This is one of the outstanding books on theology of the twentieth century by Professor Gillis of Georgetown University. It is not merely a description but a comparison and analysis of issues, such as Mission versus Maintenance which is an in-depth study of paradoxes between the mission of the church and the maintenance of the bureaucracy and structure. Nobody is expected to accept both sides or all sides of issues, but the reader of any religion or even no religion will come away with an understanding of unique features of Roman Catholicism such as the protection of the connection between the human and the Divine which the institution of Priests and Sisters provides. Buddhism and Hinduism have a different way of protecting this connection, and Judaism and Islam and the Protestant Faith have their own ways. Perhaps there is hope in this Amerian melting pot, that by comparing good experiences the good lives on and the evil is buried. This is why I only review good books.

Roman Catholicism in America is an essential text for any thorough study of Roman Catholicism: it examines the religion within the context of American culture, with scholar Gillis examining the major religious concepts, individuals, and principles of Roman Catholics. An interdisciplinary approach allows for the consideration of various Catholic experiences and influences.

Chester Gillis delights readers with his historical thoroughness and timeless ancedotes on Catholicism in America. As a former student of his at Georgetown, I am not suprised. Thank you, Professor Gillis.

Chester knows his flounder! If you want to catch more of this elusive and selective fish you need to buy this book. It is very well written and you will learn the little things that make a huge difference catching more flatfish.

I enjoyed the book "Flounder Fundamentals" very much. My son and I learned a new facts concerning flounder fishing that we did not know.

The book was written in a easy to read style! Good luck to the author and hope he writes a few more fishing books.

Ive been young and now I'm old. This was the best book I have ever read. I hope Mr. Moore can write for many years to come. There is no doubt in my mind, thousands of people young and old that enjoy flounder fishing will learn from this book. Buy this book if you love fishing.

Mom, Can I Play Football?: A Introspective View Of The Game For Parents And Coaches is a fun and entertaining collection of humorous anecdotes, delightful illustrations and amusing poems featuring kids at play in organized sports and the men and women who coach them. Mom, Can I Play Football? explains why children drop out of organized sports before age 13; how children feel about winning, losing and having fun; how the coach (and the parent!) can put fun back in children's sports; and how to avoid the pitfalls of coaching children. Mom, Can I Play Football? is critically essential reading for anyone who coaches organized sports for kids, the parents of those kids, as well as the school, municipal, and business community authorities who make organized children's sports possible.

Seldom does a book provide readability and yet remain on your shelf as a reference. Jerry Norton has captured the world of youth football in his book. His stories of kids caught in the act of playing the greatest team sport ever, will warm your heart. As a football coach I was impressed with his grasp of the fundementals of football. As a parent and Youth League Executive I was impressed with his compassion for kids and the way they see the world. Jerry gets down on one knee and looks youth football in the eye,and the sport will be better for it. Anyone, in any youth sport should read and remember "Mom, can I play Football."

The simplicity of the book's message and the illustrations make it a delight to read. Anyone who has ever played sports or coached kids will enjoy it. Anyone intending to coach children should be required to read it.

More diaries and personal accounts and glimpses into base life from the daughter of a 388th navigator

My father was a member of the 388th [Bombardment] Group and I have been searching for any information I can find about him and his crew and what they did and felt. I know and have met several of the people featured in the book which makes it even more exciting to me. My father was on many of the missions described in the book, so I can imagine his feelings. It is very personal to me. It is also the kind of book you can pick up and put down and skip around. I especially liked the daily newsletter and bulletins since I had never seen that sort of information.

This book and its companion piece second volume are outstanding tributes to the heros of World War Two, and they couldn't come at a better time. The heros are dying and it's important that we remember who they were and what they did. As a vet myself, I can tell you that the 388th Anthology is one of the most complete histories of a bomb group I've ever seen, and the details of these stories are amazing. Not only are the stories exciting and moving, but the Anthology is an impressive historical work and I recommend it highly.

I was reading the golden one when I thought crosses my mind. Would Elrabin meet Ampris in the arena? But as I read the second I found that untrue. My question is, in book number one it says Elrabin was sold to the Utar Dan gladitory school. How did he end up a servant for Sir Galard and the blues? That's my only question. Otherwise both books are great! I can't put them down. In Homeroom, Language Arts. You name it I read it there. Hopefully after the trilogy you will keep writing your amazing and wonderful Alien Chronicles

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The Crimson Claw

A Review by Bob Berry

I picked up "The Golden One", along with several other books in a store going out of business. It sat around for months while I read the other books. I finally started to read it and about half way through decided I needed Books 2 & 3 right away. I found Book 2, "The Crimson Claw", but much to my surprise Book 3 hasn't been published yet!

