Limited, but nevertheless a fine examination to the question of any Christological titles attached to Jesus of Nazareth during his lifetime. This book is full of fine information and analysis to this very question. A must read for anyone who wishes to study this subject.

I'll say this--William Marshall's jagged, chopped-up writing style certainly suits what he has chosen for the opening to this splendid whodunit: an early-morning high-speed freeway crash between a massive truck and a van containing four people and a huge load of plate glass. The resultant carnage, as the glass literally explodes, makes clue-finding tough for Inspector Harry Feiffer--and what he does finally discover about the four shredded victims in the mashed and perforated van makes no sense.

The author also runs two subplots, two added puzzles for other star members of his stable of perpetually harried detectives. O'Yee is working the phone at the squadroom, ignoring various crank callers and assorted weirdos, to try and convince a troubled ten-year-old boy to come in and surrender a loaded gun he says he found by a dead body. The child, untrusting, refuses to cooperate, and when O'Yee carefully tries to instruct him on how to re-set the gun's Safety mechanism while he's still in the phone-booth, that's when a third party attacks the boy. Meanwhile, Spencer and Auden stake out the store of an herb-seller, trying to catch a thieving Dalmatian dog. They decide to fight dog with dog, and soon recruit a German Shepherd named Petal to help capture the dishonest canine. But Petal--even when re-named Fang--proves to be a bit of a dreadful incompetent--though Auden never loses faith, and starts having long conversations with Petal. Together, they come up with a daring plan.

This is a superb Yellowthread Street novel, standing up there with the best of them. The main trickery threw me for quite a loop; I was rocked by the solution to what really went on when the two vehicles slammed into each other before dawn. Need I say that all is not as it seems. But Feiffer wrestles with the clues and contradictions, and the truth leads him to confront a dangerous foe in a confusing maze of halls and doors on the top floor of an empty mansion.

Peter the Great, written by William Marshall and published by Longman Group Limited in 1996, is a nonfiction historical work about the life and works of what some from the time hailed as "the greatest Monarch of our age (p 88)." The text lends a good deal of understanding to the now defunct U.S.S.R. and present-day Russia. Marshall presents Peter as a rather nontraditional ruler whose genius schemes and manipulations (though not always immediately successful) ushered in a new era for Russia and laid the foundation on the world scene and in Russia for what was to come in following centuries. Perhaps the most striking feature of Peter the Great as presented in this text was his unconventionality as a ruler. Peter's lifestyle was rather crass as far a world leaders go, and extremely unorthodox when compared to his Russian predecessors. Peter's shabby, foreign dress combined with his heavy drinking and love of the company of "common folk" were just a few peculiarities that contributed to his rough image. Marshall points out that at times this was to his advantage and at others it may have worked against him. Perhaps Peter wanted it that way, being the manipulator that he was. Peter lived the way he ruled. It was his way or the high way, and this may have been one of his ingredients for success (at least initially). One of the main emphases of the book (and rightly so) is the military ventures of Peter the Great. Marshall attributes Peter's love of the military to his growing up in the foreign districts of Moscow. Indeed much of Peter's character and behaviors are attributed to this. From the moment that Peter assumed authority, his immediate and long term goals centered around the military. Russia needed a warm-water outlet to western Europe. Peter desired conquest of foreign held territories bordering Russia. A large and effective military was needed to defend what Russia already held against its enemies. At the time Russia's infrastructure was infantile or nonexistent. The course of action that Peter pursued to attain his goals set Russia on a hurried pace to a seat at the world's table. Marshall repeatedly points out that Russia was already on a course for prominence and development (set by Ivan IV) but Peter did a great deal to speed the process. For Peter the key to advancing Russia lay in the Westernization of his empire. Peter was constantly recruiting foreigners for service and leadership in the military and his government, a process that Ivan IV had begun. The need for funds to finance Peter's great military and naval schemes as well as interior development had many significant short term and long term effects upon Russia. Extremely heavy taxes were imposed upon the Russian people as well as the Church. Soldiers for the army and sailors for the navy were forcibly enlisted. Forced migrations to areas where labor was needed were common. This was cause for much dissent at the time, but it had a much more far reaching effect. A general feeling of the need for service to the state was being instilled in the Russian people. People were becoming nothing more than a cog in the wheel of the great machine which Russia was to become. As Marshall puts it, "The hallmark of his working life was service to the state, for the common good (p 10)." This is a sentiment that the U.S.S.R. played heavily upon and one of the reasons Russia was able to do so much so fast. Peter eventually assumed the title of Emperor, and allowed no opposition. While Peter was a religious man, he certainly lacked the piety of previous tsars. The Church was strong and the Patriarch held considerable authority with the people. Peter cowed the Church, ended the position of Patriarch and made the Church no more than a department of the state to be used for its benefit. A darker side of Peter is revealed when he founded the "Most Drunken Synod (p 56)." The ceremonies performed were a mockery and meant to weaken the Church, but it also raises questions about the mental stability of Peter. While Peter was not an extremely educated man, he was intelligent and he understood the power of education. He founded many schools and academies to teach the art of warfare, medicine, and shipbuilding among other things. His emphasis on practical knowledge and technology as opposed to basic research and theory illuminates Peter's impatient and demanding nature. He desired that the only things taught or learned were those of immediate importance and that could be implemented directly. In all things that he did, Peter wanted what he wanted the way he wanted and as soon as possible. That is evident in the building of St. Petersburg against the council of his advisors. He then had to force the population and development of the city. Peter wanted to glorify his empire, he sought to do that by expanding. To expand Russia needed a large up-to-date military and navy. To achieve that Russia needed money and people and foreign help. To advance the military and support expansion Russia needed to develop its infrastructure. I believe Peter went about meeting these needs in the wrong order. I dispute the claim by Marshall that Peter was a social egalitarian (p 11). He failed to recognize any rights at all, save that of his autocracy to rule unchallenged. Some may say that this was what was needed at the time, but a garden sown with weeds will always grow weeds and will eventually leach everything it can out of the soil and die. We have seen such a thing happen in our own lifetime with the demise of the U.S.S.R. and the poor state of Russia.

