Cooking Spaces: Designs for Cooking Entertaining and Living

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Eye opening

Info on everything including the kitchen sink...

Wide range of styles, great ideas, good resource list

Cooking Spaces: Designs for Cooking Entertaining and Living
Helen Thompson
Manufacturer: Rockport Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Kitchens | Remodeling & Renovation | Home Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Household Hints | How-to & Home Improvements | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Decoration & Ornament | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
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Great Kitchens: At Home With America's Top Chefs

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ASIN: 156496888X

Book Description

Cooking Spaces combines creative design with modern and unique ways in which to transform your old kitchen into something new. From traditional to modern, catch a glimpse of great cooking spaces that make kitchens function as a room you will enjoy spending time in.

Featuring brief narratives-describing their careers and favorite kitchens-from ten world-renowned chefs: including Jacques Pepin, Jody Adams, Coleman Andrews, Christopher Kimball, Richard Rayment, Lydia Shire, Nic Stellino, Giles Thompson, Korby Kummer, and Ruth Rogers.

Also learn about: Modern design schemes for cooking, mingling, and entertaining with ease Working kitchens: adaptable solutions to common design problems, overcrowding, unusually shaped rooms, lighting, built-ins, and more Cooking traditions adapted in unusual and clever designs: the open-air kitchen, the baking alcove, kitchen hearths, kitchens for grilling, the wine-lovers kitchen, and more.

The best cooking rooms provide ample space for flipping an omelet, rolling a piecrust, or chatting with guests while preparing a cozy dinner. But creating cooking spaces can be a daunting task. Kitchens should be practical and functional, but they should also be comfortable, hospitable, and visually appealing. How can you design a cooking space to fulfill all of these needs?

Cooking Spaces offers a bit of something for everyone, from practical hands-on tips and interesting ideas on cabinetry, lighting, flooring, storage, dining areas, and other kitchen essentials to beautiful color photographs sure to enthuse even the most reluctant kitchen designer. With over one hundred kitchens featured, Cooking Spaces provides ideas on how to shape your existing kitchen into a room catered to your needs. A cooking lifestyle quiz will give you a handle on your personal culinary needs and necessities: the rest of the book will encourage and inform you on how best to meet those needs. As an added bonus, interviews with ten of the world's most exciting and revered chefs are also included, which will give you great ideas on how to create a cooking space to inspire greatness. Cooking Spaces is a must-have addition to any chef's library: amateur or professional.

Customer Reviews:

Eye opening.......2007-06-01

This book features the home kitchens of professional chefs and other cooking aficionados. Contains great ideas and inspiration for kitchens that emphasize the joy of cooking and eating (not fussy or extravagant).

Info on everything including the kitchen sink..........2003-01-09

Remodeling our cottage we wanted a book that would show us as much information as possible and this the book. If you are interested in reading how to go about a project and where to get information on everything from the wall coverings, appliances, contractors and even alas the kitchen sink, check this book out.

Wide range of styles, great ideas, good resource list.......2001-07-23

This is a wonderful book showing a wide range of kitchen styles from modern to country and blue and white to classical. It explains design secrets that help you create a beautiful, yet practical cooking space.

The book starts out with a short quiz that helps you determine your cooking lifestyle needs. It then discuses backsplashes, flooring, cabinets, storage and ventilation. In addition there are several cook's stories telling all about their history and about their dream kitchens.

I like the way the kitchens selected for the book combine aesthetics and ergonomics. The emphasis is on kitchens that work rather than on the latest technological gadgets. There are tons of ideas that can make any kitchen more functional.

There is a great resource list in the back, including website addresses, for finding accessories, appliance manufactures, lighting and hardware. Whether you are a professional chef or want to use your kitchen as a social gathering place, this book can be a great help to you.

Customer Reviews:

Great reference book.......2000-01-01

This is an easy to follow reference book for decorative painting. I found the techniques useful for ceramics painting in addition to acrylics. I keep it as a reference for customers in my studio. It is useful for people learning basic brush stroke techniques.

Book Description

Baloo's cartoons appear everywhere, from the Wall Street Journal to Woman's World. They're a regular feature in National Review and Liberty magazines, and appear frequently in the Saturday Evening Post as well as many other publications throughout North America and Europe.

