That's what Hawaiian's call "chicken skin"! You can't read a short page like "A Strange Encounter in Lahaina, 1927" (pg.48) without feeling that these are wonderfully unvarnished, collected archeologigal gems. Photos in back are quite interesting, as well.

Living in hawaii and encountering and hearing stories like these lead me to belive they are true.After reading this book it will leave you wondering if the stories are fact or fiction???

Obake Files is a book based soley upon the supernatural legends of ancien Hawaii such as choking ghosts, nightmarchers, and 8 ghost photographs. A book highly reccomended for those late nights alone!

Don't get me wrong, the story and artwork are very good, and Anarky is a very interesting "villain". But I wanted a little more Batman who takes a back seat in this one. That said, this book is a must for Anarky fans, and an interesting read for mature, die-hard Batman fans.

Who could be more intelligent than the greatest detective, Batman? Anarky, folks, alias, Lonnie. That's right. In this graphic novel, Alan Grant produced a character that wanted revenge because of how the arrogant, complacent people like the rich who think they own the world became so selfish and because of criminals and their malevolence.

He may be skinny now, but not for long, as he continues on in his life, learning karate. Other than that, he will research through historical people like Machiavelli, trying to understand their philosophies. Eventually, this all leads down to him getting is brain energized, more efficient, from an electronic device.

The art is good, everything is in proportion, and most importantly, it's clear.

But let me just say this: This book is rather recommended for older people, like 15+, because in some parts of Anarky (he gets more intelligent!), the vocabulary is often looked up in the dictionary--only a rocket scientist could understand some of the arduous terms that are apparent in mid to late sections of the graphic novel.

Consequently, the conclusion is rather disagreeable, like one passage from the end, "I don't even know if there even is a God!". I had no clue whether if this was what it would be like if the world was descending, or if this had been Anarky's plan; Lonnie duplicates his desires--peace and love--he elicits or infiltrates that into the people. Anarky wanted the people to make their own decision, like we always do today, and wipe away the selfish.

I recommend this graphic novel especially for DIE-HARD fans of Batman.

I gave it a four because:
- Good artwork.
- Everthing is proportioned.
- Suspenceful.

But...
- Gets confusing at times, like the part with Anarky's electronic device that made him smarter than anybody. And the part where he converses with Etrigan, and then Darkseid--more confusing than ever.

{major spoilers} this shows the the extordinary anarky. a vigilante who is fighting the system Which isn't as bad as he thinks he even takes the fight to darkseid! Very good read! they sould make an "Anarky 2" featuring the 8 issue series.

heros: batman, anarky, Jim gordan, Jason todd {mentioned.}

villans: etrigan the demon, darkseid, {The rest are in a dream} poison ivy, mr. freeze, ventriloquist/scarface, catwoman.

I came to this series via the Jim Butcher-Laurell K. Hamilton route. If you like those authors, or like supernatural/paranormal aspects to your mysteries, then you'll enjoy this series. This particular story is the fourth in the series, and I would recommend reading the series from the beginning. There is a secondary story arc (concerning a long-missing wealthy man's daughter, a woman in a catatonic state, and an apparent assasination plot) that is continuing throughout the series, and while each book can stand alone since the previous book's plot developments are summarized at the beginning of each new one, I think that you get a better feel for what Black Oak is and who the main characters are by reading it from the beginning. Of course, having said that, know that the first book is now listed as out-of-print, but I recently found it in a major-chain bookstore, so copies are out there.

Black Oak is a security investigation firm headed by Ethan Proctor. The firm investigates standard business scams, but Proctor also takes on special cases, scams that seem to involve some sort of supernatural aspect that he tries to debunk. As this particular story begins, Proctor is burned out and his firm has lost it's most lucrative client. He is coerced by his concerned employees into taking a short vacation in Atlantic City, just to regain his focus. Of course, his visit to AC also coincides with a series of horrible mutilation murders that are occuring in the city, and to top it off a strong winter storm is about to hit the city. If you don't already know it, Atlantic City is on a barrier island alongside the NJ mainland, and when there is excess rainfall the roads flood out and cut the city off. Guess what happens when the rain starts to fall in this book?

Proctor and his two employees, Taz and Doc, are unwillingly drawn into the investigation of the murders, and it soon becomes apparent that the killer is not an ordinary being. This book reintroduces a character who intially appeared in the first book and hopefully will continue to appear in the series. This book is a great mixture of police/PI procedural and horror. If you like your mysteries with a supernatural twist, then you'll enjoy this series.

