A fairly irritating book about an important subject, this book is loaded with a collection of traveling non-sequiturs that are collated and vaguely related to findings of the author as he makes the same trip that Sir John Mandeville made starting in 1322. Mandeville wrote a book after his 34-year journey called The Travels that influenced many important people after him. For example, Christopher Columbus, influenced by Mandeville's book, proposed his voyage to the new world to Queen Isabella of Spain and was turned down. Months later, after Isabella had read Mandeville's book she was approached again by Columbus and she changed her mind, funding his history making voyage to the new world. Mandeville's book was used by many others as a reference for hundreds of years until somewhere in the 1800's when he and his book were discredited and Mandeville generally became known as a fraud, never having actually traveled to the places he claimed to have visited. In The Riddle and the Knight, Milton's trip to all the same places starts off with the promise of getting to the bottom of a very old debate, "Did Mandeville actually take the trip he claimed he took? By actually making the same trip today, what could be found to either prove or disprove Mandeville once and for all?" That's a great idea but the writer got bogged down including almost everything that happened to him on his 20th century journey whether it added to proving Mandeville's journey or not. On page 189, Milton is staying in a monastery in Egypt and two U.N. peacekeepers stumble upon the ancient institution. One of them is an American who is remarkably like Gomer Pyle. Halfway through this jewel, I paused and thought, "This episode will have no bearing whatsoever on what Milton is doing with his story." True enough, it didn't. It was simply a loud and colorful, intrusion into the quiet life of the monastery Milton was staying in. "What the heck. Let's put it in the book." Milton was fair in citing the frequent number of times that almost every ancient author would plagiarize one another and that Mandeville was not much different. Unlike the book's title, The Riddle and the Knight, any references to a riddle somewhere in the book were sparse, casual, and hugely unfulfilled. The author also missed the opportunity to properly observe that all early discoverers and travelers were at some point liars who all knew that keeping the attention of those who listened would sometimes require mention of the strange men foreign lands who have no heads, or really giant women from another distant land or strange elixirs that have remarkable healing powers. It's all part of giving the audience what they want or need to hear, from P.T. Barnum to Ripley's Believe It Or Not to the nightly news.

This book wears two faces: 1) a travel book, and 2) an attempt at some serious historical research. The author, Giles Milton, a professional writer/journalist, sets out to retrace the path of the legendary fourteenth-century traveler and writer, Sir John Mandeville. Milton's ostensible goal is to rehabilitate Mandeville's controversial reputation.

Sir John Mandeville was the alleged author of one of the most famous early-renaissance books. From about 1350 to 1800, his "The Travels of Sir John Mandeville" was incredibly popular and influential, rivaling the Bible and Euclid's Elements. Then, about 1800, scholars began to question whether "Mandeville wrote Mandeville" -- or indeed whether there ever was such a man. His book is still in print (see Penguin Classic, The Travels of Sir John Mandeville), and is even making something of a comeback,

Mr. Milton is a good writer, and as a travel book his work is quite entertaining. Minimally, it gives us a chance to compare the Middle-East-now with what it was in Mandeville's time. For those who like travel books, that might be enough to make the book worthwhile. Some woodcuts taken from a 1481 edition of Mandeville are real gems. (Penguin should have included these.)

But as serious historical research I have problems with the book. Mr. Milton tries to convince us that Sir John Mandeville really did exist. The historical evidence he presents is weak, at best, and consists chiefly of a barely legible epitaph in St. Albans Abbey. But even here some rigorous scholarship is missing. (What is the earliest mention of this epitaph? To whom is it attributed? Have other scholars noted the inscription, and at what dates? What are their opinions regarding its authenticity?)

My overall impression is that Mr. Milton was not able to gather the evidence he was hoping for, and so had to temporize. I was particularly disappointed that the second edition does not address any of these weaknesses.

A fascinating read! The satisfaction comes not in finally putting to rest the historical debate whether Sir John Mandeville ever made his epic pilgrimmage but rather in going along with Milton as he makes his journey. Settle into your favorite armchair and take off on a most engaging travel narrative. Along the way you will decide for yourself the truth about Sir John's narrative, which is exactly the way all such quests should be pursued.

I have used the book to prepare for the PT licensure. While the review may appear to be very helpful, the information directly contradicts itself. While taking the written tests, questions will have an answer that is different from the exact same question in a later test. I do not recommend the book to anyone if this is their only guide. These problems have been verified by at least 8 other people who have taken the licensure exam and failed. While the review has great potential, at this time it is more of a hinderance than a help.

