Michael Freeman's guide covers over fifty Khmer temples in Thailand and Laos, plus the border temples in Cambodia. (Angkor is not included; see the book "Ancient Angkor," by the same author, for complete information on Angkor.)

The temples and their major features are described with quite a bit of detail for the major temples, and not so much detail for the less important ones. The book has all the features one would wish for in a good guidebook - maps, site plans, floor plans of the major temples, color photogaphs (Freeman is both the author and the photographer of the guide), hotels, restaurants, and transportation. The first 50 pages give some very useful background on architecture, lintel styles, and the chronology of the temples. Suggested itineraries, temple rankings, and a glossary of general and architectural terms are also provided.

According to the inside front cover, the Weatherhill edition on which I based this review was published in 1998, apparently with the same content as the original edition of 1996. I don't know if any more recent editions are available. The book's staying in print for over 7 years is proof of its popularity and usefulness. However, since things change rapidly in that part of the world, the reader may want to consider purchasing a more recent guide for up-to-date practical information. Freeman's guide, however, is still highly recommended for the core information that it provides about the temples themselves.

I've visited many of the temples Michael Freeman describes and have a huge soft spot for Northeast Thailand and Laos. This guide has enhanced my understanding of the places I've visited and provided some great incentives to visit more. I wish the guide had been available when I first started visiting the Khmer temples of Northeast Thailand. Michael Freeman's photographs and commentary are informative and interesting. There are good layouts and drawings of the individual temples and an excellent rating system which highlights not only the architectural and historical importance of the temples but also the setting. The information on how to get to places and where to stay is useful and good for planning an itinerary.

It is obvious the author put a lot of time and effort into this book. The ghost stories are well-researched and there are photographs of each haunted location. Ms. Turnage also provides a lot of additional useful information such as telephone numbers, e-mail addresses and rates. I can't wait to visit some of the haunted inns and plan to do so within the next few months. I am particularly interested in the St. James Hotel in Selma, Ala., said to be haunted by Jesse James, a lady named Lucinda, and a phantom dog.

If you like to travel and are interested in the subject of ghosts/spirits, you will enjoy this book highly. This book not only gives you a short history/story behind the various Haunted Inns, but also gives contact information to inquire further and/or make reservations - including webpage addresses when available. Shelia Turnage has put a lot of work and research into this book. She does a great job getting directly to the point describing the hauntings.

The book's introduction is a quick overview on "Things To Know Before You Go", which is informative especially for first time ghost/paranormal researchers.

The trail and access descriptions are accurate. The GPS coordinates were invaluable. I only wish the author had also provided GPS coordinates for some of the sites along the way. There are occassional small lapses in accuracy on the listings of the time it rakes to hike from one milestone to the next. It is useful to complement this guidebook with a comprehensive map such as the TrailsIllustrated series which provides mileage for some of the same routes for which Peter Tassoni provides GPS and times.

I found this excellent book at the library. I was going to Cedar Mesa for a few days the following week with a group of adults and kids from western Colorado. I was not familiar with the area, although I'd lived in Utah for 6 years in the 80's. The author has the hikes divided into car, day, and backpack hikes with ratings for difficulty and time required to complete them. Each hike has a description, as well as GPS info. He has 64 hikes listed. We did one shorter day hike (SF Mule Canyon) on arrival and spent about 3 hours exploring a "car" hike area which had many ruins tucked into the cliffs (Mule Canyon Cave Towers). The ruins were accessible beneath the cliffs, though access is not straight forward, but not dangerous either. In the book the author says there is no route down to these, but we were able to get to them, including my 9 year old daughter. Perhaps he is reluctant to encourage people to climb down to them. If I return to the area, I would purchase this book to plan and use there. I'd also purchase the topo maps. Have fun.

I found this book in the library and after renewing it 3 times figured I'd better just buy it. I've checked out many garden plan books, but this one had the info I needed to plan for different seasons, how the plans would look in a few years, and what I needed to maintain the plants. It's specific to the Southeast so I don't waste time on plants that won't work for me. It's a great idea source and reference.

This book is an excellent guide for the new or veteran homeowner. It's filled with lots of ideas and a variety of plants including trees, shrubs, perennials, groundcovers and a few annuals. It offers a samples of typical planting scenarios for the home landscaper. Identifying each design as good for sun or shade and showing the variations is one of the best features. Seasonal variations are also helpful. But the best feature is that it clearly diagrams the placement of each plant including distance from the structure and distance from each other. Drawings and actual photographs of plants are also helpful. I highly recommend this book for the new or renovating landscaper.

Syndicated columnist Bob Greene heard the stories about anti-war protesters abusing Vietnam veterans, and wondered if they were true. He asked his readers to tell their stories, and then he checked them out. Despite denials from the Left, Greene found that protesters and others did, indeed, spit on and abuse returning veterans. He found the stories so compelling that he compiled them in this fascinating book. I think 'Homecoming' provides valuable perspective on a troubled time in U.S. history.

To be brutally honest, parts of this book reduced me to tears. This book concentrates on the homecoming of the Vietnam Veteran. The author asks the question "were returning soldiers spat upon their arrival to the States". Some answered yes, some answered no and some answered with incidents far more worse than just being spit upon. Out of any book dealing with a homecoming of the Vietnam Veteran, this is the one that I would strongly recommend.

This is the best Ilocano dictionary out there.

The author's love and dedication to the Ilocano language is an accurate reflection of the hardwork over that years that he has put into this impressive and high-quality dictionary.

