Madame de Pompadour: A Life

Madame de Pompadour: A Life
Average customer rating:

An engaging, even-handed study of Madame de Pompadour

Very good novel about a very powerful woman

So close, and yet so far...

Madame de Pompadour: A Life
Evelyne Lever
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Book Description

A sumptuous new biography of one of the most famous dangerous liaisons

When Jeanne Antoinette Poisson was a child, a fortune-teller predicted that she would one day be the mistress of a king. Born into the financial bourgeoisie that was a world apart from the royal court, the beautiful Jeanne Antoinette nonetheless fulfilled this prophecy by becoming Madame de Pompadour, the most famous and influential mistress of Louis XV. In this sumptuous biography, Evelyne Lever traces the enduring friendship between the monarch and his favorite, and the far-reaching implications-both personal and political-of their relationship.

Pompadour was devoted to Louis XV, and her contribution to the culture of the age was significant: she was an outstanding singer and actress, entertaining the King and the court in impressive stage productions, and was a longtime patron of the visual arts. She commissioned paintings by Boucher, Nattier, Van Loo, La Tour, and Pigalle, and she formed friendships with many of the philosophers and writers of the period, including Fontenelle, Crébillon, and Voltaire. In effect, she was France's minister of culture at a time when no such position existed. But she was loathed for her role in France's disastrous military losses, and was the victim of persistent court gossip and intrigues.

This vibrant biography sheds new light on the talented and resilient woman who influenced, for better and worse, the fate of a nation.

Customer Reviews:

An engaging, even-handed study of Madame de Pompadour.......2003-01-30

Overall, this is a well-written, engaging portrait of Madame de Pompadour, as well as other important persons of the times, including Louis XV, the aristocracy, Pompadour's family members, etc. We learn much about Pompadour, her personality, how she managed her rise to prominence, the court intrigues. Her involvement in politics and the arts are addressed. I would have liked some more information on other aspects of French society (e.g., life of different social classes, the economy, foreign affairs) than is provided. I recognize that the main point of the book is a focus on Pompadour, yet I believe this additional information would have provided a fuller picture in which to understand Pompadour. Nevertheless, I would defintely recommend this book to a reader who wants to learn more about this important woman and the court life during Louis XV's rein.

Very good novel about a very powerful woman.......2003-01-23

The tremendous research done to write this book is obvious. It is fascinating, though almost too detailed. The reader is bombarded with names and titles that are very hard to keep straight even for someone who speaks French. However, it is a compelling look at the life and era of an influential woman.

So close, and yet so far..........2003-01-21

Having finished this book, I am struck with an uneasy dissatisfaction. Evelyn Lever did a very good job - so far as she went with her subject. But she leaves you hungry for more.

"Madame de Pompadour" is easier reading than similar works by Antonia Fraser, Amanda Foreman, and Alison Weir. Lever cites fewer sources in her text, relying primarily on simple footnotes with little comparison and contrast of conflicting sources. Nor does she go into the specifics or character of her sources, leaving the reader to wonder where the information is really coming from, who said what and why. In some instances, it is difficult to see how Lever came to her conclusions. This makes the book move faster, but it also creates a void in the overall effect.

The backdrop of the French court is not fleshed out with details of the period or placed into greater historical context. the reader is given no real sense of time and place, and this makes the two primary characters - Madame Pompadour and Louis XV - somewhat two dimensional.

As a lover of historical biography and a fan of the scholastic style used by Fraser and the others listed above, I was disappointed. The period and the personality of Jean-Antoinette de Pompadour did not come alive through the reading and I craved more details of her life - what she ate, what she wore, some speculation on *how* her tastes developed.

The detailing of the events of Madame Pompadour's life fall curiously flat. How on Earth did this woman retain the role of offical mistress when she flatly refused to sleep with Louis XV after the first 7 years of their relationship? Lever simply says that the King was "dependent" on her but does not detail why this might have been.

Also, this is the bio of one of the most famous professional courteasans in History - surely a bit more salacious detail was in order? there is practically no speculation or discussion of sex, and let's face it, when we read about a woman who traded her "virtue" for power, a little sex talk is what we're looking for.