I bought this book as a supplement to the O'Sullivan review book. They both have pros and cons, but the questions in the Giles book are MUCH MORE like those on the exam. I would not however use it solely for review -- O'Sullivan is much stronger on the review portion. With the combo of those two books though, if you study, there's no way not to pass!!!

My class bought this book in May upon recommendation from one of our instructors. I thought it was great. The questions were challenging and I liked the eplanation of answers. The review helped me to organize my studying. I passed!

events leading to independence. After reading Unger's work, you would think that John Hancock single handedly brought this country to freedom. The author's extreme adulation for his subject constantly paints Hancock in positive light and ALWAYS as the victim of others, never at fault. Lame excuses are given for why Hancock did not receive this office or that praise. One of the most disturbing elements is the vindictive condemnation of Samuel Adams (probably the man most singularly responsible for influencing the Declaration of Independence) is incredibly overdone and grossly inaccurate. Speeches which were written by Adams (and some given by Adams) are credited to Hancock, a man who is overwhelmingly acknowledged as lacking the writing ability for such speeches. Hancock is instrumental in bringing about revolution but unfortunately, not in the way suggested by this author.

So John Hancock turns out to be a pretty interesting fellow, the millionaire head of a mercantile empire who initially gets dragged into revolutionary politics to prevent the revolutionaries from vandalizing his property, but converts and becomes a leading, if moderate, revolutionary voice. A vain man and one accustomed to luxury, he nevertheless gives very generously of both his money and his time to the revolutionary cause and to the governing of Massachusetts.

His career includes stints as the president of the continental congress, member of the Massachusetts legislature and governor of the newly independent state of MA. His roles in the revolution and the adoption of the constitution are central: as president of congress, his is initially the only signature on the Declaration of Independence; he coordinates and equips the continental army, including large expenditures out of his own pocket; he turns the tide in Massachusetts in favor of ratification.

So the biography is interesting because the man is interesting, even pivotal. It's also well-written, in the sense of being easy to read.

But the book's also a little spiteful. Anyone who clashes with Hancock, ever, comes in for a little sting from the biographer's pen. Sam Adams, in particular, is described as a bloodthirsty, erratic and backstabbing radical, who undercuts and betrays Hancock at every turn. Even George Washington is painted as behaving irrationally, in contrast with Hancock's genteel polish, in respect of some offers of hospitality that Hancock extends to the general, and Unger seems incapable of mentioning John Adams without calling him "fat little John Adams".

My cousin wrote this book, so my review will be somewhat biased. However, as I try to be an impartial observer I must say that Harlow has really done a fantastic job with this book! While John Hancock certainly was an integral part in an amazing and interesting period in USA's history, his life really came alive in this book. And while the story of a Revolution is very interesting in itself, the historical reseach Harlow presents is very relevant and made me understand the history in greater detail. Even the part of history that used to bore me the most (reports from the first Continental Congress in Philadelphia) were fascinating from John Hancock's perspective as Harlow presented them.

After just returning from a trip to the sagebrush high desert region of SE Oregon, I sought out some local history of the region and ended up with this book. The book is recommended to those people who have a specific interest in the cattle country around the present-day Malheuer National Wildlife Refuge, but not recommended for those people who are seeking information on the history of cattle ranching in general due to the book's rather narrow focus on Peter French and his contemporaries in the latter part of the nineteenth century. Though the backcover of the book claims it presents an unbiassed view of French and his breed, the book is very clearly pro-French and pro-cattle rancher and treats the native population of the area very disparingly in an effort to boost the heroism of French through its discourse on the battles between the native population and the ranching community. So impressed with French is the author, that sometimes the author's description of French reads as if straight out of the personal ads. Nontheless, the book is an interesting snapshot of a region of Oregon that has few words printed about it, during the early settlements of the major players in the cattle industry. Greatly enhancing the value of the book are the many historical pictures of the region, including early photos of the towns of Burns, Frenchglen, Fields, and Winnemucca.

There's a story to be told in the little known and visited nether lands of Southeastern Oregon. An immense land of sage, hills, mountains, bighorn sheep, Kiger Mustangs (who were named after the Kiger Gorge who was named after Doc W.D. Kiger pictured on pg. 76), and cattle and plenty of cattle. And did I mention the people that shaped that country with the presence of cattle and ranches and a pioneering spirit? The author Giles French no doubt writes this book to bring the cattle barons alive with particular respect and adulation of Peter French. So in that vein, there may be some impartiality lost along the way. With that in consideration though, there is some fascinating history captured for anyone familiar with Burns, Harney County, the Steens, and the Malheur Bird Sanctuary.

