I first read this book thirty years ago as an adolescent, and it made a big impression on my impressionable, snobbish mind. And it was (is) funny!

Reading it and some other Huxley material this year, I am struck by how singleminded AH is in his ideas. Every essay, every story, at least after the 1930s, is driven by his desire to show how humanity is lost in a maze of materialist illusion. He is a mystic, and if that tickles you, perhaps his extended intellectual diaglogs in this book will interest you. Otherwise, just read the deliciously satirical parts. (His detached verse describing the movements of the nearly naked young starlet's body are a tour de force of clinical eroticism).

His literary skills are enormous, his description of southern california in the 30s rang true in the 70s when I lived there and read it, and still do. His humour, arch, esoteric, but sharp, can be a joy. When he gets serious, that's when he has a problem as he lapses into portentous nonsense about the ground of being, the One, etc. Huxley was a acid head long before he started dabbling with drugs - and his mystical discussions make little sense, unless you are already of that mind. Aesthetically, they are highly repetitive and rather irritating.

Readers who want an introduction to his work would do better, I think, to begin with his best, Brave New World. In that one, he used his considerable gifts to their best advantage, and kept his endless and indulgent maundering to a minimum.

I'll be a little partial.I love Huxley.I have read and reread this book since the 80's. The dialogues are simply wonderful.You'll love all the characters.Yes it`s a novel of ideas, hope there'll be a lot like this one around now! A short and funny treaty of Misticism versus Cinicism, and a lot more!

I'll let you read the other reviews for the details. I wish only to add that I read this book more than forty years ago and its images are still bright and clear in my mind to this day.

True, it may not qualify as "a literary masterpiece" in academic circles, but surely the clarity of those images in my mind after all these years qualifies it for some kind of prize! I was delighted to find it back in print.

Huxley may not have had a scientist's clear understanding of Darwin's Theory of Evolution. Indeed the artistic license he took with that theory may well have given many fighting the Creationism vs. Evolution battle some misinformation to fuel their firey debates, but his insights into human nature, his fascination with and revulsion for America and Americans rings as true and insightful today as it did in 1939.

Read this book! It will tickle your funny bone and keep you thinking for decades to come.

'Wives and Daughters' was this month's choice for our book club. We all commented that it took us a long time to read but everyone appreciated the fine writing and skilful characterisation. We found Molly a delight and Hyacinth one of the most delicious 'love to hate' characters. The men in our group thought this was a 'woman's book', well written but too slow and without enough action to interest them. We wanted to know why we call the author 'Mrs Gaskell', when we don't refer to 'Miss Austen', or 'Miss Bronte' We would recommend this as a good read.

In her last novel, Gaskell avoided her usual urban milieu to concentrate instead on the wonderful parochial doings of a country village in the mid-Victorian period. Although she left the novel without its very last chapter before she died, this should not dissuade you from reading the novel: you'll know by the end exactly where Gaskell was going to finish the book and what would've happened to all the characters.

WIVES AND DAUGHTERS is frequently compared to Austen, but it is very different; the comedy and social observation is marvelous, but there's a greater sense of despair here more akin to MIDDLEMARCH. Hyacinth is without question the single most complex and engrossing character Gaskell ever created, and despite her menadacity and her manipulativeness you can't help but feel fond of her in spite of her less attractive qualities. Her daughter Cynthia is nearly as fine a character, and the others are also topnotch. A delightful read.

I received this book for Christmas, along with two Jane Austen novels. I read Austen's novels first and I liked them. I have just finished Elizabeth Gaskell's, Wives and Daughters and I loved it! This book portrays the lives of Molly Gibson and her step-sister, Cynthia Kirkpatrick as they grow up in the town of Hollingford. I thouroughly enjoyed this marvelous book and I would recommend it to anyone, especially Jane Austen lovers, for I think they will enjoy Wives and Daughters more then any of Austen's books, as I have done.

Nice book with lots of helpful information (e.g., charts, tables, lists, etc). The target audience seems to be women in their 20's and as I'm in my 30's I still found it helpful. It's a good beginner book.

