Customer Reviews:
Questions Galore.......2003-09-09
The book may lack depth, but the categories that I read had insightful questions and included explanations of the questions' potency, applicable use, follow-up, and cautions. The questions are designed to head-off problems, solve problems, resolve conflict, make your opinion heard, etc. while helping others save face in a variety of situations.
I see a number of negative reviews. I beleive (and some actually say this) that these are because the book simply was not what they expected, and not that it doesn't have something to offer.
Great for any level.......2001-12-10
I found this book to be a very useful tool in identifying and solving problems. The first chapter on The Magic of Questions puts the rest of the book into perspective. I also like the way that the book is organized around specific types of problems to be solved. Chapters range all the way from dealing with unreasonable job demands to coworkers stealing credit for your work. I teach at a couple of universities and recommend this book to all of my students. Many have come back to thank me after successfully using this powerful technique.
A Waste Of Paper.......2001-06-10
This book is not worth the paper it is printed on.
One More Let Down.......2000-11-28
I bought this and one other book written by Mr. Deep and Mr. Sussman. I was very disappointed to find that both books did not cover the topic in a way that relates to real situations that occur in the world of business. I wish I could state otherwise, however this book is not one that I can recommend to any reader interested in the topic of management.
Pass this one over........1998-11-05
I expected a book that provided a ready question to use in any situation - this is a book that provides you with a list of questions that you ask yourself when the world bites you.
I wanted a list of questions to bite other people as you always answer a tough question with another question. Perry Mason always had the right question to thump the witness that got out of line.
This is a self help book, not a guide to verbal and intellectual war with pompous managers and other fellow travelers. Give it a wide berth unless you are already sinking in your own failure.
Book Description
This book shows how to successfully research a company who to--see and what to ask--before investing any money. It shows investors how to use innovative techniques and fundamental business analysis to spot Wall Street bargains.
Customer Reviews:
One of the 20 all time best.......2006-07-15
This book is one of the 20 all time best critical works on investment. The idea of a company selling at a multiple of it's annual sales and how to incorporate that priinciple into your investment strategy is significant. I can never evaluate the auto group without thinking of this text and Fisher's analysis of the historically correct price per sales ratio for the group. I almost bought Ford several weeks ago and just this morning saw the Wall Street Journal article in which Ford sited "unforseen headwinds" for the company. Thank you Kenneth Fisher once again.
One of the top-5 stock books I've read:.......2005-12-30
I strongly recommend this book for your consumption: this book is extremely valuable for both its investing intelligence and its unique nature. No other book that I know of provides such a complete, and reasonable evaluation of revenue analysis, value opportunities via temporary profit margin squeezes, and screening for these opportunities via Price-to-Sales Ratios (PSRs.)
The heart of the book is that many investor's extreme focus on short-term bottom-line (P/E and earnings growth percentage movements) results can create extremely undervalued purchasing points in a great company with a temporary problem (determining this 'temporary' part is where his discussions about qualitative and margin anaylsis comes in.) Because revenue percentage movements tend to be both much more stable than earning percentage movements, and much less appreciated, PSR scanning may be the beginning of the most accurate type of mid-/long-term undervalued selection. (A good free scanner that has PSRs can be found here: http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor/finder/customstocks.asp)
Even if you reject the PSR method, this book's focus on profit margins and revenues can help you focus on what goes into the companies earning's movements. Not all earning growths are the same: you need both revenue growth for sustained earnings growth (you can only cut so much for so long,) and you need a healthy profit margin so that you can finance this revenue growth without large dept or share dilution. I would recommend being skeptical of a company that has growing sales but a sustained falling profit margin, I would be even more skeptical of earnings growth that isn't closely followed by revenue growth (almost disregarding it if it was a profit margin squeeze.) I think balance is key in this area.
The book also has good qualitative insights, has good appendixes, and is fairily concise to boot.
Some on this review page have objected to this book by claiming the author is arrogant. Nothing stood out to me in this book, however in "Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits and Other Writings" by his father Phil Fisher (probably the best qualitative fundamentals book by the way) he wrote in the preface about how his greater success comes from being a harder worker, being more driven, etc that was tasteless in my opinion (especially since Phil was then on his deathbed and it had a bit of a 'tribute' nature to it.) He's not that bad for what it's worth; I was surprised at how modest he seemed when he explained about how he turned a company around (when asked by the board he was on to act as a temporary CEO): he stuck to the point the appendix was making (i.e. that market research is much more important than expensive product R&D.) Anyhow, you're buying access to the author's ideas, not his friendship.