I finished "The Golden One", and thought, "I'll save "The Crimson Claw" and wait until I get Book 3 to read it", as I hate to be left hanging, waiting for the next book in a series to be published. That thought lasted at least two days after I finished the "Golden One". So, now I have almost finished "The Crimson Claw" and I don't even know if Deborah Chester has started writing Book 3!

If you read these reviews, Deborah, please respond with a timetable for your third installment. Since Lucasfilms is associated with this, could we also be in for a real treat in the form of a "Star Wars" type saga once Book 3 is complete? That would be wonderful!

One thing I have noticed in the first two books. Deborah Chester has reversed the scale of beauty and ugly. If you go to the Alien Chronicles web site you will see a picture of Israi, the "beautiful" Viis princess. Beauty most certainly is in the eye of the beholder!

These books carry another message, one that history teaches also. Governments usually fall due to corruption from within. Although the Viis Empire has not fallen yet, it is on the brink, and all that is needed to give it that final push is a rebel force, ("Star Wars" again). It appears that Ampris is that rebel force.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable read, and I can't wait for the third book. Please hurry, Deborah!

You may not wish to print this last comment, but I will make it anyway. It might be helpful for some of your reviewers to type their reviews on a word processor with a spelling and grammar checker and then cut and paste their completed review into your review space. I grew up in an era where spelling and grammar were more important than they appear to be now. Using a spelling and grammar checker might expose your reviewers to some of the more common misteaks (Ha Ha), and their reviews would be much more readable.

Thank you Amazon.com for providing us with an opportunity to present our thoughts to others.

Deborah Chester's "Crimson Claw" is a sci-fi novel with a definite historical feel to it. While the story was about the conflict between the slave races and the master race,set on a different planet in a different time, I always got the feeling I was reading about the Gladiators of the Roman Empire. This is not a negative criticism, just that the story had a very real flavor to it.

Additionally just about all her characters seem very real and that is disturbing. I found it very difficult to hate most of her bad/evil character because she gave them so much dept. And it made a lot of their motivations very understandable. Chester has a knack for getting into all her characters heads and while the story is about Ampris, it could have also been about Elrabin, Israi, or the Kaa.

Surprisingly however, two minor characters who play a big part in the book get the short shrift. Halehl, her trainer we really know nothing about. And an early antagonist Sheri, her early bunk

mate, who I kept expecting to see in the ring.

One thing that bothered me was that Ampris's team "The Blues" were supposed to be the reigning arena champions, but they cheated big time in a number of ways. Chester gave little attention to the possibility that they could or would ever get caught. At one point in the book Halehl threatens to sell Ampris, but the thought that Ampris might reveal their cheating techniques never comes up.

Another thing that is not clear is why is the Viis empire crumbling. Sure they are not fixing things, the economy is collapsing and they are a ruthless race. But why? Their motivations for allowing all this to happen boggles my mind. Perhaps it will be more explained in the last book.

Minor quibbles' thou. The book is a very quick read and completely engrossing. And after you are finished you will want more. A book kinda sorta similar to this book is McCaffrey's "Freedom Landing" trilogy. However while that book purports to be about runaway earth slaves from a master alien race, it is really a book about colonization.

lewis@qnet.com

My four year old loves this book, when Lilly does her stuff my son loses it, he actually gets belly laughs. We read his book five nights in a row when we first got it, and we didn't mind reading it over and over. Lilly really is a crack up. The moral is great. I have since bought "Julius Baby of the World" and we have read this the past three nights in a row, and we look forward to reading more by Kevin Henkes.

We are going to be using this book on our unit on Friendship. We will discuss the likes of each of the characters in the book, and how different they may be, but how they are friends. Kevin Henkes has a wonderful website as well, where you can get reproducibles. As a counselor and parent it is an invaluable resource!!...

When I read this book it made me reminisce about my friend and me. We do everything together.
When Lilly moved in, it was bad for Chester and Wilson to not like her. Then it was nice of her to help them out when they were in a predicament.

Chester B. Himes wrote a series of "Hard Boiled" detective novels set in Harlem during the the 1950's and 60's. His two main protagonists were "Coffin Ed" Johnson and "Grave Digger" Jones, a couple of black police detectives operating in the seedy underworld of Harlem and New York City. Himes himself had served time for armed robbery in Ohio. While in prison he first read the works of Dashiell Hammet("The Maltese Falcon","The Thin Man",etc.)and decided that he could write similar fiction set in Harlem's vibrant African-American culture. He moved to France after his prison release and then began to write (in French!) his own brand of mysteries set in the New York City section that had become world famous for it's culture, nightlife and intellectual renaissance. The first of these mysteries was "A Rage in Harlem"(first published in French as "For Love of Imabelle" in 1959). Coffin Ed and Grave Digger were only minor characters in this first novel, but by the time of the 5th novel "Cotton Comes to Harlem" they were the stars of the series.

