I had high hopes for this novel. The premise is good and covers a time period, location and perspective that is not generally used. Unfortunately the authors writing style is annoying and the editing is worse. The characters are not particularly believable or likable. But what I found most irritating was in the details. He repeatedly refers to the Panzer that is the focus of the story as a Mark IV and as a Tiger. These are two very different vehicles. He also gets many other details wrong and even refers to the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines as an Island. For someone that supposedly has been a student of military history for 30 years he hasn't spent much time looking at the details of warfare in WWII. The author also needs to find a new editor.

This book could be entertaining for someone not real familiar with WWII.

Excellent book. The characters interested me and the facts were historically accurate. The pace was exciting and the plot was unique and realistic. The German ranks were on target and the mesh between SS and Panzergrenadiers was super. Much description about the panzer itself. Very very good.

This book seems to be the same story you hear from every American that has ever studied any Okinawan martial arts system. Its part "how to" (which in my opinion is the worst type of martial arts book), part history (not much more than you could find in any encyclopedia), and part "my story". Who cares? Who are you Kevin Healy? If you are writing about Okinawan Karate and your name isn't Chojun, Funakoshi, Chotoku, Sakugawa, Odo, Nakamura, or Maehara we don't care what you have to say.

I thought the book was beautifully illustrated. The author skillfully demostrated the stances, blocks, kicks, and punches of Shotokan step by step. Mr Healy tells the reader the book should not replace the training of an experienced instructor. For an individual thinking about learning karate, I thought the author did an excellent job introducing the basics of Shotokan karate. The book includes an Heidan kata illustration. The illustrations are very beautiful and artifully take advantage of contrast. The precision in technique and perciseness in posture demonstrates Mr Healy's master of the art. Sometimes a picture can say a thousand words.

Excellent book for beginners .Beautifully illustrated !... Really good explanations... If you want to buy only 2 books about karate-do,here's my recommendation :

1- "25 Shoto-kan Katas"
2- "Karate : A Step-by-Step Guide to Shotokan Karate"

EDWIN DICKINSON: Dreams and Realities is a major work. Again we have a catalogue for an exhibition (that started at the Albright-Knox Gallery in 2002 and is still travelling) that is so well written and illustrated that it becomes a standard reference for any library of art.

Dickinson is not a name that carries instant recognition outside of art historians' and artists' circles. He spanned (1891 - 1978) a period in American art history which jumped from academic realism to cubism and abstract expressionism and through all of these changes he retained his own style, pausing here and there to prove that he was thoroughly informed by all the changes in the arts while continuing his mission as a representational artist. His studios were in New York and in Cape Cod and it is here that he observed and painted the world as he saw it. Some of his canvases took years to complete: other canvases and works on paper were dashed off in a most facile fashion.

This major book celebrates an artist who probably will always be an enigma in the history of American art and brings his entire oeuvre to our attention. We are shown self portraits painted throughout his career, always a fascinating and valid way to track an artist's progress. The color reproductions are a bit bland and tend to flatten the images. Oddly the black and white drawings suffer the same fate, becoming shades of gray rather than strong lines. The various contributors to the book add a significant dimension of awe for this under-appreciated artist. It is up to the viewer of this book to judge how visually important rather than historically significant was Edwin Dickinson.

EDWIN DICKINSON: DREAMS AND REALITIES is a major work. Again we have a catalogue for an exhibition (that started at the Albright-Knox Gallery in 2002 and is still traveling) that is so well written and illustrated that it becomes a standard reference for any library of art.

Dickinson is not a name that carries instant recognition outside the circles of art historians and artists. He spanned (1891 - 1978) a period in American art history which jumped from academic Realism to Cubism and Abstract Expressionism and through all of these changes he retained his own style, pausing here and there to prove that he was thoroughly informed by all the new schools in the arts while continuing his mission as a representational artist. His studios were in New York and in Cape Cod and it is here that he observed and painted the world as he saw it. Some of his canvases took years to complete: other canvases and works on paper were dashed off in a most facile fashion.

This major book celebrates an artist who probably will always be an enigma in the history of American art and brings his entire oeuvre to our attention. We are shown self portraits painted throughout his career, always a fascinating and valid way to track and artist's progress. The color reproductions are a bit bland and tend to flatten the images. Oddly the black and white drawings suffer the same fate, becoming shades of gray rather than strong lines. The various contributors to the book add a significant dimension of awe for this under-appreciated artist. It is up to the viewer of this book to judge how visually important rather than hisortically significant was Edwin Dickinson.

The collaborative effort of Douglas Dreishpoon (Curator of 20th-Century art, Albright-Knox Art Gallery), Mary Ellen Abell (Assistant Professor, Dowling College, Oakdale, New York), and independent American art historian and expert Francis V. O'Connor, Edwin Dickinson: Dreams And Realities showcases the life and work of Edwin Dickinson (1891-1978), a representational painter best known for his abstract expressionist landscapes, nudes, and still life paintings. An informative monograph details Dickinson's more than 35 years as a very highly regarded and influential American painter. Profusely illustrated with 72 full color reproductions and 91 black/white illustrations, Edwin Dickinson: Dreams And Realities is a quite welcome and very highly recommended addition to academic, personal, and professional Art History reference collections.

