The King George V class battleships seem to have been a classic example of the dangers of "design by committee". Given the limitations of the Washington Disarmament Treaty and the constraints of tight budgets and an apathetic Parliament they were probably the best that Britain could have done at the time, and Tarrant has done a wonderful job of showing us the history of their development, their strengths and their weaknesses. He also points out that in spite of all their drawbacks & indeed the overall decline of battleships as weapons of war, the KGVs probably prevented Britain from losing the war. Had PRINCE OF WALES not holed BISMARK in her fuel tanks, BISMARK would have continued into the North Atlantic & shut down the vital Atlantic convoy system. Had DUKE OF YORK not sunk SCHARNHORST a similar disaster could have been in the making. No mean feat. Lavishly illustrated -both in terms of text and photos- the book provides us with an in-depth look at the entire class & includes the often neglected stories of the later members ANSON & HOWE. My one quibble with the book -and it is really with the publisher- is that it has a somewhat "cheap' feel in terms of paper & cover. Given the quality of the content the book deserves more attention to physical structure, but battelship enthusiasts everywhere need this text on their shelves. Now, wouldn't it be nice if Tarrant did the same sort of job on the QUEEN ELIZABETH class battleships (possibly the most successful group of warships yet built) that he does here on the KGVs?

V.E. Tarrant's history of the King George V class battleships is superb and well worth the time of anyone interested in battleships in general, in the naval aspects of WWII, or those who enjoy reading first-hand accounts from veterans.

Tarrant is unsparing about the KGVs; built to the restrictions of the Washington treaty (which limited battleships to 35,000 tons full-up displacement and restricted them to 16 inch guns at maximum), they suffer badly in comparison to the US Navy Washington and South Dakota class ships, also built to the treaty restrictions. The selection of 14 inch guns badly limited their hitting power (and faulty turret design was an additional crippling factor in action), their relatively narrow beam compromised their underwater protection systems (fatally in the case of Prince of Wales), and their inefficient engineering plants badly restricted their range. That said, the five ships of the class served nobly and well during WWII, thanks to the men who commanded and manned them so ably.

Tarrant opens with a discussion of the design of the ships, including the mini-controversy over their naming. The lead ship was originally to be named King George VI, but the King insisted that the ship be named for his father instead; two later ships were to be HMS Beatty and HMS Jellicoe, but unfortunately the Jutland controversy was still too sore a self-inflicted wound and the remaining ships were named Prince of Wales, Duke of York, Anson, and Howe.

The careers of the five ships follow, discussed chronologically. Tarrant covers in fascinating detail the pursuit and sinking of the Bismarck, the Force Z disaster, and the sinking of the Scharnhorst, as well as the more mundane activities of the ships (Anson was so late completing she never had the chance to fire her main battery in anger). Tarrant's analysis of the loss of Prince of Wales and Repulse is especially well done; while being somewhat gentle to the memory of Admiral Phillips and Captain Leach, who were lost with their ship, he points out how well the captain of Repulse handled her, while poor handling of PoW certainly contributed to her destruction.

A great feature of the book is Tarrant's use of first-hand accounts to illuminate the activities of the ships. Ranging from officers to the lower deck, these accounts have been well chosen and give the human factor often missing in books of this type. The reminiscences of Petty Office Bill Batters of HMS Howe are particularly wonderful.

As a modeler, I would have liked to see more and more detailed diagrams, but the illustrations are good and the many photographs showing the ships throughout their careers are excellent and useful and often interesting (ammunitioning Duke of York after her encounter with Scharnhorst, for example).

All in all, this is one of the best histories of a class of ships I have seen, with only a few typos to watch for. Sadly, the four surviving KGVs were scrapped in the late 50s, but this history remains to give these ships and their brave crews their due.

