N Books

I read Kazantzakis absorbing and compelling verse novel over a two-month period, rich and crazy as a Christmas fruit cake, and only to be nibbled in small doses. This is a deeply flawed work of consumate art; flawed, because it expresses a weltangshaung and philosophical stance utterly at odds with the complexities and values of the human spirit which it still succeeds in celebrating in verse of passion, intensity and beauty. Flawed, because it defines the human spirit in terms of the unsubtle, extroverted, violence of masculinity at its most obnoxious, a Nietzschean ubermensch driven to sweep through the human mind like a panzer division; flawed because it present a vision of utter and self-serving solipsism.

But of consumate art in that within those paramaters it creates, with a richness and intensity rarely encountered in modern literature, a detailed, elaborate and sensory world of image, passion and experience; and in positioning the human spirit dancing at the edge of the abyss, in celebrating the defining moments and relationships of life, it ultimately triumphs over its own weakness.

Its stages of the soul's evolution, its imagery and its passionate invocation of the sun link it with the old warrior-cult of Mithras; and while the leopards, elephants, drunkards and maenads seem at first more of Dionysos, the elegance and elegaic elements also link the work with the Greek Apollo, and the discipline of an exact and exacting verse.

Essential to an understanding of the twentieth century vision - and also to an understanding of what made so many of us passionately feminist.

A long, long time ago, I read this book and it changed the way I read literature. Kazantzakis' book goes beyond writing - it is a vivid exploration of the flame that consumes man. To go back to reading the frivolous so-called literature of today almost seems pointless. I am just thankful that Kazantzakis left us with such a rich body of work to read. The libraries were full of his books twenty years ago, but today I rarely find them on any shelf. To those of us who were lucky enough to discover him early, we know that he is the best kept secret of the twentieth century.

This is the best book I have ever read. Granted, I have read it in greek but still, there is no match. Homer would have loved his hero over again.

I read this in a period of weeks while homeless in a city, each day I would return to the library and read another huge section,never missing a day...the incredible prolixity and repetition, far from being burdensome, were like great rolling waves of majesty and freedom upon which I floated until the last cantos, surely one of the greatest climaxes in all world literature, brought me to rest and peace as Odysseus was united with Christ, and sailed off through the ice. And then I knew that for the rest of my life I would be as free as Odysseus had showed me how to be in this work. How's that?

This is the best book I have ever read. Granted, I have read it in greek but still, there is no match. Homer would have loved his hero over again.

I am the mother of 3, and I cook EVERYTHING from scratch. I like the spiral binding. The book is sturdy and the pages stay open. There is a lot of advice in the beginning of the book but I did not find the advice helpful because I've already "been there, done that" and figured it out on my own by making mistakes. The advice may be very helpful to a new mother -- would make a great gift. As far as the recipes go, some are great (Mediterranean Chicken, which is adapted from The Silver Palate) and some are not. There are a lot of short cuts and adaptations from other cook books, which is kind of unoriginal. Some of the recipes I don't get -- there's one for stir fry chicken which consists of buying veggies, chicken and bottled sauce (why buy a cookbook when the recipe is on the back of the veggies package?). And, some of the recipes are not for kids -- my kids wouldn't touch the food. Although this book is good for the one-armed cook, I think that the recipes in my Gourmet (5 Ingredients), Bon Appetit (Keep It Simple, Everynight Cooking), and Rachael Ray books are just as easy and great.

I received this cookbook as a birthday gift over a year ago and it is - by far - the best, most useful cookbook I've ever owned. I was a decent cook (definitely not a chef!) but, over the past year, this book has elevated tremendously my ability to provide delicious meals for my family. My husband even publicly commented about this recently at a party we were attending! I knew I liked the recipes, but I didn't realize that he had noticed so much!

The recipes are wonderful, delicious, and easy to prepare, and even the non-recipe chapters are full of useful information (such as how to stock your pantry). I can't recommend this book highly enough!

I have raved about this cookbook to my friends. I have several cookbooks but the recipes in this one are actually for meals the children WILL eat! Yay!!!! :) The meals are easy to prepare, simple and delicious! I especially love the sections on planning simple get togethers (with specific menus all spelled out) and the slow cooking section. I use this book several times a week and have to say I finally have more selection for what to make for dinner and I'm enjoying the variety too. BUY IT!

