As stated in the title, this book contains the complete score for all 6 Brandenburg Concerti and all 4 Orchestral Suites by Bach. Parts are not included nor are they available separately from Dover.

It is in modern notation with very clear, dark printing. It is a large-format (approx. 8 1/2 x 11) paperback book and is bound like most paperbacks.

As with all Dover Editions, it is very easy to read and follow the music, but it was not designed as a performing score. Because of the binding (it won't lie flat) and because no attention was given to page turns, it is very difficult to play from. But if you wish to study the music or follow the score while listening to your favorite recording, you can't beat this edition for the money.

I recall reading that when Messaien was captured by the Germans during World War II, one of the few musical references he had in the POW camp was a score to Bach's BRANDENBURG CONCERTOS. The POW camp, of course, was where Messaien wrote his masterpiece QUARTET FOR THE END OF TIME. Owning this score won't guarantee the production of further masterpieces, but it is a valuable source of information. This edition also includes the ORCHESTRAL SUITES, as well as a preface that details the discrepancies between various editions of these works.

The Codex Mysterium gives you an alternative magic system to drop into any D20 or D&D campaign. If you don't like the standard D&D magic system, take a look. It also includes rules for creating your own spells. (NB: Actual RULES for creating spells, not just guidelines and suggestions.)

One complaint: They duplicated almost everything from the base Sovereign Stone book that you need to use this magic system in your own campaign except for one thing: The basic spells that are in the base book. There's plenty of new spells in the Codex, but you'll probably want the one's from the base book too.

The Codex Mysterium provides a good system for replacing the basic D20 system. I've never liked AD&D's memorizing spells, and have often come up with home-grown systems or use other third party systems. The problem is, memorized spells just don't match the way most fiction portrays magic. You never get to the point where you can just do simple spells with a thought, like you can with the GURPS system.

The Codex's system provides the ability to get to that point, and does it without sacrificing game balance. It balances the ability to cast unlimited spells per day with the chance of failure and a potential cost in hit points for overdoing it.

Who'd have thought some guy from Oklahoma would write this pithy discussion of business in Vietnam? Few books exist on this topic but Mr. Chambers has written the kind of honest, straightforward business book we need more of.

This is a well written and informative guide. It is much better written, and much more insightful, than most books of its kind. It is very useful for any person thinking of doing business in Vietnam...in fact, I would call it "essential".

Among the things I look for in a score is the readability of the music itself. The larger the better, though smaller print is acceptable in most classical and earlier pieces and a few Romantic pieces. Not so in Mahler's gigantic symphonies. I feel that the score should be the full size of some of scores of his later symphonies (Dover). There were times where I had to squint or look twice to see the score properly.

That is my only problem with the score. These are two wonderful works and, unlike other composers, Mahler isn't beginning but nearing the peak of his symphonic powers with these "early" works.
This is score is wonderful for music lovers and students alike for it's accessibility and low price.

The early symphonies of Gustav Mahler show the heavy influence of the works of Richard Wagner. The pastorale first movement of the Symphony No.1 in D Major, the Titan, is particularly noteworthy in the way Mahler paints with music. The movement slowly builds to a thunderous climax when the brass enter with resplendent glory. This is followed by two movements that are reminiscient of folk melodies--including the inverted, minor-mode theme from Frère Jacques. It is concluded with a thunderous finale. The second symphony in c minor continues a powerful motif that now adds the power of the human voice. The thunderous finale of this symphony brings together a massive orchestra with chorus. Imagine 10 French horns, 8 trumpets, 4 trombones and a tuba proclaiming a glorius finish. Definitely a wonderful buy!

What can I say? I'm a Potter fanatic, and I jumped to buy the Movie Poster book as soon as it came out. The posters are beautifully done and cover a wide range of scenes. There are headshots of Harry, Ron, and Hermione, a scene from Gringotts, and even Ron and Harry at Christmas.

