F Books

Like one previous reviewer, I discovered this amazing book when I was in junior high. I read an enthusiastic Time magazine review of Jones' surrealist coming-of-age saga in 1974, but didn't actually buy a copy 'til the following year.

Like two previous reviewers, I was struck by the Huck Finn parallels, or anti-parallels. I actually wrote a paper for a high school English class detailing how I felt Jones had used Huck Finn as a starting point, then turned certain aspects of Twain's allegory on end. It was a public high school, so my insights -- indeed my entire topic selection! -- were poorly received. It's just as well that I resisted my initial urge to drag James Dickey's novel/screenplay 'Deliverance,' another allegorical mid-'70s river voyage, into the analysis.

'Blood Sport' is a brutally honest but infallibly entertaining depiction of [male] human nature and the human condition, and it's the last word on what guys are all about. Metrosexuals won't like 'Blood Sport' at all.

Exploring the Hassayampa headwaters is about more than just growing up; indeed, growing up is about more than just growing up! The thematic linchpin of Blood Sport is exposed during Ratnose's discussion of the second law of thermodynamics: Life itself is rebellion, he argues, against the second law, which dictates that energy in a high state tends to become energy in a lower state, all the way down to the inert ...

A terrifically entertaining read. As a military man, hunter and Deadhead (different sides of myself I've often found hard to reconcile) it was a real treat to find a book that included elements of outdoorsmanship, combat, and the absurd (in extrema).

What a great book!! An excellent piece of surrealistic fiction. If you are a hunter, a fisherman or just an old-style libertarian hippie (Your modern tree hugging, gun-phobic, quiche-eating hippie won't like it.), I highly recommend this book.

This novel is without a doubt a classic, grizzly account of manhood and survival, transformation and change. Perhaps if you are one who believes that the spirit of the bear resides inside of you, pick this book up and read it all the way through. It is a magnificent story full of gritty, earthly imagery that will thicken your skin. From gunfights to hemp-laiden philosophy, from sensitivity to utter insanity... Stand up and play the hand god has dealt. Play fair but play to win.

Where's the sequel, Jones?

So glad to see this amazing novel back in print. I read a Dell paperback (with a beautiful full-color cover) when I was in junior high (middle school to you youngsters) back in '75 or so. Blew the top of my head clean off. Broke a bunch of rules and made up some new ones in the process. After I read this I graduated directly to Vonnegut, Brautigan and Castaneda. Blood Sport changed the way I look at writers and writing, and it deserves a spot on the same shelf as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Heart of Darkness and Deliverance. The chapter listing "27 Things I Learned About Ratnose" is itself worth the cover price. Long live R.F. Jones. He has written a true adventure classic.

After seeing all the positive reviews on here I had to try this book. I can tell you they are all true.

When I first started reading I wasn't too sure considering much of the first chapter I was familiar with. However as to be expected Ego and Archetype proved to be enlightening and inspiring. If at any point you have studied Jung and was interested in the process of Individuation. Or if you are looking for a guide to living a healthy meaningful life this book should help.

While this book could easily be considered a self help book it should be not confused with most books out there. The information in this text makes Ego and Archetype worth more then its mass in gold.

I would like to suggest that before reading this text however (if you are new to Jungian Psychology) to read at least "Man and His Symbols" and if you can "The Undiscovered Self" as well. These will at the least give you a basic understanding of where Edward Edinger is coming from.

A must read for anyone who feels abandoned, thinks they know it all, are a spiritualist, or religious.

I can only wish I had been graced with the knowledge in this text sooner.

I found this book very satisfying. It is clear and elucidates Jung's concept of the Self better than anything I have encountered hitherto. The illustrations come from the great sources of Western Civilation and world art so they provide an illuminating frame of reference for the multiple facets of the main concepts of the book. The writer obviously is a master of the subject and everything he says and uses contributes vitally to the work. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

I read Edinger's work in the late 70s after an intense spiritual awakening which was first expressed in Christian fundamentalism in the early 70s. During a time of study at the C.G. Jung Foundation and the New School (New York City) I began to discover the spiritual meaning and personal potential of the Christian myth. The work continues to this day, and I am thankful to Edinger and others (Neumann, Jacobi, Von Franz, Whitmont) who extended the insights of Jung for pioneers along the path of individuation.

