The Living Sea.

Customer Reviews:

Cousteau's The Living Sea - GREAT!.......2004-03-03

This is, literally, one of the best books I've ever read. Beautifully written, full of adventure and information. Takes you back to the early days of the Calypso, and details the invention of underwater photography, archaeology, oil prospecting, bathyscaphe diving... the goodies just keep coming. A great world tour of the oceans both above and below, told through the words of oceanographers who are as much poets as scientists.

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Jacques Cousteau's Calypso
Jacques Yves Cousteau
Manufacturer: Harry N Abrams
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Photo Essays | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

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The Jacques Cousteau Odyssey - The Complete Series

ASIN: 0810907887

Calypso: 26 [i.e. vingt-six] ans d'exploration scientifique des mers

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Calypso: 26 [i.e. vingt-six] ans d'exploration scientifique des mers
Jacques Yves Cousteau
Manufacturer: R. Laffont
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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French | Foreign Language Nonfiction | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 2221500237

The Memoirs of Falco, Chief Diver of the Calypso

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One man's lifetime of incredible adventures.

The Memoirs of Falco, Chief Diver of the Calypso
Philippe DiolÃ© , and Albert Falco
Manufacturer: Barron's
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Sports | Subjects | Books

Customer Reviews:

One man's lifetime of incredible adventures........2005-01-14

If any modern enthusiastic scuba diver had experienced just one of the many diving adventures recounted in this book - they would be dining out on that story for the rest of their life. Incredible as it may seem, however, each and every one of these outstanding diving adventures happened to one man. His name was Albert Falco and his occupation was Chief Diver on board the ship Calypso under the overall command of Jacques Cousteau.

Of course, this book was first published in 1976 and by the late 1980's Falco had risen to become Captain of Calypso - which only goes to prove that this book contains perhaps little more than half the story of this man's life and work.

Albert Falco is one of the greatest divers ever to have lived and this book tells the story of many of his greatest achievements. Though never a man to seek "records" there are numerous instances where Falco was indeed the very first diver to accomplish several achievements.

Altogether, this is a gripping account of a man who made it his business to know everything there was to know about scuba diving. The resultant tale of his life is quite extraordinary. I do believe every scuba diver should read this book - at least once.

NM

The Ocean World of Jacques Cousteau Calypso Vol. 21 (21)

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The Ocean World of Jacques Cousteau Calypso Vol. 21 (21)

Manufacturer: The Danbury Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0717281221

Murió el comandante del 'Calypso', Jacques Cousteau; el buzo Ramón Bravo lo evoca como el hombre que le cambió la vida.(TT: 'Calypso' commander, Jacques ... life)(Interview): An article from: Proceso

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Murió el comandante del 'Calypso', Jacques Cousteau; el buzo Ramón Bravo lo evoca como el hombre que le cambió la vida.(TT: 'Calypso' commander, Jacques ... life)(Interview): An article from: Proceso
Ramón Manzanos
Manufacturer: CISA Comunicacion e Informacion, S.A. de C.V.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B00097NFNS
Release Date: 2005-07-28

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Proceso, published by CISA Comunicacion e Informacion, S.A. de C.V. on June 29, 1997. The length of the article is 809 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: MuriÃ³ el comandante del 'Calypso', Jacques Cousteau; el buzo RamÃ³n Bravo lo evoca como el hombre que le cambiÃ³ la vida.(TT: 'Calypso' commander, Jacques Cousteau, has died; diver RamÃ³n Bravo remembers him as the man who changed his life)(Interview)
Author: RamÃ³n Manzanos
Publication: Proceso (Magazine/Journal)
Date: June 29, 1997
Publisher: CISA Comunicacion e Informacion, S.A. de C.V.
Issue: n1078 Page: p72(1)

Article Type: Interview

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

Globetrotter Travel Pack Malaysia is packed with useful information, tips and recommendations, accompanied by color photographs, charts and maps for the first time traveler who wants to experience the major highlights on offer. This travel book surpasses other guides in that it incorporates essential information in an easy to carry and easy to read format that is attractive and useful at the same time. It provides a visitor with an invaluable introduction by concisely highlighting the 'must see' areas in a practical and user-friendly format. All the essential information you need to get around is compacted into a useful 'At a glance' section found at the end of each chapter. The fold out map is ideal for tourists and visitors.

