Thomas Basin 1412-1490: The History of Charles VII & Louis XI (Bibliotheca Humanistica & Reformatorica, 57)

Book Description

Brendan Shanahan, the six-time NHL All-Star is profiled. This book will give the reader a glimpse of Brendan's early years, his stints in New Jersey, St. Louis and Hartford, and his two championship seasons in Detroit. The seventh book in the Sport Snaps series, Brendan Shanahan: The Power Forward also contains quotes from players and coaches about Brendan, Brendan's game-day routine and over 40 full-color photos.

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Brendan Shanahan: Power Forward
Paul Harris
Manufacturer: Tandem Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

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ASIN: 0613323424

Customer Reviews:

Must read for silent film and film preservation issues.......2004-12-07

This is a very good book about the technology and issues surrounding silent movies. It is not a history of Hollywood and is not going to have descriptions of movies or pictures of silent film stars.

Usai begins with discussion of how silent movies would have been presented when they were first released. I had been big into silent movies and had seen around 90 of them before reading this and I learned some interesting facts here. He describes film speed issues. In the 20's and earlier film speed had not been standardized. So when a modern distributor does not account for this disparity the print they make may play too fast for a comical and distracting "fast forward" effect. Sound actually was a big part of "silent" movies. Soundtracks in the form of music matched to action were common. Color tinting was common in movies throughout the 20's but because color film does not age as well, the versions we have now are black and white. Usai goes into each of these issues in detail. Seeing and understanding the examples he lays out helps very much in understanding why silent film is represented in certain ways today. Reading this has helped me to identifying good restorations of silent film and to separate the quality of the movie from the quality of that particular release.

The title, Burning Passions, refers to the film stock and chemical processes at work that make the film decay even in an airtight vault. One distressing issue is that most film is beyond repair and restoration after about 80 years. Usai estimates a 100 year max, but that max depends on many many storage "ifs". Storage concerns are addressed, including the extreme flammability of silver nitrate film stock (it produces oxygen as it burn and so will continue to burn under water). Issues surrounding preservation issues are discussed, including the extent to which a warped or scratched film can be repaired. Usai also connects back to the economics of film preservation. Money is only going to be available if there is commercial demand for these films. Hence the earlier section about film presentation and the quality of a restoration. Discussion of issues surrounding film preservation and storage are well written and easy to read even though they deal with chemistry and more dry subject matter. (One omission in Usai's book is discussion of how copyright restrictions impede preservation. The 1998 Sony Bono Copyright Term Extension Act set copyright at a minimum of 90 years - longer than the lifespan of film stock, and is retroactive to include works created after 1926. An excellent discussion of this issue, which emerged after Usai's book was released in 1995, can be found in Free Culture by Lessig.)

If you are interested in film preservation or are into silent film then this is a must read book. Usai writes in clear and accessible language and the book is very readable. University libraries should make a copy available for researchers and the curious to access.

New book excellent guide to archive locations/etiquette.......1999-02-28

This book is indispensable to the collector who wishes to travel to the archives around the world to view rare films not on video. Highly recommended, informative, and interesting.

Burning Passions : An Introduction to the Study of Silent Cinema

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Burning Passions : An Introduction to the Study of Silent Cinema
Paolo C. Usai
Manufacturer: British Film Institute
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OLXFVQ

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Some scenes in particular were hilarious!

Sanctioned Insanity

IS THIS THE BEST UFO BOOK OF 2005?

Disinformation Continued?

Informative, engaging reading from cover to cover

Project Beta: The Story of Paul Bennewitz, National Security, and the Creation of a Modern UFO Myth
Greg Bishop
Manufacturer: Paraview Pocket Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0743470923

Book Description

THE HORRIFYING TRUE STORY OF A GOVERNMENT-AUTHORIZED CAMPAIGN OF DISINFORMATION THAT DEFINED AN ERA OF ALIEN PARANOIA AND DESTROYED ONE MAN'S LIFE.

In 1978, Paul Bennewitz, an electrical physicist living in Albuquerque, New Mexico, engaged in some aggressive radio monitoring of the nearby Sandia Labs, then managed by the Department of Defense. When he became convinced that the strange lights hovering over the labs and Kirtland Air Force Base signaled the vanguard of an extraterrestrial alien invasion, he began writing TV stations, newspapers, senators -- and even President Reagan -- to alert them.

