Finally, a quilt book that makes perfect sense! Of all the quilt books I've bought, this is the first one I sat down & actually read cover to cover. Judy Martin wrote this book in plain English & all of the questions I had were answered & understandable. This book has changed the way I quilt!

I've been a sewer for years and have just begun quilting. I've purchased several "how to" and pattern books by different authors in order to get a feel for the quilting and design process. Judy's book is THE BEST. It is very readable and all instructions are clearly written. Her tips on cutting and sewing pieces THAT FIT TOGETHER are easy and logical and make the piecing process foolproof. Her approach truly does empower a quilter. Hats off!

The text in Judy Martin's Creative Pattern book is extremely well written and is very easy to understand. Every quilter should read the 7 Secrets of Sewing Success in this book. Judy's book inspires the quilter to have the confidence and knowledge to create a quilt. The Creative Pattern Book is a well organized book with lovely color and includes 12 patterns of quilts. Each of the 12 patterns have several variations showing details of the fabric, color and quilting. This book is one that you will use often as it has everything you want in a quilt book.

I didn't read it that long ago, actually, I somehow found it in a local library. I was very pleased of it's action, drama, and even suspense. I've read other books about "cyborgs" or whatever, and none of them even came close to the realism in this particular novel by Martin Caidin.

Cyborg by Martin Caidin I first read this book in the mid-seventies when I was a great fan of the Six Million Dollar Man TV series. It was probably the first adult (in the non-pornographic sense) book that I had read. It is an enjoyable and informative read (although the science will now be hopelessly outdated) but at the time what impressed me most were the differences from the TV show. Austin loses his left rather than his right arm; the bionic eye cannot see and is 'merely' a miniature camera; the governmental atmosphere is less cosy with Oscar Goldman a shadowy figure and Oliver Spencer (featured only in the pilot TV episode) the major protagonist. Interestingly the early episodes of the TV show did reflect some of Austin's resentment at being transferred into a government superspy. It's both a pity and somewhat surprising - in view of the TV show - that this title is no longer available. I would certainly like to read it again even though it had such an impact on me that I remember parts of it very well. Terence Teevan

Caidins' Cyborg books was the most interesting I have ever read. Even if you didn't like the Six Million Dollar Man TV show that were based on the books and or consider yourself a true Sci Fi fan read at least the First book "Cyborg", you would very happy you did. The others are High Crystal, Orperation Nuke, and Cyborg 4. The only oter book I have read that I liked almost as much is Polhs' Manplus, another great read.

As a Catholic, I found Dr. Martin's book to be bracing, and yet it never denies that the Catholic Church is truly the institution founded by Christ. Indeed, the first pope(St.Peter) denied Christ three times, and one of the first bishops betrayed his Master and committed suicide!Ultimately, the Church needs to return to the ideal of it's founder, and reject temporal power in exchange for the power of the Spirit.

I can clearly see that the Vatican was not happy to have it's dirty laundry of past evils exposed and by a fellow Catholic of the Society of Jesus. Although I have great respect for the S.J. As religions have come and gone,maybe it is becoming time for the sweet and loving story of Christianity (Child philosophy) to be reviewed as unscientific and to be replaced by true mysticism and science.That knowledge which was once possessed by the ancient priest of Egypt. I have been trying to purchase this book ever since somebody loaned it to me but to no avail. Can anyone find it for me?

As a nonCatholic, I found this book fascinating and extremely readable, which is a wonder in itself. If I were Catholic, I think this book would disturb me with how much corruption has pervaded the Catholic church for centuries. There have been truly truly evil Popes...and they commited their sins in the name of Christ. Hypocrisy oozes from page after page. A Fascinating book

This book by Lance Berger, Martin Sikora, and Dorothy Berger reminds us that many of the solutions to issues within a business reside within its organization. The job of the CEO is to create a corporate culture and work environment where all employees feel ownership and influence in that part of the business for which they are responsible, and to encourage dialogue between senior management and the people who do the work every day.

Today, it is popular to rely on RAICers (reengineering academic industrial consultants complex) to design and implement new business strategies and a new organizational design based on the latest fad or cure-all. The authors caution that getting an outside view has its place, but is not a substitute for tapping the knowledge of your internal resources.