I ordered this book last year. You are still promising delivery on December 3rd 2000. This appears to be the only way I can get to you. Where is the book?

... It is a WONDERFUL book, full of very clear large photographs ("over 830 color photographs"). I bought this book in London and had to carry it home to the U.S. It is big and heavy, but it was worth it. If you appreciate the style of Liberty and Co., you need this book.

Elizabeth Knox faced a tough challenge in writing a follow up to her exquisite novel, The Vintner's Luck. However, given the skill that was displayed in that earlier work, a reader could hope that the same type of unforgettable characters and a similarly subversive philosophical theme would be found in Billie's Kiss. Unfortunately, Billie's Kiss contains none of the qualities that made The Vintner's Luck so special.

Instead of maintaining the strengths she displayed in other works, Knox decided to try to center Billie's Kiss around a particular style. The style she chose was the Gothic Romance of the 19th Century. In truth, she did manage to vividly portray the book's setting in the islands north of Scotland. However, while she managed to match a Gothic Romance's setting, she failed to adequately develop any of the style's other characteristics. Especially notable in their absence were the strong characters usually found in this genre. There aren't any characters as memorable as Heathcliff and Catherine in Billie's Kiss. Instead, we're left with a bland protagonist who would be instantly forgettable if it weren't for the fact that she has pink hair. The only character worth mentioning is Lord Hollowhume, who is clearly Knox's device for continuing the exploration of God's personality that she established in The Vintner's Luck. Knox's version of God is a terrible being whose jealousy and manipulations bring ruin to all. However, if it weren't for these qualities which come forth from this exploration, Lord Hollowhume would be as forgettable as the others in this book.

It seems apparent that Billie's Kiss was Knox's attempt to mimic the sweeping passions and powerful landscapes that typify the Gothic Romance. Yet, the Gothic Romance wasn't just about style. The genre's best works contained memorable characters for which the reader cared and an emotional sincerity that still rings true today. Without those characteristics present, one is left with a tedious read whose ending is simply outlandish. Billie's Kiss is a major disappointment on all levels, and a work that should definitely be avoided.

A penniless young woman, a bit simple (perhaps dyslexic?), a survivor of a dockside explosion on a bleakly-remote Scottish island...A moody relative of the local landowner, suspicious of/attracted to the young woman in question...A comotose brother-in-law, a pompous (but generous) rich paterfamilias and his various relatives and hangers-on... The recipe for a turgid potboiler, a typical Gothic romance? Well, if you think of the word "romantic" as having its base in the word "roman," the French for "book," then I guess that Billie's Kiss fits the definition, but in Elizabeth Knox's capable hands, this homage to the old-fashioned thriller goes far beyond the expected. Her writing captivates, catching her characters' complexities of personality in a just a few deft lines. She has the ability to make the unexpected and unlikely perfectly believable---this novel is nothing like her previous book, The Vintner's Luck, but they share a profound sense of edgy otherworldliness, of inexplicable fate, and her writing skills are such as to pull the reader thouroughly and willingly into her world-view. I liked this one very much, and I am eager for Ms. Knox's next.

There are some good things about this novel. Specific episodes in the book take off and you find yourself burning 15 pages to find what happened. Some of the characters are interesting and unique. The construction is episodic with story lines cut and pasted like reading a painting from the cubist school. Chunks of the story are cut out and displaced into other parts of the story, creating a disjointed reading experience. This might have been a successful artistic technique if it weren't also weighed down by a huge cast of characters, so large that the publisher had to print a whole listing before you get to the first chapter. To complicate this, some of the characters are known by different names which also change depending on the timeline that is also cut and distributed throughout the story. To comlicate this, characters go from being homosexual to bisexual; so you have to identify who it is, what name they're going by, and whether they like guys or gals at the moment. In short, this book is extremely confusing. Knox needs a new editor; this relationship did not work well. Here are some examples of how the story didn't follow through for me. There is a whole segment on how a girl loves her horse. So, of course, two characters feel it's their mission to find the elusive horse and dismember it. They get naked, hack up the horse, bury it, wash in a stream, one guy tries to seduce the other only to have the other one try to kill himself, then the girl shows up, they get out and a flood comes, the dismembered horse floats by, and the story line is dropped. What's the point? To complicate these matters, there are secret societies whose members are unidentified. At one point, the characters are at a funeral. Rather than being affected by the sorrow in the scene, I was trying to remember who it was that died and what her relationship was to the people at the funeral. At the end, someone tells Carme that she's a mother, but I could never figure out who was speaking. After this book, I felt like I needed a study group to figure out what went on. Unfortunately, for all its promise, the read is not worth the effort.

