The Distributed Workplace: Sustainable Work Environments

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The Distributed Workplace provides in one voluem essential informayion on sustainable work environments which will be invalubale to those developing workplace strategies for end-user organizations, as well as suppliers of office buildings, information and communications technologies and building operation services. Municipal authorities and other organziations concerned with sustainable development and sustainable workplaces will also benefit from this book.

Book Description

60 rare plates of pictorial borders — all with space for text or a message — depict floral garlands, cupids, scrollwork, as well as finely rendered scenes of salon parties, amorous couples, ardent suitors, lovely maidens, and other eye-catching vignettes. Superb royalty-free illustrations for artists, graphic designers, decoupeurs, and other craftworkers.

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Reflections:: A Fifteenth Anniversary Collection
Cathy Guisewite
Manufacturer: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Drawing | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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Reflections - Fifteenth Anniversary, A Cathy Collection
Cathy Guisewite
Manufacturer: Andrews and Mcmeel
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000JZKIY4

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Journal of Southern History, published by Southern Historical Association on May 1, 2003. The length of the article is 637 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Ralph Emerson McGill: Voice of the Southern Conscience.(Book Review)(Brief Article)
Author: Mark Newman
Publication: Journal of Southern History (Refereed)
Date: May 1, 2003
Publisher: Southern Historical Association
Volume: 69 Issue: 2 Page: 477(2)

Article Type: Book Review, Brief Article

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Ralph Emerson McGill: Voice of the Southern Conscience.(Brief Article): An article from: Columbia Journalism Review

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Ralph Emerson McGill: Voice of the Southern Conscience.(Brief Article): An article from: Columbia Journalism Review
James Boylan
Manufacturer: Columbia University, Graduate School of Journalism
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B0008EZ9F4
Release Date: 2005-06-01

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Columbia Journalism Review, published by Columbia University, Graduate School of Journalism on March 1, 2002. The length of the article is 381 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Ralph Emerson McGill: Voice of the Southern Conscience.(Brief Article)
Author: James Boylan
Publication: Columbia Journalism Review (Refereed)
Date: March 1, 2002
Publisher: Columbia University, Graduate School of Journalism
Volume: 40 Issue: 6 Page: 77(1)

Article Type: Book Review, Brief Article

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A true legend in American journalism; Ralph Emerson McGill: Voice of the Southern conscience. (Books). (book review): An article from: American Journalism Review

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A true legend in American journalism; Ralph Emerson McGill: Voice of the Southern conscience. (Books). (book review): An article from: American Journalism Review
Jack Nelson
Manufacturer: University of Maryland
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from American Journalism Review, published by University of Maryland on July 1, 2002. The length of the article is 1521 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: A true legend in American journalism; Ralph Emerson McGill: Voice of the Southern conscience. (Books). (book review)
Author: Jack Nelson
Publication: American Journalism Review (Refereed)
Date: July 1, 2002
Publisher: University of Maryland
Volume: 24 Issue: 6 Page: 54(2)

Article Type: Book Review

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The Big Book of Film

Opinionated, overwrought, self-important.

IT MAKES SO ME MAD!

For Movie Buffs

Smug as a bug in a rug

The New Biographical Dictionary of Film: Expanded and Updated
David Thomson
Manufacturer: Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Reference & Collections | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
Reference | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0375709401
Release Date: 2004-11-16

Book Description

For almost thirty years, David Thomson’s Biographical Dictionary of Film has been not merely “the finest reference book ever written about movies” (Graham Fuller, Interview), not merely the “desert island book” of art critic David Sylvester, not merely “a great, crazy masterpiece” (Geoff Dyer, The Guardian), but also “fiendishly seductive” (Greil Marcus, Rolling Stone).

This new edition updates the older entries and adds 30 new ones: Darren Aronofsky, Emmanuelle Beart, Jerry Bruckheimer, Larry Clark, Jennifer Connelly, Chris Cooper, Sofia Coppola, Alfonso Cuaron, Richard Curtis, Sir Richard Eyre, Sir Michael Gambon, Christopher Guest, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Spike Jonze, Wong Kar-Wai, Laura Linney, Tobey Maguire, Michael Moore, Samantha Morton, Mike Myers, Christopher Nolan, Dennis Price, Adam Sandler, Kevin Smith, Kiefer Sutherland, Charlize Theron, Larry Wachowski and Andy Wachowski, Lew Wasserman, Naomi Watts, and Ray Winstone.

