VBA is one of those tools I long knew I should be proficient in but never got around to learning. That is, not until I found this book. It makes it easy for a financial professional to quickly come up to speed and start coding VBA within spreadsheets. The fact that the focus is on financial applications means that you learn coding techniques that will be useful on the job. I highly recommend the book!

This book serves as a good source for anyone who is interested in making a career in Financial Engineering. There are many worked examples that facilitate understanding of the theory. This also provides the basics for a person who wants to build benchmarks in Excel for financial modeling.
The numerical methods applied with the help of Excel are useful to understand the various facets of Financial Engineering.
The salient aspects are
- provides the VBA introduction along with the features of Excel
- Equities Risk management and portfolio optimization
- Option pricing using Binomial trees and Black Scholes formula applied in Excel
- Bond option Valuation Formula using the Vasicek, Cox Ingersoll and Ross using the assumptions of Risk neutral process are easily worked out and the examples elucidate the readers understanding
- Interest rate models, valuation of Bond options using the different approaches are done well.

This book was a godsend. My stochastic calculus background is very strong, and I'm a good modeller/programmer, too. Nonetheless, there are a lot of practical and well-presented tips in this book that have made my life a lot more pleasant. I stopped spinning my wheels, and I'm having fun again. I highly recommend this book!

I also highly recommend Tavakoli's "Credit Derivatives" (Second Edition) for product descriptions and performance characteristics.

THE POEMS OF EMILY DICKINSON, INCLUDING VARIANT READINGS CRITICALLY COMPARED WITH ALL KNOWN MANUSCRIPTS. Edited by Thomas H. Johnson. 3 vols. Cambridge, Mass., and London, England: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, nd. [A single-volume reprint of the original 1955 3-vol. edition]. ISBN 0-674-67601-7 HBK.

Prior to the appearance of Johnson's great variorum edition of Emily Dickinson in 1955, an edition which was the first to offer readers accurate texts of her complete poems, it was not possible to arrive at a just estimation of her tremendous achievement, an achievement that places her at the forefront of the ranks of the world's greatest poets. Because of the highly idiosyncratic nature of her poems, all earlier editors had felt obliged, to some extent or other, and in order to make them more acceptable to the public, to normalize them by adding titles, smoothing her rhymes, changing words, regularizing punctuation, and relineating them; some editors even went so far as to remove entire stanzas. It becomes a tribute to the power of her poems that, despite this savage treament they somehow survived, and there are many readers, even today, who have grown to love these mutilated versions without ever realizing just how far removed they are from her originals.

Although Johnson himself wasn't entirely free of the slash-and-burn approach to ED's texts - since he apparently felt that readers weren't yet ready for the peculiar lineation that we find in Emily Dickinson's own handwritten versions of the poems - he should nevertheless be credited with having brought the worst of it to an end, and for having given us texts that are closer to the originals than ever before. He is also to be credited with having established an approximate chronological order for the 1775 poems in his edition, and for having provided us with a convenient way of referring to these untitled poems by giving each of them a number, the well-known 'Johnson numbers' which are still standard today. Each numbered poem has been transcribed exactly as it is found in the manuscripts, though with his editorial choice of variant and with lineation normalized. Below each poem comes a list of variants, information about the poem's manuscript source/s, and its publication history. The poems are preceded by 70 pages of Introductory material, which include 20 pages of very interesting photographic facsimiles in illustration of ED's varied writing styles, and the book is rounded out with an Appendix, a Subject Index, and an Index of First Lines.

The present version is an undated reprint, in one volume, of the original 1955 3-volume edition, and is a substantial book of over 1300 pages weighing in at a hefty 4lbs plus. Given the fantastic price of the book, I was amazed to discover that, although bound in full cloth, instead of the pages being sewn in signatures it has been given a glued spine which is nowhere near strong enough to hold the weight of all these pages. Although I'm pretty careful with books, the brand-new copy I examined split at the spine the first time I opened it. Anyone who is interested in the Johnson variorum would be well advised to search for a copy of the much better produced earlier and stitched 3-volume version. Although the present book deserves more than 5 stars for its content, it deserves far less for its poor physical makeup.

