Diane Duane takes you on an unbelievable adventure with Nita and Kit. This book put a vivid picture of what was happening into my head. While I read it, it made me feel like my soul was singing to the melody of the waves Nita and Kit traveled through. Each bit of this book I gobbled up and when I was done, I was thirsty for more. This has to be the best piece of literature I have EVER read. But for people who don't believe in magic a bit, you probably wouldn't like it. For everyone else, you have to read this book!

This is the best of the three initial books in Duane's Wizardry series. There is plenty of thrilling action, the ethics and philosophy of wizarding is intelligently extended beyond its presentation in the first book, and Nita's evolving relationship with her family is well woven into the story of cetacean wizards and their battle with the Lone Power. The author also brings vividly to life the sights, sounds and sensations of the deep sea.

Still, the characters stand out over and above the merits of the other aspects of the book. The parents and adult characters are sympathetic and believable, Nita's little sister Dairine shows up in a new light, and even the dog has a personality!

Each undersea character - whale-wizards, mostly - has a distinctive personality and tone well matching his/her species and history. The crowning achievement of the book is Ed'Rashtekaresket (Ed for short) the Master-Shark, whose very name has teeth in it. His dark, complex and fascinating character is gradually revealed through his developing relationship with Nita - as she realizes, and comes to terms with, the implications of the parts the two of them will sing at the TwelveSong Ceremony.

The book should appeal to adults as well as to the ten-to-teens age group to whom the book is marketed.

I have read the first 3 books of the 5. So far this one is the best of them all. Just for people to know, there is a fifth book in the series called The Wizard's Dilemma. Deep Wizardry is about Nita and Kit going on a vacation and turning out facing the Lone Power again. In order to save the entire East Coast, Nita has to do something the bravest person on Earth probably couldn't do. Unfortunatley I can't tell what it is or it would give the whole story away. She and Kit have to transform into whales to do the Song of the Twelve. The story is about bravery, trust and truth as Nita and Kit are faced with having to give their secret of Wizardry to Nita's parents.

Back in1981, Moore imagined a post-apocalyptic 1998 in which Great Britain has become a racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, and Christian fascist state, all run by "the leader" who sits at a bank of video monitors run by a central computer. (For some reason, many readers have the mistaken impression that the setting is one in which the Nazi's won WWII, even though it's clear from flashbacks that that's not what happened). While it's a clear reaction to the Thatcher regime, the setting draws directly from Orwell's 1984, and other dystopian literature.

However, standing against this bleak world is the anarchist vigilante "V". Modeled roughly on Guy Fawkes, who attempted to blow up Parliament back in 1605, V is empowered by superhuman physical and mental attributes acquired while the subject of Mengle-like medial experiments in a now derelict state concentration camp. He's now using his abilities to methodically kill all the government personnel associated with his torture. And when he's not killing people, he's sneaking around blowing landmarks and generally bringing the state to its knees. An important theme Moore hammers home here is that the state is not solely to blame, but the people who place their popular power in the hands of the state are equally to blame. (Those who are interested in this particular streak of political philosophy would be well advised to check out C. Douglas Lummis' book, Radical Democracy.) Instead of a superhero saving the populace, we are given an ambiguous vengeful killer instructing the populace to save itself.

There's a whole subplot involving a teenager V rescues from the streets. However, she's largely used as a subject for him to talk at, and for the reader to get the backstory of the setting. There are a number of other subplots as well, involving the shady state functionaries, and Moore does a lot of cinematic intercutting between the various storylines. The story gets somewhat too theatrical at points, and drags at other times, and V's constant quoting (Rolling Stones and Velvet Underground lyrics to Shakespeare) gets old fast. The art is generally pretty nice, although the color isn't really to my taste, it might have looked better in simple black and white. However, it's a pretty decent quick meditation on what it means to be free and how each individual must look within themselves for the answer rather than assigning that freedom to someone else to safeguard.

British writer Alan Moore earned his place in the comic book writers' pantheon with his seminal turn on Swamp Thing in the 80s, part of the triumvirate of Frank Miller, Neil Gaiman, and Moore who transformed lowly comic books into a respectable artistic medium.

