This book follows in the footsteps of Wilson's earlier work, _Prometheus Rising_, with an emphasis on language, psychology, and physics. It makes the intelligent or enlightened reader to smile in acknowledgement; it forces the average to change. How much depends on their ability to do so. Some of the material seems incomplete (with little attention to physics' Anthropic Principle), but in all fairness, one can only go so far before one has written several books, and Wilson certainly has. More careful and insightful than _Prometheus Rising_, it offers fans of Wilson his best work, and serves as a great introduction to his older and newer ideas.

Maybe this is what Clinton was referring to in his infamous linguistic/legal moment before the Star Inquisition. All joking aside, this book is a MUST read for anyone wanting to start getting rid of the semantic spooks in their psyche. This undefinable book of wisdom that weaves a coherent thesis out of such diverse topics as semantics, psychology, physics, model agnosticism and subtle humor makes clear better than anything out there just how much our perceptions and behavior are controlled/influenced by embedded language biases. Just learning to write in e-prime (english without the word "is") makes the book a worthwhile experience. Quantum Psychology opened me to a whole new way of thinking and perceiving, and that is something I can say but very few other books. I truly had no idea the robotizing effect language has on our behavior and perceptions--its not a discovery you can be "told"--you must experience it through the exercises in this book. You owe it to yourself to check this one out.

May be the best of Wilson's book for summing up his version of how the mind works. An excellent integration of diverse sciences, complete with many experiments you can do yourself. Also try Prometheus Rising, and Coincidance.

As the number of "baby boomer" caregivers increases, so, too, has the number of books on how to best care for our aging parents. Virginia Morris book, How To Care for Aging Parents, is a personal favorite for several reasons. In layman's lingo she addresses almost every concern a caregiver might experience. She provides ample options and suggestions for dealing with those concerns. Additionally, she offers information on community and national resources to contact for help.

Details relating to the physical, emotional, and cognitive aspects of aging are addressed as well as dying and bereavement issues. Likewise, housing alternatives, financial, and legal aspects are presented in a readable and clearly detailed manner.

The challenge of caregiving for parents can be monumental at times. I only wish that this book had been in print sixteen years ago when I became a caregiver for my father following his stroke. Kudos to Virginia Morris for offering this much needed book. It will inform and encourage anyone who cares for our elderly.

This book helped me tremendously as I stuggled through a difficult time being both a parent to my children and having to care for an ill parent. The book is easy to use with helpful information and resources, as well as being emotionally supportive. Easily read, not cover to cover, but as I needed help and support at different moments I picked it up. I have kept it next to my bedside...

This is a wonderful book, and will be helpful for anyone facing the inevitable issue of parents or other relatives growing older and needing care of any kind. Easy to read through, as I have just done, it is also a wonderful resource to pull off the shelf as these issues manifest, from talking to your parents about what needs to be discussed as soon as possible, to knowing when to intervene and when to get out of the way, what questions to ask whom, and what to expect. Information about contacts and agencies is liberally sprinkled throughout the book, and a helpful index at the back helps you to find whatever you need at a moment's notice. An initial read-through makes you familiar with what the book has to offer, making it more familiar as the needs arise. Highly recommended.

Everything you always wanted to know about bad behavior -but were too afraid to ask (or didn't know where to find it). Well, here it is! Spent all weekend reading Parish's lively tome about the Silver Screen's most famous rogues - from scoundrels to rascals - & truly, couldn't put the book down. In just under 300 fascinating pages, found out WHO did WHAT to WHOM. What's more, the author tells you HOW and WHY. A phenomenally fun read, and highly recommended.

What is good about this book is that it not only covers the familiar bad boys like Bogart and Mitchum but also such lesser known but nonetheless fascinating men like Tom Neal and Lawrence Tierney. And it covers the entire history of Hollywood from Wallace Reid of the silent era to Robert Blake who is in today's headlines. Anyone who knows Parish's books will want this one. And anyone who doesn't better start.

This is a fascinating look at Hollywood history. Bad behavior is as old Hollywood and bad boys go back to the earliest days. But this is not a simple recap of tabloid stories; this is an indepth look the backgrounds and careers of these bad boys. It also traces the consequences of this bad behavior. The book could also serve as a cautionary tale; much of this bad behavior is the result of booze and/or drugs and in many cases derailed or completely destroyed promising careers. I recommend this highly interesting book.

Each time a re-read a chapter of this book, it is further enriching. I had no background in business finance and only an introductory accounting background prior to reading this book. It is approachable and quite deftly introduces one to the field of finance. Broad coverage of major topics such as financial forecasting, management of growth, debt vs. equity, financial instruments, valuations, discounted cash flow, and drawing from financial statements. Higgins places things in proper context and builds upon knowledge at good, steady pace.

