I was totatlly amazed at the avenue the author took. I enjoyed the characters and plot

very enjable suspence filled book, humourous and the charactors are brought to life on every page.

This book includes color photographs of the current gardens at Monticello and black & white reproductions of Thomas Jefferson's own sketched plans for the gardens. There is an annotated list of the flowers and "woody ornamentals," such as roses and shrubs, grown by Jefferson. There are many excerpts from his writing and letters which give the reader a greater sense of Jefferson's broad intellect and love of nature as it relates to his gardens. I was hoping to find a list of flowers native to Virginia cultivated by Jefferson but, while the origins of many of the flowers are indicated, there is no separate list of the native plants as I had hoped.

I found the book to be quite intersting and a valuable resource for the gardener. Thomas Jefferson is well known for his gardening efforts, both as ornamental and practical for food stuffs.

The book has excellent photographs of the gardens of Monticello as well as Jefferson's drawings of how he wanted to landscape the area of his "Little Mountain." There is great pride in the book to document over one hundred species of plants cultivated by Jefferson while living at Monticello.

Jefferson was a champion of cultivating indigenous plant life to Virginia and that of North America, but he had plants comming from thoughout the world also.

Cultivating a mountain top graden presented problems for Jefferson in both climate and the proper hydration of the plants themselves. Without all of the modern conviences that we have today, Jefferson managed to have some of the most beautiful gardens in Virginia.

This is a must book if you are looking for gardening proportion and scale. As Jefferson said, "There is not a sprig of grass that shoots uninteresting to me." Well said...

In the book you will find very good descriptions of the plants grown at Monticello, this is a must volume for reference.

As the Business Travel Columnist at BellaOnline.com, I recommend this book to anyone who has forgotten how to have fun on biz travel. This is a great present to give to any road warrior!

I was given this book as a gift from a friend because after being a road warrior for over 10 years.... I was complaining about ALL the travel. Well, my friend felt that I was forgetting about all the great things about being a road warrior and bought me this book.

After reading this book, I realized how much we (road warriors) do have fun on the company's nickel.... and how at times we need to relax more when away for work.

The author does an fantastic job of showcasing the sights and sounds around the world that he has visited while throwing in some great tips! A quick read.

I knew Perkins when he was making these trips. I especially enjoyed his photographs, as well as his prose describing his extracurricular wanderings. If you are a business traveller who ever wondered what to do with your free time, READ THIS BOOK! You will learn a thing or two. -Bob Davis

We all know that for every action there is a reaction, especially when treating medical patients. The patient either has a positive or negative reaction. Charlotte Perkins Gilman describes the affects of the medical treatment for women in The Yellow Wallpaper. She writes about a woman that supposedly needs medical treatment and is treated by her own husband. I feel that Gilman uses setting to create a place where the woman feels that she cannot be healed. Also, she has the woman act sane and aware in the beginning of the short story to point out that she does have a chance to be cured. Gilman's work is a great example of showing the medical treatment style in that time and the affects it has on patients. The doctors are not listening to their woman patients, not realizing that woman respond better when they talk out their problems and have someone to listen to and understand them.
Gilman's use of an unlikable setting sets the stage for disaster, which is a great technique. Gilman has the woman set up in a romm that is absolutely dull and depressing. The woman is not satisfied with her room and wishes to be somewhere more pleasant to spend her time. "I don't like our room at all...The paint and paper look as if a boys school used it...it is dull enough to confuse the eye in following..." (Pg, 43) The room has bars on the windows, the wallpaper is torn, and the headbaord is chewed on. It is no place for a patient. I feel that anyone would just want to die.
In the beginning of the story, Gilman has the woman patient sounds sane as if she could be cured in no time at all. The husband does not listen to his wife and he states that she need not do anything to stress herself out. It means that she should not lift a finger. The woman states, "Personally, I disagree with their ideas. Personally, I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change, would do me good." (Pg, 42) I feel that Gilman shows the reader right away the correct medical treatment method. Gilman also slips in the damaging affects that are caused by the phosphites the woman takes. She writes, "My brother is a physician...and says the same thing. So I take the phosphates and phosphites." (Pg, 42) I believe it again points out that Gilman is mocking the medical treatment.
John, the woman's husband, went to medical school and the treatment he uses now is what he learned there. The author is pointing out that it is not personally his fault for the results of the patient, meaning his wife's results. It seems that Gilamn is focusing on the fact that medical doctors are not listening to women patients and becoming aware that women need to be open with their problems. Otherwise they cannot be curred.
It seems that Gilman is trying to explain the problems of the medical treatments for women, in my opinion, is outstanding. Mixing a light tone of writing, using setting poperfully, and ensuring the woman in the story that she is sane for the start. Overall, the short story is a success in acheiving those goals