And, like Miller and Gaiman before him, Moore found that the only way to carry on once you've thoroughly changed your industry is to do do it again and again in new and novel fashion.

Thus, I give you "V for Vendetta," the absolute furthest thing from "Swamp Thing" and "Watchmen" imaginable.

Moore almost singlehandedly restored the creepy cool of EC horror comics with his run on "Swamp Thing." He redefined the superhero genre with "Watchmen." With "V", Moore abandoned the conventions of both genres and embraced gritty Orwellian scifi.

"V" is set in a Britain which has embraced Fascism following a nuclear conflict which left the nation intact but badly bruised. Mirroring Hitler's ascent over the ashes of the Weimar Republic, the Norsefire party seizes power in Britain and restores order at a horrible price.

That is, until a stylish terrorist in a Guy Fawkes mask codenamed "V" appears on the scene to tear the new order down.

"V for Vendetta" marks a major departure from comic book style. David Lloyd's cinematic style plays like a storyboard for a film; gone are the motion lines and Batman-esque sound effects so familiar to comic readers. Lloyd also dispenses with one of the comic writer's main crutches for exposition---the thought balloon. The story is thus relayed entirely by motion and dialogue, deepening the inherent mystery of the plot as we try to comprehend the master plan of the inscrutable antihero "V".

As with "Watchmen", Moore has layered his tale with enormous depth, making subsequent readings a must to truly comprehend all that's going on within the plot.

If you're interested in seeing what the comic art form is capable of when geared toward an adult audience, rush out and grab a copy of "V for Vendetta" today.

Naturally the inclination is to disbelieve in the power of the comic-book format to tell a socially relevant and emotionally powerful story, and most of the genre is cluttered with nihilistic power fantasies these days. But this is a brilliant exception, and that can be attributed to Alan Moore's powers as a writer.

You can read the rest of the reviews and find a lot of spoiling detail about the narrative, but the best aspect lies in an attention to the small and overlooked people whose feelings Alan Moore makes very much a part of the entirety. In what I think is the best moment of all, one of the characters imprisoned by the secret police of the English totalitarian state reads and envisions the final thoughts of a dead lesbian, written on toilet paper for some future prisoner to draw hope from. I felt an almost tearful admiration for the sort of bravery and faith in oneself that this prisoner discovers, and a more conscious recognition that Alan Moore is one of the best ever to write for the medium.

It's indisputably good, but it thumps the pulpit of the author's choosing - all government steals self-determination and liberty from its subjects, civilization and barbarism are close neighbors, the masses remain wilfully ignorant of the big picture to focus on television fantasies. It's a deliberately simple portrait of a dystopia, and its questions demand thought from their readers. You might love this as much as I do, but rest assured it won't be because of simplicity or polite avoidance of libertarian doctrine.

This is probably my favorite book in the Ms. Duane's wizardry series. It took me a little while to pick up where I left off with "Wizard Abroad" but once I did, I experienced Kit and Nita's troubles just as vividly as any of the other books. I especially admire Ms. Duane for not making the mistake many authors make. They make everything sweetness and light and the heroes tie up every loose end, often saving others against incredible, unbelievable odds. Besides the obvious elements, this book was very believable, partly because the character's lives aren't perfect and there is a bittersweet taste to even the happier endings of the series. Because this ending isn't a perfect one for everyone involved, it makes the book that much more enjoyable.

Although not my favorite book in this series, which was high wizardy, this was definitly second best in the series. What makes this book so good is that things have changed so dramatically for the characters. However, this was exactly what made me weary of the book at first. I did not want the relationship between kit and nita to change. But as i continued to read the book, i found that that was what made it interesting. I kept hoping that things would fall into place and that everything would be perfectly fine just as they once had been.

Another aspect that made this soo good is that it did not have the happy ending with everything taken care of at the end as all the others have. While i loved the other books, after reading four and seeing that they all end with the main obsticle beaten or accomplished, it was nice to see that that wasnt the case in this book. While it was a bitter sweet ending, i love the way Duane worded it and made it come alive!!

i definitly would recomend this book to those who havent read it, and to those who have not yet began this series, you must read all five!!!

It's a little while after we left off with Nita and Kit in A Wizard Abroad and they're a little older, a little wiser, and a little more in control. But after a fight they fear that they're divided forever. But after this fight they find themselves immeaditally pulled apart even more as they both embark on seperate journies.

