I was introduced to this text in a class taught by Richard Rorty from whom James Edwards draws much of his discourse. The book was almost revelatory in its effect on me. It eloquently (though sometimes difficultly) expressed feelings and thoughts I'd had my entire life but could never fully express. He writes to "End of Century Western Intellectuals" which refers to all those who have intuitvely searched for some sort of "meaning" or "truth" but who have likely found most ostensible sources of such meaning to be hollow and weak. You will not find truth here either but you might find the explanation as to why that might be OK.

Before reading James C. Edwards new book, the closest I had come to "Fear and Trembling" was some occasional fear and loathing. Okay, a lifetime of fear and loathing. Then halfway through "The Plain Sense of Things" I realized that I knew more about country music than I did Soren Kierkegarde. So off I went to the public library, where no one had even heard of Soren Kierkegarde. Somehow, we figured out how to spell his name. So I checked out "Fear and Trembling." No wonder I had never read this book! In summary, any book that can make somebody go to the public library, knowing full well that he or she will end up paying some ridiculous fine because they are constitutionally incapable of returning the book on time, to check out and actually try to read something by Soren Kierkegarde, and I'm not talking about "the light side of Soren Kierkegarde" either, is one hell of a provocative read !

A rare, relevant, perhaps even urgent, achievement. Edwards skillfully and lucidly negotiates the complexities of, elicits the subtle kinships amongst, several philosophical diagnosticians of western culture, among whom Nietzsche, Heidegger and Kierkegaard figure most prominently. Edwards' ambition and ability far exceeds the merely expository. He weaves a compelling tale, drawn from various threads of the West's philosophical heritage, of how we -- a powerfully invitational 'we' whose reach proves to be remarkably broad -- came to our present state of reflective malaise which seems to aggravate our obdurate hankering for the ineffable, under the shadow of which stands much of contemporary "unbelief," however robust. With canny persistence, Edwards pursues several important consequences of this situation, exposes their risks, and elegantly conjures, from what he has gleaned from his philosophical forebears, a vision of rigor, of the piety that inspires rigor, divested of those commitments which no longer survive the imperatives of truthfulness.

I read the book in the Mid 80's while living in California and saw all of the myths that I thought were just that myths come to light out of the dark. This book is slimmer that the most of them but contains everything you need. "A musicians instruction manual."

Absolutely fantastic. Gives the honest truth about the business today. Any person in the music business should read this.

This book is a God-send to all aspiring musicians. Gives you insight on everything from getting small-time gigs to recording to making it big.

This book is the best of the bunch so far. I have read several training books to work with my GSP, and this one has been the most enjoyable and most accurate. The purpose and methods are clear, and the results one should expect are also laid out nicely.

One of the really great things about this book is the unassuming tone of the book. The author is clearly a working man who has responsibilities that include things other than dog training. After reading most other books, I come away feeling guility, as though I am torturing my dog by not giving her enough of my time. This author clearly understands that not every man has several hours per day to dedicate to training. I also like the way the author spells out so many things, but is noticably short-winded on one area: discipline. Too many books I read lean to far to one extreme or the other. Wolters says beat your dog into submission. Tarrant says don't touch your dog, but feel free to hand out emotional abuse as needed. I think effective training lies somewhere in between, and this book lets the reader judge the dog and doesn't spend a lot of time with high handed preaching(personally, I find that grabbing my pup's scruff and giving her a deep-throated growl usually conveys my displeasure more than adequately without needing to hit her as Wolter suggests, or punish her by withholding her food as Tarrant suggests).

Anyway, the techniques are sound, I get the results I desire, and my dog and I have a lot of fun together in the process, so this book gets my vote for the best training manual I've read so far.

This is the first bird dog I own and every single item from the book which I have used in training has been on the button. The pleasure of seeing my dog behave as predicted in the field cannot be described, and would only be understood by other bird dog owners .
The success of this book is that it's easy to read, insightful and accurate in the advice it dispenses.
It makes it easy for the dog owner to move through that confusing and daunting task of training his dog from puppy to successful bird-dog without making a mistake.

I've read every birddog book I could find since getting my Brittany last year. This book is the best. Authors vary widely in their opinions on proper dog training and a lot of the advice out there is plain wrong. Based upon my experience, Spencer's advice is right on target. What's even better, the clear and concise writing in this book makes it a very easy to follow guide. The first 98 pages provide an overview of birddog hunting in the U.S., and descriptions of 10 birddog breeds. For the next 146 pages, every sentence explicitly helps you understand the how and why of each aspect of training from puppyhood to the dog's first season afield.

