Carter's book is heavily waited towards the period 1900-1960, which was in a way a golden age for type design. As ATF, Monotype and Linotype reached their ascendancy, new types were commissioned at an unprecedented rate and many of the best designs were created (or re-created) for the current generation of typesetting equipment. The advent of phototype in the 60s brought this first twentieth century golden age to an end, while PostScript opened a new period. Latter day type designers are cursorily treated courtesy of a second edition (which you're looking at here), so for that end of the spectrum you'll have to look elsewhere (the book has not yet been written), but it does at least provide a good overview of the major figures of the end of the metal type era.

Except for the unattractive layout, there's nothing bad and a lot of good about this book. It is designed for adult learners of English as a second or foreign language, and introduces students to the basics of close analysis -- the good old "New Criticism" approach to literature, and still a good foundation to begin with. The cognitive approach to analysis the book takes is, as far as I know, unique, but very effective. It starts by asking students to make a multiplicity of predictions and interpretations, then moves in later chapters to using ranking of interpretations as a tool for demonstrating that some responses are more convincing than others when you try to explain them to your classmates. The last half of the book focuses on style, lexis, and use of background sources.

My daughter (18 months) can't get enough of this book! She loves to flip through the pages and say NOOOO!! everywhere that the squishy ball isn't. Sometimes we read it five times in a row. The only downside is that several of the flaps have been torn off by now. If they had been sturdier I would have given a 5-star rating. Even though this book won't last until our next child, we are definitely getting our money's worth from it.

Last year I got to see former American President Jimmy Carter deliver a speech at my school. I didn't see someone larger than life. What I did see was an honest, good-hearted man dedicated to service. I later found an old used copy of this book and picked it up. I voraciously read it and although this book revealed a younger, pre-presidential Carter, the same optimistic attitudes of the recent Nobel Peace Prize winner are clearly evident in this writing. "Why Not the Best?" is simple, clear, and warm - like listening to a story told by your grandfather. The book is loaded with nostalgia and unique insight into Carter's personal convictions. I know that President Carter has written over twenty books, and this is the only one that I've read. Nevertheless I recommend this autobiography if you are at all interested in this man of honor; don't disregard "Why Not the Best?" simply because its an older book.

This book is an excellent read for any woman, not just african americans. The book gives insight into the mind of a woman and all that Christian women go through in their daily walk with the Lord. The book acknowledges that even though you are a Christian, there are still issues you face that bring you to the realization that you are still human, and every thing is not magically fixed when you accept the Lord as your personal saviour. I would highly recommend this book and in fact, I am purchasing several copies for Christmas gifts.

The book focuses on the problems that face women everyday in the workplace. Whether one is actually referring to the labor force as the workplace, or the home as the workplace is a huge part of this book. Our society accepts that women should automatically take on the responsibilities of child care and housekeeping in addition to a regular job (if they wish to even have a job on top of all these tasks). It's not easy for women, and Hesse-Biber uses several examples and hard data to back up this book.

Not only is the "average, white American supermom" discusses, but also the differences in race, class, and other factors that can influence women's place in the "working world."

The book is very useful and Hesse-Biber always takes a strong feminist perspective. One fault would probably be that she doesn't show both sides as best she could, but overall, the book is an enjoyable one.

Wake up Magic the Gathering. This game is not compatable with the internet. It uses an old card style system. The older system was and still is the Best system for the internet. Since, it used a 100 dice system. The even though the older system was written for the 80's it is very compatable with a lot of chat programs in the late 90's and 2000.

Same thing with that Star Wars 6d system too. Magic the Gathering destoryed that system too. Even I can write or design a better game system.

Having really enjoyed the earlier Marvel Super Hero Role-playing Game I was quite interested in its successor. However, I was disappointed for the money I spent on it. This game could be nice for a group of players with little experience with role-playing games and who want playability above all. If you are familiar with the old game or a die-hard role-player you will find the system annoying. I tried to sell my friends on trying the "new thing" and card based system left us cold.

I have to say the read seemed a bit awkward at first, but I also have to admit that I found myself thumbing through highlighted pages rather than reading the game from start to finish. I found once I read the rules start to finish, the system was easier to grasp although I still don't believe it to be an easy read.