Not many dictionaries dealing with Philippine languages are as detailed as this one. And not many go great lengths as to include a meaty grammatical sketch, history, and explanation of pronunciation. However, this one does. And very well, I may add.

This dictionary itself is two sections (English & Ilokano). Ilokano words are listed by rootword along with its affixed varieties and their varieties. Entries usually have a Tagalog equivalent and maybe even equivalents in other Philippine languages such as Ibanag, Kankana-ey, Pangasinan, and others.

Since stress plays a significant role in the meaning of Ilocano words, I am very grateful that accent marks have been included.

I also have to mention a comprehensive appendix dealing with charts of "fused" pronouns and verb affix charts. There are even lyrics to popular Ilocano songs such as Pamulinawen, Toy Karayo, and Tontonennaka toy Ayat.

This book is perfect for anyone; be it a tourist visiting the Ilocos region, a person of Ilocano descent, a linguist, a language enthusiast, or even a Filipino who is curious about the language of his or her Ilocano countrymen.

Also, the covering of this book ensures that it will last for a long time.

As an enthusiast of Philippine languages, excellent resources such as this gem come few and far between. I am completely satisfied with this book, and I'm guessing that you probably will, too.

The Ilocano Dictionary and Grammar is the most comprehensive dictionary ever produced for Ilocano (Iloko), the lingua franca of Northern Luzon, and historically the native language of the majority of Filipino immigrants to the United States. The body of the dictionary includes entries for roots and affixes, with illustrative sentences, idioms, proverbs, common derivatives, and scientific names (when applicable). Tagalog, Pangasinan, Ibanag, and Kapampangan equivalents are supplied for high frequency words. Derived words that undergo morphological fusion are listed as separate entries to facilitate lexical searches. There is also an affix cross-reference list to help the beginning student recognize root words. Sources of loan words are indicated. The Grammar (including Phonology, Morphology and Syntax sections) is an version of the author's thesis "A Reference Grammar of Ilocano" rewritten in a pedagogical format. The Appendixes include grammatical charts, maps and traditional Ilocano songs. Layout of Volume: Intro and Grammar (i-lxxxv 85 pages); Ilocano-English (pp. 1-647); English-Ilocano (647-752); Appendixes and Bibliography (752-777).

I was at Fire Support Base Illingsworth on 1 April 1970, April Fools Day, that the author describes in his book. His account is so accurate it was hard for me to read it. I thought back on my experience for days!

Having served as an infantryman in the 2nd of the 8th Cav during 1970, I can attest to the true to life account of 1st Air Cav operations in III Corps as described by the author.

This is by far the most comprehensive work on Vietnam during the past few years.

Previous books looked exclusively at the American aspect of the Vietnam War while others focused only at the Hanoi side. Dommen elucidates the perspectives of all the parties involved in the conflict, namely North and South Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. He thinks the fates of the Indochinese countries are intertwined and the loss of the nationalists to the communists in Laos and Cambodia has adversely affected the war in Vietnam.

Dommen begins his story in 1626, but the fratricidal war actually started in 1600 when duke Nguyen Hoang broke away from the then Thanh Long (Hanoi) regime, settled in present-day central Vietnam. and thus founded South Vietnam. North and South fought against each other for 50 years from 1627 to 1677 followed by one hundred-year peace. It was only in 1778 when the southern general Nguyen Hue reunited the whole country. He unfortunately died young at the age of 40 and another southerner Nguyen Anh reunited the country for the second time in 1802.

Dommen also looks at the war as a struggle between communists and non communist-nationalists that eventually went the communist way. The assassination of President Diem, the US take over of the Vietnam War, Kissinger's machiavellian ploys to extricate the Americans out of Vietnam, and the eventual fate of the nationalists are carefully analyzed. He hopes the latter could recover one day the sovereignty that has been stolen from them by Hanoi, a regime of "mendicity and mendacity."

The author is to be congratulated for his in-depth review of this long and agonizing war, for which many lives have been lost, certainly not in vain. The lessons are still vivid and it is hoped we can learn enough from them to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.

For anyone who wants an accurate, objective, and thorough understanding of 20th century conflict in Indochina, this work is essential. Dommens research is balanced, well planned and documented, and for a change provides a complete picture of the much mis-understood complexities of the conflict. The work is lengthy; a necessity in this case, but for those truly interested will not seem cumbersome. Dommens links Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia together as they should be linked to grasp the subject. Many works are published every month claiming to be full accountings of the Indochina struggle. Dommens literally is. Highly recommended for those truly interested.

This book is clearly a labor of immense scholarship--the author takes on the last fifty years of Indonesian history, and includes in his sweep a magisterial treatment of the country's religion, politics, and cultural layers--but it is, more importantly, a labor of love. Friend intermixes thoughtful and persuasive analysis with chapters about his own trips through the archipelago over the past thirty years. These, along with the many magnificent photographs and illustrations, give a real flavor of the place: its cultural richness and socioeconomic poverty. Truly worth the time it takes to read and ponder.

In a style that ranges from academic to personal, objective to emotional, Friend presents an incisive exploration of Indonesia: its history, its people and culture. It is a remarkable synthesis of historical description and theoretical explanation drawing on many primary sources and departments of knowledge: geography, economics, social theory.

If you ever wanted to understand Indonesia holistically-not simply through the lens of economics or religion, this book should be on your list.

This is an older book, but the info is timeless and very good compared on what is available today.

I have read this book, and allthough it is not the best that I have read, I still enjoyed it very much. I don't know if Michael had a personnal expierence with the LRRP/RANGERS, but he still did an excellent job of depicting the things that many of our young RANGER boys went through. Roadrunner6 out