As a contribution to scholarship, Johnson's variorum was a magnificent achievement for its time, and helped greatly in establishing Emily Dickinson's reputation. But much has come to light since 1955, and R. W. Franklin's richer 1998 variorum (which unlike the Johnson provides details of the original lineation) may now be said to have superseded it. Details of the Franklin variorum are as follows:

THE POEMS OF EMILY DICKINSON : VARIORUM EDITION. Edited by R. W. Franklin. 3 vols. Cambridge, Mass., and London, England: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1998. ISBN 0-674-67622X HBK.

This is an excellent book for anyone who LOVES Emily Dickinson. Although it does not contain all the different versions of her poems, it is comprehensively edited to have the version of each known poem that is believed to be Dickinson's most complete and revised. This edition also seem to have the most complete collection of poems--1,789-- compared to the other "complete poems". However, if you are looking for an edition for studious reasons, this edition does have different numbering for the poems than the ones usually used (the editor claims them to be in the most accurate chronological order possible).
The binding of this book is VERY nice and has its own ribbon for marking pages. Definitely a nice book.

THE POEMS OF EMILY DICKINSON : Reading Edition. Edited by R. W. Franklin. 692 pp. Cambridge, Massachusetts : The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1999. ISBN 0-674-67624-6 (hbk.)

When it comes to choosing an edition of Emily Dickinson's poems, we need to be very careful. Selections of her poems have appeared in many editions, and the earlier ones - which are still being reprinted - often contain extensively edited and revised versions of her poems which do not give us what she actually wrote.

Her poems are so unusual, in terms of their diction, meters, grammar, and punctuation, that earlier editors felt obliged to replace her characteristic dash with more conventional punctuation, and to regularize and smooth out her texts to make them more acceptable to readers of the time.

In fact, it was only when Thomas H. Johnson's editions appeared that readers were finally given an accurate version of the original texts, with Emily Dickinson's diction and punctuation restored.

Johnson produced two different editions of the poems. The first, a 3-volume Variorum Edition (1955), includes all of her many variants, since Emily Dickinson often added alternate words to her drafts and in many cases seems never to have decided on a final reading. These variants, though extremely interesting to scholars, enthusiasts, and advanced students of ED, are not really necessary in an edition for the general reader.

What the general reader needs is an edition in which the editor, after closely examining the manuscripts and taking into account all relevant factors, gives what he feels is one sensible and acceptable reading, and this is what Johnson gave us in the second edition he prepared, his Reader's edition (details of which appear below).

R. W. Franklin has followed the same procedure as Johnson. In other words, readers can feel confident that in both the present edition and in the Johnson, they have been given (insofar as it's possible to get her idiosyncratic manuscript drafts over into typography) at least one accurate reading of ED's original draft.

Those who would like to look at the variants can always consult Johnson's Variorum (1955), or R. W. Franklin's more recent Variorum (1998). Better still, if they can, they might take a look at R. W. Franklin's sumptuous 2-volume 'The Manuscript Books of Emily Dickinson' (1981), which gives photographic facsimiles of many of her manuscripts.

Emily Dickinson is a very great poet. Personally I think that in some ways she is the greatest poet of all. In the present edition we have been given accurate texts of 1789 of her poems, arranged so far as was possible in chronological order of composition.

Franklin's is a scholarly edition, based on his Variorum, which should serve the general reader well enough for most ordinary purposes. Besides the poems it also contains a brief Introduction, two Appendices, and an Index of First Lines.

This beautifully produced and superbly printed Franklin (which contains 14 more poems than the earlier Johnson) will give you access to a body of poems that are so far above the ordinary run of poems that we really ought to have another word for them.

Just as a prism breaks up light into a band of colors - red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet - and their infinite gradations, so do Emily Dickinson's poems become, as it were, a prism which captures the white light of reality, a reality which as it flows through the prism of her poem explodes into a multiplicity of meanings.

It is the rich suggestiveness of her poems, a suggestiveness which generates an incredible range of meanings, that prevents us from ever being able to say (to continue the metaphor) that a given poem is 'about red' or 'about blue,' because her poems, as US critic Robert Weisbuch has pointed out, are in fact about _everything_. This is what makes her so unique, and this is why she appeals to every kind of reader (or certainly to open-minded ones) and even to children.

