Stalking the Ice Dragon: An Alaskan Journey

Customer Reviews:

Out of Date.......2002-09-13

This whole book feels very dated, something out of the 80s.

I ordered this book before a three-day trip up to Yosemite. I had been there several times, but it was all over fifteen years ago. I was hoping the book would provide some interesting places to visit. Unfortunately, it is woefully out of date. Some examples: Mirror Lake. Arnot's book describes the place as "still living up to its name," and "Standing on the southwest shore early in the morning, and sometimes later in the day, you will observe Half Dome and Ahwiyah Point perfectly reflected on the placid surface of the lake." The fact is, Mirror Lake has been a meadow for over a decade now. There is no lake anymore. Then there's the lack of information about the flooding that occurred in 1997, and how NPS decided to close the two river campgrounds rather than repair them.

The photos are old, and the only help it comes with is a detailed description of the rock formations, which, of course, haven't changed much at all -- which is why I gave it two stars instead of one.

A magical experience with Yosemite is still possible........1998-07-19

Are you ready for a moonlight drive in Yosemite where the shadows on the granite monoliths speak to you in a way no tour guide could ever do? Are you tired of bumper-to-bumper traffic where 95% of windshield tourists never get within a mile of their vehicles? Are you ready to experience a mystical bond with Yosemite, perhaps reaching the level of the bond John Muir reached in his relationship with the park? Then Phil Arnot's book is just for you. Arnot reveals secret places in Yosemite where one can be truly alone and one with the wilderness to experience the mystic beauty of Yosemite. Arnot shares his most memorable walks and experiences in the park and tells how you might also experience the magic of Yosemite away from crowds and noise. He includes descriptions of walks, drives, quotations from John Muir, and photos. This book is a break away from the traditional tourist guidebook. Highly recommended to anyone wishing a different type of experience with Yosemi! te.

Book Description

As experimental organisms, spiders offer ecologists a unique opportunity to examine the concept of the ecological community and the role that field experimentation can play in evaluating theories of population and community ecology. In this book, David Wise provides a balanced critique of field experiments designed to uncover details of spider ecology, with the dual aim of clarifying the ecology of these fascinating organisms and providing insight into the advantages and challenges of performing field experiments with a predator ubiquitous in terrestrial ecosystems.

Book Description

"A very readable account of the wartime project... This well-researched and referenced book covers the technology of the development, which has its own fascination. But perhaps even more fascinating are the descriptions of the organizations and of the people involved in the program... Morris has produced an excellent analysis of the lessons to be learnt from the story. His book should be made compulsory reading for anyone involved in such multi-party programs." -- Chemistry and Industry

The American Synthetic Rubber Research Program

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The American Synthetic Rubber Research Program
Morris Peter J.T.
Manufacturer: University of Pennsylvania P
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000UDHMUI

Book Description

The objective of this publication is to comprehensively discuss the possibilities of producing steels with pre-determined attributes, demanded by the customer to fit exacting specifications. The information presented in the book has been designed to indicate the reasons for the expenses and to aid in the process of overcoming the difficulties and reducing the costs.

In nine detailed chapters, the authors cover topics including:
• steel as a major contributor to the economic wealth of a country in terms of its capabilities and production
• current concerns of major steel producers
• phenomena contributing to the quality of the product
• information concerning the boundary conditions of the rolling process and initial conditions, put to use by mathematical models
• the solid state incremental approach and flow formulation
• parameters and variables - most of which make use of the exponential nature of phenomena that are activated by thermal energy
• the application of three dimensional analysis to shape rolling
• the evaluation of parameters by a form of inverse analysis to the flat rolling process
• knowledge based modeling, using artificial intelligence, expert systems and neural networks

They conclude that when either mathematical or physical modeling of the rolling process is considered and the aim is to satisfy the demands for customers, it is possible to produce what the customer wants, exactly.

Book Description

Spanning the fifth to sixteenth centuries and societies that range from Afghanistan to Spain, this anthology is a testament to the astonishing grandeur and variety of classical Arabic literature. Here are excerpts from dozens of works–both renowned (The Qur’an, The Thousand and One Nights) and esoteric (Ibn Washshiyya’s “Book of Poisons”; a 10th-century poem in praise of asparagus)–all accompanied by Robert Irwin’s erudite commentaries that illuminate readers on the vanished world in which they were written.

