Fans of blues music and musicians will relish this autobiography of Delta bluesman Edwards, which charts his rise to fame and his survival in a critical musical world. His first-person observations of the changing blues style and field are especially meaningful given that so many blues titles are not written by participants in the field.

Honey and his astute collaborators have given us the genuine article: a poignant, detailed, uproarous chronicle of what Robert Palmer called the"Deep Blues," the Delta tradition from which all other blues styles emanate. If you've heard Honey sing either in person or on his fine recordings, you will hear the voice you read. He offers dozens of unforgettable moments, from the first sounds he ushers from a broken-necked guitar to his mother's death to the death of Robert Johnson, that are alive and chilling. My only criticism is that the photographs featured in the book are spartan, contemporary views of critical sites in this artist's life. More historical photography would have enhanced the text. The publisher of this well-designed softcover has made the text relaxingly readable. After my first 50 pages, I wanted to purchase all of Honey's recordings and read more about him. He is an articulate, funny, precise chronicler of his own life. If only I could do the same with my own life! First rate.

This autobiography succeeds memorably on several levels. Told in spare, moving words, it provides a vivid picture of life in the Mississippi Delta long before the civil rights movements of the '50s. In addition, it's a kind of African-American "On the Road," told from the perspective of one who crisscrossed the Southern United States, scuffling to make a living playing the blues. And finally, it's a terrific history of the blues, told by a man who made a significant musical contribution himself and who played with nearly all the essential artists of the '30s and on.

Edwards, born in the Delta around 1915, worked the fields as a kid before he learned to play the guitar and began hoboing around the South. He rode the rails, played in innumerable small towns, and polished his craft. Along the way, he hung out and played with the likes of Sunnyland Slim, Big Walter Horton, Little Walter Jacobs, Robert Junior Lockwood, Muddy Waters, B.B. King and yes, Robert Johnson. The book describes how these architects of the modern blues passed songs, licks, and stories back and forth, keeping a form that relies so heavily on tradition dynamic and vital.

A major strength of the book is Edwards' distinctive voice, transcribed by his collaborators to retain its distinctive rhythms and dialect. The book's title sums up his attitude. His memories include violent death, physical and emotional loss, and great material want. Still, you sense strongly that he wouldn't have had his life any other way. His narrative is devoid of self-pity, but it never glosses over the difficulty of the times he endured, which included stints in prison.

The book concludes with useful appendices that define key terms and offer capsule biographies and discographies of musicians Edwards encountered. A good bibliography is also included. Highly recommended for those interested in the blues and in American social history. Great read.

Using what I've learned from reading all of Robert Fritz's books, and especially Your Life as Art, I've seen changes that are nothing short of phenomenal with clients in my psychiatry practice, and in my own life. After years in therapy trying to "fix themselves," often without success, I hear clients newly introduced to this work say, "Oh! You mean creating what matters in my life is what it's about!?!" It often doesn't take them long to put this into practice, with gratifying results.

Having trouble creating the life you want? Or are you already creating results that matter personally, but want to improve your effectiveness?
'Your Life as Art' may be the next book you should pick up. It is packed with clear, insightful information, and doable experiments that can put your life on the fast track to the achievement of your dreams. Fritz is a life-long creator, and draws from his extensive experience in this very practical book. This is his best effort to date, and creators of any experience level should find it helpful.

Very few books can inspire you to create a higher vision for your life. Robert Fritz's latest book not only inspires you to do this, but also gently coaxes you with all the tools necessary to make this vision a reality.

To find out how you can use the power of structure to create the life of your dreams, as an artist or a painter would, read your "Life as Art", a masterpiece by Robert Fritz.

This book should be #1 for anyone in the market for a job, not just those looking for a career change. After 6 months of trying, I nailed a job on my first interview after reading this book. The advice is totally relevant to this economy's job market, and I especially appreciated the tips on getting and maintaining positive control of interviews and meetings. I can't imagine there's a better book out there.