Customer Reviews:

The Best of Baloo is The Best.......2002-08-14

The name Baloo meant a lot to us old Bob and Ray fans who fondly remember the unique sports broadcasts of Wally Baloo (aka Bob Elliott). This Baloo is the pen name of Rex May, Numero Uno among the nation's gagwriters and a significant and much published cartoonist. There are over 100 very funny cartoons such as the heavenly golfer who sliced into Purgatory -- two to a page -- in this very affordable compilation aptly subtitled The Best of Baloo.

fancy "foot"work from the Astaire of cartooning.......2000-07-03

Rex May [d.b.a. Baloo] is for cartooning what Fred Astaire was for dancing: the textbook example of "making it look easy", with the emphasis on "look". Anyone who tries to write such seemingly bare-bone yet devastating gags, to "scribble" down characters who are actually solidly built and expressive, to flesh out a background with a select few lines, as Baloo does to perfection time and again... will realize that what he does is not easy at all. Snap this up and luxuriate in the artistry of an undisputed master of the gag panel.

Bless You, Baloo.......2000-07-02

This is a terrific book featuring some of Baloo's greatest work. I recommend this book for anyone who loves a good laugh and also for the aspiring cartoonist looking to learn by studying some great examples. I'm in awe of his ability to say SO MUCH within the context of a simple black and white cartoon.

"Gesundheit, Dummy" cracks me up!.......2000-06-01

Gesundheit Dummy is a long overdue collection of Baloo's cartoons. Rex May (Baloo) is one of the best known magazine cartoonists in America -- his cartoons have been published practically everywhere.

I love his expressive drawing style, his hilarious characters, and his captions, which are simply the very best. Rex May's work is legendary!

This very funny book has a place of honor on my bookshelf. Any fan of great single panel cartoons will love Gesundheit, Dummy!

Book Description

A unified and systematic description of analysis and decision problems within a wide class of uncertain systems, described by traditional mathematical methods and by relational knowledge representations. With special emphasis on uncertain control systems, Prof. Bubnicki gives you an unique approach to stability and stabilization of uncertain systems.

- Self contained

- Introduction and development of original concepts of uncertain variables and a learning process consisting of knowledge validation and updating

- Examples concerning the control of manufacturing systems, assembly processes and task distributions in computer systems indicate the possibilities of practical applications and approaches to decision making in uncertain systems

- Includes special problems such as recognition and control of operations under uncertainty

If you are interested in problems of uncertain control systems and uncertain decision support systems, this will be a valuable addition to your bookshelf. Written for researchers and students in the field of control and information science, this book will also benefit designers of information and control systems.

Uncertain Logics, Variables and Systems (Lecture Notes in Control and Information Sciences)

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Uncertain Logics, Variables and Systems (Lecture Notes in Control and Information Sciences)
Z. Bubnicki
Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Decision-Making & Problem Solving | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Technical Support | Business & Culture | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

General | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

Logic & Language | Philosophy | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Engineering | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

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All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 3540432353

Book Description

Uncertainty is one of the main features of complex and intelligent decision-making systems. There exists a great variety of definitions and descriptions of uncertain systems. The ideas of uncertain variables based on uncertain logics have been introduced and developed for a wide class of uncertain systems. In this monograph basic concepts, definitions and results concerning uncertain variables are presented. Applications to analysis and decision problems in uncertain systems, described by traditional mathematical models and by knowledge representations, are demonstrated.

Choosing among alternative complex systems when input characteristics are uncertain (An Urban Institute reprint)

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Choosing among alternative complex systems when input characteristics are uncertain (An Urban Institute reprint)
Dennis R Young
Manufacturer: Urban Institute
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Chaos & Systems | Physics | Science | Subjects | Books

Book Description

Praise for The SmartMoney Guide to Real Estate Investing

"Gerri Willis's SmartMoney Guide to Real Estate is wonderful. It's easy to read and easy to use. In a matter of minutes after reading this book I was able to make a decision on a piece of real estate I own that will potentially put tens of thousands of dollars in my pocket in the next ninety days. I'd say this book can pay for itself a thousands times over on your next real estate transaction."
-David Bach, bestselling author of Smart Couples Finish Rich and Smart Women Finish Rich

