Highlites and Shadows

Customer Reviews:

A MAKEUP MASTERPIECE!.......2003-08-06

Doug Kelly, a veteran Hollywood makeup artist, worked with and personally knew most of the major movie stars of his day, and in this great book reveals secrets and stories about them and his co-workers that will keep you intrigued and amused throughout the reading. Kelly throws some light on Hedy Lamar, John Wayne, Janet Leigh, Judy Garland, and many, many others, with truly historic recollections of some great times with some great artists. Doug Kelly also takes us behind the glamor veil and exposes the often-ugly underbelly of the movie "industry", with more than a touch of well-honed cynicism. This is a book you will read more than once, and recommend to your friends. I have, and I did!

Book Description

He was the winner of 511 major league baseball games, nearly a hundred more than any other pitcher. He threw three no-hitters, including the first perfect game in the new American League. He was among the original twelve players inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame, and his name is now attached to the game's most prestigious pitching award. Yet for all his accomplishments, Cy Young remains to most baseball fans a legendary but little known figure.

In this book, Reed Browning re-creates the life of Denton True "Cyclone" Young and places his story in the context of a rapidly changing turn-of-the-century America. Born in rural Ohio, the son of a Civil War veteran, Young learned his trade at a time when only underhand pitching was permitted. When he began his professional career in 1890, pitchers wore no gloves and stood five feet closer to the batter than they do today. By the time he retired in 1911, the game of baseball had evolved into its modern form and claimed unquestioned status as America's "national pastime."

As Browning shows, Young's extraordinary mastery of his craft owed much to his ability to adapt to the changing nature of the game. Endowed with an exceptional fastball, he gradually developed a wide array of deliveries and pitches-all of which he could throw with astonishing control. Yet his success can also be attributed, at least in part, to the rustic values of loyalty, hard work, and fair play that he embraced and embodied, and for which he became renowned among baseball fans of his day.

Customer Reviews:

Baseball history.......2007-10-21

We are very interested in baseball's history, so this book is a welcome addtion to our library.

An excellent biography of a very respectable player.......2007-09-21

Cy Young spent most of his life in a small Ohio village. He left in 1890 to play baseball for the Cleveland Spiders, and returned in 1912 after racking up a truly impressive pitching career: 511 wins, pitched the first perfect game, won more than 30 games a season five times.

This modern biography (written in 2000) is equally impressive for focusing on his baseball career instead of making spurious accusations about his psychological makeup and personal life. It also gives an excellent historical background and explanation of the rule changes during the period, and touches on a few personal areas without going into excessive detail; his life from 1867-1890 and 1912-1955 is covered in just two chapters.

Of the six baseball biographies I've read recently it truly stands out. The author did a great job of explaining how baseball worked back then, both in terms of the game itself and the teams/managers--and, as you can imagine, professional baseball was more than a wee bit different in 1890 than it is today. He uses copious references and footnotes, and makes it clear when he's speculating rather than writing based on fact. (In particular we don't know for sure what player salaries were like during the time. He has a helpful appendix explaining his reasoning.)

If you have any interest in baseball history pre-1920, or are just curious, it's well worth reading. It's one of the best modern biographies I've read.

The best baseball bio available.......2006-10-30

Reed Browning set the model for baseball bios, and it's too bad the scores of works that have come out since this volume have not been up to the mark set. Mr. Browning is a history professor, but other professors who have written about their favorite players have been less accurate and unbiased. Browning has done his homework thoroughly and with no errors. Of course, with Cy Young it's easier to be unbiased and still show him to be among the greatest of all time.
Browning has the perfect combination: all the detail about Cy Young's personal life he could get and keep the book flowing; all the baseball anecdotes worth telling; a fine writing style; and all the live action game and year by year stats and events you can want.

Excellent Job.......2005-10-20

Considering the lack of material, Mr. Browning does an excellent job recounting Cy Young's life. While he is forced to make a number of guesses, they are all well reasoned. Some biographies give a game by game description of what the subject did year by year. Mr. Browning thankfully does not do that, instead focusing on the high points of each year. The book includes a number of informative discussions about the evolution of the rules in the late 19th/early 20th centuries.

Descent read.......2005-10-09

Browning does a great job for the subject he had. I loved the amount of information. The research seems to show that Young was a nice guy to know, but he wasn't very entertaining himself. I think Browning does well in telling Young's story and I recommend it to anyone interested in either Young or early baseball history. That said don't expect a feature movie out of it. My only real complaint of the book itself is that the material to tell the full story seems almost nonexistent so Browning is forced to do some guess work.

