Wristwatch Annual 1999: The Catalog of Producers, Models, and Specifications (Wristwatch Annual)

Average customer rating:

New to Hobby - Good Book

The Bible of the Watch Industry, The Best tool available

A great resource

Indispensable for the watch collector!

Indispensable for the watch collector!

Wristwatch Annual 1999: The Catalog of Producers, Models, and Specifications (Wristwatch Annual)

Manufacturer: Abbeville Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Clocks & Watches | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
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Wristwatch Annual 2005: The Catalog of Producers, Models, and Specifications (Wristwatch Annual)

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Wristwatch Annual 2007 (Wristwatch Annual)

Watches International: Volume VI (Watches International)

Watches International 2003, Volume 4 (Watches International)

ASIN: 0789204487

Book Description

Every year hundreds of new wristwatches are introduced. Some feature innovative designs or mechanical improvements, and others are available only in limited editions, keeping the field interesting for collectors. Following the success of the previous edition, this new annual highlights hundreds of the year's most extraordinary wristwatches in close-up color photographs accompanied by complete specifications, giving collectors a wealth of up-to-date information, all in one volume. The specifications for each watch include price, movement, special features, complications, casings, dial, band, and available variations of a particular model. In addition, general histories of each manufacturer provide an overview of the company's background and style.

The annual's elegant photography and organization will encourage readers to peruse the year's offerings watch by watch. And the range of styles, from classic to modern, will appeal to watch enthusiasts the world over, who will find this current edition both a handy reference and required reading.

Included in the 2004 edition:

Audemars Piquet; Baume & Mercier; Bell & Ross; Bertolucci; Blancpain; Blu; Bonneville; Rainer Brand; Breguet; Breitling; Bulgari; Bunz Collection; Vencent Calabrese; Cartier; Charriol; Chase-Durer; J. Chevalier; Chopard; Chronoswiss; Frédérique, Constant; Corum; Davosa; Dubey & Schaldenbrand; Ph. Du Bois & Fils; Roger Dubuis; Dufeau; Dunhill; Ebel; Eberhard & Co.; Louis Érard; Eterna; Jacques Etoile; Fortis; Gerald Genta; Paul Gerber; Girard-Perregaux; Glashütte Original; Hanhart; Harwood; Hublot; Ikepod; IWC; Jaeger-LeCoultre; Daniel JeanRichard; Junghans; Urban Jurgensen; Kelek; Kobold; Kurth; Maurice Lacroix; A. Lange & Sohne; Longines; Jean Marcel; Marcello C.; Mido; Minerva; Montblanc; Movado; Mühle; Franck Muller; Ulysse Nardin; Rainer Nienaber; Nivrel; Nomos; Omega; Oris; Pacardt; Officine Panerai; Marmigiani Fleurier; Patek Philippe; Pequignet Perrelet; Piaget; Paul Picot; Poljot; Porsche Design; Rado; Revue Thommen; Auguste Reymond; RGM; Rolex; Daniel Roth; Jorg Schauer; Schwarz-Etienne; Alain Silberstein; Sinn Spezialuhren; Sothis; Stowa; TAG Heuer; Temption; Tissot; Tutima; Union Glashütte; Vacheron Constantin; Ventura; Raymond Weil; Harry Winston; Xemex; Zenith

Other Details: approximately 1,700 full-color illustrations.

Customer Reviews:

New to Hobby - Good Book.......2004-02-22

I am new to the hobby of horology and enjoy owning this book. It provides a lot of detail and good photos of all the major brands (the competing buying guides leave out some significant brands). Well done and worth buying BEFORE you spend 30 times its price (or more!) on a watch. See the different styles and open your eyes. Take the TIME to appreciate it!

The Bible of the Watch Industry, The Best tool available.......2003-12-29

This is an excellent tool if your a collector, admirer, in the biz or anyone considering a watch purchase. An incredible reference tool, great in helping one narrow down their likes and dislikes...my 3rd year in a row. There are a couple of others...however this one is the most objective and useful.

A great resource.......2003-06-17

I've bought each issue since I got interested in watches in 2000, even though the contents change very little from year to year. Another shortcoming of the annual is that the price information is neither complete nor accurate - you can usually get significant discounts on many of the watches featured. Nevertheless, it is great fun just to look at, and read about watches that I can only drool over :-P

Indispensable for the watch collector!.......2003-02-18

This is a great guide to learn your way around the fascinating World of watch collecting! This book includes all the "major" players in the watch industry - but unfortunately, it does not include some of the smaller "houses" (i.e. manufacturers).