The authors present their road map for identifying change triggers which require reassessment of strategy. They also provide a blueprint for building a change responsive organization and developing change responsive people. Most interesting are vignettes of companies and their executives who faced an internal or external change trigger, leading to a major change initiative. I found these vignettes very useful in that they described real situations and how these executives addressed them.

Berger, in his typical style, attacks the issues head on. He cuts through the nonsense and identifies the fundamentals that organizations must address from within in order to get on a growth curve. His concise thinking is reflected in the roadmap for change that is laid out, and the mini case studies provide excellent examples of how real life companies have successfully applied the principles that Berger outlines in the first half of the book.

Deengineering The Corporation is a refreshing change from the usual business school texts or the popular "we know how to fix your business" manuals. It is a practical how-to; must reading for corporate executives, as well as those just entering the workplace. It offers simple, easy to understand strategies and presents compelling arguments for why growth is best managed from within. As I prepare to take a one-year sabbatical beginning January, I was especially interested in the sections on developing exit strategies at all levels of the organization. Additionally, the personal vignettes of the featured CEOs/COOs reinforced the book's premise that when companies take charge of and design their own leadership responses, success is more likely to follow.

Frankfurt school is now a part of history. Not much of its arguments are reproduced now a day. For example, their critical cultural theory opened up the vast terrain of cultural study in capitalism. But their characterizing cultural consumer as dumb passive receiver is too much extreme to be real. Now nobody hold up such a position. Its perspective seems locked in the interwar period. Indeed, the power of the school comes from the distinctive problematic derived from such a peculiar era. But the strength is the source of weakness. But even we don¡¯t follow their lines, we should know what they said at least in cursory manner, for their theories are now classic in each field.
This book must be still the most authoritative history of Frankfurt school from its inception to 1950. but it deals with not only chronological events but also what the first generation of the school, such as Horkheimer, Adorno, Marcuse, Walter Benjamin, and Fromm, worked. This book is the intellectual history of the school. The author illustrates the school against the time of school. As Hegel said, thought is the child of its time. So the thought should be located in the right context to understand. The society of Western intellectuals faced a crisis in the interwar period. The impact was severe especially to German intellectuals. The thought of Frankfurt school is one of the reactions to the crisis. Marin Jay succeeds in reconstruct their time in front of us. This book is the ¡®must¡¯, if you want to be oriented to Frankfurt school.

28 years after its initial publication, Martin Jay's "The Dialectical Imagination" is still the best introduction and most indispensable guide to the Frankfurt School's history and thinkers. Jay can easily be forgiven his occasional historiographer's dryness and insistent reminders of the boundaries of his project (I would be a rich man if I had a nickel for every time he writes that "such considerations fall outside of the area of the current inquiry" or something to that effect). Moreover, even if subsequent publications of the translated correspondence and unpublished papers of figures like Benjamin and Adorno have robbed Jay's book of some of its potential for novelty and scoop, Jay still provides the best and most pithy assessments of the major points, and he does so without sacrificing the scholarly rigor that organizes "The Dialectical Imagination."

The book could certainly better fulfill its role as research tool if the publishers would sponsor an updating of the notes and citations; now that everything has been published and republished by presses like Fischer and Suhrkamp in Germany and by the likes of Continuum, Columbia, Harvard, etc., in the English-speaking world, Jay's opus might be more helpful were it not to insist on citing the original issues of the institute's journals, to which most of us simply don't have easy access.

That's a small bone to pick, though, with such a thorough book. Jay's chapter on the philosophical roots of critical theory moves quickly but surely (despite the occasional dependence on disciplinary argot that may slow down readers not steeped in the vocabulary of "isms"), providing a crucial backdrop to his reading of the Frankfurt School's entire intellectual contribution. This chapter grounds Jay's book safely, and the subsequent chapters make good on this very promising start.

"The Dialectical Imagination" is sure to remain the best available introduction to the thought of the Frankfurt School on the whole. I cannot recommend it highly enough for those interested in the history of philosophy in the 20th century, in radical politics, or in developments in literary theory.

A wonderful introduction to and overview of the works of one of the only coherent intellectual "schools" of the 20th century. Jay describes the penetrating insights (and weaknesses) of the thought of Adorno, Horkheimer, Marcuse et al., with mercifully little of the psychologizing that one often finds in intellectual history. Ideas and their relation to historical context are the focus, rather than personalities and psyches. The book is readable enough to be attractive for non-academics and academics alike. It would have been nice to have more on the post-1950 period, but the as the subtitle makes clear, this is beyond Jay's purview for this book.