The play mechanics are excellent and lend themselves well to this role-playing genre. While the rules may seem simplistic, they allow for much greater flexibility as far as the action is concerned and more emphasis on roleplaying skills. While the SAGA system is basic in determining resolution of action, the rules although for more detailed action resolution as well as simultaneous action resolution. Traditionalists may miss their die rolls in determining results, but the fate deck system allows for a much more logical resolution system.

In short, if you're looking for a die-hard "tradional" role-playing game or an interesting read, look elsewhere. But if you're serious about your roles in role-playing and looking for a flexible but uncomplicated rules system, this product is for you!

Mark Twain's satiric fantasy "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" sets up the premise of a 19th Century American being transported (via the application of a crowbar to his skull) to the legendary Camelot, where he initially suffers culture shock in the extreme. The novel's immediately obvious flaw (and I assume Mark Twain was aware of it but simply ignored it) is the 19th Century hero's ability to communicate with Britons of the 6th Century. They, of course, would have been speaking an English similar to that in "Beowulf"; the book has them talking like characters in "Hamlet". The opening chapters are comic in mood, complete with limp jokes. (When one character introduces himself as a page, the Yankee replies: "Go 'long, you ain't more than a paragraph." Oh, Lord.) However, the story quickly becomes dark and then increasingly darker. The degraded condition of the masses (which the modern hero compares to 18th Century France) culminates in a tour (with King Arthur disguised as a peasant) of a oountryside corrupted by monarchy and the Church, both of which were loathed by Mark Twain. Feminists should be warned that the author's misogyny is given free rein here: all the ladies of the court are thoughtless twits, and Morgan Le Fay is a shrew who habitually and casually kills her servants. The heroine Alisande (who, of course, becomes Sandy) is a tiresome chatterbox, whom the hero abruptly marries as a sort of social condescension. But his attitude towards women is merely a part of his general misanthropy, leading him to write at one point: "Well, there are times when one would like to hang the whole human race and finish the farce." Once the protagonist has established himself as Arthur's right-hand man (he's called "The Boss"), he exercises his Yankee ingenuity to industrialize the realm. With the genius of Gutenberg, Morse and Bell at his disposal, he sets up a newspaper and introduces the telegraph and the telephone to the Middle Ages. (Just how he devises the technology to accomplish this is not made too clear.) At any rate, The Boss is considered a great wizard, and Merlin (or Brer Merlin, as the Yankee calls him) is treated like a fraudulent fool. Motivating all this is a somewhat smug sense of 19th Century superiority. Actually, the Yankee goes beyond his own century and into the 1900's. When Guenever's treason causes the civil war which divides Britain, The Boss drills a group of cadets (his West Pointers, he calls them) that he leads off to battle against the anti-Arthurian knighthood. The result is a blood bath presciently and repulsively similar to the trench warfare of 1914-1918. (The novel was published in 1889.) If this is meant to be an indication of future efficiency, it's an extremely pessimistic vision. But then, the whole story is Mark Twain's gloomy statement on Mankind's uneasy place in a dysfunctional world, be it the Dark Ages or the somber present.

Well, the perfect companion to La Morte d'Arthur...

Twain completely dissects the "good ol' days" of Arthurian Britain by exposing the vicious social practices of the time: white slavery, le droit de seigneur, confiscation of property in event of suicide, the complete lack of impartial justice, the degrading influence of the Church on the mass, etcetera etcetera etcetera...

The Arthurian legends are wonderful tales, but they are a mythic literary production; Twain deals with the brutal reality of daily living in the Dark Ages, and points out that the good ol' days were not so good, anyway.

As for its applicability to modern America, I am not fit to judge. Perhaps it's there. But "The Connecticut Yankee" is a wonderful tonic for those prone to romanticizing the past. Twain seems to agree with Tom Paine that the English nobility were "no-ability", and simply the latest in a series of robbers.

And, of course, the book is stuffed with wonderful Twainisms... My favorite is his observation that a conscience is a very inconvenient thing, and the significant difference between a conscience and an anvil is that, if you had an anvil inside you, it would be alot less uncomfortable than having a conscience.

Twain also mentions the beautiful mispronunciations of childhood, and how the bereaved parental ear listens in vain for them once children have grown.

You'll never look at castles the same again...