"Leave it to Gerri Willis to leave me angry! Had I taken heed of her advice on negotiating price and understanding how agents `really' work, I'm sure I could have saved thousands, probably tens of thousands of dollars on my last house! Great book. Gerri hits a `home' run!"
-Neil Cavuto, Vice President, Anchor and Managing Editor, Business News, Fox News Channel

"An authoritative, informative, compelling case for real estate investment from a widely respected expert, Gerri Willis, who, most appropriately, thoroughly examines this issue from the individual investor's point of view."
-David M. Jones, PhD, President and CEO, DMJ Advisors LLC

Customer Reviews:

Smart Money Guide To Real Estate Investing.......2004-03-12

two words: Don't bother! In a few more words...This book is a cursory look at real estate...it should have been trimmed down and used as filler articles. I have read a few real estate books lately and this one told me NOTHING new, it was a quick uninformative read.

It never got down to the brass tacks. If you want to know what to look for in a property or how to know you're getting a great loan or price FORGET IT...you would probably be better off spending the purchase price on lunch with someone you know that owns a rental already. Oh yeah, some of the stats will make property owners feel good.

collection of magazine columns.......2003-06-07

This book is not a comprehesive guide to Real Estate Investing but a collection of magazine articles written largely for homeowners.

Worst realestate investing book read so far!.......2003-05-06

Very superfical. More about purchasing a single family home to live in than investing. Obviously very little research was done, the writer does not invest her self.

Book Description

A major new book in family studies, that concentrates on how 'normal' families work -- their strengths and weaknesses, the kinds of crises and stresses with which they cope, and the changes that come over them during seven stages of their life cycle. Over one thousand families were studied in order to reveal the true complexity of family life by maintaining the separate perspectives of husbands, wives, and adolescent children.

'...this book should be read by all who are concerned with family stress, family integration, and coping behaviors in functioning families.' -- Choice, May 1984

'...the book is indeed destined to be a classic reference work that belongs in every family specialist's library.' -- The American Journal of Family Therapy, Volume 13 no 1, Spring 1985

Book Description

When a spunky young reporter smuggles herself into Chechnya, her undercover reports spark anti-war protests in France and change her own life forever.

Two years ago, when she was thirty years old, Anne Nivat decided to see first-hand what war was all about. Russia had just launched its second brutal campaign against Chechnya. And though the Russians strictly forbade Westerners from covering the war, the aspiring French journalist decided she would go.

There are two very real dangers in Chechnya: being arrested by the Russians and being kidnapped by the Chechens. Nivat strapped her satellite phone to her belly, disguised herself in the garb of a Chechen peasant, and sneaked across the border. She found a young guide, Islam, to lead her illegally through the war zone. For six months they followed the war, travelling with underground rebels and sleeping with Chechen families or in abandoned buildings. Anne trembled through air raids; walked through abandoned killing fields; and helped in the halls of bloody hospitals. She interviewed rebel leaders, government officials, young widows, and angry fighters, and she reported everything back to France. Her reports in Libération led to antiwar demonstrations outside the Russian embassy in Paris.

Anne's words move. They are not florid, but terse, cool, dramatic. More than just a war correspondent's report, Chienne de Guerre is a moving story of struggle and self-discovery-the adventures of one young woman who repeatedly tests her own physical and psychological limits in the extremely dangerous and stressful environment of war.

Customer Reviews:

A French reporter's view on the War in Chechnya........2004-07-10

Ms. Nivat reports on the War in Chechnya by way of traveling with the civilians and rebels of this war torn province of Russia. Civilians are indeed the victims of any war, and there is no difference in this conflict. I would say that perhaps the Russians were more brutal than other nations. Their targeting of civilian centers by artillery and air bombing turned many of the Chechen civilians against the Federation of Russia. Nivat is very sympathetic to the Chechens. She has been treated kindly by them. She makes frequent mention of the Wahabbis (Islam Fundamentalists) and even describes the terror of these fighters.
Present day knowledge shows that many Chechen Fundamentalists fought and died for the Taliban of Afghanistan. Chechens themselves have been accused of killing and beheading foreigners helping the civilians of Chechnya. Knowledge of this makes me think Nivat could have been a victim of a Chechen crime. Sympathy for the civilians is one thing, supporting Chechen Fundamentalists is another. Chechens invading other provinces of the Russian state and bombing apartment buildings does not give me much sympathy with the goal of this ethnic group. Nivat has too much sympathy for the civilians and overlooks the killing of the rebels. This was (is) a fierce war, and both parties don't look too appealing.

