This book should become a major contribution to Latin American studies, because it provides fresh perspectives on topics we'd thought we already knew well. It does so by relating Latin America to vital issues in history, notably recent research on frontier history, "the new Western history," & themes of race, class & gender. The chapter by Susan Socolow, discussing Argentine frontier women & thus engendering the history of the gauchos, is particularly strong, but so are most of the others. One drawback is that coverage is largely limited to the far margins of Spanish America (northern Mexico & Rio de la Plata regions), when there is plenty of work to do on the frontiers of core areas of Spain's New World empire, e.g. Peru & Bolivia. (There is some fine material on Brazil, but the book's main emphasis is on Spanish America.) Nevertheless, this work definitely advances understanding of important aspects of Latin American history.

What other state can claim as many notable small towns as does the Empire State? Cooperstown, Lake Placid, Sleepy Hollow, Woodstock, Watkins Glen, Chautauqua, Corning, Saratoga Springs, West Point, Oyster Bay, several Hamptons, Ticonderoga, Seneca Falls-- Norman Rockwell (who lived a short walk across the state line) might just have been a tad jealous. Only the first and last make it into this book, and just as well. When Country Roads Press sends America's top small-town journalist through America's top small-town state, you don't want to waste him on places you already know.

Bill Kauffman (of Batavia and Elba) has milked a career out of keeping the leaders of the land's great Lost Causes from, as he puts it, "going down the memory hole", in books such as America First! and With Good Intentions, and in frequent pieces in The Wall Street Journal, American Enterprise, Chronicles, Liberty and other magazines. Here he applies the same special talent to a "second tier" of New York villages, and one wonders if he chose these particular communities for an unusual richness in odd stories and characters, or whether he'd have dug these up anywhere he went.

Kauffman's at his best at home in the western snout of the state, where he unlocks the somewhat feudal nature of Geneseo, LeRoy and Angelica. (The obscurer the town, the more fun he has with it.) The pump industry of Seneca Falls, a quarter of the world's total, gets as much of his attention as the distaff business there. And why not? Sanitation has saved more lives than medicine. Hundreds of millions owe their lives to this important town, celebrated for the all the wrong reasons.

His subjects have given us three presidents, Mormonism, women's suffrage and colored gelatin, but if there's something else of note in town, Bill'l let us know. (And if it's in the next town over, he'll cheat and go there.)

Further afield Kauffman's more the tourist, especially across the "soda/pop" line, which is not as close to the city as he imagines. Cooperstown is not quite as cute as he paints it-- indeed, one of its charms is the relative lack of the boutique pollution that has ruined many similar places. And couldn't he find a "country town" left on Long Island? That in itself is sad. However, his analysis of the Burned-Over District is so sharp it will inspire the reader to try his hand at the built-over districs as well.

Finally, some things to look for which aren't in the book (and may no longer exist):

Westfield-- the weird, wing-shaped Theatre Motel and Drive-In on the lake;

Bath (in the Hammondsport chapter)-- the Chat-a-Wyle Café and its grape pie;

Palmyra-- where Winston Churchill's grandparents married, perhaps not in one of the four churches at the intersection;

Oneonta (in the Cooperstown chapter)-- the book mentions the NY-P League team there, but check out their Depression-era ballpark in the Susquehanna valley, one of the handsomest settings in all the sport. (And in "Soccertown, USA", no less.)

i am a student of class nine and am parpticpating in the class elocution.please give me some current topics which will help me to compete the same. thanking you.

"The Devil in the Flesh" is a simple, powerful love story dealing with a teenage boy's love for a woman who is a little bit older. Set in France during the first world war. One of my favorites. Radiguet wrote this at the age of 17 and died three years later of typhoid. He was a protege of Jean Cocteau and received a fantastic amount of attention from the Parisian literary scene of the early 1920s. A fascinating person and a fascinating book. Read it!

This book ... a classic in the French Psychoanalytic tradition ... has only recently been translated into English. Andre Green, a noted French Psychoanalyst, trained with Lacan, then broke away to incorporate the work of the British School (Winnicott, Bion, etc.) into his conceptualizations. In this volume Green sets as his task the elucidation of the consideration of affect in Freud's work, and the application of this understanding to varied clinical phenomenon encountered in practice. Green's writing style is clear, and his mastery of this complex area of study is evident.

I would recommend this book, and Andre Green's other works ("The Work of the Negative"; "The Dead Mother", etc.) to any and all who wish to advance their understanding of the best of psychoanalytic theory.