In Night & Horses & the Desert we encounter the dashing Byronic poetry of Imru’ al-Qays and a treatise on bibliomania by Al-Jahiz, possibly the only writer to have been killed by books. There’s a sorcerer’s manual from 11th century Spain and an allegory by the mysterious “Brethren of Purity,” in which animals argue their case against humanity. Encompassing piety and profanity, fables and philosophy, this volume is a thrilling and invaluabe introduction to one of the world’s great bodies of literature.

Customer Reviews:

A Serious Effort, Worth the Read.......2001-01-13

In what may be his most ambitious non-fiction work to date, Mr. Irwin has tackled a truly daunting task - an anthology of Arabic literature. I give him four stars. The fourth star is for attempting the effort in the first place.

Theoretically, there is no reason why it should be any more difficult to prepare an anthology of Arabic literature than it would be for, say, Chinese literature; rather the contrary. However, I suspect that preparing an Arabic anthology is much harder. First of all, the traditional themes of Arabic literature - religion, romantic lament, fate, panegyric - on the whole have little appeal for Westerners, especially compared to a literature like the Chinese, which seems so secular and "modern" in theme by comparison. Secondly, most truly great Arabic literature is poetry, which is notoriously difficult to translate, and what's worse, the canons of poetic taste that govern it are almost entirely untranslatable into anything comparable in English.

Despite these handicaps, Irwin has done an admirable job. One notices that there is a great deal of commentary. The selections tend to be short, with a great deal of explanation in between. There is so much commentary, in fact, that the book sometimes seems more a literary history than an anthology. However, this approach is necessary if the reader is to develop any appreciation at all of the material. Quite frankly, Arabic literature is a closed book to most readers, even in translation, and without a large amount of explanatory material the average reader would be lost.

Irwin also resists the impulse, very common in specialists in a given literary area, of putting in a large number of his own translations. He does an excellent job of selecting the translations, in fact - a difficult task in itself, because there is an incredibly large number of bad translations from Arabic; for many translators, the attempt to be faithful to the Arabic models simply results in English doggerel. You will find no examples of this type in the book.

If there is little to be said about the period after roughly 1300, there is a good reason for this: most of the truly great literature produced in the Middle East after that time was written in Farsi, and to a lesser degree in Turkish, both of which are not part of the subject matter for this book. In doing so, Mr. Irwin perhaps handicaps himself, but his intent is obviously to focus on Arabic literature. Outside of specialists, very little Arabic literature is known, whereas a great deal of Persian literature is readily available.

Book Description

This digital document is an article from New Criterion, published by Foundation for Cultural Review on April 1, 2001. The length of the article is 3525 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: Gardens for the sleeves.(Review) (book review)
Author: Eric Ormsby
Publication: New Criterion (Magazine/Journal)
Date: April 1, 2001
Publisher: Foundation for Cultural Review
Volume: 19 Issue: 8 Page: 22

Article Type: Book Review

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Night & Horses & the Desert: An Anthology of Classical Arabic Literature

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Night & Horses & the Desert: An Anthology of Classical Arabic Literature
Robert Irwin
Manufacturer: PENGUIN USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OLL1KI

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A Moving Memoir

AN EXCELLENT READ AND A WORK VERY WELL DONE!

Beautiful story, beautifully written

The Souvenir: A Daughter Discovers Her Father's War

If You Believe in it, You Win

The Souvenir: A Daughter Discovers Her Father's War
Louise Steinman
Manufacturer: Plume
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Military & Spies | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0452283655

Book Description

In 1945, an American G.I. mailed home a Japanese flag. Fifty years later, his daughter unfolded the past. Growing up, Louise Steinman knew little about her father's experiences in World War II. All she knew was that the whistling teakettle was banned from the kitchen and that she was never to cry in front of him. Years later, after her parents' death, she found an old ammunition box, filled with nearly five hundred letters her father had written to her mother during the War. She also found a silk Japanese flag inscribed to Yoshio Shimizu. Who was Yoshio Shimizu and why did her father have his flag? So began Steinman's quest to return this "souvenir" to its owner, and in the process, to learn more about the war that transformed the expressive young man in those letters into the reserved father she had known.

