The book is an outstanding account of a typical drug ring and the circumstances used to hide proceeds etc. It is very well written and keeps the reader engrossed in a world unknown to the majority. It is a must read for anyone who wants to glean knowledge of trafficking etc.

I found the idea behind this book interesting -- Banker interviewed a group of professors at cal (including myself), and then paraphrased our work into easy to understand material that would be accessible to a larger audience. Till I saw the book, I had no idea why he would want to do this. I think the book may be an interesting read for the intellectually curious or those who are interested in exploring academia as an option but have little idea what it is about.

I think Banker could have been more analytic and less decriptive in his presentation of interviews, and abstracted from them a common theme that may have improved the overall "take-away" for the reader.

Like its protagonist, I am a former academic philosopher faced with a dilemma of how to live as a philosopher in the technological world. So I was worried that this book when I first chanced upon it would be a mirror image of my own paltry existence. What I found instead was a meditation, witty and hip (but always gentle and human), on the overcoming of absurdities and pre-fabricated relationships. While the book might have been trimmed by some fifty pages or so, and while the ending is not up to the rest of the gentle tension that the intriguing plot has built, the book as a whole nevertheless reverberates. Brownrigg is an artist in character creation and in the drawing of encounters between characters, both in virtual reality and in person. The brief scene towards the end where the main protagonist re-encounters her fellow students at Cody's in Berkeley is sheer poetry in its simplicity. This book is highly recommended reading for anyone interested in what draws us together and what makes us think in this present-day world.

This novel is a sly satire of the ways that intellectual life is compartmentalized in contemporary America--it is a satire of the academic world, especially. It also offers its own alternative vision of the possibilities of intellectual life outside these highly confining institutions. It concerns two people--Pi and J.D.--who are searching for meaning in an increasingly alienating and homogenized capitalist world. They find it, most amazingly, in the poetry of Emily Dickinson, of Sylvia Plath, in the drama of Hamlet and the philosophy of Kant. For these two people, the ideas in these texts come alive in ways they never can for the professional classes--especially for so-called professional thinkers. As a reader I found myself energized by the possibility of connecting to the reality and truth of the work of art, unmediated by the dead hand of authority. One of the novel's most appealing characters is a little seven year old girl named Martha who has no trouble thinking for herself and living in a world of her own stories and dreams. But the novel makes it clear that the world will conspire against this gifted child, pushing her to become just another glazed-eyed, therapy spouting conformist. I can only hope she avoids this fate; but the novel is optimistic enough to suggest that even if she falls into it for a while she can reconnect with her better self of childlike wonder.

I've read the reviews posted, and so need not rehash the plot for you yet again. I just finished this book yesterday, and wanted to weigh in on the side of the proponents of it. It's not a philosophy tract, its a novel! A novel that does cause you to stop and consider some of the philospohical questions raised by the protagonists, but it remains true to its literary purpose. The Hamlet theme is especially adroit, and I agree with the reviewer who singled out the 7 year old Martha as an especially engaging character. If you loved the movie "You've Got Mail," you'll probably NOT like this book. If you do enjoy a well-written book with realistic characters, clever dialogue and some substance between the plot lines, then do get this book. This is one of my ten best of the year, to date.

If this book is indicative of the whole Jill Smith series, then it is a good addition to the genre. The protagonist is an uncompromising police officer in a world where compromise is survival. While the plotting in this book is not compelling, and Jill's dedication to getting to the bottom of the problem is not readily understandable, I would nevertheless recommend this. It has certainly made me want to hunt out and read the rest of the Jill Smith series, and other books written by the same author.

Narrative drive is strained when policewoman heroine persists in the case - her altruistic devotion to the repulsive Ott is confusing, as is the response of her department to her. But creative handling of secondary characters and the setting make this a diverting read.