In "Cotton..." a ex con named Deke O'Hara scams $87,000 from a group of families who want to go to Africa to start a new life free from segregation and prejudice. Before O'Hara can abscond with the money a group of white gunmen steal it in the middle of the "Back to Africa" rally O'Hara is hosting and then escape. All this takes place in the first few pages, and the action only steps up the pace from that point on. Cotton Ed and Grave Digger are assigned to the case, and their brand of brutal, violent police work may not be always legal, but they have their own code of honor, which demands that they do all in their power to see to it that the families get their money back, as in most of the cases it amounts to their life savings. Through a maze of deceit and treachery filled with white supremacists, voluptuous women, scam artists, underworld informants, and real to life street people the two cops thread their way with both violence and guile. I won't spoil the ending, but suffice it to say that Himes delivers.

The book was made into a movie in 1970 which played up the humorous aspects of the book. While there is much mordant and cynical humor in Himes' writing, the book is much more than that, and deserves a place in the "Hard Boiled Detective" Hall of Fame. If you like this one I would recommend Himes' other works, especially "The Real Cool Killers".

A definite 5 stars.

... The book doesn't concern Bible Flowers. It's about the efforts of two black detectives, "Grave Digger" Jones and "Coffin Ed" Johnson, to recover $87,000 in money stolen from a con-man/storefront preacher in 1960s Harlem. Along the way, Grave Digger and Coffin Ed encounter a few murders, a southern colonel, and a 50-pound bale of cotton.

Raymond Chandler wrote that detectives must walk the mean streets, but they must not themselves be mean. Well, Grave Digger and Coffin Ed walk the mean streets just fine, but the "not being mean" part gives them trouble; they doubt the feasibility of solving a case without, say, slapping around a few witnesses or firing a few shots into a crowd. Despite the detectives' unhesitating brutality, this novel compares well to the best of Raymond Chandler and Robert B. Parker. This is due not only to the spot-on dialogue and the stark, vivid character depictions, but also the detectives' uncompromising determination to bring justice to Harlem. The plot is better, i.e., less predictable, than any of Parker's, and Himes's depiction of 1960s Harlem is so bizarre, yet compelling, that it invites comparison to Carl Hiassen's Florida rather than Chandler's LA. Add to this Himes's unique, excruciatingly honest depiction of race relations in the 1960s, and you have one of the best detective novels I have read in years.

...

The dialogue, the action, the characters, it's Harlem world and it's all here! What else do you want?

This book is a well written biography that also presents many lessons of leadership. Starting with how Nimitz "conceived the image of an ideal officer and consciously molded himself to conform to that image;" to his introduction of the circular formation to the fleet; to the way he ran planning sessions for World War II Pacific Theater operations. Nimitz was a master storyteller who used stories to convey knowledge and share humor. His political acumen in handling disputes between the Army and the Marine Corps on Saipan and, later, as Chief of Naval Operations testifying before congressional committees over unification of the services provide case studies in executive leadership. Although Nimitz's service in World War II is widely known, I was surprised to learn of his efforts in the late 1940's to mediate the dispute between India and Pakistan over Kashmir---an area that remains a hot spot today!

Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, a down to earth kind of guy. The kind of man who gave credit where credit was due. Unlike General Douglas MacAurther, he did not insist on "hogging" all the glory. He wasn't seen as much as a "hero" in the public's eye, like General MacAurther was, because of it. Unlike MacAurther, he did not complain about having to share part of the Pacific Theater. He made sure that the NAVY got the credit it deserved. That the NAVY and the NAVY's Marine Corps fought most of the war in the pacific. I think if you are interested in WWII, Pacific Theater, that this is a book you should read.

I read this book this past year and enjoyed learning about Admiral Nimitz. By all accounts, he was a real leader of men-self-effacing, competent, inituitive, confident, and by example. Unlike General MacArthur, Admiral Nimitz was not flamboyant or showy. He was a matter-of-fact officer who truly cared for his men. He had the knack for picking the right man for the right job every time. He knew when to employ a aggressive commander like Bull Halsey and when to use a cautious commander like Admiral Raymond Spruance. He was a sailor's Admiral and an Admiral's Admiral. He was Chester Nimitz.