For the most part Bennewitz received form-letter replies, but Air Force investigators paid him a visit, as did Bill Moore, author of the first book on the Roswell incident. Before long Moore -- then a new force in civilian UFO research -- was tapped by a group of intelligence agents and a deal was struck: Moore was to keep tabs on Bennewitz while the Air Force ran a psychological profile and disinformation campaign on the unsuspecting physicist. In return, Air Force Intelligence would let Moore in on classified UFO material.

This is Bennewitz's harrowing tale, told by fringe-culture historian Greg Bishop. It is the troubling account of the custom-made hall of smoke and mirrors that eventually drove Bennewitz to a mental institution, as well as the story of the explosive propagation of disinformation that began in 1979 and reverberates through the UFO community and pop culture to this day.

Download Description

"THE HORRIFYING TRUE STORY OF A GOVERNMENT-AUTHORIZED CAMPAIGN OF DISINFORMATION THAT DEFINED AN ERA OF ALIEN PARANOIA AND DESTROYED ONE MAN'S LIFE. In 1978, Paul Bennewitz, an electrical physicist living in Albuquerque, New Mexico, engaged in some aggressive radio monitoring of the nearby Sandia Labs, then managed by the Department of Defense. When he became convinced that the strange lights hovering over the labs and Kirtland Air Force Base signaled the vanguard of an extraterrestrial alien invasion, he began writing TV stations, newspapers, senators -- and even President Reagan -- to alert them. For the most part Bennewitz received form-letter replies, but Air Force investigators paid him a visit, as did Bill Moore, author of the first book on the Roswell incident. Before long Moore -- then a new force in civilian UFO research -- was tapped by a group of intelligence agents and a deal was struck: Moore was to keep tabs on Bennewitz while the Air Force ran a psychological profile and disinformation campaign on the unsuspecting physicist. In return, Air Force Intelligence would let Moore in on classified UFO material. This is Bennewitz's harrowing tale, told by fringe-culture historian Greg Bishop. It is the troubling account of the custom-made hall of smoke and mirrors that eventually drove Bennewitz to a mental institution, as well as the story of the explosive propagation of disinformation that began in 1979 and reverberates through the UFO community and pop culture to this day. "

Customer Reviews:

Some scenes in particular were hilarious!.......2006-10-12

Project Beta is a book about Paul Bennewitz, a brilliant physicist who during the 1980s became the victim of a disinformation campaign.

At the end of the 1970s Bennewitz, who lived and worked next to Kirtland Air Force Base outside of Albuquerque, started picking up strange radio signals and messages that he eventually concluded were extraterrestrial in origin. Around the same time he began capturing odd lights in the sky over the base, both on camera and video, and it didn't take long for him to convince himself that extraterrestrials were abducting people in the area, that they had built underground bases, and also entered into different alliances with not-so friendly representatives of the American government and military. In 1981 Bennewitz finished a report on his findings, which he chose to call Project Beta. This report was sent out in large quantities, not only to various ufologists but also to President Reagan (who didn't show much interest in the matter, though).

But things weren't quite the way Bennewitz thought they were. Much of what he had filmed, taken pictures of, and listened in to was actually top-secret military experiments, and in an attempt to divert his attention from sensitive subjects the ones in charge on the base simply decided to exploit his gullibility by providing him with bogus stories. UFOs, extraterrestrials, alien abductions, and much more were simply very effective tools to divert his attention from the truth, and agents and representatives from the military faked an interest in his extraterrestrial theories and provided him with false ideas in order to be able to keep him under surveillance and point him away from the classified truth.

Does it sound complicated? Well, it is. The book is said to be a true story, but most of the time if feels more like a traditional thriller, albeit a sometimes very entertaining one. It's also very tragic, but Bishop writes with a sense of humor and this accompanied by the high level of skepticism makes the book quite entertaining to read. Especially the sections where Bennewitz and ufologist Leo Sprinkle interviews an alleged abductee in a car covered in aluminum foil, which is supposed to prevent any extraterrestrial tracking signals. Man, those sections were funny indeed.