Berkley Police Detective Jill Smith prefers to work with the outcasts of society. That is why she is just about the only cop who gets along with Herman Ott, a private eye for the counterculture. This time Jill must help Herman when a corpse of a prominent person is found in the man's office and he has seemingly disappeared. ......The police believes that Ott is guilty, especially when he fails to show up in a reasonable amount of time. Jill is not so sure that her friend is the culprit. She begins to investigate the case only to learn that the case is much more complex than a simple killing. It seems that fraud is the underpinning behind the murder and no one is what they appear to be at first, including the justice loving Ott. With her superiors irate with her not by the book investigation and her romance causing additional problems, Jill still digs deeper into the case, only she seems to be digging herself into a deeper hole. If Jill does not solve the case soon, she probably will be yanked off the investigation. ......COP OUT is the fabulous Jill Smith at the top of her game in the tenth entry in this charming and very eccentrically brilliant series. Berkley has never seemed livelier with its rebels. riffraff, bums, and yes middle class police officers. Readers will not tire of reading about Susan Dunlap's heroine, a woman strong enough in her self-worth to get the job done despite the cost. .......Harriet Klausner

In my experience, this book was not helpful for Step 1 preparation. Partly because Behavioral Sciences is not heavily tested in the exam and clinical vignettes are time consuming. Also, I felt that by studying a standard review book alone, I was able to remember the distinguishing aspects of each disease. However I am sure there are many people who would find this book useful.

This is the worst book of the series and is a waste of time. Pharmacology cannot be taught by clinical vignettes and the author himself recognizes this. In the book review section of First Aid, Dr. Bhushan admits that it is not an ideal review source. The problem is that within two lines of the clinical vignette, the drug is revealed, so there is no chance to guess the answer. There are less time consuming ways to learn the side effects of drugs.

This book covers Cardiology, Endocrinology, GI and Hematology of the Underground Clinical Vignettes series. This series will help you, if you have trouble getting a clinical picture of each disease, or cannot associate important facts with clinical scenarios (keywords etc). It seems to me that this series are intended to supplement the "First Aid for Step 2", but it is also useful as a simulator when you cover the last row of the page (where diagnosis is written) and guess the dianosis by reading through the history and findings in the scenario. On the other hand, if you can associate the facts to clinical picture, this book is not a "must-have".

I was anxious to read The Physics of Sunset as it was reviewed by one of my favorite authors, Anne Lamott. I was thoroughly disappointed by the book. The characters were impossible to connect with not to mention unbelievable. The plot proved to be common and without resolution.

like all berkeley exiles, i gravitate to literature from this place i called home for a decade in the 80s. i pounced on this book, and found myself delighted, in awe, infuriated, bored, head-scratching perplexed, moved, intoxicated, and wondering how a modernistic fable of conjoined lives in matrimonial entropy left me disappointed. was i expecting madame bovary by the bay. the book's problem is its raison d'etre: an unholy union of science and passion. in theory, it works. in practice, it led to prose as wooden and stiff as a book i used to see at cody's called physics for poets. ms. vandenburgh writes with a poet's heart, eye, and ear, buther characters seem unconnected, plagued by solipsistic withdrawal, and despite her best efforts, this novel fails to connect all the dots on the graph. there is richness in her language, a playfulness in her tone, a delight in her wordplay, but when push comes to shove, and when we demand to feel more empathy for the characters in her adultery drama, i felt other physical forces pulling me down and away from the unfolding action. having read this book on the heels of lisa zeidner's layover, which really, honestly plumbs a women's being ( i am a guy), and really, honestly plumbs a women's sexual awakening, i am pleased that novels such as these are available (and aren't just women's books), but whereas zeidner wrote from her heart, vandenburgh wrote from her brain. it can be a dull enterprise or an enlightening lecture, it depends on your mood and patience and identification with berkeley's quirks, landmarks, and contemporary scene (northside, not telegraph avenue, which gratuitosuly gets about a half page). the only slumming in this book is between bedroom sheets.

I was able to perfectly picture the characters in this book - the scenes crackled with life. I especially was affected by the scene where the wife throw up on her husband's shoes when he confesses his affair. this is a gifted author who has honed her skill to a rapier point. highly recommended....

