Larry McMurtry once said he based "Lonesome Dove" on a handful of reference books about the Old West. This classic compendium of cowboy terminology first published in 1936 by Ramon Adams is surely one of them. In the chapter on cowboy nicknames, there is told the story of Dishwater Martin, who like Dish Boggett in the novel, got his name by mistaking dishwater for drinking water.

And if you've read "Lonesome Dove" much of the early material in this book will be a little familiar. Adams discusses at length the duties of cowboys on the job in open rangeland, on cattle drives, and on ranches. Their manners, habits, attitudes, and codes of behavior are discussed, especially the close bond between cowboys and their horses. And interwoven through all of this are the words, terms, and phrases borrowed and invented by cowboys, observed and noted by Adams over many years as an amateur lexicographer.

I found the reading got more interesting as Adams explored topics that spilled over into storytelling and something I guess we'd call socio-linguistics today. The chapter on cooks, cooking, food, meal-time etiquette, the chuckwagon itself, and the sharp wit of cooks is especially enjoyable. Adams also makes good reading out of his chapters on cattle rustling, guns, the afore-mentioned nicknames, and (much too briefly) cowboy dances, also known as 'hoe-digs,' 'shin-digs,' 'hoe-downs,' and 'stomps.' I learned square dancing as a boy but never heard calls as arcanely mystifying as the ones Adams records here.

While Adams observes that cowboys were also notoriously profane and wildly inventive in their profanity, the mores of 1936 prevent him from giving any examples. Sad to say, that's the only chapter I have to report as missing from this otherwise entertaining and informative book.

"Cowboy Lingo" is one of those rare reference books you can read for pleasure. It opens a wide and richly detailed window into a uniquely Western world.

Ramon F. Adam's book of Cowboy lingo is a great addition to the growing library of reference books dealing with cowboy culture and the cowboy way of life. This book is great for writers and cowboy enthusiasts alike.

Here's why:

The Author Adam's divides his 'dictionary' into chapters, with specific themes ranging terms for cattle, to nicknames for people. Chapters include the commentary of modern cowboys and the author's own observations. (This is NOT a dictionary in the traditional sense, so don't expect a sterile list of terms with definitions or you might be disappointed). =-) Words and phrases are scattered throughout each chapter in no particular order.

Find out for yourself what the words "Buckaroo," "Fence-Stretcher" and "Talk Turkey" mean.

Saddle up, and prepare yourself for an exciting adventure into the ways and words of a Cowboy life!

This book pre-dates web conferencing (sharing data over a browser with a teleconference) but their principles and insights are first rate, terse and straight to the point. The lesson of planning different strategies for different types of meetings is very helpful and practical. They give tips and strategies for specific types of virtual encounters from brainstorming sessions, to working team meetings, remote presentations and formal board meetings. They also offer a key insight that the use of video conferencing is not a technical solution that reduces travel cost but strategic managment issue that goes to core of communications within an organization.

As web conferencing and Video over IP become realities, this book establishes the principles for holding any type of virtual meeting. )

This book is a must read for anyone looking to use cybermeetings to improve access to justice and to resolve eCommerce disputes amicably. Anyone in the burgeoning field of web conferencing should learn the constructive lessons of video conferencing from this book.

Jim Keane - JKeane.Com - ABA-LPM eLawyering Task Force

Helps you look at your meetings and real time collaboration processes, and see how/if technology can support them. For once it doesn't look at it from a technology standpoint. The authors lets you consider what you want with your meetings. Then they take a look at how tech can support this.

Adam Przeworski is one of the top five political scientists of the world. "Democracy and the Market" is amazing and should be read by everybody that wants to know why democracies last (or don't). Przeworski is probably one of the few writers that compare the situation in East Europe with the situation in Latin America. And he does it perfectly. A bit technical at times but a very contemporary work of Political Science. A must buy.