UNE GUERRE TERRIBLE!!!.......2003-11-04

Before there was "Operation Iraqi Freedom", there was the war in Chechnya. A war that the Russians try to disguise as an insurrection. A war that could easily have been avoided if Moscow had simply given Chechnya the sovereignty it sought in the early 1990s. Here in this book, Anne Nivat shows both the horrors and absurdities of the Chechnyan War.

Like the other reviewers, I commend Mlle. Nivat for her courage in going out on her own into Chechnya to get at the heart of the story. Anne Nivat is a gutsy woman. Her story is all the more remarkable and sobering given the efforts of Moscow to censure the news reportage from Chechnya. Being a fluent speaker of Russian also allowed Nivat to form personal bonds with many of the people she met. Thus, the reader gets a more intimate insight into the daily perils people face in Chechnya.

Courageous Account.......2003-06-02

With her powerful description of life on the frontlines and the backroads and rooms of Chechnya, Anne Nivat helps put a voice to this incredible conflict. Having worked in the Caucasus with Chechen refugees, I know her accounts to be real. My only complaint is that she tries to focus on too much and ends up glossing over some of the more interesting and horrifying aspects of the conflict. I remember standing by the office door and actually counting the Chechen staff on Monday mornings after their weekend journeys home...Anne Nivat's book reminds me why. Courage and the will to survive seem to be common traits in the Caucasus and it is a most humbling experience to read this book in the comfort of my home back in the US.

a human tragedy.......2002-12-30

This is another of those works whose content takes on new significance after Sept. 11, 2001. Prior to those events, Western public opinion of Moscow's handling of Chechnya was overwhelmingly critical. The Chechen conflict was usually described as a "dirty war". In order to garner international sympathy for the plight of Chechen civilians caught between Islamist extremists and Russian Federal forces, Ms. Nivat clandestinely infiltrated the battlezone. She risked arrest by the Russians, kidnap and torture by the rebels, and death in the crossfire as she conducted her interviews with the populace. Any humane reader will grieve for the suffering of the innocents. But like many antiwar treatices, "Chienne de Guerre" wears its heart on its sleeve and conveniently neglects to tell the whole story: After having won de-facto autonomy, Chechnya rapidly became a region of abysmal poverty and lawlessness. Its leadership, divided by power-struggles between warlords and religious extremists, descended into anarchy. In a close parallel with Afghanistan, Wahhabists gained control. Eventually, these "rebels" began making incursions into neighboring Russian republics. Rebel-occupied Daghestan appealed to Moscow for assistance. Daghestanis, although Muslim, vehemently reject the Wahhabi sect of Chechen Islamists. After Russian Federal troops had freed one Daghestani town, its residents held a meeting to determine the fate of the Wahhabi mosque the Chechens had erected there. The mayor favored razing it, but several townsmen suggested converting it into a strip-club -- "since that would disgrace it more". This anecdote demonstrates the depth of Daghestani hatred. It was the Chechen invasion of Daghestan, followed by a series of terrorist bombings in Moscow, which provoked the second armed response. Like their Taliban counterparts, Chechen Wahhabist rebels have been unaverse to using noncombatants as human shields, and callously exploit civilian casualties for propaganda. This willingness to sacrifice innocent lives did not endear the rebels to the populace whose "cause" they were ostensibly defending. Enter the naively pro-Chechen Anne Nivat. Even she distrusted the motives of the rebels, although at the time their alliance with al-Qaeda was still generally unknown. Since 9-11, Chechen complicity in international terrorism has been widely exposed, and all pretense on the part of rebel mujahedin abandoned. Chechen websites today proudly boast allegiance to bin Laden, post videotaped torture and executions, and make threats against Russian, American, and Israeli targets. Mujahedin leaders defiantly reject any political or diplomatic reconciliation: the only solution they advocate is jihad. Violent terrorist acts, such as the bombing of a Daghestani Veterans Day parade and the raid on a Moscow theater have become increasingly commonplace. Likewise, Chechen-run terrorist training camps and Chechen/al-Qaeda terrorist plots have been uncovered in France, Pakestan, and Afghanistan. Foreign-born Wahhabists now openly direct the Chechen rebel leadership. Talib influence was unmistakable during the Moscow theater siege, in which numerous burka-clad, explosives-wired female terrorists, the so-called "Black Widows", participated. Under Wahhabism, the only way for women to obtain Paradise (and possibly reunite with fallen husbands) is by martyrdom in jihad. President Bush no longer criticizes Putin's handling of Chechnya, but supports the Russian War on Terrorism. The US military, on the other hand, has never criticized. For several years, the American military has closely observed the fighting in Grozniy, and has been practicing urban warfare in deserted bases throughout California. Our military has acknowledged that similar US urban action could result in the same discouraging casualty rate experienced by the Russians -- and with a similar, unavoidable civilian toll. The relevance, post-911, of "Chienne de Guerre" is its documentation of that enormous human tragedy. But, as was the case of Afghanistan and al-Qaeda, Chechen civilians are suspected of supporting terrorists. (Albeit, as Nivat writes, often reluctantly.) So much so, though, that Chechens -- unlike Albanian, Somali, and other Muslim victims of aggression -- have not been permitted refugee status in the West. In closing, I would say this book is probably the best and least biased on the subject. But a mere year has provided new light and different perceptions on this "dirty war".