When part of me is secretly happy that this book seems to be out of print, my greed should be your hint. The Fisher's know what they're talking about, and Ken presents un-rehashed information.
Focuses on PSR as a valuation tool.......2002-07-07
I was first introduced to Fisher's concept of Super Stocks about 10 years ago. The idea behind the concept is buying stocks with a low Price-to-Sales Ratio (PSR), typically 1.0 or less. Simply having a low PSR is not sufficient to be a Super Stock. The valuation tool is combined with fundamental analysis (e.g. growth, margin analysis, balance sheet analysis, etc.) of companies to identify stocks with favorable characteristics that will make them Super Stocks. Fisher also introduces a complementery tool Price-to-Research Ratio (PRR) which is a measure of the company's reinvestment rate into growth.
Fisher spends a lot of time discussing how to make money off the "Glitch". Basically, he believes that many Super Stocks are stocks that have been hit by a "Glitch". A "Glitch" is a temporary setback experienced by a company that makes the out of favor (e.g. product life cycle delay, revenue short-fall, etc.) This attitude is indicative of his value-orientation in investing. In other words, his fundamental analysis may find a great stock, but he will wait for a pull-back from a "Glitch" to a more appropriate PSR before investing.
Overall, the concept of PSR is not so different from other valuation measures for "low-priced" stocks such as Price-to-Earnings or Price-to-Book. However, it doesn't hurt to have another tool in the kit.
On a more interesting side-note, Wall Street analysts have definitely not read this book. It is amusing to note that analysts in the hey-day of the Internet boom touted stocks with PSRs in excess of 10x. A careful fundamental analysis would have resulted in concluding that the growth, margins, and balance sheets of these companies did not justify such high valuations. Nothing in the business models indicated superior performance on any dimension. Even if a business model was found to be superior, prudence would have dictated waiting for a "Glitch".
A good book that teaches true, disciplined value investing.......2002-03-16
If you've read a few of Fisher's regular columns in Forbes, you know that he 1) is primarily a value-oriented investor, 2) applies numerous, diverse tools in formulating his opinions, and 3) is quite self-confident. I think most people would objectively agree that a combination of all three of these qualities is key to being a successful long-term investor. Super Stocks, which I read a decade ago and still refer to today, effectively captures and displays Fisher's approach. Fisher does an admirable job of describing his investment philosophy, then providing a detailed walk-through of how he implements it - that type of focus is lacking in so many other investment books. Beyond that, Super Stocks introduced me to several investment resources that I was not aware of and Fisher even closes the loop by providing advice on selling out of winners. Two primary concepts that have stuck with me over the years and still weigh heavily on my thinking today are the idea of what margins a company with a low PSR SHOULD produce on its sales and the opportunities presented by product/earnings glitches. In both cases, it allows me to look past a company's current difficulties and determine what the magnitude and probability of upside is going forward. Though my core approach is as a buy and hold, small cap growth investor, I can attest to the numerous profitable stocks I have uncovered thanks to the tools this book gave me. So, don't let any preconceived notions of the author get in the way of your enhancement of your investing skills. Buy the book, learn from it, and I honestly believe you'll pay yourself back many times over.
Ok but similar to Common Stocks..........2001-08-25
This is a good intro book to this type of investment. It is similar to his father's Common Stocks Uncommon Profits. If you want to do seriously what he is describing then find more detailed books. He righly emphasises the business not the numbers, as they change each quarter and its the mangement within a 'fundamentals context' who will make them change. He currently runs Fisher Investments.
Product Description
0874571609
Book Description
This report was created for global strategic planners who cannot be content with traditional methods of segmenting world markets. With the advent of a “borderless world”, cities become a more important criteria in prioritizing markets, as opposed to regions, continents, or countries. This report covers the top 2000 cities in over 200 countries. It does so by reporting the estimated market size (in terms of latent demand) for each major city of the world. It then ranks these cities and reports them in terms of their size as a percent of the country where they are located, their geographic region (e.g. Africa, Asia, Europe, Middle East, North America, Latin America), and the total world market. In performing various economic analyses for its clients, I have been occasionally asked to investigate the market potential for various products and services across cities. The purpose of the studies is to understand the density of demand within a country and the extent to which a city might be used as a point of distribution within its region. From an economic perspective, however, a city does not represent a population within rigid geographical boundaries. To an economist or strategic planner, a city represents an area of dominant influence over markets in adjacent areas. This influence varies from one industry to another, but also from one period of time to another. In what follows, I summarize the economic potential for the world\'s major cities for "hominy feed, cornmeal, and other byproducts of dry corn milling for animal feed" for the year 2007. The goal of this report is to report my findings on the real economic potential, or what an economist calls the latent demand, represented by a city when defined as an area of dominant influence. The reader needs to realize that latent demand may or may not represent real sales. For many items, latent demand is clearly observable in sales, as in the case for food or housing items. Consider, however, the category "satellite launch vehicles". Clearly, there are no launch pads in most cities of the world. However, the core benefit of the vehicles (e.g. telecommunications, etc.) is "consumed" by residents or industries within the world\'s cities. Without certain cities, in other words, the market for satellite launch vehicles would be lower for the world in general. One needs to allocate, therefore, a portion of the worldwide economic demand for launch vehicles to both regions and cities. This report takes the broader definition and considers, therefore, a city as a part of the global market.
