This book is one that motivates me. This is one of the best books that I have ever read. It truly ranks up there. Reading how Reginald F. Lewis, Kappa Alpha Psi brother, Virginia State '65, made it to Harvard without taking the LSAT, or even putting an application, and becoming the first and only person to do so, deeply inspired me. One of the things that I got from reading this book was Reginald Lewis' sense of determination. A statement that I got from this book which depicts how Reginald Lewis refused to carry his race on his shoulder also inspired me. He said " I'm not going to carry my race on my shoulder. If I can be helpful to others, that's fine, but I'm not going to do my work because I'm a role model for all African Americans. That's bunk. I'm not responsible for any body's life, I'm responsible for my life. And I'm responsible for realizing my own dreams. I deeply respect such an attitude, as opposed to that attitude which relies on black people who made it in life to carry everyone along. Overall, I found this book to be exceptionally well written. I enthusiastically recommend this book to anyone.

The life and times of Reginald Lewis is an extraordinary story. It's the story of a man with drive and determination. Reg Lewis was driven by his will to win and be the best that he could possibly be. This book will be one that chills your spine and warm your heart at the same time. I assure you this book will provide you with all the reason you need to follow your dreams.

Reginald F. Lewis offers to us a guidebook on perseverance, not understanding limitation and humanity that is certainly a must read. He teaches us through his life that the many self-imposed limitations are the greatest obstacle to success. To see a man dedicate himself to his familiy, business and community in a manner that should be considered enviable for ALL races, is truly inspirational. A consumate "player" Reg sought to understand "the game" and all of its nuances then to play it to perfection. He recognized the role that race played but would not allow it to be a limiting factor in his personal or business lives. His life serves as a testament to the triumph of the human condition over a hand that many would say should have dealt him out of the game. I consider this book my inspiration and guide as I navigate the waters of business and investment. The title may put off many but it speaks volumes to Mr. Lewis' philosophy. If readers of all races step back and consider what this title represented to him they will understand the motivations underguirding its meaning and the actually "color blind" nature of this work which should be considered a text as well as an autobiography of a great man.

I can't think of a better place to learn how to translate drawing skills into animation. This book assumes you already know how to draw people (and animal characters), but don't know how to draw them in animated sequences. It mainly talks about traditional cel animation, but the techniques apply to other styles, from flip books to computer animation (though mainly 2D).

The details of getting the animation drawings from art to film are outside the scope of the book, but lots of other books do a good job of explaining that. _Animation from Script to Screen_ by Shamus Culhane is a good book for that part of the process (and also covers _some_ of the same artistic ground this one does). Leaving out the technical details allows to book to cover a lot more about the important part: drawing animated characters.

If you want to learn how to do character animation, traditionally or on a computer. I'd recommend you start with this book. It covers all the basics.

This is the book to own if you want to become an animator! It is extremely helpful in teaching basic cartoon character construction techniques and features lots of information on creating animation.
This book is in most professional libraries and is extremely handy as a reference tool. I recommend it to all aspiring animators and cartoonists and I require it for my classes at The Center For Character Animation in New York. It's Highly Endorsed by this Emmy Award Winning Cartoon Animator!

Cyrano de Bergerac is the quintessential Romance of "the Genius against society". However, the main theme is: "Dramatization of the idea that the meaning of true love is a response of one soul to the virtues,or the beauty of the soul,of another being and that love is not concerned with physical appearances."

The plot-theme is: "The love triangle between a gallant, witty, poet-soldier who, because of an ugly long nose is unable to profess his passion to the woman he loves; the woman, and a handsome man who loves the same woman (who in turn loves him) - the ugly poet composing beautiful poems and verses for this handsome man to win over the woman-thus, lending him his soul."

Cyrano.." glorifies all that is heroic in man - self-esteem, fearlessness, intransigent integrity and above all - independence of spirit . At the end of the play Rostand shows that the human spirit shall remain unbroken and unbent - whatever may be the suffering or loss.