This book covers the operational history of the King George V class, the last battleships to see combat service in the Royal Navy. To author's credit, the many shortcomings that plagued the class during operational life are thoroughly investigated. Tarrant describes how the units were built according to design limitations enforced by the Washington treaty (imposing unsatisfactory trade-offs), and the Admiralty's incapacity to freeze the ships' basic design. In fact the Royal Navy went on the naval building holiday without an alternate plan, relinquishing the expertise that proved to be so vital at dockyards when the work resumpted. To complicate matters further, the Navy had controversial attitude towards the balance of armor and armament; it was never satifactorily settled. During the description of engagements and missions operated by the class, the author is quite steadfast in showing defects that have to be traced to these original misconceptions. A second point is highlighted by the author in the episode of the doomed sortie of Prince of Wales and in the closing chapters dedicated to Pacific operations. Tarrant is very clever when he explains all the failures leading to the loss of P.of W. in Singapore. The central evaluation of the british policy is summarized by the statement " to have a two Hemisphere Empire defended by one Hemisphere Navy". The extended logistic lines and the composition of the Pacific fleet were the key elements in shaping the secondary role, albeit an important one, played by the Britons in the theater.

The book comes pretty close to be the definitive history of the KGV class. The authoritative text is always attentive to human drama behind the engagements and the fatigues endured by the crews. Tarrant's narrative style is highly readable and absorbing, indulging in the magnitude of war at sea without loosing the sight of accademic treatise. An engrossing reference in recent British naval history.

Jean Plaidy, beloved author of historical fiction, is known to her millions of fans world wide as Victoria Holt. A masterful storyteller who can weave a tapestry of little known historical facts into an engrossing and well written novel, she tells the story of a young Prince of Wales, who would later go on to become King George III, and a that of a young quakeress named Hannah Lightfoot. When their paths crossed one day, theirs would be a romance that would transcend royal protocol.

This novel, set against a backdrop of political intrigues and aristocrats jockeying for power, tells the story of a young, idealistic Prince of Wales and his deep and abiding affection for a beautiful, young quakeress, Hannah Lightfoot, who happened to catch his eye one day while he was riding through the streets. She, a commoner, would go against all her beliefs for his love, and he, a future King of England, would flout those who would try to control him in order to be with this woman whom he loved with the ardor and devotion of the very young.

Their bittersweet romance provides a birdseye view into the upbringing of the Prince of Wales, as well as a peek into the sybaritic court of George II. Their love is set against a backdrop of manipulative and self-seeking courtiers who would attempt to use their knowledge of the Prince's secret romance with this young quakeress for their personal gain. Theirs would be a love that would disappear into the footnotes of history, until the author wove it into this absorbing and poignant account of a forbidden, first love that would have historical implications.

I have read this book by one of my favorite historical fiction authors, Victoria Holt. Did the future George III of England actually marry in secret, a Quaker girl called Hanna Lightfoot? Ms Holt believes so and I agree. There is much evidence to prove it is true and after George I found out about it, he was upset as any grandfather of a Prince of Wales would be. Young George was not a good pupil, had problems interacting with people and Hanna Lightfoot helped him thru this. Then came Charlotte, a real royal marriage took place, and Hanna fell by the wayside and the secret marriage was null and void. But he never forgot her. That much is true, according to this book and the way I interpreted it. Later in life, he became George III, loser of the Colonies and had bouts of confusion and mental illness. That was his legacy, he lost the Colonies.

Much of Miss Plaidy's historical novel is in line with historical facts collected by my family over the years - we all still have the name Mackelcan, which is referred to on page 233. It is interesting to note that John Mackelcan, Hannah's son, was baptised at St Mary's, Newington, Surrey on 12th April 1759 and at the age of 15, under the wing of William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, he was commissioned into the Royal Engineers. In 1795 at the age of 36 and without having seen active service he was promoted to full General. In a Will dated July 1778 Hannah wrote "Provided I depart this life, I commend my two sons and my daughter to their Royal father, my husband." The cover-up began in 1866 when a Mrs Ryves sought to establish her direct descent from George III's brother, the Duke of Cumberland; the case was heard by the Lord Chief Justice and the Baron Justice acting with a special jury. Acting for the Crown were the Attorney General, the Solicitor General and the Queen's Advocate. On the back of what appeared to be a certificate relating to a marriage between Cumberland and Mrs Ryves was the following certificate "This is to certify that I lawfully married George, Prince of Wales to Hannah Lightfoot on 27th May 1759 and that two sons and a daughter are the issue of that marriage " It was signed by J Wilmot ( a Doctor of Divinity and a friend of the Royal Family in the 18th century) and witnessed by Chatham and J Denning. The LCJ forbade Mrs Ryves to speak in Court; no other witnesses were called and the case was put straight to the Jury who found for the Attorney-General. Even as recently as 1997 officials at the Public Records Office told a researcher that the documents were not avaialable but they did eventually produce the impounded marriage certificate. Miss Plaidy's book puts the relationship between George and Hannah into a very readable context but perhaps the sequel is just as fascinating?