Sanctioned Insanity.......2006-04-09

The title says it all: "The Creation of a Modern UFO Myth". For decades a debate has raged over the existence of aliens and if they do exist, why haven't they made themselves known in a more, how to say this judiciously, public manner? I've had a lifelong fascination with UFOs (what boy did not?) Only lately have I realized that support among other fields, i.e. biology is almost non-existent (the sheer number of accidents required to bring about intelligent life on our planet is astounding). I've become convinced that intelligence is extremely rare and perhaps unique in our galaxy. Scientific American stated that a civilization traveling at only 1/10 c could populate the galaxy in less than ten million years - a dot on the scale of galactic time. The real question is, why haven't they? (Occam's Razor)

Paul Bennewitz was a respected physicist, businessman, family man and citizen who literally went crazy over the subject of UFOs. The author suggests that a large part of his thinking was directed by the government in an effort to conceal super secret weapons at Sandia Labs. The disinformation campaign continued for years complete with "faked" government reports, wiretaps, secret agents, various mysterious agencies and infiltrators who may or may not be double or triple agents, etc. It's hard to decide which is nuttier - government employees creating elaborate schemes designed to convince a group of yahoos that little green men were real, aliens with unbelievable technology worried about our military, testing super-secret weapons where citizens can see or the continued belief in UFOs despite a lack of verifiable evidence. The book is not only a report on this man but a brief history of the UFO "Movement" and it is a social movement in its quasi-religious tenets, its appeal to those who seek simple answers for complex solutions and apostles & holy writ.

I'll go along with the idea that advanced weapons design goes on in secret. Yet where are they when we need them most? Why not send one of the balls of light into the Sunni Triangle & state that it is Allah's angel? Better, why not use the objects that turn on a dime, flight up or out or into the stratosphere to explode buried land mines? The author semi-suggests that UFOs show up at various military bases and laboratories without asking the question - why? How can our study of EMP or anti-gravity theory possible affect them? Indeed, the overall mood at the end is one of great sadness - for Bennewitz, his family, the other players involved in the scam and last but not least, the true believers.

IS THIS THE BEST UFO BOOK OF 2005?.......2005-08-27

PROJECT BETA by Gregory Bishop illuminates our darkest hour in UFOlogy with a spotlight so bright that you can almost read this page-turner in the dark.

With a devoted wife and two sons, Paul Bennewitz, then a fiftysomething electrical physicist and accomplished aerobatics pilot, had everything to live for. The company he founded, Thunder Scientific Labs, manufactured specialized instrumentation for high-profile clientele like NASA and the United States Air Force. He even played guitar.

Then Bennewitz noticed the UFOs. From the deck of his home perched high in the Four Hills neighborhood of Albuquerque, New Mexico, he photographed and filmed mysterious nocturnal lights cavorting over nearby hush-hush military installations. Soon after, ultrasensitive radio receivers of his own design tracked the luminous phantoms and recorded the covert signals -- modulated pulsed transmissions, loud and clear -- of the UFOs. Clues became proof and Bennewitz became terrified. At times his own worst enemy, the prodigious inventor and electronics wizard went public and contacted newspapers, TV stations, congressmen, UFO researchers and organizations, and even President Ronald Reagan.

Certain unelected and non-accountable powers (National Security Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency, and Air Force Office of Special Investigation) decided to discredit and "neutralize" Bennewitz for keeps.

Enter William Leonard Moore, primary instigator and once fierce proponent of such trivialities as the so-called Philadelphia Experiment, MJ-12, and the alleged military retrieval of a crashed "flying disc" near Roswell, New Mexico. These three "mysteries" have most unfortunately drained precious time, money and manpower from far more legitimate and rewarding avenues of investigation and research into current unknown and unexplained phenomena and events.
By Moore's own admission, representatives of those previously identified unelected and non-accountable powers offered him a Faustian bargain. If he would watch various civilian UFO organizations and researchers in general and Paul Bennewitz in particular as the government disinformation game played itself out in earnest, they would let him in on classified UFO material.

Readers must make up their own minds regarding the actions and intentions of the key players in this stranger-than-fiction nightmare about one man's ruin at the hands of a government bent on concealing the truth. Very highly recommended.
(Copyright 2005 by Robert A. Goerman)

Disinformation Continued?.......2005-08-15

It's difficult to reach any profound conclusion about the volume of events discussed in PROJECT BETA: THE STORY OF PAUL BENNEWITZ, NATIONAL SECURITY, AND THE CREATION OF A MODERN UFO MYTH; much like the title alone, the information presented isn't necesssarily additive to any other result but "don't believe what you were just told."