Book Description
This report was created for global strategic planners who cannot be content with traditional methods of segmenting world markets. With the advent of a “borderless world”, cities become a more important criteria in prioritizing markets, as opposed to regions, continents, or countries. This report covers the top 2000 cities in over 200 countries. It does so by reporting the estimated market size (in terms of latent demand) for each major city of the world. It then ranks these cities and reports them in terms of their size as a percent of the country where they are located, their geographic region (e.g. Africa, Asia, Europe, Middle East, North America, Latin America), and the total world market. In performing various economic analyses for its clients, I have been occasionally asked to investigate the market potential for various products and services across cities. The purpose of the studies is to understand the density of demand within a country and the extent to which a city might be used as a point of distribution within its region. From an economic perspective, however, a city does not represent a population within rigid geographical boundaries. To an economist or strategic planner, a city represents an area of dominant influence over markets in adjacent areas. This influence varies from one industry to another, but also from one period of time to another. In what follows, I summarize the economic potential for the world\'s major cities for "wet milling of corn" for the year 2007. The goal of this report is to report my findings on the real economic potential, or what an economist calls the latent demand, represented by a city when defined as an area of dominant influence. The reader needs to realize that latent demand may or may not represent real sales. For many items, latent demand is clearly observable in sales, as in the case for food or housing items. Consider, however, the category "satellite launch vehicles". Clearly, there are no launch pads in most cities of the world. However, the core benefit of the vehicles (e.g. telecommunications, etc.) is "consumed" by residents or industries within the world\'s cities. Without certain cities, in other words, the market for satellite launch vehicles would be lower for the world in general. One needs to allocate, therefore, a portion of the worldwide economic demand for launch vehicles to both regions and cities. This report takes the broader definition and considers, therefore, a city as a part of the global market.
Book Description
This study covers the world outlook for hominy feed, cornmeal, and other byproducts of dry corn milling for animal feed across more than 200 countries. For each year reported, estimates are given for the latent demand, or potential industry earnings (P.I.E.), for the country in question (in millions of U.S. dollars), the percent share the country is of the region and of the globe. These comparative benchmarks allow the reader to quickly gauge a country vis-à-vis others. Using econometric models which project fundamental economic dynamics within each country and across countries, latent demand estimates are created. This report does not discuss the specific players in the market serving the latent demand, nor specific details at the product level. The study also does not consider short-term cyclicalities that might affect realized sales. The study, therefore, is strategic in nature, taking an aggregate and long-run view, irrespective of the players or products involved.
Book Description
This study covers the world outlook for wet milling of corn across more than 200 countries. For each year reported, estimates are given for the latent demand, or potential industry earnings (P.I.E.), for the country in question (in millions of U.S. dollars), the percent share the country is of the region and of the globe. These comparative benchmarks allow the reader to quickly gauge a country vis-à-vis others. Using econometric models which project fundamental economic dynamics within each country and across countries, latent demand estimates are created. This report does not discuss the specific players in the market serving the latent demand, nor specific details at the product level. The study also does not consider short-term cyclicalities that might affect realized sales. The study, therefore, is strategic in nature, taking an aggregate and long-run view, irrespective of the players or products involved.
Average customer rating:
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Corn Milling (Shire Albums)
Martin Watts
Manufacturer: Shire Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0852636237 |
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Lucidite du corps - De l'empirisme transcendantal en phenomenologie (PHaenomenologica published under the auspices of the Husserl Archives, Leuven, Belgium Volume 160)
N. Depraz
Manufacturer: Springer
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ASIN: 0792369777 |
Book Description
Given its transcendental impulse, Husserl's analysis of the lived body has been considered by many phenomenologists and by most Husserl scholars as unable to account for our everyday intimate relationship with our own embodied self and with other embodied selves. Contrary to such a widespread contention, I want to show that Husserl's phenomenology contains unknown descriptive resources which provide a detailed account of our individual and communitarian lived body at a transcendental level proper.