The link between the theme of the genius' struggle (here, Cyrano's struggle) against mediocrity, compromise and cowardice, and the theme of love is that important events of the latter are determined by the former (particularly the climax) in a single plot-structure.

One unique feature of this play is that all the characters directly involved in the central plot, by the end of the story are positive characters, without any malice or envy or hatred.

I have not read any other play of serious literature with such charming and yet profound poetry, wit and humor - it will make you sigh, it will make you roll on your belly, it will bring tears to your eyes. The pain of Cyrano is heart-wrenching. I weep everytime I read the story-and almost all the while.

One of the drawbacks of "Cyrano.." is that despite its celebration of Man the Hero, while one experiences an exalted sense of hero worship, one does not experience the same sense of benevolence with respect to this world - the world is portrayed as a place, where, ultimately, where man cannot achieve his values though his spirit is untouched by pain. (The same applies to the novels of Victor Hugo - who shares Rostand's sense of hero-worship).

This play does not deal with any complex philosophical issues (such as the plays of Schiller). However, it carries in its simple message and in its portrayal of probably the most lovable hero of 19th century fiction, a depth of meaning and relevance which is timeless. With its glowing Romantic spirit, "Cyrano.." ought to go down in history as one of the most enduring plays of all time - as a testament to the indestructibility of the human spirit.

My rating is for the play; I've only glanced at the English translation. I'm not too sure if this play should really be called "An heroic comedy", I find it more to be a tragedy. A play of tragic unrequited love, sacrifice, courage and charm, with some amusing moments, for instance when members of the aristocracy and others are made to look foolish compared to the wit and heart of Cyrano, or the scene where Christian and Cyrano meet for the first time.
Cyrano was a real French poet of the 17th century. A bit of knowledge about his time helps to appreciate the play...for instance, one of the reasons why Christian feels unable to speak to Roxanne with his own words is because she was part of that fashionable trend amongst certain ladies of society called "les precieuses" (ridiculed by Moliere) characterized by an overblown admiration of fancy talk, excessive romantic sensibility, and intellectual posturing. Christian, a man of perhaps more basic passions and few words with women, but in no way a dummy (see his wit when meeting Cyrano), rightly felt inhibited before the precious Roxanne.
"Cyrano" was written at the end of the 19th century, is neo-romantic in style and one of the last French plays to be written in verse rather than prose. The charming, witty and poetic ryhme of its verse, which fully develops each of the characters in keeping with the play's romantic theme, is what makes it so wonderful. It is like a poem. In translation the play therefore loses much of its grace and beauty.
The play has been filmed a few times. Skip the Steve Martin "Roxanne" movie (very loosely based on the play) and see the real thing: "Cyrano de Bergerac" directed by J.P. Rappeneau with G. Depardieu in the leading role. Both the film and Depardieu are absolutely fantastic and very true to the play. The lines in the film follow (excepting one or two pages) the original lines of the play.

This great story of the infamous long-nosed man, Cyrano de Bergerac, tells the tale of Cyrano's love problems. His lack of confidence in his appearance hurts his overall anxiety level. He uses a handsome cadet's, Christian's, looks to woo Roxanne with his (Cyrano's) own graceful words. While unrealistic in nature, many of the morals of the story are presented very cleverly. There are so many great lines in the play that are witty, intriguing, or just funny! A great read for anyone.

Mr. Blair offers a complete history of the unsung role of U.S. Navy submarines during World War II. This book is an encyclopedic and essential resource for those who wish to further explore how the Pacific War was fought and won.

Thankfully, this book is now available in softcover after years of being out of print. My only complaint is that the Naval Institute Press did not make an effort to clarify and update some of the information (classified and otherwise) that has come to light since the initial publishing of this book in 1975 (hence 4 Stars out of 5). Sadly, Mr. Blair was not around to do such work as he passed on in 1998. Still, all in all, this book must be read for those seeking a full picture of the Pacific War. Hopefully, some ambitious naval historian will take advantage of Mr. Blair's work and recently available archives to craft a contemporary history of U.S. submarine warfare during World War II.