A highly detailed book, using pottery, to present the
history of this area. Lots to read, but sometimes boring.
It was an okay book, but try another one before you get
this one. Unless you are looking for something very
specific.

My hobby is genealogy, and Samuel Marshall, the founder of M&I Bank was a 3rd cousin of mine. His first wife, Elizabeth Grubb was a 2nd cousin.

I mention these things because it is within the context of research that I purchased this book. It certainly has historical value, especially concerning the cities of Milwaukee and Madison, WI.

I would highly recommend the book for those that have an interest in the early history of these towns, the history of banking in Wisconsin, or a personal interest in Samuel Marshall or Charles Ilsley (Marshall's partner).

The book is well illustrated. Illustrations from the M & I archives, and perhaps from the Wisconsin Historical Society, can be found throughout the pages.

The research provided by the author, Ellen Langill, is exceptional. I know there were a couple of minor errors, but in general, she was able to reconstruct the story very well.

Ellen Langill, is well known among Wisconsin historians as a major contributor and has written many other historical accounts of early Wisconsin life. Her style of writing is easy to read and flows well. She transitions from chapter to chapter with ease. Certainly this book is no exception. The illustrations, the bold print--even the cover are colorful. After all, what's wrong with enjoying yourself while doing research!

We are surrounded by books written about adoption issues from each participant's perspective - the adoptee, the birth parents, the adoptive parents, and even agency workers and counselors. Those written by the "adoption triad" are generally highly emotionally charged. In The Psychology of Adoption, David Brodzinsky and Marshall Schechter have covered a broad range of adoption issues, but have approached them clinically. This is excellent source material for those who are interested in studies that investigate the problems and complications experienced by adoptive parents, adopted children, and birthparents. Brodzinsky and Schechter present and compare results of numerous clinical studies that are the foundation for their professional opinions on, and recommended approaches to improved emotional, psychological and mental health for families involved in adoption. Some of the documentation is difficult to wade through at times, but I was pleased to discover genuine compassion in their treatment of the subject. These men struck me as being caring professionals who are striving to improve a flawed adoption system that is not producing healthy, satisfied participants. They address the complex problems inherent in adoption, and offer options and solutions that, although perhaps not popular or commonly well-known or readily available, have been found to be healing and helpful to troubled families. Possibly more important, they advocate changes to the adoption system that might be preventive medicine for families who are statistically "destined" to have a less than successful adoption experience. I would recommend this book to those who appreciate an educated, clinical perspective that is refreshingly balanced with deeply felt and caring commentary on the adoption experience.