The purpose of
Lucidité du corps, then, is to confront such an analysis with recent accounts in empirical scientific fields (emergent neurobiology, ethology and infant psychology, psychopathology, comprehensive sociology and ethnology) and to engage in a renewed analysis of our lived body as empowered with lucidity and not as burdened by a passive opacity. Unlike Merleau-Ponty, P. Ricoeur and J. Derrida, I maintain the transcendentality of our body, but unlike a Kantian-inspired version of transcendentalism, I claim the possibility of a transcendental empiricism as a theoretical framework for phenomenology.
Du fait de son impulsion transcendantale, l'analyse husserlienne du corps vivant et vécu entendu comme corps charnel a été congédiée par maints phénoménologues et par la plupart des exégètes de Husserl au titre de sa soi-disante incapacité à rendre compte à partir de là de la relation intime et quotidienne que nous entretenons avec nous-mêmes et avec les autres. A rebours de cette thèse largement répandue, je souhaite montrer combien la phénoménologie husserlienne contient en elle des ressources descriptive méconnues, qui libèrent l'espace d'un compte rendu détaillé de notre expérience corporelle et charnelle, tout aussi bien individuelle que communautaire, et ce, à son niveau transcendantal rigoureux.
Le propos de
Lucidité du corps réside dès lors dans la confrontation entre une telle analyse et les descriptions récentes des différentes dimensions du corps telles qu'elles se déploient de plus en plus dans les champs empiriques récents (neurobiologie émergente, éthologie, psychologie de l'enfant, psychopathologie, sociologie compréhensive et ethnologie), ce qui permet d'ouvrir la voie à une analyse renouvelée de notre chair en tant que dotée de ludicité plutôt que comme grevée d'opacité passive. A la différence de Merleau-Ponty, de P. Ricoeur et de J. Derrida, je maintiens fermement la contrainte transcendantale de l'expérience phénoménologique de la chair, mais, contrairement à une version de la transcendantalité formelle inspirée par l'héritage kantien, je revendique la possibilité d'un empirisme transcendantal à titre de cadre philosophique pour la démarche phénoménologique.
Book Description
Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection was based on the observation that there is variation between individuals within the same species. This fundamental observation is a central concept in evolutionary biology. However, variation is only rarely treated directly. It has remained peripheral to the study of mechanisms of evolutionary change. The explosion of knowledge in genetics, developmental biology, and the ongoing synthesis of evolutionary and developmental biology has made it possible for us to study the factors that limit, enhance, or structure variation at the level of an animals' physical appearance and behavior. Knowledge of the significance of variability is crucial to this emerging synthesis. This volume situates the role of variability within this broad framework, bringing variation back to the center of the evolutionary stage.
·Provides an overview of current thinking on variation in evolutionary biology, functional morphology, and evolutionary developmental biology
·Written by a team of leading scholars specializing on the study of variation
·Reviews of statistical analysis of variation by leading authorities
·Key chapters focus on the role of the study of phenotypic variation for evolutionary, developmental, and post-genomic biology
Average customer rating:
- Good all-round text on modern physics
- Good Value
- Clear, detailed account of modern physics
- Too many topics
|
Introduction to the Structure of Matter: A Course in Modern Physics
John J. Brehm , and
William J. Mullin
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 047160531X |
Book Description
A first course in two of the 20th century's most exciting contributions to physics: special relativity and quantum theory. Historical material is incorporated into the exposition. Coverage is broad and deep, offering the instructor flexibility in presentation. Nearly every section contains at least one illustrative example (with all calculations), and each chapter has a wide selection of problems. Topics covered include relativistic dynamics, quantum mechanics, parity, quantum statistical physics, the nuclear shell model, fission, fusion, color and the strong interaction, gauge symmetries, and grand unification.