This is the best interpretation of the Scriptures according to Jungian psychoanalysis. It is recommended to everybody who has doubts in the dogmaic Chrisitan way to read the Bible and it is a source for individual wholeness for those who try to find it in the Scriptures.

I was a young well educated military aerospace engineer and a devout right-wing Christian when a senior engineer handed me this book and asked me if I listened to the content of my dreams.

I would have never thought this man, an "engineer's engineer," was interested in anything outside of the scientific reality taught to us in engineering school, let alone the psychology of human beings and especially one's dreams.

I have read this book through at least three times, each time marking-up new insights I learn with a different color pen, just as I had done in analyzing my scriptures. It took awhile to learn the language of psychology, but once mastered I was able to have revealed to me the wonders of the human psyche and for that I thank Edinger for producing this masterpiece.

Edinger attracts his audience by revealing the genius of the teachings of the New Testament biographers of Jesus and other biblical writers. He shows how the Beatitudes taught by Jesus form the foundations of depth psychology, 2000 years before the field develops. He opens up a whole new interpretation of the story of Job, ties in the teachings of Jesus as regarding the process of Individuation, touches on Alchemy and metaphysics, and discusses the symbology found in the Christian religions, especially the Trinity. He includes wonderful related classic artworks along the way.

Edinger teaches the processes of Jungian psychology throughout the text. This introduced me to the field of psychology and the major contributions of Carl Jung.

The transformations I went through occurred during each reading of this book. While painful, my level of self-awareness has risen to new levels I feel not achievable had I relied on my religious teachings alone.

I now describe myself as a liberal agnostic college educator that seeks spirituality from where Jesus said it lies: the human heart. Thank you Dr. Edinger.

I would consider myself a intermediate level model builder and I have had this book for 7 months now. After working with it awhile I can honestly say that this book has improved my model building. As most reviewers have noted it is the type of book that is right next to you on the workbench and you will find yourself constantly referring it to for "how-to's". While I agree on the point mentioned by other reviewers that further text for each picture would have been helpful, it did not hinder the process of seeing how Mig does different techniques. The book has an excellent table of contents that breaks down techniques logically so you can quickly scan it and find the right page for what you are trying to do. The book covers a wide range of levels, from basic to advanced, and there is plenty of in-between techniques. I would not go as far as to say this is the only book you would need, but I will say it is a must have for your collection. You will use it constantly and wonder why you did not get it sooner.

... as this books shows a miriad of useful tricks you can use to make your AFV models much more realistic.

Despite of this, some more advanced modellers can be a little frustrated as, once you've completed a dozen or so of kits, mostly of what is said in this book can be considered "obvious" for you.

Anyway, pictures that ilustrate the step-by-step painting processes are of great quality and a pleasure for you eyes!

Regarding to this, it seems to me that almost 30% of the book is auto-promotion. At least, that's how I feel when almost one third of the book is dedicated to pictures of finished models by Miguel Jiménez.

Best regards from Spain

José Carlos

Great book, I doubt anyone who bought it ended up seriously disappointed.

Here's what's inside:
30 pages of introductions
15 pages of intro to techniques
15 pages on construction techniques
100 pages on painting
20 pages on groundwork and misc.
70 pages of model photos (gallery)

Book follows Internet FAQ format - series of questions and answers. Answers typically comprise of very short text (2-3 sentences) and number of clear color photos (typically 3-4, sometimes more). Each question deals with a particular technique, showing how to achieve very specific effect.

As you can see, the book deals with painting, and nothing else. The "15 pages on construction techniques" describe creating proper texture (cast metal parts) and battle damage - not actual kit construction.

Format makes the book not very accessible to beginners. There is very little step by step explanation, readers are largely left to choose which techniques to use,and understand it's nuances. It's much easier for intermediate / advanced modelers, who will know which techniques they want to incorporate into their process. Not all is lost however, as there is a "question" in the book, describing suggested workflow for particular camo type. For example, when making a model of "single tone green tank", we're to perform these steps:
* green base color
* filters
* fading
* washes
* running rusty chips
* pre-dusting
* watermarks
* dry mud
* spilled fuel
* crew footprints
Each of these steps is described in a separate "question", so it's a matter of applying these.

Although the book feels heavy, and is packed with nice color photos, I've found that when it comes to learning particular technique, reader is left with few lines of text and few photos. In some cases it's enough, in others I wished for more. You should therefore count on having to stare at the photos, think about the technique and try it on scrap plastic, before attempting to use it on the model.