Book Description

As the popularity of film grew and audiences demanded longer stories, Hollywood began borrowing plots as well as actors and directors from Broadway—some of these play-to-films were triumphs and others were inexplicable duds. This reference work is an annotated guide to American stage productions remade for film and television, with works ranging from late 19th-century American plays and musicals, through silent and sound films, to made-for-video productions by PBS, A&E, HBO, and others.

Each alphabetically listed entry provides complete credits for the play or musical: date, theatre, playwright, cast (with characters) and crew, length of run, along with choreographer, song titles, and authors of the score where available. The screen versions follow, listing alternate titles, date, studio, screenwriter, cast (with characters), director, and producer. Each entry concludes with detailed commentary on the productions; it describes what changes occurred between the formats, determines the strengths and weaknesses of each, judges the success of the transition, and describes how the end product was received. A bibliography and name and title indexes complete this cross-referenced work.

Customer Reviews:

Firstrate Chess Book for Children.......2001-09-12

This is by far the best book I've seen to teach children chess. Like most children's books, it covers the moves of the pieces with algebraic notation.
However, the guts of the book is giving a child systematic experience with the pieces. It starts with the "Pawns Game." Only the pawns are set on the board and each player plays with the goal of getting one pawn through to the last rank. This is anything but a dumb experience. Games like Knights & pawn game follow until the child is using the whole board.

Chess for Children step by step: a new easy, way to learn the game

Average customer rating:

Chess for Children step by step: a new easy, way to learn the game
William, International Gamemaster, & Bette Marshall Lombardy
Manufacturer: Little Brown & Co (Juv Pap)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OU1YGA

Average customer rating:

Chess for Children Step By Step: a New, Easy Way to Learn the Game
William and Bette Marshall Lombardy
Manufacturer: Little, Brown
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OU1YSI

Book Description

Authors Nancy Vonk and Janet Kestin are seasoned creative directors and longtime creative partners. In Pick Me, these industry leaders answer your toughest ad career questions, like:

Is advertising right for me?
How do I build a killer portfolio?
How do I get an interview with the elusive creative director?
Should I accept an unpaid internship?
How do I find the right partner?
How do I beat creative block?
How do I avoid burnout?

Plus, fourteen industry superstars share their insights and explain how they broke into the business. You'll hear from Bob Barrie, Rick Boyko, David Droga, Mark Fenske, Neil French, Sally Hogshead, Mike Hughes, Shane Hutton, Brian Millar, Tom Monahan, Chuck Porter, Bob Scarpelli, Chris Staples, and Lorraine Tao.

Forget the clichés this is advertising as it really is. If you're hell-bent on making it, this informative guide will put you on track for a career in one of the most exciting businesses on the planet.

Download Description

Advertising is a fantastic industry, but actually getting a job (or even your foot in the door) can seem next to impossible. Whether you're a student or a young professional loaded with questions, this one-of-a-kind guide shows you how to land a job and how to thrive once you're in and the pressure is on. Authors Nancy Vonk and Janet Kestin are seasoned creative directors and longtime creative partners. In Pick Me, these industry leaders answer your toughest ad career questions, like: Is advertising right for me? How do I build a killer portfolio? How do I get an interview with the elusive creative director? Should I accept an unpaid internship? How do I find the right partner? How do I beat creative block? How do I avoid burnout?

Customer Reviews:

Great preview of the ad agency culture........2007-01-18

The book is easy to read. It gives an overview of the ad business as well as the culture, attitude, and career opportunities that are unique to this business.

The only drawback for me was the fact that everything was based from a Creative Director's point of view. I would have liked to see some perspective from Account Executives, Copywriters, etc.

Brief insight to a complicated field.......2006-03-17

I'd give it more of a 3.5. Lots of practical advice about making it in the field. Only reason it scored lower is because it could've benefitted a little more samples and some more advertising resouces like the RedBook and such. Easy read.

But Wait ! There's More !!.......2005-10-01

How do you get into advertising?
Where are the best schools and what makes them the best?
Where are the best ad agencies and what makes them the best?
Right out of school, should you hold out for a good job, or take anything that moves?
What is your best strategy for asking for a raise?
What makes an award winning ad?
What about sex in ads?