Emily Dickinson's poetry is one of the wonders of the world. Whether you select the Franklin or the Johnson edition, it will become a book that you will cherish, a golden book and endless source of pleasure and inspiration that you will find yourself returning to again and again.

For those who may be interested, details of Johnson's Reader's edition are as follows:

THE COMPLETE POEMS OF EMILY DICKINSON. Edited by Thomas H. Johnson. 784 pp. Boston : Little, Brown, 1960 and Reissued. ISBN: 0316184136 (pbk.)

This collection of letters by Jackson is well worth reading for several reasons. First, as several other reviewers point out, it provides a valuable (if by now slightly dated) insight into the American penal system. Second, it illustrates the tragedy of people with Jackson's potential being diverted (whether you believe by racism, socio-economic circumstances, poor judgment, or whatever) into the self-perpetuating criminal/penal complex. However, I think some of the raves are overrated. Jackson clearly was an intelligent man who could have accomplished much if his engergies were otherwise directed. But he lacks perspective; the tone is often stridently self-justifying, and he lacks any real moral insight into the magnitude of the violence and pain he inflicted on others.

This is a great collection of the prison letters of the Black Panther prison leader George Jackson. Only problem is that we don't see the letters that George jakcson is responding to, so that we may get a better context of what's going on here. It would also be interesting to see what Bill Cosby had/has to say about Jackson's criticism of him (for Cosby's role as a CIA agent in the "I Spy" show of the 60s).

A must read for people of all ages, races, nationalities, genders, classes, et. al. A masterpiece of the form. Gloriously flawed, like all of us. So much more than the sum of its parts. George and Jonathan Live.

Professor Remini's book, Andrew Jackson, is a well written and interesting biography of one of our greatest presidents. This well written, smooth reading book reads as if it were a novel. It draws on the main points of Jackson's life and times, and does it concisely. It is just over 200 pages therefore it should not scare off the casual reader, whith overwhelming size. Check out Remnini's other Jacksonian books because he is the eminent Jacksonian historian.

Author Robert Remini's 3-volume biography of Andrew Jackson is acknowledged to be one of the best. However, for someone - like me - for whom Jackson has long been an object of fascination but, regretfully, not someone that I was taught about in school or have had time to research on my own, I found the slender book detailed here the perfect introduction to "Sharp Knife" (the Indian nickname for Jackson.)

Mr. Remini hits the high points (Jackson's origins, his role in the Revolutionary War, his courtship/marriage to Rachel Robards, his role in Indian affairs and the battle of New Orleans, as well as his two terms as President) in an efficient, informal manner. Stylistically, the book's contents are a broad brush-stroke, designed to provide a "jumping-off point" for the reader who is little-or-unacquainted with Jackson.

Once you complete this book, if you still don't feel up to the challenge of the 3-volume work, I recommend the one-volume abridgement of same, entitled "The Life Of Andrew Jackson" (ISBN No. 0060937351), which gives even more detail and background than this "introductory" Jackson biography.

By the time you read both of these, you'll be well ready to jump feet-first into Mr. Remini's classic multi-volume masterpiece and further indulge what will surely have become an even greater fascination with the Hero of New Orleans.

This may not be the most thorough of biographies but it is very good. Although Mr. Remini does seem to admire Andrew Jackson, he doesn't gloss over his failings: his treatment of the Cherokee Nation, his inability to see the need for some sort of central bank, his brutal treatment of just about everybody during the Indian wars. I felt the author's refering to Andrew Jackson as 'the hero' was done more for artistic flourish rather than concrete evaluation.

The book is an easy read and Mr. Remini is an entertaining writer. He packs an amazing amount of information into the 200 pages of this book. I am looking forward to reading his three volume biography of Andrew Jackson.

This is an exciting, fast paced spy-type thriller that delves into what can happen when greed and ambition over-ride conscience and doing what's right. FBI Agent Monica Sinclair dons many disguises and puts her life in harms way to uncover the terrible secrets that cell phone mogul Gerald Conti is hiding.