Makes arguements and refuses them at the same time........2002-07-04

I must agree with Kirill's review of the book. I will add a few things of course, First there are two main groups in Chechnya, The Russo-Chechens and the Wahabbis. Wahabbis are Muslims who live by the strict code of the sharia, this can be drawn on the same level as the Taliban in Afghanistan. The difference here is that the Wahabbis came into Chechnya in the early 1990s, at the weakest time of Russian change from Communism to Democracy. Led by Shamil Basayev the 94-96 was fought for an independent Chechnya, by the "people" which consisted of many pride filled Chechens and some Wahabbis. After the first war, Wahabbism spread throught and no clear leadership was established, It looked as if Wahabbis the gun toting Chechens that threatened the population to do as they wanted would take control. This would once again establish the same rule as the Taliban in Afghanistan. But they blew their chance for becoming an independent state, and started making raids into nearby Russian Teritories, leading up to the apartment buildings in Moscow. The Russians did what nobody did to the Taliban when they took control of Afghanistan. So this leads us to the point in the book, the Invasion of Chechnya, battles for Grozny. The book was written in 1999-2001, it is now 2002 and the situation has, changed, Reconstruction has begun of schools, administrations, and apartment buildins to restore life to normal. For once in the last 10 years, Chechnya is getting money from the Russian Federation to rebuild, the outlook is bright. If this doesnt draw parallels with US-Afghanistan, I dont know what does.

Chienne De Guerre - A Woman Reporter Behind The Lines Of The War In Chechnya

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Chienne De Guerre - A Woman Reporter Behind The Lines Of The War In Chechnya
Anne; Translated by Darnton, Susan Nivat
Manufacturer: Public Affairs
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000IX1J68

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Great Gift

What A Year It Was! 1947
Beverly Cohn
Manufacturer: MMS Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | World | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0922658056

Book Description

WHAT A YEAR IT WAS! 1947 is a beautiful 176-page hardcover cocktail table book packed with hundreds of original photos, magazine ads and consumer pricing. It is loaded with facts on new products and inventions, advances in science and medicine, hit songs and films, popular radio and television programs, Broadway plays, famous people, the latest look in fashion and, of course, sports winners. Laid out like a college yearbook with zany illustrations, WHAT A YEAR IT WAS! 1947 will instantly take you back in time for a lively, fun look at the people, places and events that shaped world history and changed our lives forever.

Customer Reviews:

Great Gift.......2007-09-11

Know anyone born in 1947?..This book makes a great book and a wonderful stroll down memory lane.

Average customer rating:

What A Year It Was! 1947

Manufacturer: Flickback Media, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0922478252

Product Description

What A Year It Was! 1947 is a lavish, 176-page hardcover "scrapbook" packed with stories, photos and artwork detailing the movies, music, shows, sports, fashion, news, people, places and events that made this year unique and memorable. A special dedication page completes a truly personal yearbook gift which will be treasured for years to come. The Perfect Gift for Birthdays, Anniversaries or Reunions!