I was surprised to read that it included some non-European makers like some from the USA.

One thing I noticed is that the book has several errors, just try matching some of the photos with the descriptions provided and you'll see what I mean! For the publishers and editors: get some quality control, pleeeaaasse!

I recommend it for the beginner and the advance watch collectors.

And yes, I do agree with another reviewer, there's no such thing as too many watches! :-)

Indispensable for the watch collector!.......2003-02-18

I was surprised to read that it included some non-European makers like some from the USA.

I recommend it for the beginner and the advance watch collectors.

And yes, I do agree with another reviewer, there's no such thing as too many watches! :-)

Average customer rating:

Great reading for watch fans - don't expect miracles though

Good resource for the dealers

Wristwatch Annual 2000: The Catalog of Producers, Models, and Specifications (Wristwatch Annual, 2000)

Manufacturer: Abbeville Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Clocks & Watches | Antiques & Collectibles | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
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Wristwatch Annual 2005: The Catalog of Producers, Models, and Specifications (Wristwatch Annual)

Complete Price Guide to Watches

ASIN: 0789205343

Customer Reviews:

Great reading for watch fans - don't expect miracles though.......2000-03-27

This book is tremendous value, with great pictures of the fine watch brands current ranges. Potential buyers should not expect too much in the way of detailed technical information however. If you treat it as a reasonably comprehensive, non-biased catalogue for some fine Swiss watch brands, you wont go far wrong.

Good resource for the dealers.......2000-01-26

The 2000 update to this annual "catalog" has had a few improvements over the past years. It has never been a complete guide much less a thorough guide for those wanting to know a comprehensive resource of modern higher-grade watches. Information and pictures are limited at best. The author simply gives one a synopsis view of more important modern timepieces. The annual guide does serve as an invaluable resource to those who are in 'the Biz'. The "Catalog" does a great job of detailing watch movement manufacturers and thier products.

Book Description

The gamut of trends and fashions during the late 1970s are explored in this priceless pictorial review. Pages from the Sears catalogs open for a trip back in time to the disco era, the "me decade," the bundled-up fashions of the oil embargo, and the buckled-down cowboy look of the new macho man. Lace up your earth shoes for a trip to the prairie, take a tour of the peasant cultures of Eastern Europe, go on safari, hit the ski slopes, or go surfing. Join in the fitness craze, and take a look at the new line of clothing for larger women. Polyester's outer limits are explored, from its most garish applications in plaid suits to its transformation into the textured realms of tweed. And blue jeans get their due, too, in a look at the time when designer jeans and the faded look ruled everyday wear. All this, and more, with original prices and current day values for the collector, fashion aficionado, and designer.

Customer Reviews:

BOY'S JEANS.......2000-04-23

I would like a seasonal or specialty catalog from SEARS on boys jeans dating from 1960's and 1970's as a gift for someone who collects and makes clothing.

Product Description

After Ranma falls into cursed springs whenever he is splashed with cold water he turns into a she! To make things worse Ranma comes home to an arranged marriage. This manga is in Traditional Chinese.

Average customer rating:
Son of "It Was a Dark and Stormy Night": More of the Best
Scott [compiler] Rice
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OIZKD0

Book Description

French cinema is second only to Hollywood in the number of its movie stars who have emerged to achieve international fame. France is, in fact, arguably the only country other than the United States to have an international "star system." Yet these glamorous and charismatic stars differ from their U.S. counterparts in that they maintain more freedom to control their own images and often straddle both mainstream and auteur cinema.

Ginette Vincendeau, a leading authority on French cinema, analyzes the phenomenon of French film stardom and provides brilliant in-depth studies of the major popular stars of the French cinema: Max Linder, Jean Gabin, Brigitte Bardot, Jeanne Moreau, Louis de Funès, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Alain Delon, Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Depardieu, and Juliette Binoche. This volume analyzes these stars' images and performance styles in the context of the French film industry, but also in relation to national culture and society. In the country where Brigitte Bardot and Catherine Deneuve have modeled for Marianne (the effigy of the Republic) and left-wing politicians have held up Jean Gabin as a role model, Vincendeau examines the unusual relationship between French film stars and national identity.