Along with Theodore Roscoe's United States Submarine Operations in World War II, this is THE standard for books on U.S. submarine operations during WWII. It gives some background on areas such as Ultra as well as administration, in-service politics, (e.g., the arguments with the Navy's Bureau of Ordnance regarding torpedo failures), and leadership relating to submarines during the war.

It is a distinct pleasure to see that Silent Victory is back in print. My old hard cover edition is now much the worse for wear, it was great to be able to get a new copy of an old friend. It is too bad that Clair Blair did not get a chance to revise and update it before his death. The book, however, still contains a great deal of information and clearly calls to our attention the superb work of the Silent Service during the Second World War and the great sacrifices that were made to keep the world safe. The book provides great detail about the successful patrols, while not shying away from the hard issues, such as the Torpedo Failures due to improper testing and development, the mismanagement of the submarine fleet early in the war, the loss of life due to the failure to pull old and outdated boats out of combat in a timely fashion, and the individuals who cracked under the stress of combat or highly inflated their sinkings.
And in light of other books detailing Submarine operations since WWII (Silent War - The Cold War Under the Sea and Blind Man's Bluff) it is clear that these brave undersea warriors are still on the first line of defense.
In sum a great book and a must have for every student of history... and we all should be students of History for those who do not study history are doomed to repeat the past.

I remember this book being read to me and my class in elementary school (1983-85). It was great fun. I don't believe that it sends any negative messages, like a few reviewers here. The story starts off with the first born son Tikki being all important, while Chang the second son is cast to a side. However, in the end Chang is the hero and both children are important and loved. It is a happy ending. Nowadays, people get too sensitve and caught up with being "PC". This is a children's book meant to entertain and cause a few smiles. It does that and even teaches that everyone is important and makes a difference. Almost 20 years after having this story read to me, it brings a smile to my face and fills me with warm memories of my childhood. This book will be fun for both the child and reader. In the end when the child grows up he/she will remember the basic story but most of all the fun shared while reading the book. I highly recommend Tikki Tikki Tembo.

Despite the fact that I am now 32 years old, I can tell you Tikki Tikki Tembo's full and complete name...I distinctly remember sitting on the floor of my school library on a rainy day in 2nd grade reading this book over and over and over again. I am not sure anyone else had the chance to read it that year, as I checked it out numerous times.

I am excited to read it to my own children now, and I hope that they will love the story as much as I did.

A definite MUST HAVE for a classic children's library!

"Tikki" is over thirty years old, and still going strong. I am a storyteller, and I love to retell the story of the little boy with the outlandishly long name (giving full credit to Arlene Mosel, of course!). Having learned Chinese, and spent some time in China, I do not try to pass it off as an authentic Chinese folktale. Mosel wrote it to have fun, and those of us who read and tell the story must do it in the same vein. Knowing that I am an old man and that my mental faculties may be fading a bit, my granddaughter, upon hearing me tell it for the first time, asked, "Grandpa, how long did it take you to learn to say that name?" I told her several days of practice (not mentioning that a class of first graders could probably do it in two tries!). Three cheers for Arlene Mosel! God willing, the electronic world will not have completely eradicated the printed word, and Tikki Tikki Tembo will be still be around at the turn of the next millenium!

This is an excellent book on death, grief and loss. Sooner or later death will touch everyone's life. We may not all react the same but most will experience the stages of loss and grief from denial to acceptance. It can be a long often agonizing and lonely road to recovery. Sadly the impact of loss and death can leave many with a loss of their own will to live.

This book does an excellent job of addressing a topic that most people choose not to address until they are directly confronted. I am an author of a children's book on death/loss/grief titled "ANGEL STACEY" and I personally know the impact on the loss of a spouse and raising young children who have lost a parent. This book is for the adult who struggles with their own feelings of loss and often has other family members to consider and to console.