It is no doubt MLK's speeches are great and did alot
to shape American thinking. Unfortunately, I can only
play the first 2 CDs on my CD player. I have a friend
who has a CD player that can play all of them. Apparently
it has something to do with the index numbering on each
CD. Instead of each CD starting at 1 it starts where the previous CD left off. I wouldn't take a chance that this
product won't play in your CD player. I think it is very
unfortunate that I paid so much for the complete set of speeches
and I can't listen to most of it.
I WOULD WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT VERSION COMES OUT THAT CORRECTS THIS
FLAW.
It would have been also nice to have some text to accompany the
audio CDs.

An outstanding history of the Civil Rights movement through the most famous speeches of MLK. I particularly enjoyed his final speech which we hear words from but was full of inspiration and foresight as to what would become of America and its black citizens and their victory in the struggle for freedom.
A must for every buddding philosopher, peace activist and politician.

Reviewer: Mark Lamendola,... author of over 3500 articles.

Inspiring, informative, and soul-stirring, this tape brings to life the original recordings of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Having grown up in the era of the Vietnam war and civil rights demonstrations, I got this tape thinking it would help me remember some of the key issues of the time and compare them to where we are now.

What I was not expecting was the emotional and spiritual journey this tape took me on--it was a journey at a speed that made me look for my seat belt.

Let me interject a personal note here. I am not an African American. I am not black, but neither am I white. My family name is an "Americanized" version of a Sicilian name. While my family did not emerge from slavery on southern plantations, it did emerge from near slave conditions in Sicily. I would also like to note that Sicily was invaded by the African Moors, as is evident by the curly hair and nose structure of modern Sicilians--and by the fact we get sickle cell anemia (whites do not get this disease).

Italian-Americans, who make up 6% of the USA population also underwent an era of extreme prejudice and discrimination--as did African-Americans, who make up 13% of the American population.

Some people malign Dr. King as "that nigger who riled up all the niggers." Others said he was moving too fast. Others said he was asking for too much. And on and on. What these people fail to realize is Dr. King wasn't riling up anybody. He was not an agitator. He made a call to love. When you listen to his speeches, this all becomes very clear. I am not comparing King the Man to Christ the Lord, but to condemn his call to love does compare him to Christ and does condemn both King the man and Christ the Lord. To my mind, that is hypocritical and presumptuous.

In his speeches, Dr. King presented such concepts as:

*African-American slaves are not rightful property and never were. These people were kidnapped from their homes in the area of the Gold Coast.

*The Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 declared all men (grammatical convention makes the pronoun gender-neutral in this context) equal. Yet, 100 years later, American people of color had actually moved backwards in relation to "white people." King presented incontrovertible evidence of the nullification of the Emancipation Proclamation and the abandonment of law and order that allowed suppression and oppression of an entire race of people.

*The segregation movement was part of a "divide and conquer" strategy to keep poor whites--especially poor Southern whites in their place by creating an even lower class.

*As a unit, African-Americans have more wealth than most countries--including France!

*No violent uprising has ever succeeded, unless it had the support of the general population. African-Americans did not have, and could not possibly have, such support in the USA.

*A violent uprising by African-Americans could never come to any possible good. At the outset, it would increase fear and mistrust. The government would be duty-bound to squash it, and had the power to do so. Violent uprisers would have to defeat the local police, then the county police, then the state police, then the state militia, then the National Guard, then the US Armed Forces--not exactly the recipe for success.
But non-violent action could succeed. This is what Dr. King espoused.

Dr. King said two conditions existed:
1. Power without love--this characterized the white system .
2. Love without power--this characterized the black community.

His goal was to combine power with love--not for black people, but for the brotherhood of mankind. His vision was that people would be judged by their character, not by the color of their skin.

This tape concludes with an incredibly moving speech, given to an audience of 10,000 in Tennessee. ...