Melanie Bellah's story of her daughter Tammy's life and death is moving but tragic, not least because Bellah seems unaware of the role her ectraordinarily permissive parenting seems to have played in her sensitive daughter's suicide. The author writes with enormous depth and compassion about her daughter's struggles, but at no point during Tammy's teenage years does it appear that firm boundaries were set or that Bellah and her husband attempted to intervene on their daughter's behalf.

Sexually active with a multplicity of partners by the time she was 14, by 16 Tammy was involved in an intense relationship with a twice divorced teacher twice her age. Her mother reacts to this news by philosophising that at least Tammy seems happy, although perhaps her man has a character flaw. Metaphorically shrugging her shoulders at the impossibility of stopping this child from a sexual relationship which is astoundingly inappropriate at best, Bellah blathers on about how she wants her daughters to be "free" and "without guilt" about sex instead. There are suicide attempts, an intense friendship with a heroin addict who steals from everyone and finally, Tammy falls hopelessly in love with a black heroin addict twice her age with a prison record, who has been separated from his wife for a week. She is 18. Her parents express cautious disapproval. As a mother, at this point I had a strong desire to shake Melanie Bellah extremely hard and point out a few things about protecting children. Bellah is confounded and dazed by her daughter's tragic end. She cannot fathom it at all - she muses that Tammy was "too beautiful" and "too sensitive" or "too loving" and that the whole problem lies with the way that the world treats women. Globally, perhaps that's so. But instead, I saw the story of an intelligent, confused and sad child trying to live an adult life for which she was ill-prepared and far too young. The photographs are heart-breaking - an innocent young child's face stares out. The thought that at the time this photograph was taken, she was sleeping with a couple of adult teachers with her mother's knowledge, is sickening. Add to that a pharmacy's worth of Valium and other drugs (at one point Tammy is taking up to 17 pills a day for her tension headaches) and her family's failure to effectively support Tammy or intervene on her behalf seems utterly incomprehensible. Viewed through hindsight, perhaps this book is nothing more than a mirror of the times. If nothing else, however, it shows how senseless and unfair it is to inflict "complete freedom" on children. At the book's end, Bellah and her husband are convinced that Tammy's associates are murderers for the manner in which they have manipulated her towards suicide. Their lack of insight into their own culpability is astounding. It is this attitude that finally, despite some beautiful and loving passages, makes this book profoundly unsatisfying and depressing reading.

This is a frustrating book, which is only augmented by the fact that it is poorly and inconsistent in its' writing. The author, who is Tammy's mom, pleads ignorance thoughout of her daughter's troubles. Come on...the girl tries to commit suicide once, she's screwing everyone in Berkeley including teachers from her school and man after man who verbally abuses her. Her feeling of self-worth is tied to whatever man she is dating... she careens into love within a week of meeting someone. I know times were different then, but any parent should be able to tell that their daughter sleeping with drug addicts and teachers 20 years their senior isn't all right in the world. Additionally, the girl was taking 10-12 valium and 10-12 darvon a day. Even if they didn't know the ill effects of these drugs yet, they HAD to know that this wasn't right. I find it hard to believe that Tammy showed no outward signs of problems...just her mental state with regard to men should have been a clue. I'm sorry to say, but I think that Melanie and Bob were poor parents who ran a too permissive house and their unstable daughter didn't get the discipline and structure she so desperately needed. They never pushed her to do anything (they didn't want her to fail...what's that telling her?)and never really laid down rules (Yes, you may not be able to stop your daughter from sleeping with the school administrator, but you don't have to condone it by letting her sleep over all the time!).

Besides the frustrating story, this book is basically poorly written. Most of it consists of reading Tammy's journal and short stories and poetry which, of course, isn't written very well(why do they choose to BOLD some of her writings and not others? Very bizarre.) Also, the author refers to herself in the third person throughout the whole book, which is really annoying and makes it read very awkwardly. It would have been more powerful for her to say "I was devastated" rather than "Melanie felt extremely devastated." All in all, it was tough to get through. Yes, a tragic story, but I feel it could have been written much better.