In all, the book includes more than 1300 entries, some of them just a pungent paragraph, some of them several thousand words long. In addition to the new “musts,” Thomson has added key figures from film history–lively anatomies of Graham Greene, Eddie Cantor, Pauline Kael, Abbott and Costello, Noël Coward, Hoagy Carmichael, Dorothy Gish, Rin Tin Tin, and more.

Here is a great, rare book, one that encompasses the chaos of art, entertainment, money, vulgarity, and nonsense that we call the movies. Personal, opinionated, funny, daring, provocative, and passionate, it is the one book that every filmmaker and film buff must own. Time Out named it one of the ten best books of the 1990s. Gavin Lambert recognized it as “a work of imagination in its own right.” Now better than ever–a masterwork by the man playwright David Hare called “the most stimulating and thoughtful film critic now writing.”

Customer Reviews:

The Big Book of Film.......2007-01-05

Thomson writes the mini-essay like no one else. This book has info aplenty, but more than that it finds resonance in the most unexpected places. Try the entries on Rin-Tin-Tin, or the Lumiere Brothers. Some pieces tend more toward the length of full essay-portraits, but these too are surprises. The longest (I think) is Graham Green, which shows the intersection of life, film, lterature and art (a place full of fascinating wreckage). And where else would Sharon Stone's entry get merged with the one on Frances Farmer?
This is an encyclopedia that lacks as many details as it encompasses, yet it has everything it needs. It's more a way of looking at the movies than a mere listing of data. Along with The People's Almanac of 1975, this is one of the two most readable reference works I've ever experienced. Much of it is worth reading twice.

Opinionated, overwrought, self-important........2006-11-02

There is much ado about nothing in a good part of this book. Thomson has a habit of vast illuminations of celebrities that nobody has ever heard of, while ignoring many acknowledged and well regarded stars, especially the American ones. I bought his first book, which though well written, annoyed me in its cynical certainties, voiced by an author who apparently thinks he is an absolute genius and among the most sagacious critics. I bought his second edition of the same book, hoping that he would include celebs whom he ignored in the first edition. He included a few more in the second edition, and expanded on earlier assessments, most notably of the actor Robert Ryan, on whom he lavished well deserved praise. However, Thomson continued to ignore stars, Barry Sullivan, Vic Morrow, allotted about one hundred words to Dan Duryea. I saw a lot of damning with faint praise. He criticized Frederic March, Robert Wise, John Frankenheimer, and so on. I would not consider buying the third edition because Thomson is just so full of himself that it nauseates me.

IT MAKES SO ME MAD!.......2006-06-04

To his credit Mr.Thomson loves motion pictures,it is his opinions that drive me crazy,especially in regards to legendary director John Ford,who was certainly a very complex character.He regards Ford as a reactionary Irish sentimentalist who gloried in war.and drunken violence.I agee,somewhat,in his writings on "Fort Apache",where Wayne lets the legend of Thurday stand(in actuality Thurday was a madman and not a hero) but I could be argued that Ford is showing that the militiary is corrupt(Ford in interviews takes the opposite positon).Thompson says "The Sun Shines Bright" shows Ford is attracted to bigotry,and implying he in favor of it of,but it is bigotry that Ford is attacking in that redoing of Ford's own "Judge Priest".The Searchers(minus the "Look" episode) is a woderful film dealing with the hideous nature of racism,showing that it is killing Ethan's(John Wayne)soul.ANTI_BIGOTRY plays major roles in,"The Last Hurrah(anti-Irish),"Two Rode Together"(anti American Indian,anti-non-white,and,to a lesser extent,anti-Catholic),a very underrated film,"Sargeant Rutledge(white racism)and that flawed epic,"Cheyenne Autumn".Henry Fonda,as Owen Thursday in "Fort Apache",shows the arrogance and hatefulness that many European-Americans have toward "inferior races".I don't know of any other diector that has brought this (quasi-Marxist,ultra left)reviewer to tears so often while seeing one("The Grapes of Wrath","How Green Was My Valley","The Searchers","The Last Hurrah","The Long Voyage Home") of his films,and I've seen all the aforemented films at least 20 times and EVERY TIME my eyes water up.Ford was a VERY strange man,see Joseph McBride's,"In Search of John Ford",and MAUREEN O HARA's recent bio,"Tis Herself",just to see how turmoiled he really was.So Mr. Thomsom and I disagree on John Ford,but also on American leftist noir director Nicholas Ray(also a quasi-Marxist),Mr Thompson likes him very much,I think Mr.Ray,is just so-so.
Mr.Thomson likes Joan Bennett,(he we agree)says nice things concerning Linda Darnell,(good),and gives short shrift to Maureen O' Hara(bad)
It is a thought provoking book,so maybe I should give it 3 1/2 stars.He just makes me so mad!