If you have seen the first and second trailors for the film, then you won't being seeing many new things. That's why I only gave it 4 stars. Personally, I think that it is worth getting the Poster Book just to see the first picture released of Harry in his Quidditch uniform. I also enjoyed a shot of Dumbledore visiting Harry in the Hospital Wing.

The casting for the film was excellent, and the pictures in the book only support that fact. Each character matches the wonderful descriptions that JK Rowling provides in all four books.

As I said before, your not seeing much new, but the book is money well spent. This way you don't have to wait 2 hours to download the trailor or pay for a movie ticket just to see the trailor! It will be there in your library to view again and again.

The second Harry Potter poster book brings you huge, glossy photos from the "Chamber of Secrets" film. There are posters of your favorite Harry Potter characters (castmembers dressed up in costume) and great film scenes. You can cut them out of the poster book if you'd like and hang them up but they are just as fun to look at by flipping through the book. The photos are not the same ones that you keep on seeing on every single Harry Potter site--a lot of them are rare ones that can only be found in this poster book. If you're a huge Harry Potter fan and can't wait for the "Chamber of Secrets" film to open, then this poster book is a must.

I highly recommend the "Chamber of Secrets" poster book.

Score:
100/100
A+

The "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" Movie Poster Book is an excellent addition to any Harry Potter fan's collection. The posters are high quality; slighltly glossy, nicely sized, and has a clean and crisp finish to the photos. Many of the posters are collages, which I really liked because they are done in such a nice way. My entire household (that would be three younger sisters and two parents) all love Harry Potter, so of course we all ran out to get our own copies! I suggest saving this booklet (or buying two, the price is great), because it will defintely become more valuable as the years go on since Harry Potter is destined to be popular years from now!

Whittaker Chambers still arouses great passions. He accused Alger Hiss (and others) of spying for the Soviet Union and claims he knew that it was true because he was himself a communist spy and was Hiss's contact. But that story, while a part of this book, isn't the focus of this magnificent book. You can read that story in Allen Weinstein's "Perjury" (which also arouses strong emotions).

The story of Chambers' life is also told by Chambers himself in his powerful autobiography "Witness". His life is a rather involved tale, and though the spy story is why Chambers became famous (infamous) it isn't reason why he is important. It is hard to recapture the vast esteem in which Stalin and the Soviet Union were held by the "literate" classes in American Society. But it doesn't take too much reading to peel back current revisionist writing that pretends the left rejected Stalin. It wasn't so. They loved Uncle Joe at the time of the Hiss case.

Chambers was a well regarded editor at Henry Luce's Time magazine. When he admitted his role in spying for the USSR and International Communism it represented the initial break in the dam.

Chambers was pessimistic about the West surviving a mortal struggle with Communism. He is often linked with McCarthy, but he thought McCarthy's recklessness more of a benefit to the other side.

Chambers' autobiography "Witness" was an important best seller and is still in print. In it Chambers pours out his conscience and how his atheism turned to a deep faith and why that turned him against the movement he had embraced and had helped prosper through his gifts as a writer and editor.In this amazing book.

In this wonderful biography, Tannenhaus gives us context for all of this and so much more detail as well as verification (and refutation) of claims made by and about Chambers. This book is beautifully written and carefully researched. The author shows great judgment and insight into all of the issues involved in this rich life at the extremes of human philosophy.

It is wrong to condemn this book and its author because of anger with Chambers. It is beyond all doubt that the thrust of Chambers' story was the truth. In fact, it is the truth in all but a few details. Tannenhaus is the reporter of fact and wishes that reality were different cannot change the facts. What is the old saying? You are entitled to your own interpretations, but not your own facts.

We owe Tannenhaus a great deal for putting such wonderful talent and years of hard work in giving us this outstanding book. This book was the subject of a great interview on Booknotes and is still available online.

I'd like to thank first Sam Tanenhaus for writing a fascinating, richly educational book and second Don Imus for motivating me to buy and read it.

