Genres Books

I had the Runnin' Down A Dream DVD so when I purchased the book I was concerned that they would both have the same information. The book has different information and is not the same as the DVD at all. For all of you Tom Petty fans out there this is a must buy!

Book is great(I knew it would be), What amazed me was how quickly I got it!!!

Runnin' down a dream, 30 career years of one of the rock stars that have changed the american rock business compiled in a complete book full of photographs, history and many many personal tales. A must-have for any rock fan.

i really enjoyed this book. it's a great companion to the dvd set. i think it's a must have for any Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers fan. well worth it.

If you want to know more about Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, buy this book. Great pictures and JUST GREAT STUFF ABOUT HIM.

This is a wonderfully creative mix of Indian and "Club" music. The "Silent Ganges" track is especially excellent.

What an audio delight this album is! Most enchanting is the subtle interweaving of sacred vocal chant underlying the beautiful and often mesmerizing musical journey created by this artist. I do intuitive healing work and find this music provides a soothing tonal landscape to help a client release pain and tension and experience peace. I will most certainly explore more from Manesh DeMoor.

I have a large collection of meditation and relaxation CD's. This one is about the best. Not too much of the groove music that is popular and not too much music on prosac. Just right.

This cd is sheer bliss. There are so many different sounds occuring at once that it takes you on a mystical journey. It really invokes your spirit to move and dance. I love the womans voice in "Raindance" and several other tracks. Also the use of the digeridoo and drums combined with the chanting and electronic affects make it very interesting. The flow is unbelieveable even though every track is quite different. I have listened to many "trance like" CD's and this is by far the best one I've heard. I do a form of Bodywork I call Trance Movement Massage and this will be one of my first picks to use for my practice.

An interesting experience of meditative and somber tones, easy to wander into another world of inner peace. The last three tracks are easily the most suitable for meditation.

Biographies of entertainers are usually pretty shallow, just part of the marketing effort. This one is a little unusual because it was written by a scholar who put a lot of effort into making it both as complete and interesting as possible. The author, Dr. Charles Townsend, also became, to a small extent, part of the story. On Bob Wills final recording with his Texas Playboys, For the Last Time, Dr. Townsend kicks off the music as the announcer, saying "The Texas Playboys Are on the Air!"

My Dad loved this book! It was a great gift for him

I was a little dubious at first because the book seemed kind of thick and was written by a professor. However, the more I got into it the more I loved it. Thick with detail, yes, but the story constantly moves along and we get a rich, complete picture of the man and his music, his triuimphs and his foibles. I could just picture being in a ballroom back in the day listening to Bob Wills and his Playboys as I read through. Truly a labor of love, this book. I picked it up because I'd just recently purchased a four-CD boxed set of Wills' music -- far more than I thought I wanted to hear, but I was wrong, and after reading this book I just want to hear more and more. Truly an American musical hero, and this is one of the best musical biogs I've ever read.

Charles Townsend has captured the real Bob Wills. A fine job, a detailed account on the life and music of the one of the greatest Texas stars to have evolved on the American western scene. Well written and exhaustively researched. Worth buying and reading.

OK. I'm a little biased. My grandfather J.W. Shafer, otherwise known as "Bub Shafer" (don't ask me why...nobody knows why), was a second cousin to Bob Wills. In this book, there's a photo of Bob standing in a cotton field near Turkey, Texas and he's got his arm around a young boy that looks about 13-years-old at the oldest. The young boy was my grandfather, and the caption beneath the photo states that Bob is posing with a relative in the cotton fields near Turkey, TX.

I didn't read this book until a few years ago, and I read it cover-to-cover. It details EVERYTHING, including a consistent barrage of extensive notes and details about the writing and progression of almost every song from concept-to-recording, and all the events surrounding anything that Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys must have done. In fact, you almost feel as though you are reading a virtual daily journal as if the author walked side-by-side and recorded the details as time progressed over many decades of Bob Wills' life. It's all documented perfectly, as most of the documentation came from bandmembers or friends or relatives...and 99% of each person's accounts were cross-checked against other sources for authenticity. Mr. Townsend definitely wanted to get the real Bob Wills rather than a comic book version pieced together by wild tales and drifting imaginations.

