As a child growing up on the eastern seaboard of the U.S., and obsessed with seashells, the gastropods of the Pacific Ocean beckoned to me more strongly than any seaweed bedecked sirens in my 8th grade Latin book.

And this was the book that fueled by imaginations. The heck with Botticelli and his "Venus on a half-shell" or Cyndy Crawford's teeth -- this book illustrates and explains some of the most beautiful pieces of calcium carbonate ever secreted by man or mollusc.

And this was the book that fueled by imaginations. The heck with Botticelli and his "Venus on a half-shell" -- this book illustrates and explains some of the most beautiful pieces of calcium carbonate ever secreted by man or mollusc.

Jeff Cabrio arrives in Valle Rosa with the promise of being able to bring the much needed rains and to stop the fires from destroying the homes and eventually the entire town. Carmen Perez, the ex-wife of the mayor, is desperately trying to revitalize her dying journalistic career and thinks that by doing an expose on Jeff Cabrio is the only way to do it as well as this being her last chance to prove herself. But in the investigation of Cabrio, Perez is confronted with the ghosts of her past and knows that she can no longer run from her past pains and problems and must, indeed confront and deal with the demons. Mia Tanner has her own secrets, which she desperately wants to hide from Jeff Cabrio, but realizes as she is falling in love with him, that they cannot stay hidden any longer either. Jeff Cabrio does indeed have a most painful past, and has done everything possible to run and hide from this past, as well as his identity. But will his love for Mia allow him to reveal the truth even to her and do what he must do, to finally have peace in his life? Meanwhile, the pressure is on Cabrio to bring forth the rain he has promised to save the village. With the media constantly keeping the pressure on him, Cabrio is not dealing with much more pressure than he ever dreamed of.

The suspense will keep the reader guessing on how all the pieces will come together and who will do what and when!!! This book is classic Chamberlain where the unexpected does indeed happen!! The suspense is wound around several of the character's painful pasts, allowing love in to heal them and putting the past behind once and for all, and looking toward the future.

I highly recommend this book and for this reviewer - she stayed up until 4 in the morning until she finished the book!!! Absolutely loved this book! One of Chamberlain's best yet!

The reason for General Delk's concern is hinted at in the book's preface, "Police officers are carefully trained with a focus on restraint. Armed soldiers, on the other hand, are trained to respond to threats using deadly force. As a consequence, there was considerable concern when thousands of National Guardsmen were sent into the streets to restore order. As might be expected, there were dozens of assaults on the military forces. These assaults are recorded, as well as the extraordinary restraint exercised in responding to those assaults."

General Delk interviewed police and politicians, soldiers and gang members on his way towards writing a very comprehensive history of the 1992 L.A. Riots.

And, while this reviewer is not mentioned by name, his unit and a specific incident involving a suspected sniper is. Page 105 describes an incident that happened about 30 feet from this reviewer on 1 MAY 92 at 0800, "This battalion (the 2-185th Armor) from the San Diego area was accompanied by Jim Michaels, a Marine Corps Reserve lieutenant colonel, who was a reporter for the San Diego Tribune. He had parked his small Ford Escort next to the Guardsmen in the parking area early Friday morning. Sergeant Robert A. Matey was leaning against the left side of the sedan in front of the driver's window. Sergeant Duane Neyens was leaning against the left rear talking to Master Sergeant Jim Sexton (the latter two soldiers worked for this reviewer at the time in the S-2 section). Suddenly a shot whacked into the vehicle between Matey and Neyens..."

The book is filled with such first hand detail while at the same time providing the bigger picture. Fires & Furies is a must read for anyone who really wants to know what happened in L.A. in 1992.

As a captain who served as the battalion intelligence officer and who led foot patrols in the Crenshaw-Baldwin Hills Mall Plaza area in 1992, this reviewer greatly appreciates General Delk's history.

This is one of the better guides I have seen on how constructively to involve an entire community in building its own living democracy. There are exciting and useful lessons here for anyone who is ready to engage in strengthening their neighborhood, town or society.

The library is a partnership of the two municipalities and reflective and representative of both. It is a community gateway and cultural center, a place of shared responsibilities and benefits. Today there are more than two hundred residents serving on twenty+ committees and each is vested in maintaining the excellence of this library. In creating their own library, the citizens of Tiburon and Belvedere demonstrated something basic and good about people and communities, about social democracy and its power and glory. It shows that local community activists can take matters into their own hands and achieve something remarkable.

Congratulations and thanks to author Jo Ann Ridley for telling this story with such attention to detail, warmth, and enthusiasm. Thanks to artist and architect James Mallott for his beautiful illustrations and his remarkable generosity. Thanks to Dr. Kevin Starr, California State Librarian, for his eloquent foreword. Thanks to Sharon Jones of Vision Books International, the book's publisher and guiding light. Thanks to all the people from the community who served on the Library's History Book Committee - Carol Forell, Allan Littmen, Barbara Gnoss, Joanne Horton, Robin Daily, Betty McKegney, Sharon Bass, Mary Falk, Marie Feldman, Margaret Jones, Barbara and Len Rogers, and Steve Silberstein.