Tanenbaum effectively recounts the truly remarkable story of Whittacker Chambers' life and the dramatic political events in which Chambers was embroiled. Among other achievements, the author illuminates one of the most divisive political events in America in this century, the Hiss-Chambers dispute, and does so without preaching to the reader or falling back on tired political rhetoric. You will be rewarded with not only a terrific reading experience, but a much deeper understanding of America's recent past (and present). So don't hesitate. Just go ahead and buy and read the book. You won't regret it.

My only caution: This book can cause ripples in your home life. My wife and three young kids felt neglected for a time, because I just couldn't put the book down.

I've had just read an original copy of Chambers' autobiography Witness when I had purchased this book. It was a real eye opener to the real communist threat in the 20th century. This is an excellent companion to the autobiography of Whittaker Chambers (Witness.) The prolific writer and journalist Sam Tanenhaus does an excellent job at creating an impression of Mr. Chambers. I think those interested in the Chambers-Hiss affair will also be interested in: The Black Book of Communism; The Hollywood Party; and Arthur Herman's biography of Sen. Joseph McCarthy.

I now own 24-Carat Commericals for kids, and Magnificent Monologues for kids and I am one happy acting teacher! For the past 15 years I have been in the acting business doing commercials, movies, theatre etc. Everytime I took an acting class there were always plenty of scenes and monologues to choose from. But when I started teaching children this past spring I began to realize that good contemporary material for kids was hard to come by. I made a few purchases from Amazon.com and Manificent Monoluges for Kids was one of them. Needless to say the kids waited in line to use this book to select a monolgue rather than use the others. I have my own children (ages 6 & 9) and just reading through some of the dialogue I realized that Chambers Stevens knew how to connect with kids. When I received the commercial book I knew within 10 minutes that it was a winner. Chambers is making my job as a teacher easier and much more fun!

Please put me on the waiting list for Sensational Scenes for Kids, Sensatational Scenes for Teens, and Stand-up Comedy for Kids

I recently came across MAGNIFICENT MONOLOGUES FOR KIDS when my daughter's agent got her an audition for the National Touring company of ANNIE. She was required to do a monologue so my husband and I bought a couple of Monologue books. Well MAGNIFICENT MONOLOGUES was by far the best. Our daughter liked so many of them she had a hard time making up her mind which one to audition with. Long Story short my daughter got a callback! Great book

I am in seventh grade and I like this book because it helps kids who want to become actors or actresses. The monologues are easy to read and fun to act out. My favorite monologue is "Craig." It is about a boy who goes to summer camp and his parents have deserted him. Maybe that will be your favorite monologue but you have to buy the book first.

A Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man is not an easy read by any means, but it is a worthwhile read by all means. The plot focuses on the growth and development of Stephen Dedalus, an intelligent Irish boy born into a poor family. One of the most interesting features of the book is that it is considered to be a "self-portrait of the artist" by most experts. The events of author James Joyce's life mirror those of young Dedalus well. This makes for a fascinating read considering Joyce's prominent position in the writing world.
The writing styles and techniques Joyce uses are expert. The writing level begins at a level that a small child would use, and increases in sophistication through the book as Dedalus grows older and becomes more educated. The pinnacle of the writing is Dedalus' narration about his theories of art and beauty near the end of the book, about the time he is to leave the university and Ireland altogether. The beautiful language of the narration is a work art by its own merit, and I highly recommend reading it whether or not you read The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man in its entirety.
Among the various things to look for while reading "Portrait" are the reoccurring images of water, birds, and the colors white and red. Specifically, pay attention to Dedalus' perceptions of these things, and how his perceptions change as the book moves forward. Two other common topics surfacing throughout the novel are politics and religion. Ever since a bitter argument about politics and religion broke out among his family at Christmas dinner, Dedalus has been wary of the subjects. This makes for conflict because the church and politics are at the forefront of the educated minds he is associating with.
Lastly, when reading this book, consider how it relates Irish nationalism and Ireland's struggle to find its place in the world of art and culture. Although this is not such an obvious theme, it is interesting to note how many of the characters are concerned with what Ireland is, where it is going, and how best to improve it.
Because the reading can be so heavy in The Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man, I recommend referring to some sort of an explanatory or summary essay to supplement your reading...