Probably the best aspect of the book is the historical pictures of Burns, French-Glenn, and the round barn that still stands solid today on the P Ranch. There are many other stories to be told in that part of the country begging for a less jaundiced eye to incorporate the push and pull of land use as well as the native people already resident there. That's the only area where this book falls short.

This book was given to me by a local Vet who has had his hand up the majority of the cattle in the county and it (the book that is) made the area come alive in history. If you are interested in that area's history, this book comes highly recommended.

This book I have given a mixed review. It was originally purchased as a textbook for a literature class in college, but I dropped the class early. I know, I know, dropping out of a class is not good, but I have my excuses. The book started off as a difficult read. It's a collection/anthology of various writings by different authors throughout history all writing about the New World (the Americas). The writings, for the most part, are presented in chronological order. The older, more difficult to comprehend writings are toward the beginning and the reading becomes more comprehensible as the reader goes through the book. I didn't get to finish the book, because time restraints in my schedule. Some of the writings were interesting (such as the later stories) while others were rather boring (the stories or letters written in uncomprehensible or Old English style language). Hence, my mixed review. I would say it's a great book, nor would I say it's bad. My intention is to release the book and hope there is someone out there who will get more enjoyment out of the book than I did. Good reading everyone!

I deem this quite a good anthology; it tries to encompass everything. It includes 18 pages of American Indian mythology, followed by 73 pages of writing by Europeans about America, from the Norse saga of Eric the Red to a poem by George Herbert. The rest of the book (500-odd pages) is devoted to the literature of the colonials and early republic. Mostly exerpts from longer works, it contains explorers' accounts, sermons, historical accounts, poetry, diaries, and essays. Some of the writers included are William Bradford, Mary Rowlandson, Edward Taylor, Ebenezer Cook, Jonathan Edwards, Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, plus dozens of others. Quite a bit is represented, and it it something to dip into time and time again.

If, like me, you're also interested in early American literature, then you can also get these books published as Penguin Classics: "The Vinland Sagas"; "The Four Voyages" by Christopher Columbus; "Colonial American Travel Narratives"; "The Autobiography and Other Writings" by Benjamin Franklin; "Letters from an American Farmer & Sketches of 18th Century America" by Crevecoeur; "Notes on the State of Virginia" by Thomas Jefferson; "Common Sense" by Thomas Paine; "The Rights of Man" by Thomas Paine; "The Thomas Paine Reader"; "The Federalist Papers" by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay; "The Power of Sympathy & The Coquette" by William Hill Brown and Hannah Foster respectively; "The Emigrants" by Gilbert Imlay; "Charlotte Temple & Lucy Temple" by Susanna Rowson; "The Interesting Narrative and Other Writings" by Olaudah Equiano; "Edgar Huntly" by Charles Brockden Brown; "Wieland & Memoirs of Carwin" also by Brown; "Early American Drama"; and "Women's Indian Captivity Narratives".

If you are akin to find out about the mysterious Tom Bomdadil, the half-God that helped Frodo and his friends through the Old Forest and all the way to Bri.... Dont buy this.. Its all just silly songs. I can not understand the purpose of this book. Well.. I think opera and ballett is madness too..

I love this book.. Its put together so well, that there arent very many things that can be said to someone, other than, "READ IT" I bought it for 600, and it was worth every penny. If you want to know anything, email me if you like. I'm not even a huge tolkien fan.

This is quite a decent read on the treatment Napoleon received at the hands of his "...most consistent and generous foe, the British". A balanced account is what Mr Giles has stroved for and the coverage is generally admirable. Napoleon's jailer comes across as a more humane person than history has given him credit for.
I din't care much for the last part of the book which focussed on various poems written by great men of letters to explain the Napoleonic myth as I felt that such coverage was either too narrow or irrelevant to the overall British perception of Napoleon.

Mr. Giles gives us a great work, obviously carefully footnoted with very meticulous references, full of very interesting tidbits about British perceptions of Napoleon's stay on St. Helena. I left it, however, wishing for more than the historical details, wanting for more color about the participants, their own stories and experiences. The character of Sir Hudson Lowe does not come through clearly, despite the book's stated goal of demonstrating his relative innocence in the supposedly cruel treatment of Napoleon. There are many details, but Mr. Giles leaves it to us, based on the facts presented, to muster an image of the gaoler. Perhaps that is his intention---perhaps that is good historical documentation. That said, his description of the Lord and Lady Hollands feelings, again based on thorough first hand information, is excellent and insightful, perhaps especially due to their ample and descriptive writings. For Napoleon buffs, this one is--if not a nail-biter---a good essay on one aspect of his life.

