Well, it's Cliff's Notes. There isn't much to say. But it does quite a fair job of clarifying the splendid cluttered mess that is Hugo's novel, and my ten-year-old copy is much loved. Don't read an abridged "Les Mis"; read the unabridged, with this on hand. It's much more fun.

the first time i read the unabridged copy of les mis, i was in high school, and we had just started the book when we all took a hugh trip to ny to see the play on broadway. i was sitting next to me very best friend Tynaries, when intermission ended and eponine came out and sang "on my own", when just as she lie dying in marius' arms at the barricade he kissed her lightly, then i gasped and gripped the arm of my chair. but suddenly, Ty grabbed my hand, gave it a tiny squeeze, then leaned over close to me, kissed my lips softly and whispered, "i'll keep you safe, always...," and handed me a very old hand-kerchief which was the one i had made him in home ec when we were 12, i had embroidered (really badly) his initials on the corner. we've been together since, and that has been almost 7 years, and he wrapped my engagement ring in it the night he proposed. but to get back to the main topic, i just previously picked the clift notes up at a local bookshop and found it to be just as i remembered that night so very long ago in my heart. [i love you Ty, always....]

Okay, I was browsing through my library and I stumbled across the Les Miserables cliff notes (I have read the whole thing unabridged 4 times). I picked it up to look it over, and was impressed. I checked it out, and took it to school the next day and gave it to my friend who was reading the abridged version and I gave it to her to read. She liked it much better. She said it was, "Shorter (she's not exactly into long books), more emmotional (eep), and included many things that the abridgement left out. Two of my personal favorite parts- Jean Prouvaire's Last Poem, and Orestes Fasting and Pylades Drunk, which were included in Cliff's Notes. Bravo!

I am a striaght A student, and took earth science in 8th grade. I just didnt understand it. I had an 84 average teh 1st quarter. I bought this book and i had an A every other quarter, and I got a 95 on the regents. It is a great book with many questions that are similar to ones you will see on the real regents. It has many diagrams and even areal past exam. It's a very good, must buy tool.

Wow!! I am in 8th grade and taking the High School Regent Earth Science course, and before I bought this book I was getting 50s and 60s on tests (my quarter average was a 84) and after I did the review questions in each chapter I havn't gotten anything below a 85 (now my average is a 94)!! This made my average go up 10 points, and if it can work for me, it can definitely work for you. My mom said it was the best money she ever spent, and I also bought the Barron's Regents Earth Science Exams and Answers book, but unfortunately it was a "little" overused and I can't read anything in it.. O WELL THIS REALLY HELPS! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT! it even has a full exam in the back and a vocab section that shows vocab words to know for the test, it's really good!

If you've been having trouble understanding the in-depth details of Earth Science and even just regular science, this book is for the new expert. It gives you plenty of details of every topic that you've learned in this course, and gives you many regents questions to study from (for the power pack).

You'll be amazed, just like I was. The book contains a lot of pictures/diagrams/etc. describing what you are learning about to help you comprehend better what you've just sighted out in the units. One thing I appreciated is that if by any chance, if you didn't understand the topic you were learning about, just go back in the index and it will show a secondary page number or a page where it shows more analysis of the particular topic you're studying.

Even though the Regents won't give you the exact same questions from an old exam on a new exam, it is still a very crucial part in studying old Regents questions. GUARENTEED: It will create more skills as a whole in terms of understanding the questions and answers; primarily eliminating answers that you cannot recognize or ones that don't make any sence, and keeping the one answer that makes the most logic or sence... This is a BIG help in trying to get a good grade on your exam. If you get the Regents questions book, you will be provided with answers to all questions, and it can really make you realize why that answer is the way it should be. It'll create more facts in your head.

One thing is for sure, is that you can't miss this book. My point of view is that you should review throughly throughout this book, and review as many questions as you can. I did this, and I received an 86 percent for my average on the regents, and you can even do better that I can!

NOTE: Order this book right when school starts or sooner, so you can be prepared.