Weaving together her father's raw, poignant letters with her own journey, Steinman presents a powerful view of how war changed one generation and shaped another.

Customer Reviews:

A Moving Memoir.......2007-06-30

Louise Steinman has hit it out of the park with this wonderful, moving memoir about her father, Norman Steinman, his war experiences, and the way those experiences shaped his life--and his relationships with his family. It is also about Ms. Steinman's own odyssey in experiencing her father's war, through reading hundreds of her father's war-time letters discovered after her parents' deaths, talking to other Pacific War veterans, and visiting long-forgotten battlefields in the Philippines. Ms. Steinman eventually makes a special journey to Japan to visit the family of a long-dead Japanese soldier. It involves a simple errand: she needs to give something back...

Ms. Steinman shows that the scars of war run deep and the impacts are felt through succeeding generations. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

AN EXCELLENT READ AND A WORK VERY WELL DONE!.......2007-06-06

Like so many in my generation, the author, like the rest of us, really had no clue as to what made her father tick. These men, and women, of the "Greatest Generation" were a different breed. I had to blink twice when the author described her father, his attitudes, work ethic, treatment of his family and on and on. She could have well been describing my own father.

The author, after her father's death, discovers a box of letters written to his wife (the author's mother) during the war. Her father fought in the Pacific, taking part in some of its most brutal of battles. Amongst the letters, in an envelope, was a Japanese Flag, a "souvenir flag" which her father had sent home. The flag was of the type carried by many Japanese soldiers, which was a sort of good luck piece. The story is basically Ms. Steinman's search for the family of the soldier whose body it was taken from and a story of Ms. Steinman's search for her father, i.e. who really was her father, and how had the war changed him?

Now I will be honest, there were parts of the book that disturbed me. I am not all that certain if the author ever did have a clue as to what made her father the man he was and how the war truly affected him. The author never actually says it, but after reading her description of her father, which gave us some idea of the kind of man he was, there is really no doubt where he got the flag, and how he got it. He did not seem the type of man who would simply pick up a flag off any old dead body and keep it. While this falls into the realm of speculation, I think it probably would have been better if the author had faced reality. Be that as it may, the author did quite a good job with her research and I certainly admire her objectives.

The book is well written, easy to read, and quite informative. Like another reviewer here, I have the feeling the author actually found out more about herself than she did of her father, and that is actually a very good thing. I do recommend this one highly. You certainly will be richer for having read it.

D. Blankenship

Beautiful story, beautifully written.......2006-06-12

A page turner, I could hardly put it down. Moving and poignant. Through reading about "the war" of the author's father, I learned a lot about my own father and "his war". He too faught with the 25th Division at Balete Pass in 1945, earning a combat intantryman badge and purple heart. He has rarely spoke of his experience and after reading this book, I better understand why. The Souvenir is a must read for anyone whose father fought in "The Pacific War". Thank you Ms. Steinman, The Souvenir is truly a gift.

The Souvenir: A Daughter Discovers Her Father's War.......2005-09-03

I have just finished reading Ms. Steinman's THE SOUVENIR, and through her skill and persuasion, her souvenir has now become "my" souvenir too. I find myself thinking about her journey as a daughter as well as the unspeakable journeys our fathers, brothers, and sons (now daughters too) have made in times of war.

If You Believe in it, You Win.......2005-08-08

Louise Steinman weaves war, family and an unsolved mystery into a fine story about how a daughter trys to uncover the meaning of the deep, inconsolable silence her father brings home from one the worst battles of World War II: MacArthur's famous "return" to Luzon, the Philippines.

She retraces history with the help of more than 700 letters her father wrote to her mother during his time away, and with her friends, family and a handful of old infantry vets she is able to puzzle together what was the most momentous time in her father's life. Her journey forges a new understanding of her father and, most importantly, her relationship to him, even many years after his death.

The story tantalizes with descriptions of jungle warfare, imperialism and young men in the throes of battle, especially from the vantage point of Japan, where like their American counterparts, families were torn asunder by the conflict. They too carry the remnants of pain and sorrow sixty years later. Here, at least, Steinman could have spent more time illustrating the cultural differences-and similarities-that propel leaders and their societies to sacrifice their young men for nationalistic fervor.