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, by James Joyce is the story of a young man struggling to grow up and rise above the political, religious, and patriotic cords that bind him down. The book begins with Stephen reflecting on his childhood until he grows up to be a man with his own views. The story takes place in Ireland when there was much confusion in religion and politics. Stephen Dedalus was raised in a very patriotic home, which was also devoutly Catholic. Stephen, however, struggles with the strong views of his family and church. He doesn't quite know if he agrees with everyone around him. Throughout his life Stephen and his family have to move to different houses because of financial problems. This also causes Stephen to have to change schools, and become involved with different types of people. While he is changing schools externally, internally he is also changing; he is becoming a young man with ideas uniquely his own. Growing up is a great challenge for Stephen, he is thrown into many different situations and has people all around him trying to tell him what to think, and what to do with his life. He goes from having his first unexpected sexual relationship to feeling the awful guilt of his sins. Then he goes from wanting to become a priest to realizing that all he wants to do is get out of Ireland, and become his own expressive, unique self through art. He is not close minded to what people tell him, but he doesn't agree with what they tell him and he doesn't feel that it is for him. There is great symbolism and imagery in this book. There is a current theme of water and of birds. It is as if Stephan admires the birds, but they are also those in which "pull out his eyes ". They pull out his eyes because he wants so badly to be a bird and fly away, but can't because too many things are preventing him from flying away. Stephen wants to rise above the water and the filth of his life, this water and filth can be considered the church and political issues that occupy his and his family's lives. He wants to become like Dedalus and build himself wings to fly away; in the end of the book he does fly away, and a new life awaits him.

The strikingly beautiful language of James Joyce provides readers with page after page of scrumptious poetic prose describing more of thoughts and reactions to implied situations within the novel. Portrait of an Artist is not so much the story of young Stephen Daedalus as it is an expression of the feelings of a young man facing an internal struggle between religion and aesthetics. As the prose of the novel grow along with its young protagonist readers are able to see the progression of a small child into a strong young man. Joyce instead of telling readers the story provides them with the sensations and feelings of Stephen as he grows allowing the story to be merely implied and absorbed by the reader. Although many parts of the novel may be difficult to understand, as readers are not always sure exactly what is happening because of Joyce's style, the beauty of the prose itself is a major part of what makes Portrait of an Artist such a fantastic piece of literature.
The struggle of young Stephen between his creative side and the rough political and religious expectations of his family and nation can also be seen by Joyce's choice in the name of his character. The relation of Stephen Daedalus to the mythical Daedalus who created wings to escape the Leviathan is weaved throughout the novel through Joyce's use of bird imagery. The reader can see the progression of the young hero as he strives to create his own wings to escape the oppression he comes to feel from religion and even patriotic devotion. One of the most beautiful passages of the entire book is the epiphanatic moment when Stephen sits on the beach and notices a beautiful young woman standing in the surf. Joyce describes this exquisite young girl by using language one might use when describing a beautiful bird. She represents the beauty and creativity Stephen has felt guilty for desiring all his life because of the strong influence his religion has had on him. Stephen's realization at seeing this girl is one of the major steps in his attempt to create his own wings and fly away.
This masterpiece of James Joyce's, although fictional, draws heavily on experiences from the author's life. It touches on many meaningful themes all mainly related to coming of age as Joyce takes readers through many of his own youth experiences. The real genius of the novel is a technique called stream-of-consciousness that Joyce was one of the pioneering developers of during his time. From the baby talk and infantile perception Joyce presents at the beginning of his novel to the elevated and intellectual ideals Stephen presents during his time at the university, this style of writing enhances the experience for the reader as they are literally inside the main character's thoughts although the narration is not in the first person. This adds to the experience, as the reader is able to struggle along with Stephen as he attempts to rise above the imposition of family, peers, religion and politics. The journey throughout the novel is a story of a young man who comes of age and eventually finds his directions in life as he strive to become an artist in a world dominated by rigid things.