Very well done and I look forward to seeing more of this lead character in other stories! -ES

I bet you "don't leave home without it". That saying, which once referred to a credit card, probably has more meaning today associated with your cell phone. While you might forget your credit card or even leave it at home on purpose, chances are, you won't go far without your cell phone.

Monica Sinclair is a retired FBI special agent with "active" status. That means she takes on the occasional assignment. But what she really wants to do in her "retirement" is write novels and be left alone. After completing a very successful assignment, her only thoughts are of sitting on the beach and of completing her next novel, which is due to the publisher before too long.

Monica's brother, Michael, is Assistant Deputy Director of the FBI. Michael calls to congratulate his sister on another job well done. But before concluding the call he starts to discuss another assignment. Monica wants none of it, but Michael convinces her to meet him at home for the weekend so they can discuss the details. He says if she still isn't interested after that, he will get someone else. "Home" turns out to be the residence of their 77-year-old grandmother "Sweets".

The assignment is to penetrate Bayou City Wireless in Houston, Texas. Bayou City Wireless is lead by Victor Conti. But it is his twin brother, Gerald, who is heading up the Excalibur Project. The company has been testing a new cell phone, the Excalibur, in the very small town of Bastrop. When most of the members of the test group end up dead, almost everyone places the blame on a small oil company and its hazardous waste site. Only one person in the test group wonders if it could possibly have anything to do with the new cell phones being tested. That was Monica's assignment. To infiltrate the company and determine if the cell phones had anything to do with the deaths. The assignment is full of twists, turns, and surprises. And if Monica is not really careful, it could be her last.

This is a very well written and a very suspenseful novel. Ms. Jackson, a real-life former spokesperson for a Houston wireless company, has delivered a very believable and up-to-the-minute tale of intrigue. Through the web of lies, hate, greed, and lust for power we see the story of real people and of life, just like we are living it today.

An FBI Special Agent goes undercover to expose the deadly results of a test study for a new cell phone. Why are people dying? Is it a government cover-up or ruthless corporate greed?

This author has followed the maxim: write what you know & has penned a thrilling ride on the crest of today's headlines! Her characters are dimensional, & her pacing keeps you turning the pages, wanting to find out what happens next!

Well done!

My Bridges of Hope is an excellent book about a girl named Elli returning from the dreadful Holocaust. Elli returns home expecting everything would be all right, but to her surprise everything has changed and she must too. The Friedmann family goes through many challenges when returning home and must also cope with the loss of family members. The family has to make many tough decisions and just as one problem is solved another comes along. They know they cannot stay in Czechoslovakia but where else would they go? They spend many years waiting and finally their chance comes to be sent to America to start a new life.
This is an excellent book and I recommend reading it. Even though the Holocaust was over Jews still had many challenges to overtake. Although we think the end of the war was the end of Jewish troubles it was not. This book gives one account of a person's life after the Holocaust.

My Bridges of Hope is very engoyable. It wasn't very hard reading, and didn't take very long to read.
I chose this book, because I wasn't sure if a young person could move on with their life after surviving the Holocaust. (I'm not sure that I wouldn't be able to.) So many people were effected by the Holocaust, and this book shows it.
After the holocaust, so much happens to Elli and her mother. Livia Bitton-Jackson does a wonderful job at describing what goes on. You can actually place yourself in the shoes of Elli, while she tries to work out not only the problems of being a teenager, but being a survivor of the Holocaust too. You see her pull through all the ups and downs of life.
I recommend this book to everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This book is an amazing book, about a girl and her family that struggles after the Holocaust. I suggest you read I have Lived a Thousand Years, before you read this book. In the book, I Have Lived a Thousand Years it introduces you to the characters and tells about their life before and during the holocaust. This book, My Bridges of Hope: Searching for Life and Love After Auschwitz, is amazing book that tells the story of Elli Friedmann's life after the holocaust has took place, and the many adventures along the way. I suggest that you read this book, after you have read the first one.