Readers of Discourse on Free Will, a written debate between Martin Luther and Desiderius Erasmus, will find one of the early essential philosophical divisions of the Roman Catholic Church. These two theologians debate the heart of Luther's fundamental differences over church doctrine. Never mind issues like indulgences and purgatory (indeed Luther thanks Erasmus for not discussing such "trifles") because Luther's primary argument concerned justification by faith through the grace of God. The book compiled here, edited by Ernst Winter, is a glimpse into the minds of these two influential men.

Winter's editing is a bit suspect, as Erasmus enjoys the first 94 pages while Luther receives only the final 44, but this really gives Erasmus more time to make a fool of himself. Erasmus wonders around raising many points and attempts to connect all into his free will argument, but it is not until his conclusion that he begins to make his point. In section 48, Erasmus confuses free will with grace, on page 56 he refers to a chamber pot to make his point. He makes a weak argument until his conclusion, which takes on the appearance of a lawyer closing his case. Ultimately though, one must consider this: Rotterdam has never been known for its scholars; Erasmus is no exception.

But this is not to say Luther is the "winner" here. The book is somewhat akin to a pre-Reformation version of "Grumpy Old Men." The debate gets personal at times. In two instances Luther refers to Erasmus as "stupid" and Erasmus states Luther is "without reason." This makes for a more interesting read but also shows the limits of each man's patience. This book may not be for everyone, but those desiring to know more about the debate of the Catholic Church will find it has much to offer. THere clearly are two different styles here. Erasmus offers hope for all, true to the elements of Humanism, while Luther's effort is not for the faint of heart. Either way, the reader will be richer for the effort.

Desiderius Erasmus and Martin Luther's theological polemic and "Discourse on Free Will" is a wonderful source to understand the thought that classified, diversified, and divided the plain between the classical and orthodox, and the novel and heretical. These view points changed the face of an age - from common belief and good conduct, to individualism and good belief ...with this book you may decide a position for yourself.

Luther once said that the Catholic Church stands or falls on the question of justification and free will: salvation by faith alone, or must the human soul respond? Get a first-hand peek at what Luther thought of the Catholic Church's teachings, and how Erasmus, a Catholic bishop, replied. Don't think you understand the Reformation or the "protest" inherent in Protestantism until you read this book. This is Luther at his fist-pounding best; but Erasmus is sophisticated, irenic, and penetrating. The key question is: who was right? If you're a Christian, don't decide until you've read this cover to cover.

I am not a Linguist, but this book helped me to appreciate all of the differing theories and various fields within what is known as linguistics. If you are seeking a book that is simple to read, yet very comprehensive, I recommend this volume. If you enjoy languages, speech development, regional dialects, language acquisition, theory of language, language trends, and more - this book is for you.

Major disciplines coverd include: phonetics, morphology, syntax, and semantics. Also included in this new addition are new chapters on second language acquisition and psycholinguistics.

One of the best features of this text is how well it is laid out. It is a pleasure to peruse and even study because of it's logical and user friendly format.

If you love anything about language- whether knowing it's origins, or what part of the mouth is used to create certain sounds, or how language changes over time and for what reasons, or a host of other curiosities, you will certainly enjoy the wealth of information within Contemporary Linguistics!

"Contemporary Linguistics" (CL) is a wonderfully clear and accessible introduction to the field of linguistics. The authors begin by introducing the methodological assumptions that underlie present day Chomskyan linguistics and then reserve a chapter each for almost all major research directions within linguistics.

One thing in particular that I liked about the format of CL was the treatment of more advanced material (marked "Advanced") in each chapter. The "Advanced" sections augment the material in the rest of the chapter and are placed in logical sequence with the rest of the material instead of appearing in an appendix at the end of the chapter. For example, a section marked "advanced" on X' (read X-bar) Theory appears fairly early in the syntax chapter. Having some knowledge of X' Theory allows the reader to proceed to examine the rest of the material with the knowledge that there exists an intermediate level of structure between lexical categories (N, V, ...) and phrasal categories (NP, VP, ...).