Despite the "Q&A" format, I'd recommend reading the book front to back initially. The less familiar you are with armor modeling, the more important it is. Some advice is simply buried in places that might not be very obvious, and reading the whole book first helps.

From what I wrote above it might seem that the book is not perfect, and that is certainly true. Format has its advantages, but can also be confusing. I decided that the book is well worth 5 stars however, despite its shortcomings.

Miguel Jimenez, while taking his modeling skills to the next level in realism, has defined and described a number of ground-breaking techniques. English-speaking reader can learn most of them at Rarities World section of ML, but in this book they're explained in a more visual way.

There is also no other book that describes modern approach to armor modeling. At least not to my knowledge.

My recommendation - buy it. I don't know of any other book on the market that will teach you painting techniques described in this one.

If you are into realism, this is your book, but I must say that the techniques explained here may be a little daring for the average and the new modeller.

This book does not cover the basics of scale afv modelling, you will not find "how to use an airbrush" or "what color should I paint my tank" kind of questions.

On the other hand less-experienced modellers will get their answers once and for all, regarding issues like wash,filter, rust, how, when, why??? and stuff like that.

The techniques shown here are becoming a must in the hobby, so anyone daring to go further go ahead and buy this book.

This is a TOOL, not another book in your room.

Hands down greatest book out there on this subject. Took me from an amateur to actually selling my models in a week. No joke. This book has some words but the pictures make the light bulb come on over you head so many times your lucky you don't get a bill for it. If you are worried about the price, this may be the one book in your life you grumble about paying this much for, only to open it up for the first time and say "oh".
He is now making a series of extremely affordable DVDs to go with this book under the same name FAQ, first one is on filters (a type of paint wash that unifies your models colors, a very magical technique). I was looking on amazon for it since it has come out this week and figured I should stop by here to give my review. This book should be hard bound and gilt in photo etched metal.

One of the most profound and yet simple books of its kind.We forget as we grow older and become absorbed in our routines the thought processes that got us to were we are.By playing back our lives in reverse we come to a realization that we are were we are because we wanted to be there . Anyone can change the course and Miracle Of Mind Dynamics can teach the way .A truly thrilling adventure.A spiritual endeavor worth the time.All of his work is wonderfull..

The greatest discovery of all time is to become aware of the power of God. This is of far greater importance than the discovery of atomic or nuclear power says Joseph Murphy in the opening pages of chaper 4 - The Only Thing That Matters

If you only read and absorbed this chapter, you would have the key to success and happiness.

Miracle of Mind Dynamics is another 'OUTSTANDING' FIVE ***** BOOK by the late Joseph Murphy. Interesting is that this book was written back in 1964 and was the result of over 40 years of studying mental and spiritual laws.

An excellent book. Easy to read, and with very good subject matter that CAN make a difference to your life.

I'm not saying you will believe everything that Murphy says -- but he gets you thinking. His perspective is interesting, a despite the time that Murphy's book has been around, it is like a "breath of fresh air".

A better word might be renewal. Well worth a read.

This books shows and proves that we control our lives and our destiny.

Joseph Murphy has written what has to be one of the most profound yet simple books on Spiritual principles and truth ever written. I was so blessed by this book. I would highly recommend to anyone seeking a real relationship with God. It really is not complicated and Joseph Murphy shows you how to achieve it.

If quantum mechanics and all of its philosophical implications tickles your fancy, BUY THIS BOOK! Heisenberg jumps off the pages with an eloquence long forgotten in our day.

This is an excellent work due in large part to Heisenberg's acumen both as a physicist and a philosopher. Unfortunately, even some of the great physicists have been somewhat shallow philosophers. For whatever reason(probably the fact that his father was a professor of classical studies), Heisenberg had a very good grasp of many philosophical viewpoints. He was able to mostly avoid the cartesian bifurcation that traps most physicists even to this day. He understood that much of the "trouble" with Quantum Mechanics was caused by our unwillingness to let go of the bad metaphysical assumptions that became implicit in classical physics. Overall, this is an excellent book for anyone who wants to understand the beauty of Quantum Mechanics with eyes wide open.

As I was reading this intelligent and provocative manuscript, I could not help think why this was not part of my undergraduate physics course. For anyone who wants to know how quantum physics came to be, this is certainly the book to read. I was completely surprised how many of the aspects of modern science we take for granted today would not be in the classroom if not for quantum physics. The linking to classical philosophy was equally stirring.