This book is amazing. I use it every day as part of my morning prayer and meditation time, and will continue to do so for many years to come. It is a simple, straight forward way to remind yourself every day how to Love without Judgement.

I just ordered 10 copies for Christmas presents.

For peace lovers everywhere, this book explains line by line in the Prayer of St. Francis how the presence of peace and love consumes and enlightens the heart, mind and spirit.

Although a short book, I took two months to read it. Why? Each line of the St. Francis prayer resonated within my being and I felt compelled to take time to absorb the spiritual message. You may find as I did that when I did take this time, the message found a comfortable place to stay in my heart. You will be deeply touched by the gentle reminders of why we are here. As this book points out, "our purpose for being here is to learn how to love". Peace.

Rarely do I find a book which I am unwilling to put down, and even more rarely do I find a book which I do not want to end, "Portrait of the Master" is such a book. The love that unfolds within these pages is overwhelming. As well it should be, for it is a story of Francis of Assisi. It is the story of his journey to meet with the Sultan to end the crusades. It is the story of his brother doing a portrait of him, and it is the story of his prayer:

Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.

Above all it is a story of love, and a story of a man who achieved great joy in life by modeling the life of his master, Jesus of Nazareth. The author, James F. Twyman is a long time student of "A Course in Miracles", and his dedication to, and understanding of, the Course shines in this story of St. Francis. My only complaint about the book was it's length, at 143 pages, I kept wishing it was twice as long. If, in my whole life, I could only read five books, this would be one of them.

This is a collection of nonfiction from James Baldwin's illustrious career: essays, book excerpts and movie/book reviews. I have read it many times and never get tired of it. What more can I say?

Baldwin was a great writer, not only because he told a compelling story, but because he wanted his work to change the world he lived in and, on some levels, it did. No other example of this intention is more apprant than Baldwin's non-fiction work. His essays are timely (even now), filled with biting intelect, and brimming with his trademark ability to wind around an issue.

This book is all the more relevant because it saves you time: it collects his 3 book-length essays ("Fire Next Time", "No name In The Street" and "The Devil Finds Work"), as well as a ton of other pieces. It's almost totally comprehensive in this respect. Revealing and a more than trustworthy look at the man from his own mouth, and over the years.

With the possible exception of Tom Paine and Gore Vidal, Baldwin is the finest essayist. Most of his non-fiction is here, including his groundbreaking essay "Fifth Avenue, Uptown," the best single essay I have ever read. Of special interest, as one who enjoys movie criticism, is the entire book "The Devil Finds Work," in which Baldwin happily takes apart a number of American classic films. I was never wild about Baldwin's fiction, but no one could top him as an essayist. If you are buying one American non-fiction book, this should be the one.

Meet the Bennet sisters: demure Jane, witty Elizabeth, bookish Mary, impressionable Kitty, and lusty Lydia. It's the usual story: they don't have much in the way of dowries but need to marry upstanding English gentlemen...

Elizabeth Bennet quickly emerges as the heroine with her wry sense of humor and take-no-prisoners attitude to social life. She puts all twentieth century heroines to shame when she tells off Mr. Darcy (while maintaining perfect decorum). Unusual twists and turns spark up the "marriage plot" of the book. There are some great villains, too.

Austin lays out all of her witt and charm within the first three pages of this novel and by the third and fourth chapters you won't be able to put the book down. If you find yourself unable to keep up with Georgian style of writing (or if you are guy), however, this may not be the best book for you. ;)

Jane Austen is tricky; most people have to develop a taste for her style, and I was no exception. I tried to read this book three times before I finally completed it. When I did finish it I immediately read Sense and Sensibility, Emma, Persuasion, and I'm reading Mansfield Park right now. In many ways Pride and Prejudice remains my favorite of all her books. Jane Austen always creates brilliant characterizations and Elizabeth Bennet is the best of all of them; she sparkles just as I imagine Austen did among her friends.

I first read James Kitfield's book in 2000 and have just finished rereading it. I am recommending it to my sons, an Air Force pilot working on his master's in military science and an Army combat engineer, as one of the four most influential books on the development of the United States military since WW II. The author traces in a very readable style the coming of age of the officers of all branches of service during the Viet Nam and post-Viet Nam eras and how those experiences shaped our ability to win a decisive victory in the 1990 Gulf War. The book also reveals the back room political wheeling and dealing that goes into watershed legislation such as the sweeping reforms of the Goldwater-Nichols Act. It's a "must read" for every professional military leader and student of the art of war.