Aside from financial stuff, it's motivating and somewhat inspirational -- but not obnoxiously so.

A great gift for a any youngish woman (or guy) who has just graduated, gotten a first professional job, or needs a little push to get financially organized.

Vanessa Summer's background and talents come through in this book to make it both informative and easy to read. Her tips on managing your money and investing offer clear and precise suggestions that I believe are the keys to financial health. A recommended read for those women just begining to manage their own money and explore investment opportunities!

I have been looking for a book like this for the last 5yrs!! Finally a book about finances directed at young women, written by a young woman! Vanessa Summers shows us how to prioritize our savings & re-evaluate what we spend in order to create a secure nest egg for our future, a safety net to fall back on, and some 'fun money' for now! She shows us how to set & achieve realistic financial goals. My views about money have been forever changed, and I am so excited to now have the knowledge to be responsible & in control of my financial destiny! Thanks for writing such an informative, inspiring & enjoyable book!

Goddess: The Secret Lives of Marilyn Monroe is an excellent book! After you finish reading this, you feel as though you've been w/ her every step of the way. The author Anthony Summers goes into great detail of her childhood, struggles of becoming famous, her marriages and divorces, her mental breakdown, etc. A little less than half the book is about Marilyn's death. Summers is quick to give us possible causes of the tragic event backed up w/ testimonies, interviews, and police reports. Instead of forcing the THIS IS HOW MARILYN DIED routine on us, he lets us decide for ourselves. MANY MANY MANY people were interviewed for this book, including a lot of Marilyn's friends (and so called friends) One thing this book does prove is that Marilyn was definitely involved sexually w/ both of the Kennedy brothers (JFK and Robert) around the last months of her life. Lots of pictures are included (there is even one of her after her autopsy) and copies of police reports and even some of Marilyn's personal letters!! This book is EXCELLENT, and you will not want to put it down. Marilyn is one of the most interesting people you can read about. So beautiful and talented, but so afraid and fragile...too bad this book is Out of print ~ FIND THIS BOOK: you won't regret it!!

This is an "exelent" book by Anthony Summers, So well written from beginning to end, this is a book that every Marilyn Fan should have in their bookshelf. You can really appreciate all the time he has devoted in writing "GODDESS." Anthony Summers gives a detailed description of the life and death of Marilyn Monroe. He addresses many sensitive topics that many would not have dare write about, for example the reason why she was murdered, who did it and what was their motive, I love this book exactly for that reason, At last someone dared to discover the truth.

Anthony Summers is a respected British investigative reporter, and he's not afraid to delve into controversial subjects. Among other things, he's written one of the best-researched - and most controversial - books on the JFK assassination ("Conspiracy"). In "Goddess" Summers offers us a thoroughly-researched, extremely well-written account of one of Hollywood's greatest - and most tragic - actresses. The first part of the book takes us through Marilyn's turbulent life and film career. She never knew her father, and her mother suffered from schizophrenia and eventually was sent to a mental hospital - and as a result Marilyn (real name: Norma Jean Baker) constantly feared that she would also suffer a mental breakdown someday. Her life was a series of foster parents, short-lived love affairs that usually ended badly, sexual promiscuity, three (and possibly four, as Summers discovers) marriages, and always the hope on Marilyn's part that she could find the "right man", get married, and settle down to raise a happy family. Of course, that never happened, and Summers writes sympathetically of her unhappy life - and of her brilliant acting career, in which she often drew upon her personal unhappiness for her best performances. The remainder of the book generated considerable controversy when it was published, and it's not hard to see why. Summers argues that Monroe didn't commit suicide but was murdered - a murder which was covered up and made to look like a suicide. He also argues that she was "clearly" involved with the Kennedy brothers in her last days, and that her murder may have been tied to her relationship to them. He even implies that Bobby Kennedy may have been present in her home at the time of her death - a charge which seems fantastic, but Summers has interviewed enough people to prove that there were some strange things going on the night that she died. However, even if you don't believe Summer's murder theories, the first part of the book does offer one of the best, and most sympathetic, biographies of Marilyn's brief but brilliant life ever written. If you could only read one biography of Marilyn, then "Goddess" should be it.