I had read in "At Home with the Marquis de Sade" and other texts that the Parisian Police Chief of this time was in the habit of forwarding reports of his spies in the brothels of Paris to Madame Pompadour and the King so that they could enjoy a limited sex life through voyeurism. There was no mention of this in the text, not even to refute the assertion, although Lever cited the same sources as "de Sade," which causes me to speculate that perhaps the author has intentionally avoided this sort of detail.

On the whole, however, it's not a bad book. The details given are indeed fascinating - for example, an examination of royal patronage and the Royal Mistress's role in the development of the French china industry or carefully reconstrcuted descriptions of Madame Pompadour's tastes in antiques and architecture. The photo inserts, tho smallish, do contain some lovely examples of portraiture and Lever gives great attention examining the details in context of the subject's life.

Lever is thankfully not one of those biographers that becomes so infatuated with her subject that she cannot see and discuss her flaws. She reports Madame Pompadour's unpopularity without making a crusade of it, and does manage to bring a soild sketch of Madame Pompadour's personality through, despite the lack of intimate detail.

I would buy this book if you're looking for an easy read and find the details of historical context boring. But if you live for the historical detail and the minute descriptions that make a subject come alive to the reader, best that this book be skipped.

I'm told that there are more scholastically minded books on the market, including one with an introduction by Amanda Foreman. I intend to supplement my reading with these as soon as possible, because this book did convey enough of Madame Pompadour's fascination that I want to read more.

Madame de Pompadour: A Life.
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Madame de Pompadour: A Life.
Evelyne. Lever
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OX23SU

Baseball's Most Wanted II: The Top 10 Book of More Bad Hops, Screwball Players, and Other Oddities (Most Wanted)
Average customer rating:

Mildly amusing trivia

Baseball's Most Wanted II: The Top 10 Book of More Bad Hops, Screwball Players, and Other Oddities (Most Wanted)
Floyd Conner
Manufacturer: Potomac Books Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Book Description

Baseball has so many stars and scrubs, quotables and notables - so many that one book just isn’t enough to cover them all. Enter Baseball's Most Wanted™ II. Starting where Baseball's Most Wanted™ left off, version 2.0 introduces even more colorful characters, inept fielders and hitters, and forgotten stars as well as all the teams, fans, managers, and even announcers who are a vibrant part of baseball’s past, present, and future. You’ll read top-ten lists of the best and worst hitters and pitchers, the most unique memorabilia, and the most obsessed fans.

Learn which president vowed to never play the game again after he got shelled in a semipro game. Find out if Tony Suck lived up to his name or rose above it. Discover the secret lure of the no-hitter and how even usually inept pitchers can catch lightning in a bottle and reach Nirvana. You’ll read about these as well as hundreds of other people, places, and events. With more than sixty lists of trivia to amuse and amaze, Baseball's Most Wanted™ II is a wonderful celebration of America’s love of baseball, warts and all.

Customer Reviews:

Mildly amusing trivia.......2003-06-05

This book presents some mildly amusing baseball trivia and anecdotes. This is an ok book for passing a hour with but it's not going to compete with Bill James. I think this book would be better for kids or teenagers rather than adults

Book Description

New German Cinema: The Images of a Generation explores the context from which the films made by Fassbinder, Wenders, Herzog, von Trotta and others emerged during the late 1960s through to the mid-1980s. It examines the American dominance of the German market place, the development of a film subsidy system, the notion and politics of an Autorenkino, the framework of European art cinema, and distribution and exhibition initiatives that helped facilitate the birth of and shape a new national cinema. The author discusses the way in which the New German Cinema films engaged with contemporary West German reality and how the films can be read as raising important questions about West Germany's self understanding in the postwar era. Although the new cinema was internationally acclaimed, critics were virtually unanimous in declaring its demise in the early 1980s and this study concludes with a consideration of a number of factors that contributed to such a perception.

Customer Reviews:

Jumble Brainbusters: Dare to Jumble (Jumble Brain Busters).......2005-10-25

A paradise for jumble fanatics! The book is a bit heavy on the lap, but it's a wonderful way to pass time on a car trip.

Would recommend for anyone who loves jumbles. There are move jumbles in every puzzles verses the Newspapers version. Some are hard most are very common words.