Of course, this fact goes hand-in-hand with the book's subject: Bennewitz, an inventor and businessman, discovers possibly 'irrefutable' scientific evidence that something 'alien' is taking place involving the DOD's Sandia Labs. Monitored and decoded radio transmissions give the appearance that the Earth is being considered ripe for invasion by an unseen alien force. Rather than find his efforts stymied by the military, Bennewitz finds himself a sort of confidante by a plethora of insiders, all whom poke and prod the man to continue his work in possibly fradulent avenues. For the next decade, he finds himself pushed to his psychological limit, believing that he has somehow been placed in a clandestine race to save mankind partnered with Air Force investigators unwilling to do anything about it.

Of course, the principle problem with constructing an account about disinformation is that the author is showing you his cards at the poker table. Greg Bishop knows that the reader will understand the nature of disinformation as he's stripped the theory naked as part of the story he's telling. However, what he doesn't do very well is 'reconstruct' these events to any ultimate conclusion, despite Bennewitz's obvious mental abuse. Few of the details Bishop discusses can be substantiated because of the massive disinformation campaign, and any reasonably intelligent person can probably reach the midpoint of PROJECT BETA and have the revelation, "How am I to know for certain that I'm not the one being misinformed here?"

Still, author Bishop manages to craft a novel that is equal parts intriguing, frustrating, and confusing. The reader cares for Bennewitz -- despite some reservations about the man's stability -- and any reader would genuinely hope that some of these players who confess to be 'good friends' with the man would break their patterns of deceit long enough to help the inventor keep his fragile sanity. Bishop appears to justify their continued abuse of Bennewitz by routinely underscoring how much these men and women cared about the kindly inventor, but that becomes an increasingly difficult 'reality' to accept given Bennewitz's eventual destination.

Informative, engaging reading from cover to cover.......2005-06-10

In 1978 Paul Bennewitz, an electrical physicist in New Mexico, began monitoring the radio transmissions of the nearby Sandia Labs, convinced the strange lights hovering over the labs were evidence of an extraterrestrial alien invasion. His letter-writing campaign to the media and even the President to alert them resulted in an alliance between Air Force investigators and Bill Moore, author of the first Roswell incident book to keep tabs on him. The mystery eventually drove Bennewitz to a mental institution and the alliance prompted the spread of misinformation on the topic which began in 1989 and continues to this day. Project Beta is informative, engaging reading from cover to cover.

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Inspiring!

A+

Makes sense and an easy read

Insightful!

Dream on

The Dream Society: How the Coming Shift from Information to Imagination Will Transform Your Business
Rolf Jensen
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0071379681

Book Description

"The Dream Society . . . provides dramatic insights into how marketing will operate in the 21st century."Atlanta Business Chronicle

A fascinating look into the future of business, as featured in Fast Company

The future is uncertainthe world is constantly changing. While anything can happen, some things are far more likely than others. Rolf Jensen, internationally renowned futurist, provides readers with a tangible look at what the future will be like over the next 25 years.

By identifying what lies ahead, Jensen gives people the knowledge they need to make informed decisions and strategically align themselves to capitalize on the unknown future, a future Jensen calls "the Dream Society." This dream society is characterized by the commercialization of emotions.

In this provocative exploration, Jensen says that it will no longer be enough to produce a useful product. He shows that, for a product to be successful, its primary purpose will be the ability to fulfill an emotional need.

Those who understand the workings of this dream society will be the ones who create the new products, new markets, and new businesses that dominate the world of tomorrow.

Download Description

The future is uncertain -- the world is constantly changing. While anything can happen, some things are far more likely than others. Rolf Jensen, internationally renowned futurist, provides readers with a tangible look at what the future will be like over the next 25 years.

By identifying what lies ahead, Jensen gives people the knowledge they need to make informed decisions and strategically align themselves to capitalize On the unknown future, a future Jensen calls "the Dream Society". This dream society is characterized by the commercialization of emotions.

In this provocative exploration. Jensen says that it will no longer be enough to produce a useful product. He shows that, to be successful, the primary purpose of a product will be the ability to fulfill an emotional need.

Those who understand the workings of this dream society will be the ones who create the new products, new markets, and new businesses that dominate the world of tomorrow.

Customer Reviews:

Inspiring!.......2007-01-22

First step for a more humanized world is dreaming about it.

"The Dream Society" provides inspiring scenarios for different areas of human life that I would love to live!

A+.......2006-03-06

The text discusses the post-informational society and offers its readers a solid logical base to believe that the dream society is really coming. I have read this book several times. Although it is supposed to be general reading, I firmly believe that the book is VERY helpful for a number of professionals-strategists, marketologists, and entrepreneurs. What is more, it is easy to read. I am doing my MBA now, and I have successfully used concepts many times in my classes.