This book is required at Harvard Business School and is used at top B-schools and bank management trainee programs around the country.
I used the book during my MBA program, even though it was not required. My study group members always requested that I bring it to group meetings. I even had a classmate approach the author (who happens to be my father) at my graduation and ask for his autograph.
The book introduces complex finance concepts like net present value in non-academese language and the real-world examples reinforce the concepts.
I strongly recommend this textbook to anyone preparing to enter business school or embarking on a job in financial analysis.
Professor Higgins is a beloved teacher at his home institution, the University of Washington. You can share in a little of his vast expertise and gift for teaching by reading his book, Analysis for Financial Management.

This book was required in my William & Mary MBA program. It covers everything from discounted cash flows to ratio analysis to business valuation. My brother liked it so much he "stole" if for months. I took it back and now he wants it for his Christmas gift. So, here I am buying it for him. The net present value of this book is -- real high:) I highly recommend it for business owners or anyone involved in finance and accounting.

I have been looking for a book about the Mormon culture that would be interesting to non-Mormons. I think that the Mormon culture is fascinating in its idiosyncrasies, and I have been excited for a long time at the prospect of someone writing a book about its idiosyncrasies.

Most Mormon literature that I have read is very preachy in nature. The climaxes have been that the protagonist realizes that the Mormonism is for him or her, and the main struggle has been about whether or not Mormonism is true. While this can be a good subject, it is entirely overused in Mormon fiction.

This book is different. It is a book about the complex relations between Terry-the disturbed mathematics professor, Blake-his gay son, and Terry Sr.-his homophobic ultra-religious father. That is why I say that it defines a new genre, because it is a well-written book about relationships inside of a Mormon culture, not about a book about Mormonism.

He has a very good vocabulary, and is very good for a first time novelist.

The following paragraph of criticisms made a very minor impact for my appreciation of this well-written book:

If you don't like flashbacks in books, then this book is not for you. The book is mostly a series of flashbacks. It contains flashbacks within flashbacks, and contains an every-other-paragraph-is-a-flashback scene. Also, the narrator uses words and phrases that are unique to the Mormon culture such as "beseechingly," "murmurous," and "bear testimony to this truth." The use of these phrases is not extreme, but may make this book a little hard for a non-Mormon to read. And even though the characters in the book that are gay are very complex, the discussion of the nature of homosexuality is relatively simplistic.

Also, if you are offended by swear words or by frank discussions about homosexuality and stories of a sensual nature, then you will be offended by this book.

For a first book, Dancing Naked is excellent. In fact, I'd say it would be excellent for a 2nd, 3rd or 4th too.

This story is about a father's difficultly in accepting his son and his son's differences (whether those are the son's homosexuality or even just his 'sensitivity') and ultimately dealing with the poignant results of that rejection. The father's desire for a ordered world is never found.

I loved this book, to put it simply. As a gay Mormon born outside of Utah but having lived there for 5 years, the characters, who are very well developed, rang true. Only one did not seem particularly "Mormon" to me, Terry's father (the father of the main character). I've met many a homophobic Mormon men in my 20 years as a Mormon, but none seem to fit this character. A small point.

Yet, this book is more than just a book about Mormons and homosexuality, like any good literature it is about something universal, set in a very specific situation, of Mormon Utah. It is about parenthood and the struggle to accept our children when they 'disorder' our world.

I agree with an earlier assessment, it is rough in parts, mainly the flashbacks are a bit heavy at times, but overall the writing is excellent, the story enthralling and the characters well written.

I really hope this book gains a wide readership.

Trey

P.S. As to the one review with a "Brodie" recommendation, seems like the reviewer has an ulterior motive in the review. The book does portray Mormons quite well and relatively balanced (but it can never be a broad portrayal, it was not meant to be at all, the reviewer missed the point of fiction).

"Robert Hodgson Van Wagoner has written the first great Mormon novel," according to Martin Naparsteck in the Salt Lake Tribune. Tracing the life and problems of Terry Walker, a mathematics professor at the University of Utah, Dancing Naked is "about the way love manifests itself and how it can turn on us and be our enemy when we don't understand ourselves. It is also about secrecy and distrust and what they do to relationships," said the author, Van Wagoner. The main character's son dies early in the novel by accidental(?) hanging in the family bathroom, the first instance of "dancing naked" in the book. His son's revealed homosexuality, causes Walker to struggle with the results of his own religious upbringing at the hands of his father, a violently homophobic Mormon. Paul Swenson, in the Salt Lake Observor, declared the book to be a "love story, with moments of peace and hilarity, but ... also dense and painful." The appeal of the book extends beyond those in Utah or with Utah or Mormon ties. Anyone with a gay friend or family member will find resonant chords here. And, as with all fine literature, the wordcraft and the insight into human nature speaks to us all