I am not sure that anyone truly appreciates the fundamentals of quantum physics. But, for someone who has done a great deal of reading on the topic and possesses an advanced degree in a relatively unrelated field (clinical psychology), this is a very readable book on Heisenberg's thinking related to quantum physics. For those who know anything about quantum physics, however, it cannot be overemphasized that this is, in fact, only one perspective on quantum physics (though, probably, the most accepted). Heisenberg was one of the originators (along with Wolfgang Pauli and, particulary, Niels Bohr) of the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum physics. For anyone interested in a more deep analysis of the thought that went along with the development of this incredibly groundbreaking thoery, I recommend this book highly!

Since the 17th century, philosophers have been struggling with the implications science has for classical philosophical questions. In a way, the relationship between science and philosophy is one that has always occured in Western philosophy; Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and also the medievals grappled with science and what relation it had to philosophy, but with the apparent triumph of science in the 20th century as mankind's premier way of knowledge, the questions are all the more urgent.

While Heisenberg wrote this book seventy or so years ago, it remains a classic for two reasons. One, Heisenberg himself was one of the pioneers of quantum mechanics, and second, he is widely read in the Western philosophical tradition. He shows an excellent understanding of Aristotle and Kant, and proceeds to argue where he feels philosophers have it right, and wrong, in the light of science. Like many scientists he argues for a more process based approached to the world rather than seeing reality as a static and timeless entity, and that space is not really empty and that the microworld is different from the macroworld and is more a place of potentiality than actuality.

This work remains a beautiful exploration of the relationship between two ways of exploring the world and is essential reading for philosophers and scientists alike.

If your looking to get into the Electrician field or just need a steady reference guide, then this is the book for you. Residential, Commercial, Industrial...you name it. I've been a certified Electrician for 17 years and I still use this book as a quick reference manual to this day. Not overly complex but still gets down to the nitty gritty in details.

Definitely a must buy if you're interested in pursuing a career in this trade.

Some very good information , but very vague on a lot of subjects. It would be nice to have more pictures and details of subject matter I have yet to find a really good electrical book other that the NEC CODE BOOK

It is an excellent book not only for electricians but also for general construction professionals to understand electrical details.

This book is amazing, we can read about to many real points in electrical wiring, actual information help about National Electrical Code 2005. Read this book is a big step to electrical wiring.

I bought this book while in Iraq to study before I get out of the army and try to get under an apprenticeship. This book has helped me learn a LOT about the trade of inside wireman and the basic fundamentals of electricity from fomulas to installation of panel boxes to wiring an entire house and to which lamps will give the best lighting effect in a room. I am really looking forward to learning more about the trade. So far I have read it once and am already half way thru for my second time around. I highly recommend this book however, what I have learned about electrical is only from this book so I do not have a comparison.

This book was recommended to me by a co-worker and it got me through my first half marathon. I still use it as a reference. I've since gifted it to several friends who also run.

Very good book. Has a plethora of useful tips for veteran and beginner runners alike. Highly recommended.

I so wish I had this book when I just started running! It should have helped me prevent so many painful experiences as well as bills from physiotherapy... This book covers everything from choosing the correct shoes and injury preventing techniques to diagnosing and treating foot and leg injuries. The writer seemed very knowledgeable and he certainly helped me. With his simple advices I can run long distances again without pain and I couldn't do it in almost a year! I had no idea there are so many things that need attention when running safely. Think all runners need this knowledge.

An easy read, short, and has all the information runner's will need about running injuries and preventions. I found information about pretty much everything I went through when I started running recently [ Knee pains, shin splints, arch pains, .....].
Written in a user friendly format, it has all the background information you'll need about injuries. You can skim these over if you're not interested, and go right down to the prevention/excercise section.

This is a useful for book for anyone who runs. One of the authors is a podiatrist who treats runners and he is fairly pro-active with regard to self-help. I found it extremely helpful in treating a recent bout of plantar fasciitis. It might be helpful to update this book and see if there is any recent developments in sports medicine with regard to these injuries.

What an author. Dr. Stanley grasps the purpose for goals in this book so well that I could not help but start setting them in my life immediately. As a result, I have not drank in excess for over a year. Primarily because I'm too busy having a "go" at accomplishing my goals. It's important to note that they need to take part in filling our lives with needful action. Action that makes our day our years and our lives.