Conclusion: Class A+.

Makes sense and an easy read.......2003-05-04

The book is the result of 15 yrs work at the Copenhagen Institute for Future Studies. I bought it to read on my holiday but finished it two weeks beforehand! It made some really interesting points:

* Man has been around for c.100,000yrs: 90,000 as hunter-gatherer, 10,000 as farmer, 200 in industry and maybe 30 in IT. This book provides a glimpse of what comes next!

* We will see a move from the rational to the emotional. `The successful companies of the twenty-first century...besides meeting the social and emotional needs of employees...will want to cater to consumers' emotional and social needs' [e.g. Shopping Malls as Theme Parks?].

* Current accounting methods measure `the company's capital at night...when all employees have gone home'. The author discusses Intellectual Capital: salary negotiations as establishing an employee's value as a company asset and the `real cost of layoffs...just as if tossing computers out the window would destroy physical capital, layoffs involve throwing away human capital. If we are talking top-quality computers with modern software this is a bad idea.'

* In a concept that may have significant employee training and development implications, the author quotes Tom Peters: `Brand yourself' and believes that `the "branded" employee will triumph over the Brand X employee...increase awareness about your existence and skills...'

Insightful!.......2001-10-03

Rolf Jensen has written a thoroughly absorbing book about the nature of change. Although it attempts to predict the future, it is not a trend book. Rather, it is an attempt to figure out how society will be organized. Jensen analyzes trends only in the context of determining whether they have a place in the new global business model called the dream society. Anyone with an interest in understanding the personal and business paths that will exist in the future will find this book valuable. Anyone actively engaged in a global business will find this book invaluable in charting 21st century inflection points. We [...] recommend this book to all executives and managers doing business in the global economy.

Dream on.......2001-01-30

Every once in a while, a management guru or academician writes a book so idealistic and simple in its basic premise that it appeals to scholars and businesspeople alike solely for the inherent beauty in its simplicity. Much like the appeal of fairy tales or biographies. No fuss, no complexity, no crooked lines. But whereas this way of storytelling is charming when describing a lifelong career or the fate of princess or princesses, it becomes downright repulsive when applied to modern business and economics. Not only repulsive, but also dangerous. Jensen is learned and a fine raconteur at that, which he uses to his advantage in this book. The basic premise, that corporations of today are selling stories instead of products is intriguing, if not completely original (Pine & Gilmore described the progression of economic offerings towards experience and entertainment in their 1999 book "The Experience Economy"). Had Jensen stayed within the boundaries of a conventional management book, i.e. simplified descriptions and corporate nice-to-know facts, The Dream Society would have been a fair effort, if slightly trivial. The big misstep that Jensen makes is that he, like too many other colleagues, starts to add a philantrophical aspect to his ideas. Not only can the striving towards a dream society be applied to goods and services, but also on the modern family, on the third world, on modern labour, globalization, urbanization etc. In fact, so amazing is Jensens Dream paradigm that there is no area or phenomenon that is left unexplored. Actually, "unexplored" is an inaccurate description. There is no area that Jensen doesn't beleaguer with his newly found buzzword-baby. That's where the book sets off on thin ice. To fully explore a principle, such as "The Dream Society", one must look at its flaws and dangers. The term "fundamentalist" is what we use to describe the people that don't and instead take the written word as the formula to follow. Jensen displays similar dogma and fanaticism in his belief that The Dream Society is our goal and destiny. As he runs astray from the description of economic offerings, he looses the integrity that he displays in the early chapters of the book, his "succesful" attempts to apply the theory to, well, anything become more comical... and questionable.

The Dream Society: How the Coming Shift from Information to Imagination Will Transform Your Business

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The Dream Society: How the Coming Shift from Information to Imagination Will Transform Your Business
Rolf Jensen
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OG3JFS

Average customer rating:

Used For Enrichment in High School Medical Careers Class

Look on the inside please!

GREAT read for anyone, especially teens.

an amazing story of an incredible boy

A Beautiful Story, Beautifully Told

Sam: The Boy Behind The Mask
Tom Hallman
Manufacturer: Berkley Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0425191745
Release Date: 2003-10-07

Book Description

Developed from a series of articles that touched thousands of readers and won journalist Tom Hallman the Pulitzer Prize, Sam is the true story about fitting in, medical miracles-and the inner strength of one courageous boy.