I just read Barbara Kingsolver's new novel, The Poisonwood Bible, and was prompted to re-read Something of Value which I 1st read in the early 70s. I still find it (SV) a well-told, powerful story. The theme of both books is pretty well summed up in their titles: the tragic consequences that develop when peoples from western culture take over a native one. Kingsolver, the real life daughter of medical missionaries in the Congo/Zaire, has written this fictional account of a religious missionary family who goes to a Congolese village in the late 50s and 60s. It's told from a decidedly female point-of-view, in turn by each of the 4 daughters and periodically by the mother. The father is a Baptist minister from Georgia, whose autocratic, insensitive approach impacts both his family and the villagers. This book may be too "p.c." for you manly safari types, especially the 2nd half where the daughters are grown and the background politics of Patrice Lumumba becomes more apparent. But, I found value and reading pleasure in both books and have gained an inkling into the complex problems of today's Africa

This book was so accurate and so brutally honest that Ruark was banned from Kenya by the British and the Native Kenyan goverments. For those of you who don't know; Roberk Ruark was THE defining voice in America for Africa in the 1950's. His columns appeared in Field & Stream magazine when EVERYONE read Field & Stream. He was a celebrity with apartments in New York and a villa in Spain. These were the days when rich men ate red meat, went to Africa to "shoot lions" and were disappointed if it didn't charge! If you love African game stories and you belive in the superiority of Western civilization over shamanist tribalism then this book is for you. When the English colonized what is now Kenya it was a true clash of moderns with the Stone Age. These men (and women) had as rough a time as Americans did taming the West. Really more so because the Africans were more numerous than the American Indians and only one or two of our animals would eat you. After years of carving farms out of the harsh African veldt with the permission and support of the Britsh goverment the farmers suddenly found themselves put "out into the cold" by their goverment. The Socialists in England suddenly decided by vote to modernize the Native African from the Stone Age to the Industrial age overnight. From shamans and chiefs to democracy; brought in by "the Winds of Change". If you ever suspected that you have been lied to about Africa by the Desmond Tutu's and Nelson Mandela's of the world, if you want to know what is going to happen in South Africa in the next 10 years, if you need any more convincing that America's Africa policy caters more to Jesse Jackson than the true "status quo" of Africa, then this is the book for you. Ruark does a brillant job of juxapositioning the issues of tribesman and colonist alike. The politics and violence of MauMau are amazingly similar to the African National Congress. In Ruark's Africa everyone is right; and wrong. All the native born Africans in his book, Black and White alike, believe to the bottom of their soul in what they are doing. I don't think Kipling himself could have captured the essense of Africa any better!

With Uhuru, Something of Value gives an excellent insight into both sides of the story of Mau Mau. No holds are barred here and the frankness of the language used is refreshing and an accurate portayal of that time. Ruark paints a slightly sentimental picture of colonial life in Kenya although for me this doesn't harm the book and only enhances the (very real) shock of the horror when it comes.

OK, it's probably not fair of me to write here because: a) I read the first draft of this book and b) I'm in it. But here goes:

Not even 40 (OK, not even CLOSE to 40), Craig has lived at least three lives already. This book only touches the tip of the iceberg. Craig has already proven his acting mettle in God knows how many films; now he proves that his writing is even better. (I told you this in 1988, but...oh well...) Perhaps only people who have truly touched the dark side of life can acquire a really razor-sharp and hysterical wit about their down sides. (Is it a coincidence that tortured-til-she-dropped Judy Garland was also able to laugh even in the face of the most outrageous adversity?)

Craig proves he doesn't sweat the small stuff, because he's dealt so very amusingly with tons of big stuff. But even at his lowest point, Craig makes it all sound so FUN you wish you'd been there, too. The biggest compliment I can give to Craig is this: Even if I never knew you and hadn't been at least on the periphery of much of what you describe, I would have still eaten this book with an obscenely huge appetite. I forced myself to only read 20 pages a day to make sure it would last. I can say that about very few authors.

I absolutley loved this book. I thought the title was intriguing so I bought it. I was delighfully surprised. Mr. Chester is one of the best writers I have had the privelege to read in a long time. This book is hilarious, touching and insightful. I hope he writes another book soon. We need more writers like him. I have not laughed nor been moved so much by a book in a very long time. Kudos to you Mr. Chester for writing such a wonderful book and sharing your fascinating life with us.

I can't remember the last time I enjoyed a book this much! With the exception of a particular sad point in his life, Craig Chester's story was incredibly entertaining. Considering my reading was done mainly outdoors, I received numerous wondering looks from people around me because I would burst out laughing! Craig Chester puts his words in such a way that you can't help but enjoy yourself page after page. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking to smile and laugh while they read!