Hardy spares us the gruesome details of the worst offenses in this novel, yet the overall portrait of genuine goodness utterly defeated at the hands of the cruel world is enough to cause the most stable person to contemplate self-destruction. A horrific tragedy. I can't decide whether I am glad or sorry that I read it.

'Tess of the D'Urvevilles' is regarded, by many, to be Hardy's best novel. At the time it was published, in the 1890's, it was surrounded by controversy due to its themes of apostasy and sexual immorality.

It is a tragedy, that Hardy compares to Aeschylus' tragedies, in which Tess Durbyfield, a Wessex 'cottage girl', embarks upon a journey through seduction and rape, love, morality, internal religious struggle, until she finally meets her fate. Hardy was commenting on the society he lived in and the attitudes and values that it adopted.

A fascinating read, if you like Hardy's style and can make sense of his often complicated lexical choices.

Visions of space has a lot of art work and I was suprised to see how many different forms there were.The language is quite complex and I don't think younger readers would enjoy it as much as adults.I like space but that is not really a good reason to buy this book.If you like mordern or pop art than this is worth a look.

These days, the fantastic space art of such stellars as Vincent DiFate, Robert McCall, Michael Whelan, Rowena Morrill, Dean Ellis et al. are well known. Meanwhile the pre-Hubble, Pre-Apollo, pre-Sputnik artists are receding into the mists as more new artists appear (along with their snazzy up to date computers and expensive software).

VoS is a tribute to these original masters: the dreamers who imagined the rings of Saturn at sunset as viewed from one of its moons, the optimists who KNEW their grandchildren would live in domed habitats on the Moon, the artists who drew Von Braun wheels in orbit around the planets (with the firm belief that mankind would have reached this far by no later than the end of the twentieth century), the adventureminded who saw in their mind's eye the churning clouds of Jupiter seen from a mining colony on a Galilean moon.

Likely to be unimpressive to many younger people weaned on "Star Wars," the newer "Star Trek" series, and video games, this book can be appreciated by the folks who imagined what Mars looked like before the Viking landings proved or disproved our imaginations. Before Hubble, Pioneer, Voyager, Venera. These were the days of rockets and rocketmen, before contemporary science fiction made "hyperdrive" and "planetary federation" household words.

When looking at the art in VoS, it is necessary to remember that much of the work represented here was made before the modern advances and discoveries of modern astronomy. Chesley Bonestell, one of the true grandmasters of space art, created visions of space based on imagination alone... he saw in his mind's eye the shadows cast by the rings of Saturn, rocketmen in heavy armorlike spacesuits as they mined yet-to-be discovered heavy elements on a distant asteroid, he saw a bright future of colonized space.

There are some contemporary artists featured in VoS; Pamela Lee, Michael Carroll, Don Dixon, Ed Tucciarone, Kim Poor, David A. Hardy et al. Some artists have enjoyed careers that span decades, and continue to flourish today. There are those who had work commissioned early in the 20th century: Scriven Bolton, Howard Russell Butler, H. Seppings Wright, Lucien Rudaux, Abbe Th. Moreux, James Nasmyth. These people deserve much credit for getting the space program started, and for giving the Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon serials something to base their scenery on.

There are many two-page pictures in this book, and almost all are in color, very few are in B&W (some of the obscure color paintings were photographed in B&W for books in the first quarter of the 20th century).

The foreword is by Arthur C. Clarke. The informative and insightful commentary is by David A. Hardy.

Highly recommended.

A clue to a string of gallery thefts around Bayport leads Frank and Joe to New Orleans, where they also help a friend's grandfather whose jazz club is being targeted by a voodoo cult. While I enjoyed the book, I expected it to be better than it was. I felt that the voodoo side of the book was not utilized like it could have been and I found the book rather anticlimactic.

a small time breaking and entering case in their hometown of bayport leads frank and joe to a big-time crime ring based in new orleans. somehow the burglary is tied to their friend peter walkerwho is the target of a sinister voodoo cult.

lured into a snake infested swampthe boys pick up a crooked trail that leads to new orleans jazz club owned by peter's grandfather. in the middle of mardi gras they uncover an elaborate plot to put mr. walker out of business for good. frank and joe leap into action- and land into a deadly nest of vipers and crime!!!

My son and I read this book together. It kept us guessing to the end. More amazing than that, it kept his attention throughout. He actually asked me to sit down and read with him, so he could learn how the case came out. Like in other books in the series, elementary-age Frank and Joe Hardy work with their friends to solve a mystery and help a friend in need. In this case, they help a magician regain his good reputation by discovering who stole the latest Jimmy Han flick during the magician's show. References to magic and karate wrapped up in a mystery make a great story for young readers.

I confess I only read D. C. Somervell's abridgment of Arnold Toynbee's first six volumes A Study of History, so I cannot claim to be a student of his work, but I was impressed mightily by that reading. This biography of Toynbee by the eminent historian William H. McNeill is of consistent interest and does not fail to relate Toynbee's troubled personal life as well as explore his eminent historical writing life. After reading this bio I concluded that Toynbee's theories and prophecies have not proved overly valid. E.g., he feared the U.S. more than Soviet Russia, and that is a novel and unspportable fear to me, naturally. Toynbee, along with most great thinkers, did not foresee the Soviet collapse. I think an interesting work would be an exploration of the why so many people looked on Communism as the wave of the future, even including Whittaker Chambers. Does anyone know of a good book exploring that phenomenon?

This is a great book for planning a trip down under. Very good maps and information without to much fluff. I sure wish I had it to plan my next trip, but Joel Daphyne has borrowed it and not returned it.

The Hardys and their friend enter the Bike Jamboree. Then someone begins messing with the bikes. Can the Hardy's find out who it is?

This is a marvelous book which gives deep incites into the character of the boys who ultimately became prophets in this dispensation. Excellent for those who love to read about the "human side" of great men of the Church.

This book was one of the better book that I've read on Boyz 2 Men and I give the Writer a big round of aplouse. If someone asked me if there was a book that I thought that they sould read more than likely I would give them Boyz 2 Men by James Hardy and for this reason I give the book 4 stars and a recamendation to anyone that askes for it.

Having their car break down, the Hardys must travel to the small town of Axeblade to get repairs. But something strange is happening. When the brothers go camping in a nearby National Park, they get ambushed! They soon discover that someone is dumping their toxic waste in the National Park, killing animals! Using their witts and skills, the Hardys' must find the fiend responsible. This is a wonderful book!