It was Dr. King's last speech, given the day before a killer stopped Dr. King's campaign of love and brotherhood by severing Dr. King's spine just below his chin.

He started off pretty, but it was only skin deep. He was vain and greedy. He was particularly irksome to both wives (secret and catholic Mrs Fitzherbert, "respectable" but dizzy Princess Caroline). But no-one is all bad - he loved his daughter, enjoyed parties and built a few memorable buildings. What a waste of a life. Despite the horrible cover, this is a solid book on the Prince Regent which will be read (or glanced at) by regency buffs the world over.

I am ambivalent at best about Saul David's book "Prince of Pleasure".

On the good side I think he is very readable and I did enjoy a great deal of this book. Unfortunately I don't think he brought up much to shed new light on the Prince and indeed some of the matters on which he emphasised he failed to distinguish between rumour and innuendo, and what was actual provable fact - the supposed love children of the Prince Regent's sisters for instance. Other people have presented far better researched and more compelling arguments on these things than he did.

The book left wondering what there was really new in this that Christopher Hibbert has not discussed in his 2 volume biography of the Prince Regent Published some 25 years ago? If there was anything new about the Prince I think it was mostly window decoration.

Also I was somewhat disturbed by a number of errors of fact in the book - none of which really destroyed or influenced the subject of the book as they were on peripheral issues - but nevertheless annoying - for instance he said the Earl of Barrymore (better known as Hellgate) had been shot by the soldiers in his regiment - untrue. He died in an accidental shooting when his sporting gun went off in his carriage. David implies that Harriette Wilson made a fortune from her memoirs - also not true.

I also found it hard to agree with some of the interpretations he put on various quotes from people - to prove that the Prince had had an affair with Harriette Wilson for instance - or his assertion from a very ambiguous quote that Beau Brummell was Gay.

David does have a very neat way of blending in the elements of history with the life of the Prince Regent which I also found very enjoyable. I wish he would footnote a bit more so it was possible to see where he drew his information from.

One final quibble I have with this book is that "Prince of Pleasure" is a title that is already used by J B Priestley's 1969 work on the Prince Regent and the Regency period. This was a popular book and well known. I wondered if David had read it, but it doesn't turn up in his bibliography - a fact I find surprising for he must have come across it in his research. It just seems a bit cheeky to use the same title in a book on exactly the same subject and not acknowledge it.

In the end I am left wondering what he has added that was not already known about the Prince Regent. Still it is interesting and readable.

George IV or the Prince Regent is the caricature monarch of English history. In the age of the scything cartoonist, the larger than life Prince was the ideal subject through his loves, sense of melodrama and overblown antics. David, wisely in my opinion confines himself to the period before his ascendancy to the throne, after which George, by virtue of his gout and his unpopularity became a subdued, sorry figure. David whisks us through all the major episodes, Mrs. Fitzherbert, his doomed marriage, the infidelity of both spouses and his eternal opulence and theatrics. There is such a wealth of literature both on the Prince and the Regency, that a new approach or a fresh insight is virtually impossible, particularly from a biographical standpoint. Hence the best an author can do under the circumstances is provide a rollicking read and a fun, lively approach and David measures up to the task. This is a thoroughly enjoyable book about a perenially endearing cartoonlike figure. No revisionist breakthroughs here, but a lot of fun.

The chart is good for general information contained in one document. The quality of construction is excellent, allowing opening and closing many times without any tearing. As many of the cruies ships go further north of the present chart, the chart would be of greater value if it were extended to the Seward AK area. The course on the chart was a bit confusing as the ship I was on used a different route.

A foot wide and eleven feet tall IS a weird shape for a chart, but I find it to be very enjoyable because it shows the whole inside passage in detail. Where else can you find something like this? Let's hope this map stays around. It's a great concept and allows one a greater appreciation of the region.

Very well-researched, with a wealth of primary source material (perhaps too much!), this book is quite academic and dry. Rather than a traditional biography, the book is more a study of various aspects of the reign of Edward VI (e.g. policies on religion, economics, land use, etc.) first under the leadership of Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, and later, John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland. I did not feel that I really learned anything about these three figures as people. "Fans" of Tudor history, having read a biography or two of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, are likely to be disappointed in this book. It is much more geared to the historian with a serious, even professional, interest in the period.