This is the best of the Black Oak series so far. A vacation turns into a nightmare for Ethan Proctor and his co-workers. During a cold, dark, and stormy visit to the Atlantic City boardwalk, a chilling (not only weather related) series of events begin to unfold. This book had me totally spellbound from beginning to end. The characters work well together and the addition of a new character was a real plus. I felt the fear of the victims down to my toes. And wanted to see the nemisis, shall we say neutralized, as badly as the characters. A good read indeed!

After the disastrous events in 'Episode' 3: Winter Knight the now unemployed Ethan Proctor is forced into taking a vacation by his miserable coworkers. Sadly something very strange and nasty is waiting for him in Atlantic City. Is this serial killer simply a cannibalistic Jack the Ripper, or is he something else, something worse?

Grant's series really hits a comfortable stride in this outting. The story is rock solid and the characters fit together nicely and work as a real team, not just people working at the same job. Hunting Ground can also stand alone, the missing girl story arc is set aside (but not forgotten in the least) in favor of explorig the Dark Forces conspiracy and that makes the book even that more refreshing. There are more than a few subtle hints and clues that nastier things are in store for both Ethan and his Black Oak company. I also hope that Grant brings back one particular character for a second go around (you'll know who I mean after reading the book, no spoilers here). Highly recommended.

i read this book at a point when i wanted to graduate with honors at my university and had to read like 20 or so "great" books. i had never heard of this book, but it was on the list, so i picked it up and began reading it. i was honestly surprised by the beginning of the book, which started well. but then, honestly, i began to snicker a bit as i kept reading it. a valiant and honorable effort by Ms. depizan to bring women's rights to the discussion in a time when women were treated quite inhumane.

LA CITE DES DAMES was one of the first medieval books I have read (but I am by no means an expert in the area... yet!), and I recommend it to not only those interested in this period, but also for those interested in what we would call "women's studies," historiography, or similar endeavors.

It is filled with many interesting stories from ancient times to Christine's own time, which also makes the book a pretty entertaining (and sometimes even humorous) account of the historic figures it discusses. Christine herself was an amazing person, so if you buy it, be sure not to skip the introduction - especially if you are unfamiliar with medieval writings: Some of the ideas presented (and how they are presented) are much different than how we would think in modern times, so it is important to familiarize yourself with things like massive over-proving (which may end up being tedious to the unsuspecting reader), Christine's view on marriage, and literary conventions that would perhaps seem very silly to us now, but worked well 600 years ago. Basically, when reading this book, if you keep in mind the context in which it was written, you should be able to appreciate it and like it just as I have.

(by the way -- the book I read was not the Penguin edition, but rather the 1998 English translation by Earl Richards, ISBN 0892552301, so unless you're planning on extensive criticism, you should be okay with this version).

Christine falls asleep while contemplating why women in her society get such a bad rap, and has a long dream about exemplary women and their characteristics.

Did you ever wonder why we just accept that women in the Middle Ages were considered demons in disguise? Christine tells us all about what she thinks of that concept and of those who insist on spreading such maliciousness, all in an engaging story full of examples of brave, courageous, intelligent, pious, beautiful, generous women. The book was written to dispel some of the nastier slanders then current about women, but it's still good reading today.

I confess that during the part about martyrs I wandered off a bit (it is some gruesome stuff in places), but as a period source, it's definitely one every history maven ought to have. Christine is intelligent, observant, and witty; her writing fairly sparkles with indignation over the treatment of women and her sardonic amusement at those men spreading those lies. While hyper-Catholic and in places highly allegorical (and in many places its version of "history" is highly questionable, of course), it is an essential look at a time period where women didn't often make their views known in written form.

This book is distinct from "The Book of the Treasure of the City of Ladies".