I NEVER read biography. As a philosopher I generally keep my nose buried in metaphysical and ontological tomes. It was only through a fluke that I discovered and bought Melanie Bellah's Tammy. If I had paid more attention to the physical description of the book I might have hesitated. It is a BIG book. In paperback it is larger, heavier and contains more pages than Barrow and Tipler's The Cosmic Anthropic Principle. Yet Tammy does not contain one equation, no mention of the quantum wave function, and nothing about the past and future universe. It is simply the story of an attractive, intelligent and highly expressive teenage girl who grew up in the midst of the social turmoil of the sixties and earlier seventies but never made it past 1974 when she committed suicide at the age of eighteen. Although Melanie Bellah, Tammy's mother, wrote the book, which she subtitles "A Biography of a Young Girl," it is virtually an autobiography. Tammy's story is most compelling when it is told in the words of her own journals and letters which are themselves voluminous. In my own book, Beyond Civilization, (Amazon.com) I identified the sixties as a critical period not only for Western Civilization but for the very structure of what we called civilization itself, but Melanie Bellah has shown how the instability and fragmentation of that decade wreaked its destructive influence on one fragile human life as well as disrupting the delicate connections between the other members of her family. Twenty-five years after Tammy's death the questions still remain: Why? Why suicide? What went wrong? With the advantage of the almost inevitably wrong hindsight, the answers may appear obvious. But they are not. Despite my aversion to biography, I read every single sometimes delightful, often painful page and highly recommend it. You can't read this book critically or analytically. You have to LIVE it and FEEL with the people in it. It is all too easy to be judgmental and think you know better than those who were in the heart of a life trauma in which things went terribly wrong. But you don't and you can't.

If you will be traveling in Britain -- this guide's for you. That is if you are college aged and want to hang out with a lot of other people like you (tourists). It's not really off the beaten path, but it is cheap and reliable. However, if you are traveling extensively in Ireland, this book is a big old waste of money. The Ireland section is small. You'd be much better with the Let's Go Ireland book, which consentrates on the Emerald Isle (both North Ireland & the Republic), but also includes a guide to London.

I may not be a college student, but I sure made use of every penny while visiting the United Kingdom. I stayed at many of the Bed & Breakfasts mentioned in the book and even met the home owner mentioned in one B&B review where I stayed in Dublin. I found this book to be accurate in it's descriptions and it fit what I was looking for in a guide book. How to see the most for my travel dollar. I saw it all and saved a bunch. Saved so much I bought the Berkely Guide for France while I was in London and continued my adventures!

Seasoned UNIX users will have no use for this book at all. There is a brief (and i mean BRIEF) introduction to Socket programming at the end of the book, and a modest introduction to csh programming as well.

The reason I purchased this book is I have been spending a lot of time with BSD unix flavors (Open/Free BSD, old solaris), and wanted to get a grasp of how they were different from SysV. I wanted to know things like file placement, differences in the kernel, and so on.

This book provides none of it. Think of it as a primer users guide for unix. Not for somebody who is administrating machines.

On its face, I certainly wouldnt even say it was worth half its horrendous... price. its a flimsy paperback with little value to anyone who knows the ins and outs of vi, ls, cd, and the other basic unix commands.

Buy an OReilly book.

a really good book! in less than 300 pages. it covers almost all you need to know about UNIX. shell programming,vi, emacs,c programming(make, ctrace,debug),sed, awk...... IMO, what make it UNIQUE, it is the third section on the UNIX system programming. a brief even but with full examples on ALL the system calls, File I/O, Signal, Process,IPC, Pipe.....even socket programming.

After I read this book, I feel very comfortable reading Steven's UNIX bible.