Gilman was a feminist, a radical suffragist and a woman who was told that all of her thoughts and energies ought to be solely focused on something that she wasn't really interested in being: a mother. She suffered from post-partum depression and severe anxiety later in life. The title story, "the Yellow Wallpaper" is a semi-autobiographical account of what happened when she had to go through a "rest cure" for her "hysteria." The title story is her most well-known, but the other writings are very good too, and worth a second look. She wrote prolifically-- and deserves to be better known.

The first time I ever encountered this story was at a dramatic interpretation contest in high school-- and when the girl performing this did her descent into madness, it made the hair crawl on the back of my neck. If you really think about what's going on, you too will be creeped out.

To all men who are seeking to stay pure:

While I did find some information in this book helpful, there was one major problem. The last chapter was practically pornographic. If nothing else it was explicit. I will simply say that I didn't buy the book as a "how to" manual for sex. Instead of helping me combat thoughts this book put new ones in my head. Half way into the last chapter I tossed this book in the trash. It was very unwise for the author to do what he did considering his audience... shame on you Mr. Perkins.

I would ask all men to be extremely careful if you decide to read this book. You may be doing more harm than good. I implore those who purchase it anyway to skip the last chapter, in the name of Jesus. For an AMAZING book, purchase "At the Altar of Sexual Idolatry" by Steven Gallagher. That book was solid in the Word and full of wisdom! It really helped!

When Good Men Are Tempted is an incredibly readable andpersonable chat with the author about struggles with lust andtemptation that men face daily. Bill Perkins comes alongside the reader, puts his arm around their shoulders and begins talking about the reality of being sinful men in this world, and what we can do to be pure. As you tentatively move into the first chapter you'll notice right away there is no pretense or naiveté here. "It would be nice if religious devotion freed us from the threat of sexual compulsions," Rev. Perkins writes. "It doesn't."(p.38) Also wonderfully absent is the trace of false victory often sensed while reading other works by Christian authors on the subject of sexual temptation. Ten pages into this book, you will understand that this man has been there and that he continues to pursue God's purity for his life every day, aware that the enemy with his tools of temptation is still right there with him, as with each of us, waiting for an opportunity. With chapter titles like, "Why Naked Women Look So Good" and "Dragging [your struggle] Into the Light", Rev. Perkins discusses with the reader why lust is so powerful and resilient, clinging to us in spite of our best intentions. He offers terrific encouragement to men with plenty of humor, and exposes the subtle but deadly arrows of distraction flying all around that can derail us as we seek to live holy lives. But don't expect easy or palatable answers. Rev. Perkins presents his experiences combined with illustrative stories and clinical data, all wrapped together with uncompromising truth about who we are as men: "...as sinners, we're all contaminated with evil...if we embrace [the truth], we'll have to face those nasty secrets about our family and ourselves. These secrets are the source of your shame. They are the reason you don't believe anybody would love you if they really knew you." (p.70) Bill Perkins graciously and transparently shared his heart throughout this book, making his marvelous insights and simple empathy impact me like no other work I have ever read on this subject. I encourage any man who is frustrated with his own inability to resist the sin of sexual impurity to spend the few dollars and grab this down-to-earth, immensely helpful and edifying book.

Bill Perkins did an excellent job with this book. He truly has a heart for God and a passion for men. This book will unveil the truth behind lust, addiction, and pornography. Any person that has struggled in these areas of life will now have their eyes opened to the truth that is taking place. Some people are addicted, yet clueless as to how this addiction affects them. After reading When Good Men Are Tempted, they will no longer be able to qualify for that category. I wept the entire time while reading this book. It is a must for every man, husband, father, pastor, counselor, wife, and mother! A book written for men, but an issue that affects everyone!