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WHAT A YEAR IT WAS! 1947
Beverly Cohn
Manufacturer: Beverly Cohn
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000M0UW9W

What a Year It Was!: 1947 (ISBN: 0922658056)

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What a Year It Was!: 1947 (ISBN: 0922658056)
Beverly Cohn
Manufacturer: MMS Publ.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000LC8WUW

WHAT IS A MODERN PRINT? TEN YEARS OF AMERICAN PRINTS 1947-1956.

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WHAT IS A MODERN PRINT? TEN YEARS OF AMERICAN PRINTS 1947-1956.
Una E. Johnson
Manufacturer: Brooklyn Museum,
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000N7I3SQ

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A wonderful book for everyone who loves the outdoors

Heaven is a Matthiessen book

Fantastic, well-illustrated book on all things crane

Gorgeous illustrations; interesting text

preaching to the choir of the birds of heaven

The Birds of Heaven: Travels with Cranes
Peter Matthiessen
Manufacturer: North Point Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Ecotourism | Specialty Travel | Travel | Subjects | Books
General | Conservation | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Endangered Species | Conservation | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
General | Birdwatching | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0865476578

Amazon.com

Acclaimed writer Peter Matthiessen, a self-professed "craniac," has been observing and studying all kinds of birds most of his life, but his pursuit of cranes is closer to a spiritual quest than a naturalist's exercise. These majestic, mythic, and notoriously shy birds, capable of soaring at heights of 20,000 feet, are often fond of remote and rugged places, so just locating the birds can be difficult enough, determining an accurate number often impossible. Some locales, such as the breeding grounds on the Platte River in Nebraska, boast flocks half a million strong--"by far the greatest crane assemblies on earth"; other areas support only a precious few. Matthiessen's search for 15 different species of cranes has taken him to hidden corners of Siberia, China, Mongolia, Tibet, Sudan, and Australia (where Atherton cranes were not even discovered until 1961). Despite his many years of adventure and wide travels, each crane sighting is still a thrill for him, and his curiosity and contagious enthusiasm bring the book alive. But The Birds of Heaven also serves as an ecological warning: "Perhaps more than any other living creatures, they evoke the retreating wilderness, the vanishing horizons of clean water, earth, and air upon which their species--and ours, too, though we learn it very late--must ultimately depend for survival." --Shawn Carkonen

Book Description

“You don’t have to be a ‘craniac’ . . . to appreciate [this book] . . . All you really need is a passion for prose as good as it gets.” —Chicago Tribune

In legend, cranes often figure as harbingers of heaven and omens of longevity and good fortune. And in nature, they are an “umbrella species” whose well-being assures that of the ecosystem at large. The Birds of Heaven chronicles Peter Matthiessen’s many journeys on five continents in search of the fifteen species of cranes. His telling captures the dilemmas of a planet in ecological crisis, and the deep loss to humankind if these beautiful and imposing creatures are allowed to disappear.

Customer Reviews:

A wonderful book for everyone who loves the outdoors.......2007-01-10

The Birds of Heaven is an unusual mix of natural history, travel, personal reflections, and tough lessons in the realities of international cooperation (or lack thereof) in conservation. It is thoroughly engaging, and also has beautiful illustrations and photographs. Everyone who loves the outdoors--not just crane fanatics--should own a copy of this book.

Heaven is a Matthiessen book.......2005-02-09

I first read Peter Matthiessen in the 1970s: "The Snow Leopard", and was so moved by his writing that I began to read everything I could find that he authored. I have never been disappointed. "The Birds of Heaven: Travels with Cranes" is, like his other books scholarly and absolutely sings with his love of the subject. And the included art is breathtaking. With International Crane Foundation as well as other authorities on wildlife conservation, Matthiessen has written another book that will transport the reader to numerous countries, under numerous skies to see and hear the ancient bugling of the birds of heaven.