From the prologue to the epilogue, and everything in between, this book is fantastic reading. Anyone who has ever been associated with the U.S. military will have a much clearer picture of the totality of resurection within all the services after Vietnam. "Duty, Honor, and Country" does not always mean the same thing to different people, to some it means a career that spans over thirty years, to others the words are just something on a recruiting poster. To anyone who reads the book these three words will take on a much clearer meaning. Some chapters will cause tears in even the toughest of old veterans, and even the young generation of future service members will begin to understand some of the major events which have transpired in the military in the decades since Vietnam. James Kitfield tells a story that is not just a chronicle, or a documentary, but a story worthy of telling, and he does it with style.

James Kitfield utilizes extensive research and well-toldvignettes to tell a compelling tale; how the economically starved andforgotten military that existed in a post-Vietnam America rose from the ashes to become the professional force that triumphed in Desert Storm. His story is excellent and very readable, and utilizes many small historical steps to reach its logical conclusion to include the end of Vietnam, the military's efforts to combat rampant drug use and undiscipline, the move to an All-Volunteer force, the failure of the 1980 Desert One mission, the advent of realistic training centers, and Graham-Rudman. His tale is told through the eyes of the young lieutenants and ensigns who went on to become the generals and admirals who applied the lessons they painfully learned in the past. A powerful story with a serious warning for military leaders of the present.

I'm not normally a reader of non-fiction war stories, especially in first person, but "Pucker Factor 10" caught my attention from the beginning all the way to the very end. Joyce brings the reader into the realm of realism, from family history, personal apprehensions, his somewhat inadvertant role as a helicopter pilot during the heat of battle, his impressions of soldiers and his humanity toward the enemy which brings chills to the reader. Meanwhile, just when I least expected, I found myself belly laughing his wit. This book is a must for anyone who enjoys true-to-lie accounts of how it was in the air trenches.

i think this is the best book ever

There are few books I would read in one sitting. This is one of them. The recollectionns of Jim Joyce may open the hearts and minds of other vets who had similar experiences. Jim Joyce is an excellent writer and his recollections of the war will certainly help other vets to deal with past memories, bad and good. The book would make a fine play or even a movie. I hope he continues writing.

The Power of the Jedi Sourcebook is a full-color, hardcover resource for all things pertaining to the Jedi Order. Continuing from the standard set by the Dark Side Sourcebook, the "PotJ" book combines information and utility with a tasteful arrangement of interior artwork and photos.

Most players will probably be most interested in the selection of new Jedi Prestige Classes, Light Side Force skills, feats, and equipment that the book offers. But there are also sections discussing Jedi history, Jedi traditions, new equipment, and new force-sensitive creatures. There are entries on important characters, important locations, and even advice on how to run a Jedi campaign. And of course, no book on the Jedi would be complete without a discussion of Force Spirits. This is also a section discussing new races, but most of these are also in the newer Ultimate Alien Anthology.

This book has been one of the important resources in my Star Wars campaign. I've really enjoyed using the Prestige Classes. From the Jedi Healer to the powerful Jedi Weapon Master, players now have a much wider range of advancement options open to their characters. In addition many of the force-sensitive characters, creatures, and locations have already popped up in my storyline. I also found the notes on running a Jedi campaign to be very useful, for not only can they guide a GM but they can also aid players on how a Jedi should conduct himself.

However, I do have a few minor complaints. A few of the Light Side force skills, particularly Force Light and Sever Force, seem to be quite powerful. Perhaps this is because they were based on the abilities of comic-book characters, but in any case, it was a wise move that such skills may only be acquired with GM approval. I would have also preferred to see a much more in-depth history section, particularly as it pertains to the Tales of the Jedi storyline. Finally, I felt that the maps for some of the important locations were fairly inadequate.

However, as I noted earlier, these were minor complaints.

Overall, I found this to be an outstanding addition to my Star Wars campaign. I use it often, and it is likely that I will continue to do so for some time to come. Whether you're the GM of a campaign with Jedi in it, or whether you're a player wanting to explore the possibilities of a Jedi character, I'd recommend this book as a solid investment.

If you have the Core Rulebook, this supplement is a must. It contains lots of info on the jedi and lots of great stuff about the types of jedi you can play with prestige classes and all. Being a Jedi is what Star Wars is made of, so this book is a must if you want your adventure of RPG to be complete.

This is a must have for all Star Wars roleplayers. It has a huge amount of new stuff for playing as a jedi. An EXTREMELY helpful addition.