Book Description

The activities in TAP, CLAP, and SING! are designed to enhance the child's learning by implementing and reinforcing the concepts already experienced in a music setting. Body movement, rhythmic experiences and singing are used to help children master skills while illustrations are included for coloring and aiding in rhythmic development and 'Memory Joggers' are inserted periodically to encourage review. Book 2 introduces the concepts of form, intervals and time signatures and provides a creative way to implement the step-by-step process of note-reading for children ages six and older.

Customer Reviews:

"Regular" Chess will never be the same!.......2007-02-19

My 11-year-old loves this game! He's been playing "regular" chess for a couple of years, but when an adult friend taught him to play Knightmare Chess he enjoyed the game so much that he spent his Christmas money to buy it for himself. He and his friend play several times a week. The game is different enough from chess that they still enjoy a "normal" game, once in a while, as well. Thanks for expanding the use of the chess board!

Knightmare Chess: The Original Game of Chaos on the Chessboard : Cards

Average customer rating:

Knightmare Chess is a dream:

Knightmare Chess: The Original Game of Chaos on the Chessboard : Cards
Steve Jackson
Manufacturer: Steve Jackson Games
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 1556343191

Customer Reviews:

Knightmare Chess is a dream:.......2000-11-10

Bent Larsen, the Danish Chess Grandmaster was quoted as saying that "Chess is a beautiful mistress". Well, my mistress has shown me her dark side!

Nightmare Chess consists of a set of 80 heavy-weight playing cards. Each of these cards, when played, modify the standard game of chess in unique and entertaining (or bizarre) ways. Some effects apply only to one piece, others to many or all pieces. Cards can even interact with each other. Its like playing "Magic: the Gathering" over a chess board.

The cards themselves are high-quality. Each has a painted image related in some way to the effect of the card. Most of the imagery is dark, some even slightly disturbing. (nothing offensive, or even too worrisome for parents) The rules are straightfoward and brief. Most questions about card interactions are resolved by the basic rules, the remainder should be resolvable with a quick discussion with your opponent.

Gameplay is a chaotic blast! I love chess, but the addition of the Nightmare cards infused the game with a wonderful unpredictability.

For fans of chess or games like "Magic", you need this game! I would encourage anyone that enjoys games to give this a try.

Average customer rating:

sorry, but these other reviews are cheats for sure

A good "basic" skills book

The kernal of mentoring in a nutshell

Mentoring behaviors and skills presented in an easy format

Wonderful introduction to the mentoring process

Crisp: Mentoring, Third Edition: How to Develop Successful Mentor Behaviors (Crisp 50-Minute Book)
Gordon F. Shea
Manufacturer: Crisp Learning
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Crisp: Making the Most of Being Mentored: How to Grow from a Mentoring Partnership (Fifty-Minute Series.)

The Elements of Mentoring

The Heart of Mentoring: Ten Proven Principles for Developing People to Their Fullest Potential

The Art of Mentoring: Lead, Follow and Get Out of the Way

The Mentee's Guide to Mentoring

ASIN: 1560526424

Book Description

This book will provide you with the tools to understand the unique role of mentors in today's workplace, determine the most effective mentoring style for your situation, establish agreements to ensure a successful and rewarding relationship, and avoid behaviors that may interfere with mentee growth and development. Mentoring is a rewarding relationship that benefits both participants and the organization. The relationship is now seen as a process of two people working together for mutual gain and enrichment based on their shared experience. Today's mentoring has evolved from simply training the employee to a productive relationship that offers guidance and counsel to develop another's abilities to the fullest.

Customer Reviews:

sorry, but these other reviews are cheats for sure.......2006-04-29

Hi,

I have no axe to grind, I'm not a writer of competing books or anything like that. I happen to have browsed this book at a store and sure - it's completely OK, but surely not an empirical 'four' as these reviews ("reviewers") seem to think.

Just have a look at the range of dates for the reviewers: an extremely tight band of dates, no? Somewhat suspiciously like the same person logged in several times in quick succession and consistiently gave his own book similar sized 4-star ratings back-to-back... March 21st (and the days directly around) was a slow day in your Diary, eh Gordon?