My favorite parts of the book deal with the intertwined perfection and imperfection of Bob and his life. Here's a guy who was born into poverty, ran away from home as a young teenager to escape poverty, almost became a preacher when he was found by a Godly family after running away, went back home to help out the family on the farm, almost got thrown into prison had it not been that for the local policeman recognizing who he was and letting him go after a failed robbery of a tire at a closed gas station, and then you've got repeated failures in almost every line of work you can imagine. And all along the way, through all of the misery and the rejection, he always had his fiddle (known as a "violin" for people north of the Mason-Dixon line) that bailed him out of trouble.

Bob didn't WANT to use his fiddle for gain, but it always saved his rear when he was in a real pickle. He finally travels to the Dallas-Fort Worth area during the depression, which wasn't a good place to be, to tell you the truth. He gathered up a couple of guys to audition for a spot on the Light Crust Flour radio spot--Back in those days, companies hired musicians and various entertainers to perform on the radio and at live concerts. Usually, the name of the band was surprisingly enough the name of the product being pitched. In this case, whomever played for the Light Crust Flour company was named "The Light Crust Doughboys." Funny-sounding, yes, but back in the day it was a sure-fire way to make a connection with the blue-collar families that listened to the music on the radio while also being spoon-fed a healthy dose of advertising.

To make along story short, Bob and his boys were a hit. Contract disputes; however, with the head honcho of the Light Crust organization led Bob to lure his bandmates away to Tulsa, OK, where they set up shop and were known as "The Texas Playboys." Huge fame came to Bob and his band. He had the largest band in the world, and had many people laughing at the sight of anywhere from 20-30 bandmembers lining up on stage at one time on any given night. His band rivaled, and probably even surpassed, Benny Goodman and any other mainstream Big Band-style band. Almost like our nation's standing army, if you were approved by Bob Wills to be good enough to be in his band, you were "on call" and could travel and make good money whenever the opportunities presented themselves. Bob was driven, and was a definite Type-A personality who had everything done his way. I can't remember the real number, but he made sure his entire band knew BY MEMORY hundreds of songs, if not thousands. He wanted to be able to play a dance anywhere in Texas, or any other state for that matter, and he wanted to strike up his band in an instant if a spectator from the crowd hollared at Bob to play a certain song.

This brand of customer service made Bob Wills a legend. Every band member knew his role. Every band member knew he'd be cut from the team like a washed up NFL player if he didn't measure up. They practiced all day long, almost every day of the week. They would sometimes travel way out of the way on the way back home from a tour to go and play a funeral for someone, and then REFUSE to be paid for the performance and even for expenses of traveling out of the way. Bob would slip a down-and-out person a few bucks so they could buy their child some food or some shoes...and he'd make sure it stayed a secret as long as it could. In the book, there are countless witnesses who say they knew Bob was so generous because he knew what it was like to go days without a meal and have nothing but what he had on his body at the time. Bob was never consistently financially wealthy because he gave most of it away over the years.

Sadly, Bob had severe faults that often outweighed his good deeds. He was a drunk, sometimes missing performances and thus placing a huge burden upon his band to let the crowd know that "Bob has the flu and can't come out of the tour bus to play." People must have prayed for Bob a lot, wondering how one man could contract the flu as often as Bob did. He had a knack for anger and foul language, and he could "let you have it" (as we say in Texas) at a moment's notice. He couldn't stay married for longer than a day or two, though a couple of marriages were longer than the other three dozen that had failed miserably, and it was mostly due to his overly possessive handling of his wives. His wives were made to stay in the home all the time, especially when Bob was away on a tour. He feared his wife going out and potentially striking up a relationship with another man while Bob was away. The same thing happened every time: The wife couldn't stand Bob's suspicious nature and lack of trust, and who could blame them? If a bandmember stepped out of line on the tour...he'd find himself with a one-way ticket home and he might not ever be asked to go on future tours ever again.