Przeworski's writing is always penetrating. This is the best work that I've ever read in the literature of political economy and comparative politics. Although his approach is too much immersed in rational-choice, he knows the history of political philosophy. Although he is basically a Marx-oriented scholar, he correctly understand what neo-classical theories are lacking. Adam Przeworki is a rare intellectual who combine science with philosophy. is worth buying and worth reading although somehow technical.

En este Libro podras ver la genialidad y la manera jocosa con la cual Scott Adams, nos brinda muchas de las situaciones que se presentan de manera cotidiana en las diferentes empresas. Cabe mencionar el Sindrome de Cubiculo). Aparte de esto se podra observar la incompetencia de los jefes y la vagancia de los compañeros de trabajo( especialmente Wally)todo esto presentado con una genialidad, sencillez y gran comicidad.
Si leyo El Reducido del Reino de los pinguinos de Barbara Hateley este te va a gustar.

En este libro podra leer de una manera comica muchas de las situaciones vividas de manera cotidiana en su oficina; las cuales van desde la incompetencia de su jefe hasta la vagancia de algunos de sus compañeros( especialmente me refiero a Wally). Este libro deberia ser considerado como tema de discucion en algunas universidades ya que de manera jocosa podremos medir la incompetencia y la discordia en los distintos departamentos que forman a un empresa u organizacion.
Si leyo El Pavo Real en el Reino de los Pinguinos y El Reducido al Reino de los Pinguinos de Barbara Hateley disfrutara mucho las caricaturas de Scott Adams; autor de este libro el cual presenta mucha similitud con el Principio de Peter(Padre).
Lo recomiendo porque se que lo van a disfrutar.

Scott Adams is a unique type of comedian, apparently. I say this because when you hear him on the tapes, you don't think of him as a cartoonist. He tells the whole story of management with the edge of the angry and powerless office worker tempered by a bent toward the philosophical. It seemed as if all the main and current theories of management as hailed by MBA programs were covered in these tapes. Adams' fundamental criticism is aimed at what we might call the human condition: avoiding work and seeking immmediate sexual gratification. Embedded in this set of narratives are lots of little nuggets that you'd probably like to be able to recall for special moments when you can blurt them out for maximum effect.

For those Scott Addams fans out there, I'm sure you've all read Scott Addams' famous humor novels. Like THE DILBERT FUTURE, THE JOY OF WORK, and DOGBERT'S TOP SECRET MANAGMENT HANDBOOK. Even though you've read these, hearing it read by Addams himself is almost completley different from reading his work. You get a sense of emotion and meaning that you can't get with bland text. This collection is an excellent addition to any Dilbert fan's stock.

Trevor Scott's international intrigue catalogue continues to expand with his third international espionage thriller, The Dolomite Solution. Mr. Scott is a former weapons expert with the Navy; a former captain in the Air Force; holds a masters degree in creative writing from Northern Michigan University; and now resides in Oregon and Michigan. He continues to travel extensively in Europe.

The Dolomite Solution is set in northern Italy; Innsbruck Austria; and Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island. Two scientists have combined research to find a cure for heart disease. They are set to turn their findings over to an Austrian biotechnology company and are a shoe-in for the Nobel prize when one of them is killed on a mountain road. Jake Adams, former Network agent, has just moved to Innsbruck for a break from his exploits when he receives a strange phone call which propels him into the most convoluted web of murder; betrayal, and industrial espionage he has yet encountered:

"Quinn laughed to himself, gazing through the night vision goggles at the dumpster that Adams had just scurried behind like a frightened rat. His shots had gone way over the man's head, but then Jake had no way of knowing that. It was perfect. When he first heard that the man who had ruined his life would be in the same city as him, he couldn't believe his good fortune. When he had actually seen the man, he knew his luck was changing for the better. He had thought long and hard in prison, projecting a scenario for this very meeting. The city didn't matter. Circumstances like this couldn't be ignored. He had Adams just where he wanted him."