Robert McCloskey's classic children's book, Make Way for Ducklings is just as delightful in the year 2002 as it was back when it was first published in 1941. The timeless story of Mr. and Mrs. Mallard and their eight adorable ducklings is still a fun read for children and parents alike. The story begins as the prospective parents search for a new home suitable for raising their young ones. Mrs. Mallard is clearly the expert in this endeavor and Mr. Mallard is quite relieved when she finally settles on a spot that is not too dangerous or noisy for their young family. The couple make themselves quite at home on a little island in the Charles River of Boston, a quiet oasis within the busy city. Soon the ducklings hatch and Mrs. Mallard sets about teaching them all they need to know in order to live in the city. By now they have made good friends with some of their human neighbors, especially Michael, the policeman. When the family makes its first trip into the city, Michael calls for backup and literally stops traffic all along their path. The people the Mallards encounter are just as pleased to see the ducks as the Mallards are to be there. The reader leaves the family settling comfortably for the night after a day of happily following the Swan boats in the park and eating the peanunts tossed their way. The charm of this book lies in both the heartwarming story and th realistic but idyllic illustrations. McCloskey is quite gifted at portraying the natural world to children in a way that is authentic and familiar. Most children have seen duck families in a nearby pond and witnessed the way the ducklings learn about the world by waddling along after their parents. The sketched illustrations add to the natural feeling of the book. The depiction of the ducks is terrific because they are visually expressive but still look like ducks. Another engaging facet of the story is the positive interaction between animals and humans. The Mallards find a way to live comfortably within a city full of people and their human neighbors are welcoming and accommodating. Overall, this a warm and timeless book. It is just perfect for a parent and child to read together or for a teacher to read to a classroom of younger kids. This is a good selection for children aged 3 to 7.

Children naturally are interested in understanding a parent's perspective on the family. Mr. and Mrs. Mallard's search for a safe home for their future family makes a wonderful story for children and parents to explore and understand more about parental love. Although the book has a 4-8 age reading level, younger children enjoy having it read to them (based on the experiences of my four children). The illustrations are terrific and draw the child's interest very easily. Older children like to reread the story because of its comfortable connection to their more youthful years and reinforcement of their sense of being wanted, loved, and belonging.

To me, the best part of the book is that the locations are actually easy to find in Boston. So if you live in the Boston area or ever come here, you can also take your children to experience the story. I know my younger daughter thought that her first Swan boat ride in the Public Garden was the ultimate moment in her life (up to that point). She kept wanting to know which duck was Mrs. Mallard, and which one was Mr. Mallard. Then she wanted to spot Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack (my favorite name in the book), Pack, and Quack. I had a ball! There are also statues of Mrs. Mallard and her 8 offspring that the children can touch. There's also an annual parade that you can participate in.

If you don't know the story, here's a summary: Mr. and Mrs. Mallard were looking for a place to live where they could raise a family safely. Whenever Mr. Mallard found someplace he liked, Mrs. Mallard worried about foxes and turtles. Finally they got to the pond in the Public Garden in Boston, and were too tired to go on. So they spent the night on the little island there. The next morning they could not find much food, until the people on the Swan boats began to throw them peanuts. But the Mallards were almost run over by a bicycle, so they felt they needed a safer place. They tried several, but each had a drawback. Finally, they found an island in the Charles River not far from the Public Garden that met all their requirements. Michael, the policeman, fed them peanuts. Soon, Mrs. Mallard laid 8 eggs, and stayed to hatch them. After the ducklings were born, they learned to swim and walk single file behind their Mother. One day, she walked them towards the Public Garden. But they could not get across the highway. Michael spotted them and stopped the traffic so they could cross. He called Clancy at the station and told him to send a car to help Mrs. Mallard and the ducklings cross at the Public Garden. When in the pond there, they met Mr. Mallard on the little island. They decided to live there, and followed the Swan boats for peanuts after that.

I have enjoyed reading this story and reading it to children for almost 30 years. I look forward to reading it to my grandchildren when the time comes. It has also been my favorite book to give as a gift to new parents.

Enjoy the wonderful gift of warm family feeling in this book, and leave your stalled thinking about your cares and worries behind. It will remind you what is really important in your life!

I am a student at West Virginia State College and taking a Childrens lit. class. Make way for ducklings is a delightful book and i strongly reccommend it to children of all ages. It's nice to read a book like this that is simple and sweet that all children can enjoy.