Sam Lightner was born with a rare life-threatening facial disfigurement. For years, doctors refused to operate on him-until a team of surgeons finally decided to undertake a risky, thirteen-hour procedure. But after Sam begins his freshman year of high school, complications arise, leaving him comatose and his family hopeless. But one doctor-pediatric neurosurgeon Monica Wehby-refuses to give up. She stays by his side, until he moves a finger, a foot, and then finally rebuilds his life...

Customer Reviews:

Used For Enrichment in High School Medical Careers Class.......2006-01-30

This book is an excellent reading assignment for a student who thinks they want to be a doctor, especially a pediatrician or surgeon. It is a good choice to use in differentiating the curriculum for a gifted student in a regular health occupations classroom. My students enjoyed it very much.

Look on the inside please!.......2004-04-17

Sam Lightner was born with a horribly deforming vascular tumor on the left side of his face that was so disfiguring and otherworldly that an adult at a Halloween party complimented for his marvelous costume. This is the kind of situation that Sam has lived with since he was an infant - the stares, the laughter, the shock, the misunderstandings. If any story teaches the lesson of appreciating a person's heart rather than his appearance, it is this one.

Sam was born with a large vascular tumor on the left side of his place that progressively compromised not only his appearance but also his basic vital functions including breathing and eating. It took a few courageous physicians to treat his condition. Drs. Marler and Mulleken at Boston Children's and Dr. Wehby in Portland are a few of the doctors that enabled Sam to have a fighting chance. What makes this book such a compelling read is not only the heroics of Sam's physicians but the courage of Sam and his family. Hallman delivers Sam's struggle to fit in with such an emotional impact that I had to quit reading the book in parts to take a breather. Sam's family is portrayed as truly remarkable, and their handling of Sam's problems is a lesson to be learned by all.

Unfortunately, the book leaves us hanging (not the author's fault) because Sam's story is not finished. He most likely will undergo further plastic surgery to shape his face, and he may undergo additional operations if his tumor returns.

Hopefully, this book can teach us a little about how to give respect to those like Sam who need support rather than the stares we often give them.

GREAT read for anyone, especially teens........2004-02-28

This story will touch your heart in an incredibe way! The author reaches inside you and grabs your heart, in order to take you from the day of his birth, when Sam's problems started, though his recovery process, after his surgery. The book is so well written and it invites you to view Sam's experiences in an up-close and personal way. If you want to learn about what life really means, or if you have a teenager that feels self-conscious, read this. This book makes you realize that inspiration can come from anywhere and that you should count your blessings and be happy for what God has given you. Learn from Sam and live.

an amazing story of an incredible boy.......2003-09-02

This is the extraordinary story of Sam Lightner, a boy who showed me more about beauty and courage than anyone I've ever known. He has the toughness and persistence of any *ten* adults, and his parents and brother and sister are simply angels. The author's top-notch reporting and soulful writing make for an enlightening read.

I'm usually more of a "library rat" than a book buyer, but this is one book I'm adding to my personal collection. Read Sam's amazing story, and pass it on to your family and friends.

A Beautiful Story, Beautifully Told.......2003-05-19

This is a marvelous story of love, devotion and courage. This is the story of Sam Lightner, who has faced more setbacks and pain as a teen than most of us will confront in a lifetime. He's an extraordinary young man, in every sense of the word. Where does this marvelous courage come from? At least in part, from a wonderful family that truly shows the meaning of the term "unconditional" love. This is also the story of the medical professionals who sought to help Sam, often in the face of opposition from colleagues who said the boy was beyond help.

This is also a story marvelously told by Pulitzer Prize winner Tom Hallman. His style is as clear as glass. He has obviously put in long hours to gain the trust of the Lightners and the medical professionals, and has managed to probe beneath the surface to recreate their hopes, doubts and fears at critical moments during the story. Yet, except for the afterword, Hallman never writes in the first person. Throughout this narrative, he is the unseen observer, who has the grace, humility and good sense to let the story unfold on its own terms.