In the end, the tale reveals just as much about the author as it does about her father. The care, grace and sensitivity with which she tells her story reflects the same qualities her father had, then lost, then struggled to regain after he returned home from 165 consecutive days of brutal warfare.

-Christopher Thomas Scott

Book Description

Many argue that the Gulf War was won largely by the Lockheed Martin F-117A Nighthawk, better known as the "Stealth Fighter." This book provides insight into a high-tech war as seen through the eyes of the pilots who flew the black jets into the heart of Baghdad. Thompson shares stories told by the leaders, pilots, and mission planners who worked together to compile a record unheard of in any prior war.

This work details, in very personal terms, the experience of a small cadre of highly-trained pilots who opened a new chapter in the use of stealth technology and extreme pinpoint precision bombing. Included with these personal accounts are technical facts and details of the F-117, making this one of the most comprehensive books ever published on the role of the Nighthawk in Desert Storm.

Customer Reviews:

Opening the way for the main air strikes.......2006-05-02

The book is a fine collection of personal stories of the pilots who flew the F-117 in the Gulf War (1991) and has numerous black and white (and a few color) photographs. The "black jet" was a terrific new weapon the American arsenal and paved the way for the air strikes hitting the most dangerous and well protected targets. The book recounts the initial training of the three F-117 squadrons before and during the deployment to Saudi Arabia, the conditions of front line life, the meticulous planning of the strikes and the tactics used. The wealth of first hand accounts gives an excellent picture of the way the operations were carried out. The cases where the GBU-10s and -27s scored direct hits causing tremendous secondary explosions are very well described, as are the feeling of the pilots when flying in the midst of terrible flak barrages. The weak points are the many repetitions (like how many waves were used each night and how many hours long were the missions near the Turkish borders) and the absence of technical information about the aircraft and the stealth technology generally. Even the table of characteristis at the end of the book is so general that becomes useless (like: "range unlimited, depending upon aerial refuelling", or no data about empty weight, speed, ceiling etc).

F-117 Nighthawk, At Peace and War.......2003-03-18

Warren Thompson, a F-117 "Nighthawk" pilot, has put together a superb book, one of those that the aviation enthusiast will consider a "must" for his reading collection. This book covers the development, maturation and wartime employment of an aircraft unique in the annals of airborne warfare, and which is still relatively unknown as to its capabilities and potential for further application. The personal stories of the pilots who learned how to use this very different airframe, flying exclusively at night in a very demanding tactical environment, tell a compelling story of how men and airplane come together to become an awesomely effective war machine. Many of the pilots who flew "Downtown" to Baghdad on the opening night of the Gulf War, and many subsequent missions as the war progressed, tell their riveting personal stories as they faced some of the densest Anti Aircraft Artillery and Surface to Air Missile threats ever. Their determination, professionalism, camaraderie and teamwork are clearly articulated in a most readable fashion. They give every detail, short of Classified Information, about how they planned, adjusted and ultimately executed some of the most demanding bombing missions ever completed. The book also covers the intricacies of mission planning, sortie generation and a myriad of other challenges faced by those who put together the air attack plan and those who were charged with its execution. The book contains many excellent and previously unpublished photographs, including 7 in color, of the aircraft, aircrew, ground support personnel and results of bombing attacks in Iraq. A number of illustrations, photos of unit patches and maps augment this excellent text. This is a great book about superb aviators and a new and deadly form of air warfare told in a wonderfully personal and particularly readable manner.

Fascinating about the "Black Jets".......2001-09-03

This one is hard to put down until you are finished reading it. It gives insight into just how hard Desert Storm would have been without these mounts of Darth Vader, and the unbelievable dedication and hard work the ground- and aircrews put fore in those months of 1990-91.
All through the book there are plenty of pictures, both posed pilot shots and pictures taken by 82nd Airborne after the cease fire showing the damage done to Iraq by the F-117 community.

There is one small error in the book though. There is a picture of a fighter in it where the caption claims it's a damaged Iraqi Jaguar. Anyone that sat through aircraft recognition in any service around the world will recognize it as a MiG. Not a very big issue, but an error nonetheless.