"50 Plus, Critical Career Decisions for the Rest of Your Life," while written for those in their fifth decade, presents sound practical advice for persons of any age. Particularly helpful are the chapters devoted to how to move up in your profession, how to do your own public relations, and how to determine when it is time to change your job. In this, the author's third book offering advice to persons in specific age groups (the first was the well received "The Critical 14 years of Your Professional Life"), he devotes more time to the tactics, strategies, rewards, and pitfalls of striking out on your own than he did in his previous volumes. Throughout this latest work Dilenscneider not only tells the reader "how to do it," but his consistently upbeat approach also leaves one with the feeling that "it can be done."

50 Plus! is a relevant to-the -point, no nonsense guide that applies to all those in the work force who want that extra "edge" to achieve their goals. Every page offers something of value to the reader. It covers the "in's and out's" of business from the hiring interview, to how to leave a job and all the stops in between..resumes, creating an image, business relationships,even how to conceptualize and start your own business. Although this book is titled 50 Plus!,and indeed provides 8 rules for "getting back in the game",it offers practical information that can be used at any age.
This is a well written "must read" for everyone and a great book to keep as a reference.

The combination of this book plus Sunset's Western Garden Book will arm the southern California garden enthusiast with all the tools and experience necessary to give a green thumb's up. A true plant geek will find validation and a friend in Smaus' and will read the book saying "been there, loved that". Activities like hoarding plants bought from the Huntington Garden's May plant sale struck a familiar chord.

A transplant to Southern Cal. will quickly gain the inside track to where to go and what to plant to make the best of this unique climate.

Coming from New England I needed a lot of advice on what to do with the clay soil and arid climate in Southern California. The Sunset Western Garden Book along with this selection is a great combination for those new to gardening in Southern California. (Try the soil amendment recipe, it worked wonders form me!)

Thank You Mr. Smaus ! Finally a book that talks directly to the Southern California gardener. If you live and garden in the So. CA area this is the book you need. Maybe I won't have so many failures in the coming year. This book opened my eyes wide.

Adults will love this book both because it will remind them of the many characters with whom they grew up, and for the incredible science of Robert Sabuda's "paper engineering".Children will delight in the wonder of the "pop up". Not only do they love the recent and classic Disney characters, but thrill to know that they can identify the first letters of those characters' names!

The House of Mouse finally meets a master movable book artist and the results are more dazzling than the Electric Parade along Main Street -- or even more spectacular than a synchronized fireworks display in the Orlando, Florida skies. What could have been a run-of-the-mill volume if executed by someone else, Robert Sabuda's latest masterpiece celebrates over 60 years of movie magic with paper, paint and a passion for cutting and folding. Instead of simply replicating the characters and making them move, Mr. Sabuda infuses them with his unique style and sense of humor. (See Pinocchio get cross-eyed as he watches his own nose grow longer! Gepetto would have been proud.) Julie Taymor (surprisingly with the blessings of the formula-bound Disney folks) impressed the critics and the crowds with "The Lion King" on Broadway. Now, Mr. Sabuda likewise has proven to our pop-up publishing planet that creativity and commerce need not be exclusive of each other. Bravo, Robert! (But where is Sebastian? I can't wait for the sequel. A is for Aladdin, B is for Belle, C is for Chip...) Note: This review has been published in the Movable Book Society's newsletter, Movable Stationery Vol. 7 No. 1 February 1999

This book captures the personality of the Disney Characters. You feel as if you are watching a movie with the way these pop-ups come to life.

One valuable lesson on every single page. Required reading for designers, engineers, information architects and technical managers. Buy yourself a copy and another one for your boss.

even as a 14 year veteran of interaction design, i learned much more than i would have imagined. well written, well organized, full of great insights.

This is the first book and aspiring developer should read. It is also the next book they should read. After they get that big-bucks job and are writing code for a living ... read it again. When you finish a project, that would be a good time to pickup the book and see what of it applies to your "complete" software project. Alan has an engaging, no-nonsense style that is uniquely his. Like his first About Face and The Inmates Are Running the Asylum, this book is loaded with sage advice.