Lastly, the attack at Pearl Harbor paralyzed his career. Almost all of his bandmembers signed up to join the military in the days after the attack. The good 'ole days were over for good. He drifted away. And then as time went on, several country-western artists (Merle Haggard) paid tribute to Bob and recorded a reunion CD with some of Bob's surviving bandmates. At this time, Bob was crippled from a severe stroke and sat in a wheelchair in the recording studio. "Bob Wills and The Texas Playboys, For The Last Time" has Merle Haggard at the helm for many songs, and he does a great job. During one song, "When You Leave Amarillo, Turn Out The Lights..." Bob breaks his paralytical silence and moans audibly on the CD at different points throughout the song. It's a sad sound, and I think it's due to the fact that Bob's memory was not as plagued as the body was at the time...Amarillo held a special place in his heart because his one "true love" lived there when he was a young man. He had lost track of her, but found her in Amarillo and went to her house with flowers for what he knew would be a great reunion of two kindred spirits. The father greeted Bob and told him she was just engaged and the soon-to-be-groom was on his way at that very moment to see her! It crushed Bob something fierce, and he stayed until the young man got to her house. Bob stood right up in the man's face and let him know that he better treat her well. He assured Bob he would, and then Bob wallked out of the door and back into the cold Amarillo winter...crushed, heart-broken, and without anything to really live for. To me, this incident was the beginning of a dark and terrible time for Bob. He went a long time before clawing his way back to the top, and I seriously doubt he ever forgot that cold Amarillo evening. Listen to the song, and hear Bob's groaning when the lyrics say, "...when you leave Amarillo, turn out the lights..." There's something there that says Bob might as well have died in Amarillo than continue on with the thought that he missed marrying his true love by only a few days or months. I am married six years now, and thank the Lord I will never know what that feels like. It must be awful.

Bob represents all of us: We want to do good for other people, even when we have nothing to give or everything to lose. But we also do bad when we know we shouldn't. And through the good and the bad, what's really important is that we never give up trying to do what's right in the face of wanting to do what's easy and convenient for that part of us that desires to do bad. Bob was so eerily conflicted inside: "Do I use my fiddle like some bargaining chip, as a cheap trick to dodge the bullet? Or am I really playing the fiddle because I love it and I want to spread joy to people who love this music?" I think he loved his fiddle, and he loved the music he made--it shows in the quality and in the passion of his music. It was that hint of suspicion that he had of himself, the part of him that said, "Bob, you're using the fiddle as some sort of tool to get what you want, and it's wrong for you to betray the true nature of music to do so" that tore Bob apart all his life. I don't think he ever found peace with himself. He was his harshest critic, and that's a sad thing. When you see older folks from his era get all misty-eyed when they hear his music or when you ask them about Bob Wills and what he meant to them when they were younger in Bob's era...you know he was way too hard on himself. But he couldn't enjoy it to its fullest potential. Born a victim, died a victim. Born to physical poverty, died with emotional poverty. And it was Bob who robbed himself and made himself poor in the end.

The music? It lives on. In dance halls across Texas. On classic country radio stations. In the books. On the CDs. In the hearts of people who know a good fiddle lick when they hear it. As Waylon Jennings sang one time to the enormous cheering of some dance hall's patrons who were listening and dancing to Jennings' live performance, "...In Texas, Bob Wills is still the King." For that, Bob should be proud had he lived a little longer. He would have been a richer man for it.

You would do well to get this book, and read it. It'll teach you a lot of life lessons. Some day, when I have the money...I'm going to make a movie out of it. And what a masterpiece it will be. "The Texas Playboys are on the air!"

-- Pecos Shafer of Amarillo, TX.

While this slight volume can't hold a candle to something like Will Friedwald's comprehensive analysis of Sinatra's recorded career, it's quick and handy. Moreover, while the authors' selections will inevitably produce disagreements, their choices are unlikely to provoke incredulity (no "My Way," or recommendations from the "Duets" albums). And when there are multiple versions of the same tune, which is more often than not the case, the authors give helpful rankings of the best choices. But just to give you an idea of how necessarily inadequate a collection limited to 101 recordings is, Sinatra's absolutely sublime, definitive Reprise recording of "I Hadn't Anyone Til You" is not mentioned. Still, I find myself making more use of this book than any other about Old Blue.