The book, "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthurs Court" by Mark Twain was very intriguing to read. The beginning of the book had a very interesting attention grabber. Hank Morgan, the main character, was at the colt factory where he worked when he got into a heated fight with a co-worker, Hercules. Hank then got hit in the head with a crowbar, passed out, and awoke to find himself in 6th century England. This introduction to the book made for a real page turner.
I also liked the ways that Hank fooled everyone throughout the story with his "magic". Everyone thought he was a sourcerer because they thought he made the sky completely black, where as it was really a luner eclipse that he knew was going to happen from being from the future. He also said that he could blow up Merlins Tower by fire sent from the sky, but he really used explosives. He used his knowledge and newer inverntions to his advantage when he went back in time because they were things people from 6th century England never knew about.
Mark Twain also used a lot of imagery in this book. I feel that it gave a better understanding of what was going on and it made the book exciting to read.
One of the reason I only gave this book four stars is because I didn't like Hank and Merlins relationship. I think they should have gotten along instead of fighting and butting heads throughout the whole story. Mark Twain waited until the end of the story for them to get along whereas if he had done so sooner, the two of them would have gotten more accomplished throughout the story.
The other thing i didn't like about the book was Hank and Sandie's kids name, "Hello-Central". To me there seemed to be an unclear meaning behind the name and i'm really not sure why that name was chosen. I think there could have been a better plot behind it or a better name could have been chosen.
All in all, I think this is a wonderful book for anyone with an imagination to read and I would definatly recomend it to people in the future.

John Parsons made some of the most important contributions to science in the 20th century, yet he had a dark fascination with the occult. This book reads very much like Hollywood Babylon -- lots of juicy and shocking details -- but essentially it skims the surface and doesn't explore Parsons' psychology. Why would a brilliant scientist involve himself with the fantasy world of the occult? I myself have read The Book of Lies by Crowley, and some of his other work, yet none of it has convinced me magick is a worthwhile pursuit. Parsons himself never really got any of these rites to work, so why did he faithfully continue on this path? In spite of this book's lack of depth (or an answer to this question), I found it to be an enjoyable read. Always fascinated by the hijinks of the church of Scientology (not yet formed when the events of this book took place), it was amusing to read the true account (as opposed to the Churh of Scientology's account) of L. Ron's affiliation with Parsons -- also bravely told in Bare-Faced Messiah, now sadly out of print but available on the net. The book contains a good selection of photographs, but could use more footnotes. Anyone interested in Parsons, Crowley or Hubbard should find this book interesting.

_Sex and Rockets_, a new book from Feral House about Jack Parsons, is rich with previously undocumented biographical information about this fascinating and talented genius, whose scientific career is no less interesting than his career as an occult initiate. This literal "son of Captain Marvel" (Marvel H. Parsons) was himself given the name Marvel at birth. Later his mother began calling him John, and he came to be known as Jack by his friends. In general Carter's book seems pretty well-researched. I appreciate the fact that _Sex and Rockets_ focuses more on the subject of Jack and his life than earlier literary efforts which have exploited the mythos surrounding Jack and his infamous Babalon Working to propagate highly speculative, only vaguely and loosely associated fringe agendas on the part of various writers. Carter has done a good job sticking to the subject.

The research in _Sex and Rockets_ focuses primarily on Jack's scientific career and secondarily on the Babalon Working itself. Of the former, the author traces a clear path detailing, validating and celebrating Parsons' contributions to the field of rocket fuel technology. Carter succeeds in his mission to carefully excavate and restore the previously almost-buried name and contributions of this scientist to their rightful stature in history. Of the latter, the author draws a clear juxtaposition between Cameron's view of the Babalon Working and Jack's own understanding. Carter clearly pinpoints the persistent indications in Jack's own records that reveal Jack's personal expectations of something more along the lines of an apotheosis than an actual incarnation, despite repeated communications from the Babalon archetype, also faithfully recorded, to redirect Jack's focus to the true nature of the Working, as time and again She gently deflects Jack's attention away from concerning himself with the future vehicle of Her manifestation. Carter also engages in some excellent reconstructive work about portions of the Working on which Jack's record is scant. While I do not agree with all Carter's conclusions or his particular slant on the Working at times, the Babalon Working remains a subject of myriad interpretations. Carter succeeds in his attempt to provide a more objective portrayal of the Working, and as such, his rings closer to true than other more fanciful and "fringe" speculations upon it have done in the past.