Good for him though, he didn't fall into the same trap as other self-reviewers - he went for all 'fours' instead of customary 'fives' that many other self-reviewers do.

Like I say I've browsed this book, it's fine, it is - but there's better out there, plenty of it in this popular category. Consider something else unless the scanned pages really shake up your soul.

PS - I tried to change my star rating: I think this book, from my store-scan, is a three star. It looks OK, is well-origanised and contains a good dose of useful (if not particularly inspiring) reading on the subject.

A good "basic" skills book.......1999-03-31

As we bridge the gap from the 20th on the eve of the new millimun, the face of the workplace is also changing. This has been brought on by technology taking on a bigger role in all areas of the job market, not just here but around the world where the role of the boss, teacher and manager is as well changing. The result is a shift away from the typical company man who had worked at one job for an entire career, to an environment of more female and less American male and the changing of jobs every few years do to mergers and down sizing of employees. Now the boss must be sensitive to the role they must play in working with everyone today.

Gordon Shea's easy to read book about mentoring is an excellent and easy to read "how to" book on today's workplace, and overcoming the obstacles associated with this "new" work environment.

The book is easy reading because of the layout of each seven sections, and the associated lessons, charts, reviews and assessments found at the end of each chapter. The strongest point in my opinion can is found in chapter 7, which covers those special areas, which we read about into today's news; Cross-Gender, Cross-Cultural and Special Needs mentoring.

Shea has woven humorous comments as well as lively graphical illustration to make points when certain mentoring situation arrive, overall this book is an excellent example of the basic "how to" and can provide the basic steps in becoming a productive mentor in any employment environment.

The kernal of mentoring in a nutshell.......1999-03-24

"...mentoring is part intuition, part feelings and part hunch - made up as you go along, and composed of whatever ingredients you have available at the moment..."(13) The quote sums up mentoring in a nutshell. This resource is in workbook format, providing readers with time and space to respond to thoughts and ideas presented in the book. It develops scenarios and questions preparing a first time mentor and helping an experienced mentor look into the practice of mentoring. It provides a graph describing the different types of mentoring and tips for intervention and counseling of mentees. This book seems most valuable for new mentors, although it could be a refresher for others. However, it does not go very in-depth and provides little research background. It also lacks a bibliography for references.

Mentoring behaviors and skills presented in an easy format.......1999-03-22

Gordon Shea's easy to read book about Mentoring is an excellent "basic" skills book. This book is good for both new and old mentors. It gives basic mentoring situations, and discusses expectations and outcomes. Sometimes, even old timers forget simple mentoring skills and this book reminds them of concepts that are basic to mentoring. The work book format makes it easy to record, assess and revise your behaviors. I appreciated the fact that Shea included behaviors to avoid as well as to adopt. Shea points out his objectives in the first page of this book: 1. To explain how anyone can assist the growth of other people 2. To suggest mentor behaviors to adopt or avoid 3. To show how mentoring works in today's workplace I believe he achieves all these objectives in a humorous, graphical, easy-to-read format that anyone can easily pick up, go through and learn a great deal from. This book will help any mentor improve their mentoring behaviors. The lack of references or bibliography is a small weakness in an overall good presentation.

Wonderful introduction to the mentoring process.......1999-03-22

I was attracted to the book because of the picture of the wise old hands releasing the dove. It reminded me of a mentor releasing his protege to the world to explore his own paths after he completed his training.

The book is concise, to the point and an easy read. It is written in a workbook style which provides an opportunity for self-evaluating and recording. Shea sets the stage with the Greek mythology of Homer's Odyssey and the story of the Mentor. He later develops the foundation of mentoring as an art form prompting the reader to categorize previous relationships on a scale of non-structured to highly structured formality of relationship; and short-term spontaneous to long-term, perhaps life-long length of intervention. Furthermore, Shea provides a check list for identifying what others have done for the reader and what the reader has done for others.

While mentoring may be recognized as a positive experience, it might not be for everyone. Shea helps the reader determine if a mentoring role is congruous for them by verbalizing the investment that is necessary for mentoring to be successful, as well as mentoring self-development and learning styles.

Shea later goes on to develop the understanding of the mentee's needs through the reading of signals, image, self-confidence and managing change. He discusses in depth seven types of mentoring assistance, behaviors to avoid, and mentor-mentee gains.