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Malaysia Travel Pack
Globetrotter
Manufacturer: New Holland Publishers (UK) Ltd.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Asia | Travel | Subjects | Books

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jp-unknown3 | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 1859742459

Book Description

This user-friendly travel map has been specifically designed for visitors as a practical and informative guide to Malaysia. More than just a map, it includes large-scale projections of popular tourist destinations. It also includes places of interest, hotels and national parks, highlighted scenic routes, regional climate chart, full color photographs, language tips as well as a concise place names index. (5 x 10 folded, charts, regional maps, color photos)

Book Description

What do we now know about the origins of plants on land, from an evolutionary and an environmental perspective? The essays in this collection present a synthesis of our present state of knowledge, integrating current information in paleobotany with physical, chemical, and geological data.

Plants Invade the Land. Evolutionary & Environmental Perspectives

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Plants Invade the Land. Evolutionary & Environmental Perspectives
Patricia: Edwards, Dianne Gensel
Manufacturer: Columbia University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000LYU57I

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Plants Invade the Land
Royal Scottish Museum
Manufacturer: Stationery Office Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0114916985

Book Description

The Student Solutions Manual contains detailed solutions and explanations for all odd-numbered problems in the text.

Book Description

Infectious diseases are transmitted through various different mechanisms including person to person interactions, by insect vectors and via vertical transmission from a parent to an unborn offspring. The population dynamics of such disease transmission can be very complicated and the development of rational strategies for controlling and preventing the spread of these diseases requires careful modeling and analysis. The book describes current methods for formulating models and analyzing the dynamics of the propagation of diseases which include vertical transmission as one of the mechanisms for their spread. Generic models that describe broad classes of diseases as well as models that are tailored to the dynamics of a specific infection are formulated and analyzed. The effects of incubation periods, maturation delays, and age-structure, interactions between disease transmission and demographic changes, population crowding, spatial spread, chaotic dynamic behavior, seasonal periodicities and discrete time interval events are studied within the context of specific disease transmission models. No previous background in disease transmission modeling and analysis is assumed and the required biological concepts and mathematical methods are gradually introduced within the context of specific disease transmission models. Graphs are widely used to illustrate and explain the modeling assumptions and results. REMARKS: NOTE: the authors have supplied variants on the promotion text that are more suitable for promotion in different fields (by virtue of different emphasis in the content). They are not enclosed, but in the mathematics editorial.

Book Description

The Barber of Seville * The Marriage of Figaro * The Guilty Mother Eighteenth-century France produced only one truly international theatre star, Beaumarchais, and only one name, Figaro, to put with Don Quixote or D'Artagnan in the ranks of popular myth. But who was Figaro? Not the impertinent valet of the operas of Mozart or Rossini, but both the spirit of resistance to oppression and a bourgeois individualist like his creator. The three plays in which he plots and schemes chronicle the slide of the ancien regime into revolution but also chart the growth of Beaumarchais' humanitarianism. They are also exuberant theatrical entertainments, masterpieces of skill, invention, and social satire which helped shape the direction of French theatre for a hundred years. This lively new translation catches all the zest and energy of the most famous valet in French literature.Beaumarchais[title should link to the catalogue entry][insert cover image 2804138]

Customer Reviews:

The Figaro Trilogy (Oxford World's Classics).......2007-01-12

For any Mozart/Rossini opera fan who wants to read the book from which
the "Barber or Seville" and the "Marriage of Figaro "came from, this
book is for you. It is a good background to understanding these works.
Best of all, the concluding play in the Trilogy "The Grieving Widow"
brings to close the story of these beloved opera characters. It's light
reading and fun.

The Figaro Trilogy: The Barber of Seville/the Marriage of Figaro/the Guilty Mother (Oxford World's Classics)

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The Figaro Trilogy: The Barber of Seville/the Marriage of Figaro/the Guilty Mother (Oxford World's Classics)
et al Beaumarchais
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OKGOF6

Book Description

“In 1953, at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Alice was dressed from head to foot in a long gray dress and a gray cloak, and a nun’s veil. Amidst all the jewels, and velvet and coronets, and the fine uniforms, she exuded an unworldly simplicity. Seated with the royal family, she was a part of them, yet somehow distanced from them. Inasmuch as she is remembered at all today, it is as this shadowy figure in gray nun’s clothes...”

