"Extinction" was published in 1987, after the discovery of the iridium layer at the K-T (Cretaceous-Tertiary) Boundary but before the Chicxulub impact crater (first reported and ignored at the 1981 annual meeting of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists) impressed itself upon the hearts and minds of paleontologists and geologists.

Professor Stanley, who is a paleobiologist at Johns Hopkins University, presents an authoritative account of all of the mysterious cataclysms that have swept our planet, without resorting to an extraterrestrial 'deus ex machina.' He does discuss the meaning of iridium concentrations at extinction boundaries, but the main thrust of his book is a "comprehensive evaluation of the record of great extinctions that is being read from rocks and fossils....More generally, in the process of elucidating the crises that we term mass extinctions, this book takes the reader on a trip through the history of life on earth."

If you are fond of journeys through what John McPhee calls 'Deep Time,' this book makes an excellent and only slightly-outdated guide. The illustrations are stunning, even in this age of three-dimensional, in-your-face velociraptors. It is one of my favorite volumes from the Scientific American Library, along with "Viruses," "The Living Cell (two volumes)," "Powers of Ten," and "Islands." (Dear W.H. Freeman & Company: I wish you had continued this excellent series of books.)

There have been fewer than a dozen mass extinctions since multicellular life first appeared on Earth. Professor Stanley covers all of them, beginning with the first great extinction of the acritarchs, and ending with the demise of the mammoths, giant wombats, and Shasta ground sloths that we ourselves may have doomed. His emphasis is on climatic change, although he doesn't consider that to have been the only factor in mass extinction---only the most important one.

Read Professor Stanley's well-presented evidence, and do not ask for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for the trilobites and the lacy bryozoans of the Paleozoic, armored Dunkleosteus of the Devonian, the dinosaurs of the Mesozoic, and the great, sabre-toothed Creodonta of the Cenozoic---not to mention Smilodon fatalis of a more recent era.

Poet and songwriter Stanley E. Alston offers reflections from the heart in his book Faith, Love, and Life. A collection of poems and songs, each piece carries its own respective theme and readers will find a piece that is relatable to them. Several standout pieces include 'Jericho Road', 'Dream Your Dream', and 'Yes I Believe'. Also recommended is the companion CD where readers can listen to Alston read and perform the pieces that are featured in the book.

Alston brings compelling work to the forefront, offering pieces that contain an honest sincerity. From beginning to end, his poetry touched a part of me and has made a lasting impact. If you are looking for poetry that speaks from the heart, then Faith, Love, and Life is one collection that you must read.

Reviewed by Kanika (Nika) Wade
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

This is an excellent history of the Falange. Although written a long time ago, it remains very valuable today as one of the few sources in English, on Spanish fascism. Payne examines its history from its foundation in the 1930's, through the Civil and Second World wars, to the 1960's. He portrays the significant changes it went through over these years, as well as its place in the Franco regime. A must for an understanding of the Falange.

The author purports "not to provide another description of fascism but to wrestle with some basic problems of definition and comparison"; that abstract task does, however, involve a good deal of historical exposition. Fascism is defined within the historical context of the Italian Fascist and German National Socialist parties, their historical antecedents and contemporary parallels, and the Mussolini and Hitler regimes. The existence of present-day fascism, in the strict and literal sense, is considered at most an anachronism.

The book represents a significant academic acheivement, analysing a vast amount of research material and thoughtfully synthesizing an objective viewpoint. Although "forces that promoted a world historical disaster are hard to view with scientific detachment", the author succeeds in "disengag[ing] this analysis as much as possible from political emotions and overt moralizing." The work does much to clarify and de! fine what is "probably the vaguest of contemporary political terms", rejecting overly simplistic and/or ideologically biased conceptions of fascism.

The two best biographies on Marie Antoinette are 'Queen of France' by Caselot and 'Fatal Friendship' by Loomis.

Fatal Friendship focuses mostly on the friendship between the Queen and Count Axel Fersen, the breathtaking escape attempt and their deaths. Loomis leaves it up to the reader to decide whether or not the two were actual physical lovers, but with the evidence presented, not only do I believe they were, but that Louis XVI knew, and didn't care.

The highlight of the book is the escape attempt though. As you read on and on at a harrowing pace, you almost believe they'll make it. But the stupid mistakes, lack of judgement, and time wasted sealed the fate of the royal family.

As we all know Marie Antoinette died on the guillotine, but do you know the violent death that Axel Fersen faced? Or the legend of the ring that was given to him by Marie?

An excellent, well written, and easy to follow book that made me fall in love with the Queen and see her not as a monster, but as a woman and a mother who despite trying her best, just couldn't make anything work out.

I liked this book so much, I was late returning it to the library! It has a lot of excellent information, so I am planning on buying it for my home library. It discusses how important a fantastic title is, and gives examples. It goes into detail on publishers, agents (do you need one?) and editors. It also covers co-authors, ghost writers, and script doctors. Information on publicising your book and different ways to market it are also included. The information on what to know about contracts alone makes it worth the purchase price. It has a lot more information, and it seems up to date.

Lucky Me, I finally got a copy of this book. I waited about a year before a used one came up on here. This is one of the few books on Ferrocement construction. You buy it for the pictures, and ideas, not for technical reasons. There are better books for that.

People familiar with studies of the Plains Indians and their culture already know that this is the defininitive book on the Cheyennes. The details of their history, culture, and religion are fascinating. However, those just beginning to dabble in this area of study should be warned, it may be more than they are looking for right now. For example, the alliances and warfare between the Cheyenne and other tribes would be very difficult to follow if you didn't already know a little bit about who they were and how their migratory paths crossed,etc. Once you've done a fair amount of study on the subject, however, your library will not be complete without it.

A new edition of Finding Fiji is available and can be located by searching for "Moon Handbooks: Fiji" on this site.

Everyone likes flipping through good photography books but this one you'll have to read. Aside from superb photography, Miller captures the soul of Paris in a way pictures of monuments never can. These Parisians look right into your soul -- and vice versa -- even before you read Miller's commentary. If you love Paris (particularly pre-McDonald's) you have to check out this book. Plus there's Miller's own poignant, amusing, self-revelatory look at an American GI in the postwar City of Light. Life is really about people, not monuments, and Paris is no exception.