To test Wet Coast Words, I tried to come up with a small list of BC words: whistlepunk, geoduck, widowmaker, PNE, crummy, saltchuck, and peevee. All but peevee appear in Wet Coast Words. For comparison, the new Canadian Oxford Dictionary (1998) misses peevee and geoduck. On the downside, Wet Coast Words is not a formal dictionary. The entries are encyclopedic or anecdotal rather than the traditional: ie. a) part of speech, b) pronunciation, c) first meaning, d) second meaning, etc ,and e) etymology. Too bad because this makes the book much less useful as a reference but it is a fun read.

Perhaps a 10th anniversary edition with revisions and additions will come out next year. If it does, peevee (long crow-bar like tool with grapple on one end used to move about logs in log booms) could be included.

"Who Killed CBS" is a dated but still relevant expose of how the network which was once unsurpassed for the quality of its news division sunk during the 1970s and 1980s to the depths of mediocrity. How the modern evening news came to resemble tabloid shows like "A Current Affair" and "Hard Copy" is plainly evident in Boyer's descriptions of how CBS executives came increasingly to see television news as "entertainment." As news consumers, we are all worse off for this unfortunate development.

I really enjoyed reading this book. There was quite a bit of good advice concerning wilderness living and survival. Also included interesting tales concerning Brad and Vena Angiers experiences living in the British Columbia wilderness. I found the style of writing to be quite easy to read and the explanations to be easily understandable. Would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in living in the wilderness or just enjoys reading about people who have done it.

This story, written by Chris Morgenroth himself, even though he had only a grade school education, is a testament to the people who lived, loved, worked and endured the life of the mining rush for gold and silver. Rich and wonderful reading with crisp, clean text, this is worth reading!!

Astounding, awesome, fantastic, incredible... there are only some of the adjectives that occurs to you while you see this book. Ruth Thorne-Thomsen is without doubt one of the best contemporary photographers, her imaginary landscapes don't have equal. If you like the millenarian ruins... imaginary landscapes... the disturbing beauty... the dreamed photographies...this is your book.

Again, one of the best photographers of the history. Few photographers can make feel the some Ruth makes you feel. An incomparable photographer. An incomparable book

Can it happen here? Can a totalitarian state run by liberals, feminists, and new-agers take hold in North America? According to Nathaniel Delaney, the protaganist of "Plague Journal", it already has and if you don't conform to the new orthodoxies, you're quite expendable. While "Plague Journal" is a paranoid Christian polemic, it is redeemed by the hero's realization that anger, hatred, and solipsism have no place in a true Christian's response to evil. "Plague Journal" is the story of a man who loses everything but who re-discovers his faith in the depth of his sufferings. O'Brien is a skilled writer and an astute thinker. Despite the polemics, this is an amazing book. Kudos to Ignatius Press for publishing it, but it's too bad it hasn't gotten more attention from the literary media.

Artist and author Michael O'Brien has again proved himself to be a master of the writing craft, and one of the most original and creative writers of the late 20th century. Plague Journal, the second of his Children of the Last Days trilogy, continues the story of the Delaney family in Rocky Mountain British Columbia, from the persona and perspective of Nathaniel, now a middle-aged father and editor of a "conservative" newspaper. As the hidden totalitarian government cracks down on him for "hate-crimes", setting him up to be a child abuser and even murderer, he attempts to escape the madness by fleeing into the Canadian wilderness with his two children. The story, albeit filled with many flashbacks and the thoughts and ideas of the protagonist (actually the author's, thinkly disguised), takes place over only five days, as opposed to the 50+ years of its predeccessor, Strangers and Sojournours. The book maintains a pleasurable balance between fast-paced action and O'Brien's trademark gift of spiritual and philosophical insight and commentary. Plague Journal easily stands as the author's most explicit warning against modernism gone haywire: social engineering, abortion, technology-worship, television addication, the numbing of the imagination and intellect, and the possibility that these conditions may make us vulnerable to the arising of a thinly-disguised, "benign" totalitarianism, which, O'Brien conjectures, would operate under a facade of democracy, but in reality, force its will and world-view upon the people. This story includes all the necessary ingredients of a great tale: action, wit, unforgettable characters, pathos and even tragedy, but it is filled (especially towards the end), with a sense of hope, and the ultimate victory of light. The saga, of course, continues on into Eclipse of the Sun, but this shorter novel (only 269 pages) can be read on its own. Heartily recommended to all who are concerned over the present or future state of society, or simply enjoy great literature.

First, if you're going to read O'Brien, I recommend reading his novels in this order. 1. Father Elijah, 2. Strangers and Sojourners, 3. Plague Journal, 4. Eclipse of the Sun. Although they were not published in this order it will make the most sense from a chronological standpoint. Certain characters resurface.