Princess Alice, mother of Prince Phillip, was something of a mystery figure even within her own family. She was born deaf, at Windsor Castle, in the presence of her grandmother, Queen Victoria, and brought up in England, Darmstadt, and Malta.

In 1903 she married Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark, and from then on her life was overshadowed by wars, revolutions, and enforced periods of exile. By the time she was thirty-five, virtually every point of stability was overthrown. Though the British royal family remained in the ascendant, her German family ceased to be ruling princes, her two aunts who had married Russian royalty had come to savage ends, and soon afterwards Alice's own husband was nearly executed as a political scapegoat.

The middle years of her life, which should have followed a conventional and fulfilling path, did the opposite. She suffered from a serious religious crisis and at the age of forty-five was removed from her family and placed in a sanitarium in Switzerland, where she was pronounced a paranoid schizophrenic. As her stay in the clinic became prolonged, there was a time where it seemed she might never walk free again. How she achieved her recovery is just one of the remarkable aspects of her story.

Customer Reviews:

alice, princess andrew of greece .......2007-03-28

well done book of prince philip's mother . fascinating reading , and very readable . highly recommend , interesting tidbits of her mother , the no nonsense dowager marchioness of milford haven.

Princess Andrew of Greece - Alice.......2007-01-09

I thoroughly enjoyed this book about the "mysterious/hidden" Princess. I have never been able to find out much about her. I knew the book would be good because the author was Hugo Vickers. I wasn't disappointed. I would have enjoyed more pictures, but then we all want more pictures.

An interesting biography about an unusual lady.......2006-12-27

I knew a little about Alice from my reading about the British Royals, but learned a lot from this book. The author has supplied much information I had not known before. Some parts are very sad and others amusing such as a female relative scolding Alice for smoking while dressed in her nun's habit.

I think she is much more interesting than the present group of Royals!

Interesting, but ................2005-07-03

I love reading biographies about women and I thought this would be interesting. It was, in some respects. She lead an interesting life - certainly a typical royal life with a little mental illness thrown in. But it seems the reader needs to have a companion book to sort out the relationships between all the royals in all of Europe. Every page had a reference to somebody who was related to somebody else - all people I haven't heard of and frankly don't care about. But, hey, that's me. If all the name dropping was eliminated, the book would have been much more readible.

A Woman to be Remembered.......2004-12-06

Alice,Princess Andrew of Greece is the story of a fascinating,
not well known royal.
Born into the Battenburg Family of Germany,Queen Victoria
witnessed the birth of her great-grandaughter.Alice,was discovered to be deaf,but her mother taught her to read lips.
The deafness did not appear to handicap her.In her girlhood
she was extremely intelligent,and considered one of the young
beautiful princesses of her time.
In 1903 she married Prince Andrea of Greece(hence becoming
Princess Andrew.)The women in Europe,unlike England,took the
name of their husband when they married.
Alice was devoted to her godmother,Ella,Grand Duchess of
Russia.She imitated her charitable works and was a nurse
during the Balkan Wars(1913),that preceeded World War I.
It was here she first manifested her mania.Not sleeping for
three days and singlehandedly building Operating Theaters
in the midst of the War.
The Princess had four daughters and one son,the current
Prince Phillip of England.
In the 1920's she was unable to care for her chidren.Due
to the death's of many close relatives,Tsarina Alix of
Russia,Aunt Ella,it is believed her illness became worse
and she lost touch with reality.
The biography drags a little here,but I think it is because
she was in treatment seven years.
In her later years she believed she was an Orthodox Nun.
Without,a country,the present Queen Elizabeth allowed her
to live quietly in England.
If you read this book,first consult the geneology lists in
the back of the book.Apparently,the Queen and Prince Philip
are fourth cousins,both descendants of Queen Victoria.
Despite her illness,Alice is a Princess who gave much to
others,and deserves to be remembered.History will not
forget this woman,who helped during the Holocaust and
saved lives.She along with Oskar Schlinder is remembered
in Israel as one of the Righteous.

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Alice: Princess Andrew of Greece
Hugo Vickers
Manufacturer: PENGUIN USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OLNDO0

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Alice: Princess Andrew of Greece
Hugo (Author) Vickers
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Griffin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OTIMH0

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Entertaining- but terrible history

Very Good Book

Factual Mistakes Combined with Unworthy Opinion

Two stars for scholarship, but ten for appeal!

