]. As for the second, well, if the heroine and the reader herself are undecided between two men who are equally charming, what should we call it?

A more conventional synopsis of the start of this book follows.
Miss Miriam Jacobson, the heroine, is Jewish and the daughter of a wealthy merchant. She is about to become betrothed to a rabbi-in-training, whom she has never met. She ends up rejecting him as physically unappealing, and goes off to Europe with her uncle, a physician of some note and much skill. We meet Miss Jacobson and her devoted maid Hannah some nine years later, when she is shabbily dressed, in want of money, and desperate to get back home. The problem is that war has been going on for some ime, and she is now trapped by the turn of events in a continent overrun by French troops from the Baltic to the Adriatic. How is Miriam to get home? She turns to young co-religionist Jakob Rothschild to help her. In return for his aid, he demands that she travel to Spain on a dangerous but necessary mission to save her country. Her companions are two men, neither of whom wants her along, and who despise and distrust each other. Will the journey succeed, and how? Will Miriam get along with the two men?

One of the two men is Jewish, the other is an English aristocrat who despises Jews and who is rather too proud of his country's heritage. Miriam finds herself attracted to the English aristocrat, despite all his flaws and the fact that a marriage between them would be impossible.

The story is deftly told, with respect for the Jewish religion, a smooth interweaving of actual historical events (including the
rise of the Rothschilds), and with a convincing ending. I have read many Regency romances, but this is only the second
romance that has religion (and social prejudice against Jews) specifically invoked as a plot premise. The other - The Star
Sapphire - also featured a Jewish heroine. One of the best parts of this story was the respect and affection that Miriam had
for her maid Hannah, and vice versa.

A quick historical note: The Rothschilds did start up their famous network by having a different son in a different country.
Jakob or James did establish himself in Paris and Nathan in London, at this time. Wellington did pay his army with gold
provided by the Rothschilds. And during this period, at least one British peer married the Christian daughter of a Jewish banker and his Gentile/ Christian wife.

This guide has beautiful photographs and interesting maps of the various sections of the city and would have been perfectly adequate alone, but my wife and I also had Eyewitness Travel Guides'San Francisco and Northern California. I found the information in Eyewitness more relevant and helpful. The real surprise is that the maps provided by Eyewitness were better than the vaunted Geographic!

This is one of the best guidebooks I have encountered that covers San Francisco as a whole. First of all, the layout is excellent (as one would hope for from National Geographic). The sections for each neighborhood are color-coded for easy access and each neighborhood features a great map that not only highlights attractions, but a feature that shows you where that neighborhood is located within the city--this is enormously helpful in putting the pieces of the city together into a coherent whole, and should be a feature in every city guidebook.

Second, the guidebook includes all major attractions and a number of the minor ones. Descriptions are brief, but adequate. The guidebook excels at giving great tidbits about SF history and of the changing character and culture of its neighborhoods (though be warned that they are slightly racy at times).

Third, the photographs are fabulous and do a great job of highlighting some of San Francisco's sights that must be 'seen'. This is particurarly well-done as the guidebook covers a lot of ground (dedicating space to all major parts of SF, not just the ones most visited) and uses photos to achieve maximum efficiency to convey information to the reader.

My complaints with the guide are few. The hotel and restaurant descriptions are included in their own section in the back. This allows each neighborhood section to be more compact (and accessible) but probably requires a bit more flipping to find a lunch when in a given neighborhood. In addition, the guidebook uses a price coding system that makes it more difficult to figure out how much hotels and restaurants cost (though, in their defense, they do repeat the key to the coding system every other page unlike most guidebooks that hide it somewhere in the introduction).

The other complaints I had were that the section on excursions outside of San Francisco was too rudimentary to be of much use--if you plan to go elsewhere in the Bay Area, you should compliment this book with one that has a better focus on Bay Area attractions. Finally the transit map on the back cover is not helpful. National Geographic tries to represent bus lines as being akin to the London Underground (with no attention to geographic realities)--this representation won't help you catch a bus. Get a Muni transit map once you get to San Francisco.

That being said, if you want a solid guide to the city of San Francisco itself--this guidebook from National Geographic is a good bet.

I picked up this book on heresay from some of my friends, and I have to say I was really impressed. This is an impressive debut from a 20 year old writer. He uses words in such a way that they paint pictures in your mind, you can see what he's saying; and his more philosophical poems (ecspecially: "when will I learn") have some really powerful lines and some deep insights. Michael Dunn shows himself to be a promising writer and I can't wait to see what he has in store for the future.

I read this book in one sitting, and read through it through several times (3 or 4--I can't recall) and got more and more out of it each time. Reading the poems, it reminds me of something you would read in a classroom setting. I experienced so many emotions: sadness, joy, longing, loss, humor, ambition and promise. He seems to cover the breadth of human experience in only 108 pages. I love the set up of the book, the poems are only printed on the right side of the book, leaving the left side (the back of pages in otherwords) blank and open for writing comments or interpretations..and these poems to warrant this. If you are looking for a frame of reference to his poetry: he draws upon writers like Keroak, Ginsberg, and Stevens. Dunn flourishes in the free flowing conversational style, and even pays homage to William Carlos Williams by rehatching his own version of "This is Just to say..." When the book comes to a close and the main character of "The Stranger" makes his exit, you are left wanting more and go back for more again and again.

Religious publishing does not often give us such an in-your-face heroine as Ruby Taylor. Ruby is working part-time in a Montana feed store with a string of failed romances behind her when her mother asks her to investigate the disappearance of a young man two weeks before his wedding. Mom, not at all the sweet little old lady she first appears, is certain Ruby is qualified to investigate because a previous dead end job involved typing reports for a private detective.

Ruby's childhood, dragged from place to place, sometimes in the middle of the night, left her tough and resourceful, but that thick skin hides a tender heart. Her unique outlook on life had me laughing out loud, and many will identify with her poignant inner struggle to be loved as a person and not simply used by men. Although Ruby loses none of her spunk with her religious conversion, she must have heard a lot of religious language from her mother, because she falls into Christian patterns of thinking more quickly than seems natural to me.

The plot of this book is lively, but the strength is definitely in its witty characters. I look forward to Sharon Dunn giving us more of Ruby's fresh, unexpected views of life.

This book is so full of suprises that I couldn't put the book down. Ruby Taylor's antics will keep you laughing as she searches for a man that disappeared a few days before his wedding. I look forward to reading more books from Sharon Dunn.

Song of Eve compares conventional theological beliefs about the position of women in society to ancient stories involving early feminine archetypes.
This book is a beautifully illustrated look at traditional religious art, mythological symbols and a reflective study of the Goddess.
What makes these divine pictures and images even more breathtaking and achingly beautiful is the contrasting stories of repression of the feminine, and the misinterpretation and censorship that their beauty camouflages.
The Song of Eve is an example of how our thinking has been distorted throughout history. Even the story of Eve is an example of "a patriarchal inversion of the myth of the hero-god born from the Goddess Earth, which had pre-existed Christianity."
Eve can be a powerful archetype for women.
We can enlighten our thinking and change our ways of looking at her by re-examining the gift of knowledge she gave us.
We can can stop thinking that we, as women, have inherited the sin of all sin

I love this book and the feelings that I felt while reading this book were wonderful! It was as though a wall crashed though the very core of my being, and for the first time in my life I was seeing the truth for what I really was.