Another Great Jumble Book.......2003-08-10

This book is awesome. I bought the first four books in the series and they've been getting better and better. David L. Hoyt, who creates the Jumble Crosswords in my local Boston newspaper also creates these puzzles. I love all of David L. Hoyt's puzzles and I certainly recommend this book. I am a puzzle nut. This is my favorite puzzle book. I hope he's already working on volume six.

I Can See You Naked
Average customer rating:

The Naked Truth

Full of Helpful Tips

Goes for style over substance

One of the best !

Needed more examples

I Can See You Naked
Ron Hoff
Manufacturer: Andrews McMeel Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Customer Reviews:

The Naked Truth.......2007-02-27

This book was one of my sources for my masters thesis: "A Systematic Approach to Making Presentations in a Corporate and Sales Environment." You can probably find some useful information in all of these books, but this one was the least effective for me.

The author suggests that one way to overcome nervousness is to imagine that your audience is naked. Hence, the provocative title. For the nervous presenter, it would be completely distracting to imagine your audience in the nude.

I eagerly turned to the part about "presence" or "charisma," not having been able to find an empirical definition for one. To my disappointment, the author gave an example of what it wasn't. Any definition he wrote, wasn't memorable.

So, here are my three suggestions for presenters and trainers:

* Never show up twenty minutes late to teach Time Management. No matter what you say, your credibility is shot to hell.

* Never pop in the video or DVD and turn the lights out, especially after lunch. (You'll never get them back.)

* ENSURE that you turn off the battery pack to your lapel microphone before using the restroom. (The speakers are still in the room.)

Recommendation for the book? It can't hurt, but read some of the more glowing reviews before you decide.

Full of Helpful Tips.......2006-12-24

I am terrified of giving presentations. Even when I get together with people I have known for years, I become afraid if I have to stand up in front of them all and discuss a topic. All those eyeballs staring at me - I just know I will say something stupid, or they will lose interest in my discussion. I begin to shake and forget what I am going to say.

With "I Can See You Naked", Ron Hoff tries to ease the fear of public speaking - a fear that studies say is the most common fear in the US. It's more common than the fear of death, or heights! We all worry about what others think. While death might be far off, if you're standing in front of a group, their disapproval is right there, staring you in the face. With the average attention span being 10 seconds or less, if you're not actively engaging your group, you can lose them quickly.

While this book seems aimed at people giving a sales speech to businesspeople, there are certainly enough tips in here to help out casual speakers, trainers, and other people who have to speak in front of groups. There are hints on a warm-up routine. Advice about what to do the night before. Information about catching your audience's attention and keeping it. Warning signs in body language to watch out for. How to deal with bad situations, from faulty equipment to cranky audience members.

Sure, some of this advice is common sense - but other of it is quite helpful. Just having a list of options to try can be extremely helpful. There are suggestions about what to do with your hands, what to wear, how to say things.

One book will never solve all of a public speaker's fears. Only time and practice will do that. However, it really did help to read the book, and to get some concrete ideas of things to try to make things easier.

Well recommended.

Goes for style over substance.......2006-03-24

I have no doubt that Hoff makes wonderful presentations, but he's written the book as though he's making a presentation. The techniques of effective writing are very different from those of effective speaking. Hoff takes pages and pages to make even the simplest point, something that could have been communicated in three sentences perfectly well. He can't simply just come out and state a something and be content with the fact that he's just shared something extremely useful. He comes off as trying to entertain more than inform. If you're making a presentation to high school students, maybe that's a good idea. But after 50 pages in a book, it starts to feel incredibly condescending. If you want a book that assumes you're reasonably intelligent, don't buy this one.

One of the best !.......2006-02-11

To prepare my presentations, I went through a dozen books on presentation skills. This book turns on the light bulb! The carton illustrations throughout the book are funny and strike. Just give you an example of how practical the techniques are. I actually used something I learned from this book helped my little daughter on her life crisis. When she told me about other kids were teasing her at school. She had tears in her eyes. I told her to laugh with them the next time. She said, "Are you kidding? How could I!!?". "Just imagine they are ..., looking funny, use your imagination.". Later she told me it worked! And most important, it changed her attitude!

Needed more examples.......2005-06-13

I am a trainer and thought this book might help me with my presentation skills, but it seems to me it is geared toward sales presentations. I found some useful tidbits here and there, but overall it wasn't worth my time.