The authors give some background detail about their lives and their philosophy of living, and it is engaging, but most of these projects are not things you'd want to see displayed in your home. The majority look like a bunch of twigs tied together, which is, of course, the idea. Except I'd like them to have some style too. One notable exception: the lampshade pictured on the cover. Some of the projects are illustrated with drawings instead of photographs, and that makes me suspicious. Couldn't the authors make one of these themselves, so it could be photographed?

I would have been happier with some more practical projects than a toothbrush easel that comes with the caveat that toothbrushes displayed in it may hang crookedly.

What a great book! I love walking in the woods. With these simple projects I can bring some twigs home and turn them into something that is both a reminder of the outdoors as well as a useful object. (And a conversation piece.) Also, we don't have to spend a lot of money to make something. And the basic information about using tools and materials will help me with future craft projects. Thoreau would have loved some of these items for his cabin at Walden Pond!

I have to admit, when I first got wind of these books, I was excited. Finally, Giles was getting his own books! Woohoo! And they were focusing on his father/daughter relationship with Buffy...that was always one of my favorite elements of the show.

In the words of Agatha Christie...

"A fine idea...pity you couldn't carry it out better!"

Now, the framing of the stories is interesting and unusual. Unfortunately, it's not written very well. I never have liked Nancy Holder's writing, and this time proved no exception. Not even my love for Giles could make it worth the pain. Only true Giles fans could attempt to read this book and not scream out loud.

The problem, you ask? Well, anyone who's read Ms. Holder's books knows that she has an annoying tendency to lean toward teen-speak in her writing. It's all fine and good in dialogue, as sometimes the Buffy characters use it--but in descriptions? (At one point, the setting of Xander's basement is called "Back at Casa del Xand.."). One of the characters might talk that way, but in a description, it just looks ridiculous. Not to mention that in some scenes, the text is so ridden with teen-speak that I have to read it several times over to understand. (And let me add here that I'm under twenty, hardly an old fogey!)

Ms. Holder writes Giles just fine, to my immense relief. Only Giles. With Buffy and especially Dawn, she turns Joss Whedon's brilliant scripts into teen film drivel. It's a bit depressing,really.

So, as I said before...only if you really love Giles could you sit through this book...and even then, it's a challenge.

I only have a small handful of these novelizations from the Buffy TV series. The primary reason for my lack of interest is simply that it is rarely the case that the short story captures the aura of the show. With the DVD's gradually appearing, it takes less effort to watch the show than it does to read the written version.

There are some cases where this isn't completely true. Some authors (notably Chris Golden and Nancy Holder) use the opportunity to flesh out the characters and give the reader a deeper sense of the forces in play. Also, there are cases where one wants to know the contents of an important show and doesn't want to wait for the DVD. This latter is the reason for my decision to read 'The Journals..."

The story in point is "Helpless" where Giles deliberately cancels out Buffy's powers so that she can take a 'Cruciamentum' - a do or die test the Watchers put a Slayer through on her eighteenth birthday. In essence, the Slayer is trapped with a strong vampire and must use her wits to overcome it. Only in this case the vampire, Kralik, manages to get free. After turning one watcher and eating another, Kralik sets out after Buffy's mother. The slayer, betrayed by her own watcher must find a way out.

Holder does a great job of bringing across the inner characterization. Giles' agonizing and final rebellion against anything that might hurt Buffy redeems him from his betrayal. Surprisingly, Holder also manages to make Quentin, the head slayer, just enough more understandable, which adds to the intensity.

The other stories are handled equally well. 'A New Man' is set on Buffy's nineteenth birthday, with Giles feeling more than a bit useless. Buffy has a new boyfriend in Riley and someone else to admire in Professor Maggie Walsh. Giles is having a tough time letting go, and the sudden entrance of Ethan Rayne with a less that tasteful gift for Giles that leaves the ex-librarian dependent on Spike, of all people.

The last story, 'Blood Ties,' is set on Buffy's twentieth birthday, in the middle of Glory's search for the key - Dawn. This is the episode when Dawn discovers that she is not really human and goes through a complete identity crisis even as Glory is tracking her down. Buffy must stage a wild hunt of her own to keep Dawn from being used and erased. Holder does a good job of taking the reader from irritation at Dawn's less attractive personality traits to sympathy will a lonely person who does not know who she really is.