This is a book written by the grandson of the famous military historian, General S.L.A. "SLAM" Marshall. It conerns allegations made about his grandfather, that appear to be true. Allegations that make his grandfather out to be a person who does NOT lie about catching the fish, but each time the story is told, the fish gets bigger and bigger. At least, that was my impression. But, it's also about how John Douglas Marshall, the grandson and First Lietenant in the US Army, disappoints and hurts his grandfather by filing for and receiving a Concientious Objector status in 1969, instead of being sent to the Vietnam War. Initially, I was slightly irked, because I was drafted in 1969, and have psychiatric problems from my two tours in Vietnam. It often seems that people with connections, or better education, often get the best of what America has to offer. Yet on another level, I was very pleased with Mr. Marshall's honesty, and the book shows how, no matter what family you came from, the Vietnam War affected everyone in this country, one way or another. One of the remarks Mr. Marshall made, which I will always remember, is a feeling he shared, many years later, with a fellow concientious objector. It was that their decision to seek C.O. status was the most important decision of their lives. And in this sense, I must agree with him and his friend. Because I think my decision to go to Vietnam for two tours, at the end of the war, was the most important decision or event to occur in my life, and I think that must be true of almost any male of our generation. No matter what course of action you took in regards to the war, it was a defining moment in your life. At this point, I look for forgiveness and healing, and I would suggest that this book is truly about some kind of Reconciliation Road for all of us.

This is a must read and good reference book for mortgage professionals, including lenders and practitioners in secondary mortgage business. The book gives excellent review of the development of residential lending in US, of government regulations, major market players, and important product types. Then the book gets to the details of mortgage lending processes and also touches the secondary markets. Readers can definitely gain valuable and practical knowledge on residential lending business after walk through the book.

Robert Mapplethorpe was never afraid of revealing his true self and personal sexuality to the world. He shocked many people with his "in your face" attitude. He wanted the world to realize that we're all sexual beings who shouldn't be ashamed of our bodies or sexual desires. Life is for living, and he lived it to the fullest. There have been many books published about Mapplethorpe, but this volume is a very personal collection of his black and white Polaroid photographs he took of himself in the early 1970's. They reveal the many moods of Mapplethorpe, whether he was being erotic, sexy, dark & sinister, or very innocent. It's a valuable collection of photos that verge on the edge of excitement. There are about 65 black & white self-portraits here. Some are not as clear as others due to the technology of the period.

There is a very informative essay by Richard Marshall which is an invaluable addition to this book. A nicely produced book by Arena Editions, with quality paper, printing, and design. Robert Mapplethorpe was a man who's personal beauty and good looks, only enhanced his talented life as one of our most famous photographers. A handsome addition for anyone's collection.

Joe Hanssen

This book focusses on showing students how to learn course material well, and become an "expert" on the subject. Now only will a new wave of knowledge fill your mind, but also the satisfaction of getting good grades. The methods described in this book are especially effective for subjects such as History, Physics, Chemistry, and most high school subjects excluding math. The book does have a math section, but I feel that the advice it gives on the subject does not cut it. Other than that minor point, this book is an excellent read for high school and college students. Some of the topics covered in this book are: Memorization, Mind mapping, Note taking, Expert Questions, and a few other skill sets that will bring you on your way to a successful school career. With the helpful tips mentioned in this book, I was able to increase my already high mark by 5%! I am sure that any student willing to try the methods in this book will surely find the same success and more!