Nita has a lot to deal with when her mother gets sick with a cancer that could kill her. She tries to use her wizardry to help her but soon finds out that the only way to solve it might be to give up eveything she's worked for. Kit's busy too. One day when he's out walking his dog, Ponch, he finds himself in a whole new world, literaly. Can the two pull together in time to solve the problem? Or are they divided for good.

I was nearly jumping out of my seat when I heard that their was going to be a 5th book in this series and now I pray Diane Duane will write a new one soon. She once again brings the charecters we all know and love alive once again. This book is one of the best ones in the series to date (next to Deep Wizardry). I reccomend this book to anyone whose a fan of the Young Wizards Series and I reccomend this series to fans of magic. I'll be sure to read this one again and again.

Dinty Moore (doesn't this guy make beef stew?) is a young middle-aged Irish-American Catholic who, in a very readable and humorous manner, outlines his journey into the world of Buddhism, most specifically American Buddhism. Although the tale is a bit self-absorbed at times, this book provides the reader with some excellent instruction in a religion that most American are rather ignorant of. What Moore seems to run up against much of the time is that he can't seem to quite locate the path to 'true wisdom'. In a culture like the American one, full of hyper-commercialism, and an expansive sense of materialism - it is hard for any American to put this all aside and find simple inner peace - that is, to quiet the chattering monkeys in one's head.

Like many people who look to Eastern religions, Moore is seeking to find more meaning in his life... to put in their proper place the information overload, the bombardment of advertising, and mostly the pressures that many Americans feel to hurry, to compete, to be the best, to better their neighbors, to arrive at life, rather than to enjoy it as it comes. While some reviewers didn't like the humor - I found that Moore's jokes, and humor helped me to see that he wasn't one of those "true-believers" out there intent on proselytizing or urging me to "find my peace". It was a relief to read about someone's honest journey in understanding a religion completely foreign to his own. If he hadn't found things funny, light, or unreasonable, I don't think it would have felt like an honest piece of writing. I think this book is an excellent source for those who might be interested in knowing more about Buddhism without the intense rhetoric of an instructional text.

I liked Dinty Moore's examination of Buddhism in America. I thought his explanations of esoteric Buddhist concepts were clear and straightforward, his observations rich with the detail of day-to-day life. The small tome is a superficial--at best--look at this ancient religion, but an honest one. Too bad Moore clings to what he calls his "Project Mind"--the premise that he's on an anthroplogical mission (to find out what American Buddhism is and why it appeals to us) rather than a spiritual one. Clearly, Moore is seeking more than "data" on his journey; his chats with spiritual leaders are about much more than "good quote." I for one would have related far better to Moore's journalistic journey had he dispensed with the pretense and gotten down to the sticky, messy, uncomfortable business of enlightenment.

The author of this book set out on a search to find out what American Buddhism might be like. What we have in U.S. is Tibetan Buddhism, Japanese Zen Buddhism, Vietnamese Buddhism, etc. All Asian. If you stripped away all the cultural adornments, what would Buddhism look like in modern America? Is it even possible? Or is Buddhism so naturally Asian that when you strip it clean of Asian-ness, nothing is left? That was Dinty's question.

The Accidental Buddhist is the story of his search. He went to weekend retreats where he meditated all day (and sometimes got to ask the head Buddhist dude some questions), he set up personal interviews with some of the most famous Buddhists in America. He talked to John Daido Loori of the Zen Mountain Monastery, the Tibetan Monk Geshe Lobsang Tenzin Negi, Father Robert Jensen Kennedy (Zen teacher and Jesuit priest), Helen Tworkov, the editor of Tricycle: The Buddhist Review, Bhante Henepola Gunaratana (author of the excellent book, Mindfulness in Plain English), and he even got to ask the Dalai Lama a question. Dinty found many different kinds of Buddhism, many different levels of intensity of practice, but they all shared the core of Buddhist principles, which, by the way, I found beautifully explained in a book called The Heart of Buddhism by Guy Claxton (who is a British writer, and ironically, is the closest I've seen to what Dinty was looking for: American Buddhism).