Grief has a tendency to creep up in the odd hours of the day and the night and can be overwhelming to those experiencing loss. To have a title, a book that you can reach out and grab at any hour offers comfort. I wish this title had been available sooner as it often was a book that comforted and calmed me most during my own deep dark hours of despair.

Written from knowledge and from a place of understanding and guidance is sure to make this book a winner and a timeless treasure for anyone who has known a deep loss. It cannot take the pain and hurt away but it will help in the knowlege that those feelings are normal. Also that others have experienced the same and made it back to a seemingly normal existence. Death changes lives and changes people forever, many will grow and change for the better. I was never so humble and in essence never so pure and so good as I was immediately following the loss of my first husband and later the loss of my oldest daughter. It was only later with the anger and ultimately acceptance that I found myself once again on level ground. Death or loss can uproot your entire existence. This book is excellent and necessary.

I lost my father to a sudden heart attack. It is difficult to deal with any sudden loss and this book is helpful to understanding grief and loss. Since we all experience different situations and losses how we interpret the book and what helps us might vary. I would say this is a good book for anyone who lost a loved one to sudden death. For some reason it is helpful to read stories from someone who has gone through a similar pain.
I would also recommend Healing Stories of Grief and Faith, From Denial and Despair to Comfort and Peace.

Just finished reading "I Wasn't Ready to Say Good Bye", a friend recommended the title to me. My 17-year-old son, Roman died in the prime of life and I didn't have a chance to say good bye. I found the book to be more than a reference, or quick handling of the matter, I identified with similar emotions, the kick in stomach when you are already emptied of air, and the loss of "clean" closure. This book offered perspectives and "normal" responses and actions for each stage of loss. It identifies and provides descriptions for your recognition and insight.

I wanted to read every word, I felt we were joined, in a lot of ways, in our losses and I wanted the insight. The book is organized for easy handling and easy reading. You benefit from the experiences of the writers as they each experienced losses in their lives, and due to their losses, I find myself more apt to believe what they are writing about. A lot of practical advise, personal anecdotes, and references / citing to other works make for a full coverage and very helpful work. You may decide to want to explore a certain area more than others, great, they provide references for additional reading.

This is a good book for counselors to have available for their own reference and to provide people with loss. When you have a loss of this nature, you will want the information covered in this book. When our son died, he went to be with God. My wife, other son and daughter all know that. We STILL needed to grieve. In the book, it covers the "loss" from various perspectives, I benefited from this section in that it made me more sensitive to how non-family people treated my son and daughter. We all lost Roman, not just his mother and I. Simple inquiries made to our children started isolating them from their own grieving. After reading the book, I focused on correcting and mending areas of communications between my children and "well meaning" people.

If you have experienced loss, you need a book that gives you information and is readable at the same time. This book is it.

This purports to be a medical textbook, and many of the obviously learned author's quotations are from half-forgotten late mediæval medical writers. A plausible translation of the title into modern terms would be "A Study of Abnormal Psychology." The application of Scholastic methods to this topic --- so similar, and yet so different, from contemporary academic discourse --- creates a curious impression. He invokes astrology and theology in forming his psychology.

But in fact, Burton uses this arcane subject to go off on a profound and lengthy meditation on the melancholies and misfortunes of life itself. The author, it seems, was easily distracted, and his distractions are our gain. The passages on the Melancholy of Scholars, and the Melancholy of Lovers, are themselves worthy of the price of admission.

His prose is unlike anything before him or since him. It has some kinship to the paradoxical and simile-laden style of the Euphuists, but his individual sentences are often pithy and brief.

This seventeenth-century classic ought to be read by anyone interested in the period, in early psychology, or in the history of English prose.