The last section of the book addresses special situations; cross-gender and cross-cultural mentoring; new areas of mentoring, academic environments, government agencies, supervisor or manager mentoring. Shea asks the reader to identify areas in their organizations where formal or informal mentoring could be helpful.

Overall, I liked the book it was quite informative for an inexperienced mentor like myself. I enjoyed the case studies which displayed the ideas that Shea was trying to convey in real life situations. A bibliography would have been an asset for the reader. Reference to current research to support his opinions and theories would help the credibility of the material covered in the book.

Book Description

"This is a great book about life at remote bases in Canada's far north as seen by a young English boy who went there by himself to see the world and got more than he could have bargained for. Beautifully written." --Sir Ranulph Fiennes

"As spare, gleaming, and exhilarating as the Arctic wastes and the gentle, stoic Eskimos who had mastery of this realm . . . The book evokes the frozen seas, whale hunts, snow plains and storms that intimidated those rash enough to brave this world, and the traditions, myths, and hunting skills that contoured a bygone way of life . . . His translucent prose is a sparkling and moving record." -- Times (London)

At sixteen, Edward Beauclerk Maurice impulsively signed up with the Hudson's Bay Company -- the Company of Gentleman Adventurers -- and was sent to an isolated trading post in the Canadian Arctic, where there was no telephone or radio and only one ship arrived each year. But the Inuit people who traded there taught him how to track polar bears, build igloos, and survive expeditions in ferocious winter storms. He learned their language and became so immersed in their culture and way of life that children thought he was Inuit himself. When an epidemic struck, Maurice treated the sick using a simple first aid kit, and after a number of the hunters died, he had to start hunting himself, often with women, who soon began to compete for his affections. The young man who in England had never been alone with a woman other than his mother and sisters had come of age in the Arctic.

In The Last Gentleman Adventurer Edward Beauclerk Maurice transports the reader to a time and a way of life now lost forever.

After serving in the New Zealand navy during World War II, Edward Beauclerk Maurice became a bookseller in an English village and rarely traveled again. He died in 2003 as this, his only book, was being readied for publication.

"If you like reality, The Last Gentleman Adventurer will be your cup of tea: a delicious quaff of it. Savor it!" -- Edward Hoagland

"Maurice's memoir supplies a fascinating elegy to a vanishing world." -- Telegraph

"One of those rare writers who will be remembered for turning out one great memoir/travel book . . . He relates these events in a beautiful prose that is quaintly elegant in tone but never archly so . . . Not only a gentleman but a wonderful writer who limited his output to one book, and perhaps that is why it reads so beautifully." -- Sunday Tribune (Dublin)

"Maybe he was exceptional, but the charm of his book lies in its modesty; he makes no claims for himself. His concern was to make a record of some amazing adventures and a vanishing way of life; these are woven into an eye-opening narrative that is suffused with kindliness and an attitude to growing up more restrained but more humane than that prevailing today. A gentleman adventurer indeed." -- Times Educational Supplement

"A deceptively simple account of how he grew to manhood, shaped on one hand by the brutal elements of the Arctic, on the other by the compassionate communities of Inuit who understood them . . . This is a beautifully unadorned, homespun tale with a lack of self-consciousness rare in travel literature . . . I was charmed." -- Benedict Allen, Independent on Sunday

Customer Reviews:

Authentic..lovely read!.......2007-09-19

I spent 9 years in Canada's Eastern Arctic in the 80"s and 90"s and this book struck a powerful chord with me. The author is perceptive enough and humble enough to gain a thorough understanding of the Inuit people and talented enough to bring his experience to life for us.

I am a big fan of this man. He brings the Inuit to life with great compassion and truth without decending into the hero worship that sometimes inflicts visitors to the far north. These are real people and the good and the bad comes accross.

There are also some fun adventures and honest reporting of how the experience transforms the author. I loved this book. I even wrote the authors family asking if he had other works to publish! That a book like this took decades to find a publisher when trash is printed on a daily basis speaks volumes.

This book rings true with every sentence. Like all great books I was sad when it ended, like on the departure of a true friend.

incredible read.......2007-01-19

An amazing account of a young man stepping up to the plate of life in a difficult environment requiring not only daring and tenacity, but incredible personal and political skills not usually inherent in a man of his age. An amazing tale of adventure, friendship, and loyalty.