Customer Reviews:
Good all-round text on modern physics.......2005-10-20
This hefty textbook provides a solid introduction to the major fields of modern physics; i.e. physics in the 20th century. These topics are relativity, the structure of atoms, quantum mechanics, and nuclear physics. The text is appropriate for physics majors in the 3rd or 4th year of college, and is also a good book for students of materials science who are learning modern physics as an elective. The book is comparatively low on math and high in verbosity compared to other physics texts of the same subject matter; hence making it more accessible to non-physicists like engineers, chemists, etc... Each chapter comes complete with homework problems, and in this reviewer's experience, they are well done and error-free. I do not recommend this book for a one-semester class, it covers enough subject matter for 2-3 classes in modern physics - quantum mechanics. Overall, a good book to learn about modern physics and its ties with materials science.
Good Value.......2003-01-27
This is a junior or senior level text on essentially all of modern physics. Every topic is well explained and at a high level. It is short of a graduate text, but very good in terms of physics rather than mathematics. The main difference being ,I think, is a graduate text uses more advanced math (calculus of variations, bras and kets,group theory, etc) whereas this book only uses partial differential equations . However, the PDEs do suffice to accurately derive the results, and the student should certainly know both approaches.
Numerical solutions are given to about half of the chapters problems.
Additionally, the authors have went to the trouble of tracing the origin and development of the subjects, and explaining the motivations and difficulties that the pioneers faced, when possible.
It is true there is too much material to be covered in a single year...but I think this just adds to the value since it can be used as a reference as well as text.
Clear, detailed account of modern physics.......2001-02-20
This book does cover a lot of information that it seems overwhelming. However, this is only because the authors explain the concepts "all the way". For example, the discussion on wave packets includes the explanation of phase (an excellent diagram for learning how to visualize phase and group velocity) plus some details on complex analysis. Basically I find the descriptions of experiments, concepts and math very clear and detailed.
I would say that the verbosity of this book is excellent for people who like to get all the details clear. Readers with much faster brain processors, those who can't wait to learn more of QM or those who understands much of the fundamental physics and math behind QM might be bored by this book.
Summary:
Pros: 1. Clear Explanations 2. attention to thorough and detailed explanation 3. some excellent diagrams!!!!
Cons: 1. Too verbose for some 2. rather heavy to carry around!!!
Too many topics.......2000-03-25
This book is meant for first or second year major student in physics. I am a second year student myself and I found this book quite frustrating. It covers many topics in modern physics, perhaps too many. The treatment of subject is not thorough enough and especially the real theoretical side is often omitted. The subject is difficult enough by itself and this book is not the greatest source of information.
Average customer rating:
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Brehm: Solutions Manual to Accompany Introduction to the Structure in Matter - A Course in Modern Physics (Manual)
J J BREHM
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Sons Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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| Electron Microscopy
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| Entropy
| Fluid Mechanics
| Gas Mechanics
| General
| Geophysics
| Gravity
| Light
| Mathematical Physics
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ASIN: 0471523356 |
Amazon.com
Scandalmonger is the 25th book from William Safire, the prolific, feisty New York Times columnist and word wrangler. It's a historic novel set in 1790s New England, when the Founding Fathers were enduring various crises and humiliations as they scurried to become part of the history books. Always a stickler for the truth--as long as it's uttered in the finest of phrases--the author lets us know right from the start that we're "entitled to know what is history and what is twistery." Based on documents and diaries, and complete with an exhaustive section of footnotes separating fact from fiction, Scandalmonger turns out to be a bona fide page-turner. Safire knows what he's doing; he knows he has a lesson to teach. It's a lesson about how early America wasn't much different from Clinton's America--the temptations of mistresses, the power struggles, the ridiculous debates about purity between corrupt men being just as present. If he has one message, it is this: within every powerful politician, there is a dirty-minded second grader trying to get out. Witness this scene between two outraged congressmen who seem intent on "turning the House into a 'gladiators' arena'":
Griswold's stout cane cracked Lyon on the top of the head, then across his back, again and again. More than twenty heavy blows rained down on his victim, who was groping for help in escaping along the floor, blinded by the blood spurting down from his scalp.
Meanwhile, the title character, James Callender--who gives the fourth estate an early bad name--"looked around frantically for a weapon."
And there's far more in store: Safire's deeply entertaining novel is divided into five scandals, which take place over a period of 10 years, reaching a high point with the relationship between Thomas Jefferson and his slave mistress, Sally Hemings. As the story goes, Jefferson loved her for years and she bore many children by him. These days all over America, the descendants of that union keep coming forward for television interviews. As Scandalmonger illustrates, the past is always present. --Emily White
Book Description
The bestselling historical novel that exposes the less than honorable side of our Founding Fathers by the Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist.