Don't be misled by the title of this book, nor by what others may have told you about it. In the first place, it isn't so much a book about 'Melancholy' (or abnormal psychology, or depression, or whatever) as a book about Burton himself and, ultimately, about humankind. Secondly, it isn't so much a book for students of the history of English prose, as one for lovers of language who joy in the strong taste of English when it was at its most masculine and vigorous. Finally, it isn't so much a book for those interested in the renaissance, as for those interested in life.

Burton is not a writer for fops and milquetoasts. He was a crusty old devil who used to go down to the river to listen to the bargemen cursing so that he could keep in touch with the true tongue of his race. Sometimes I think he might have been better off as the swashbuckling Captain of a pirate ship. But somehow he ended up as a scholar, and instead of watching the ocean satisfyingly swallowing up his victims, he himself became an ocean of learning swallowing up whole libraries. His book, in consequence, although it may have begun as a mere 'medical treatise,' soon exploded beyond its bounds to become, in the words of one of his editors, "a grand literary entertainment, as well as a rich mine of miscellaneous learning."

Of his own book he has this to say : "... a rhapsody of rags gathered together from several dung-hills, excrements of authors, toys and fopperies confusedly tumbled out, without art, invention, judgement, wit, learning, harsh, raw, rude, phantastical, absurd, insolent, indiscreet, ill-composed, indigested, vain, scurrile, idle, dull, and dry; I confess all..." But don't believe him, he's in one of his irascible moods and exaggerating. In fact it's a marvelous book.

Here's a bit more of the crusty Burton I love; it's on his fellow scholars : "Heretofore learning was graced by judicious scholars, but now noble sciences are vilified by base and illiterate scribblers."

And here is Burton warming to the subject of contemporary theologians : "Theologasters, if they can but pay ... proceed to the very highest degrees. Hence it comes that such a pack of vile buffoons, ignoramuses wandering in the twilight of learning, ghosts of clergymen, itinerant quacks, dolts, clods, asses, mere cattle, intrude with unwashed feet upon the sacred precincts of Theology, bringing with them nothing save brazen impudence, and some hackneyed quillets and scholastic trifles not good enough for a crowd at a street corner."

Finally a passage I can't resist quoting which shows something of Burton's prose at its best, though I leave you to guess the subject: "... with this tempest of contention the serenity of charity is overclouded, and there be too many spirits conjured up already in this kind in all sciences, and more than we can tell how to lay, which do so furiously rage, and keep such a racket, that as Fabius said, "It had been much better for some of them to have been born dumb, and altogether illiterate, than so far to dote to their own destruction."

To fully appreciate these quotations you would have to see them in context, and I'm conscious of having touched on only one of his many moods and aspects. But a taste for Burton isn't difficult to acquire. He's a mine of curious learning. When in full stride he can be very funny, and it's easy to share his feelings as he often seems to be describing, not so much his own world as today's.

But he does demand stamina. His prose overwhelms and washes over us like a huge tsunami, and for that reason he's probably best taken in small doses. If you are unfamiliar with his work and were to approach him with that in mind, you might find that (as is the case with Montaigne, a very different writer) you had discovered not so much a book as a companion for life.

Don't be misled by the title of this book, nor by what others may have told you about it. In the first place, it isn't so much a book about 'Melancholy' (or abnormal psychology, or depression, or whatever) as a book about Burton himself and, ultimately, about humankind. Secondly, it isn't so much a book for students of the history of English prose, as one for lovers of language who joy in the strong taste of English when it was at its most masculine and vigorous. Finally, it isn't so much a book for those interested in the renaissance, as for those interested in life.

Burton is not a writer for fops and milquetoasts. He was a crusty old devil who used to go down to the river to listen to the bargemen cursing so that he could keep in touch with the true tongue of his race. Sometimes I think he might have been better off as the swashbuckling Captain of a pirate ship. But somehow he ended up as a scholar, and instead of watching the ocean satisfyingly swallowing up his victims, he himself became an ocean of learning swallowing up whole libraries. His book, in consequence, although it may have begun as a mere 'medical treatise,' soon exploded beyond its bounds to become, in the words of one of his editors, "a grand literary entertainment, as well as a rich mine of miscellaneous learning."