All three of these stories center on Giles feelings about Buffy during each of three very difficult birthdays. They demonstrate the tender nature of their feelings for each other as they shift from watcher and slayer to slayer and true father/friend. Nancy Holder does this sort of work as well as anyone can, taking a great deal of care to stay within the bounds of the show while deepening the overall experience. As such, this is worthwhile and entertaining reading. If you haven't seen one or more of these tales, this is recommended reading.

Actually, Volume 1 of "The Journals of Rupert Giles" is one of the better novelizations of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." The difference is the framing device created by Nancy Holder, which is not altogether surprising given she is one of the best writers of Buffy books with or without her frequent tag-team partner. In the wake of Buffy's 20th birthday part Giles summons the demon Krathalal to make a blood pact to ensure the survival of the Slayer. We all now how traumatic Buffy's birthdays have been starting with her 17th and Giles is no fool. Besides, he senses his time as Buffy's Watcher is coming to a close and he has long since accepted the word's Quentin Travers meant as a rebuke: "You have a father's love for the child."

In negotiating the deal Krathalal makes Giles look back at Buffy's last three birthdays: "Helpless" (teleplay by David Fury), when Giles let the Watcher's Council do their incredibly stupid test of the Slayer without her powers, the Cruciamentum (yes, a dramatic episode, but, sheesh, what a stupid ritual for people with a supposedly vested interest in keeping Slayers alive'I really think they were tired of her and were trying to take her out); "A New Man" (teleplay by Jane Esperson) when Giles turns into Fyral demon, which is worse than being a fifth wheel in Buffy's life, especially since he has to turn to Spike for help; and "Blood Ties" (teleplay by Steven S. DeKnight), the events of earlier in the day when Dawn discovered the truth about herself and Glory almost killed them all. Ironically, it is the actual Watcher's journal that Giles keeps which reveals the truth to Dawn.

Will Krathalal protect Buffy and keep her alive until her 21st birthday? Well, we watched Season Five so we know the answer to that one, but that is not the point here. This book has to do with the departure of Rupert Giles (and Anthony Stewart Head) from Buffy. Holder makes these novelizations not simply retellings of the episodes but re-examinations of Giles and his relationship with the Slayer. After all, in "Helpless" he is fired, in "A New Man" he feels useless, while in "Blood Ties" he fails her. Usually I give novelizations four stars as a matter of course, but this framing device bumps it up one more. We should not have been surprised that Holder put some effort into this job. Of course, we cannot help but wonder how there will be a Volume 2 of "The Journals of Rupert Giles," since the Watcher has returned to England.

If you are the kind of parent who believes your children can be wonderful hood ornaments on the vehicle of your personal success, this is the book for you.

The author abhors public schools because, as he says, they have to accept EVERYBODY (ugh!). He favors and supports boarding school education for children as young as first grade (only about five years old) so that they can live in a warm, morally consistent (but unloving) environment all year long, and because he feels that the child and his parents will then share only happy memories of carefree summers and holidays, with none of that messy and mutually irritating go-clean-up-your-room-and-do-your-homework fuss and muss.

In other words, he seems to believe that children are better raised by goal-oriented institutions, who see their students as a product being readied for the marketplace, than by their parents rearing their own offspring as a gesture of love and tenderness.

As a teacher, and as aparent of private-school kids, I found the author's attitude completely offensive, and I have to say that this is the kind of material that gives private-school families a bad name. I would have given it a "1" rating -- especially because the author supports his point of view with speciously derived and manipulated statistics -- but undoubtedly there are parents who do subscribe to his point of view, and will benefit from this book.

Despite a virulent anti-public school bias, Unger's guide to picking a private school has some helpful information and tips on choosing a private school. Frankly, however, anyone who needs this type of hand-holding to get through the private school application process, is probably not private school material. Unger's best tip is to buy the Peterson's guide to secondary schools.

The perfect mannual for any parent considering sending their child to a private school. The book will be especially useful to families with older children who are considering going to baording school. The book covers issues concerning the application process, questions parents should ask, visting the school, and different types of schools including military school, schools for the gifted, and schools for the learning disabled. There's also a short listing of schools in the back listed by state grade, whether or not their coeducational, boarding schools, schools for the disabled, military schools, etc. However, you'll need a private school directory such as Peterson's in order to find out any info. about the schools.