If you like outdoor adveture in the Arctic, this is a great book.......2007-01-09

I really enjoyed reading about Inuit life back in the early fur trading days.

A book to lift your state of mind.......2006-12-31

It's hard to imagine anyone taking an honest read of this book without it having stirred deeply buried ideas about morality and decency. The fact that it is a memoir rather than fiction is no small part of this revelation.

The prose is pure: Maurice never resorts to sarcasm or satire to make a point. He describes angry moments, but never tirades. In fact -- and I hope this engenders curiousity more than disdain in this era of high regard for irony -- he doesn't even employ irony to tell his beautiful story, except that which emerges naturally about the chasm between humans and nature. He doesn't tell secrets about the characters that the narrator doesn't know first hand. And while paternal, in full synch with the culture of that time, Maurice isn't in any way righteous. Purity could also describe the structure of the storytelling. One never gets the sense that comes with the (extreme) genre example of "Dances with Wolves" -- no gratuitous yanking of emotional chains.

A magnificent and edifying book.

I would gladly have read more.......2006-11-02

A truly engaging book. Maurice writes of his five years with the Hudson Bay Company in the Canadian Arctic during the 1930's. Called "the boy" by the Inuit (or Eskimos as they were then called), he gained their respect and earned the name Issumatak, "he who thinks." He was one of the few Company men who bothered to learn the Inuit language and made the effort to fit into the Inuit lifestyle rather than trying to impose his own upon them.

He relates his adventures in a straightforward, self-deprecating manner that somehow still manages to convey the perils, fears and excitement of the moment. With only one supply boat a year bringing news from family and of the rest of the world, Maurice embraced his new life, not with zeal, but with determination and full knowledge of his own limitations.

Although he returned to spend more time with the Inuit after his contract with Hudson Bay Company, this is the only account he wrote. I would gladly have read more, but I'm sure Maurice, in his humble manner, felt he'd said all that needed saying.

Book Description

This study uses the participation of free colored men, whether mulatos, pardos, or morenos (i.e., Afro-Spaniards, Afro-Indians, or “pure blacks”), in New Spain’s militias as a prism for examining race relations, racial identity, racial categorization, and issues of social mobility for racially stigmatized groups in colonial Mexico. By 1793, nearly 10 percent of New Spain’s population was made up of people who could trace some African ancestry—people subject to more legal disabilities and social discrimination than mestizos, who in turn fell below white creoles, who in turn fell below the Spanish-born, in the stratified and caste-like society of colonial Spanish America.

The originality of this study lies in approaching race via a single, important institution, the military, rather than via abstractions or examples taken from particular regions or single runs of legal documents. By exploring the lives of tens of thousands of part-time and full-time free colored soldiers, who served the colony as volunteers or conscripts, and by adopting a multi-regional approach, the author is able not only to show how military institutions evolved with reference to race and vice versa, but to do so in a manner that reveals discontinuities and regional differences as well as historical trends. He also is able to examine black lives beyond the institution of slavery and to achieve a more nuanced impression of the meaning of freedom in colonial times.

From the 1550s on, free colored forces figured prominently in the colony’s military forces, and units of free colored soldiers evolved with increasing autonomy in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The author concludes, however, that the Bourbon reforms of the 1760s—which clearly expanded the military establishment and the role of Spanish soldiers born in the New World—came at the expense of free colored companies, which experienced a reduction in both numbers and institutional privileges.

Bearing Arms for His Majesty: the Free-Colored Militia in Colonial Mexico.(Book Review): An article from: Canadian Journal of History

Average customer rating:

Bearing Arms for His Majesty: the Free-Colored Militia in Colonial Mexico.(Book Review): An article from: Canadian Journal of History
Edward W. Osowski
Manufacturer: University of Saskatchewan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Mexico | Americas | History | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Canadian Journal of History, published by University of Saskatchewan on August 1, 2003. The length of the article is 829 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: Bearing Arms for His Majesty: the Free-Colored Militia in Colonial Mexico.(Book Review)
Author: Edward W. Osowski
Publication: Canadian Journal of History (Refereed)
Date: August 1, 2003
Publisher: University of Saskatchewan
Volume: 38 Issue: 2 Page: 359(3)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

During two centuries of independence from colonial rule, Haiti has developed into a society quite distinct from those found in the rest of the region. Hollywood-derived images of black magic and Graham Greene-inspired conceptions of a "nightmare republic" do scant justice to the reality of life for those who make up the third largest population in the Caribbean. How did the slaves of France's most prosperous colony defeat the armies of Napoleon, Spain, and Britain? Why did the U.S. occupation of 1915-34 fail to establish a plantation economy in Haiti? Haiti in Focus is an authoritative and up-to-date guide to this fascinating country. The guide explores the land, history and politics, economy, society and people, culture and environment, and includes tips on where to go and what to see.