Can't be trusted

What They Didn't Teach You About the Civil War (What They Didn't Teach You)
Mike Wright
Manufacturer: Presidio Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | 19th Century | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
General | Civil War | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0891416544
Release Date: 1998-01-07

Book Description

Informative and entertaining.--Publishers Weekly

Customer Reviews:

Entertaining- but terrible history.......2005-11-08

I'm not surprised that the author is described as a "television writer"- this book is a collectio of short, meaningless facts and falsehoods that do little for the understanding of one of the most important events in American history. His mistakes are mostly a matter of his lack of understanding of the wider history and context of the war; for example, he wries about Confederate "desertions", but the CSA didn't conscript of enlist soliders the way the North did. Instead, soldiers would come and go, leaving for a while to (say) bring in the harvest and then returning to the army. Typos, factual errors and just plain lack of understanding abound- just like television.

Very Good Book.......2005-07-14

As someone with family roots from both armies involved in this war, I found this book to be more fair, honest, and true than many books I have read about the Civil War.

Unfortunately, it is normally the victor who decides what gets written in the history books, and much false or inaccurate information has been written about Southerners who fought in the War of Northern Agression, or as most know of it, the Civil War.

This book is full of interesting anecdotes and does afford some insight into the lives of those who experienced the War's effects first-hand. If you are a history buff, especially American history, then this book is for you.

Factual Mistakes Combined with Unworthy Opinion.......2004-06-11

Civil War vignettes/anecdotes always make for an interesting read. But this book doesn't footnote its sources, makes unbelievable mistakes and the author's writing style is a condescending one, even as it becomes evident that the guy's opinion on some of the topics is totally outlandish.

Other reviews have already noted some of the ludicrous discrepancies. Some of the guy's commentary is no better.

For example, in arguing that the Confederate commanders were not superior as a whole (a fairly justifiable statement), Wright lists some of the Confederate commanders that were lacking. When he reaches Longstreet, this is what he writes. "James Longstreet? Not first-rate, and many questioned his loyalty." The claim that Longstreet was not a "first-rate" corps commander (especially ironic since Longstreet commanded the ANV's First Corps) could certainly be argued and is by many historians. Longstreet was definitely the Confederacy's premiere corps commander after Jackson's death.

Wright's entitled to his opinions, despite the fact that he doesn't define any "first rate" commanders. But Wright oversteps boundaries when he insinuates that Longstreet's loyalty couldn't be trusted because he was Grant's best man at his wedding, or because Longstreet became a Republican after the war. What They Did Teach You About the Civil War is that Longstreet fought hard, fought well and suffered a permanent crippling injury for the Confederate cause. To question his loyalty is absolutely outrageous and not justifiable. Jubal Early would laugh in his grave at what Wright's "teaching" us.

Two stars for scholarship, but ten for appeal!.......2002-12-03

As a Canadian, you can imagine that what they didn't teach *me* about the American Civil War was everything -- but after an accidental visit to Gettysburg this summer I was hooked. I began to read, and when I discovered Mike Wright's fascinating book in Toronto I thought I'd done some fabulous one-stop shopping! But then a number of Wright's facts just didn't jibe with what I'd read before and in numerous other sources -- George Pickett's wife's name, for instance (not Mary, but LaSalle), or Stonewall Jackson's final words. And the work is peppered with typographical errors, the most jarring of which is the reference to Winfield Scott Hancock as being Lewis Armistead's "closet" friend. So, on the one hand, What They Didn't Teach You About the Civil War suffers for want of both a fact-checker and a proofreader, and can serve only as a reference up to a point -- a PHENOMENAL shame. But on the other hand, this is such an entertaining read that I'd have to say I loved it, and would recommend it to those who, like myself, are most intrigued by the human face of this particular war and this particular age. If you're prepared to take what Wright says with the proverbial grain of salt, it's tasty in the extreme!