Fantastic, well-illustrated book on all things crane .......2005-01-31

_The Birds of Heaven_ by Peter Matthiessen is a well-written and informative account of the fifteen living species of crane. Matthiessen chronicled in the book his years of experience with these birds, traveling to Russia, China, Mongolia (where six species have been recorded), India, Bhutan, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Africa, England (where the Eurasian or common crane, extinct there since 1653, is at last a breeding species once more), Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Florida to study and write about the various species. Matthiessen's superb writing is accompanied by truly excellent artwork by artist Robert Bateman, who produced a number of black and white drawings and color paintings for the book.

Matthiessen did an excellent job of covering the biology of cranes in general and of each species individually. The crane family (Gruidae) we learn is found on every continent except South America and Antarctica and is comprised of three genera, _Grus_ (to which all but five of the living species belong to and a group primarily found in Eurasia), _Anthropoides_ (which includes the demoiselle crane as well as the blue crane of South Africa, which may be descended from it; Matthiessen discussed many theories of crane evolution), and _Balearica_ (which includes two African species, the black crowned and gray crowned). Though sometimes called herons in some parts of the world (or more often herons are referred to as cranes), cranes differ from herons in that cranes fly with neck outstretched rather than curved back over the shoulder (they differ from storks in that storks display broad tails, which the cranes lack).

The several species of crane have subtly different breeding habitat and food preferences; for instance in the Amur Basin the white-naped crane probes for tubers while the red crowned crane hunts small animals and picks at vegetation. Not all cranes are restricted to wetlands; while for example all three of the rare white cranes are found only in marshes, the more widespread and abundant demoiselle, Eurasian, and sandhill cranes are generalized feeders able to succeed in a variety of terrains, with the demoiselle primarily an upland feeder.

Some cranes have rather unusual adaptations. Several species are "diggers" - feeding primarily on mud-buried tubers - and these species (the white-naped, sarus, brolga, Siberian, and wattled cranes) have naked, non-feathered skin on their head down to the bill, which is an adaptation analogous to the naked head and neck of vultures. The brolga crane, which is more often found in salt marshes than other species, has evolved specialized salt glands near the eyes through which it can secrete concentrated salts. Feather painting is also covered; some species daub their feathers with wet vegetation or mud during nesting season for camouflage.

The role of cranes in myth and history is also discussed. The word crane comes from the old German word "Cranuh," which like the genus name _Grus_ is a rendition of the bird's cry. The Yakuts people of Siberia revered the Siberian crane as a symbol of their various clans, a uniting symbol for their people. The sarus crane of India (at nearly six feet tall the tallest flying bird on earth) has been for centuries revered as a holy messenger of Vishnu, a Hindu deity, a reverence that has protected this crane from hunting (similarly a Buddhist reverence for life in general and often cranes in particular has helped kept cranes safe in such places as Bhutan). The red-crowned crane (or in Japanese "tancho;" the heaviest flying bird on earth) was revered as a messenger of death and symbol of eternal life to the Ainu and portrayed in Japanese robes, wedding kimonos, screens, scrolls, and other items for centuries. Revered also in Korea as "turumi," a companion to sages, scholars, and musicians, in both nations it was also regrettably hunted and eaten. More recently the peace symbol of the 1960s was originally a Hopi Indian sign derived from the footprint of a crane.

One thing that surprised me was that some crane discoveries were made fairly recently. The whooping crane's breeding ground was found after nine years of searching in 1954. A large, breeding, unknown (though known to Aborigines) population of sarus cranes was discovered in 1961 in Australia. A non-migratory population of red-crowned cranes on Hokkaido wasn't confirmed until 1972. The breeding ground of the central Siberian population of the Siberian crane wasn't found until 1978. The black-necked or Tibetan crane was as late as 1987 thought to be rapidly vanishing, the second most endangered crane on earth, but surveys in the early 1990s in Tibet and Bhutan pegged the species at a much healthier count of 5,500 birds, showing that early estimates were way off.

Issues of crane conservation are well covered, with Matthiessen chronicling the dire straits faced by many of the species, the heroic efforts made by some to save them, and even their role as "umbrella species;" that when their habitats are preserved many other plants and animals benefit. The Amur Basin of Russia for instance - a vital crane habitat - is being threatened by massive deforestation, agricultural runoff, pollution from mining, and proposed dams. Attempts by such agencies as the International Crane Foundation to broker deals between those nations that share the Amur and its products - Russia, South Korea, China, and Japan - has been stymied by mutual mistrust (extending to ridiculous extremes; Chinese officials refusing for instance to refer to the red-crowned crane as the Japanese or Manchurian crane, both frequently used common names). Some successes exist; the Keoladeo Ghana Bird Reserve near Bharatpur, India, established to preserve wintering Siberian cranes is now also home to 364 bird species as well as pythons, nilgai antelope, and sambar deer (though the park is still threatened by the crush of humanity in crowded India).