The music of Frank Sinatra is timeless and though the title contains the words "the 101 Best Recordings", you may find that it is just a starting point and find your own 101 favorites. You have over 1000 songs to choose from so your picks are bound to be different than the authors. The book lays out 101 excellent songs, gives information to listeners (date recorded, album it can be found on, arranger, etc.) and tells the background of the song and sometimes an anecdote about when it was recorded. The book is not only for longtime fans of Sinatra's work (though they will be more familiar with all the names, etc.). If your Sinatra cd collection extends to one cd of his greatest hits, then this book can help you figure out where to go next. The stories and anecdotes may not mean much but you can figure out if you want to explore Frank's Columbia, Capitol, or Reprise years. For the experienced Sinatra listener, the book is excellent for starting debate with fellow Sinatra fans or perhaps rediscovering a gem you've forgotten or never really listened to before. Obviously, it is not a biography so don't expect stories about Frank the man, just Frank the singer. My only complaint is that I wish they gave more detail to the songs. I realize they had 101 songs to review, but I wanted more background about the recording session and Frank's opinions and views of the songs. However, there are other books for that.

Sinatra's approach to lyrical interpretation and his unique sense of tempo is what set him appart from the rest. Sinatra 101 is an excellent compliment to any Sinatra record collection. Too bad there is not a CD Box set of all the songs listed in the book so that readers could read along as they listen to the master at work. As a vocalist and student of Sinatra's sound, I have greatly benefited from Sinatra 101. Sinatra 101 has expanded my knowledge of the music and provides an excellent reference source which I have used to educate audiences during live performances. STRONGLY RECOMMENDED READING FOR ANY SINATRA FAN.

How do you pick the 101 greatest Sinatra recordings? The authors certainly came up with arguably the definitive list,and presented it in a most enjoyable read.Another reviewer wished there was a CD boxed set to accompany the book. I did the next best thing. I have an extensive Sinatra collection and I happen to have all the 101 songs(the correct versions). I bought some high quality cassettes and simply went through my CDs and tapes and put together the audio to the book..three 90 minute and one 60 minute tape covered the 101 songs.Needless to say, it was a labor of love putting these songs in order and is fascinating to read the descriptions and history of the songs as they are playing.

While the popularity of the Sinatra persona will rise and fall as fashions change, the music is timeless. "Sinatra 101'' spotlights the songs and the stories behind them. In concise, to-the-point language, the authors, Ed O'Brien and Robert Wilson, offer the sort of critical insights that will send you rushing back to the songs themselves, giving you the chance to fall in love with the music all over again. What more can you ask?

Sonar 2.0 is such a complicated program. I haven't even messed with many of the features, including MIDI, but have gotten quite good at audio editing. This book made a huge difference. I found it much clearer and easier to follow than the online help or manual that came with Sonar. Highly recommended!

I'm using Home Studio 2002 XL, which as one of the reviewers pointed out is basically just a cut down version of Sonar 2. I had hoped that this book would help me to really learn how to use the advanced features of Home Studio/Sonar, but I was disappointed to find little advice on technique in the book.

It's a very comprehensive overview of the features of the program, but apart from a few small features I'd overlooked there was very little that I hadn't managed to already learn from the included help files (which are pretty good) or previous experience with Sequencers and using MIDI.

In particular I was interested in more information on how best to arrange and mix songs, in particular using aux-buses, but I found that less time was spent on this topic than on explaining the different effects (in more detail than I thought necessary).

Perhaps I'm being a little harsh, and perhaps I'm looking for a different kind of book. I work with computers for a living, so I'm used to finding my way around new software - I guess if you aren't then this is probably a good tour of what the software can do.

I review this book as one who does not own this particular piece of software, but as a prospective Sonar user. I wanted to do a little research to see if Sonar was the way I wanted to go, and I found this book extremely informative. It makes what might be a scary program for the novice very approachable and user-friendly. If I do wind up purchasing Sonar, it's unlikely I'll even need to read the manual with this excellent resource available to me. Outstanding!!

Sonar 2 Power! is an excellent book. It is, by far, the best book available on Sonar, and a must have for anyone who uses Sonar. I have found it was great for intitially getting up to speed on the software. And now that I know the software much better, it is still full of tons of helpful information. Sonar 2 Power! lets you quickly dive right into those features you are interested in. Best of all, the author, Scott Garrigus, is able to make learning quick and enjoyable. It is clear that Scott has a great deal of enthusiasm for making music using his computer and Sonar; he does a very good job of getting this enthusiasm across, which makes the book all the more enjoyable to read. The author has a Website...for his readers.