This book by Dr. Stanley is like God's roadmap to success. The book reads like a how to book for success. Dr. Stanley doesn't just talk pie in the sky theology that only seminary students understand. He breaks down the issue into several bite size chunks to make the issue easier to understand. He then gives the reader a workable plan of implementation to make success happen. The material is also written in such a way it is easy to understand. The material flows easily from one subject to the other.

There is one thing that makes this book radically different than the tons of other self help books. This one is very grounded in the word of GOD. Each of his suggestions come from a verse in the bible. To me such references give his insights the ultimate validation.

As Christians we all tend to just coast through life in the pursuit to "be like Christ", but never have any real goals that we strive for. This book helps you define goals for all areas of your life and motivate you to work towards them. It doesn't matter if you are a missionary, a stay-at-home mom or a corporate worker, this book will have a major impact in your life. It sure did for me! I highly recommend it.

I really enjoyed this book! It was more of a devotional book than anything else, touching on the principles of reaching true happiness, success, and evils such as greed and being negative. Success God's Way reminded me that in order to have true success one has to put God first and everything else will fall into place. I have now adapted one of the techniques that Dr. Stanley stated in the ladder part of his book, which is prioritize the initiatives and goals that you want to accomplish for the next day on a flash card before you go to bed and then put it in your pocket throughout the whole day. It is amazing how much more one can stay on task. The true examination I believe that this book illustrates is are one's goals Godly purposed goals striving to go along with God's plan, or are they individualized goals that do not fit in God's initiative, which makes their purpose lost and unmeaningful? Definately read Success God's Way!!!!!

Once again, Stanley has written a down-to-earth book with practical advice. The Lord's definition and way of success radically differs from the world, and Stanley encourages us to focus on how precious we really are to God.

Among the many excellent points Stanley offers are:

1. God's ways are different from the world's ways.
2. Principles of goal-setting.
3. Ask God for guidance and leadership when goal-setting.
4. Keys to good time management.
5. Time wasters to avoid.
6. Keys for successful believing.
7. Principles about persistence.
8. Trust God to order your steps and arrange the details of your life!

Again, these are just a few of the many excellent topics covered in the book. Highly recommended and is an excellent supplement to the Bible!

The Kingsbury Run murders were gruesome and the killer seemingly mocked Cleveland, Ohio, Public Safety Director Eliot Ness in executing the perfect crime.

The crimes - still unsolved - were committed in the mid- to late-1930s with the victims surgically butchered; the heads, arms, legs and torsos cut by someone who seemingly had a medical expertise in removing body parts. Only three of the fourteen victims were ever identified.

Ness - who took center-stage in the investigation - was criticized for the inability in finding the killer. Police detective Peter Merylo actually believed that there were at least 40 murders in Cleveland, Youngstown and Pittsburgh, Pa., spanning three decades that were perpetrated by the individual.

Torso captures the frustration of Ness and the concerns of the public and city leaders while discussing the various theories and suspects. In as much a political as safety decision, Ness ended up raiding & burning several shantytowns in The Flats to clear out an area where it was felt the murderer could feast on any number of "nameless" victims.

According to The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer, a film on the murders could be released in 2008. While that may bring new focus - and books - on the crime, Torso will surely remain an outstanding resource for those seeking an understanding of those frightening years.

Very good. Accurate, concise, and interesting. Could have used more elaboration on both the potential connected crimes and the Elliot Ness socialite nut goofiness. Best book on the Kingsbury Run Butcher yet.

In the 1930s over a dozen murders were attributed to the "Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run", a ravine that runs through Cleveland Ohio and contains this stream and railroad yards. Most of these bodies were unidentified: headless, the arms, legs, and torso were cut up by someone who knew anatomy or butchering. It was never solved, altho one suspect was made to confess, repudiated this confession, and then found a suicide in jail. Such serial murders were rare in America; earlier serial murderers did it for money and left this trail. No motive was ever established for these murders. Most sex murderers are the product of large cities, which have anonymous victims or perpetrators. Chapter Eleven summarizes these cases.