Most chapters in CL are pretty well written and technical tools to treat linguistic phenomena are almost always introduced at the correct juncture. However, CL does not treat Innateness properly (why Innateness and arguments for and against Innateness), and has a weak chapter on semantics. The reader would do well to augment the material in CL by reading Pinker's "The Language Instinct" or Jackendoff's "Patterns in the Mind" for a non-technical introduction to some ideas in linguistics, as well as sections of De Swart's "Intro to Natural Language Semantics" to get an idea of how semantics is done. If the reader is interested in looking at language from a cognitive science perspective, she would also do well to read most of Gleitman et al's "An Invitation to Cognitive Science: Language".

All in all, CL provides a relatively painless initiation into linguistics and I highly recommend it.

Speaking as a newcomer to the subject, I found this book to be an excellent intro. Very useful.

As a classical voice student, this is the only book I look to when my teacher mentions a work that I'm unfamiliar with. I have found only one error, and that is in Puccini's Gianni Schicci, Mr. Martin calls Lauretta's aria "O Mio Bambino Caro". The title should be "O Mio Babbino Caro". Call me picky, but there's a big difference in translation.

Several years after buying this book, I find that I still turn to it first when examining the details of an Opera. It if really is out of print (and I think Amazon is wrong on this point), than it is a criminal shame. This is one of those books that EVERY singer, accompanist, or Opera Lover should have in their library.

The only major downside is that it is not available in a hardbound edition.

The error cited above by "Coloratura" from San Francisco reminded me of a similar problem I encountered years ago. Reviewing a recital by Renata Scotto for the Washington Post, I mentioned that she had sung "O mio babbino caro." Obviously, an editor thought I had misspelled "bambino" and made a "correction." So instead of being addressed to her beloved daddy, the aria--in this review as in Martin's book--was addressed to her beloved baby. Martin's book is unique in its thoroughness and its totally professional, no-nonsense approach to opera, a book by a man on the production end of the art; a book of special interest and value to those involved in making opera happen. It should not be allowed to stay out of print.

This charming tale has much usefulness for a classroom setting. It ties in with the themes of writing, friendship, families, imagination, St. Patrick's Day and Leprechauns. A book with this many possibilities for curriculum tie-in is worth the expenditure for school and public libraries.

I have never seen a leprechaun, but author Martin N. Burton made me feel as if I was experiencing the magic of the leprechaun who was his childhood friend. The well written story is the reason why I loved this book and why I loved reading it to my own children. The writing style is fun for young readers and for their parents who may find themselves reading out loud in an unintentional Irish brogue.

Mr. Burton captures the gentle magic of childhood that is enhanced by loving parents and lasts a lifetime. The friendship and love revealed between the child and his father makes this a perfect story for Father's Day. If your children believe in fairies, Santa, and other magical beings, they will find irresistible the possibility that they can have their own leprechaun friend.

Dear Mr. Leprechaun discretely encourages children to write their own letters so they too can discover what might happen. The illustrations are beautiful and convey the magical world of childhood.

I can not possibly start to express just how wonderful this book is. I & my children enjoyed it so much, we bought a second copy to donate to their school library. Young children delight in the idea of corresponding with "Mr. Leprechaun", but the real joy of this book is in it's demonstration of the deep & heartfelt love of a parent for their child. The artwork is exceptional as each page simply begs to be poured over again and again. While it is an excellent childrens book, I also believe it is a wonderful addition to any adults library as well.

I read lots of mysteries, but enjoy the English village murder mysteries the best. This is a welcome addition of the American variety. I also liked this book because the heroine didn't do something stupid that put her in harm's way. It was well written and very enjoyable. I have now ordered her other mysteries.

Martin writes with a true feel both for place and for mystery. Her knowledge of the Big Bend area of West Texas is reflected in the accuracy with which she captures the people and lifeways of this interesting borderland. Her tale of the healing woman is both intriguing and resolved with a grimly appropriate resolution. This book will whet your appetite for those that have followed.

I finished reading, THE DEATH OF A HEALING WOMAN, when I went on a fishing trip. The fish had to wait until the authoress solved the mystery. Once in awhile, I still go back and look for a clue that led up to the gruesome murder. When the one who did the killing was caught I almost cheered at the justice of this person's demise. I won't say when you read this novel, I'm saying you must read this novel 'cause it is being reveiwed by the big reviewers. What I would like for you to do is E-mail who sent the article out of a newspaper in the last chapter. I've other things to do than go back and figure this out! THE BEST MYSTERY NOVEL I'VE READ SINCE SHERLOCK HOLMES! LUTHER BUTLE