Reading rev 1 of this book a few years back changed my view of how programmers should program and gave insight on how to design programs the correct way. The second release is sufficiently different so that it still a bargin for those that have the first one. The biggest impact of those not familiar with the value of software/interface designers will be the altered view-point you may emerge with. A programmer (as i have been for the last 20 years) tends to get tunnel vision. It's not that we think we're doing things badly and do it anyway; we just don't see the opportunities opened by taking a different viewpoint on the functionality and design of software. Alan and Robert Reimann effectively describe this "enlightened" view of software design through effective use of examples and critique.

A final point is that the book is somewhat granular. The chapters build somewhat on each other, but it is the kind of book that can be read a chapter at a time in any order.

Thanks Alan and Robert!

This book is just wonderful. If you love Chicago, it shows everything. I love how they have old photos next to the modern ones to see the comparisons. This is truly the best book for any Chicago collection.

We purchased this book to give to a German exchange student who is about to return home. She absolutely loved it and I would recommend it for any visitor to our city . . . as well as to Chicago people.

This book just confirms how beautiful this city really is! Architecturally pleasing to the eye, laid out wonderfully, this book shows us aspects of buildings we may never see again. I do not believe commercial planes fly down close enought over the city to enjoy the buildings, so one may never get a chance to view this city's splendor. The layout of the book is facsinating, with old and new pictures side by side. I especially enjoyed picking out which buildings are still standing and are here to stay!!!

The "NASA Mission Reports" series, compiled by Robert Godwin, offers collections of essentially unedited original documents from the flights of the golden age of space exploration: press kits, operation reports, crew debriefings, the works. Since there is only a brief introduction to get things going, the casual reader will certainly be overwhelmed by the technical and operational detail. The decision not to "polish" these sometimes rather plain-looking documents in any way, or even edit out spelling errors from the original sources, gives the books a slightly "messy" quality. However, for these very reasons the series is a dream come true for the serious space enthusiast or historian: this is the real thing, a wealth of unaltered, unabridged information directly from the NASA archives. Holding history in your hands.

One of the most famous aircraft of all time, the North American X-15 flew to the edge of space in the 1960's and collected data on hypersonic flight that would be used in many future projects, including the Space Shuttle. Reaching altitudes of over 350,000 feet and a maximum speed of Mach 6.7, it arguably became the world's first reusable spacecraft, and an item of legend for every aerospace aficionado.

Since the X-15 was an entire program and not a self-contained mission like most other volumes in the series, Godwin's task of compiling documents within the format was more difficult than usual. He comes up with a varied and comprehensive selection, including biographies of the twelve pilots who flew the X-15, a contemporary 1959 development history by Robert Houston (Wright Historian), NASA's semi-annual reports to Congress, the entire proposal that won North American the contract, now declassified USAF development plans, and - the holy grail for aircraft buffs - the Flight and Pilot Rescue Manuals and Flight Logs for all 199 missions.

There is even some oddly interesting Hollywood correspondence on the long-forgotten 1961 movie "X-15", as well as the mandatory myriad of photographs, drawings and diagrams. Finally, the CD-ROM features some rare X-15 videos, an interview with pilot Bill Dana looking back on the program, several hundred photographs, and yet more NASA documents. That's about as exhaustive as it gets with just one book, and it demands conscious and patient reading to make productive use. Data junkies will find one of the most rewarding single volumes of the series, and rejoice.

The X-15 was the first manned, winged plane to fly as high as 50-60 miles above Earth. Though the plane was not in orbit, the mission represents the first time humans ascended to those heights in a vehicle that had, like the space shuttle, the ability to return to Earth. Twelve men over nine years used three X-15s to fly 199 successful flights with only one fatality. This project, pursued jointly by NASA and the Air Force, is described in detail in 11 chapters that include biographies of the pilots, a history of the project, reports to Congress, the original research proposal, Air Force plans, flight manuals, the pilot rescue manual, correspondence regarding a Hollywood movie based on the project, flight logs, the accident report, and documentation prepared to ship the X-15 to the National Air and Space Museum where it now resides. There are eight color pages and reproductions in figures and diagrams that are often too small to be readable. The book contains a CD-ROM describing the program, readable by at least a Windows 95/Pentium 90 combination. All levels.