Morrison's Doom Patrol ranks among one of the best-loved runs in comic book history. The writer's playfully weird style hits a happy medium between the preachiness of the otherwise excellent Animal Man and the detatched nature of the self-referential Invisibles. Morrison really seems to care about these characters - for the first time, someone actually wrote a comic book about broken people trying to save the world, not cool-looking mutants or angst-ridden strongmen with movie-star looks, and Grant Morrison was just the man to do it. Sadly, DC hasn't bothered to collect the rest of the run into trade paperback...and Red Jack is the least interesting of what eventually became the best rogues' gallery in comics. The heroes are still wonderful, though, and Morrison's deft sense of pacing really shines here. Also on its way to noticeable improvement in Richard Case's excellent artwork. By the end of Morrison's run, Case had perfected his style and gave the entire book a distinctive, slightly disturbed feel - here, you can see the evolution firsthand. So read this, anyway, if for no other reason than to be properly introduced to Comics The Way They Should Be Done. But keep in mind that it's only the first chapter of a longer, better story; this is one of the few books that actually begins (with Crawling from the Wreckage), middles, and ends, and by the time you've read about the Painting that Ate Paris, you'll be in for the long haul.

Collected here are the earliest issues of Grant Morrisons Doom Patrol-run (#19-25). A series about a team of enhanced persons, but not like anything you've seen before. The members of Doom Patrol have special abilities. The difference between them and most 'superheroes' though, they are not to be envied. Their powers are more burdens than blessings. And the cases they take on are not ordinary either. Reality-crossing beings, occult groups and magic is their field of operation.

Someone named Caulder has decided to form a superhuman team. Among the ones he selected to be in this team are Cliff Steele (locked in an unbreakable body-suit), Crazy Jane (with 64 different uncontrollable personalities) and an ape-faced girl named Dorothy ... to give a sense of what this team consists of. Little over half of the book is about the team forming, plucking them from their current situations (plenty is explained about each of them on the way, so no prior knowledge of the title is required). Meanwhile, a mysterious group quickly labeled 'scissormen' are causing disappearances all over the world. They literally cut people out of reality. It turns out the fight must be fought philosophically, instead of psychically (it WILL become clear during the story-line). Further there is the story-arc "Butterfly Collector" about a creature calling himself Red Jack. He claims himself to be God and our world to be just a room in his house. Concluding, there is a single-issue arc where a machine is found which materializes thoughts, not a good thing in the premises of the Doom Patrol.

A typical Vertigo title which especially those who're into things like Shade and Hellblazer will appreciate. Good clear art (comparable to the art in 'Animal Man' and 'Shade: The Changing Man') and weird but original, interesting story-lines.

Doom Patrol was the most brilliant, imaginative, innovative comic of the Eighties and early Nineties. Much as I love the work of Frank Miller, Neil Gaiman, Alan Moore, the Hernandez Bros. and countless other major players, Doom Patrol is the one I really hold to my heart.

Grant Morrison, a Scotsman, took a fading rerun of a once-classic series and turned it around, reinventing comics in the process. He managed to arrange for the previous writer to kill off the characters he didn't want to have to use, so that he could introduce a whole bunch of new ones. His most inspired creations include Crazy Jane, cursed with a split personality but blessed in that each personality had its own superpower (and Morrison didn't pull a single punch when he traced the appalling history of sexual abuse that had led to Jane's psychosis in the first place). He also brought us Danny the Street, the Doom Patrol's roving HQ, a sentient street that happened to be a transvestite. Then there was the Brotherhood of Dada, an unlikely bunch of supervillains in that they did hardly anything wrong apart from behaving in a very silly manner indeed; their leader was Mr. Nobody, perhaps the only cartoon supervillain who was drawn in a Cubist manner.

This book contains the first six or seven Doom Patrol stories that Morrison wrote, and while they're extremely good, they don't quite catch the series at its peak. Richard Case, artist for most of the run, was still learning his craft here, and his work is effective but not as good as he later became. Later issues took wilder flights of graphic (in every sense of the word) insanity than any other comic has attempted; the stories got sharper and funnier and also more involving, the characters developed much further, and the series as a whole built to a fantastic climax. Then Morrison handed it on to somebody else and the quality plummeted.

His recent work, such as The Invisibles, is a bit too self-consciously counter-cultural for me. (Although he did write a splendid one-off called "Kill Your Boyfriend", setting the Dionysus story amongst suburban English teen delinquents.) Doom Patrol was less thought-out, more improvisatory, and far wilder and more liberating in spirit. It's a scandal that the whole Morrison run isn't available in book form. I still lack a good dozen or so issues of the comic. Get thee indeed to the comic book store and seek them out; Miller may have been harder, Gaiman may have been more literary, Moore may have been more intellectual, but the Morrison "Doom Patrol" was the wildest shooting star that comics have seen for decades. Brilliant.