It is very difficult to speak in different voices. After all, you are but one person. Some writers can do it, and do it brilliantly (like Barbara Kingsolver in The Poisonwood Bible). Michael Dorris did not manage to clearly separate the voices of all of his characters. Maybe it is because there were so many. There are two clear camps in this book: the strong-willed woman and the patsy man. It would be conceivable that all the women had a similar voice, and that all the men had a similar voice. However, I found that the tone was very similar for all characters, men and women alike.

The story, as a whole, is very entertaining, and definitively a complement of A Yellow Raft in Blue Water (which by the way is better written, in my opinion).

A few more comments:

Why didn't Marcella and Edna ever figure out that their mother had been in love with their uncle? After all, there were plenty of clues.

I was confused with the age of the girls. On page 117, Edna says, "Years ago, before Papa got sick, I had visited the Ursuline convent in Samaria, Kentucky, on a seventh-grade outing..." That would make her 12 years old. Then, on page 118, she continues: "The summer of 1930, the seventh year after Papa died, I was nineteen and Marcella was two years younger". That would also make her 12 years old when her father died (19 - 7 = 12). But there is a contradiction, because she cannot be 12 " before Papa got sick..." and 12 when her father died. Why didn't an editor pick up on this?

I also did not like Marcella's conversation with her son in pages 203 and up. She confesses to living her life as a whole act. The Marcella they all see, that's not who she really is. She only plays the part of the ditty, happy-go-lucky sister. This is unbelievable. This is something that you would expect to see in a spy movie, where someone lives undercover among regular people who have no idea. But not a dear lady in Kentucky, come on.

I came to this book without connecting it to the story I had read some time ago of the author's suicide. Neither had I read 'Yellow Raft'. As such, my view was relatively free from preconceptions. I liked Cloud Chamber a lot. No doubt, the plot is compelling and nicely paced - if read without demands the book makes a fine, literary plane or train read. Stylistically, I felt the book's structure of rotating tale-telling between the major characters from chapter to chapter provided a neat framework on which to hang a multigenerational novel without it becoming too Michener-like. Dorris covers a lot of ground while being able to give us some fine psychological detail. An intriguing feature of his prose style is that though each separate voice preserves its individuality and distinctiveness, a skilled, unified lyrical tone is preserved throughout. We do not feel that the delicate surface texture becomes awkward or inappropriate in the mouth of even the harsher characters such as Rose. Some of the historical detailing is beautiful, such as the way the women use the Bible as a "fortune-telling" tool, or the treatment of the sisters consumption. I liked Cloud Chamber best for its quiet, unassuming illumination of the sisters interior lives. Dorris does a wonderful job of giving these anxious, devout women real voices without resorting to melodrama or stereotyping. Where its weaknesses are manifest are in the intended unity provided by the "curse" of Rose Mannion, and in the overreaching of including quite so many races to represent the American melting pot. For me, these themes ultimately proved a little clumsy. Overall, though, I can recommend this book as an enjoyable yarn with some lovely portraiture. Read it in a couple of sittings and be entertained - don't expect a profound life lesson.