This book is about the later career of Eliot Ness. After Chicago, he was put in charge of the Alcoholic Tax Unit of norther Ohio. He cleaned out bootleggers, hitting a still every day. Organized crime made Cleveland a safe haven for criminals on the run. Corruption had spread everywhere; neighborhood crime had greatly increased. Harold Burton became mayor, and chose Eliot Ness as Director of Public Safety to oversee the police and firemen. (Burton later became a Senator, a friend of Truman, and was appointed to the Supreme Court.) The ineffectiveness of the police was due to widespread corruption and complacency. With Prohibition gone, Ness prosecuted gambling and union racketeering. Ness cultivated a good relationship with reporters, and got favorable publicity. He tried to purge corrupt policemen but was met with silence. Then a police captain was caught in a cemetery lot racket. Another owned a restaurant which fronted for a gambling room. The bodies found in Kingsbury Run highlighted the corruption.

Cleveland had been the worst city (after Los Angeles) for traffic deaths and injuries. Ness purged the traffic division, began arresting drunk drivers, prosecuted ticket fixing, gave harsher penalties for unpaid fines, and started tougher automobile inspections. Ness promoted traffic safety with a public awareness campaign. He began an Emergency Patrol with first aid training to reach any accident within two minutes. This cut traffic deaths by half, and he received national recognition. Some of the increased traffic fines were put back into the police budget. Squad cars now had two-way radios. A single phone call brought police assistance within 60 seconds. Ness was criticized for wasting tax dollars, but in one year overall crime dropped 38%, robberies by 50%! Public success was followed by private problems: divorce, late night socializing, stories of drinking.

Ness later resigned to join the Federal Social Protection Program during WW 2. Afterwards, he became a businessman but was not successful. His campaign for Mayor of Cleveland flopped. He later met Oscar Fraley and began to write his book. Just before its publication, Ness died of a heart attack; he never knew of its success.

Not long after his "Untouchables" days, Eliot Ness experienced many successes as Public Safety Director of Cleveland (OH). Unfortunately, capturing the 'Torso Murderer' was not among them. A relatively little known crime, this serial killer haunted Ness' time in Cleveland. This book is both a look at Ness himself after his Chicago accomplishments, and an examination of one of America's greatest unsolved serial killings. If you are interested in either subject, this is an excellent purchase.

The book's title is somewhat misleading us into believing that the 1930s `The Untouchables' character of Elliot Ness ran a serial killer investigation. Half this book is the life and times of Ness who happened to be Director of Public Safety in Cleveland while his skid row turned up mostly unidentifiable dismembered remains of vagrants, it was Ness who gained the most attention throughout the investigation by eventually burning down the homeless slums of the Kingsbury Run district in an attempt to clean out, tag, and fingerprint potential victims in the making, probably destroying the killer's Cleveland homeless hunting grounds, also a turning point event in Ness's career, a prohibitionist alcohol distillery buster, who once put away the national crime lord Al Capone, sadly failed systematically to progress his ratings with the city, eventually becoming involved in a hit and run accident that cost him an election run as Mayor, the over-hyped but none-the-less interesting account of Ness is all here, but maybe a little bit more than a seasoned non-crime fiction reader would care to expect, means you get only about 100 pages of the Torso investigation, where we concentrate on the city coroner Dr. Samuel Gerber and Detective Peter Merylo.

Ness comes into play now and again, obviously as a propaganda figurehead designed to play to the media, backfires most of the time he does appear by getting involved in the wrong thing at the wrong time, still had a very high success rate in exposing corruption, and did work on a number of highly constructive policies like getting kids off the streets and stressing the fight against disease, obviously behind the scenes worked with the ""good guy"" force heavies getting all the important political prohibition work done (alcohol prohibition was a failure not because alcohol is safe to use but because prohibition itself actually increases the prohibited drugs risks, usage rates and overall crime goes up because of it, a statistical fact). It is reading the situation of these same propaganda violent cops becoming cold case serial killer squads, even before the term serial killer was used, makes it an absurd situation of bad police management for the 21st century reader to contend with, and was the reason Ness went bust in the end and even more importantly, why the killer got away with so much in the first place.