Quantum Spirituality is a handbook for a multitude of "life" situations. A reference book of how truths connect to real physics, something I can use to assist me in helping someone who views their religion through stubborness into a more expanded reality of God.
Quantum Spirituality draws from important areas to free the constraints from our perception of God and to help us look at our own debilitation by using the personal focus exercises. The essential remarks from Albert Einstein, Carl Jung, Fred Allan Wolf to the Native American perpective tie in to the areas of the New Testament and "radical" teachings of Christ. I like the use of the Secret Gospels and how the author presents the necessary encounters with the miracles of Christ. Quantum Spirituality is an excellent storehouse of newer thinking, reference material that is nicely condensed for readers who may be traveling any level of path. I like Trevithick's unique style, his personal reflections on lessons learned helps the reader step into their own inner work and processing.
Quantum Spirituality represents a unique body of work that will be helpful time and time again as a reference tool as well
as a spark for personal and spiritual dialogue.

While I am not typically a user of self-help books, this one got my attention. Its topic is general enough to be of value to readers of many backgrounds, including those from a variety of spiritual persuasions. Trevithick's use of the laws of physics as a means of controlling our lives is enticing, and he manages to discuss complex scientific ideas without making one's head spin. The exercises that accompany each chapter help readers to really make the information their own, encouraging deep consideration of their own situations and ways of living.

As something of a skeptic of many forms of organized religion, however, I should say that I was made a bit suspicious by the section on the importance of tithing, or setting aside one-tenth of one's income for the source of one's spiritual nourishment. Perhaps this suspicion is due to my Catholic upbringing.

Quantum Spirituality is a MUST read if you are interested in learning more about yourself and the things that prevent you from living the life you dream about. The author writes in a conversational tone and openly and candidly talks about experiences from his own life to illustrate the concepts being discussed. By revealing himself and his experiences it is easy to relate to him, to the material and to recognize the same tendencies and/or experiences in our own life. Mr. Trevithick is an excellent example and source of information on how we can transform our thoughts, experiences, and circumstances into opportunities for growth and enlightenment.

Although most find change frightening, if one truly wants to live a more fulfilling, enjoyable, and enlightened life one must to be willing to throw away those old habits and be open to a new way of thinking and ultimately a new way of behavior in the game we call life. Quantum Spirituality provides the tools you need to face change and work toward creating the life you have always wanted. Through exercises at the end of each chapter, Mr. Trevithick challenges the reader to really look at his/her life and be honest with the answers. By being honest with ourselves, we are than able to begin the transformation and move toward a greater life experience.

Quantum Spirituality was a true asset in not only opening my eyes to areas that I could enrich but also in providing me with the steps to do so. I absolutely recommend this book for anyone who is interested in living life at a higher and more rewarding level.

I have been in fundraising for years and am always looking for additional resources. While the "Dummies" series are good generally, fundraising is too important to be treated superficially.

This book is another fine work by the folks at "For Dummies" - It is a great, basic strategy guide to fundraising. Beginners will find this book useful in all aspects of thier fundraising start-up and operation. It includes great tips on organizing your operation and making it grow.

When I wrote "25 Fundraising Secrets - Raise More Money, Guaranteed," I intended it to be a compilation of strategic stips and "secrets" to fundraising for political campaigns, charities and non-profits. "Fundraising for Dummies" provides an excelent companion to my book by giving you step-by step fundraising instructions to get you started, before you move into the secrets that help you expand and succeed.

In case you've been trapped on a desert island for the past several years, IDG books has been publishing "Dummies"-themed books on every subject under the sun and moon, from Windows 2000 to sex. Fundraising for Dummies is a typically informative, easy-to-read, and useful guide to fundraising for nonprofit organizations.

With 28 chapters in five parts and appendices of checklists and how-tos, the book has loads of information for novice and intermediate fundraisers alike. In fact, it's also a pretty good reference for board members and volunteers involved in fundraising activities.

There is a chapter devoted to predictions on the future of philanthropy in the U.S., with one-paragraph explanations of brief statements, such as "E-giving Will Grow." Most of these predictions are obvious to nonprofit-sector experts (and especially those of us who participate on CharityChannel!). However, I must admit to being intrigued by the idea that "Nonprofits Will Rule!", meaning that, as more for-profits become regional and national in scope, local nonprofits will assume increasing local community leadership influence.