I also think the book needs more examples of what to do correctly. It gives plenty of ideas of what not to do, but few ideas of what to do instead. Only one or two chapters really give good ideas on "fixing your weaknesses."

I Can See You Naked: A New Revised Edition of the National Bestsellers on Making Fearless Presentations

Average customer rating:

One of the best...

I Can See You Naked: A New Revised Edition of the National Bestsellers on Making Fearless Presentations
Ron Hoff
Manufacturer: Andrews Mcmeel Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Customer Reviews:

One of the best..........2007-04-30

...books in the "training" industry. I use these practices in all my training sessions and presentations.

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CAN SEE YOU NAKED, I
Ron Hoff
Manufacturer: Andrews and McMeel
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NTMG1E

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I Can See You Naked
Hoff Ron
Manufacturer: Andrews and McMeel
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000LC0TZI

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I CAN SEE YOU NAKED
HOFF RON
Manufacturer: ANDREWS & MCMEEL
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I Can See You Naked
Ron Hoff
Manufacturer: Andrews and McMeel
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ASIN: B000QXAH86

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I Can See You Naked -
Ron Hoff -
Manufacturer: Universal Press -
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000QS46SS

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I Can See You Naked: A New Revised Edition of the National Bestsellers on Making Fearless Presentations
Ron Hoff
Manufacturer: Andrews McMeel Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NXWWQ4

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I Can See You Naked
Ron Hoff
Manufacturer: Andrews and Mcmeel
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000GR4VWA

'i Can See You Naked' - A New Revised Edition Of The National Bestseller On Making Fearless Presentations

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'i Can See You Naked' - A New Revised Edition Of The National Bestseller On Making Fearless Presentations
Ron Hoff
Manufacturer: Andrews and Mcmeel
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000JZYHV4

Amazon.com

In her mid-30s Helen Fremont discovered that, although she had been raised in the Midwest as a Catholic, she was in fact the daughter of Polish Jews whose families had been exterminated in the Holocaust. Fremont's tender but unsparing memoir chronicles the voyage of discovery she took with her older sister, ferreting out information from Jewish organizations and individuals and worrying about its impact on their angry, overpowering father and reticent, nightmare-plagued mother. Fremont has the courage to paint a nearly unsympathetic portrait of her parents' secretiveness and initial reluctance to have their children dredge up the past; as the narrative unfolds, readers comprehend the tormented roots of their behavior without forgetting the psychological problems it created for their daughters. Fremont's re-creation of her parents' ghastly ordeals--her mother narrowly escaping the murder of nearly every Jew in her hometown; her father surviving six years in the Soviet gulag--is a triumph of dogged research and sympathetic imagination. Her book tells a deeply American story of identity lost and reclaimed, complete with Fremont coming out to her parents as a lesbian, yet it also achieves understanding of the dark European past and its icy grip on her family. --Wendy Smith

Book Description

"To this day, I don't even know what my mother's real name is."

Helen Fremont was raised as a Roman Catholic. It wasn't until she was an adult, practicing law in Boston, that she discovered her parents were Jewish--Holocaust survivors living invented lives. Not even their names were their own. In this powerful memoir, Helen Fremont delves into the secrets that held her family in a bond of silence for more than four decades, recounting with heartbreaking clarity a remarkable tale of survival, as vivid as fiction but with the resonance of truth.

Driven to uncover their roots, Fremont and her sister pieced together an astonishing story: of Siberian Gulags and Italian royalty, of concentration camps and buried lives. After Long Silence is about the devastating price of hiding the truth; about families; about the steps we take, foolish or wise, to protect ourselves and our loved ones. No one who reads this book can be unmoved, or fail to understand the seductive, damaging power of secrets.

What Fremont and her sister discover is an astonishing story: one of Siberian gulags and Italian royalty, of concentration camps and buried lives. AFTER LONG SILENCE is about the devastating price of hiding the truth; about families; about the steps we take, foolish or wise, to protect ourselves and our loved ones. No one who reads this book can be unmoved, or fail to understand the seductive, damaging power of secrets. -->

Customer Reviews:

A daughter's discovery of her Jewish identity.......2007-05-14

From today's perspective, it is difficult to comprehend just why a couple who survived the Holocaust would hide their Jewish identify from their daughters for years, insisting that they are Polish Catholic refugees in the USA. This memoir, however, explains how their fear of a repeat pogrom drives them to deny their heritage, keep secret their loss of religious identify, and assuage their horrific memories and guilt at surviving.Fremont and her sister's quest to discover the truth causes their parents much pain, but the author is clear that the family's pain had dominated their lives since birth.