Can't be trusted.......2002-10-03

This is an interesting book, with interesting stories, although there are so many factual lapses and inconsistencies that no story in the book can be taken at face value without independent verification. This is, of course, undesirable in a history book.
Wright, for instance, reports that during the Vietnam war, a TV cameraman pictured an American soldier setting fire to a Vietnamese hut. Wright identifies this village as My Lai, and the televised hut-burning as the start of the My Lai massacre. In fact, the televised hut-burning was at Cam Ne in August 1965. The My Lai massacre happened in March 1968, and wasn't publicly revealed until November 1969.
Wright's mortality figures from the Civil War are equally perplexing. Most sources, including Wright, say between 3 and 4 million Americans served in the War, on both sides. If, as Wright says, 600,000 died in the War, that's a mortality rate of between 15 and 20%. But in the same paragraph, Wright gives a mortality rate of 13.4%. And later in the book, Wright says 1 of 65 soldiers died in battle, and 1 in 13 died of disease -- which would be a mortality rate of 9.2%. While Wright doesn't need to solve a mystery that's unsolvable due to incomplete records, he should explain why he gives three different figures for the same event.
Wright says that "Amazing Grace" was originally a Negro spiritual. In fact, Amazing Grace started as an English hymn written by former slave-trader John Newton. Later, the hymn's music, taken from an American folk song or "plantation melody," was added.
Further, Wright's habit of repeating anecdotes from chapter to chapter, almost verbatim, such as John Jones and the "Bread Riot," is distracting.
In sum, no matter how interesting and educational most of the anecdotes are, if the information given can't be trusted to be factual, the book should sadly be passed up. With a bit of editing and fact-checking it would be a good book.

What They Didn't Teach You About the Civil War

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What They Didn't Teach You About the Civil War
Mike WRIGHT
Manufacturer: Presidio Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OP8JEK

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Did he or didn't he......??????

Speculative beyond reason

A humanistic look

Man of genius, vision and wisdom

unengaging psychohistory

Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History
Fawn McKay Brodie
Manufacturer: W W Norton & Co Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0393074803

Book Description

An ambitious, perceptive portrayal of a complex man, this best-selling biography broke new ground in its exploration of Jefferson's inner life. Here for the first time we meet Jefferson as a man of feeling and passion. With a novelist's skill and meticulous scholarship, Fawn M. Brodie shows Jefferson as he wrestled with issues of revolution, religion, power, race, and love--ambivalences that exerted a subtle but powerful influence on his political writing and his decision making. The portrait that results adds a whole new depth to those of the past.

Customer Reviews:

Did he or didn't he......??????.......2007-08-16

When this book came out in 1974, there was hell to pay...for the first time, a respected historian gave credence in print to the Tom and Sally stories. Of course, this was really very old news; the rumors started as campaign dirt, though James Callender was no historian, and was far from respected. Mrs. Brodie gave us "An Intimate History", looking at Mr. Jefferson as a real person, rather than as simply a skilled writer of great ideas. Of course, she also more than covered the ideas and accomplishments, and did it very well. Still, the unique focus is on the five "loves" of Jefferson's life....

[1] Rebecca Burwell---a youthful infatuation, of which nothing ever came. Actually, nothing ever started...she is important as the mother-in-law of John Marshall.

[2] Betsey Walker---if true, this is FAR worse than Sally. If true. Betsey was the wife of a good friend of Jefferson, and, her husband was away in the Army...a double betrayal. Problem is, there is no real evidence. When the story came out 30 years after the "fact", it was more campaign dirt. Light Horse Harry Lee publicized it to get at his political enemy, Mr. Jefferson; of course, Callender was happy to vomit whatever garbage he could find. Mr. Walker never left his wife; negative evidence, I know, but still evidence. Light Horse Harry was a bum, and his son Black Horse Harry was worse; Robert E. Lee spent his life atoning for the bad character of his Dad and his older half-brother. The worthlessness of a man doesn't make everything he says a lie, but we do need to look carefully...

[3] Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson, known as Patty---the young widow who became Tom's wife, suffered ill health, and died far too young, leaving him two [originally, three] daughters to raise. Whatever Jefferson did, or did not, do before, or after, Patty, there has NEVER been the slightest hint of infidelity during the marriage.

[4] Maria Cosway---artist, wife of an artist, whom Jefferson met while he was Minister to France. Sorry, Tom; guilty as charged on this one. The affair was far too open, the written evidence is far too authentic, to deny..."My head and my heart"....

[5] Sally Hemings---mulatto slave who met Jefferson in Paris when she traveled as maid to Jefferson's daughter. Described as "mighty near white", she was part of Jefferson's inheritance, AND, was Patty's half-sister. If Jefferson had an affair with Sally, he had to be a magician to be undetected, and stupid to think he could be; Monticello is not that big, and Jefferson was NOT stupid. Yes, Sally had children by a white man; there were plenty around. IF the stories about present day blacks having the Jefferson DNA marker are true {IF}, there were other sources...Jefferson's two nephews, the sons of Dabney Carr, also lived at Monticello.