This book represents a comprehensive and conclusive study of an important Tudor figure. An academic study of a less well-known English monarch, this book is a fitting epitaph to a leading historian of our time.

We read all these Stephen King books that seem to flock the bestseller lists with their monsters, and gore, and goo, and we ask ourselves: Where is this guy coming from? In this book, we could literally know where he's coming from.

Anyone who has read at least one book by King knows that he's from Maine, for it always says it on the inside of the back cover; but do we know, for instance, that he once spent a vacation on a hotel hidden deep inside the mountains of Colorado which later inspired him to write his classic, The Shining? Do we know anything of how his college was like? This book is not a biography, but tells of the places in which he has lived all his life - which are all mostly scattered throughout Maine.

There is one little flaw that this book has, though, and that is that it gives the ending to some of his novels and short stories. So, if you haven't read every single novel and story King has ever written, you might not want to read this book just yet.

Stephen King has long been known for his portrayals of small town life gone horribly wrong. Near the start of his career, with 1976's 'Salem's Lot, King worked with the idea of an isolated Maine town infiltrated by evil outsiders. Throughout his long career, he has revisited this basic plot many tames, putting a new spin on each. Derry, Maine became prey to shape-shifting creatures in both It and Insomnia. The Tommyknockers' reclusive Haven turned into ground-zero for radioactive alien ghosts. Desperation, Nevada turned into the ghostly battleground between God and the devil. And poor Castle Rock, Maine was doomed from the start.

King has often been asked "Where do you get your ideas?" All the answer Add an "s" are here, in George Beahm's newest, Stephen King Country. A different sort of book about King, this photo-essay guide takes the reader on a visual journey of the real (and sometimes unreal) world of Stephen King. Beginning with a brief overview of King's career through 1998's Bag of Bones, Beahm shifts gears and delves into the geography of King's real Maine. Interweaving biography and history, Country takes us through the towns of Durham, Orrington, Hermon, and more (perhaps "more" should be "others"), giving the reader some insight as to where King's fictional towns originated. Chapter Two, focusing principally on King's hometown of Bangor (the real-world counterpart of Derry) is a fascinating look at where Stephen King lives and writes, complete with a stunning aerial photograph of King's immense house. Touching on Stephen and his wife Tabitha King's philanthropy, Beahm then drives us down the dark path into King's fictional towns.

In this section, we are finally able to see the "real" Marsten House of 'Salem's Lot (actually the Shiloh Church in Durham, Maine), the train tracks the boys traveled in "The Body," the Standpipe and the Barrens, major landmarks in the novel It, and the hotel in Colorado that inspired The Shining. This inspired blending of fact and fiction is at once surreal and fascinating - it's like looking through the words of a Stephen King novel and finding a dark reality in the foreground of the man's imagination. In the dedication to It, King calls fiction "the truth inside the lie." In Stephen King Country, you can find that truth, the reality inside the story, and journey through the real and unreal worlds of Stephen King's country without ever leaving your house. Enjoy the trip!

I'll start with the good stuff first. I had never heard anything about King George IV having a secret wife, or much about King George IV in fact, so this was a first for me. This book is a romance, and I think that the sex portions are fairly mild, not over the top. This book was very good at "taking" one to England in the setting of the late 1700s, and it was also very good at bringing Maria and George to life and conveying their emotions, making one see them as real living people. This is a rather sad, emotional book, and it made me cry at the end. After I was done reading it I swore to not hold grudges against people I love and spend as much time as possible with them so there are no regrets. Whether or not Diane Haegar accurately told the story, this is historical fiction, so it doesn't have to be 100% accurate, it is just Haegar's take on what happened, which I might add is very poignant and touching.

The downside to this book is that it is just a tad bit slow, and I have a feeling that it idealizes the romance between George and Maria. When I was through reading it, not knowing very much about the period, I looked into it a bit. There weren't many positive things written about George IV. He is basically always referred to as a womanizer, among other things. It is usually implied that he did love Maria (he wore her locket until his death, so that says something), but he still had affairs with other women. I don't know if this is just a lot of bad press on his side, but one has to think that there is something to all of this bad press if it comes up constantly. This isn't a flaw, but this book is told from George and Maria's point of view so one doesn't really get to see that many sides of some of the characters, such as Queen Caroline, who was a very tragic figure in her own right. But for the purposes of this book she is portrayed very badly (some of it probably rightly).

