professor balas, restitutes the origins of brancusi's works back to the romanian folk traditions. in doing so, the author 1) compares brancusi's output to romanian folk art (employing photos of sculpture, tapestry, etc.), 2) quotes brancusi, 3) places brancusi's works, conceptually, as a reflection of romanian fairy tales and myths.

when balas looks at the touted influence of african art on brancusi she does so very carefully and manages to convincingly limit the scope of such influence--in time and artistic output.

as a footnote, the author, coming herself from romania, shows a great level of understanding of the brancusian formative environment.

the only exception one would take with this work might be with a note associating brancusi with a romanian-hungarian tradition. it is hard to see such association and it should probably be considered an oversight.

for a conceptual approach towards brancusi's place in the space-time continuum called history, mircea eliade in his 1967 essay 'brancusi and mythology' (available in 'ordeal by labyrinth') offers great insight too.

Just like the back cover says, this is an excellent reference book for high school and college students studying the Balkans. After checking out over 20 sources for a term paper on Yugoslavia, this book turned out to be the one I cited most.

"The Bridge of Quiescence" is an excellent detailed discussion of the basic meditation technique of all schools of Buddhism, and even some non-Buddhist approaches. "Quiescence" refers to tranquility meditation, a way to attain a stabilized mind. The "Bridge" part of the title refers to the role of "restful attention" as a necessary basis for further spiritual development. The central chapter offers a translation from Tsongkhapa of the Gelungpa School of Tibetan Buddhism. This could be a tough slog but Wallace provides his own very helpful interpretation, sometimes making reference to Western psychology. So this book is definitely not an introductory text. But for those with some familiarity with meditation in general and Tibetan Buddhism in particular, you'll benefit immensely.

310 Bulesionwest 5-8 Ouhatachou Nishinomiyashi Hyougoken 662-0836

The language is so poetic and fluent, it hurls you away, lightly and fluffily to a different era; a world long gone and forgotten. It has something of an East European Gone With The Wind theme, only much more concise and fleetingly. I longed for more pages, a hundred more, fivehundred more, in this novel too timid and subdued somehow. Perfect script for a fullblown-no-expenses -spared Hollywood film!

This superb, broad collection of detailed papers on ancient Eastern Central Asia is fascinating for anyone interested in the subject. Though presented for professionals in the field, virtually every paper is intelligible to the lay person, opening new horizons for anyone interested in the history of this region. Exceptionally well-edited, with chapters covering archeology, migration and nomadism, linguistics, genetics and physical anthropology, metallurgy, textiles, geography and climatology, history, mythology and ethnology, a long overdue comprehensive treatment of this subject is finally at hand. Every contributor to the two-volume set should be pleased with this phenomenal achievement. Persons interested in many diverse topics, such as Zoroastrian studies, history of the Fergana Valley, or Tocharian linguistics, will still find many papers of interest, whether treated as separate subjects or not. Outstanding!

This book is an invaluable collection of Caribbean rings games, documenting traditions that are slowing fading away under the crush of North American pop culture. It is a cherished resource for my wife, who grew up in Dominica playing many of these games and now teaches them as part of her dance classes in Ohio. Anyone who buys this book must also get the companion CD from Rounder Records.

please find the above mentioned article supposedly re-pblshd in a centennial volume on bruno schulz.this article was earlier pblshd in the literary criterion.ed by c.d.narasimhaiah, mysore. the article is by c.p. ravichandra

This book is a pleasure to read and behold. From the exquisite photography to the witty and informed observations this is a collection of Bucharest's best and most authentic legacies to the European culture. A must have for anyone that has any ties to this Romanian capital or desires to explore its truly unique blend of French flavour, Byzantynne architecture and Latin heritage.

This book tells the story of Buddha so clearly and precisely that it taught me a lot that I previously didn't know or understand. I am hoping to share this book with my students during the Buddhist New Year in April.