For Movie Buffs.......2006-03-02

I recommend this book for all serious movie fans. It's a great reference containing brief biographies and film credits of most of the notable actors, directors, and producers from the silent era to the present. It also includes critical commentary on the people and films mentioned. Unlike most reference works, this book is by no means dry or "safe" in its comments. It reflects a distinct point of view, which the reader may not share in several cases -- but that adds to the interest. Reading it is almost like sharing a relaxed discussion over drinks with an extremely well-informed film critic with a sometimes eccentric slant on things. I enjoy leafing through the book and reading entries almost at random. The results are always informative, entertaining, and sometimes enlightening.

Smug as a bug in a rug.......2006-02-08

David Thomson is the sort of smug, pretentious critic you always wanted to smack around. Even the author's photograph on the book jacket oozes self-importance and ersatz sophistication - the only things missing from the picture are a smoking jacket and pipe. Basically, he is nothing but an unctuous salesman, but what he's selling isn't film, it's his own intellectual pedigree. In other words, reading this book you learn more about David Thomson than you do about the movies, and the picture isn't very pretty.

Thomson certainly has a large vocabulary at his disposal, but for all his flowery language he isn't a very good writer. The descriptive phrases he uses make frequent stabs at poetry but often wind up sounding overblown and empty, like so much hot air. He also has a talent for contradicting himself(frequently within a single sentence). For instance, he snobbishly decries "sentimentality" in movies every chance he gets, yet champions the work of P.T. Anderson, in my mind one of the most sentimental filmmakers working today.

But his worst offense is dismissing the talents of some of the true giants of cinema, particularly Federico Fellini, John Ford, Stanley Kubrick and Martin Scorsese. I'm not opposed to a critic skewering a few sacred cows, I don't think any artist, even Mozart or Shakespeare, is above criticism, but Thomson's critiques lack heft, in fact they are downright hypocritical. For example, he castigates Kubrick and Scorsese for knowing more about cinema than they do about life, yet anyone who has amassed the knowledge and opinions necessary to write a tome such as this one cannot have done very much with his own life other than watching and studying movies. In effect, Thomson comes across as the worst sort of critic - an obsessive, self-loathing nerd who tries to pass himself off as "experienced." The same thing he accuses Kubrick and Scorsese of being. He really is a literary version of the kind of filmmaker he chastises, someone who uses broad sweeping gestures(in his case, big words and affected wisdom instead of trippy lighting and baroque camera angles) to cover up a profound lack of depth.

Instead of the high-minded film theorist he believes himself to be, when all is said and done, Thomson is just another pseudo-intellectual who has spent far too many hours in a darkened room. It isn't his lack of respect for certain artists that eventually dooms him - it is the surfeit of respect and dripping affection he applies to himself.

Book Description

Baby Steps: the "Whys" of Your Child's Behavior in the First Two Years was rated by Child Magazine (December/January 1994)as one of 'The 10 Best Parenting books of 1993'. The award page contained this note (page 68), "In contrast to all the "how to" guides, this book provides readers with the in-depth developmental understanding they need to cultivate parenting techniques that work best for them and their toddler."

Customer Reviews:

Baby Steps: The Whys of your Childs Behavior in 1st 2 Yrs.......2000-08-05

My husband and I wondered what was going on inside the mind of our newborn son and how he was growing and changing month to month. This book answered our questions and gave us an insight into his social development as well as the development of his senses. The book is very easy to read and doesn't go overboard with details. I highly recommend the book to any parent.

Excellent guide for parents.......2000-04-14

This book is an excellent guide for first time and experienced parents. I must say I do not agree with the "reader". And if the anonymous "reader" has such strong feelings, to validate those feelings, I suggest the "READER" lay claim and not hide under the anonymity of "reader".

There are better books out there........2000-03-03

I would recommend to parents and educators looking for a book on early childhood development to look elsewhere than this particular book. It is difficult to read and at times, is incongruous with current research findings in developmental timing. I question the author's knowledge and skills, and would encourage others to do the same.