Agile Software Development is a great Object-Oriented Design book that presents it's subject in the context of Agile Development. The book delivers solid design and programming advice in a very "light" style. Not light in that it avoids technical detail! No, Bob seems to have taken the principles of agile development and applied them to the art of technical book writing.

The book is divided into six sections and has four appendices. There are numerous UML diagrams and many code examples in C++ and Java. If you don't know UML two of the appendices will introduce you to it.

The book takes a top down approach to presenting the material. You are first given a quick overview of agile development practices. I particularly liked the Testing and A Programming Episode chapters from this section. The second section presents five high-level design priciples that every developer should learn and apply.

Case studies dealing with a payroll system, weather station software, and testing software are then presented. Each case study section starts by discussing the design patterns that will be seen in the case study. Section Four discusses subdividing the payroll system into packages. Six principles and a set of package Dependency Management metrics (I've known them as the "Martin Metrics" for years) are covered. The book wraps up with the two UML appendices mentioned above, a comparison of two imaginary developments, and an interesting article by Jack Reeves.

In my opinion Agile Software Development Principles, Patterns, and Practices is the best OOD book out there.

The title of this book belies much of its content. While agile development practices are espoused, much of the content is concerned with the application of design patterns in accordance with Robert's OO design principles.

Robert does a wonderful job of explaining each design pattern, demonstrating their use through code, and placing them within the context of his design principles. The examples are numerous and, with a few exceptions, well written.

Robert's OO design principles are real gems. His pragmatic approach combined with codifying the principles he's derived over the years makes for a very enlightening read. He articulates those things that most experienced developers have a gut feel for but have difficulty putting in to words.

My only criticism is the need for a proofing scrub. There are inconsistencies between some of the class and method names used in the narrative versus those used in the accompanying diagrams and examples. In some cases, this is a bit confusing.

This book has had a profound effect on my coding. Uncle Bob does a masterful job putting together the fundamental principles, patterns, and practices that make him and his cohorts gurus. This book introduced me to a number of very important ideas in a very real context and helped me solidify some of the things that I only kind of understood. If you don't have your own personal guru to learn from, this book is the next best thing.

"H.M.S. Surprise", the third installment in Patrick O'Brian's magnificient Aubrey/Maturin series is set aboard Aubrey's favorite ship, the slender ex-French frigate Surprise, during a mission to Indian waters. Here O'Brian demonstrates again his great affinity for natural history, portraying Maturin as a fictitious predecessor to the likes of Charles Darwin and Alfred R. Wallace. Meanwhile both he and Aubrey must ponder how they can thwart a French flotilla from seizing the China fleet. Readers will treasure O'Brian's elegant prose and mesmerizing descriptions of natural history and sea battles.

"H.M.S. Surprise" is Patrick O'Brian's third book in his epic 20-volume 19th-century maritime series. Captain Jack Aubrey, on blockade duty along France's southern coast, must extricate his friend, ship's surgeon Stephen Maturin, from a delicate situation. Then, aboard the H.M.S. Surprise they sail to South America, India and beyond, weathering storms, battling enemies, and stewing over their respective romances.

Once again O'Brian delivers an excellent book, spare prose and nautical realism sweep the reader on deck. And, of course, the ending is a cliff-hanger, so you'll have to read the next book.

I read the first two in the Aubrey/Maturin series (Master and Commander and Post Captain) a few years ago and liked them. In an idle moment, I recently picked up HMS Surprise and glanced at the first page. Thirty minutes later I was still reading and within the week I had finished the book. Unfortunately my vocabulary cannot do justice to describing just how good this book is. The characterizations are sympathetic and acute, the descriptions of seafaring are hypnotic and the battle scenes are wonderful. These books are not pulp fiction, but finely wrought and accurate depictions of the world nearly two centuries ago. Some of O'Brian's observations are so good, I felt like applauding at times. These books require some patience and discipline, but the pay-off is immense. I'm only sorry that it looks like I'm on the slippery slope that will lead to reading the 17 or 18 other novels in the series. I'm just too busy to read them right now, but there may not be anything I can do about it. If you want books to truly transport you somewhere else, this is the series.

When I read the introduction to this book, my first thought was, "I want with my daughter what he has with his daughters." By focusing on seven areas for "building a complete daughter," the author gives practical advice and terrific anecdotes to guide a father in the unique aspects of raising a girl.

I especially liked the chapter on communication. This seems like the key to building a great father-daughter relationship and helping your girl communicate well with others.

From discipline to faith to laughter, the author covers the most important aspects of nurturing the early life of your daughter.

A great, useful, and easy read.