Lawyer who knew nothing about the Holocaust or War World II? .......2006-04-11

I was very surprised to learn that Helen Fremont was able to become a lawyer and knew nothing about the Holocaust. What kind of education did she obtain? How was it possible that she wasn't interested in her parent's history? Even if they were Roman Catholics.
Book is full of historical errors (Warsaw was captured within hours, it was safer to be a Pole in the streets a Lvov during the German invasion)
It bothered me that the street names were Misspelled (Owacowa instead of Owocowa, Mariacki Platz insead of Plac Mariacki)
The story itself was very interesting. I wish however it was written by her parents.

"After Long Silence".......2006-01-07

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It is a real eye opener even after years of hearing, learning, and reading about the Holocaust. I plan to read it again.

A ploy to sell out her parents and tell the world she's homosexual........2005-08-01

This book was required reading my first year in college. It eneded up consuming the entire year in a depessing and dire atmosphere. Every class we talked about the book, it's themes, it's techniques.

Never once did anyone dare to say they disliked the story. How could you say you disliked a personal story about the Holocaust and the ending in which she relays to the entire world that she is homosexual. You couldn't voice an oppinion against this at the risk of being "A Nazi" or a "Homophobe".

I'm risking that to tell every person here that this story was terrible. It was about the author harassing her Holocaust surviving parents over and over again about their terrible ordeal. They wanted to have it in the past, over with, gone, and forgotten. The memories were too hard to dredge up and frankly they were none of their daughter's business. BUT the author Sherlock's the information and writes this book. She then said in the end that she was homosexual when this information had nothing to do with the story. The entire book was a way to "come out" with all the stress on her parents and none on herself.

This indeed was a sad story, but because of the desparate and self centered needs of the author. It's easy to have a best seller when you make your subject matter a taboo subject to disagree with.

Read it if you want and form your own opinions. This is just mine.

A second generation Holocaust memoir.......2005-06-21

After Long Silence by Helen Fremont is a second generation Holocaust memoir. The author's mother and aunt survived the Holocaust by disguising themselves as Polish Catholics in Italy. Her father escaped from Soviet Siberia and walked across Europe at the end of the war to join the sisters in Rome.

What makes this story so interesting is that, after the war the sisters never came out of hiding as Catholics and convinced the author's father to maintain the pretense as well. They migrated to the USA and had two daughters that they raised as Catholics. It is only when the daughters are in their 30s that they start to suspect that their parents are keeping something from them.

Helen Fremont blends together the two stories of her and her sister uncovering their parents Jewish past and their parents Holocaust survivor tale in a wonderful way that shows the intergenerational impact of lies and deception in a way that is still sensitive to her parents' desire to put the past behind them.

Average customer rating:

After Long Silence
Sheri S. Tepper
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HTQ1GG

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AFTER LONG SILENCE.
Michael. STRAIGHT
Manufacturer: NORTON
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0002170019

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A Description!
When will this be back in print!!???
One of Tepper's first and most unusual worlds
Great world creation
Insightful, a little slow, but a climactic denouement

AFTER LONG SILENCE (Spectra Series)
Sheri S. Tepper
Manufacturer: Spectra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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Release Date: 1987-11-01

Customer Reviews:

A Description!.......2006-03-22

From Back Cover:

The Presences mean something different to each of Jubal's colonists. In some, these towering crystals inspire awe, in others fear. A small bank must break through the long silence between humanity and the Presences to strike a new alliance - and bring about the end of a tyranical dynasty.

When will this be back in print!!???.......2004-07-27

Vintage Tepper. And a lovely piece of work it is.

