Astonishing that so many pages of such great writing (and such wonderful, interesting annotations) can be purchased for so little money. We have needed an inexpensive annotated edition of Thoreau's best short prose for a very long time, and this clearly fits the bill. Teachers and students, in particular, will find this book extraordinarily useful. The Thoreau material and annotations alone are extraordinarily valuable, but Hyde's excellent introduction on Thoreau's "Prophetic Excursions" make this the best deal available for a Thoreau book. Buy it; you'll be glad you did!

A neglected comic masterpiece that deserves to be rediscovered, "Esther" features an inspired premise as its plot: a young, free-thinking socialite falls desperately in love with an Episcopal minister. The result is a free-for-all clash of intellects, a confrontation between faith and reason, and the inevitable battle of the sexes.

The marvels of Adams's novel are his remarkably nuanced and fully realized characters. Esther, the free-thinker, wants to share her lover's faith and "is trying to get it by reason"--but doesn't initially understand that a person "can never reason yourself into it." Mr. Hazard, the minister, is confident that he will "succeed in drawing her into the fold, because his lifelong faith, that all human energies belonged to the church, was on trial, and, if it broke down in a test so supreme as that of marriage, the blow would go far to prostrate him forever." Esther's principles of independence and self-education collide with Hazard's desire to steer her into submission as his wife and fellow believer.

But my favorite character is relegated to a supporting role: Catherine, a recent transplant from the frontiers of Colorado, befriends Esther and dazzles New York society with her innocence, naivete, and sincerity. It's never really quite clear, however, whether her simplicity is the genuine article or just a show mocking the pretensions of her admirers. As one of the intellectuals who lightheartedly teases her wonders, there was "a little doubt whether she was making fun of him or he of her, and she never left him in perfect security on this point."

The novel sparkles with banter and quarrels, jokes and ripostes, but any attempt to reproduce the humor in a short review would fall flat: Adams's witticisms are dependent upon context and character. Still, I caught myself laughing out loud often at the book's cleverness and hilarity.

This is one of the best book's I have ever read on the business management of a salon. I am a licensed instructor of cosmetology and have taught an Esthetician's course in California. I have recently moved to Utah and I am licensed in this state as well. I am getting ready to teach a seminar on how to set up your own salon and would love to use this book as a referrence and encourage those who attend to purchase it.

An excellent introduction to the Desert Father's spirituality, lives, and way of life. Great for the beginner or the advanced in the study of God, love, solitude, contemplation, and faith. This should be on the shelf of every church library; Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant, and in the homes of every person who attains to a higher love and true communion with God.

This book is an excellent book. It provides an insight into the working of the dualism of Ming Dynasty. And it also helps to clearify some myths and stereotype of eunuchs. It explains why eunuchs were scapegoat and despised by general Chinese literati. The book show that eunuchs are much of victims of the social struture of China.

This book is a classic. A real monument of culture, produced by this philological mind of the twentieth century. Its pages have consistently revealed the powerful medieval literature, totally breaking the idea of a dead age to literature. His commentary on St. Augustine`s Confessions (chap.IV, rethoric), as well as the excerpt of St. Augustine`s work that he brings to us, are pearls of the literary critic. We can hardly find nowadays an erudit of this kind.
Yes, his work has a lot of problems, maybe even some errors and some avoidable historicism. Yes, his work is an old one. Yes, his bergsonian introduction is boring. Yes, some of his interpretations are doubtful.
But you can`t really pass through the Middle Ages without reading this classic.

This volume collects both Eusebius's history and his two speeches on the life of the Emperor St. Constantine. In order to understand the political views of the Orthodox and the foundation of divine right monarchy, the role of the Church in European and world history, and even God's plan for history, one must read this text. Truly a great work (despite the antiquated English of these translations; I might suggest reading the history in the Penguin edition and the two speeches on St. Constantine here).