Dinty tells you what he found, and in the process, you get a pretty good understanding of what Buddhism is about. Dinty is honest, charming and disarming. He's got a great sense of humor. The writing is good (easy to read, flows well, not academic-ese), and the author is very human and easy to identify with.

I'm the author of the book, Self-Help Stuff That Works, and the principles of Buddhism work. But what we need is exactly what Dinty was searching for: Those principles without the shaved heads, chanting in a foreign language, superstitious beliefs, etc. The Accidental Buddhist is a broad look at several different forms of Buddhism, and points the way, in an entertaining book, of how we might find our own American Buddhism.

Contrary to popular opinion the novel Le Notre Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo is not primarily about the deformed bell-ringer Quasimodo. Quasimodo's role is actually surprisingly small in the story, which makes you wonder why the English translater's chose "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" as the translation for the title. Actually, as the original French title would indicate, it is the cathedral itself that is the focus of the book. This is why in the unabridged editions of this book you will find numerous chapters that seemingly have nothing to do with the plot of the story. This is the books weakest point, and it may turn many people away from the book. Once you get into the plot, however, it is iimpossible to put the book down. The characters are intriguing: composer Pierre Gringoire, archdeacon Dom Claude Frollo, once a paragon of virtue now tormented by his corrupt love for a gipsy girl, L'Esmerelda, the naive gipsy dancer, Phoebus, the selfish, egotistical captain of the guards, and of course Qausimodo, a deaf, deformed bellringer. The relationships between these characters are complex and dark but they make an unforgettable story. The story is never, from front to back, a happy one, so if you are looking for a book that makes you "feel good" this is not the one for you. If, on the other hand, you are looking for a good book to read, that is unafraid to deal with the darker side of reality, I highly recommend "The Hunchback of Notre Dame."

victor Hugo's passionate story of the unfortunate Quasimodo is also a great expose' on how religion controled the masses in those days. While Esmeralda is liked for her dancing and tricks; she is also feared and scorned for being in league with the devil. This is because Frollo the priest who is madly in love with the young gipsy girl has cast her as much. Yet his hypocrisy shines through when later he declares his love for her. As well, notice when Esmeralda is living in the cathedral the priest mad with lust nearly rapes her. Thus he is using his position and power for less then holy deeds. In addition the church held great influence over the justice system. This book is more then a mere love story but a brilliant attack I think on the abuse of power and the evil it brings. I truly enjoyed this production from Naxos with its musical interludes between the text. The reader really brought the characters to life and read the book with the right amount of animation. I highly recommend it for those who love to listen to classical literature then read it. another Naxos production to add to my collection.
this audiobook contains 2 CD'; it features period music along with the reading of the text. The Naxos version is also available on audio cassette.

"The Three Musketeers", "Frankenstein", "Around the world in 80 days", all those samples of nineteenth century literature have become true icons of popular culture in our time. Acknowledging that, I decided to read the literary works that originated some of those cultural concepts, in order to better understand their true meaning. That's how I decide to read "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". This little review is based on my impressions on this great piece from Victor Hugo. Since the high quality of "Hunchback" is universally accepted, a text intended to prove that Hugo's work is a good book would be truly pointless. Rather. this review is meant to comment on why it would be interesting for readers going beyond the popular imagery generally surrounding this important piece of literature and actually reading it.

Though I've read an English version of the book, I know the original French title reads just "Notre Dame". That's probably because the focus of the story is not really Quasimodo, the deaf and deformed hunchback in charge of ringing the bells of Notre Dame. The true main character in the book is the cathedral itself. In the story, this edifice is in the center of a series of plots that help to portray medieval Paris.

In fact, one could approach "Hunchback" as a true history treaty, due to extensive descriptions of the medieval city and explanations on medieval culture that the scholar Victor Hugo included on his work.

However, in Hugo's romanticized portrait of a Paris of times gone by, it's possible to list some characters that stand out as true key figures in the drama. Those most outstanding in the book's plot are the aforementioned Quasimodo; Dom Claude Frolo, the taciturn Archdeacon of notre Dame and Quasimodo's foster parent; La Esmeralda, the gypsy girl, who seems to enchant all around her with her charm; Gringoire a foolish and impoverished poet and Captain Phoebus, a selfish and feeble spirited nobleman who holds a position of military officer.