All eight Pike kids are going to the Jersey shore. And all of them need babysitters. Actually 2 babysitters. Stacey and Mary Anne take the job. On the first day to the beach Stacey goes kokoo on a lifeguard named Scott. Mary Anne thinks this is totally not fair that she has to take care of all eight Pikes. Stacey thinks she's just jealous. She finds out the hard way that he doesn't like her and he's just using her just so that he can get extra things. Find out what happens to Mary Anne and Stacey when you read this book

This book is awesome. You should get it if you dont already have it.Stacey and Mary Anne go with the Pikes to Sea City.Mary Anne gets sunburned really bad!Anyway stacey see's a cute lifrguard and falls in luv(as she puts it)the lifeguard's name is Scott Foley.But he's too old for Stacey and then she falls for Toby.Boy-Crazy Stacey is a great book.

When I reached that age (eleven or so) when suddenly boys were on my mind (and how!), this had to be my FAVORITE book! I loved how the girls got to go on a trip to an awesome little boardwalk town, and also that they had such a cool family to baby-sit for, but above all else, Stacey and Mary Anne were (like me) intrigued by cute boys they had just met!
The perfect book for girls just discovering the exciting world of liking boys....My mom even used to call me "boy-crazy Stacey" as a nickname after I read this book! :)

Early one morning while walking on the beach, Daria found a newborn baby. Bringing the baby to her mother, she saved the babies life. Unable to find the mother the baby girl was adopted by Daria's family.

Now, 22 years later, the baby is a young woman and wishes to find her mother. After contacting a television producer, she allows an old friend of the family to delve into her past.

But this is not a mystery that the family wishes to have solved, and the more facts that are brought up the more questions are asked. Who was Shelley's birth mother that left her on the beach to die all those years ago?

Summer's Child is the second book I've read by Diane Chamberlain. While not nearly as heart stopping, page turning as Breaking the Silence, this book will keep the pages turning and surprise the reader in the end

I have read everything Diane Chamberlain has written. I have enjoyed all of her books. Summer's child is one of her best. The setting for the book is a beautiful place. Who wouldn't have wanted to keep and love the baby found on the beach. All the secrets of a small town keep the reader turning the pages. Even the church was involved. I didn't know who the mother was until the end of the book. Hat's off to you Diane, you did it again. Thank you for many hours of enjoyable reading.

Summer's Child is the first novel I have read by Diane Chamberlain, and it certainly won't be the last! I found myself swept immediately into the story; and was kept guessing and wondering how all the pieces were going to fit together. Chamberlain has numerous plots going on within this tale, but the reader will not become confused, only anxious to fit all the puzzle pieces together, if they can! Chamberlain does a wonderful job of holding the reader in suspense and introducing the reader to multiple surprises not only at the end, but also during the course of the story.

Eleven-year-old Daria finds a baby on the beach on the morning of her birthday. Her family comes to adopt the baby, who they name Shelly, after no one claims the newborn. After the death of Daria's parents, Daria continues the role of caretaker for her sister, even at the expense of her own happiness. Suffering some brain damage after her birth, Daria is understandably very protective of Shelly.

Chamberlain leads the reader through the numerous families summering on the Outer Banks, and leaves you guessing as to who is Shelly's real mother. Nearly twenty years later, Shelly enlists the aid of one of the former residents, Rory Taylor, now a TV producer, to help her find her past. Rory starts asking too many questions, which has several of the residents becoming angry and asking him to leave well enough alone. Afterall, Shelly was raised in a loving and caring home.

The web of secrets leaves no one unscathed, as you will find out, yet Chamberlain masterfully weaves this intricate tale, blending everything into a cohesive, heartfelt, and warming tale. The ending will definitely surprise the reader! I highly recommend this book.

I am very much looking forward to reading her other books.