One thing I did not like about this book was the conspicuous absence of source citation. There were many interesting pieces of biographical information for which the author consistently failed to provide citation, neglecting to indicate whether he obtained the information from documents, records, conversations or interviews with people connected to Jack, etc. Comments by Cameron and others are recorded without so much as supplying the context in which they were made, when they were made, or to whom. Information about Jack's life which was not previously documented or heretofore known to the public is written as fact without offering any outside verification thereof. For example, Carter writes about a brief period of time where Jack's scientific career had stalled and Jack had taken an interim job at a filling station. Yet there is no source cited for this information. Whether the author obtained it from employment records, interviews with others connected with Jack's estate, or elsewhere remains a mystery, and the reader is left having to take the author's word with no means to verify it for himself. True, not every bit of information needs to be footnoted, and there is a lot of previously documented information about Jack's career. Nevertheless, previously undocumented and/or unpublished information should always be cited to verify its authenticity. Instead, the majority of existing citations in this book consist of things previously well-documented and cited elsewhere on numerous occasions, such as references to Crowley's writings and letters or O.T.O. ritual.

As a researcher, I find this frustrating, because without due citation for biographical information that is not documented elsewhere, how can _Sex and Rockets_ be regarded or used bibliographically as an authoritative source? The intelligent reader needs to see things historically documented or at least reasonably verified via citation, particularly where statements are attributed to other parties. This lack of documentation is definitely this book's biggest weakness. The author clearly did extensive and worthwhile research, so the lack of source citation is both puzzling and devaluing to the book as a whole.

Fair warning: there's one paragraph in the chapter "Death and Beyond" which brings up a very nasty bit of recent hearsay without duly informing the reader that the item in question is, in fact, unsubstantiated hearsay and that no physical evidence has been produced to substantiate it. Unless either the sources of the rumor, the author himself, or the publishers can produce the physical evidence claimed, or at least a sufficiently clear disclaimer as to its hearsay nature, repetition of this claim is inexcusably irresponsible, especially considering this book is the first reasonably thorough biographical work about Jack to be published. It smacks of crass sensationalism, which is totally unnecessary in exploring the life of a colorful and diversely talented person like Jack. I say produce the physical evidence or retract the rumor -- or at least amend the paragraph to clearly point out that it is nothing but hearsay and that no physical evidence to support the claim has been produced. Anything less is just plain exploitive, more worthy of the "Jerry Springer show" than an otherwise fairly well-researched biography.

Despite these two serious complaints, I still recommend this book as a ground-breaking, definitive biographical work on Jack Parsons. TIME IS ... for it to be read.

Sex And Rockets: The Occult World Of Jack Parsons is the engaging, highly recommended biography of John Whiteside (Jack) Parsons, a primary architect of modern rocket science and co-founder of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Parsons (who had a crater on the dark side of the moon named for him) had dark, secretive interests which overshadowed his outstanding public career for Parsons underwrote Aleister Crowley's "Book of the Law", held numerous soirees celebrating science fiction, and performed weird black magic rituals under the eyes of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. After being investigated by the FBI and become estranged with the United States government, Parsons met his death when a mysterious explosion leveled his home. Sex And Rockets is riveting reading, enhanced with Parson's never-before-printed writings and period photographs.

I am not a fan of thrillers but needed to read this for work reasons and found it a real page turner. A gripping story that hooked me from early on and I had more than one late night, rapidly turning pages as I reached the end.

What made this book particularly interesting was the fact that the characters were plucked from an element of society - rich African-American professionals - that is rarely featured in contemporary fiction. It was a fascinating insight on a world I have never experienced.

So, a great thriller well written - why only three stars? The answer is simple...

...the ending.

Having trawled through hundreds of pages over many night I cannot believe that I was presented with what was effectively a 'you pesky kids' Scooby Doo type ending with the baddie telling us all 'how he did it' while pointing a gun at our protagonist.

A major major letdown from am intelligent literary thriller.