In this gripping and timely work, William Safire unveils the story behind the nation's first great political scandals. James Thomson Callender, the "scandalmonger" of the title, is an ambitious gossip-peddling editor secretly hired by Thomas Jefferson as a political weapon. After carefully damaging Alexander Hamilton's reputation, thereby paving the way for Jefferson's success, Callender is shunned by the very politicians on whose behalf he was jailed for sedition. Broke and betrayed, Callender seeks revenge by exposing an illicit affair between Jefferson and his slave Sally Hemmings, an accusation that ultimately cost Callender his career and would not be authenticated for two centuries.
By using actual letters, records, and notes to re-create dialogue and events, Scandalmonger embodies historical fiction at its best, politics at its most intriguing, and our Founding Fathers at their most notorious. For those who think that Washington sex scandals and lurid journalism are recent developments, this novel will be a revelation, for Safire shows how media intrusiveness into private lives-and politicians' cool manipulation of the press-are practices as old as the Constitution.
Download Description
Exploding any notion that political sex scandal is a recent phenomenon, our press-hounded Founding Fathers star in an outrageous--and fact-based--novel from the Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist. Safire demonstrates how media intrusiveness into private lives and politicians' manipulation of the press are as old as the Constitution in this entertaining and thought-provoking historical novel. Illustrations throughout.
Customer Reviews:
I've read biographies more artistic.......2005-12-05
I know a lot about history, though I'm no historian. I can say with all honesty I have read actual HISTORY books more interesting than this. This book was mostly facts, with a small amount of description put in. There was no deep character analysis, no beautiful descriptions, and no real theme. It assumes that you'll be so shocked to find out about the naughty things historical figures have been involved in that you don't need and actual good story. In fact, I got more enjoyment from reading Alexander Hamilton, a biography from Ron Chernow, than from reading this.
What follows spoils some of the story, so don't read it if you actually plan on buying it.
The author also asserts the ridiculous (at least in my opinion) belief that Alexander Hamilton FORGED letters to make it look like he was being blackmailed, and was actually engaging in shady financial dealings with JAmes Reynolds. Though I admit to slight bias (I adore Hamilton), this is a claim is unbelievable.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.......2005-09-16
The words we use matter.
That is what this book comes down to and who better to write such a massage then the "On Language" columnist for the The New York Times Magazine.
Usually journalist narcissism about there bloated since of self-worth to the community turns me off but Safire plowed through ass such predigests I held with his ability to bring historical figures into multidimensional focus and craft such a smoothly flowing story that it carries one on with the same invariability as the fixed history it tells.
The truly amazing aspect though is how a novel so grounded in historical research can at once ring so true not only for the revolutionary times it portrays but for our times as well. While Safire's background with the new York Times lends itself to telling a story more about the power of the newspapers I was surprised by just how much the story seemed to portray the new medium of blogs - I actually would find it hard for a reader not to see those parallels with the newspaper editors firing personal attacks back and forth at each other through there printed sheets and responding in a far less restrained way than one would find today.
But above all and as I have said before it is the language that carries this book.
Keep Notes.......2005-08-22
I agree with the review that said you need a background in this time period to follow the book. I have a degree in history, and I still had to read very carefully at the beginning so I wouldn't get lost. It wouldn't hurt to take some notes on the cast of characters as you read because they come and go with rapidity. I also was surprised by a few modern language slips, esp. from Safire. But I love novels that are packed with accurate history, and this novel is indeed that. It would be a great class novel for an American history class.
be warned.......2005-05-06
While this book is carefully -- even elegantly -- written, be aware that your enjoyment of it (or even your ability to follow it) will be seriously impaired if you lack a strong background in the Founding Fathers.
For those who know a good deal about America's early years, about the Constitutional Convention, about Jefferson, Hamilton, Adams, etc., this book will bring their knowledge to life in invigorating and engrossing ways.
For those who only know nearly nothing (or only some broad facts about this time), this book is likely to prove dense and unrewarding.
So study up first. Safire doesn't give you a primer. It's for readers who are already "into" the era.
Vacuous.......2004-07-19
I love history reads, and particularly so when it seems relevant to me in some way. I'm probably related to Thomas Callender, so I doubly expected to be glued to this book for a weekend. Sadly, this book was so dry and devoid of historical value in the first 5-10 pages that I just couldn't keep enough interest to pay attention after that and sent it to another relative, who I hope won't hold that against me too much.
Average customer rating:
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The Scandalmonger
White T.H.
Manufacturer: Jonathan Cape
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000UDX0MC |
Average customer rating:
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Scandalmonger
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette
ASIN: B000H98G7S |
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