In addition to being an excellent book on the history and natural history of cranes it is also a wonderful travel book, the author doing a great job of describing what it is like to travel in such exotic places as Bhutan and Mongolia.

Gorgeous illustrations; interesting text.......2003-05-30

The most striking feature of this book is the color plates, which might make the book a nice gift for a birdlover. This ornithological study works on at least 2 levels:1)it is a detailed study of the current knowledge of 15 species of cranes, most of which are endangered (The Sandhill crane of the US is an exception), efforts for preservation of the species, and ornithological details. To give the briefest example, some of the cranes are migratory,while others are not. Some migrate long distances, as does the crane that nests in Northern Asia and winters in India. The Sandhill crane, of North America, has the longest migration. Most produce only one egg per season, take more than one year to mature (unlike geese), and are subject to predation;the book enumerates the numerous efforts at preservation worldwide, which include using an airplane as an imprinted mother-figure, just like in the film "Fly Away Home." Also there are preservation societies in many countries, including Cornell U. and in Wisconsin in America. 2) It also works as an historical and geographical travel guide to many remote areas of the world, including China, Mongolia, Siberia, Southern and Southeast Asia,Japan, Korea (where cranes inhabit the demilitarized zone) , Australia, England, Africa, and America-- all continents except South America. These cultures are alien in terms of religion, culture,politics and geography at least to me so reading about them presents a formidable challenge. The book is lavishly illustrated with pictures of these beautiful and diverse birds.

preaching to the choir of the birds of heaven.......2003-02-13

Of Peter Matthiessen's non-fiction I have previously read only The Snow Leopard, but I have also enjoyed a collection of short stories called On the River Styx. Mr. Matthiessen's authorial voice is very prickly in Birds of Heaven, much more cranky than I remember it in The Snow Leopard, which was written in the wake of the death of his wife from cancer. The Snow Leopard was permeated with sadness and longing. Birds of Heaven is permeated with anger and impatience.

The book is arranged geographically. Beginning in Siberia, Mr. Matthiessen takes through Asia to Australia and then on to Africa and Europe and finally to North America. There are no cranes in South America (or Antarctica).

The author is at his best when he is combining his wry observations of the people and places around him with an enthusiastic and well-informed account of the natural history of a region. I felt that he was less successful when he lets his righteous indignation get the better of him and begins to make snide comments about the absence of a love of the natural world in Chinese society, the wrong-headedness of various bureaucrats and the corruption of local officials.

It is not as if I disagreed with his point of view, but I knew that I already shared it before I even picked up the book. I can't imagine anyone who had any doubts about the importance of cranes as sensitive indicators of the general health of the environment being won over to the crane's side by this hectoring, doctrinaire authorial voice. But then, perhaps this books is really just an extended love letter to the cranes and to the environment in general. As such, it succeeds wonderfully.

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Birds of Heaven: Travels with Cranes
Peter Matthiessen; Robert Bateman Painting
Manufacturer: GREYSTONE BOOKS
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Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000WSJ178

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The Birds of Heaven: Travels with Cranes. (Books: pilgrim's progress).: An article from: American Scholar
David Gessner
Manufacturer: Phi Beta Kappa Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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ASIN: B0008EQ606
Release Date: 2005-07-29

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This digital document is an article from American Scholar, published by Phi Beta Kappa Society on January 1, 2002. The length of the article is 1501 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.

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Title: The Birds of Heaven: Travels with Cranes. (Books: pilgrim's progress).
Author: David Gessner
Publication: American Scholar (Refereed)
Date: January 1, 2002
Publisher: Phi Beta Kappa Society
Volume: 71 Issue: 1 Page: 145(3)

Article Type: Book Review

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The Birds of Heaven: Travels With Cranes

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The Birds of Heaven: Travels With Cranes
Peter; Bateman, Robert Matthiessen
Manufacturer: North Point Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OX6W5K

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