i bought john dwyer's "stonewall" from amazon.com after reading james mcpherson's "battle cry of freedom" and shelby foote's "civl war" because i wanted to learn more about the enigmatic thomas j. jackson. after reading those two incomparable works of literature, i thought of jackson neither as a hero nor as a villian, but simply as a very interesting civil war figure whom i wanted to learn more about. unfortunately, as amazon.com didn't provide content details on dwyer's book, i was forced to rely on customer reviews to tell me what i could expect from it. i was sadly misinformed. after straining through 100 pages of "stonewall," i have realized much too late that mr. dwyer's book is, one, historical fiction, and two, a literal advertisement for dwyer's hard-line rightist christianity. for instance, dwyer has ingeniously weaved in amongst character dialogue, his favorable attitutes concerning state-sponsored christianity in schools. also, the reader learns that non-christians, even if they are "good" people, suffer a torturous eternity in "hell." to top it all off, i got the feeling that dwyer drifted dangerously close to endorsing the notion of manifest destiny (that is, the thought that the land mass that would later become the unites states, was given by god to christians to re-populate...after their genocidal policy toward the native inhabitants left the land empty.). yikes!

i know that stonewall jackson's faith was very important to him. the facts clearly back this up. also, i have no quarrel whatsoever with the christian religion. the basis of christianity, like that of its peer religions, is love, acceptance, and tolerance of others. likewise, that's how i feel about life and living. i just want the reader to understand what they're getting when they buy "stonewall." to have bought a historiography (that is, a fictional retelling of a historical time and place), although not my intention, wouldn't have been so bad. finding myself the possessor of brand new revisionist hard-right christian propaganda (the author, it should be noted, states that god wanted him to write "stonewall") is another matter entirely. out of curiosity, i may indeed finish this book...if i can abide the headpains inspired by the religiously romantic retooling of a highly devout, and highly hypocritcal population of slave-owners...but don't bet on it.

by the way, if this is your thing, i'd be happy to sell you my brand-new copy of john dwyer's "stonewall."

I'm not a fan of war stories. I don't like romance novels. But this story weaves both and more into a historical tale that at times you wish just weren't true. I didn't know Stonewall Jackson was such an interesting, amusing and REAL person. History does that to you; makes you forget that the people were real and their lives full of joys and hurts just like your own.

I have renewed compassion for those who fought in the civil war. I have renewed patriotism for those who survived and rebuilt our nation. I have renewed faith.

I look forward to Mr. Dwyer's future writings. I look forward to the places I can visit and the feelings I can share with those who came before me. Thanks for making history so alive.

John Dwyer has taken history, and turned it into live action while sprinkling in a healthy dose of spiritual excitement and emotional stimulation. I feel as if I have ridden with Stonewall through many of the historic battles of the pre-Gettysburg Civil War. He strongly displays the reliance Gen. Jackson and others had on their God and their relationships with Jesus Christ. I recommend this book without reservation or condition.

Firstly i would like to start off by thanking Adam Jackson for introducing this book as it has helped me in so many ways.Reading this book has made me look at my life in a more positive manner and perspective.i enjoyed the way the book focused on individuals moments in life. it has made me realise that it is the self conscious that makes everyone feel unhappy about themselves and when learning how to control it makes you feel like a new person and make you achieve happiness in life.

I received a rather used copy and read it immediately. It has such wonderful principles and they are written so concisely that they are easy to follow. I wish I could find more copies because I want to send them to friends.

Es un libro de cabecera, guia por el mundo actual, te enfrenta con lo que haces cada día y te renueva la forma de pensar, nuestros problemas son creados por nosotros, nuestras soluciones son creadas por nosotros. Excelente para toda aquella persona que requiere encontrarse a si misma y responder a su mundo

In this, the second (and shortest) installation of three volumes on the life of Andrew Jackson, Robert Remini covers the decade between Jackson's ostensible retirement from public life after serving a short ' and miserable ' term as governor of the newly acquired Florida territory to the culmination of his first presidential term.