Of his own book he has this to say : "... a rhapsody of rags gathered together from several dung-hills, excrements of authors, toys and fopperies confusedly tumbled out, without art, invention, judgement, wit, learning, harsh, raw, rude, phantastical, absurd, insolent, indiscreet, ill-composed, indigested, vain, scurrile, idle, dull, and dry; I confess all..." But don't believe him, he's in one of his irascible moods and exaggerating. In fact it's a marvelous book.

Here's a bit more of the crusty Burton I love; it's on his fellow scholars : "Heretofore learning was graced by judicious scholars, but now noble sciences are vilified by base and illiterate scribblers."

And here is Burton warming to the subject of contemporary theologians : "Theologasters, if they can but pay ... proceed to the very highest degrees. Hence it comes that such a pack of vile buffoons, ignoramuses wandering in the twilight of learning, ghosts of clergymen, itinerant quacks, dolts, clods, asses, mere cattle, intrude with unwashed feet upon the sacred precincts of Theology, bringing with them nothing save brazen impudence, and some hackneyed quillets and scholastic trifles not good enough for a crowd at a street corner."

Finally a passage I can't resist quoting which shows something of Burton's prose at its best, though I leave you to guess the subject: "... with this tempest of contention the serenity of charity is overclouded, and there be too many spirits conjured up already in this kind in all sciences, and more than we can tell how to lay, which do so furiously rage, and keep such a racket, that as Fabius said, "It had been much better for some of them to have been born dumb, and altogether illiterate, than so far to dote to their own destruction."

To fully appreciate these quotations you would have to see them in context, and I'm conscious of having touched on only one of his many moods and aspects. But a taste for Burton isn't difficult to acquire. He's a mine of curious learning. When in full stride he can be very funny, and it's easy to share his feelings as he often seems to be describing, not so much his own world as today's.

But he does demand stamina. His prose overwhelms and washes over us like a huge tsunami, and for that reason he's probably best taken in small doses. If you are unfamiliar with his work and were to approach him with that in mind, you might find that (as is the case with Montaigne, a very different writer) you had discovered not so much a book as a companion for life.

I really enjoyed this book for a number of reasons. It was very interesting to see Lagerkvist flesh out the brief story of Barabbas from the Bible, while posing valid and universal questions about man's capability for faith. Reminded me a lot of one of my favorite books, Albert Camus' The Stranger, an Existential classic.

The Bible mentions how Barabbas was released when he was scheduled to be crucified, when the people could have chosen for Christ to be set free. What the Bible doesn't talk about is what Barabbas did and how the experiece of being set free as opposed to Christ affected him. This book makes that speculation. It also shows that Christ was thought a fraud by many--most were just plain scared of someone with the audacity to walk around claiming to be God's son. The book reveals the complications in having faith in the Christian religion and questions the judgement of those with faith.

I first found this book by accident, while browsing through the Amazon.com book lists. Then one day I found it in a shelf here in Brazil and decided to buy it. At first sight it didn't seem to be a very impressive book, especially because it was so thin. However, I must say I was totally "hooked" by the style of Mr. Lagerkvist.

He is so economical in his writing, that basically almost every one of his sentences or descriptions carry a lot of "weight". I believe the power of his writing comes from his "raw" style. It's such a short phrase or description, but yet so powerful, that several times I stopped to reflect about that part or caught myself thinking about it at a later time.

As you must have already know, this is the story of Barabbas, who was a terrible criminal and escaped the "Death Row" of his time, because Jesus was chosen to die in his place.

It is a beautiful story, because unlike many modern writers, Mr. Lagerkvist never tries to build a "hero" or any of the things I read a lot in these books for writers I tend to buy. He also never "melts" over emotional passages that could lead to a "hollywood drama" scene...