Excellent resource for first-time parents or caregivers!.......1998-10-17

I have used this book as a supplement for teaching infant development courses at the college level. Students find the information in this book easy to read and understand. It gives an overview of development in the first two years of life, including changes in social, physical, mental, and emotional growth. The author also provides many personal examples that the reader can relate to. I strongly recommend this book for any one who wants to understand more about basic child development.

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Great Detail

397 pages of pure "Gouge"

OUTSTANDING INSIGHT INTO THE BROWN SHOE NAVY

A poorly written book

OUTSTANDING!!!!

Air Warriors: The Inside Story of the Making of a Navy Pilot
Douglas C. Waller
Manufacturer: Dell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Aviation | Military | History | Subjects | Books
General | Military | History | Subjects | Books
Naval | Military | History | Subjects | Books
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Carrier Carrier

ASIN: 0440235316
Release Date: 1999-06-08

Book Description

Veteran journalist Douglas Waller, who wrote The Commandos after observing the training of special forces soldiers, chronicles his rare and intimate experience with the training program for Navy pilots in Air Warriors. Waller, who was granted permission to participate in the pilots' grueling training regime, has written an absorbing behind-the-scenes account of the physical and psychological trials endured by the most specialized group of pilots in military history.

From his bird's-eye view in the passenger's seat, Waller follows pilot trainees through two years of intense preparation. He offers vivid illustrations from the fray: hair-raising aerial dogfights; stomach-swallowing dive-bombing runs; highspeed tactical maneuvers grazing the desert floor; and numerous nerve-twisting aircraft carrier takeoffs and landings. In addition to his own experiences and those of the group of trainees he joins, his research is based on interviews with hundreds of other students and their instructors. Hurtling through the air at death-defying speeds, these pilots-in-training struggle to maintain their composure while withstanding conditions that are designed to challenge them to the very limits of human endurance.

Waller's deftly drawn portraits of the men and women he encounters in this singular culture of elite pilots are as satisfying as his adventure narrative. The pilots, whose grit, determination, and mental agility operate on an elevated threshold, come into sharp focus behind Waller's keen lens: their aspirations, awe inspiring. Air Warriors combines an examination of the modern Navy, recovering from past sex scandals, with a portrayal of a privileged cadre of men and women whose ambition and commitment coexist within a tightly knit group. Waller is able to capture images of these pilots training, living, and fighting with an acuity and intelligence that are often absent from Hollywood and television treatments of this diverse and fascinating subculture. Air Warriors takes the reader for the first time inside the cockpit and behind closed doors for the real story of the making of a Navy pilot.

Customer Reviews:

Great Detail.......2006-06-03

I've been interested in military aviation all my life and this is a book I've been waiting for. For the first time it gives the "nuts and bolts" of aviator training. It's the first time I've read a book that tells the reader in detail about the hurdles one must pass in order to win wings. I never really understood the art and science of military flying and what is expected of a proficient student pilot. While the author has no axe to grind I found one detail he mentions facinating. When new female aviators saw the "scorecard" (my term) for carrier landings kept in a unit's ready room they immediately said that is something that will have to go. Great! By all means we don't want a military with messy competition where someone's feeling might get hurt. We want want one were, like in Lake Woebegone, everybody is better than average and girls are graded on a curve.

397 pages of pure "Gouge".......2006-02-26

A MUST read for anyone headed in the direction of Naval Flight School.

The author has chosen an interesting style of writing by featuring 30 different people in 17 chapters (plus the Epilogue). It keeps the material fresh and interesting by thowing fresh faces into the mix with each chapter. The material might have bogged down had it followed one group through the whole training process. Additionally, this style of story telling gives you a broad spectrum view point. Needless to say it should be a truer version of reality.

I found the last couple of chapters dragging a tad, but it's a minor fault. It matches the point in training as well. The pilots near the end of their training and begin to look out towards earning a living flying for the Navy.

Early on the threat of washouts is high. In fact one cadet has his life's future hanging in the ballance, all dependent on if he can do 42 pushups or not. This sort of hair trigger drama is completely missing by the time the pilots get around to night landings on carriers. They can still fail, but they aren't going to be thrown out of the cockpit all together. By that time they're pilots... By the end of the book the drama comes from the sheer danger of what they are doing.