Average customer rating:
Sam - The Boy Behind The Mask
Tom, Jr. Hallman
Manufacturer: Berkley Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000JZL1W2

Average customer rating:
Sam - The Boy Behind The Mask
Tom, Jr. Hallman
Manufacturer: Berkley Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000JZYFK2

Book Description

Countless books on the Civil War recount the carnage, vengeance, and heroism in battle. But there was another aspect of the Civil War as well: one in which Yankees and Rebels during the heat of battle saved one another, often at risk of their own lives; one in which soldiers and civilians, prison guards and prisoners, though on opposing sides, not only traded with one another, but gave humanitarian aid and sustenance in times of need. This "brotherhood for the enemy" contradicted all the rules of normal warfare but did in fact take place. Using primary source materials such as diaries, letters, military reports, and newspapers, Daniel Rolph opens up a unique and little-known genre of Civil War history.

Customer Reviews:

My brother's keeper - Rolph.......2002-06-27

With so many books detailing the gore and carnage of the CW, it's refreshing to read about the bridges to humanity that were never destroyed. Dr. Dan deserves a lot of credit for compiling these moving anecdotes.

My Brothers Keeper.......2002-04-10

My Brother's Keeper by Dr. Daniel Rolph raises the standard by which Civil War history is recorded. We have many historical accounts of bravery and agression on the battlefield and while those accounts can stir the blood in positive ways, nothing has moved me more than Rolph's reports of merciful bravery in My Brother's Keeper. During these days of patriotic fervor and nationalism, it was inspiring to read about mercy being part of the warrior's spirit. Definately a must read and a "Keeper" for my library.

Well worth time to read.......2002-04-09

It doesn't matter if you have ancestors from the North or South, you will have a different feeling toward those who so gallantly fought and died for what they believed after reading "My Brothers Keeper." The book brings out the basic caring nature of man that can be seen in page after page of records written by those who were involved in hand to hand combat during the Civil War. A few tears were shed during the reading of this book, as I could imagine the emotions on both sides. Well worth the time to read.

Inspiring and healing.......2002-04-07

It was intriguing reading the experiences of those that participated from both the North and South and their compassion for one another. It was because of the character of those that served on both sides that we are a strong united nation today. I liked the fact that the author did not editorialize a lot. It was a beautiful collection of experiences of those from both sides that rendered and received compassionate service. I highly recommend the book to anyone that enjoys biographies.

Outstanding!.......2002-04-03

Rolph's book takes the reader behind enemy lines in the Civil War - only to find that the "enemy" oftentimes lowered their sword in order to aid a wounded opponent in battle. The courage, compassion and selflessness of these soldiers of yesteryear are shining examples for us today.

My Brother's Keeper is smartly written and thoroughly enjoyable. The accounts are well-documented - showing that Rolph cares more about historical accuracy than recreating the past. Many of the soldiers' writings are literary masterpieces in and of themselves. An excellent read!

Book Description

Aimed at providing a comprehensive understanding of comparative political communication, this volume analyzes the media systems of Europe and America. It considers whether election campaigns around the world have become "Americanized," how international news journalists understand their jobs and produce different forms of television news programs, and how governmental media relations and news management efforts evolve in different political systems. The book analyzes transnational similarities and dissimilarities in the context of their potential effects on society and democracy.

Book Description

From the cliffs of Big Sur to the dunes at Cape Hatteras, from the bogs of the Boundary Waters to the deserts of the Rio Grande, the landscape of America has shaped us into the people we are. Not only is it central to ecological health and essential to the economy, it has helped form our culture and serves as a basis of national pride. The heart of America lies in the rock and soil, the mountains and the plains that surround us.

In this illuminating portrait of America at the threshold of the new millennium, author Tim Palmer explores and assesses the landscape of the United States-both timeless wonders of natural beauty and lost places scarred by human exploitation. He takes the reader on an informative and inspirational tour of our most vital landscapes, including mountains, forests, grasslands, deserts, rivers, lakes, wetlands, and seashores. He introduces us to the basic geography and ecological value of each landscape, describes historical patterns of land use, considers the most serious threats, and discusses what is being done to protect the landscape for future generations. Throughout, he instills a deeper understanding of the importance of the land, a sense of outrage at the damage that has been done, and a feeling of hope that those working to correct past abuses will succeed.

Weaving together geographical, historical, and ecological information and insights, Palmer draws on thirty years of professional experience as a writer, photographer, conservationist, planner, landscape architect, and veteran traveler to present a fresh look at the past, present, and future of our land.

Resounding in its account of these landscapes, compelling in the force of its information and the hope of its timely message, The Heart of America offers a fascinating measure of the land around us and a unique look at the place we call home.

"It's the truest State of the Union address anyone ever gave." -Bill McKibben

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