built and designed by harrison storms for the then north american aviation, now rockwell, the x-15 flew higher/faster than any aircraft/plane to date, including sr-71 blackbird. scott crossfield was first engineer/pilot for north american to fly test her before naca/nasa stepped into scene. she ran on liquid oxygen and anhydrous ammonia. she flew mach 6.7 or 4520 mph! and over 456,000 feet high paving way for projects mercury, gemini, apollo, skylab and shuttle. she was earliest example of stealth technology to some extent! almost 3 times faster than a 30 caliber rifle bullett! see my other review on x-15 at: x-15 diary book by richard tregaskis here, on amazon.com. a must have/read for all space, rocket and aviation buffs like myself.

This is a beautiful picture book for pre-teens rather than for really young children. It has a mythological tale of what young Queen Guinevere's life might have been like. It is well written by the talented Robert D. San Souci and is filled with symbolism and adventure and heroism. The illustrations are well done and are brightly colored like the pages in a medieval illuminated manuscript. Beautiful mythical creatures like a chimera and a unicorn and a werewolf help give this story its otherwordly feel and add to the mysterious and magical flavor we have come to know from other great Arthurian writers like Sir Thomas Malory, T.H. White, and Howard Pyle. This is a simple story that ends with foreshadowing of the world Guinevere will grow into and it makes a good introduction to this enigmatic character.

When I found this book, the artwork captivated me. The story is simple yet strong. I would buy this if I had a child. It is beautifully illustrated and told. Take/Borrow it and read it.

I had to buy this book because my daughter (6) was checking it out from the library so often. It is an unusual look at Guinevere and offers a good, empowering role model for girls. We love the illustrations and have read it over and over. Unfortunately, the paperback version has not stood up to those many readings. The pages have all had to be taped back in because once one came loose, the rest followed. I don't blame the binding, it is just that a paperback cannot survive that much love.

Seattle is set in a very diverse geographical region. This diversity provides for ample breathtakingly beautiful and lush photographs of the metropolitan area. Lakes, mountains, trees, islands, bays, rivers - this area has it all and is cleverly photographed in this Robert Cameron book.
The book is fairly up to date although citizens or connosieurs of Seattle may notice the dated-ness of the book by the conspicuous absense of some new construction in the downtown area and the changing condition of other areas of the city. If you like pictorials, this is a great one to own and probably one of the best of the Seattle Metropolitan Area. I highly recommend it.

THIS BOOK IS A KNOCKOUT, IT'S 12 X 14, THE PICTURES INSIDE, MOST OF THEM ARE THE SAME SIZE AND ARE SO CLEAR IT LOOKS LIKE YOU ARE THERE, YOU LOOK AT SEATTLE FROM ALL ANGLES AND TACOMA, YOU CAN MAKE OUT PEOPLE IN THE BUILDINGS, THERE ARE OLD PICTURES FROM THE 1920's RIGHT NEXT TO TODAYS PICTURES, THE BOOK TELLS YOU WHERE AND WHAT YOU ARE LOOKING AT, YOU CAN READ SIGNS IN THESES PICTURES, IT SHOWS HOW CLEAN THE SEATTLE AND THE PUGET SOUND IS, IF YOU LIVE THERE THIS BOOK IS A MUST, FOR IT WILL SHOW YOU AREAS YOU MAY HAVE NEVER SEEN, FOR THERE IS SO MUCH TO SEE, AND TO THE REST OF THE WORLD, THIS BOOK THIS IS THE PERFECT TRAVEL GUIDE FOR THE NORTHWEST, IT'S A 160 PAGES OF THE CITY, WATER, NAVEL SHIPS, FERRYS,AIR PORTS, AND MOUNTAINS, THERE IS JUST NO WAY TO PUT THESE GREAT PICTURES IN TO WORDS! "THANKS" ROBERT CAMERON

Stunning quality; if you've been there, you will easily be able to pick out your favorite spots, despite the distance. The captions are a little dry, but the pictures make this aesthetic book one of value.