I am the proud father of the first girl born into my family in over two hundred years. With 13 males alive in my immediate family I had ABSOLUTELY NO CLUE on how to raise a daughter. What do I do with someone I can't wrestle with, or take to football games, or teach how to use power tools? This book was wonderful to me because it gave me the insight and confidence to become a great "Daddy" to my little girl. It highlights the differences and similarities between sons and daughters and gave me the knowledge to raise a wonderful and trusting girl. Thank You Robert! For giving all us first time Fathers of little girls not only a clue, but a workable plan as well.

As I move through my journey of raising my daughter this book came at a wonderful time. The author knew the joys of raising two daughters and provided many, many pieces of practical advice on loving, providing guidance, and establishing a warm, safe and structured environment in which to raise one's daughter.

I look forward to sharing the book with others lucky enough to be the father of a daughter (or two).

It was about time I read "Tom Jones." Fielding's 1749 novel gives us a panoramic view of 18th century British life. Its titular hero journeys among the low- and high-born trying to find his way in a world in which he occupies a precarious position. Fielding uses the sprawl of 800 pages to explore a multitude of social, political, and literary issues, gluing them together with an exquisitely outlandish, fully embodied sense of humour.

The action of the novel begins with a view of the Allworthy family, a landed gentleman, Thomas Allworthy and his sister, Bridget. Into this family is dropped an orphan, a foundling - a child, if you will, of questionable parentage. This child, Tom Jones, is raised alongside Bridget's child, Blifil, as relative equals. Both are tutored by two ideologues, the philosopher Square and the theologian Thwackum. Jones is a precocious, free-spirited youngster, spoiled by Allworthy while Blifil, the heir apparent to the estate, becomes the favourite pupil and spoiled accordingly by his mother. As the two youths age, Tom develops a fondness for the neighbour's daughter, Sophia Western.

Tom's sexual development begins to get him in trouble, as it tends to throughout the novel, and as a result of one such incident, coupled with the goading jealousy of Blifil, Tom is driven out of the Allworthy home, left to seek his fortunes in the world. Meeting his supposed father, Partridge, on the road, the two begin a quixotic ramble across England. Sophia, meanwhile, pressured into marrying Blifil, runs away from home, beginning her own voyage of discovery.

"Tom Jones" begins with the narrator likening literature to a meal, in which the paying customer comes expecting to be entertained and satisfied. All 18 books of "Tom Jones" start out with such authorial intrusions, each cluing us into the writer's craft, his interactions with his public, and various other topics. This voice is actually sustained throughout the novel, providing a supposedly impartial centre of moral value judgments - each of which seems to tend toward enforce Fielding's project of a realistic, and yet, didactic portrayal of a world full of flawed characters.

Some of the issues the novel deals most extensively with are modes of exchange, anxieties over female agency, and the power of rumour and reputation. Exchange and the ways in which value is figured include a wide range of goods - money, bodies, food, and stories - and are integral to the story. The treatment of women is a great concern in "Tom Jones": from Partridge's perpetual fear of witchcraft to the raging arguments between Squire Western and his sister over how Sophia should be treated, to general concerns about sexuality and virtue. A novel that can be in turns hilarious, disturbing, and provoking, "Tom Jones" is never dull. Despite its size, the pace of the novel is extremely fast and lively. So, get thee to a superstore and obtain thyself a copy of this excellent and highly entertaining novel.

Journey with a guy with much testosterone, but a HUGE heart. I was not looking forward to reading this book for my 18th Century British novel class, but upon starting to read I found it to be a pleasurable story. This piqaresque novel has a humor that I have seldom encountered in other narratives. What is ironic is that Fielding wrote this piece during one of the most traumatic periods of his life. His wife just passed away, his daughter was dying, and he was inflicted with the gout. One would never think it from the clever way the book is written. The point of view gives us an in so that we feel as if we ourselves have roles in the storyline. Rooting all the way for Tom despite his flaws, we find out more about human nature along the way. A good read, light a candle and sit down with some wine like they would've and enjoy this classic comical delight.

Tom Jones is probably one of the greatest novels in all of English literature. I imagine some might be put off by the length and by its designation as a classic (something which Mark Twain said was frequently praised and rarely read). Tom Jones does not deserve to be ignored since it is a riotous rollercoster of a book filled with comic vignettes and blows against the self-satisfied and pompous. It is a book that not only is instructional, but is considerate enough to give the reader a good time while doing so.

Though frequently termed an immoral book, Tom Jones holds up rather well in the early 21st century. Even Fielding's comic characters seem to have a dimension often lacking in 18th and 19th century novels. Fielding is a genius.