Trevor Scott delivers with The Dolomite Solution. Jake Adams is up against a bitter enemy, and with his usual aplomb Scott ratchets up the action. He is an expert at thoroughly deceiving the reader, drawing us into a seemingly insolvable plot just as he fascinates us with action that is non-stop. Jake is his usual disarming self, understated in a thoroughly fascinating way until his enemies inflate with their own devious cunning. We can't wait for him to succeed, and we can't help but be relieved when he finds his true lady love in the end...a wonderful read.

Shelley Glodowski, Reviewer

I saw this book mentioned in Publishers Weekly. They said that former CIA agent Jake Adams was back for more male action-adventure in his third international mystery thriller, THE DOLOMITE SOLUTION by Trevor Scott. "Previous titles have fit the Tom Clancy techno mold, but this topical tale of DNA research and a possible cure for heart disease falls more in the James Bond tradition of fancy cars and fast women."--Publishers Weekly. When I read that, I bought a copy online. They're right. This thriller is one heck of a wild ride. I can't wait to read his first two books. Who would have thought you could make a great thriller from the discovery of a DNA cure for heart disease? Great Scott! He did it.

A powerful and touching book, showing this author's unconditional love for her child. Superbly written. Highly recommended.

"Eagle Doctor" is a truly wonderful book. I instantly felt the extraordinary love and compassion that the author has for her son. This book pulled at my heartstrings from the very first page, like no other book has been able to accomplish. I was unable to tear myself away from Stephen's incredible stories; making me feel like I was almost a part of his life. A superb book for all ages to enjoy, full of inspiration & the joys of the Miracle of Life.

As an Irvine follower, I really enjoyed reading Adam Cooper's book, which details not only the relatively recent Ferrari section of Eddie's career but gives the reader an insight into just how he developed his career to the F1 stage. A very entertaining look at the soon to be world champion (if not 99, then 2000!), including some dodgy photos from the early years!

Awesome Book! You don't often find information on Steady Eddie, but this book covers it all!

Meredith's masterpiece is woefully underread, and it is a sad truth that the Norton scholarly edition is the only edition of THE EGOIST now in print. This is not an easy read, however: Meredith's caustic dialogue foreshadows henry James's in its mastery of ambiguities, and his witty paradoxes surpass even Oscar Wilde (who admitted his debt to Meredith). The plot is a simple one: the wealthy handsome and titled Sir Willoughby Patterne, having been jilted by one fiancée, proposes to another young woman, the intelligent and intensely likeable Clara Middleton, who accepts him; before very long, Clara has realized what a monstrous egoist Sir Willoughby is, but not after it seems too late for her to go back on her word. This is one of the most brilliant studies of mortification ever accomplished, and what makes it all the more amazing is that Meredith clearly modelled Sir Willoughby in part on himself and the extraordinarily sympathetic Clara on his wife, Mary Ellen Peacock, who deserted Meredith for another man. This book is funny, thought-provoking, and exceptionally poignant: there are moments when you read it that your heart will go into your stomach as you sympathize with Clara's appalling plight.

This is one of the funniest novels I've ever read. The basic story is simple: Sir Willoughby Patterne's betrothal to the young Clara Middleton is threatened when she realizes his enormous love of himself. The novel consists of Clara's efforts to get out of the engagement without doing something so scandalous as eloping with someone else.

The characters are drawn vividly and with depth. The incidents are both amusing and realistic. Clara Middleton is one of the great witty heroines of English literature, perhaps the wittiest Victorian heroine.

The beginning can be slow going. Meredith likes to use twenty words when other people might use ten. He also likes to play verbal games. As you proceed in the novel and get used to the style, you can have a lot of fun picking out the puns, allusions, etc.

This is Meredith's best novel. The plot is tightly controlled and the ending is pure comedy in the tradition of Fielding, Austen and Thackeray. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who feels comfortable reading Victorian English and likes a good love-comedy.