Some in clandestine companies combine; Erect new stocks to trade beyond the line; With air and empty names beguile the town, And raise new credits first, then cry 'em down; Divide the empty nothing into shares, And set the crowd together by the ears. - Daniel Defoe (1660 - 1731)

The Internet Bubble documents the latest incarnation of the world's second oldest profession: separating gullible investors from their money. Not since the 1920s has the US seen such a highly evolved stock mania machine involving media outlets, market pundits, bankers, brokers, pension funds, venture capitalists, and legion uniformed investors taking it all in -- and getting taken in. This has been going on for years without much notice. At last we have in Anthony and Michael Perkins, founders of The Red Herring, working as investigative journalists who use their insider contacts to go out and get the story.

As the founder of iTulip.com in November 1998, a parody of an Internet company created to draw attention to the Internet stock mania game, I take a special interest in the Perkins' excellent new book. Just as we do on iTulip.com, Anthony and Michael Perkins believe that the Internet offers tons of valid investment opportunities. But over time as the mania machine evolved, a perfectly good investment opportunity has turned into a circus for suckers.

What is not explained in the book is how such a financial mania starts in the first place. So let's back up a bit. Nearly every mania was sparked by the convergence of four events:

1) The nation hosting the mania survives a traumatic crisis such as a war or depression -- in the current instance, the Cold War ended. Optimism rules the day. 2) Following the crisis, tensions among nations decrease and international trade booms. 3) A discovery, new invention or technology offers unmeasurable benefits, creating a sense of limitless possibility. Without precident, the market has no guideposts to help investors set a fair market value for securities issued by corporations that manufacture the new technology. Hundreds of businesses crop up to capitalize on the flood of money available to fund the new businesses. Some of the optimism is justified. Imagine what the first railroads meant to commerce? Suddenly goods could be shipped inexpensively over long distances in a set time period at relatively low cost. A huge boon to the economy, but in 1857 a bust to investors. The benefits of the new technology turned out to be great but not infinite. 4) Interest rates fall in the rapidly expanding and deflationary economic environment -- deflation driven by global competition and rising productive capacity. The money supply is permitted to increase rapidly in the absense of apparent inflationary pressures. The excess liquidity does not show up in the so-called real economy as higher priced goods and services, instead inflation arises in the asset prices. Why? Because increased competition and rising capacity lower profitability. Financial assets become the only profit game in town. Speculation ensues. Starting in 1996, the money supply in the US began a precipitous climb, and with it the stock market in general and Internet stocks in particular.

Which brings us back to Anthony and Michael Perkins. They explain the actual workings of the mania machine from the inside through interviews with key players. They explain where the mania started and how it evolved, the participation of venture capitalists and investment banks, and they lucidly compare the Internet bubble to the Biotech bubble that popped in 1992. They debunk the New Economy. Finally, they tell you where to look for real value in Internet investing.

This is an important book if you're in the stock market and especially if you own Internet stocks. Buy it.

If you're looking for a book that will give you a good bird's eye view of the kind of investing currently going on in .com land, as well as a historical overview of past (mostly technology) bubbles, this one fits the bill. Better yet, if you're at Buck's restaurant in Silicon Valley, waiting for that venture capitalist you're trying to pitch on your latest business plan, you can pick up a copy and start reading right there! The Internet Bubble is a handy compendium of the history of previous technology bubbles, and the roles venture capitalists, investment bankers, and institutional investors -- as well as over-eager entrepreneurs - played in them, and anecdotes (some new, some already known) about the similar funding frenzy of today's .com stocks. It's meant as a caution to individual investors, and explains how they tend to end up holding the hot potato when companies are sent to the public markets too soon (as even some of the venture capitalists who fund those companies admit). Useful knowledge for any individual investor in .com stocks to have....

The Internet Bubble provides a lucid exposition and analysis of the high flying internet stocks which the authors warn are about to crash. Surpisingly blunt and revealing, particularly about the high stock prices and values, are the many quotations from industry leaders and venture capitalists. This expose' provides insights into the financing and control of startup companies before a public offering and the maneuvering by key players as well as the pressures and timing to harvest the wealth.

The authors back up their instructive and provocative narrative with a calculation of the magnitude of the "price bubble" - the improbable earnings growth that would be necessary to justify internet stock prices.