I bought the book thinking it would be a more average tale of high school. Reading it, you immediately understand the BHS is a unique school and although the problem of disadvantage by class, race and economics resonate throughout the country; BHS deals with them in an innovative way that would probably not resonate throughout the country due to social stratification. The lack of a forward looking approach to issues such as sexuality and race in other areas of this country create a different set of "rules" for administrators, staff and teachers to tackle these problems. Many of the programs at BHS are light years ahead of the rest of the country and that makes the book a more localized event. The problems may be the same for all but the tools to fix them differ greatly by geography. You have to agree that the author's proposed abolishment of private schools is reflective of the Berkley enviroment. I thought there would be more of a practical method gained from studying these kids for a year. I went into the book looking for common problems and found them. The solutions were too few. I think the book would be something my high school kids would enjoy reading as "year in the life" type of thing. No tools here for educators.

Four years ago I began teaching college students after being in the world of research and graduate students for 15 years. I experienced culture shock; it seemed obvious to me that my students had not had the same high school experience that I had had. My sister listed to my mystified stories and gave me this book for my birthday. It was a big help.

Like these students I went to an urban high school with a significant minority population, largely African-American at the time (the mid 1970s). However, we did not have "tracking" in our school system. I am a white male from a middle class family and I did well in school. I was placed in class after class with students who (if, for example, it was an English class) could not read at their grade level. At the time I found this frustrating. Instead of actually reading Native Son, for example, we read a 'teleplay' of Native Son. Looking back on the experience, however, I have seen the wisdom of putting students of varying academic ability together; it developed my empathy for people with backgrounds that were different from my own.

Meredith Maran's book is at its best when she simply reports what is going on inside of Berkeley High School. When she gets out her soapbox and starts trying to address the larger societal issues that are influencing the events at BHS she quickly bogs down.

That none of the three students whom she profiles live in Berkeley is quite beside the point. I don't remember if a number is provided, but it seems that a significant percentages of BHS students come from other parts of the East Bay. I also do not believe that any of these students will be embarrassed in the future by the way they come off in this book. All of them make mistakes and there are discrepancies between what they profess to believe and what they actually do, but that is just the way people are when they are young. Some people never grow out of that, but I suspect that these three will. You finish the book believing, no matter what their academic abilities and regardless of their various mistakes, these are decent human beings.

What you might have a harder time believing is that they are better human beings because they went to Berkeley High School. Maran is quite merciless when exposing the failures, inconsistencies and wrongheadedness of the various teachers, teaching techniques, administrative policies and administrators. There is a glaring contrast between the AP and the Communication Arts and Sciences (CAS) classes. There are different students and there are different expectations. The shining beacon of integrity is Mr. McKnight, the African American studies teacher. He makes tough rules and enforces them calmly and completely while treating the students with the utmost respect. Maran spends little time describing his classroom, but it stands in stark contrast to the laissez-faire chaos of CAS and the stern sarcasm of Mr. Miller's AP African-American lit class.

Some have complained that the well-to-do white liberal parents do not come off very well in this book. This is true, but I'm afraid they deserve it to some extent. It seems unlikely that very many of them had a high school experience analogous to the one that they are idealistically putting their own children through. Their hearts are in the right place, but they have no personal experience with which to understand what is going on at the school, so they try to "help" the school by simply putting their ideals into action. Anyone who has been on the receiving end of this kind of empathy-free "help" has felt the resentment that rises up in you. It is likely being told by someone who has never smoked that you shouldn't have any problem quitting because it is so bad for you. Yeah, thanks.

I can take or leave Maran's five "solutions" for the problems that she has observed at BHS. They all seem like worthwhile places to start discussion of the issues. For instance, her first suggestion is to abolish private schools as a way of improving public schools. I personally feel that this is ridiculous, but I wouldn't mind defending why I thought so and I do think that it is constructive to put such a radical suggestion in print.

Meredith Maran has the rare ability to take us right into the heart of an urban high school community and to give voice to its students and teachers. Class Dismissed shows us the devasting impact of a large school on the lives of kids in crisis. It goes where a lot of books on education won't go--eg. into the complex issues of race as experienced by a school community struggling to survive and change. It compels us to rethink the whole way high schools are structured and cultured. A great read for educators, parents, policy makers and school activists.