The central issue covered in this volume ' indeed, the central issue in Jackson's political life, as Remini later concludes in Volume III ' is the presidential election of 1824 and the so-called 'corrupt bargain' between John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay to deprive Jackson of the presidency despite his commanding lead in the popular vote. For Jackson, it was conspiracy of the wealthy elites against a commoner, and it proved that the American republic itself was in mortal jeopardy. The defeat served as a catalyst for Jackson's passionate, almost obsessive commitment to 'reform and retrenchment,' which Remini weaves together with the character developed in Volume I. It was his quest to avenge the loss of 1824 (and the honor of the American people who had been swindled) and sweep the 'augean stables' of corruption and graft in Washington that led to the great democratic movement that bears his name. (It should be noted that Harry Ammon and other leading historians of the Monroe and Adams administrations stridently contest Remini's assertion that the Era of Good Feelings was actually the 'Era of Corruption.')

For those of you who puzzled over Washington's obsession with the Monica Lewinsky affair, you will be amused to read that the dominating issue of Jackson's first term was the reportedly lascivious nature of Peggy Eaton, the wife of Jackson's old friend and secretary of war. This so-called 'Petticoat War,' which saw the wives of other cabinet members and senior officials ' mostly notably vice president Calhoun's wife, Floride ' shunning social interaction with Peggy, literally ripped the cabinet asunder and very nearly toppled the government. Remini tells the story with verve and wit, which at times reads more like a Sidney Sheldon novel than a volume in a definitive presidential biography.

In this, the second (and shortest) installation of three volumes on the life of Andrew Jackson, Robert Remini covers the decade between Jackson's ostensible retirement from public life after serving a short - and miserable - term as governor of the newly acquired Florida territory to the culmination of his first presidential term.

The central issue covered in this volume - indeed, the central issue in Jackson's political life, as Remini later concludes in Volume III - is the presidential election of 1824 and the so-called "corrupt bargain" between John Quincy Adams and Henry Clay to deprive Jackson of the presidency despite his commanding lead in the popular vote. For Jackson, it was conspiracy of the wealthy elites against a commoner, and it proved that the American republic itself was in mortal jeopardy. The defeat served as a catalyst for Jackson's passionate, almost obsessive commitment to "reform and retrenchment," which Remini weaves together with the character developed in Volume I. It was his quest to avenge the loss of 1824 (and the honor of the American people who had been swindled) and sweep the "augean stables" of corruption and graft in Washington that led to the great democratic movement that bears his name. (It should be noted that Harry Ammon and other leading historians of the Monroe and Adams administrations stridently contest Remini's assertion that the Era of Good Feelings was actually the "Era of Corruption.")

For those of you who puzzled over Washington's obsession with the Monica Lewinsky affair, you will be amused to read that the dominating issue of Jackson's first term was the reportedly lascivious nature of his secretary of war and old friend John Eaton's wife, Peggy. This so-called "Petticoat War," which saw the wives of other cabinet members and senior officials - mostly notably vice president Calhoun's wife - shunning social interaction with Peggy Eaton, literally ripped the cabinet asunder and very nearly toppled the government. Remini tells the story with verve and wit, which at times reads more like a Sidney Sheldon novel than a volume in a definitive presidential biography.

When we last left Andrew Jackson, he had just quit his job as governor of the Florida territory. Having built his reputation on his military actions against Indians and his rout over the British in the Battle of New Orleans, Jackson now had two goals: first, recovering his precarious health, and second, becoming president.

In this second volume of Remini's biography of the seventh president, Jackson rises to the pinnacle of his power, though it is by no means easy. First, there is his health: having abused his body over the years in war and duels, Jackson was not in good shape and probably spent the last decades of his life in constant pain which only his vast willpower could overcome.

In 1824, Jackson ran for president and despite getting a plurality of the popular and electoral votes, wound up losing to John Quincy Adams that makes the 2000 election seem non-controversial in comparison. Getting cheated (as many felt) would lead to a second, successful campaign in 1828, but even this had a high price, as the slander he was subjected to due to the dubious circumstances of his marriage would emotionally wreck and eventually lead to the death of his wife.

The second half of the book focuses on Jackson's first presidential term, ending with his election to a second term. In many ways the first populist president, Jackson redefined the role of the presidency by expanding the power of the veto (rarely used previously and only in limited circumstances) and attempted to clean up the corruption left over from the so-called "Era of Good Feelings."