Another misleading notion about "Hunchback" is the belief that it's some sort of gothic version of "Beauty and the Beast", staring the bestial Quasimodo and beautiful La Esmeralda. Quasimodo indeed falls deeply and thoroughly in love with the pretty gypsy, yet, the only feelings her beloved can offer in return are pity, gratitude and tenderness. Despite that, the lady never quite overcomes a deep feeling of disgust towards the bell ringer's hideous figure. Contrary to what many might think, this book is not some mild hearted fable about love and kindness overcoming exterior appearance. In addition to being a historical study about medieval Paris, this piece of literature is an amazing essay on human wickedness. The book is a powerful portrait of several manifestations of evil in the hearts of people. Because of some twists and turns in the story, all those samples of human cruelty portrayed end up being channeled against poor la Esmeralda, causing the complete undoing of she who is the only truly good hearted character in the whole book. Among the examples of how evil can manifest in human's hearts present in the piece's pages, there is the case of Dom Claude who, torn between celibacy and lustful feelings for the gypsy girl, nourishes a love for La Esmertalda stained by mortal hate towards her. There are the towns people who, while charmed at the little gypsy who make dancing performances on the streets to collect some spare change, also despise her for being a vagabond and supposedly a sorceress. There are the officials of law who ruthlessly and mercilessly ensue penalties of torture and deaf under the most improbable accusations. We also see Phoebus, a petty and vulgar man used to taking advantage of women for the sake of his own sexual satisfaction, who, although does not perform any evil toward others, is responsible for the most tragic events just for omitting himself in face of the distress of others. This huge gallery of malefice conspires to bring La Esmeralda her doom, and the only one who comes forth to protect her against such a dark state of affairs is the crippled hunchback Quasimodo. This book conveys a rich yet dark portrait o human psique. Therefore it is truly not advisable to draw from its story a script for some light hearted animated movie for children.

As a final remark, it's important to reinforce that though one might think that is well acquainted with the concept of the popular icon "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", the piece of literature that has given rise to it can prove to be much richer than any preconceived notions we might have about it. The purpose of this tiny review is to provide a very brief idea of what one can expect to find by actually reading this great book.

I knew they would never be a sequel to Alan Moore's classic comic series "The Watchmen" (and I wish Frank Miller had let well enough alone with "The Dark Knight Returns"), but certainly "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" is a kindred spirit in key regards. If the Watchmen were supposed to be superheroes that we recognized, even though we had never seen them before, then the League offers up recognizable fictional characters that we have never seen together before. Going back a century for inspiration, Moore creates a Pax Britannia circa 1898 where the "superheroes" are fictional characters who had been created by that particular point in time, to wit: Mina Murray (Harker) from Bram Stoker's "Dracula," Captain Nemo from Jules Verne's "20,000 Leagues Beneath the Sea," Alan Quartermain from H. Rider Haggard's "King Solomon's Mines," and the titular characters of Robert Louis Stevenson's "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" and H. G. Wells' "The Invisible Man." There is also reason to believe that "M," the shadowy figure who orders the League about, might in fact be Mycroft Holmes (and if you do not know what literary series he is from then just totally forget about enjoying this series).

If that, in and of itself, is not enough of a hook to get your interested in checking out this collection of the first comic book adventure of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen let me remind you that Alan Moore is doing the writing. The artwork by Kevin O'Neill is certainly evocative of the turn of the last century, or, more to the point, does not look like a contemporary superhero comic book. Moore and O'Neill also maintain a wonderful conceit throughout the series of presenting the comics as being published at the time of the story, filled with wonderful "ads" that are often as interesting as the story (one of which actually required the initial print run of one of the issues to be destroyed, a story you will have to find related elsewhere, patient reader).

Moore's intention was to deal with a superhero group before all the clichés were established (again, similar to how "The Watchmen" was in a different reality unencumbered by the DC and Marvel universes). Seeing an obvious parallel between the Hulk and Jekyll/Hyde, Moore let his imagination roam in his alternate, technically more advanced version of Victorian London. The more you know about literary history from this period (e.g., Emile Zola's Nana is killed in the Rue Morgue by Hyde), the more you will enjoy all this work. But this first adventure for the League still works if late 19th-century fiction is not your forte. British Intelligence has discovered that cavorite, a material that makes flying machines possible, has been stolen by a mysterious Chinese figure (Oh, come on, take a wild guess who it has to be). Campion Bond of MI5 has been ordered to assemble a team of adventurers to retrieve the cavorite, which is crucial to the race to get to the Moon.