The Plague Journal is the journal of conservative newspaper editor Nathaniel Delaney, his friendship with a local doctor, and his attempts to escape, with his children, from a totalitarian Canadian government that seeks to silence him.

As usual, O'Brien interjects just enough action to keep you reading, and just enough spirituality and theology to get you thinking. O'Brien is one of the finest Catholic journalists of the 20th century.

I have owned 3 copies of this book...the most recent being the 1996 version. The book is an absolute wonderland of information about fishing, camping, siteseeing,....ad infinitum - on the great(ist) state to the north - Alaska. I have been saved many times (gas, motels, food) by referencing this book while traveling in the north. My fist experience with Milepost was in 1982 when we drove the Alcan and Cassiar highways to Alaska. If you take this type trip without this book it is like working with half your brain!! (or less). It can't be recommended enough, even if you are flying into Alaska and renting a car (or taking a taxi, or a float plane!!).

This is the best source for travel to Alaska, whether you are traveling by car, plane or cruiseship. I bought a copy to plan my trip last May ('97). I was traveling alone, and was not renting a car.

The guide lists shuttle services, train services, ferries, phone numbers for major and minor attractions, and has a fairly comprehensive listing of all hotels, motels, B&B's, restaurants, etc. The book list everything, milepost by milepost, for every region of the state. It will save you time and money. This will become your bible for travel in and around Alaska!

This is a book to take with you for saving those souvenirs like ticket stubs, postcards, brochures, etc. and the memories from the trip of a lifetime!

If your budget allows for only one guidebook -- this is THE BEST, bar none!

I made a trip from Atlanta, GA to Alaska this summer and wore down this book in a few short days. The confusing, lonley (and sometimes unpaved) miles of road North demand exactly the kind of detail The Milepost provides. The book also includes practical info on gas stations, food, and where to find your next drink. Don't go North without it.

"Eclipse of the Sun", Michael O'Brien's third novel in the trilogy which began with "Strangers and Sojourners" and continued with "Plague Journal" is an outstanding conclusion to this excellent series. It picks up from where "Plague Journal" leaves off, but from a different perspective. Fortunately there are enough characters which appear in all three novels, allowing for a more or less seamless transition of perspective.

O'Brien continues his tale of the Delaney family and their friends and acquaintences and their trials and tribulations at the turning of the 21st century in British Colombia. There are two main themes: One theme concerns the eschatological prophecies in the book of Revelation, and their relevance to the dawning of the 21st century. The other theme concerns the quiet evaporation of personal and civil liberties which have been gradually occuring in the Western "democracies". These themes are knit so closely together, one is not always sure whether Revelation is a vehicle for O'Brien's political concerns or whether O'Brien's political concerns are a vehicle for his eschatological theories.

Regardless of which it is, the reader will have a difficult time putting this book down.

O'Brien's deeply held Catholicism shines forth brightly in this book -- and frankly, it is refreshing. It is unusual in this day and age for a Catholic to write "End-Times" novels -- such is usually the provence of fundamentalists (who usually hate the Church). His Catholicism is traditional, conservative and uncompromising, yet very human and full of compassion. The religious one meets in his books (including this one) are the very sort that one wishes there were more of! (In my experience, as someone raised in a traditional Anglican background, one of the major reasons that Catholicism has not made the inroads into my former denomination that it could make is due to the progressive hogwash that all too frequently passes for Catholicism in North America. A few more priests like Father Andrei, and a few more bishops like the Archbishop of Vancouver in "Eclipse" would go a long way in attracting converts from a slowing dying Anglicanism. But I digress)

For me, this book rates 4.25 stars. 5 for story content, and 3.5 for character development. One flaw in the book (or perhaps it's merely a flaw in my personal taste) is O'Brien's tendency to develop a character, then suddenly drop them, never to be seen again. He also does not, to my way of thinking, always sufficiently explain how a character develops from when he/she is first presented to how he/she ends up. One is left wondering why such and such a character changed so radically.

Finally, this book shows an interesting respect for conservative, yet non-Catholic clergy. O'Brien is not nearly as hard on his "seperated brethren" as many conservative Catholics tend to be. And he is equally hard on liberal Catholics as he is on liberal Protestants.

I would very much like to meet Mr. O'Brien some day. I have enjoyed his novels; I have enjoyed his non-fiction; I appreciate and respect his faith; (and I have an enormous respect for his understanding of JRR Tolkien). I know a wonderful Irish pub where we could light up the pipes, raise a pint or two, and discuss literature and theology for hours on end.

Excellent, excellent, excellent! Don't let the page count daunt you--this is an amazingly fast read. While this is an end-times book with a decidedly Catholic flavor, all Christians and even secular civil libertarians will find it to be an edifying (and sobering) read.