Thus the investigation in Torso is not like any other, the cops are a different breed (just like out of a comic book meaning useless in real life) and the concept of `stranger killing' was not even present then. The classic book "The Complete History of Jack the Ripper by Philip Sugden" is based on the police records at Scotland Yard of the investigation at the end of the 19th century, news paper clippings and various memorandums that followed with surprising valid detail (all 500 pages of it). Torso reads like trying to find anything factual as if anyone except the leads could read, write or file reports, pounded and smashed their way across Cleveland in the hopes of stumbling across a sexual sadist who would suddenly admit to picking up homeless people, decapitating them with a large blade while they where asleep and or tying them up beforehand so they could not escape, a paraphiliac, expertly removed all the appendages after death with `knowledge of surgery' and bisected the body, sometimes used chemicals or freezers to keep his victims, would then wrap the pieces and begin his very strange dumping process which ranged from never-found victims, to victim's body parts appearing in the middle of the city for everyone to see, going to great lengths to leave two incomplete victims from different time periods together in the same spot, it stands to reason that Dr. Samuel Gerber and Detective Peter Merylo would give us a much better angle, and it is with the medical evidence that Gerber comes off as a sort of new-wave criminology serial killer expert, knowingly prevented other coroners from going near the victim's body parts, rightly asserts himself as a scientist in among all the investigative despair, leading some to suspect and challenge Gerber himself, after his conclusions that a recent severed leg was the work of the same hand, this statement exonerated various numbers of peoples who where obviously rotting in jail on suspicion of being the killer.

Merylo correctly guessed that the killer was somewhat mobile in the area and probably moved on after the killings that did not stop at #12, Merylo at the end of his career guessed that it was probably above forty. Dr. Francis E. Sweeney is the mystery Ness suspect not named in this book but the evidence is circumstantial at best. Gerber may have given the investigators a better idea of who there man was if he did not also subscribe himself to propaganda theories (druggie maniac). It is almost a certainty that if the investigators conducted better searches of abandoned train carts that they would have discovered the killer's `laboratory', a series of abandoned carts containing three different bodies that came from Youngstown after being there for almost a year, was almost certainly that unacknowledged lab of his, but Gerber did not examine these bodies. From the victims that could be identified all where prostitutes or homosexuals. The killer probably killed them away from his home, suggesting that he lived homelessly or with a family, certainly hung around the lower classes of society, befriended vagrants and some other loiterers who where happy enough to sleep with him in train carts (if this fact you are reading now had have been known at the start it would have probably prevented more death), resided in the general area and probably killed and mutilated several times before the first official Torso was found, meaning he learned his `surgical skill' that way.

He should have been caught earlier. Torso is a shallow account of the subject matter but still essential non-fiction crime literature.

I received the manual in a timely manner, and it was in very good condition as advertised. I would recommend to anyone that they use this supplier to buy a book.

Having just completed Rupert Smith's _The Utility of Force_, this was recommended to me by my former executive officer as a companion piece. He was dead-on in his recommendation. Whereas Smith's strength was in disucssing strategy in combating insurgencies (and proposing that the warfare of the future will be of a counter-insurgency nature), Nagel addresses counterinsurgency at the tactical ( battalion. company and platoon) level.

Naturally there is some overlap, particularly as it relates to dealing with and among a population. Nagel, however, literally walks one through waging warfare on the ground, from reconaissnace and intelligence to planning operations through executing and sustaining the campaign. I was particularly impressed by the chapter on leadership and ethics for counterinsurgency and by the numerous vignettes providing a historical perspective on successful counterinsurgency strategies.

While the manual is written (by definition) for professionals, it is an excellent tool in gaining insight and understanding how to successfully engage the types of conflicts we are likely to see more of in the future. Read in conjunction with _The Utility of Force_, a strong foundation for the future of warfare at both the field and company grade.

As I understand the history of the COIN manual, it was originally published in 1940 by the Marine Corps, and dealt with the lessons to be learned from Black Jack Pershing's development of a strategy against the "Moros" insurgency in the Philippines in 1903. Ergo the double title "Army/Marine." And BTW, what Clausewitz wrote is "War is diplomacy by other means," not "policy" or "politics." He was talking about the two ways that countries deal with one another, one peaceful, the other coercive.

I've been studying insurgent warfare for a long time before it became a hot topic... again. I still recommend Galula's Counterinsurgency Warfare and Hamilton's The Art of Insurgency which is a great book but is little referenced. There are of course books by Kitson and others. (Nagl's book which I've reviewed is a good dissertation but is limited in it scope and perception. He writes the forward to this edition.) The two volume War in the Shadows is okay background but not worth a two volume read. Which brings us to the Counterinsurgency Field Manual, which if you are serving and only have time to access one source, this is a dependable one.

Although the CFM is oriented more toward the current unpleasantness the principles of counterinsurgency have been carefully gleaned from the best sources and multiple situations as well as updating insurgent response for the 21st century. Keeping food deliveries out of active insurgent areas might have worked for the British in Malaya, but you could imagine the field day CNN would have with it today. Probably the best things the writers do in this manual is freely admit that the devil is in the details and that these will have to be worked out locally and supported nationally.