The candor of the book is refreshing. The economic data are not ponderous; they are brief and to the point. The book kept my interest throughout even when it touched upon familiar matters. If you own internet stocks or are tempted to buy, you should read this lively and well written book.

The New Oxford Annotated Bible has changed since the 1994 edition. Bruce Metzger has been replaced as editor by Michael Coogan. The OT annotations now spout out a Jewish viewpoint. I have no problems with that in most passages. In the passages that are Messianic, it's not helpful. Because of this, it's a good idea to have another NRSV based study bible on hand to compare notes.

Ther book itself is better looking than the 1994 edition. The print is bigger, which is very helpful. The annotations are keyed directly to the text. There are some changes I am still getting used to though. Previous editions of the New Oxford Annotated Bible had an index to every annotation with it's bible verse. I used this index more than I did the concordance. Now the index indexes everything in the book! With all the new essays and other reference materal, the New Oxford Annotated Bible has gotten heavier. The price is still the same one I paid in 1996. The text used is the New Revised Standard Version, a revsion of the 1952 Revised Standard Version.

If you are looking for a "let's hold hands" approach to bible study, the New Oxford Annotated Bible is not for you. If you are looking to dive into God's Word, the New Oxford Annotated Bible is for you!

Oxford has greatly improved its New Annotated Study Bible. The notes are far more extensive than in previous editions. In addition to including the complete text of the NRSV in an easy-to-read typeface, this new edition contains notes pointing out information and meanings which are not obvious from just reading the text and, in places, indicating meanings from the underlying Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek texts which are not evident in the NRSV translation.

The notes are entirely scholarly and do not attempt to teach any religious doctrine.

In places, the NOAB Third Edition is less thorough in its notes than the competing HarperCollins Study Bible, but the notes are better written and far less tedious to read.

By Sister Faith Magdalena OSF FODC
I have many translations of the Bible but this is by far my favorite. The Revised Standard Version is closer to the original language than the more recent New Revised Standard Version. Footnotes point you to other references on similar teachings. The major difference between the Revised Standard Version and the NEW Revised Standard Version is that NRSV, in attempting to be inclusive and gender neutral, deviated from some of the original meanings of scripture. In attempting to "improve," they succeeded in "confusing" and "modifying". The goal of clarifying the authors' original gender specific meanings is still a hallmark for some future Bible Translator. In the meantime, the Revised Standard Version remains, in my opinion, the most solid translation for beginners and serious Bible Scholars alike. It's language is modern, style and syntyx flow smoothly, and it retains the spirit of poetry and inspirational prose.

This book was assigned reading for me back in college 12 years ago and I have been thinking about ever since then. Last week I finally broke down and decided to re-read it and see if it was as fascinating now as it was then.

It is the story of three male adventurers who discover an unknown land that is virtually impossible to get to inhabited only by women. Scientific and curious by nature they plan a mission to fly over the country in a plane to investigate further only to be captured and held prisioner in "Herland." While captive they are tutored by and taught to speak the language of the inhabitants. Once they have mastered the language they learn that their captors do not mean them any harm, but rather want to learn from them about the outside world as they have been cut off from it for 2000 years by their natural barriers. The men learn from the women and the women learn from the men. We see how different life could be in a society ruled and inhabited only by women.

As a utopian or fantasy novel, this one is outstanding. There were parts I liked better and was more appreciative of now that I am older than when I first read it, and others that had me thinking "as if!" If you can get past the whole parthenogenisis premise its an easier pill to swallow, but this time around I wasn't buying it. I also found the over zealous religious tones near the end to make this short novel drag out far too long.

All in all I am glad I re-read it and encourage anyone who hasn't to do so.

Three American explorers stumble upon a small country they dub Herland that's populated totally by women. For about two thousand years, the women have developed an intelligent, productive, perfect society, and with the entrance of the three men, they begin learning about the world outside their realm. The three men find that the women of Herland are ignorant (to their minds) of sexuality and gender roles, but the women are far ahead of the rest of the world in terms of education, child-rearing, population control, and agriculture. To fulfill their own curiosity and learn more, three women of Herland agree to become married to the three men. Unfortunately one of the men has not been able to overcome his own prejudices about how women ought to behave, and with one act he brings their time in Herland to an end. This fascinating story is decades ahead of most feminist, humanist works, and gives every reader an inspiring vision of how the world could be.