Customer Reviews:

great info on Haiti.......2007-07-06

really comprehensive view of politics and life in haiti. useful tips for the traveler to Haiti including where to buy condoms!

Helpful snapshot of Haiti.......2006-03-20

This book is helping me to understand the situation of Haiti in historical context. Its information, format and pictures strike me as slightly out of date but it certainly will give you a background even if not covering the last few years. Since there aren't a lot of books like this one about Haiti I would recommend this for anyone who wants to know more about it but does not want to read a long in-depth tome.

Right on focus!.......2002-04-08

You'll be fascinated, impressed, depressed, and delighted with Arthur's succinct introduction to the people, culture, and history of a small nation so very close to U.S. shores and U.S. history, yet so very far from our thoughts. From the joyful cover image to photos of brightly-painted buses to the clear maps and tips for travelers, Arthur delivers more than promised--as does Haiti herself. You'll come back for more, once you taste this brief introduction to the famed Hotel Oloffson, tap-taps and Vodou, rara and compa and rasin music, Sweet Micky & Boukman Eksperyans & Tabou Combo, the "little church" and "the flood," peasant movements and death squads, creole pigs and deforestation, poverty and structural adjustment, Toussaint Louverture & the slave revolution, the Duvalier dictatorship and the Tonton Macoutes, poetry and paintings. This book came just in time to enlighten & amaze students in my class on the prize-winning works of Haitian-American author Edwidge Danticat. We all give this little book a two-thumbs-up!

Up-to-the-minute Information for Scholars and the Curious.......2002-04-08

Sometimes it's hard to be an American, and to look out at what we've done to the rest of the world.

Haiti will soon be celebrating its bicentennial of independence. As the second-oldest nation in the Western Hemisphere and the black nation with the longest uninterrupted history, it should by rights be rich, educated, forward thinking, and a bright light for the rest of the world. However, imperialist forces from abroad, including France, Britain, and most recently the United States of America, have colored its two centuries. Its people have been harangued by Castro's Cuba, Trujillo's Dominican Republic, Bush and Clinton's USA, and even the wildly corrupt Duvalier administration. Its land is stripped, its resources have been plundered, its cities are grossly overpopulated, and its seas are silted. And yet, somehow, Haiti survives.

In the wake of the 1991 coup that unseated President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and the 1994 US-led UN invasion that restored him to power, much news was made. Haiti was front-page headliner material nearly every day, a prestigious international hot spot. Names were made and broken in political spheres around the Haiti issue. Debate ran high. And then everything just disappeared. Haiti merited a two-paragraph mention on page twelve if the paper needed filler, and then only in large papers that could dedicate themselves to foreign affairs. For most of us, even those of us who maintained our religious interest in the nation, an entire nation may just as well have dropped off the face of the earth.

British activist Charles Arthur, whose other works on Haiti include "A Haitian Anthology: Libète," identifies himself as a "Solidarity Activist." His latest book, "Haiti in Focus," is subtitled "A Guide to the People, Politics, and Culture," and it lives up to that description admirably. For those interested, the available information is brought up to date through the middle of 2001. Arthur details the current political struggles surrounding the election of Aristide to another term in office; he lets us know about the struggle between Protestant missionaries and vodou adherents for control of the site at which the Haitian Revolution began; and he even gives us pointers on how to tour the country.

This slim, easy-to-read book is deceptively clear. It focuses on what Haiti is today, and on the forces that have made it so. Arthur posits no blame for what's happened to the country; yet observant reading serves to point out several recurrent patterns. Currently, the United States has been trying to micromanage the Haitian economy to the advantage of America, and indeed has been using the Monroe Doctrine as an excuse to do so for some time. This has been happening in force through the last century, though it can be traced overtly to 1862, when the US recognized the country's sovereignty, and more covertly back to Haitian independence, when the US refused to recognize a free black nation.