This is a good book for Cakewalk Home Studio 2004 (and XL) users as well, because Home Studio 2004 is basically the same as Sonar 2 with a few missing features that Home Studio 2004.

I did a comparison of it to my recently acquired 2004 XL upgrade and other than the synchronization function, a couple of UI changes (Snap to Grid button changed locations), and a few effects that Home Studio XL doesn't give you, everything works identical to the Sonar 2 version in the book.

I haven't read the Cakewalk Power Book, but I did notice it looked thinner on the shelves than Sonar 2, and chose to buy Sonar 2 because I thought it was more comprehensive. I've been very happy about the purchase and what I've learned about Home Recording.

Stairway to Heaven is an interesting, informative book about the final resting places of some of rock music's legends. Many of the graves of famous stars are photographed and accompany the text. It's a book you pick up to read and can't then put down. Excellent to return to again and again.

I have 2 main interests. Rock and ghosts.Not just ghost but i think graveyards are cool. So this book was perfect for me. This book taught me so much and i love reading it. It's awesome for anyone who is interested in music!!!!1

This made an excellant gift for a rock fan and someone that is somewhat of a historian and likes things like this...

interesting and fascinating all at the same time. The photos were
wonderful and the text was clear. Highly recommend for both the browser and the reader

Have you ever gone to see your favorite artist in concert only to go home somewhat upset because they didn't play this song or that song? Well,I thought I would be thinking that way when I purchased this book,thinking that it would not have the gravesite(s) of this artist or that artist or so on. WAS I WRONG!!! This is like a who's who of dead people of the music world. The book in no way caters to just one genre of music. It practically contains every dead artist from all genres of music. From country (Johnny Cash,Hank Williams) to rap (Jam master Jay,Eazy E) to classic rock (Brian Jones,Jimi Hendrix) to blues (Muddy Waters,John Lee Hooker) to punk (Sid Vicious,Johnny Thunders) to even Tejano (Selena),this book has it all. From members of the beatles to members of MC5 and from members of Lynyrd Skynyrd to members of The Ramones and The New York Dolls,no band is left out. There are roughly 100 artists in this 160 page book which includes artist and gravesite photos as well as the stories behind their deaths. No music fan is left out. It is a masterpiece worth buying. Although it contains no directions to getting to the sites,it still can also be used as the perfect travel guide for the rock n roll historian. Rock on!!!!!

Suma is a story that makes you think about your own life. I read the story to my Bible study group who were silent throughtout and eventually some tears were shed. What paralyzes us in life? This story makes us take a serious look at our own fears. And the artwork, by Nan Rae, is a beautiful complement to the words. A wonderful gift to yourself or someone you care about.

"Suma the Elephant" by Gary Shoup is an unforgettable fable of life and limitations. The book is short, but only because the language is so perfectly succinct. More wisdom exists in its few pages than in many a thick and scholarly book. The story is simple, almost plotless; Suma, a baby elephant, is kidnapped by monkeys who tie her to a tree with a piece of string. Suma grows up believing she cannot escape; even after years have gone by and the monkeys are long dead, the memory of their voices still imprisons her. As the book jacket explains, "We soon realize that Suma's story is our story." While Suma's life is self-defeating, the book inspires readers to examine what restrains them from living their own dreams. The prose's simplicity forces the sorrow to rise up from between the lines and into the reader's throat.

The story could be read as a children's book, and I can easily envision it with brightly colored pictures and cartoon drawings of the elephants and monkeys in a Disney "Jungle Book" style. Some might think it too sad for children, but children will benefit from it if a parent is prepared to answer their questions afterward. Had I read this book as a child, I imagine I would have cried for Suma; the story would have affected me profoundly, lingering in my mind for years; I would have read it over and over until I grew up fully conscious of the mind-forged manacles we inflict on ourselves. And I would have been determined not to let Suma's fate become mine.