For me, this is the best of Hemingway's novels. It combines all the things he could do best as a writer and sustains them throughout an epic story. The basic subject matter is that of much of his work - courage and fear and their consequences, the world of the senses as felt through the enjoyment of food, drink, sexual love and the natural world. As a man, he experienced these things first-hand, and as an artist he rendered them truly. The book's hero is Robert Jordan, an American, who leaves his relatively safe life in the States to fight against the Fascists in 30s Spain. He posseses the attributes of the essential Hemingway hero - an outward simplicity of manner , a knowledge and acceptance of death combined with a love of life, stoicism and integrity. Hemingway's heroes were presented as heroes; not as John Wayne-type caricatures of "manliness" but as men (and women) faced with the forces of death and doing their best. They become afraid, they sometimes do foolish things, but we are never asked to consider them craven or ignoble. We are shown human weakness but the overall message is that of the strength and nobility of human beings. "A man can be destroyed but not defeated" (or vice-versa) was an expression Hemingway used. He never seeks to make less of the human spirit, as so many modern anti-heroes of literature have done (eg the central character in Dostoevsky's "Notes From Underground", the disenchanted figure in Celine's "Journey To The End Of The Night" or the cynical, amoral Renton in Irvine Welsh's "Trainspotting".) The overall effect of "For Whom The Bell Tolls" is of a broad work with several viewpoints. We have the Spanish Civil War as seen by the peasant rebel forces based in forests and caves, the behind-the-scenes look at the military players and politicians and the propaganda machine with its figures such as "La Pasionara" These run simultaneously over the several days of the book's plot, and we see the cause-effect relationship between them. Like some mathematical equation or some structure of taut wires and connections, we are carried along to the plot's climax in which we see how all these threads have run together. This book does it all for me. The characters are just as real as they need to be, the country is beautifully evoked, we are given wonderful descriptions of simple things (the moisture-beaded pitcher of beer in the hotel room after Pablo and Pilar had made love in the hot afternoon) and in the dialogue the way Hemingway has literally translated the Spanish language - the use of "thou" and "thee" and the Spanish expressions that he has avoided rendering into the English equivalent. Hemingway loved Spain - its land,its people and its culture, and this is very evident in the book. He was also a very knowledgeable lover of bulllfighting, boxing and hunting and indeed seemed fascinated with violence and war. This tendency has been used as a stick with which to have a poke at the man, which, in our sanitized, politically-correct times is (sadly) understandable. We may not like the sight of blood and agony, but it is a lot older and more real than the glossy social veneer which tends to coat much of what is modernly offered as art/entertainment/philosophy. When we see death, the fear of death and the triumph of courage, we see some portion of what is still a basic truth in this world. So, maybe those who criticize Hemingway's interest in violence have a point. Bullfighting is certainly no fun for the bull and I'm sure that getting shot in a war has its drawbacks. What I would say to those who condemn the artist along with the man is to consider what kind of work (if any) an artist can produce who stays within the safe harbour of the middle-class, academic world of proffesorships and literary grants. Perhaps Picasso was a nightmare as a husband and perhaps Beethoven had bad breath, but I will opt every time for that which I find true and moving.

The title of this great novel gives me chills everytime I hear it. It perfectly reflects Hemingway's purpose. I love his clear and "true sentences" style, but it doesn't appeal to everyone. Thus, if you read a review of this book that is leaning on the negative side, it may be more a reflection of the reviewer's stylistic preferences rather than specific drawbacks to the setting, characters,or plot of For Whom the Bell Tolls. This may not always be true, of course, but Hemingway is unique and tends to polarize readers.

The protagonist/hero of For Whom the Bell Tolls is Robert Jordan, an American who feels passionately enough about The Spanish Civil War to act bravely on behalf of the cause. Robert Jordan doesn't seem to have a national identity at all; another person's life is truly his own--the bell really does toll for him.

The understated love affair between Robert and Maria is wildly romantic. The ending is haunting- it took my breath away. Do read this; it's an unforgettable experience.

I must admit when I started reading this book I was bored, but that quickly changed as I realized how deep and meaningful this book was. I have NEVER read a book that so simply went to the roots of what it is to be human. Sure some parts were a little simplified like the relationship between Jordan and Maria, but even that made a point of how quickly people can come together in a difficult situation. Plus, I have never read a better scene in a book than that of El Sordo's last stand. In my opinion, that is the best part of the whole book and is what merits this book being a classic. There is one paragraph in the section of El Sordo's last stand that moved me as deeply as any work of art or musical piece ever has. It was truly sublime. And that to me is what makes this book great.

I see, from the other reviews, that many boys and girls are reading this book in school. Maybe this is not a very good way to enjoy it, because they just have to read it! This is not my case: I read it just for personal interest and I found it very intriguing. Dickens, I think, is at his best when he speaks out of his personal experience; in this historical book he is maybe a little less convincing. But he is able, all the same, to create a wonderful plot, with some unforgettable passages. Sidney Carton on the steps of the Guillotine, holding the hand of the little seamstress, is simply unforgettable...