These are among the mountain of questions answered in this small, engaging and well written book. Vonk and Kestin are internationally recognized, award winning, advertising industry leaders. They are astute in their advice to ad business wannabes. They are generous in praise of their accomplished mentors and peers. The book includes examples of killer ads. A dozen or more mega-creatives have added their own take on the business of producing arresting and effective advertising - and how to break into the business.

A volume by ad executives on the subject of advertising must be inventive, accessible and effective. PICK ME does not disappoint. The book is very well edited, and well conceived. It includes selected questions and answers from the authors' "Ask Jancy" internet column. (Search ihaveanidea and you will get a flavor of the rich content of the book.)

So many books by commercial hotshots are all about me, me and more me! This one, written with a light touch, is about you, the reader, and your place in the ad universe - if you hanker for a place in that particular cosmos.

The casual style underscores the writers' own creativity. Insights are found not only in the writing of Kestin and Vonk. The contributions of other ad greats also put inventiveness on impressive display. Wisdom that does not try to call attention to itself is a rare pleasure in a nonfiction book.

But wait! There's more!! An ad industry book that is a beautiful collaboration, that emphasizes (with examples) the brilliance of others, that never loses sight of its instructional objective - such a book is about getting into and advancing in any business or profession. A good example is the brief chapter on women in advertising. Every idea presented is applicable to women (and men) in any business or profession. Every question is answered economically. Not a word is wasted.

PICK ME is written with a light touch, by insiders for insiders and outsiders alike. Don't miss it.

Richard Cook, Esq
Baltimore, MD

What a great book........2005-09-27

I haven't even finished reading this book yet and am logging on to tell students, interns, and all people new to the ad biz, buy this book. Buy it even before you buy the one I wrote ("Hey Whipple, Squeeze This. - A Guide To Creating Great Ads"). I'm serious. Well, okay, buy this one first. But then buy TWO copies of "Hey Whipple."

a gem.......2005-09-07

this is one very cool little book. excellent stuff. the chapter by ad (and web) wizard Brian Millar -- on how do do great creative without any talent! -- is worth the price of admission. highly recommended.

chris locke, co-author The Cluetrain Manifesto, author Gonzo Marketing

Book Description

The House of Windsor is a big business, though one with more ups and downs than the stock market. Prince Philip calls it “The Firm,” and all the royal executives and their powerful associates are supposed to make every effort to avoid even a hint of scandal that could diminish the reputation of the family business.

Unfortunately for the royals, for the past twenty years scandal and controversy have deluged the Queen’s family, putting everything at risk. Focusing primarily on the years after the death of Diana and leading up to the heir to the throne’s marriage to Camilla Parker Bowles this past April 9th, royal insider Penny Junor offers a sympathetic yet utterly candid look at a family that has made itself the world’s soap opera in THE FIRM: The Troubled Life of the House of Windsor.

Can “The Firm” survive much longer? Will Charles or even William decide that the throne is not worth the trouble? Can this, the ultimate family business, weather this storm of spiritual (though not fiscal) bankruptcy, or will momentum and a cadre of brilliant advisors keep the enterprise in business for years to come?

THE FIRM investigates the Family’s relationship with government, the press and the people. It looks at whether the institution can reach out to those, particularly the young, who see the House of Windsor as insignificant. It asks, in short, whether the British monarchy has a future.

Penny Junor knows the answers in this sure-to-be controversial book—the first to be published on the newly restructured royal family.

Customer Reviews:

Yawn.......2007-10-11

I love things about the royal family. But this book put me to sleep faster than a double dose of Ambian.
Penny is a Prince Of Wales fan, through and through. And she quite likes Camilla. This felt like reading a book written by the Prince's PR machine.
The most disappointing book about the Windsors ever. Too much minutia and not enough substance. I agree, check it out of the library! Caution. DO NOT BUY!

Queen.......2007-03-08

Before watching the film -title Queen ý'D like to have some ideas about the Royal family and ý think Watching the film after having o good idea about the family and their sufferings of being a member of a royal family will give me a total understanding and pleasure of knownig what you are going to watch.
The book is perfect

The Daily Grind of Being a Monarch.......2006-11-11

Junor describes the nuts and bolts of how this institution runs. She covers the funding, the ownership, the organizational structure, how the ceremonies are arranged, how often chandeliers are cleaned. We get sketches of the principals and their staffs and their frustrations in managing their images through the fallout of Diana's star power and other less momentuous set backs.

I didn't know that the monarch can dissolve parliament and declare war, nor of the other powers on p. 398; nor did I understand the foundation (very loose) of the Commonwealth (p.289).