But Gary Shoup was wise enough not to make it only a children's book; his story achieves its full dignity in its elegant design by Joe Kuszai. The large amount of white space on the cover and pages focuses the reader's attention to the book's content. The decision to use only black and gray for the illustrations grants the book a dignified sorrow. The story could easily have been written on a couple full sheets of paper, but its division into many pages forces the reader to read it slowly, focusing on the intention of the lines, and if the reader lingers over the artwork before turning the page, the story's tone is only reinforced in the reader's mind.

The artwork is perfectly aligned with the tale. The artist, Nan Rae, has focused on elegance and simplicity in the drawings she and Gary Shoup selected for the book. The lack of drawings of the characters prevents distraction from the book's tone. Each of Rae's pictures contributes to the meaning of the words it faces; for example, the drawing of the drooping flower enhances the hopelessness of the line, "And after a long while, Suma stopped tugging on the string."

As much as I admire the choice to have only black and gray drawings in the book, I recommend the reader visit Nan Rae's website [...] where her talents are fully displayed in the colors she uses. Her method is described as, "Chinese brush painting [that] combines the grace of the Literati style with an impressionist approach to color. The Literati style seeks to transcend the mere representation of a subject to capture its ch'i, or life force, by using a minimum of brush strokes for maximum effect." Rae succeeds in capturing the ch'i of Suma in her drawings, even though she never depicts Suma herself. Rather than a picture of a sad elephant, we see a drooping flower, while a withering tree symbolizes the band of monkeys that has died. The drawings are like little poems that reflect the emotions of the text.

I can easily see "Suma the Elephant" being a gift for a loved one undergoing a major life event, a graduation, a divorce, a difficult career decision. It is a book of inspiration, a book that makes the reader look into his own soul and ask if he will allow fear and habit to bind him. Even though I am no longer a child, "Suma the Elephant" will linger in my mind for years to come.

- Tyler R. Tichelaar, author of Iron Pioneers
MQT REVIEWS

I am a high school English teacher, so people are always recommending books for me to read. At first, I stashed this title away with the many others, but I kept hearing references to this simple and stunning tale. I read it this morning and it took me by surprise. I am only just beginning to think of the many ways this profound and poignant story will help my students make meaning in their own lives and the lives of others. I feel grateful for this story.

Amazing book and story and affect on the reader. Never have I seen so few words, so few simple words, able to touch one's intellect and emotions to such a degree. The author told a group of us that it was our story, and while at first we did not quite understand what he meant, once he read it to us, we quickly began to understand, and then took ownership. It is metaphor multiplied. There is a certain quiescent lyrical quality about it that perhaps grows from the simplicity of its sentences, but one sits a little stunned at the end of this very short read. Defying any categorization, it touches you profoundly.

"Suma the Elephant" is a remarkably simple tale, which evokes a myriad of complex emotions. It touches the core of every grown up child who once was limited or put down, and now continues to limit herself by her unconscious belief in those critical messages. It provides insight into the dynamics of slavery in this country. This is an incredibly powerful story, and I am very glad to have read it.

In September 1806, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, arrived in St. Louis after a grueling expedition that had lasted for more than two years. Hailed as heroes, they were feted and honored by an eager nation forever pressing on its Western borders. This novel begins in St. Louis three years after the celebrations had ended with Will Clark serving as Superintendent of Indian Affairs and Meriwether Lewis as the appointed Governor of the Louisiana Territory. But the intervening years have not been kind to Lewis. He is fending off people to whom he is indebted and, more importantly, rebutting criticism from his superiors in Washington that he has misused government funds, and the rumors are washed down with a liberal amount of whiskey and a healthy dose of laudanum.
Sensing his vulnerability, Lewis is approached by James Wilkinson, who had been caught up in the Aaron Burr conspiracy a few years earlier, and who is now an agent of Spain. He attempts to involve Lewis in another conspiracy which will put him at the head of an empire carved out of the Louisiana Territory. Not only does Lewis not bite, but he heads off to Washington to defend his honor and to warn the government of Wilkinson's actions. Because Lewis believes that Wilkinson has hired men to kill him in New Orleans, he heads to the Federal City by way of the primitive Natchez Trace on horseback with the priceless records from the Expedition.