Readers who enjoyed Elizabeth Knox's bestseller The Vintner's Luck will find the same unique style and rich characters in Black Oxen. But be warned, it is a long and demanding read. Central to the book is a similar character to the angel in The Vintner's Luck. Ido/Walter is a man who is not quite human. He is a healer, a visionary, bisexual and capable of living in two worlds. He is immensely fascinating which is necessary to get you through 503 pages of a rich and complex story which at times is very hard to keep track of. As with The Vintner' Luck, Knox's research and knowledge of her topics from revolutionaries in Latin America to complex surgical terms, to the world of television in Hollywood seems flawless. Fans of The Vintner's Luck will remember that even though it was convincingly set in France, unbelievably Knox had never visited the country before writing the book. Knox's writing is delightful in its sense of imagery and romanticism and beautiful in its structure and form. You can't help but get involved with every character and while this is immensely satisfying as a reader to be challenged so thoroughly there are times when you just have to stop reading and sort all the information and the characters into their correct time zone and family connections. This would not have been a problem had I been able to devote a decent chunk of time to reading the book instead of spacing it out over several weeks. I found myself wondering at the intensity of the author and her ability to fill page after page with such wonderful writing and information. I am going to re-read Black Oxen ( after I dip into a lighter read for a change of pace) as I finished it last night and I'm still not quite sure of the conclusions I should have drawn from it, or even if Knox intends us to have any conclusions. Perhaps like good poetry or music, we will all take our own individual meaning from this piece of work. A much more difficult read than The Vintner's Luck as Black Oxen feels 10 times more intense. Some readers may be unwilling to put in the time, but I highly recommend you do.

As its name describes, this book contains many known works of famous writers from Europe, Asia, and a few from Latin America. I was to read Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert and I found in the introduction that the editors of this book gave away the ending in an attempt to summarize the plot. Thus I read over 200 pages knowing exactly what was the destiny of the main character!!! I do understand that many people do know the story, from beginning to end, but I also know that there are many others like me that have never read Madame Bovary. From now on I will avoid the introductions completely. It was cruel that editors from well known universities commit such atrocities. It clearly shows their lack of common sense and that even in the best universities people don't learn the basics.

Wide collection of works and translations. I really enjoyed the translation of Homer in the Iliad. Norton's Anthology has help transform literature from being boring to being fun.

When I point out that James K. Polk and Jerry Ford were the two Presidents who promised only what they could deliver and delivered all they promised, people generally reply "James K. Who?" The man who stretched the USA from sea to shining sea has got to be fascinating. All Kudos to the author for a much-needed book.

Particularly fascinating in it is the hilarious story of the negotiation of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which gave us California et al. It proves the Mark Twain saying that God protects fools, drunkards and the United States of America.

Polk is frequently ranked in the top third of US presidents. The years of his presidency fall between Jackson and Lincoln - a period where the presidents around him were generally considered among the worst in history. Polk clearly learned lessons about management and control from the failures of Tyler before him and these lessons led to a most effective presidency. While sectionalism begins to tear apart the preceding presidency and those that followed, the Polk presidency sees a chief executive who manages to be in charge of events during his 4 years. This book was a good read about an import man in a dangerous and exciting time and perhaps a lesson in not promising only to serve one term.

Michael D. Knox was plucked from obscurity for the OJ trial. This book tells about his experience as a juror, until he was removed because of an unreported arrest (charges were dismissed). He argues against the sequestering of a jury (unless its for their own physical safety), and tells of the problems that ensued. (Sounds like that Survivor TV show?)

The most harmful event was how he was downgraded and reduced in pay after being selected for the jury. Can't Federal Express correct this injustice?

"If all the jurors were of the same color, there would be squabbles about hair color. If all had the same hair color, there would be clashes between those who wore glasses and those who didn't." Putting a lot of strangers together causes strains and conflict.

California then rushed a new law restricting jurors from selling their story. A Court case resulted in an injunction, and this book was published. Its an interesting book, but overtaken by events. After hearing the Prosecution's case (March 1995) he predicted that there would not be a full jury at the end, and OJ would be found guilty. We all know what came out after June when the Defense put on their case.

Michael Knox's book, while it doesn't contain any earth-shaking revelations, is more thoughtful and less predictable than one might expect. True, he sees the Simpson criminal trial through a racial prism and defines almost everything and everyone in racial terms, and true, his explanations for not letting the court know about his kidnapping charge are far-fetched. But he also has enough sensitivity to report the dynamics of the jury fairly. In fact, since we know he isn't pulling any punches, it's interesting to hear what he thinks of the way the jurors reacted to a lesbian juror, and the way they treated his own family after seeing he has a multiracial group of foster children. There's also an unintended irony in the way Knox concludes his book, since it was written before the criminal trial verdict. Those who disagreed with the first Simpson verdict will be fascinated by this account of what really took place among the jurors.

The level of detail and generality would make this book suitable for a lower-level undergrad course on urban planning or urban geography. However, even as someone who has completed an advanced degree, I found this book to be extremely difficult to follow. The topics covered are good; the photographs are well done. But the text itself is hard to understand. The logic of the author's argumentation is faulty in some places. Several diagrams left me clueless because there was not enough supporting documentation to interpret them. On the bright side, I did like his suggested portfolio assignments at the end of every chapter. If you can find a better book for your course, use it. Otherwise, this one will have to do.

I thought this book gave a wonderful account of the development of American cities in a text book format. I enjoyed Knox's post modern slant on the process of urbanization.