Although black influence may be discerned in many strands of modern popular culture, from sports to stand-up comedy, from music to fashion and movies, one couldn't say that this has also been the case for fiction. Professor Carter's book is a welcome first step in populating a compelling plot-driven narrative with characters we haven't heard from before (or at least, not to my knowledge). In "The Emperor of Ocean Park" black university graduates with high-powered jobs and all sorts of material comforts are resolutely center-stage. In Philip Roth's "The Human Stain", the main character must resign his blackness to achieve success and power in the academical world. Carter's characters never resign their race to be successful in the white man's world. The main voice is Talcott Garland's. He is a lawyer in his forties, a professor of law in an ivy-league-ish university, which in spite of Carter's denial in a post-scriptum is a straigth forward rendition of Yale Law School, where the author teaches. Garland is a complex man, not a cypher, surely a cut above the generic "cut-and-paste" renditions typical of modern popular fiction. He is slightly overweight, not very likeable (he is aloof and emotionally remote), very much his father's son. The father, the eponymous "Emperor of Ocean Park", is Oliver Garland, known in the book as "The Judge", a composite of Associate Justice Clarence Thomas, Judge Robert Bork and famous intellectual Thomas Sowell. A moderately conservative civil rights lawyer, he is appointed to a federal judgeship in the District of Columbia Appelate Court where he moves increasingly to the right. In the Reagan era he is nominated to the Supreme Court, but he must withdraw his candidacy when certain sordid associations become known to the public. He then joins a Washington D.C. firm as counsel and rakes in fat fees as a very popular public speaker. The Judge has shaped his children sometimes in ways he didn't mean to. The first born, Addison, is a rebel who refuses to be subject to his fathers very exacting standards of emotional self-control. His daughter, Mariah, the cleverest of all, has withdrawn from intellectual life to become wife of a rich white banker and mother of a large brood. Talcott has fled the rough and tumble of political life to become a tenured professor, and is stuck with Kimberley, a woman he adores, although she doesn't love him and may be cheating on him. A third daughter, Abby, died long ago, run over by a car that then fled the scene of the accident. This death is the catalyst of all that happens afterwards. The Judge is dead at the beginning of the book, and Talcott is quickly assailed by all sorts of shady figures who are looking for the Judge's arrangements. Talcott has no idea of what this means, and he struggles till the book's very end to find the arrangements and keep himself and his family alive. There is a complex chess problem (whose relevance is perhaps less clearly conveyed than the author intended) and several sub-plots to keep the reader occupied. Those thinking about buying the book should not be dissuaded by its heft. The book is a page turner and it has the right mixture of plot, action and rumination to keep the reader interested. It is also evidence that a book may be compelling without a single overtly sexual set-piece, without unnecessary profanity and without obsessive concern by fashionable slang or luxury good brands. This book will still be readable in fifty years without a special dictionary.

Many people have commented on the detailed rendition on the specifics of middle class lives. The big surprise is that these lives are similar to those of their white counterparts. Middle class blacks are hard working achievers, sometimes hindered by emotional distance and obsessive self-pondering. Perhaps one key point is that this is not the middle class as such that we are regarding, but the upper-middle class, with their large townhouses in Washington D.C. ("the Gold Coast") and their summer places in the Vineyard and the Hamptons.

We should expect this book to be slaughtered in the movie version, with Denzel Washington as Talcott, Morgan Freeman as the Judge, Hale Berry as Kimberley and Angela Basset as Maxine. Gene Hackman would be a good Justice Worthington. Read the book before you see the inevitable movie. It will only spoil the fun if you do otherwise.

Stephen Carter enters the world of fiction with a bang. The Emporer of Ocean Park comes highly recommended, and does not disappoint. It's full of twists and turns, of familial discord and of mysteries unsolved.

Seen through the eyes of Talcott Garland (husband, father and now reluctant adventurer), this story will engage you from beginning to end. Tal's marital difficulties, strange siblings, chillingly dangerous "Uncle Jack" and the mystery woman who keeps popping up just when his life gets dangerously close to becoming normal again will keep you on the edge of your seat.

My only complaint is that this book is TOO LONG! 650 pages is about 200 too many, even for a book this compelling. And, while I enjoyed the way the author wove his love of chess into the storyline, after awhile, the more arcane game references began to wear on me.

Nevertheless, I recommend The Emperor of Ocean Park to anyone who enjoys a good mystery- and has a little time on his or her hands to read :-)