Thank you, Sandra. (I wonder, do authors ever read what the reader writes?) I loved your cover painting and photographs and your quick wit and excellent information. Our local librarian recommended your book to me. She added that our library had only one copy and it was becoming dog-eared. She characterized your book as a "pass along, word of mouth book." Therein, lies the problem. Fiona put me on our library waiting list (I was 14th on the list here in our small Wyoming town!) Then, fortuitously, I was able to buy your book on my last trip to London, where it is also wildly popular (and, I must add, nicely stocked in the bookstores.) I confess that I do not normally lend books, but I have lent this one. Hint to the lending reader: Write your name prominently inside the frontispiece to assure a return. This is not exactly a review, I would not presume to write an actual review nor know how to go about it. If you love Italy, as I do, and if you love good writing, you will be enriched by this wonderful book.

It is a surprise that the reviewers speak here only of travel tips in Italy. It is true that the information is very good. It must be said that far more important is that the book is the story of a budding young opera Diva in her Italian studies and culminates with her first opera performance which is exquisite. Put away the travel tips and read this book for the promise of a brilliant new star.

I love Italy, and therefore I loved this book. It really captured the essence and flavor of that marvelous country. I had it on my living room coffee table when a committee from the Dante Alighieri Society of Washington was at my house for a meeting, and several people recognized the book, and they all love it, too! Most of them are Italian, and even though I'm not, I am just as entralled with the country and the culture. The writing is exquisite, Sandra J. Swanson must be a professional writer, although I think it's her first book, since there are no others listed. I feel like I know her and her family now, the writing was so intimate. When I read that Ms. Swanson had also done the cover illustration I was bowled over! She is truly a Renaissance woman, so Firenze is the perfect place for her!

PS, I'd sure love to be around for one of the great meals she prepares!

I heard Tom Stone interviewed recently on NPR's "Savvy Traveler." I couldn't wait to read this book, which seemed to promise a wonderful combination of travel and food writing. I was sorry to discover that it delivers nothing more than a tepid narrative of Stone's adventure, made nearly unreadable by the author's self-congratulatory tone. Stone's memoir develops no interesting characters and is so poorly organized, edited, and written that if there was actually a good story there the reader would be too annoyed to enjoy it. I would recommend that Stone employ a ghost writer if he wants to share his personal experiences in print ever again (but since he's a writer by profession this may be too much to expect).

I can't help commenting on the thing that irritated me most about this book, which was Stone's representations of his wife and kids. They were, in this book, just beautiful props without personality, devices for Stone's self-flattering view of himself.

One bright note: I haven't tried any of the recipes yet. Maybe they will redeem this disappointing book.

As a Philhellene hungry for true accounts of ex-pat's lives in Greece, and an ex-pat myself living in Greece, I really wanted to like this book. Unfortunately, I struggled many times with its irrelevant details and sometimes boring passages, which caused me to put it down frequently.

Unless you know or like Patmos already, it's difficult to envision some landscapes because either the details provided were too limp or simply tried to hard to paint a picture in my head where my imagination might have done better with fewer, succint descriptions.

I was also disappointed with simple editing/writing mistakes that Stone and his editor made such as using too many Greek words (spelled phonetically, not true to Greek) and then giving the English translation afterward. A person, like myself and many others, who know both Greek and English can find it annoying to have the same thing repeated twice. It's a beginner's mistake from Strunk and White's rules.

If I could get over the poor editing and lifeless passages, I found a gem of a story that could have shined brilliantly with the right organization, more concise adjectives and characters that came more to life. I do admire Thoma for his motivation, intention and courage to make his dreams come true. I do believe he is a good storyteller, as the author says he is in the book. I do believe this could have been a great memoir.

Please don't hate me for writing this review, but I'm being honest by presenting the good and the bad. A better memoir is "The Sailor's Wife" by Helen Benedict or Katherine Kizlos' "The Olive Grove."

I approached this book on a travel writing level where you would read Lawrense Durrell and Henry Miller books about Greece. I did experience this in addition to a great story about finding (and losing) your life-long dreams.