No one can say exactly what happened on the Natchez Trace, but what is known is that Meriwether Lewis, the hero of the Corps of Discovery, died alone in a room rented from a Mrs. Grinder. Most historians believe that Lewis committed suicide. Because so few details are known, the author is free to create a story of conspiracy, pursuit, brutality, betrayal, and murder.

The characters of Lewis, Clark, Wilkinson, and York, Clark's slave, are richly detailed and wholly believable. You can sense what it was like to travel the Natchez Trace with its seedy inns, runaway slave communities, and robbers. Everything necessary to recreate the early part of the 19th Century in the Louisiana Territory is covered, and all is woven into the compelling story of Meriwether Lewis, a man who had become a drunk, drug-addicted, persecuted wreck of a man, and his friend, William Clark, who could do nothing to save him. The Lewis and Clark Expedition is one of the great events of American history. But for Meriwether Lewis, it all ended in a rustic cabin on a territorial road in Tennessee, and To the Ends of the Earth is his story.

I hardly put this book down after I started it. It immediately engaged me. I was concerned about the characters whether good or bad (there are plenty of those), male or female, "important" or more secondary to the plot. Hunter's use of a wolf as a way to deal with mental illness was especially effective. History was followed faithfully when it provided needed details; other details were, I guess, made up, but done very effectively and within the scope of the known facts. I have recommended the book without hesitation to friends and family and will continue to do so.

To the Ends of the Earth: The Last Journey of Lewis & Clark is a very interesting read....not only a good historical fiction book, but also a compelling mystery. It was such an intriguing read that it was difficult to put down.

I especially enjoyed the characterizations. The development of the people portrayed in this book added a great deal of realism to this novel.

One can tell that the author researched extensively her subject matter. The book was quite authentic in time and place and sent the reader back to this fascinating period to learn more about this famous pair of explorers and the mysteries associated with their lives after their famous expedition.

"To the Ends of the Earth; The Last Journey of Lewis and Clark," is a wonderful work of historical fiction. I'll admit that in the beginning, the first twenty pages or so, did not grab my attention at all. I found myself wondering how on earth I was going to get through this entire novel. Suddenly it was an hour later, I was over a hundred pages into the story, and completely intoxicated by it. The story is absolutely incredible, and once I got into it, I couldn't make myself put it down.

We all know who Lewis & Clark were (if you don't, go find out on your own, I'm not going to explain it to you here.) but what we don't all readily know, is what happened to them after their three year expedition. That is what this book is about. It opens in 1809, and Lewis is a man in trouble. He's drinking too much, writing government vouchers for things that later will not be honored, postponing the writing of his novel, and lying to his best friend.

Due to a corrupt adversary within the US government, Lewis sets out for Federal City (the then name for Washington DC) In tow, are all his journals, maps and notes from his previous expedition. En route, Lewis is faced with enemies and allies alike, sometimes making it impossible for him to tell the difference. Hearing that his friend may be in trouble, Clark packs up and leaves after him, hoping to save his friend.

Its hard to explain what takes place on the journey to Federal City without ruining the story for those who would like to read it. Just know that its full of twists and turns, ups and downs, chaos and honor. It's a story you won't soon forget, and one that should be added to any historical fiction library.

As the book opens, its 1809, three years after the Corps of Discovery has returned from the West, Meriwether Lewis is governor of the Louisiana Territory and William Clark is General of the militia. While Clark is happily married, Lewis is plagued by malarial fever, is drinking too much and is dependent upon laudanum for the pains from the fever. They are both about to be swept into a treasonous plot to gain control of the Louisiana Territory. To say anything more would give away the whole plot.

A fascinating life-like portrayal of the last days of one America's great adventurers, and the author has provided an interesting theory on one of our country's great mysteries. Worth checking out for any one interested in this period of our history. Four stars.