Thomas Jefferson was the greatest collection of talents one can imagine...attorney...architect...botanist...author...great horseman; in many ways, the "Father of our Country". He is also a mass of contradictions...a slave owner who hated slavery [so were Washington, Marshall, Patrick Henry, George Wythe]...apostle of fiscal responsibility who lived his last 50 years flat broke...athiest who "swore on the altar of God" [he was NOT really an athiest]...effective attorney who couldn't speak well in public...opponent of big government who bought Louisiana and greatly expanded the federal bureaucracy...the list goes on. And, what does "All men are created equal" REALLY mean?

To answer my own question in the header...Who Cares? There are far more important things about Thomas Jefferson than whether he produced mulatto kids with a servant; plenty of white southern politicians, from George Wythe to Strom Thurmond did, but, with Tom, the evidence is thin. One can quote Jefferson to prove anything; those who would attack him have plenty without Sally; those who would praise have plenty even with Sally.

Mr. Jefferson wrote the two most important documents in the English language, and founded a great university. He will be studied, and argued about, unto eternity. Everybody needs to read at least one biography of him, though you don't need to go to the extent I have. If you're looking for a one volume study, this would be a pretty good choice. I usually recommend Joseph Ellis' "American Sphinx", or Willard Sterne Randall's book, but you could do far worse than this. Merrill Peterson's "Thomas Jefferson and the New Nation" is fabulous, but is over 1000 pages. Dumas Malone's six volumes are definitive, but six volumes....

Speculative beyond reason.......2007-08-16

First of all I must concede that I was unable to finish this book - it just wasn't interesting enough and the prospect of a new Harry Potter novel was more than enough enticement to put it aside in favor of something that didn't pretend to be anything but fiction. The premise - a history about Jefferson's thoughts and what made him tick - certainly sounded like it would be interesting. Instead, I was amazed at how often she used phrases like "from this we can infer..." or "based on this we must conclude..." In fact, it would appear that the whole book is nothing more than speculations about what was going on in his mind based on what he did or didn't say or write or his choice of words. And only slightly less irritating is that Ms. Brodie (who apparently enjoyed creating controversy) seems obsessed with Jefferson's sexual life. Early on she dismisses it as only natural that he had human appetites and almost unworthy of comment, but then goes on to guess and speculate as to why he was attracted to Sally Hemmings and others and the nature of their relationships. Honestly, I thought the book looked like a serious history about Jefferson, and I was really just looking to learn more about him, but I'll have to look elsewhere.

A humanistic look.......2004-09-01

Over the years, I have read much on the Sphinx. But this book was the first that actually believed he was human and not a god and took great pains to put a human face to the man. Given that he guarded his legacy and shaped it during his lifetime, we will never know the real man. But at least someone is trying to show us that he was human and had all the strengths and weakness of a man. For that, and only that, this book is invaluable. For those who only take interest in him because of the Hemmings controversy, you are missing out on so much. The political intrigue alone is worth reading this book.

Man of genius, vision and wisdom.......2004-08-27

Dr. Brodie's biography on Thomas Jefferson is a wondrous piece of work, balancing both the personal and public lives of this remarkable man:
Writer of the Declaration of Independence, author of "Notes on the State of Virginia" and the "Constitution for Virginia", minister to France, war Governor of Virginia, Secretary of State under Washignton, Vice-President under John Adams, two term President of the United States, aquisition of the Louisiana Purchase, founder of the University of Virginia, horticulturist, architect and so much more. He spoke his mind and he spoke it for the people: "The care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only legitimate object of good government."
Without a doubt, Jefferson's private life was controversial and Brodie brings this to light. Although his personal life story reads like a soap opera, we see how both the personal and public worlds, at times, influence each other. Brodie unfolds his relationships with such women as Betsey Walker, Maria Cosway and the slave Sally Hemings, along with delving into his enemies and friends in public circles.
A lengthy but fascinating read and thanks to Dr. Brodie's tenacious research efforts, the reader gains a deep understanding into the life of this extaordinary man.