I bought this book not for a new mother but for a busy mom, I would buy this book again without hesitation for baby showers in the future.

I have given this book to several new Moms. The recipes are tasty and easy to make (I have a copy myself). This book makes a great and unique baby shower gift. It's always well received.

I am a student of Prof Neftci in the Applied Math for Finance MS program at Baruch College. He is a great teacher and has written this wonderful book. This is the text book for the Calibration course he teaches at baruch.

The best thing about it is in the practical approach it is written with. It tries to explain the finance as interpreted by practioners like traders...the engineering of finance rather than the science of it. Knowledge of basic parobability thoery, martingales, PDE and some stochastic calculus is assumed. The book itself has less emphasis on mathematical rigour but there are plenty of other references for that.

The strength of this book is in its practical utility in understanding the market and the rational behind the products that exist in it and the priciples of pricing and hedging those.
Chapter 11 on the Fundamental Asset prcing theory is a gem and is the workhorse for pricing many of the products like swaps or swaptions.

Prof. Neftci gave one of our mandatory course - Financial Engineering, in HEC Lausanne. This book is the reference book for this course. His lecture is great, a lot of jokes and funny stories as well as insights about financial engineering. However, I find out that the book is even better than his lecture.

As someone who teaches derivatives to practitioners and in a Masters program, I can't praise this book too highly. It is clear, comprehensive and, most importantly, concentrates on practical applications. I was particularly pleased with the chapter on repo, which is usually underestimated in importance, without requiring a whole, specialist book.

For someone with a fundamental, but non-quantitative background in financial markets (MBA or CFA level), this is the ideal place to go next before more specialised and quantitative books. The advantage of having studied this book first will be to have a clear picture of the forest for the trees.

My only (small) criticism is that the book would have been even better if it had included a chapter (or two) on the multi-tranche asset backed security structure followed by cash and then synthetic CDOs. I do hope that might be rectified in the next edition.

Bravo!

Neftci is one of those rare authors who can begin at the begining, explain his major point and logic without excessive jargon or short-cuts, and do so without sacrificing depth and substance.

In a field were the readable texts are for MBAs or elementary practioneers or for the initiated members of the priesthood, here is one of a few handful of authors (Wilmott and Joshi as well) that are both clear and serious, rigorous and accessible, insightful and a plerasure to read.

A wonderful book with a great didactic approach! Very clear but never mundane. The best introduction to the field so far. It's only drawback is the sometimes slightly unintuitive notation.

Joe Keenan's second novel is even better than his first! The farce gets wilder, and it remains consistantly funny. Joe makes it look so effortless that he shames those of us who have turned our own hands to the comic novel and turned out lesser work than his. This time out Donald and Ivana Trump are satirically lampooned, or more accurately, harpooned, disguised by a microscopic veneer of fictionalization. This book is hysterical. If you don't laugh at it, I can only pity your humourless existence.

This is a great follow up to Blue Heaven, which should be read first since they refer to some scenes in this book. The same cast of zany characters come to life again here, in equally as insane scenarios. Similar character acts comparison: Lucy and Ethel.

Joe Keenan's "Putting on the Ritz" is a novel that is like watching Rosalind Russell in "Auntie Mame", quick, witty, full of laughs and the perfect way to spend a rainy afternoon. It is a sequel to his first novel "Blue Heaven" and surpasses it with engaging characters and a dizzying plot that keeps you turning page after page. I have read the novel several times and enjoyed it more with each reading.

Now that Mr. Keenan has proved himself successful on television as a writer and producer for Frasier on NBC, perhaps he will take pity on his fiction fans, take a season off and catch us up on Philip Cavanaugh's latest adventures.

Please Joe, we want another book!

Does anyone know Joe Keenan personally? He has got to be convinced to keep this going. I can't tell you how many times I have read this and Blue Heaven - I simply never tire of them. Also, I am wondering if someone knows of other similarily genial books in this genre that I can get my hands on. I can't help but think that the rest will be disappointing knock-offs but I'm willing to try anything!