A Tale of Two Cities is a wonderfull book, I'm 14 so it was at first rather confusing and boring, but I knew that Charles Dickens would NOT end it boring and that in the end I would be stuck on it and keep thinking about it days after. So I stuck to it and I am really glad that I did. When I finished it it was just as I had expected. Its incredible how Dr Manette and Mr Darnay end up so connected! And how Sydney Carton fits into the story at the end. All the strings are tied up at the end wonderfully! The end is great and I love it that it doesn't leave you hanging wondering what happened to them later. I totally recommend it to people that like old fasioned books written long ago. I loved it!

This book was extremely well written. I would suggest this book to anyone. - The Bear

I bought this book and the Kaplan Sci_Hi review book as well. I am a parent and have been going through the books with my daughter. The Zimmerman book offers helpful test strategies and study exercises. However, the practice tests have some mistakes and some of the questions are poorly written. The practice tests are not actual items from previous tests, but are constructed to be similar in difficulty. However, the practice test questions in this book were more difficult than the tests in the Kaplan book, and in the student handbook put out by the NYC Board of Education. The Kaplan book and Bd. of Ed. practice tests are actual items from previously used tests, and are therefore a better gauge of the test's level of difficulty. They are also free of errors. I recommend buying the Zimmerman book for the study tactics and study exercises. However, the Kaplan book provides better practice tests, as well as good study information. If you can only get one, get Kaplan. Also, the Bd. of Ed. puts out a free student handbook to the specialized high schools with 2 practice exams ihcluded.

This book is great! The 2 reasons i gave this a 3 is that this book has OVER 15 mistakes. My teacher checked this book and found an incorrect answer. I found a lot of typing errors. Look at the back of the book , they spelled competitive wrong as competitve, spelled soldiers as soliders, mistake the letter
Z for Q. HERE IS AN EXAMPLE , 111/333 is equal to 1/3 not less than 1/3. The second reason is that my friends did not even
pass the Specialized High School test, using the book. If this book did not have so many mistake, I will rate this book a 4+.

I got into Brooklyn Tech without the benefit of this book. I missed Bronx Science by 8 points. I feel that if I had this book, I might have gotten into all three high schools. Now, it is my litte sister's turn to take the test. She hates math a lot but has built a tolerance for it through this book. She has been doing well on the verbal section which has made me extremely happy. I think she nearly aced the verbal part on the last practice. Her only problem was scrambled paragraphs but she is now acing those too thanks to this book. Give yourself at least six months to study unless u know that u can get in with little or no preparation.

Its very useful, but then, if you have the other Barron's dictionaries, it does not add a whole lot of extra heft to your business vocabulary. Would be nice to see a little more diversity in the definitions.

This reference is a quick and easy source for numerous business, investment and banking terms. As it mostly covers the American business and banking industries, it is a great help to anyone who must deal with these industries or simply would like to understand them better. This book is a highly recommended investment.

This book is a great help to anyone needing clear and concise definitions of business terms. The clarity of the writing is especially notable. As a bonus, the font and size of the type as well as the overall size of the book are perfect. It is a good companion for business reading and an excellent addition to any business library.

The review chapters of the book are really great while the practice tests did not help much. Anyways I managed to get a 5~ This book is good enough to prepare you to get a 5.

My AP statistics teacher wasn't the greatest teacher. She did not believe in assigning homework. As far as AP exams go, AP statistics is one of the easiest ones. This book helps you prepare wonderfully. The only problem with this book is it doesn't teach you how to fully utilize the statistics features of the ti-83 or ti-89 calculator (both allowable on the AP stats exam). In my class last year, only 2 people got 5s, 2 got 3s, and the rest failed. These were not stupid people. Two of the seniors are now at Cornell. But anyway, for AP statistics, this is THE BOOK TO GET. With this book, you can easily achieve a 5. The problems in this book are HARDER than the ones on the exam. This book REALLY PREPAREs you to get a 5. I did, and you can too.

Statistics is probably one of the easiest AP exams you can take if you are a math-minded person. I bought this book and went through it once, and without using anything else I was able to achieve a 5 on the Stat exam. Saved me a lot of trouble when I got to college by already having the credit, I would recommend anyone with skills in math take the Stat exam.

Herman Melville's style of detailed descriptions certainly comes though in this slim 210-page volume written in 1846. He describes life aboard ship, the geography of the island and the technical aspects of making clothing, tattooing and preparing food as well as many native ritual customs. This is all seen through the eyes of his lead character, Tom, called Tommo by the natives. The book put me right there with him, when, exhausted and starved, he and Toby, the other seaman he jumped ship with, find their way into the world of the Typees. The two sailors are treated well, but are kept virtual prisoners and there is apprehension throughout about the Typees' cannibal tendencies. In spite of that, there is also joy as Tommo views the simple and carefree life of the people he considers savages and contrasts it to life in the so-called "civilized world".