I'm not sure who the ideal reader would be. All the basics are covered, so it's not going to leave anyone behind. Similarly a Navy pilot isn't going to be too enthralled here. It's mostly the thrill of seeing inside the process of becoming the pilot of some of the world's highest performance planes. Few of us will actually get to sit in that seat, but we can all enjoy the fantasy of what it would be like. In this regard the book is truely first rate.

Highly recomended to anyone headed towards flight school. Here's what they're about to do to you... and ways that you can pass or fail....read the book... d'uh!

The one real flaw here is that the story follows the path of the glamor boys, and girls. The ultimate goal here is to fly F/A-18 Hornets. Cadets that get dropped along the way.. such those assigned to Helicopters!!!... are never to be seen again. We have ZERO idea what Helicoter training, or tranporter training, etc. is like. Even Harrier training... zip on that. SO there are blind spots in the coverage, but then people are going to buy the book looking for the glamor jockeys. A more accurate title would have been... Air Warriors ; the Inside Story of the Making of a Navy F/A-18 Hornet Pilot.

If that's what you're looking for, you've come to the right place!

OUTSTANDING INSIGHT INTO THE BROWN SHOE NAVY.......2006-01-08

Living in the shadow of Naval Station Pensacola and surrounded by the strips of runway used daily in the training process I thank the author for his introduction to the people and the programs that we see and hear only as low flying aircraft.If you have ever had the hair on your arm stand straight up when you watch the Blue Angles perform I recommend you read this book to see how the elite got inside one of these 6 aircraft. May not be a literary masterpiece, but is a pretty well researched report on what I find to be a most entertaining subject.As a result of reading this book I will seek more of the author and more on the subject matter.

A poorly written book.......2004-05-02

I don't know how this book got as good as reviews as it has, except that it came out quite a few years ago and maybe there weren't other books of its kind out there. Read Bogeys and Bandits instead, or Iron Claw. I just skimmed through this book and it was still a chore to read it. The author throws in a new character every chapter, without giving the reader any idea who this person is. There are better books out there.

OUTSTANDING!!!!.......2003-05-24

Reading the book the 1st time captivated me.
After visiting my friend at NAS Pensacola during his flight training and speaking to actual SNAs and SNFOs, I decided to read the book again... WOW. He is RIGHT ON the mark.

This is an absolute MUST read for anyone hoping to pursue Naval Aviation. Probably the most MOTIVATING book i've ever read.

BRAVO ZULU Mr. Waller.

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Air Warriors The Inside Story of the Making of a Navy Pilot
Waller Douglas C
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000LCM5LY

Average customer rating:
Air Warriors: The Inside Story of the Making of a Navy Pilot
Douglas C. Waller
Manufacturer: Dell Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000P1UA3G

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AIR WARRIORS: THE INSIDE STORY OF THE MAKING OF A NAVY PILOT

Manufacturer: Simon and Schuster New York
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000IAJZWQ

Book Description

-- History Today

Customer Reviews:

One of the best books on Azerbaijan.......2006-01-21

Tadeusz Swietochowski represents the region and relations between the countries in a very objective way, basing the statements on actual facts and deep understanding of the political situation in the region.

I thought I knew a lot about Azerbaijan, but after reading the book, I realized how many other things were happening in the history of this contry and specifically in its relations with Russia.

Russian and a Divided Azerbaijan.......2001-08-14

Azerbaijan, Swietochowski rightly notes, is "the quintessential borderland," being Turkish and Iranian, Sunni and Shi`i, Muslim and Christian, Russian and Middle Eastern, European and Asian. He also notes its other points of interest. Falling under Russian rule from 1804 on, Azerbaijan stands out as the first part of the Middle East brought under the rule of a modern European colonial power. Having been divided into two parts (Russian and Iranian) since 1828, it is the nation that has by far the longest endured the strains of split development.

Writings in English on Azerbaijan are meager and not of the highest quality. Russia and Azerbaijan improves matters by helping to make sense of the country's history, but its account is limited to coverage of the northern (i.e., Russian) part and to a dry, top-down history (for the Russian imperial period the author relies inordinately on literary magazines).

Current interest in Azerbaijan stems from its dramatic return to history as a vital pivot between Russia, Turkey, and Iran; as a newly important oil exporter; and as the Armenians' opponent in a vicious war since 1988. Contemplating the Turkish-Iranian rivalry for influence over independent Azerbaijan, the author foresees Turkey connecting Azeris to the larger world; but Iran, because of its Islamic emphasis and its inclusion of souther Azerbaijan, will have a greater impact on their evolving national identity.