I have just finished reading this great book. Sheridan was a British resident of Manila during America's victory over Spain and the subsequent annexing of the Philippines. Being British, he presents an unbiased view of the conflict. This book is part of Solar Books "Filipiniana Reprint Series." It was originally published in the year 1900. It should be rquired reading for any Americans who think that we did wonderful things in the Philippines at the turn of the century. America did horrible things in the Philippines and our government has never adequately addressed the atrocities that were committed in the name of benign assimilation. This book is well written and educational. It inspires anger, but it shows the indomitable spirit of the Filipinos who fought for freedom against incredible odds and brazen American duplicity.

France,1001 Sights (Anderson & Lea, 2002, University of Calgary Press) will enrich your perspective on the country, its people and the evolution of their society. It provides detailed information about remnants of human activity in France from the dawn of man in Europe (about 900,000 B.C.) through the first millennium A.D . This window provides a glimpse of paleo-, meso- and neolithic civilizations through the Iron and Bronze ages as well as the Celtic, Roman, Gallo-Roman, Merovingian, Carolingian and Viking periods of the country's evolution. This interesting and compact book complements what is available in other tour books, which focus primarily on the heritage of late Medieval and Renaissance France, by providing an ancient historical background for those later periods. In addition, although existing books make reference to the most spectacular of the remnants of early civilizations in France (e.g., Carnac, Lascaux or Nimes), this book features not only those well-known sites but also many, many others of exceptional quality throughout the country.

Anderson and Lea begin with an efficient overview of human habitation, invasion, conquest and assimilation in France, with pertinent commentary on language, religion and governance as they influenced the country's architecture, roads, commerce and organization. This sets the stage for the detailed chapters that follow on historical and archeological sites across the country in which hundreds of individual sights -- dolmens, menhirs, bridges, aqueducts, baths, villas, forts, etc. -- are described.

The book is organized by regions, a presentation that fits well with the regional historical perspective provided at the outset. Then, within each region, sites are located within current French Departments and relative to major cities. Finally, each site is described thoroughly in terms of the sights it contains, their historical significance, and how to find them. Directions are explicit in terms of route numbers, compass points, landmarks, distances from local centers and relative difficulty of access roads and paths (e.g., where pavement may be lacking or some walking/hiking is required to reach a sight).

In addition to the historical context provided to enhance the reader's appreciation of each sight, other strengths of the book include a glossary for archeological and architectural terms that may not be readily familiar, numerous black-and-white and color photographs of many spectacular sights, a bibliography of useful resources and a list of additional sights beyond those featured, for those who cannot get enough of these historical treasures.

This book will enhance forever the way one looks at France and appreciates the ancient relics of its countryside and cities, its regional differences and the formative millennia of its history, which was influenced by so many cultural forces. Enjoy this guide before as well as during your travels in France, to make the most of your time there. And even if you cannot travel there, use this book to complement other historical accounts of French civilization from the dawn of early man through the influence of the Celts, the Romans, the Germanic tribes and the Vikings (among others). It is a fascinating history that the stones tell, and Anderson and Lea have translated it well.

Along with "Best Ghost Stories of LeFanu",also published by Dover, this completes the set of LeFanu's short stories. Although these stories tend to be a bit longer than masterworks like "Green Tea", they are every bit as worthwhile and are musts for any fan of English-Irish ghost stories. These two volumes comprise multiple collections of LeFanu's work originally published under the titles "Madame Crowl's Ghost" "In A Glass Darkly", "Golden Friars" and several previously uncollected stories. Le Fanu is right behind M.R James and right in front of E.F Benson in the ghost story writing business.

In very clear language the Gift of Baptism helps parents and thoses who are working with parents who are preparing to have their child baptized, this easy to read book helps parents understand the importance of and the meaning behind the Sacrement of Baptism.

Folowing a user friendly format the reader is introduced to the key theological concepts of baptism, walking the reader through the history of the sacrement offering practical helps for parents and Godparents as they approach this important stage of their child's life.

I recomend this book as a must for all thoses who take my baptism and Godparent classes, or for anyone who wants to understand thier faith a little more.

An amazing collection of gothic horror! One of my favorite books, out-of-print for decades is now restored in a complete edition. Le Fanu is a master of horror, much in the style of HP Lovecraft or William Hope Hodgson (check out Gothic Horror 1 & 2 for the best of Hodgson, incl. "The Ghost Pirates").

Everyday happenings grow progressively stranger, with a heavy sense of dread, until events explode in unimaginable freakishness! Wow! A fantasy escape for those who like dark victorian tales of ghosts, goblins, & demons. Enjoy!