The Typees seem perennially happy and content. They spend a lot of time amusing themselves as food is plentiful and there is not much work to do. Their lives are idealized so much that I found myself raising a quizzical eyebrow at times. But the story was so good and so well written that I didn't let it get in my way of enjoying the book, which must have been received with similar delight when it was published as it not only painted a picture of a better world, it appealed to everyone's sense of adventure.

I loved the book, especially the social commentary. I found myself reading it quickly and at odd times during to day just to see what would happen on the next page. It sure was a good story and seems as fresh and meaningful today it when was published more than a century and a half ago.

Herman Melville's "Typee: A Peep at Polynesian Life" tells the story of a white sailor who lives for a time among the Typees, a native people of a Pacific island. According to a "Note on the Text" in the Penguin Classics edition, this book first appeared in 1846 in no less than four different editions.

"Typee" is a marvelous story of cross-cultural contact. It is also a fascinating glimpse at a pre-industrial culture; Tom (known as "Tommo" to the Typees) describes in detail the food, dress, tattooing, physiology, musical instruments, architecture, warfare, religious practices, and social customs of the Typees. The book is full of vividly portrayed characters: the gentle beauty Fayaway, the "eccentric old warrior" Marheyo, the talkative "serving-man" Kory-Kory, and more.

Melville's prose style in "Typee" is irresistible: the writing is fresh, lively, and richly descriptive. There is a satirical thrust to much of the book. And there is a lot of humor; at many points I literally laughed out loud. Such scenes as the description of a wild pig's frustrated efforts to break open a coconut really showcase Melville's comic flair.

A major theme of "Typee" is that of the "noble savage" (Melville actually uses the term). The narrator often wonders whether Typee life is in some ways better than Western life, and is quite critical of the work of Christian missionaries among Pacific Island peoples. The book is richly ironic, as Melville's narrator reflects on the problematic nature of cross-cultural observation: "I saw everything, but could comprehend nothing" (from Chapter 24).

"Typee" is more than just a colorful travelogue or a philosophical reflection; it is also a genuinely exciting and suspenseful adventure story. Melville's story of a visitor to a strange alien world curiously anticipates a major theme of 20th century science fiction; thus a novel like Ursula K. LeGuin's "The Left Hand of Darkness" would make a fascinating companion text. Also recommended as a companion text: "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass," another 19th century American classic which casts a critical light on Eurocentric Christianity.

In Chapter 17 of this book, the narrator conveys his feelings about the differences between Western civilization and other cultures: "The term 'savage' is, I conceive, often misapplied, and indeed when I consider the vices, cruelties, and enormities of every kind that spring up in the tainted atmosphere of a feverish civilization, I am inclined to think that so far as the relative wickedness of the parties is concerned, four or five Marquesan islanders sent to the United States as missionaries might be quite as useful as an equal number of Americans dispatched to the islands in a similar capacity." This portrayal of primitive cultures as being more civilized than Western society is part of a long tradition, beginning at least with Montaigne's essay "Of Cannibals." This and other similar statements by Melville in this work caused quite a tempest in Europe and the United States, but one which was a gentle breeze, compared to the current storm raging in academia regarding the origins and validity of the terms "civilized" and "primitive."

I am myself interested in the statement above for another reason. Some fifty years ago, a small group of inhabitants of the Marquesas Islands, in which this book is set, came across this romance. They had long before adopted Western ways, but these individuals decided to use Melville's work as a means to recreate the pastoral moment which the author had captured in this book. Such an effort was as feasible as would be an attempt to recreate the America portrayed in Norman Rockwell's paintings, but these islanders were convinced of the necessity and possibility of this act, and they reconstructed, with admirable accuracy, a past that had never existed. They gave up their new houses, their churches, their Western foods, for a lifestyle closer to that portrayed in this work, a large part of which consists of quasi-anthropological description of rituals, feasts, customs and dress. Naming children after characters in the book became common, though only in those regions in which the Melvilles, as they were called, were predominant, just as there are still a few adults named Rainbow and Sunflower in the U.S., a legacy of the hippie movement. And in keeping with the full spirit of Melville's portrait of the Marquesans, and inspired by the passage I cited above, several families did indeed move to the United States in order to proselytize their lifestyle to the Westerners whose ways these Marquesans had rejected.