Even better than the first book, Keenan's humorous take on gays and New York is entertainment of the first rank. Anyone who can do analogies to Gershwin, Philip Glass and Charlotte Corday has lots going for him in my book. This time Philip Cavanaugh gets roped in by Gilbert Selwyn into an on-going feud between rival millionaire publishing magnates. Philip knows better than to get involved in another of Gilbert's schemes, but gets trapped by love--the initiator of the plot is this beautiful man named Tommy Parker who Philip falls madly for. Of course, Claire gets involved as well (without knowing Gilbert's involvement or the actual scheme) and the books is an exciting ride to the last page.

My only disappointment is that, as far as I know, Keenan hasn't written any other books. Someone hurry up and give that man a contract!

I have the original jazz card set by R. Crumb, so I was very happy to receive this re-compendium as a gift. The reproductions of the artwork are better than the cards, and Zwigoff's introduction is amusing. The CD is a great bonus, also. One goof I noticed is that the final cut is not Jimmy Noone's "King Joe," but Paul Whiteman's Orchestra with Bing Crosby's vocal, "From Monday On," featuring a good Bix Beiderbecke solo.

What a gem to find on your doorstep on a sunny afternoon. Book-CD full of mystery and joy. I passed it around at a picnic and everyone had a personal take on it. The music took me way back to my early childhood and me dad playing that early jazz stuff on Swaggy records. Dock Boggs music is chilling - always sends shivers up my spine. Jaybird Coleman is a revelation. It would be worth it for these alone but theres much much more.

A great book and a great CD at the price of one or the other. Book contains the comprehensive full-color artwork from Robert Crumb's three in and out of print collectors' card series: Jazz, Blues and Country featuring a few of the well-known artists and a lot of obscurities from the 20's and 30's. A great gift or a must have item for any fan of American Roots Music of the 20's and 30's.

Most Blues afficionado's will recognize the source of a lot of these illustrations but Crumbs personal take on the subjects brings new light and colour to some much loved portraits.The text is very light and could have been expanded, hence 4 stars . Buy Now

Wow! Every so often you run across something that knocks your socks off. R. Crumb's Heroes of Blues, Jazz, & Country left me barefooted.

In the 1980s, Robert Crumb, whom Robert Hughes appropriately once called the "Breughel of the 20th century," created sets of trading cards featuring some of his favorite blues, jazz, and country musicians. (The plan was to include one card per LP sold by innovative record firm Yazoo.) This collection, edited by Terry Zwigoff, the same guy who directed the documentary "Crumb," pulls together the illustrations from all three sets. They're wonderful. The blues and country illustrations are drawn, and are vintage Crumb: crosshatched, brooding characters. The jazz illustrations are water-colored. They're identifiably Crumb, but have a definitely different feel to them.

Crumb is a fascinating genius. Although his art and comics tend to be avant-garde (a term he might well disdain) and iconoclastic, Crumb also has a real affinity for late 19th and early 20th century American culture. Part of this love for an earlier time, no doubt, stems from his intense dislike of the fast-paced, loud, and garish American culture he eventually fled in the 1990s (Crumb now lives in France). But part of it is that he thinks the music produced in the early 20th century represents folk art at its finest and purest, before music became an industry. Crumb began collecting old 78s when he was still a teenager, and his love for the older music has never waned.

And so to the piece de resistance of this book: the accompanying 21 cut CD. Crumb personally chose the pieces, and they're absolutely fantastic. Except for a couple of the blues and jazz musicians, all of the artists are virtually unknown except to the afficionado. But man oh man, are they wonderful. Skip James' rendering of "Hard Time Killin' Floor Blues" is a heart-breaker. Dock Boggs' "Sugar Baby" and Burnett & Rutherford's "All Night Long Blues" are haunting in their strange but beautiful ways. And no matter how bad things get, Bennie Moten's Kansas City Orchestra's "Kater Street Rag" will pick you up. My son and I have listened to the CD over and over and over, and we never get tired of it. He prefers the blues and jazz, I'm in love with the hillbilly blue grass cuts. But the whole CD--well, it just knocks your socks off.

Wow.
_____
* From R. Crumb's essay "To Be Interested in Old Music is To Be a Social Outcast!", The R. Crumb Coffee Table Art Book, p. 191. "You play old records for most people, and, if they listen at all, after the record's over they turn to you and say, 'So what is it you like ab out that old music?' You just want to throw up your hands."

I learned so much from these books. (I have all 3) They are amazing! Very easy to read and understand, just great!