"The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" is really much more fun than we usually associate with Moore's work. Certainly his tongue has never been further in his cheeks than with this series. The first three issues of Volume 2 have seen the light of day so far this year and if you read through this original endeavor you can quickly get up to speed with the current adventure. Just remember it is 1898 and Britannia waives the rules...

The first story is a graphic novel which pits Jules Verne's Captain Nemo, HG Well's Invisible Man, H. Rider Haggard's Allan Quatermain, Robert L. Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll AND Bram Stoker's Minna Murray against an evil force, a crimelord so powerful that he may end up destroying much of London if not stopped. The setting is placed in the late 19th century England, but a slightly twisted verison, lovingly detailed and illustrated by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill.
The second story places Allan Quatermain in a story with HP Lovecraft's Randolph Carter, Edgar Rice Burrough's John Carter and HG Well's Time Traveller. The setting is that of a story from Lovecraft, with unknown dangers and fear from beyond reality. The story is very much in the style of a serial, with a cliffhanger at the end of each chapter and every chapter starting off with a few paragraphs to give you background information, as if you have been waiting weeks for the next issue! The second story happens before the great adventures and events of the first, so you may wish to even start with that one first. Both hint as great things to come.
I can't wait for the second volume!

In 1998, Alan Moore - celebrated author of WATCHMEN and FROM HELL, among other modern comic classics - created his own imprint: America's Best Comics. ABC featured five titles, all authored entirely by Moore. This experiment yielded terrific work like TOP 10, PROMETHEA and the near-perfect homage to the adventure writings of yesteryear, THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN. This collection (Volume One) brings together the first six issues of TLOEG, a complete story arc that stands perfectly well on its own, but leaves the reader wanting much, much more.

The central conceit behind Moore's story is that the great heroes and villains of late-19th century adventure fiction all coexist in the same universe. The league of extraordinary gentlemen to which the title refers consists of such diverse figures as Dr. Jekyll, Hawley Griffin (also known as the tragic protagonist of HG Wells's THE INVISIBLE MAN, Captain Nemo from 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA, and H. Rider Haggard's Allan Quatermain. Brought together under the leadership of the iron-willed Mina Murray by Campion Bond and the mysterious "M," this motley bunch of misfits, madmen and over-the-hill heroes will face the direst threats against the safety of the British Empire.

TLOEG is thick with literary references. The heroes are all drawn from classic adventure literature, as mentioned, as are the villains and even some of the incidental characters. The detective-protagonist of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" makes an appearance, while the narrative drops hints of Jules Verne's AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, and more. Moore's work rewards the reader for being well read, but doesn't demand it. As a result, TLOEG can be enjoyed on many levels.

As with all of Alan Moore's comic creations, TLOEG defies easy categorization. Pseudoscience butts up against the supernatural and pulpy action, never giving completely away to any of them. The gestalt works incredibly well. Once one accepts the basic premise, the plot races along with nary a hitch. Artist Kevin O'Neill's illustration is as dense and textured as Moore's scripts, meaning that TLOEG is a delight for the eyes as well as the mind. And lest one think that TLOEG is all gimmickry, Moore is as proficient at handling the various "borrowed" characters as he is in twisting the storyline. Even readers unfamiliar with the more obscure protagonists will be able to connect with them, thanks to Moore's assured writing.

The volume concludes with a cliffhanger and a prequel of sorts, featuring Allan Quatermain in a twenty-two-page short story (profusely illustrated, of course) called "Allan and the Sundered Veil." This short story, like the included six issues of TLOEG, features another collection of literary figures in support of the intrepid Quatermain. Also like the graphic portion of the volume, it leaves the reader with broad hints about what adventures lie ahead, but only hints. The rest of the heroes' exploits will have to wait until Volume Two.