Remini is a great biographer and this book is every bit as great as the first volume. He holds back few punches when it comes to Jackson's negatives, especially his treatment of Indians and his tendency to dwell incessantly on little things (such as the Eaton affair). Nonetheless, this is a generally positive biography, as Remini demonstrates that despite the view that Jackson was an ignorant backwoodsman manipulated by his aides such as Van Buren, Jackson was both intelligent and independent.

This is the definitive biography of Jackson. If you want to learn of the man or the era, this is a must-read.

This book is a fitting testament to Shirley Jackson, as the selections span her entire literary career. It is tragic that a writer of Jackson's caliber should be called away during her productive years, but we are quite fortunate to be allowed a taste of the novel Jackson was working on when she died. That taste is a short one, consisting of six chapters (roughly 27 pages), the final three of which are the first draft. The protagonist is a thoroughly Jacksonian character, sometimes spontaneous and sometimes nostalgic, making a new life for herself in her own peculiar way. Her attempts at shoplifting are particularly telling of her character, but unfortunately her story ends at just about that point. The other stories included here are a special treat. While "The Lottery" is included (just in case someone may not be familiar with it, as Jackson's husband tells us in his preface), the other stories are poignant looks into the lives of rather ordinary people. Jackson had an amazing talent for characterization; the smallest actions can tell us more about a person than his/her overt actions and words, and such little things make Jackson's stories incredibly vivid, illuminating, and personal. Shirley Jackson was a wife and mother whose writing always took second place behind her family. Many of these stories center on family life in all its aspects. "The Beautiful Stranger" and "A Day in the Jungle" deals with the sense of unfulfillment and unhappiness that one partner may come to feel in his/her marriage, "The Rock" speaks to the strength of a brother-sister relationship, "Island" is a somber story about one's end-of-life years. "Pajama Party" is a simple tale of a young girl's birthday slumber party. The story sounds so much like real life that it could be a neighbor telling you about it firsthand; it is also the funniest story Jackson ever wrote There are darker stories where characters become "lost," hopeless, and frightfully alone--"The Bus," "The Little House, "A Visitor" (which is a strange ghost story of sorts). The best stories here, in my mind, are "Louisa, Please Come Home," which has a uniquely Jacksonian twist of the prodigal son motif, and "I Know Who I Love," which illustrates the fact that parents can be much too overprotective of their children.

The true highlight of this book, though, are the three "lectures." One gives Jackson's response to the old "where do you get your ideas?" question. Another one addresses the techniques of writing effective fiction. My favorite, though, is an essay describing the reaction of readers to the publication of "The Lottery" in New Yorker Magazine. Jackson includes comments from all sorts of readers, almost all of it negative, which she breaks down into three different categories. While "The Lottery" is certainly an original, successful story, I cannot imagine that so many people would have been so affected that they felt compelled to put their shock and disapproval into words. The responses that Jackson describes to us offer a vivid look at American culture at mid-century.

If you are a Jackson fan, you (should) already own this book. If you want an introduction to Jackson, the stories included here will certainly delight you and win you over to Jackson's unique way of telling stories. These stories clearly reveal Jackson's humanity and family devotion, and the reader comes away with great respect for the author as both a writer and as a human being.

Shirely Jackson was a gifted writer who deserves to be regarded with the same prestige heaped upon Ray Bradbury and others. Come Along With Me, a posthumous collection gathering together early works with lectures and a novel fragment, not only allows readers to shiver and giggle as only Ms. Jackson could make us do, it also offers the reader an intimate glimpse into the creative process (compare the sharp focus in the revised segments of Come Along With Me with the somewhat blurred unrevised sections) and, by printing short stories in order of their publication, the growth of Ms. Jackson's considerable talent for the intelligently ghoulish can be seen and savored. As with her other, more famous stories (i.e The Haunting of Hill House), it is what is implied in the methodical unfolding of the tales that makes for the chills rather than in your face grue. This book, along with Jackson's others, is an essential in any literature loving bookworm's library. Highest recommendation.

This book is amazing! If you love short stories with a twist (or twisted short stories), you will be mezmerized by this book. The real gems in this collection are the short stories--you will find it difficult to put this book down. If you loved "The Lottery", get this book! The collection was assembled posthumously by Shirley Jackson's most trusted critic--husband Stanley Hyman--and it is pure gold!