Jubal, a planet in the process of colonization by humans, is a world full of strange and wonderful things, some amusing, some dangerous. The Presences, large crystalline structures scattered throughout the land, are dangerous, and they are everywhere, preventing easy travel between settlements. They can be passed only with the aid of a Tripsinger, a trained vocalist and musician who accompanies a group of travelers and, in essence, sings the party past the fragile crystal mountains. Each structure requires a different song; the song seems to set up some sort of counter-resonance peculiar to the individual structure that prevents the crystal from fracturing due to the vibrations made by the mules, wagons, and humans as they pass. Even one wrong note could cause a potentially fatal shatter. One structure, called Enigma, has thus far proven impassable: no one has discovered the proper song which will allow safe passage. Except, perhaps, one person.

And then there are those who want to see the Presences destroyed because they hinder free trade and easy commerce. A strange cult which worships the Presences has also arisen. Amid much intra-planetary politics, money grubbing, and, umm, a few alluded-to deviant sex games, the fates of Jubal and the Presences will be decided.

In this early novel, Tepper establishes some of her touchstone themes which she continues to develop in her later work: responsible use of natural resources; religious fanaticism; tolerance of differences; human (and non-human) rights.

Tepper's vivid imagination stands her in good stead here. As a trained vocalist myself, I was intrigued by the notion of literally singing for one's life. How would the knowledge that one wrong note could kill affect the quality of my song? I was captivated by the viggies, small indigenous mammalian-like creatures, who are so much more than they seem. As are the Presences themselves, beautiful and deadly and awe-inspiring.

My only quibble with the story is insufficient information on the cult of the Crystallites. Did they want to preserve the Presences? Or were they allied with those who wished to destroy them? Either I missed it or Tepper never made clear what precisely was their purpose, their agenda. The agenda of the leaders was made quite clear, but not the purpose of the cult they established -- what was the propaganda they preached? At any rate, it's a relatively minor quibble in an otherwise wonderful read.

While surfing about the internet, I discovered this book has an alternate title, The Enigma Score. A rose by any other name, etc. etc. [grin]

One of Tepper's first and most unusual worlds.......2002-12-13

While I found this book confusing at first, as I persevered the story gradually crystalized. That's an appropriate way of putting it, as the book is set on a planet filled with lovely but fractile crystal structures that shatter, killing foot travellers. The trip singers have created soothing musical sounds to play to each structure, which allow passage. But are the singers commuicating with the crystals and are the crystals a new form of intelligent life? If so, planetary exploitation can be halted.

Tepper has a great imagination and creates believable situations that speak into our own time and lives as well.

I was ultimately caught up in the dilemma and found the conclusion immensely satisfying. Worth hanging on through the initially confusing stages, for the characters are ultimately well developed and the reader cares what happens to them.

Great world creation.......2002-11-03

Tepper is one of the best SF writers at creating worlds and the aliens that inhabit them. Her aliens nearly always have real depth to them and a real impact on her storylines besides the usual shoot-em-up space opera SF. This book in particular [surprised] me because I wasn't sure I was going to like it after the first couple of chapters but I ended up amazed at her handling of humans and aliens and plots. This was my 2nd Tepper book (after Sideshow) and by the end of this book I was determined to read everything she'd ever written. Still am, too! I loaned this to my sister and it had the same effect on her even tho she's not as much of an SF fan as I am, so I would recommend this as an introduction to Tepper too.

Insightful, a little slow, but a climactic denouement.......2000-08-25

(yes, I meant the pun in the title. read the book, re-read my review, it'll seem funnier. really.)

Tepper, when asked why so many of her stories had small furry creatures who sing in them, said 'Cats singing on my desk as I work.'

I read this book when I was 15, and I have to admit, it was a helpful thing to learn; that everyone remembers things differently, and only by pooling our stories can we possibly attempt to reach the truth.

The book is a little slow to start; revealment is layered, and occasionally could be sped up a little. Additionally, like many of Tepper's early books, the bad guys is bad. Her more recent bad guys tend to have a little more depth.

After Long Silence a Memoir
Average customer rating:
After Long Silence a Memoir

Manufacturer: Recorded Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette
ASIN: B000FTADIU

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After Long Silence

Manufacturer: Popular Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000FJLZ9Q

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After Long Silence
Michael Straight
Manufacturer: W W Norton & Co Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Last Of The Cold War Spies: The Life of Michael Straight

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After Long Silence
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After Long Silence
Robert Gutwillig
Manufacturer: Popular Giant
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000TZ5BYG

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After Long Silence
Helen Frement
Manufacturer: Recorded Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette
ASIN: B000K3SXZQ

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after long silence
robert gutwilig
Manufacturer: little brown n comp
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000U7CWHC

Book Description

The war of 1776-83 brought the establishment of the United States and the end of the first British Empire. From start to finish, this book uses the latest research to tell the complete story. It includes the land battles and naval conflicts, biographies of the major leaders and heroes of the Revolution, and a comprehensive chronology of events.