For those who still aren't buying into "the insurgent stuff" which unfortunately over the last 30+ years has gone under state department approved phrases like "nation building" and executive office of the President terms like "counter terrorism" you don't have to worry that the Army or Marines are going to lose their conventional edge with these approaches. The CFM makes it clear that this is only one form or warfare and that modern war can slip across the entire spectrum. What is not needed is more doctrine...what is needed is a tool box and the CFM attempts to be one of those tools.

The CFM makes many good points and I'm not going to list them all here, but the most important one I felt has to do with the assumption of more risk. Insurgent warfare requires soldiers to go out and get in the streets with people to provide the basic security for everyday activities that will lead to a legitimate government. Legitimacy cannot come from the national level down no matter what form of government people actually settle for (A basic concept found in any undergraduate PolySci 101 class which no one in the State Deptment or Congress must have taken.) The average Joe doesn't care about the grand schemes. He wants to go to work, get married, raise a family and have a shot at some level of comfort without getting killed. The key to winning against insurgents is that the most committed to providing these basic parameters for the average Joe, wins. You show your true colors and level of commitment when you have to go out and get shot at. But the alternative, which never works, and we still seem to be doing is to concentrate forces on large FOB's and separate them from the population. This has got to be one of the toughest of balancing acts to provide force protection, logistics as well as force projection and maintenance that supports an ongoing relationship with the civilian population. Fighting an insurgency is not for the faint hearted, the draftee, or those who needed to be reelected every 2 years. It takes soldiers in neighborhoods who know the people and have the power to affect their lives...albeit indirectly if possible.

I disagree with the CFM on two points. I disagree with using the idea of "counterinsurgency" for philosophical reasons. The term by its very nature places you at a disadvantage to the insurgents. I believe you fight an insurgent war and win it by being better insurgents, not by being better "counterinsurgents." But this is probably more a matter of semantics. My second area of disagreement is really the book itself. This "new" book on insurgent warfare is really a great gazette of all the current knowledge that has been around for years plus the all necessary Army doctrine, without which the lowliest private cannot have a bowel movement. The Army's "can't do it without doctrine" attitude is what made this book come out so far behind the power curve to begin with. All this information is and has been known and available but the Army couldn't "discover" it. The US has a long insurgent history that is little studied or learned from. Our nation was founded by an insurgency. We've fought insurgents throughout our history: Native Americans, especially in the West, the border struggles during the Civil War, Phillipines, Cuba, Nicuagua, Vietnam, and Afghanistan. As organizations that need to be highly adaptable, the Army and the Marines need to stop paying tuition for the same lessons over and over again. I realize that not all of this lack of organizational awareness is theirs. A great deal of the responsibility for lack of responsiveness lies at the feet of elected officials who do not do their part and provide the clarity of purpose upon which coherent military strategies are based. The mist in Congress becomes a dense fog for those who are tasked with the nation's defense.

I actually bought this book some months back but I kept putting off picking it up because I assumed this would be a dense work filled with military jargon and more acronyms than one could shake a stick at. I assumed that it would be a tedious and difficult read so I found reasons to put it off, but when I finally forced myself to begin this book I was quite shocked. The book is very easy to read and very well written. The book has just a few acronyms that I had memorized within a couple of pages after their introduction, and the book is very well laid out with impeccable organization (as should be expected I guess). I dare say I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book on all levels. Of course the information and the knowledge to be gleaned from this work is extremely important.

I think if this book were to become required reading for students then I think we could prevent some costly misadventures in future because this book really details what an occupation requires. Everyone would understand that military action will require a deep level of commitment for the military and on all levels of civil society as well.

I also think it is the least we can do as citizens to educate ourselves on what our military men and women are doing and attempting to implement in situations where they face this type of conflict. One gets a sense of what a soldier goes through and the huge load that is put on the ordinary soldier. It is an extremely difficult task they are asked to perform in these situations, and they are asked to perform this task with honor and discretion in the face of terrible situations.

There are some good reviews here that speak more to the content of the work by people obviously more versed in the topic than myself, so I will just say that this book is very well done and an easy read. If you are like me and are putting off reading or buying this book, then let me just say go ahead. It is worth the money and the effort. I highly recommend this book.