I can recommend this book for anyone interested in getting a glimpse into a world only a few hundred people inhabit on a day to day basis. It's no wonder the F-117A was considered the star of the show after the Gulf War was over. This book explains why.

wow!.......2001-05-31

If you are looking for a book about the F-117,well you better don't hesitate to think twice,buy this book,its worth for your money,this book contains lot of photo from the exterior to the interior of the F-117,plus this book tell the operation conducted by the F-117 in the gulf war. Before I close my message, all I can say about this book is that,if your fond of F-117 then better get this one roght now before it run out of stock.

New perspective on the F-117 in Desert Storm.......2001-04-07

'Bandits Over Baghdad' is a fresh and revealing look into the usually secretive operations of the F-117 Stealth Fighter. Warren Thompson has assembled several recollections from the pilots and support personnel who flew and maintained the F-117 during Desert Storm. All of the stories and interviews are new, although a few of the principal pilots have been interviewed in other books about the F-117. However, the insight and information in this book is very satisfying. Most of the photos are from the private collections of the 37th TFW's pilots and have never been published before. The only drawback of the book is the relatively short yet concise length. This book would be ideal for anyone who would like a more personal view of the F-117 during the Gulf War. The forward by Col. Al Whitley further lends credibility to the stories that follow.

BANDITS OVER BAGHDAD: PERSONAL STORIES OF FLYING THE F-117 OVER IRAQ.

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BANDITS OVER BAGHDAD: PERSONAL STORIES OF FLYING THE F-117 OVER IRAQ.
Warren E. Thompson
Manufacturer: Midland Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Asia | History | Subjects | Books

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Aviation | Military | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 185780113X

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The Political Action Handbook: A How-To Guide for the Hip Hop Generation
Maya Rockeymoore
Manufacturer: Fourth Generation Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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Stand and Deliver: Political Activism, Leadership, and Hip Hop Culture

ASIN: 0975988603

Book Description

The Political Action Handbook: A How To Guide For The Hip Hop Generation is an engaging book designed to politically empower the Hip Hop Generation. Through personal observations and other stories, Rockeymoore highlights the political and socioeconomic challenges facing youth today and urges the Hip Hop Generation to transcend these hurdles by mastering the tools of political engagement. This one-stop-shopping guidebook also highlights useful websites, publications, organizations and other political resources while providing basic, easy to follow steps for exerting power within the U.S. political system.

Also noted.(Front Row)(Book Review): An article from: Ebony

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Also noted.(Front Row)(Book Review): An article from: Ebony

Manufacturer: Johnson Publishing Co.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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Book Description

This digital document is an article from Ebony, published by Johnson Publishing Co. on March 1, 2005. The length of the article is 653 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: Also noted.(Front Row)(Book Review)
Publication: Ebony (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 1, 2005
Publisher: Johnson Publishing Co.
Volume: 60 Issue: 5 Page: 28(2)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

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Environmental Assessment Atlas (Proposed Trans-Alaska Pipeline System)
Bureau of Land Management Alaska State Office Division of Pipeline
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000JJNIOC

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Environmental Atlas of Alaska
Charles W.; And Johnson, Philip R. Hartman
Manufacturer: University of Alaska
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000PFBN7E

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Environmental Atlas of Alaska
Charles W. Hartman , and Philip R. Johnson
Manufacturer: Univ of Washington Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Conservation | Environment | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0295961864

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Chugach National Forest environmental atlas (Alaska Region report)
David Blanchet
Manufacturer: United States Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, Alaska Region
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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ASIN: B00072ZRY0

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A computerized pelagic seabird atlas for Alaska (OCS study)
John F Piatt
Manufacturer: Minerals Management Service
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

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ASIN: B0006RNC52

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Environmental Atlas of Alaska
Charles W. Hartman and Philip R. Johnson
Manufacturer: Univ of Washington Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OS4CXO

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Environmental atlas of Alaska
Charles W.; Johnson, Philip R. Hartman
Manufacturer: Institute of Water Resources/Engineering Experiment Station, University of Alaska
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound
ASIN: B000LH5ELM

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Sensitivity of coastal environments and wildlife to spilled oil, Cook Inlet/Kenai Peninsula, Alaska: An atlas of coastal resources
Jacqueline Michel
Manufacturer: [The Institute]
ProductGroup: Book
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