Moore does an excellent job of blending the legend of Coyote, Crow history and folklore, and reservation life into this funny and lighthearted tale about Sam Hunter, who runs away from his Indian heritage and invents a new life for himself until Coyote, the Indian God trickster shows up to wreak havoc on his life, putting into action a series of events that cause Sam to face his past.

The story moves fast and I enjoyed the writing style. I read The Lust Lizard of Melancholy Cove, and this book is MUCH better.

Well worth reading.

Moore has written another interesting story. This book isn't as funny and bizarre as some of his others. But, once you get into the story line you will find yourself intrigued by the Crow life. This story revolves around a character named Sam, who is a Crow Indian. The story develops with the coyote god coming into Sam's life at the same time as a breath taking woman. His life is turned upside down and the plot just thickens. A great read that will keep you guessing.

Since my son is in Native American Studies, this book quickly caught my eye. Mr. Moore's Trickster Coyote "helping" Sam straighten out his life..and the predicaments it gets them into left me holding my sides with laughter at times. Be prepared for suspense, romance, horror and humor and to have a ROFL experience when reading this or any of the four books Chris Moore has written

In simple words - a great book. If you are looking to dive into some serious developing with PHP, this book could definitely help you find a path.

Pros:
- ammount of code as example
- in depth real world case studies
- the presentation of the book
- programmer to programmer approach

Could have:
- more about XML and PHP but you could buy 'Professional PHP4 XML'.
- more about the PHP's multimedia capabilities but again the book 'Professional PHP4 Multimedia Programming' is present.

I am not promoting Wrox Press but they did a great job on this PHP thing. I would expect them to present something with in depth coverage of PHP and Databases.

With the book market flooded with compendia on PHP and MySQL,
I have been looking avidly around for a PHP book with coverage on PostgreSQL and ODBC.
This book has come at the right time for me - It covers the functionality aspects of MySQL,
PostgreSQL and ODBC - MS access and SQL server, through a common application that
runs through each of these chapters. I must admit however that the application was not high-end, but
it served very well the purpose of demonstrating the functionality of each database with PHP. I further
appreciated the use of GTK to develop a standalone app for the same database application. I am looking
forward to buying more of these common-theme-thread books - It has really helped me to good effect.

I have read several books on PHP, but found this one particularly interesting because of the well structured-ness of the content.
All the topics are fit in a logical progression and i could feel myself gaining more knowledge at each progressive step. However, individual chapters did not help me become an expert in that area, but i felt justified with the money i spent on 974 pages of quality PHP reading.

In this fantastic debut, Moore creates a group of hilarious characters, including the unlikely duo Travis and Catch. Travis is a svelte looking 100-year-old man and Catch is his invisible demon companion who can only be seen by others when he is eating. When the two arrive in the seaside town of Pine Cove, a local man known as The Breeze becomes Catch's first meal. Moore introduces you to the other bizarre inhabitants of Pine Cove who all become involved in trying to take control of Catch or send him back to the Netherworld. The only thing you know for sure is that none of their lives will ever be the same. Christopher Moore has secured his place among my favorite authors and I cannot wait to read more of his zany adventures.

I read this book in one day, that's how much I liked it! You aren't going to "learn" anything, or come to any philosophical revelations reading this book, however, you will laugh a lot and you will have fun. Christopher Moore is an entertaining, intelligent and witty author! I cannot wait to read more from this gifted writer!

"Practical Demonkeeping" is the funniest book I have read in ages. Christopher Moore is such a welcome change from all the other tired, un-hip authors who somehow keep managing to get published. I recommend this story wholeheartedly to anyone who craves weird but lovable characters. Or anybody who just loves a happy ending. Without giving away too much, I must say that the human characters are surprisingly modern but not mainstream and while fantastic, are totally recognizable. As for the supernatural characters, their personalities are very fixed, evolved and side splittingly funny. I'm sure that when I meet other Moore fans, all I will have to say is "Excuse me, but could I trouble you for a pinch of salt" to send them into gales of hysterical laughter. On one hand, I'd like everyone to read this wonderful, truly original story; on the other, I'd like to keep it and Christopher Moore all to myself. If you are a goth, Goddess worshipper, horror fan, hippie, stoner, philosopher, twisted or have ever spent time in Northern California, you HAVE to read this book.