Customer Reviews:

1776.......2005-01-04

Overall, this is a good book by a superb author, however, it has its flaws in its ommissions.

I susppect the Eurowhining about how people should be Government tax sheep who exist only for them to fleece might explain some of it, but he really does forget things, especially about Americans.

1. The author goes to great lengths to say what litttle in taxes americans paid but forgets what little cash the British empire allowed americans to circulate, always shipping it home and sending letters of credit to sop what else was on hand. Because of that we were basicly a barter economy.

Paper money was all we had, redeamable in each other's debts.

2. He forgets that after the French and Indian wars, many Americans like Benjamin Franklin actually expected we would have direct representation in Parliment. Brits refused, possibly because of one little study of his. Apparently American women had more children. Families of ten were usual.Families of with twenty five kids were not unheard of. The population doubled every twenty years. And then there was immigration. Apparently the Brits figured in time America would own Parliment, as most of the population would come to live here.

Taxation without Represenation was our grievance. No place in Parliment for Americans than no right of Parliemnt to tax Americans.

3. He forgets things like the Iron Act which prohibeted Americans from developing the vast resources of our land to our own enrichment.

4. He forgets that many Americans saw in the ENCLOSURE ACT the future of things to come from Britain. What was going on in Britain was merely what would come our way soon. And then there was what was going on in Ireland. Many displaced Englishmen and Irish were coming across the waters to settle, having been literally driven off their own homelands.

I suppose we could all blaim this all on Clive. When he pillaged India without having to do anything for the locals. Just attack take over and tax the stuffing out of everything and everyone. Treat the locals like dirty savages. He certainly showed the way to Parliment and the Crown. The way of conqest. The way of exploitation. The opium wars of China and the Concentraiton camps of South Africa.

We Americans just didn't care to be treated this way, and were willing to fight.

what they never told you in school.......2003-08-28

The American Revolution, has brought me back to my younger years with history, it is well illustrated and has complete layouts of terrain, it is definatly a good book for anyone who values history.

Barbarians Inside the Gates: The Black Book of Bolshevism
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a new vision

The Hard Edge of Reality

Barbarians Inside the Gates: The Black Book of Bolshevism
Donn de Grand Pre
Manufacturer: G S G & Associates Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Customer Reviews:

a new vision.......2005-02-08

An amazing book,you get chills when you find out who is really in charge,donn is an amazing writer,he takes you threw it all,he refines your thinking,buy it.,m.b

The Hard Edge of Reality.......2004-08-16

I`ve read all three books By Col.Donn de-Grand Pre, Barbarians Inside the Gates. I can only say to every red bloodied American out there that you must read these books. Why? It appears life as we know it for Americans is at a crossroad. WE`ve been duped on the World Trade Center attack from the beginning. We are being led by evil-powers within our gates that seek our ruin and have sent our brave American warriors to die fighting under the guise of patriotism to do their bidding. A coup d`etat has occurred within our government and 2,000 plus of our people were murdered at the World Trade Center while we pursue the wrong enemy. Our young warriors are dying daily fighting an enemy that had nothing to do with the World Trade Center. If corrective change does not occur now I fear we will lose our nation and our freedom. Speaking as veteran and a patriot, buy the books,....... prepare yourself and do it for your children. Capt.U.S.M.C.

Book Description

Techniques for Wildlife Investigations emphasizes the design of field studies and the statistical inferences that can be made from observed changes in animal abundance and populations. The information presented here is of value not only for wildlife management but also for social and economic decision-making related to the environmental effects of human activities on wildlife populations. Biologists, ecologists, biometricians, fish and game managers will find this book invaluable in their work.

Key Features
* Provides quantitative criteria for designing effective field experiments
* Offers statistical methods for analyzing mark--recapture data
* Gives examples and recommendations for implementing field studies

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