Dorris picks up Rayona, the multi-hyphenated character who began his best selling novel, "A Yellow Raft in Blue Water" again in his latest novel. This time, he begins with Rayona's great-grandmother Rose Manion, a beautiful, strong-willed Irish woman who hated one man as much as she desired him and cost him his life. She also ruined the life of the man who loved her. Their tale, and that of their sons, and their half-black grandson, and ultimately, Rayona's make for powerful reading. Dorris is such a skillful writer, that he writes each story in first person, changing to match each character's age, gender and the dialect of the era. Some passages bear frequent rereading. His study of Native American cultures pays off in writing of Rayona and her name-change ceremony. However, the book's flaw is that Dorris gives us too little to like about anyone and we yearn for one character to really identify with. His women are strong and cruel; his men are weak and sometimes unconvincingly devoted to these women. Too often the novelist gives way to scientist, merely tracking the particles in the cloud chamber. All in all it's a good read, however, and his prose is matchless

By the time I reached the end of this fascinating work, I was convinced of Hiss's guilt. However, the book is tedious in spots, and the reader occasionally finds himself drowning in the overwhelming documentation that the author plows through in such detail. Weinstein deserves praise for never succumbing to bias as he explores every possible detail of this case which became a political fault line. Having never read a book on this trial, I was struck by the free ride which the mainstream media appears to have given Alger Hiss over the years. Having neither the law nor the facts on his side, Hiss decided to destroy his opponent, Whittaker Chambers. Hiss never offered even a ghost of an explanation for the evidence that accumulated against him. While there were many undeserving victims of the witch hunt for communists during the 1950's, Weinstein proves that Alger Hiss was not among them.

This is one of *the* books that made me want to become a historian. It's a miracle of research and writing. Weinstein started out as a left-wing partisan who wanted to prove Hiss innocent, and he received blessings from the man himself. But as he dug deeper and deeper, the professor discovered the remains of the secret world of Soviet espionage in America, and became convinced that Hiss was guilty. And he proves it in a tour-de-force of historical analysis: I would go so far as to say their is really no reasonable doubt left. This new edition contains the evidence of the recently declassified "Venona" Soviet documents that were decoded by the CIA at the time. One can argue about the wisdom of keeping such damning evidence secret for so long, but their release now puts the last nail in the coffin of the ill-considered faith of those who still, after everything, mock Whittaker Chambers. The writing of this book affected Weinstein so much he left academia to set up a foundation to help the U.S. goverment build democracy around the world. He recently wrote a sequel, "The Haunted Wood", about the history of Soviet espionage in the U.S. during the '30's and '40's.

In 1948, lawyer Alger Hiss made what was arguably the biggest mistake of his life: he sued Whittaker Chambers. Chambers had publicly accused Hiss of having been a Communist Party member, Soviet spy, and agent of influence. Unfortunately for Hiss, Chambers had saved some of the material Hiss passed him for transmission to Soviet Military Intelligence. Alger Hiss ended up in prison, was disbarred, and spent the rest of his life trying to convince people a fantastic conspiracy had framed him.

In 1971, Hiss made a mistake almost as large: he let an honest man look at his defense files. Historian Allen Weinstein had previously believed that Hiss was innocent. But when he read what Hiss's lawyers said in private, and what FBI agents had written J. Edgar Hoover, he found there was no reasonable doubt possible anymore. Hiss had spied for the Soviets, and Chambers had usually told the truth to the best of his ability. Chambers had sometimes lied, but only when he attempted to minimize Hiss's guilt -- and his own, for Chambers had secrets about himself to protect, and a well founded fear of being the messenger killed for bearing bad news.

PERJURY is a fascinating account of two complex men, best friends who became mortal enemies when one split with Stalinism, and the other remained faithful. The lives of Alger Hiss and Whittaker Chambers would have been interesting even if they had never met or publicly clashed. Their long duel caught them in "A tradegdy of History," as Chambers put it. PERJURY tells that story better than anyone before or since. It's a masterpiece of historical detective work.

When it was published originally, all but the die hard apologists for Stalinism conceded Hiss's guilt. The new edition has recently released material from the National Security Agency's Venona decryptions, and the KGB's Moscow files that destroy even the unreasonable doubts. Highest recommendation.