While these volumes are now online, I love having them in print because I can't read for long periods of time in an electronic format. These books are great for every day real questions that people ask about the Catholic Church, from the most common to the most absurd. The two fathers always answer in a frank and honest manner - they do not mince words, but they are charitable. Well in the top 100 Catholic books.

These books are probably the best resource available for someone wishing to learn about Catholicism and faith in general. The authors respond to the toughest questions posed by Protestants, Agnostics, Atheists, and other non-Catholics. The answers are simple, brief, and logical. The only downfall is the fact that they pre-date the Vatican II council; otherwise this set captures the faith quite well, and is indexed by topic. If you are a Catholic looking to expand your knowledge of your religion, or are questioning the beliefs of the Church, I challenge you to read these books. Also, I challenge any Protestant to read the responses of the authors on any doctrine you find difficulty believing. Every question has a strong and complete answer. These books are a must-have!

This three-volume set is considered a classic text of Catholic apologetics. The writing is clear, concise, and relentlessly logical. The arguments put forth are a remarkable combination of common sense, logic, and Scriptural reference. Not only does the book give Protestants, agnostics, humanists, and atheists a lot to think about, it is a fantastic resource for Catholics who desire a full understanding of our religious beliefs and practices, top to bottom. The big difference between Volumes 1 and 2 is that the latter responds to far more challenging questions, delving deeper into the same general topics covered in Volume 1.

I covered Volumes One and Two under those listings, so this is about Volume Three. As the series progresses, the questions get harder. Volume Three covers Church dogma and morals in great detail. In particular, the sixty year-old commentary on morals is eerily, sadly prophetic. The consequences of a drift toward complete moral relativism are described as a nightmare scenario, yet how much of it has come to pass--steadily rising divorce, abortion, alienation, violence, division into smaller and smaller groups dedicated only to the advancement of some self-proclaimed social imperative. Undoubtedly, to a non-believer, the prophetic quality of the arguments is the strongest point in their favor. It is not hard to see the moral quagmire we live in (if one only bothers to look), but to see it so clearly when it was just forming--that requires a true vision, a true perspective. For the believer, the truth of the Fathers' arguments is self-evident, for it is simply the Word of God.

As I would have thought...this is just as good at keeping my attention as "The Morgue". It's not often that I find time to read a book...but this one was far too good to put down once I got started. Keep up the good work..am anxious for the sequal!!

This is the second Dennis N. Griffin book I've read and the second time I've stayed up all night until I finished. The main character, John Grant, has won my heart. I love his investigative style and you can just visualize him in a worn-out raincoat. Go, Mr. Grant, Go!!!

Wonderful. Held my interest the whole time. Lots of surprises. Recommending this book to all my friends. This is a real "can't put it down" novel.

I was given this book by a friend who really loved it. I had never read anything before by Dennis N. Griffin before so I was skeptical. But what a great book it was! I couldn't put it down! The characters were brilliant and it had a captivating storyline. I read it all in one day, which is rare for me. I look forward to reading more from this talented author! I would reccomend this book to anyone who loves fast paced action packed reading.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Red Gold. I had the opportunity to listen to Mr. Griffin talk about his first book, The Morgue. As a result I bought and read the book. As you might imagine, by the time Red Gold became available, I was anticipating a very exciting book. I couldn't wait to read it!

I was NOT disappointed.

Griffin's ability to integrate action, dialogue and character into an intricately woven tale serve him well in creating a VERY suspenseful story. While one may be surprised that "such things" do occur (and I won't give away the story line here) Griffin's portrayal lends the credibility necessary to make this type of novel absolutely riveting.

Beginning with the discovery of a murder victim and moving quickly into an investigation that becomes more bizarre and complex with each twist, Griffin leads the reader through a journey of investigation and discovery. He shares just enough to keep the reader continually "hooked in", making it impossible to set the book down until having read it cover to cover.

Along with Moo, get this commentary! Schreiner is so solid and scholarly. I also have his work on 1,2Peter and Jude in the NAC. This NT scholar is so good.

His approach to scholarship reminds me of Dr. Moo. Both are really good. Schreiner does his own translation, and for me that is what makes this commentary so outstanding. If you appreciate adeptness in NT Greek, you'll appreciate this volume. But at the same time, Schreiner makes this simple enough for the person who doesn't understand NT Greek to get by.