While there is a lot of information, it is not well organized. I didn't know what a lot of things were. Some are not explained, but some are explained in later chapters. This not very good organization and long quotes, make the book seem very much like it's been cut and pasted from previous columns and interviews.

The last chapter, discussing the future of this monarchy, gives some comparative information and contains a lot of quotes. It's a disappointment, because this chapter should have been substantive.

The current family has made itself relevant through charitable work, recognizing national achievement, being interesting to tourists and being helpful to the British Department of State. They (and their staffs) put in long hours, and are no doubt dedicated to their country and their work. It seems to me that this institution will probably fade when a generation of monarchs, themselves, tire of it.

Not much new information.......2005-09-01

Although the reading was easy and interesting there was not much new information to learn. Also, it seemed as though the author needed pages of quoted information from others just to fill up the book time after time again. I would recommend checking the book out of the library rather than buying it.

Journalistic mishmash.......2005-08-24

While this book does contain some new and interesting information; on the whole it clearly is not historiography in any normal sense of the term. The book reads like a series of newspaper columns untouched by editing or a thematic approach.
The author does however, as they say in the tabloids, 'name names' (whether or not the average reader knows who they are.)
As a piece of gossip and current events it bears reading; but a reader looking for serious scholarship or even decent biography should wait for the paperback edition.

The Firm: The Troubled Life of the House of Windsor

Average customer rating:

The Firm: The Troubled Life of the House of Windsor
Penny Junor
Manufacturer: Thomas Dunne Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OTHVV8

Book Description

Features extensive color artwork
Contains thoroughly researched text with technical specifications

Since humans first ventured into battle, they have sought ways to protect themselves against their enemy's weapons. This search for protection led to the development of helmets, breastplates, shields, and close-fitting protectors for limbs. With advancements in technology and weaponry, body armor has evolved from the tunics of chain mail to the use of tough, lightweight materials that stop bullets and protect against toxic weapons and radiation. Brassey's Book of Body Armor is an informative military history that documents the use and development of armor throughout the ages.

Average customer rating:

Not As Simple As It May First Appear

This should be required reading before entering college!

First Principles: A Primer of Ideas for the College Bound Student
Hugh Hewitt
Manufacturer: Regnery Publishing, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
General | Sociology | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
General | College & University | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
College | By Level | Education | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

In, But Not Of: A Guide to Christian Ambition

The Embarrassed Believer: Reviving Christian Witness inan Age of Unbelief

A Mormon in the White House?: 10 Things Every American Should Know about Mitt Romney

If It's Not Close, They Can't Cheat: Crushing the Democrats in Every Election and Why Your Life Depends on It

Painting the Map Red: The Fight to Create a Permanent Republican Majority

ASIN: 0895267934

Book Description

This is the book everyone wishes he had been given before going off to college: an intellectual primer on all of today's basic issues--defense, poverty, ethics, race, money, and religion.

Customer Reviews:

Not As Simple As It May First Appear.......2005-07-12

This is Hugh Hewitt's first book and is specifically directed towards the college-bound student. It makes a very direct, common sense approach to a surprisingly wide group of items associated with American life and history for such a small book. At that level, it is a very easy read. However, Hugh cannot ignore his lawyerly training and presents alternatives, implications, and the `why' of certain decisions. This is a terrific introduction to critical thinking for a college bound student. It wouldn't hurt for the parents to get a copy for themselves.

This should be required reading before entering college!.......1999-01-14

Mr. Hewitt has shown himself to be an outstanding author. He is prescient in light of other similar, and very successful books, such as "The Moral Compass." Unfortunately, the people who need this book the most (college undergrads) are quite unlikely to ever hear about, much less see it on a college campus. It is balanced, and illustrates, by example, that it is honorable to take a stand and discern between right and wrong. The book uses some dated examples and therefore needs desparately to be updated. Even so, I couldn't recommend it highly enough.

Customer Reviews:

The life story of a gentle man who specializes in trust.......2004-08-21

Satish Kumar is one of my favourite scholars on ecological matters. He's the founder of Schumacher College in Devon, U.K. where you can participate in a wide variety of ecological courses. He's also editor of Resurgence, a magazine covering the latest developments in quantum sciences, ecological highlights and other heart matters. His book covers the amazing story of his life, including his peace walk from New Delhi (India) to Washington D.C. Instructed by his spiritual master to trust God for providing all he needed, he walked for over two years without a penny in his pocket. A must-read for everyone who is in search of some more trust in life.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books