America is not alone in this treatment, however. Britain immediately recognized Haiti's independence, but apparently only for political advantage and access to the profitable plantations. When the plantation economy went the way of all flesh, Britain appears to have just walked away. France held recognition for ransom, offering it only when Haiti paid massive war indemnities that left the country in financial ruin from which it hasn't fully recovered. The United Nations and the Organization of American States have consistently tried to co-opt Haiti's foreign policy and dictate domestic positions, and the European Union, primarily under pressure from France, is now trying to horn in on Haitian self-determination. As Arthur explains, Haiti remains a small force, battered on all sides by winds it cannot satisfactorily resist.

The country is also riven internally. Though all involved want the country to flourish and thrive, wildly dissimilar ideas persist as to what would make this happen. Christian missionaries, primarily Catholic and Evangelical Protestant, have brought their faith to the country, but even Jesus Himself hasn't preserved the country. Aristide and his coalition have concrete ideas for how to use the government to resolve problems, but his plans are controversial and have stirred up strong negative feelings. Education is usually severely inadequate because of the lack of skilled teachers, disagreements over the importance of French, and the high cost of schooling in a poor nation. Meanwhile, poverty is swelling, illiteracy remains rampant, and nothing is being done about it.

However, in Arthur's estimation, Haiti remains a culturally vibrant land, a noble nation resisting the homogeneity of Western-styled "globalization." The native art, music, and religion of the land are the most African in the Western Hemisphere, and are a celebration of life in the face of poverty. A full-color photo spread in the middle of the book shows the beauty that accrues to everything in the country-the way a tap-tap driver will paint rainbows on the side of his vehicle; the way rara musicians will dance down the street during a festival. Though this is a country damaged and struggling, Arthur makes plain, this is not a country to give up on, not a country to permit to die.

This book is detailed enough to appeal to those intimately interested in Haiti, either those who appreciate the whole nation or those interested in one or two aspects. At the same time, it's clear enough in style and structure to reach out to readers who are being newly introduced to Haiti, and to those who know only the horror stories that recur in motion pictures and the news. Though it will date quickly, for the moment it stands as a strong primer for the condition that is Haiti and a land working for healing in a world that only wants to use it as a tool.

Average customer rating:

Decent, but could be better.

National Geographic Field Guide to Birds: Colorado (NG Field Guide to Birds)

Manufacturer: National Geographic
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Birdwatching | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Ornithology | Zoology | Biological Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books
Colorado | State & Local | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
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Birds of Colorado Field Guide (Field Guides)

The Guide to Colorado Birds

Colorado Trees & Wildflowers (Pocket Naturalist - Waterford Press)

Colorado Birds

Colorado Wildlife: An Introduction to Familiar Species of Birds, Mammals, Reprtiles, Amphibians, Fish and Insects

ASIN: 0792255615
Release Date: 2006-07-04

Book Description

Designed to fit in a backpack or pocket for easy access, each of these handy and popular bird field guides comprises 272 pages and features about 175 birds organized by family as approved by the American Ornithological Union. Standard features include:

Locator Map at the front listing regional birding hotspots;
Introduction by an expert on where to find the state's top birds
How-To-Use Section with general tips on birding and advice on making the most of the guide;
125 Easy-Access Individual Entries providing a photograph of the bird in its habitat, recognition clues, specific details on behavior, habitat, and local sites, plus a special "Field Note" with artwork for extra help in tricky identifications;
Alphabetical Index with life list; and
Color-coded Index.

Colorado is a unique birding spot, with mountain terrain and flatlands, each with its own characteristic mix of birds. Noted species include the grouselike White Ptarmigan; the incomparable Golden Eagle; the American Dipper; the Eared Grebe, and the chestnut-colored Longspur.

Customer Reviews:

Decent, but could be better........2007-06-13

The actual pictures of the birds are vivid and clear, which makes it nice to look at and easy to identify the birds. However, since there is only one picture of the bird you had better hope that whatever you are trying to identify looks exactly as it does in the book. That being said, the book is lacking important juvenile, breeding and male/female distinctions in feather color and markings which could make it pretty difficult to identify specific types of birds.

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