It is well known that their efforts failed, for the most part, both here and in their home country, but it was a happy accident that my interest in Melville led me to meet Fayaway, one of the descendants of that tribe of emigrants to the United States, and that she and I would soon after wed. As a result, I have become indoctrinated into the remnants of this culture; without either of us being true adherents to the religion, we observe its customs, much as agnostics celebrate Christmas. Our favorite part of the entire set of customs is to replay the Ritual of the Canoe from Chapter 18, as gently erotic now as when it was written, first in Hobomok Lake in Phoenicia, New York, and more recently in Malibu Lake, California. The puritanical fussbudgets in both neighborhoods were appropriately scandalized.

As a result of my marriage to the living incarnation of the female protagonist of the romance, I am well familiar with this work, and must say that it is more nearly perfect, in its own way, than is Melville's masterpiece _Moby Dick_. It embodies many of the same themes as that larger work, and reveals, because of its imperfections, a deep glimpse into the author's mind and his longing for that tropical paradise where he sought Arcadia and found a nymph fit to his fancy. Rarely have adolescent male fantasies been given such a beautifully complex form, and if, as many have noted, the anthropological tangents detract from the narrative, it is helpful to recall that Melville was attempting create a fiction that looked like an authentic travel narrative, and that in any case those tangents can become of themselves interesting diversions, and commentary on the greater narrative. They even inspired a small group of South Pacific Islanders to fly from their homes and settle in the wilderness of the United States, in an effort to save us from our wicked ways.

My sister gave me this book after the birth of my daughter. After reading a good portion of it, I started to wonder if this guy is a horse-toothed jacka$$ or the most effeminate male in America. Then I thought, wait a minute; he's probably both. What was the motivation for writing this book? To try and show everyone how perfect his life is or, to collect a shat load of money for doling out common-sense advice? After reading about him carrying his wife into the bedroom for the third time, I started to get annoyed. If you're the type of guy that eagerly waits for the new Volkswagen models to come in - then you'll love this book. Look, in all seriousness, you already know what to do; it's innate. Don't waste time with a silly book written by a guy with no credentials besides having kids.

... this book is definitely worth it to read about babies from a real guy's perspective. Heck, you can only read about placentas and diaper rash so much before you go woozy and start playing "Once In a Lifetime" ("How did I get here?") by the Talking Heads non-stop. My wife is due in one month and I got some good advice from this book about things best known in advance (work to keep the romance alive). I'll read it again in a few months and I'm sure I'll get some more tips from it.

Although we read other books on fatherhood, Mr. Barron's content and tone were the most accessible, realistic, and - in hindsight - accurate. His humorous delivery allowed us to discuss the issues of parenting in a more relaxed atmosphere than many other books inspire. We continue to refer to it as our marriage grows and changes. We now give this book to all our friends who are expecting.

Naleighna Kai has written a true to life book. I wouldn't categorize it as strictly a Romance or inspirational novel. This is one of its kind and is a insight into a real group of peoples lives. See the story is mainly focused on Mya and Mykal, but all the other characters are very much involved and have a story of their own. The title is describing Mykals description of Mya. This is a book that if you are use to scanning, you can't do, this is a book that you have to read every word or you will miss something. You will feel all types of emotions, You will laugh, cry, scream, concentrate, or meditate, get angry, feel happy. It has everything, You can feel the Spirit rise. There can definitely be a sequel. You will also feel like you actually know these characters and let me tell you at certain times, I wanted to be written into the book, just to deal with Angelique. Mya is definitely a strong woman to deal with all that she has dealt with in her life time. A must read.

This was one of the best novel I have ever read. I felt very connected to all of the characters. I endured empathy as well as sympathy for all of them as if I knew them personal. This book was completly overwhelming from beginning to end. The Author gives you a total different perspective on things you are already adamant about. I recommend this book to anyone who has gone through/going through any adversity to read this triumph story and allow yourself to be overcome with fearless emotions and understanding of how anything is possible inspite of where (or whom) you come from. This book has taught me that no matter how bad off you think you are there is always someone somewhere with a story worse off than yours. Also that the challenge of life is how well you rise and conquer your fears and recognize your faults as well as realize the roles that you play in any given situation.

I read this book and immediately thought of life. Maya and Mykal's journey truly touched my soul. I was drawn into the lives and these characters and their trials. I was caught up in imagining if it were me. I applaud the writer who has enough courage to tell a story so straight forward that it leaves a mark on your mind for a time after you've put it down. This story will captivate you from the first page to the last.