unengaging psychohistory.......2003-09-04

You take your expectations to a book, and this one badly missed the mark for what I was looking for. Rather than a portrait of TJ that delved into how his personality influenced his political life and choices, this is purely about his psychological makeup. It has very little about the times and context he lived in, which left me quite bored. Instead, the reader is treated to the debate on his relationship with the slave woman who bore him so many children, what impact the loss of his wife had on him, etc. Indeed, I was looking for something on the level of Young Man Luther by Eriksen, and this falls so short of that mark that it is awful by comparison. As such, you have all of the flaws of psychohistory - that we can never really understand someone's psychological makeup who is long dead - and yet none of the advantages of Eriksen's approach, which did treat the historical context while being so splendidly evocative about life in general. Brodie apparently just doesn't have that kind of depth.

Recommended only as a useful perspective for specialists who might benefit from this kind of speculative enterprise. I do not believe that many general readers who want to know about TJ's life and times would enjoy this.

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THOMAS JEFFERSON = AN INTIMATE HISTORY

Manufacturer: W.W. NORTON & CO.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HOWG6K

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Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History

Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HYSRUE

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3 Books: 1) - 1776 (Hardback) / 2) - Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History (Paperback) / 3) John Adams (Hardback) (Unboxed Set of American History Books, 2 by David McCullough)
David McCullough , and Fawn M. Brodie
Manufacturer: various
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000WI807K

Product Description

3 Books: 1) - 1776 (Hardback) / 2) - Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History (Paperback) / 3) John Adams (Hardback) (Unboxed Set of American History Books, 2 by David McCullough), in either Hard or Softcover, (See Seller Condition Comments), Shipped in one package to save on shipping costs.

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Thomas Jefferson an Intimate History
Fawn Brodie
Manufacturer: BANTAM BOOKS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000TZORNC

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Thomas Jefferson an Intimate History
Fawn M Brodie
Manufacturer: W W NORTON & CO @
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000TKN5T4

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THOMAS JEFFERSON AND INTIMATE HISTORY
Fawn M. Brodie
Manufacturer: New York: Bantam Books, 1974
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000QA5R9I

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Thomas Jefferson, an Intimate History
Brodie
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000O8GNFY

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Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History
Fawn M. Brodie
Manufacturer: W.W. Norton
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000IN5EIW

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Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History
Fawn M. Brodie
Manufacturer: Bantam Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000HYVAIK

Book Description

Carnivores such as pumas, jaguars, and ocelots have roamed the neotropical forests of Central America for millennia. Enshrined in the myths of the ancient Maya, they still inspire awe in the region's current inhabitants, as well as in the ecotourists and researchers who come to experience Central America's diverse and increasingly endangered natural environment. This book is one of the first field guides dedicated to the carnivores of Central America. It describes the four indigenous families--wild cats, raccoons and their relatives, skunks and their relatives, and wild canids--and their individual species that live in the region. The authors introduce each species by recounting a first-person encounter with it, followed by concise explanations of its taxonomy, scientific name, English and Spanish common names, habitat, natural history, and conservation status. Range maps show the animal's past and current distribution, while Claudia Nocke's black-and-white drawings portray it visually. The concluding chapter looks to the carnivores' future, including threats posed by habitat destruction and other human activities, and describes some current conservation programs. Designed for citizens of and visitors to Central America, as well as specialists, this book offers an excellent introduction to a group of fascinating, threatened, and still imperfectly understood animals.

Customer Reviews:

A Guide to the Carnivores of Central America.......2000-03-20

The first thing that strikes one about this book is the illustrations - they're wonderful! Claudia Nocke's pencil figures capture the essence of many of the carnivores included in this guide. We find views from many aspects of their lives - not just pictures of an animal walking or lying down, but little pictorial vignettes of their daily lives.

This book is not just a dry recounting of facts on central american carnivores -that information is there (dental formulae, common names and taxonomy, skull figures, behavior, reproduction, etc). Included in each chapter are Carlos's little tales that go along with each animal discussed - it can give one a greater sense of the animals and their habitats, etc., and adds to the character of this guide - a personal view into the personal lives of the animals included.

Also included are sobering notes on the conservation of these animals - food for thought ...

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A Guide to the Carnivores of Central America: Natural History, Ecology, and Conservation
Carlos Leonardo De La; Nocke, Claudia C.; Rosa, Carlos L. De LA Rosa
Manufacturer: University of Texas Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000ORF7IE

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