We basically follow this miserable and damned being, through the rest of his existence, as he tries to understand the life of the stranger called Jesus and at the same time find some clue about his pointless existence.

I can even say I am a bit suspect to praise this book, since I have this major crush on books about redemption or deep and lonely characters. It is always nice to read a book which touches the human condition with such objectivity.

Oh, and this book has a very powerful and beautiful end. If you found this book and is still reading this review, I believe you should probably buy it. I have no doubt this is a book worth reading!

Sweden meets "NYPD Blue" in this non-action-packed police detective mystery by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo. All of the action of "The Laughing Policeman" seems to take place before the book even begins. At the start of the book we learn that a terrible crime has been committed, nine passengers have been shot dead on a public bus in the streets of Stockholm. In light of the current events that have recently taken place in the U.S., it is ironic that the Swedish detectives on the case speak of how strange the crime is, stating that such a crime would more likely be seen on U.S. soil. The reader gains a good knowledge of the city of Stockholm, its streets, its people, its dark side, as the detectives leave no stone unturned in their search for the killer. Yet, while the characters are busy searching all over the city, we, the readers, are busy exploring the depths of the characters themselves. Each character has many interesting distinctions and, much like the way the details of the crime are slowly unraveled, different facets of the characters involved are revealed as the novel progresses. It almost seems, at times, that the novel is more about the detectives and their lives than it is about solving the crime at hand. It comes across as a kind of police detective television show where there is always a crime to be solved, but people really watch the show just to see what will happen in the characters' personal lives. Overall, a good mystery, with an exciting conclusion, but perhaps more for the "NYPD Blue" fan, than the "Murder She Wrote" type.

Laughing Policeman puts Martin Beck on the same page as the very best literary detectives of all times. The novel is quick paced, engaging, full of dry wit and not so much full of social commentary as some other Martin Beck books (e.g. otherwise great plot of Terrorists is too often punctuated by anti-capitalist, anti-Vietnam war, anti-government rhetoric - don't get me wrong, I am as much for anarcho-syndicalism as the next guy, just put it in a separate book). The novel is centered around a fictional mass-murder taking place in a Stockholm city bus. Right, if it was Boston or Philly nobody would even care to write a book about it... Anyways, the story is rich with details of actual investigative work - customary to Sjowall-Wahloo tandem - as it is with dumb cops, constantly threatening to riun the whole thing. Fans of Beck stories will find all the usual trappings - door breakings by Gunvald Larsson, the red nose of Einar Rohn, toothpick-chewing Per Mansson, and of course still surviving tandem of crime-busting heavyweights Beck and Kolberg. People who are not yet fans run a grave danger of becoming ones after - or even while - reading this book.

Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo's novel, The Laughing Policeman, is set in Stockholm, Sweden during the 60's. While the genre of detection leads a reader to expect the progression of an investigation into an unsolved crime, this novel presents a twist. The crime in this case has been solved, and the detectives on the job must follow a predecessor to solve the mystery. The clues and evidence in this case are left by this initial investigator and not the actual murderer. Instead of focusing on or leading up to the discovery of the criminal, the novel leads the reader to a closer understanding of the character of one of the victims. The novel also adds dimension to the act of detection by incorporating the narratives of an entire homicide unit. The piecing together of the mystery by multiple detectivies allows the reader the more active role of putting together the clues discovered by the individual detectives. The political issues of the time period are highlighted in the beginning and act as an undercurrent throughout the book. The time-span of the novel, 1967-1968, surrounds the height of an almost universal confrontation between public opinion and government. The novel explores both the public view of police and the detectives' views on the job they serve. While not suggesting that police have the power to bring peace or enforce order, the detectives seem urgent to prove that they can at least find some sort of order. The investigation of the mystery mirrors the detectives' quest to validate their way of life.