As recorded in the brief summary above, the book follows the author's adventure one summer trying to run a Greek taverna on the Agean island of Patmos. The book recounts how the author set up shop, ran it daily with his dubious Greek partner, and finally discovered what his dream really meant to him. The narrative seems to take place before Patmos become a hot tourist location (before 1990), yet Tom Stone doesn't reveal any dates. The author's page revelas that Tom no longer lives in Greece, but in Southern California.

The book is light reading (probably take 2 hours of reading...after all it is only 199 pages) -- it includes with some folklore about the island (much revolving around St. John's visit in the first century). The recipies printed in the appendix are a nice touch, especially for those wanting to indulge in the culinary experience.

Players go through alot not just on the field though, fighting for things that they believe in. People don't realize what hard work it takes. In being a women people dont give you as much recognision as they do male ball players. They dont get paid as much even though they work just as hard as male players do. In 1999 the U.S. womens soccer team showed the world that woman can do it.

The Girls of Summer by Jere Longman shows and tells the woman's U.S. soccer teams struggles throughout there period of dominance in the 1999 Womans Wolrd Cup tournament. Jere Longman really told you about how people didn't think the Woman's World Cup would get recognision. The U.S. womans's team proved them wrong with there domination throughout the World Cup and there win againts China to win it all. The author really got into this and almost showed you what it is like to be a player.

The Girls of Summer provides an in-depth look not only of the 1999 World Cup final match against China but also gives a good history of the U.S. women's national team. The book looks at brief parts of the game as they occurred and then breaks away from the game to fill in details about how a particular player or the team in general reached this moment in time. Depsite breaking away from the action, it does give complete coverage to the game from their arrival at the Rose Bowl to the celebration in the locker room after the game. It provides a great deal of insight into the early struggles of the national team to their national glory in 1999. Although it is almost entirely about soccer, it does examine the struggle women in general have faced across the globe to be allowed to play sports. The story does not end with the victory against China. It also looks at the struggle the national team faced with the U.S. Soccer Federation after the tournament. The author has done a good job of including interviews and vignettes from many of the main players on the team. If you are looking for a simple recounting of the U.S. victory, this book is not for you. This book also does not provide much detail about the World Cup games leading up to the final. If you are looking for detailed coverage about how the U.S. team developed over the last 12 years, you will enjoy reading The Girls of Summer.

Jere Longman's, The Girls of Summer, is by far one of the best non-fiction books I have ever read. I am a huge Womens National Team fan. I am always in search for a great book, depicting the life and success's of the entire team. He coherses through the professional and personal lives of the women that grabbed the hearts of the United States. Their success is revealed in this wonderful book.

I persoanally, could not put this book down when I purchased it. I finished it in two days, it was just so up-lifting. It's a great motivational book. You always wish you were there to experience the moments that the team lived through. From country to country, trial to trial, this team is very special. If someone would like to know the US history of womens soccer, this is a perfect buy. I could picture myself there, it was detailed and deeply moving. I really enjoyed reading on the players whom fought so hard to gain respect and recognition.

I'm sure, if we saw the final game against China in 1999, we can all say where we were, and how we reacted. For many of us, such as I, we cried for joy. That game was the turning point in womens sports. And Longman made me remember once again what it was like to watch that game, and see the 90,000+ fans going wild after Brandy Chastain scored the final PK. It is a fantastic book for any soccer fan, man or woman. It is a book to read if you feel you need to be inspired. It's worth the buy.