THIS IS A TIPTOP REF FOR THOSE OF US WHO NEED TO PUSH OUR FACT-DRIVEN PROGRAMS THROUGH THE BARRIERS THAT READ: "I'VE MADE UP MY MIND & I'VE GOT MY OWN PRIVATE AGENDA, SO DON'T CONFUSE ME WITH THE FACTS!" THE CHICAGO 'HOMELESS' RESEARCH (EXHIBIT 10) IS A CLASSIC. EMPHASIS IS ON 'SOCIAL' PROGRAMS, BUT EVERY BUSINESS POLICYMAKER SHOULD OWN & READ & RE-READ THIS BOOK AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow is perhaps the greatest rhymester to have ever lived. His endless rhymes almost seem to stay in one's mind, refusing to go. And this edition of his collected poetry just shows Longfellow at his best.

This here is poetry that - though over a hundred years old - is still fresh and alive with vigor. The poems tell tales of men and women, of birds and beast, and of gods and demigods (such as found in The Song of Hiawatha) in such magnificent form that it isn't a wonder why Longfellow was known to be the greatest American poet of his time.

"A poem should not mean but be," Archibald MacLeish wrote in "Ars Poetica." These poems are not intricate, and they're not incomprehensible, and they're definitely not senseless nor pointless; they are timeless, rhetoric voices of literature that tell so much . . . of so much.

And besides, how much times do we come across a poet who does not want to talk about how he feels and his emotions? It seems to be all that poets want to write about. It's good to sometimes read poems that simply want to tell stories and not what the Soul, or the Heart, or the Mind feels. Those things can be nice, but can make one ponder more than he or she should.

Another thing that will become apparent to the reader of this book is that Longfellow was a keen observer of people. In these poems, he writes about them very well. "The Village Blacksmith," for example, is a brilliant poem that tells of one ordinary man with an ordinary occupation: being a blacksmith. It's not of some Don Juan, or Rob Roy, or Casanova that in real life are as scarce as an honest politician. The story of the man in the poem - how he toils, and mourns, and triumphs, and suffers - is one that anyone can relate to.

It is even possible to find comfort in these poems that simply tell stories and not of emotional issues. Also, as I aforementioned, the iambic tales will stay in your mind as you might find it hard to forget them. It is probably the simplicity of these poems that make them so easy to memorize, and are probably what made Longfellow great.

This is the review which was in the Times-Picayune on March 3, 2002.The young and the restless

The epic tale of the Acadian 'Evangeline,' told for children who know the territory
03/03/02

By Marigny Dupuy Children's book columnist

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poetically tragic love story of Evangeline and her lost love, Gabriel, has held readers in thrall since its publication in 1847. And whether readers know the source or not, many are familiar with its opening line: "This is the forest primeval." Sentimental by modern standards, it is a tale of families torn apart, exile, homelessness, death and the pain suffered by separated lovers -- and it has a sad ending. This not the typical material for a picture book for children.

"Evangeline for Children," written by Alice Couvillon and Elizabeth Moore, illustrated by Alison Davis Lyne, retells the story in simple language. From the pastoral happiness enjoyed by the Acadians in the French settlement of Grand Pre, Nova Scotia, to the cruelties they suffered at the hands of the British who expelled them in 1755 to various locations in American and Europe to ensure their political powerlessness -- this describes a sad piece of history. The settings and events are real.

The story is told through the sorrowful experience of a pair of Acadian lovers, Evangeline and Gabriel (fictitious, though possibly based on real people), who are separated during the grand derangement of 1755 and only reunited many decades later -- and then only for a moment. Evangeline searches desperately for her Gabriel, going as far south as the town of St. Martinville, La., inquiring at every settlement of displaced Acadians for news of her love, but never with any success. She eventually joins a convent and is reunited with Gabriel through pure chance as he lies on his deathbed. She dies soon after and they are buried together.

While the story is not necessarily suited for young children, there is a connection with the history of south Louisiana that makes this useful for teachers and librarians. Many local children are familiar with Evangeline Parish to the Evangeline Oak and the statue of young Evangeline that stands prominently in St. Martinville, and may enjoy learning more about Evangeline's connection to our part of the country. Certainly the link between the exiled Acadians and Louisiana Cajuns is a meaningful one.

Illustrated in full color, "Evangeline for Children" includes an excellent short history of the Acadians at the end of the book, describing their troubled history, their significance in Louisiana, and the story of Longfellow's epic poem.

_________________________