Middle East Quarterly, December 1995

Thorough, objective, and well-researched........1998-10-23

Bravo! Finally a history of this republic that is well-written for the historian and the novice alike. Swietochowski is very objective in his approach, and systematic in the presentation of his research. I highly recommend this book for anyone wanting to know more about the two Azerbaijans and Russian involvement in the Caucasus.

Substantial addition to understanding of Azerbaijani problem.......1998-03-11

Reviewed by VICTOR KIRILLOV in International Relations, Volume XIII, No 1, - April 1996 -

The author's expertise on the complicated issues of both Russian and Middle Eastern history, politics, economy, culture and languages is beyond doubt. Indeed, while reading the book one cannot escape the impression that Tadeusz Swietochowski knows a great deal more than he writes about. Out of respect for his readers he carefully and skilfully selects the most salient and convincing facts and events to enable a better understanding of his subject matter which is not widely known to Western, and not only to Western, audiences.
Thus, he correctly points out that the Treaty of Turkmanchai signed on 10 February 1828 between Russia and Iran constituted a momentous event in the history of Transcaucasia, and, in particular, in the history of the Azeri people, that is of the natives of Azerbaijan. For the Azeris, the conquest of their earlier semi-independent Khanates by Russia and Iran, finally provided for in the 1828 Treaty, meant a partition of their land and people that has lasted to this day. `The international aspect of Azerbaijan's division', the author remarks, `created a delicate balance of power in one corner of the turbulent Middle East, a situation resembling that of nineteenth-century East Central Europe, where maintenance of a partitioned Poland ensured lasting peace among Russia, Austro-Hungary and Germany'. Internally, the two Azerbaijans, the Iranian one to the south of the Araxes, and the Russian, later Soviet and now independent Azerbaijan to the north of it, were put on different tracks of historical development. The author's coverage of Russian and later of Soviet policy in Azerbaijan is a splendid piece of research into a subject which has only been lightly covered by Russian and Soviet authors themselves. Given all the dark and bright sides of Russian colonial rule, there is one feature, as Mr Swietochowski rightly assumes, which stands out: Russian and Soviet domination contributed to the Azeris' development into an independent nation with political, cultural and religious aspirations running contrary to the deep-rooted beliefs of their Southern relatives in Iran. The process of historical differentiation has gone so deep that even the most radical nationalists in the last days of the former Soviet Azerbaijan hesitated to advance the slogan of unification of the Azeri nation. The Programme of the People's Front of Azerbaijan, adopted in June 1989, merely provided for the restoration of economic, cultural and social ties between the divided nation and the creation of direct human contacts between relatives and friends.
Pan-Turkic and Muslim sentiments in the former Soviet Azerbaijan certainly exist, and they are scrupulously analysed by the author. Extreme bitterness over the dramatic events in Azerbaijan's conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabagh especially contributed to the rise of anti-Western and anti-Russian feelings in Baku. Yet, even at the peak of the crisis these feelings did not become dominant in Azerbaijani society. This is one of the principal explanations of the seemingly paradoxical fact of the recent reappearance of former Soviet nomenclatura rulers on the political scene and the virtual collapse of the nationalistic People's Front. It also explains, at least partly, the reasons lying behind the relative international stability of the new independent Azerbaijan which has found itself at the very epicentre of Russian-Turkish-Iranian geopolitical rivalry. The author also gives other well-founded reasons for that. Until now neither Iran nor Turkey has expressed any desire to fill the power vacuum in Transcaucasia created by Russia's retreat. Iran is obviously reluctant to incorporate six million well-educated, Turkic-speaking people from the former Soviet Azerbaijan, fearing that this might dramatically change the character of the Iranian state itself. For its part, Turkey fears any distraction from its goal of integration with Europe. Meanwhile, both states as well as Russia restrict themselves to securing strategic and economic advantages in Azerbaijan without incurring undue burdens.
Finally, as the author concludes, the people of Azerbaijan itself, `are apt to take guidance from their ancient political heritage: moderation and compromise'. There, he believes, `extremism locks a fertile ground, and its avoidance has been understood as the essence of the community's survival'.
Based on original sources that include Azerbaijani, Russian, Polish, British and American archives, this elegantly written book by American scholar Tadeusz Swietochowski, who already enjoys a high reputation as a researcher of both Middle Eastern and Russian history and politics, substantially adds to our knowledge of the fascinating problems and developments in this region of the world.
VICTOR KIRILLOV

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