"Summer of Deliverance" is an eloquent and compelling work by the son of a remarkable (even sometimes brilliant) self-destructive poet. Christopher Dickey pulls no punches in this memoir about his relationship with his father, James Dickey, who died in 1997. Once a loving and focused parent, Dickey began a steady decline into alcoholism, half-truths, and embarassing showmanship after his first novel, DELIVERANCE, was made into a successful film, in 1971. All of Christopher's pain and heartache are here--everything from his father driving his first wife (Christopher's mother) to drink and an early death to the poet's frightening bout with alcoholic hepatitis in 1994. Christopher does a workmanlike job of dramatically organizing his assemblage of details and facts. And, to his credit, he accesses himself just as relentlessly as he does his father. Also, like his dad, Christopher has an uncanny eye for the poetic. Whether it is recalling lyrical lines of conversation with the elder Dickey or simply remembering poignant moments (e.g., when his father, frail and hooked to an oxygen machine, utters with heartfelt forthrightness, "Son--I do love you so much"), Christopher pens it so winningly right. Quibbles? I question his speaking so harshly about the University of South Carolina. For both USC and Dickey prospered by his tenure there. Still, with SUMMER OF DELIVERANCE, we have a clearer picture of both the frailties and the greatness of a legendary poet.

Summer of Deliverance, written by James Dickey's son, Christopher Dickey, is a fascinating mix of biography and autobiography. It tells the story of a man who lived life to its fullest yet drank most of it away, and the son who struggled in his shadow.

James Dickey, while an accomplished and prolific Southern poet, will always be best known for his best selling novel, Deliverance. The novel, and its subsequent film adaptation, is the story of a fateful canoe trip taken by four suburban Atlanta men down a North Georgia river.

Born to a wealthy Atlanta family, Dickey spent his early career criss crossing the country with his wife, Maxine, and their two sons, taking several teaching positions along the way.

Dickey began to garner national recognition with his appointment as the Poetry Consultant to the Library of Congress, an honor second only to the Poet Laureate. He was commissioned to write and recite a poem for Jimmy Carter's presidential inauguration. Disappointed to learn that he would not be reciting it at the actual swearing in, a la Robert Frost at JFK's Inauguration, but rather at a televised gala the night before, he was barely able to recite the poem, after enjoying one too many beers backstage with Paul Newman before the show.

But it was the release of Deliverance that put him on the literary map. Deliverance was based on an earlier Dickey poem titled Springer Mountain. Chris Dickey spends a surprisingly short amount of time discussing the actual writing of the book, yet devotes four chapters to the filming of the movie. While James Dickey only made brief appearances on the set, including a cameo as the sheriff, Chris worked the entire shoot as a stand in. Colorful stories of Burt Reynolds' steady stream of female visitors, local inmates being used as film extras, and the unfriendly locals are well documented.

The success of Deliverance brought instant fame and fortune to Dickey, and to say that it went to his head would be a gross understatement. It fueled an already growing drinking problem, which led to marital infidelity and mental abuse of wife and sons.

Chris describes a father who could build you up to make you feel so special, only to tear you down with one of his drunken episodes. He dragged his wife down until she developed a drinking problem of her own, that she died from in 1976. Two months later, Dickey remarried a woman more than half his age.

Soon after, father and son ceased to communicate, an impasse that lasted 20 years. Chris became a respected journalist, covering the turmoil in Central America for The Washington Post, and is now the Paris Bureau Chief for Newsweek magazine. But his father's failing health drew brought him home to Columbia, South Carolina, to care for his father, and to try and begin a dialogue to help work through their problems.

During their time together, James was completely sober, and they spent a great deal of time talking about their lives. Slowly they began the healing process before James died.

Summer of Deliverance is a compelling study of the dichotomy of a public personal and the private reality. The result is a poignant story of forgiveness and understanding between father and son.

We've had many books from authors who grew up as the children of difficult, self-obsessed geniuses, but Christopher Dickey's memoir of his father, James Dickey, ranks at the very top. "Summer of Deliverance" has the ring of bitter truth, and Christopher Dickey is just as hard on himself as he is on his father; this isn't "Daddy Dearest," thank God. The chapters on the making of the film version of "Deliverance"--an abortive collaboration between father and son which ended when the father died--are both hair-raising and delicious. (I'm surprised Burt Reynolds hasn't sued!) "Summer of Deliverance" had the effect on me of making me want to go back and reread all of James Dickey's poems and novels immediately, as well as to check out Christopher Dickey's other books. I suspect most readers will have exactly the same reaction.