If anyone is interested, there is another historical fiction novel dealing with George and Maria by Jean Plaidy. It is called The Sweet Lass of Richmond Hill. It gives a different perspective on the whole romance, unfortunately not as favorable.

I read this book, THE SECRET WIFE OF KING GEORGE IV, and it was sincerely the best book I have ever read. I fell into this magnificent love story head first and I could not get out. I started to read it on a plane trip and I could not put it down. I even sat on the floor at baggage claim while I waited for my bags so I could comfortably read this story. After I read it once, I read it again, most of it in one sitting. I am sure that that is not the last time I will read it either. The whole book is captivating. I felt as if it were a vivid dream because it seemed so real. I could see everything in the story because of the amazing imagery. To make this book even better is the fact that it is true. I shall never forget this book and it's extrordinary story of Maria Fitzherbert, a Catholic widow, and King George IV, the wild Heir to the throne, and their Love that was stronger than the Laws of England.

In 1784 London, the Prince of Wales is attracted to the newly arrived widow, Maria Fitzherbert. Though he declares his undying love for Maria, she refuses to believe the notorious philanderer. Additionally, Maria knows that as a Catholic, she is unacceptable by the Anglican Church as a wife of the next king.

George vows his love and secretly marries Maria. However, duty to the sate comes first for the regent and he openly weds Princess Caroline. Though Maria remains his only love, George worries he might lose her due to her unhappiness over hiding their relationship, which the Catholic Church would recognize as the binding one.

THE SECRET WIFE OF KING GEORGE IV is an excellent historical fiction that provides an in depth account of the loving but clandestine relationship between Maria and George IV. The story line is filled with intrigue and real personage that make the late eighteenth century seem vividly alive, a feat few writers can do well. George,s conflict between love of country and love for a woman is well written and turns the Regent into a flesh and blood person, not the caricature typically seen in his cameo appearances in Regency novels. With her wealth of detail cleverly interwoven into a fabulous plot, Diane Haeger has written a triumphant tale that will provide much delight to fans of historical fiction and Regency romance.

Harriet Klausner

Pelecanos' books are generally set in Washington D.C., and King Suckerman is no exception. The title refers to a movie which is debuting soon in the area theatres, to a lot of street-level buzz.

The characters aren't glamorous, but they're really memorable. Description is one of the author's strong suits, but that doesn't get in the way of an exciting, riveting plot.

Pelecanos' books are my favorites among crime and mystery authors working today; he really captures the sense of Washington D.C. (this book is set during the 1970's), and the characters are true to form.

If you like your fiction hard-boiled, give Pelecanos a try. I wouldn't start with this one. Start with A FIRING OFFENSE.

If you've read some of the earlier ones, like Nick's Trip or A Firing Offense, try the Suckerman.

ken32

I don't have much time here, but I just had to chuck down a quick review of this fantastic book. I began this book at the start of an interstate car journey and by the time we had stopped, I had pretty much read most of it. This book rips along from the very first page, with an amazing attention to detail, interesting and believable (in a way) characters, great cross-cutting, and wonderful evocacation of the 70s.

The story has already been cited here already, so I won't recap, but you care for the characters you like and you're in awe or fear of the others. Referencing all kinds of 70s trappings, music, films, Iceberg Slim, muscle cars etc, you feel like you're watching an awesome film and indeed I'd be less than surprised if it was made into one. I only hope it's by the right people, not someone like Sean Puffy Combs, who would probably cast Jennifer Lopez in the role of Virginia.

I only hope Pelecanos' other books are as good as this.

I've read most of Pelecanos' work and, in my opinion, King Suckerman would rank as one of his weaker efforts. It's one of the earlier works and is worth reading for background on some characters who will show up in later books. It's also worth reading because it's a slam bam, gritty crime novel. It may not be one of the author's best books, but it's still one of the best crime novels I've read.

As usual, Washington, D.C. is both the setting for the story and a living character in the book. There are plenty of tough and weak, cunning and stupid players in the twisting story. If you have a pulse and like crime fiction, I don't see how you can skip this book or anything else Pelecanos writes.