As good as this volume is in its general approaches and many helpful tips and techniques, do not mistake this book for a thorough treatment of the subject or any of its components. I was alarmed by its breezy assertion that nonprofit board service

"...is not as risky as serving on a for-profit board. Nonprofit board members are protected personally from liability in any legal action against their charitable organization..."

Haven't the authors heard of the IRS and Intermediate Sanctions? And, since nonprofit corporations are state-chartered (like their for-profit brethren), wouldn't liability vary from state to state, as well as depending on the facts and circumstances of each case? I would imagine that the D&O liability insurers would like to address this before the second printing!

One benefit of this book I found is one which I'm not sure is intentional. Grant writing is given short coverage in the appropriately-numbered Chapter 13 of the book, thereby providing two subtle reminders that grants are but a minor part of fundraising success.

Any reader interested in the subject will learn much from this book, as long as they don't take its accounting and legal advice too literally.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Part 1 -- Gearing Up to Raise Funds

Part 2 -- Getting to Know Your Donor

Part 3 -- Using Your Fundraising Tools

Part 4 -- On the (Fundraising) Campaign Trail

Part 5 -- The Part of Tens

Index

This book was given to me while I was studying Korean at the Defense Language Institute. The format of the book is pretty straight forward: count the number of strokes in the character and start searching. Although its obvious that "hanja" plays a diminishing role in "survival korean", it can provide useful insight into meanings of more complex words. Be sure you've learned "hangul" before you consider adding this book to your library. With a bit of study, you'll find that you'll be able to learn more "hanja" than the average Korean knows. I know I have.

Along with my Korean-English dictionaries, grammar guides, and textbooks, GUIDE TO KOREAN CHARACTERS: READING AND WRITING HANGUL AND HANJA, is my ticket to the cosmopolitan side of Korean life. The Korean language uses two alphabets, hangul and hanja. Hangul was invented by a group of Confucian scholars commissioned by King Sejong in the 15th Century. However, even today, most of the Korean found in newspapers, books, and on television is of Chinese origin. Like the Japanese, Koreans use Chinese characters, but pronounce them differently. Hanja, or Chinese characters, are required for most adult discourse and counting.

The book starts with simple characters, or "radicals", progressing to complicated ones. Students can follow the graphs and learn to write the characters. Each character is also translated into English and Korean. Hangul is provided in the jacket of the book, but this is not a Hangul textbook. A further index also organizes the characters for quick reference.

Because the Korean educational system authorizes and halts Hanja education seemingly every decade, learning Hanja gives the non-Korean student an advantage over Korean students. Sino-Korean words are also easier to remember, because they are shorter. Learning Hanja opens up a whole different world to the non-Korean student.

Excellent reference for an ongoing student of the Korean language. The ease of use and extensive practical information make this a must for anyone studying Korean. I also have Pictoral Sino-Korean Characters by Jacob Chang-Kim. Together, my hanja reference collection is 100% complete!

Making HIStory is a great book for big M.J fans like myself. It has some briliant colour photographs but it is not exactley a litery classic. I does however have a great interview in it conducted by Adrian Grant. A not bad book all round but it is not one of the greatest M.J books around

I've followed Michael Jackson's Career for a Long time.No Other Artist in the Past 20 plus Years has Brought the Hype&Interest like Him.Now the Interview was cool I tend to like more detail stuff&Grant has done better Books on MJ still this one has some cool Commentary.I enjoy Reading on MJ's Creative Process Period.Adrian Grant sheded Light on that in another Book.

This book is great for MJ-fans like myself...You should buy the other books that Adrian Grant has writen too...He's a great author...There are very many beautiful pictures and a GREAT interview with Michael himself... There's an great A3 poster...(the book cover is pictured) You really should buy it.... From an REAL Michael Jackson fan...

This book is truly a must read book. Between the covers, it is packed with the guidelines for teenagers like me to understand why they write and what they write. It's not another creative writing book, this is for aspiring writers who really want o ahve a career in the literary world. Step by step plans are detailed and yet you still do have the freedom to manuver around and explore. But personally, there were some parts where re-reading had to be done as the statements were not exactly clear.

It has inspired me and helped me along with writing exercises known as "Writer's Notebook" and encourage me to develop my writing passion.

I loved this book. It is well written and full of information on how to become a professional writer.

This book really explained how to publish your work. Before I read it, I was kind of clueless, but now, I'm in the know!