Basically, it is the story of a "creeping totalitarianism" that is engulfing North America and the few heroic (mostly Catholic and Evangelical) souls who recognize it and attempt to resist, especially when they discover that it is NOT happening by accident.... Although O'Brien says (I'm paraphrasing) that the novel has a "near future" setting, it has a disturbing "today's headlines" feel. This is well-done Catholic Christian literature, and as such it is not afraid to name names and identify the evils of our time: rampant consumerism, globalism, the New Age infection of orthodox Christianity (and its globalist ties), television, degenerate "art" calculated to destroy the sense of the sacred, the deliberate harassment of the devoutly religious, the annihilation of due process--the list goes on and on. In short, EOTS grippingly depicts the fall of night on Western civilization. The struggle against the darkness of sometimes uneasy coalitions of believers in Christ (and other people of good will) sustained by the grace of God makes for an inspiring cautionary tale.

You know a movie's a hit when the audience remains sitting while the credits roll. A great novel affects me the same way. I'm silently awed by the gift of a powerful story.

Michael O'Brien wowed me with Father Elijah (now available in paperback) and now stuns me with Eclipse of the Sun. In an earlier tale, Strangers and Sojourners, the Delaney family acquired a newspaper in Swiftcreek, British Columbia. The current editor views the growing misuse of Canada's "hate crime" laws with alarm. Since you can't speak ill of anyone, you can't call abortion "murder," you can't expose corruption, and you can't criticize the government.

Phony charges send the Delaneys fleeing to the mountains, except for estranged wife Maya and her youngest child Arrow. They live in a commune involved in drug dealing and possibly Satanism. When a secret government militia attacks the camp, Arrow flees, assisted by Father Andrei. This priest survived the Holocaust and recognizes the signs of fascism in the Canadian government. His task is to reunite Arrow with his family. He launches the young boy on an epic journey, both physically and spiritually.

The two discover that God is bringing a blessing out of the current oppression. People who never took religion seriously are now wondering why the government seems so threatened by it, especially Catholicism and evangelical Protestantism. They're forced to realize their choices have moral and possibly fatal consequences. Surprising characters choose to die for God rather than capitulate to government intimidation.

This novel is rich in characters. In addition to Arrow, one of the most believable young boys I've met in books, and Father Andrei, there are the Wannamakers, suspicious of the media's silence on events they know occured. Their daughter Julie and her family have decided to take a long cruise away from Canada, while the parents opt for a trailer tour of America. Potempko, another old European priest, has lost his parish to "progressive" elements but finds more and more Indians seeking his spiritual advice. Alice, Queen of Junque, claims to be amoral, but she rescues a hydrocephalic child from a government dumpster, and she willingly shelters Arrow. The Potters, Alice's evangelical neighbors, have spent years of love trying to convert Alice only to find themselves in trouble with the law for their charity. A formerly moderate archbishop begins to question the direction of Church "reforms."

The villains are mostly faceless, except for Maurice L'Oraison, who loved the first Mrs. Delaney but has sold his soul to escape the poverty and provincialism of Swiftcreek. Father Andrei's struggle to rescue L'Oraison's soul resembles the Grand Inquisitor section in The Brothers Karamazov, a section of philosophy that forces you to think. Like most epics, this is a long book, but I wouldn't cut one page.

Kathleen T. Choi, HAWAII CATHOLIC HERALD

The sixth edition of Columbia is a distinct improvement over the fifth (CH, Feb'94), which contained not a few embarrassing geographical inaccuracies. Editor Legasse also edited Concise Columbia Encyclopedia. Hefty indeed, the new Columbia contains some 51,000 entries covering a vast array of topics; it is the largest one-volume general encyclopedia in English. Nearly 40 percent of its content has been revised to reflect the political, social, scientific, and technological developments since the fifth edition. Entirely new are some 1,300 entries covering such topics as the Internet, the Ebola virus, and alternative medicine, to name only a few. Among its 6.5 million words are 700 black-and-white illustrations, 80,000 cross-references, and 40,000 bibliographic citations. Articles range in length from a few lines to several pages, usually written in straightforward style free of jargon. A note for readers explains that "information from one article is generally not repeated in another," although numerous articles are properly cross-referenced to related items. Vladimir Putin, for example, is cross-referenced to Chechnya, which is cross-referenced to Dagastan. Entries are arranged alphabetically in boldface; longer articles are paragraphed with italicized subheadings (unlike the fifth edition) and conclude with brief bibliographies. Like its predecessor, the sixth edition dispenses entirely with photographs and portraits of persons, but includes hundreds of useful maps, tables, and diagrams, many new or revised. Other features include a key to pronunciation and a list of abbreviations. Extending a tradition begun in 1935, this version of Columbia is impressive in its sweep, clarity, and authoritativeness, making it a happy choice among one-volume "first-stop" reference works. Highly recommended for home use or for public, high school, or college libraries. Highly Recommended

This is a wonderful reference book. The information is superbly presented. Where the entry might be unfamiliar it provides a pronunciation key (exceptionally convenient for foreign or archaic words). The entries themselves are well balanced for readability, content, and completeness. And most articles include a bibliography if you wish to research further.