If you're a Beatles fan, there are so many books that discuss their music that a newcomer could easily be paralyzed by the sheer volume of choices. If you are a GEORGE HARRISON fan, however, there are relatively few books available, and this is a good thing, because Simon Leng's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is all you need for critical analysis of his work. The book moves chronologically, skimming over the Beatles years and digging in around 1969, when George became a solo artist and producer-for-hire. Each album is discussed, track by track, and unreleased recordings and guest spots for other artists are also covered. The original hardcover first came out in 2001, so get the newer softcover, which received a considerable re-write and is updated for George's final album, "Brainwashed." Leng is clearly a George fan, and he does fawn and over-defend some lesser work, but the book is still an invaluable guide to the underrated solo career of the Quiet Beatle.

This book provides an insightful description and analysis of Harrison's music and his era. It's really an achievement. Leng is a mature, sensitive and intelligent writer: his knowledge of Harrison and his wonderful music is evident, as is his affection for the subject. Leng traces Harrison's solo work, how it evolved and why. He also places Harrison's work in context: Can you imagine a time when songs about peace, love and spiritual yearning topped the pop charts? And if you are just a bit too young to know why, say, Bob Dylan, was such a big deal, then read this book. Harrison's music and his spiritual growth were a big deal, too, and rightfully so - and Leng should be commended for recognizing and illuminating this.

This is a pretty good book. Unlike it's competitor, or companion "here Comes the Sun", this book is coming from a primarily music-analysis point of view, rather than a spiritual hagiography/biography. The analysis is pretty much song by song and focuses mainly on his solo albums, not his Beatles work, so anyone who wants to read about the first and early forays into Indian music will not find it here- that said, he does go into detail about the people who worked closely with George in the production of all his work (including the introductions to Ravi Shankar and some of the faces behind the scenes).
I liked this book- if I had to pick one or the other of the two competing
"musical histories" I would choose this one, if only because while it recognizes George's spiritual quest could not be divorced from his music, it focuses on the mechanics of that music rather than the personalities of (and the followers of) the "spiritual masters" he encountered on the way.

Finally, someone analyzes George's musical catologue with the scholarly insight it deserves. Simon Leng understands how to connect the events in George's life to his artistic endeavors. Mr. Leng ably demonstrates that he has pondered long & hard about George's majestic contributions to twentieth century arts and beyond. Bravo.

The review title refers to the monumental critical analysis by Ian MacDonald, Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties, which this book closely resembles both in structure and style. I think it is, in a word, AWESOME that a solid critical appreciation of George Harrison's entire body of work has been issued. Simon Leng has done a truly commendable job of treating Harrison's solo discography with the respect and attention is deserves. There is, in fact, much more to George's post-Beatles ouput than "All Things Must Pass" (though that is certainly the peak of his accomplishments) and Mr. Leng offers opinions of it all, song by song.

As with the Ian MacDonald work, this book is written by someone who is obviously a major fan - but not a fanboy. A clear-eyed objectivity is (more or less) maintained as Leng analyzes Harrison's music. I didn't agree with every single opinion of every single song - but it did inspire me to relisten to George's music from a different perspective. Ultimately, I believe that's exactly what this type of book should do. The focus is squarely on the music (though some biographical information is included in between discussing the albums, which is welcome - especially since George's career isn't as well known or documented as Lennon and McCartney's).

If you're a longtime fan of Harrison's work, you're likely to find something new to listen for. If you're a newcomer, you're likely to want to immediately acquire any of music you aren't familiar with.

This music challenges my wife to no end, but it sounds beautiful in my home. Nice quality book with wonderful music. Highly recommended for the accomplished piano player.

This book contains a good selection of Yanni pieces that are not too hard to play yet reproduce the original music very faithfully.

Ever since my daughter was little, she and I have loved Yanni's music. This was a Christmas gift to her. It is so neat to hear her playing the compositions we have listened to for so long. She has taken piano for 10 years and is learning this music easily. She loves this book.

This is a very thorough Piano Book of Yanni Songs. The music was large enough to see cleary, and enough room to make notes in. I am enjoying it immensly.

This is a must-have for all pianists who love Yanni! Each piece is emotionally moving and ingeniously intricate, though not so intricate as to be impossibly difficult. There are only one or two typos that most people would miss, but they never detract from the integrity of the piece. "In The Morning Light" is exceptionally beautiful, and is not that difficult. "Until The Last Moment" is another excellent piece, although it is the most difficult in the entire book. I could keep on listing my favorites, but that list would include pretty much every song in the book. YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!!!