Having read the book in one sitting, I'm excited about the ideas "Herland" brings to the present world, especially about men's view of women, and even women's view of themselves! A wonderfully written book about three men who enter a strange world populated by women only.

The story of how the two sexes view their roles as male/female are intriguing and point out many focal points that theorists argue about: men controlling women, women being mothers, and the power between the two and how they survive in society.

I highly recommend this book, it's an smooth read that applies more to today's world than it seems possible!

I used this book in conjunction with a 1st Edition of Microsoft's Networking Essentials text and Sybex's own Exam Cram to score 966/1000 on my 70-058. I had a limited amount of experience with Ethernet, but not much else. I found that reading this book prior to Microsoft's made the latter text a little easier to swallow. I finished with the exam cram and then came back to this book to brush up on any weak points revealed in taking the two sample tests.

Be warned that the material doesn't match the exams all that well; there's a lot here that's extraneous, and a lot that isn't covered. On the whole, though, I felt that this provided me the basis for attacking the Microsoft text, which dealt much more closely with the material in the exam.

I'm as green as they come, and I bought this set (study guide, exam notes, test success) by a friend's recommendation who is a MCSE+I and a CNE. The extraordinary aspect of this book is the way it gently leads the beginner through a vast sea of information. I have the NT Server set as well. Between the three N.E. books I feel I'm fairly well prepared. I have more work, of course.

I do have a suggestion for the authors, however. Grammatical and spelling errors, wordiness, as well as unexplained acronyms are disruptive to a student's concentration. Words like "cabling" are confusing verb transitives/intransitives, not nouns (in English, anyway), regardless of the trade lingo. When we get there, okay, we'll use the slang. Also, Appendix A is entirely redundant.

Since you three are dedicated Microsoft folks and must use Word, it does have a grammar and spell checker. Demonstrating that you use that software only enhances students'understanding and displays your expertise in the topic. Properly edited, you could easily eliminate 100 pages from the study guide alone without deleting information. This would cut down your publishing costs, so you could hopefully pass the savings to us. Thank you.

I think this is a good book for someone without a lot of experience in networking. It offers a real basic overview of the concepts you need to master for the Networking Essentials exam, and also has some decent practice questions. However, you need to look at some other sources to really prepare for the test. I also used Exam Cram and the MS Readiness Review, in addition to some free online tests. If you just read Sybex and take the test, I think you'll end up being surprised at how detailed and tricky the real test questions can be. With 3 or more sources, you'll be able to fill in what each source may miss.

All guys should read this book. There are enough good points about this book from the other reviews here. However, there are a few very terrible parts of this book. For example, the author says that in a grocery store you should say "Excuse me, where can I find the canned unicord." Any girl I think thats not (A) insane (B) insanely desperate, is not going to like a line like that. I've asked out countless women and have left with a number in hand of some of the most beautiful women that are out there. It's certainly not because of my looks. There are ways to have incredible success, this book is a good start. Don't buy it for the parts on NLP either, it's far too brief to get to be exceptionally powerful at it, but probably is the right amount for the guy that wants to just find a girl to date rather than trying to get numerous women and/or get good looking women far out that persons "league".

William Perkins really cleaned up my act in this excellent resource on how to pick up women. Instead of spending months trying to figure out what I was doing wrong, Perkins' book spelled it out completely! I not only look at myself more positively, but meeting and 'closing deals' with women just seems too easy now, with the techniques outlined in the book. Like the immortal Alec Baldwin said, in the movie Glengarry Glen Ross, ABC = Always Be Closing.

After reading this book, you'll radiate a new magnetism which girls respond to and find that it's half the battle won already. The rest is easy... just don't blow it - this book shows you exactly how! I went from six months of getting over an ex-girlfriend (even though she was a religious whacko - a pretty one though!) to 5 dates in the space of two weeks. These are RESULTS and this book will help you attain them. I cannot recommend this book enough. William, wherever you are - THANK YOU, you are the man!

This book is EFFECTIVE. Some books give you tips that may work for some guys, but this one worked for me and I'll bet it will work for you. My girlfriend said she thinks all guys should read this book because it makes them better at talking to women.