It is also a reference in which you can get delightfully lost. My searches take me in many directions. It's first class cross-referencing makes an in-depth investigation a snap, but sometimes it is better to ramble. And this is the beauty of the book, unlike structured links with Web or CD encyclopedias, in the Columbia Encyclopedia the links are only encumbered by your imagination and curiosity.

If you are not American, (I'm Canadian) don't worry about obsessive jingoism that often pervades American efforts. The Columbia presentation is evenhanded and globally egalitarian in scope and breadth.

If you don't already own this excellent volume it should be on your bookshelf. If you are a teacher it should be in both the school library and your classroom (grades 6-12), and if you are a parent it should be in your home. The Columbia Encyclopedia is truly a rare and valuable information jewel.

I bought the Columbia encyclopedia a little over a year ago and now I feel qualified enough to review it.

I'm never amazed at the amount of information that is presented in this book. It has never failed me or my seventh-grade daughter with any of her school related questions. Whether her questions have to do with the population density of Calcutta (population and area in sq. miles), cell reproduction or plate tectonics, I have yet to find something that she needed and it was not there.

The information is presented in a very succinct manner. There is never too much or too little information for a specific entry - always just enough. The "also see" and bibliography references at the end of many entries are very useful. The binding is great. I was afraid that this huge book after constant use would crack at the hinges, but that is not true. This is one of the bulkiest books I've got and, yet, surprisingly, is also one of the strongest. After more than a year's frequent use, the hinges feel as strong as when I bought it and so do the ledge and spine.

This is not a multimedia information center. There are no pictures, only maps and drawings. When you first open it, you are faced with columns and columns of small font text, though it's nicely laid out.

I do not find any social or political bias in the book, but I may not be sensitive to it. One will not find positive or negative references being made on specific issues, although one may find something to the extend of "some academics feel that..." or "in this century XYZ has fallen out of favor with..." The book does not take sides, its stance is neutral and objective with no flavor. It does not offend and its errors (if any) are ones of omission not commission.

It may be a good idea to visit your local library first to take a closer look at its heftiness, lack of pictures and, perhaps, objectivity prior to purchasing it to see if it's something that suits your family's style. If you decide to buy it without examining it first, I don't believe you will be dissapointed - it's a great book and a best buy.

The Milepost provides the Alaska and Yukon bound drivers with all of the support (lodging, gas stations, dining, vehicle repairs, medical, etc.) and sight-seeing information needed to have a safe, comfortable and informative journey. It details this information on mile-by-mile basis which allows the traveler to know the joys and potential hazards of the trip. It also provides this same detail for all of the major roads that lead to and from the Alaska Highway - within NW Canada and throughout Alaska. Also a necessary reference for the traveler who flys to Alaska and rents a car in Anchorage or Fairbanks. It also provides history and trivia of many of the little towns in the Alaska Wilderness. Alaska adventurers should also consider getting the book, Discovering Denali if they are going to explore Denali National Park.

The Milepost has provided the Alaska traveler with all of the support (lodging, gas stations, dining, vehicle repairs, medical, etc.) and sight-seeing information needed to have a safe, comfortable and informative journey. It details this information on mile-by-mile basis which allows the traveler to know the joys and potential hazards of the trip. It also provides this same detail for all of the major roads that lead to and from the Alaska Highway and throughout Alaska. Also a necessary reference for the traveler who flys to Alaska and rents a car in Anchorage or Fairbanks. It also provides history and trivia of many of the little towns in the Alaska Wilderness. I get this book every time I had to Alaska. Alaska adventurers should also consider getting the book, Discovering Denali if they are going to explore Denali National Park.

This guidebook has provided the Alaska traveler with all of the support (lodging, gas stations, dining, vehicle repairs, medical, etc.) and sight-seeing information needed to have a safe, comfortable and informative journey. It details this information on mile-by-mile basis which allows the traveler to know the joys and potential hazards of the trip. It also provides this same detail for all of the major roads that lead to and from the Alaska Highway and throughout Alaska. Also a necessary reference for the traveler who flys to Alaska and rents a car in Anchorage or Fairbanks. It also provides history and trivia of many of the little towns in the Alaska Wilderness. I get this book every time I had to Alaska. Alaska adventurers should also consider getting the book, Discovering Denali if they are going to explore Denali National Park.