This should be in every pastor's and anyone who's looking for the best work on Romans collection. Get this one!

This is a very good commentary on Romans. It is very well written and is clear and easy to understand. Great Reference material that can be used for years to come.

As someone who has done extensive work in Romans and is NOT a Calvinist, I have found Schreiner's volume to be the best all around commentary on Romans (not the best commentary on any book, however, as that would go to Schnackenberg's 3 volumes on John). He covers what you need to teach and to preach through the book.

While knowing Greek will certainly help one follow the author's arguments, he makes it easy enough to move past difficult material and get to the heart of the matter. Moo has a tendency to list multiple options and then pick one when it is unnecessary to list all the options due to a choice being obvious or else he does not list options at all when the choice is difficult. Schreiner avoids that problem by correctly majoring on the majors and minoring on the minors (with the exception of some issues at the end of Romans 8).

For Schreiner, this is certainly a step above his previous work and is much more readable than his book on Paul. The only Romans commentary I would rank ahead of this one is the incredible two volumes in the ICC by Cranfield, which is certainly not a series for those who do not know their languages.

Schreiner's Commentary is an excellent work when studying the book of Romans. Amazingly, he manages to retain a contemporary edge on such a difficult book of the Bible. His technical prowess comes forward as he examines significant words in the Greek and helps the reader to explore for the correct understanding. This work coupled with Douglas Moo's commentary on Romans are powerful technical resources for any pastor or theology student.

Schreiner's work is one of the most celebrated commentaries on Romans today. Schreiner's interaction with the Greek text and scholars alike is quite impressive. The author shows familiarity with Second temple literature as well. The work reflects the author's best achievement (See his theology of of paul, Paul, Apostle of God's glory in Christ). This is a commentary that seeks to be faithful to Scripture and ultimately celebrates the glory, majesty and excellency of Christ in the book of Romans.

...shake your 'tini?

I was pleased to receive this book recently as a gift and couldn't wait to peel back the front cover and begin seeing what it had in stock for me. The book was a perfect companion as I'd just gotten a set of 4 martini glasses and a shaker/strainer and was eager to put them to good use. But since my nose was too buried in this concise little text, I didn't have any need for the hardware yet. Since "Shaken Not Stirred" also offered conventional and more modern drink recipies - in an effective layout - I was perfectly willing to go back to it to look up a couple of drink recipes once I'd read up on my background info on the drink. I feel like I am now a true martini aficianado and much better informed!

The book was put together by the authors of a website by the same name, who launched their site on Halloween of '95. Soon, they had gotten many suggestions to put the book together - and it turned out to be an unqualified hit. There are many reasons to like this book, it's easy to read and the words flow, plus its something I'd want to read more than once. But perhaps my favorite part about this original idea for a book (it purports to be the first bar book expressly dedicated to the martini, and backs it up by research done by the publisher) is that it's not just a recipe book or just a list of bars. In other words, all you probably ever need to know in a tight little package. It was also neat finding out I'd already visited some of their best "martini lounges" in my city within the pages, but was eager to try the places I hadn't heard of. I'd recommend this volume to anyone interested in mixing their own drinks, or even wanting to learn a little bit more behind the whole martini or "Swingers" culture.

Now then, care for a cocktail? ;)

This book not only has some great recipes for varied martinis in it (I think I hear my gin calling me now!) but it gives great history and background to the drink and the ingredients and the characters and places that have made the martini an example of elegance and simplicity in potables!

Get it, find a recipe, make one up, then sit down and sip and read more.

A wonderful intrduction to the world of the martini with hints and tips on subtle variations. We're already planning trips to the martini lounges listed.....

I don't consider myself to be a big drinker, but the Martini is so cool and this book represents it in every aspect. It's just a really cool book to leave around the apartment so people can spy it when they drop by. I'm going to find one of those Martini lounges!

This is a great little book. It has great martini recipes as well as martini-stories from the authors and others... martini lore, history. Totally fun if your into the martini thing.

The recipes were fun and interesting..some a bit too esoteric for me...but I liked reading them anyway. And like that they are interspersed with the text instead of in a separate recipe section. There are some fun martini quotes too..

The only drawback, I think, and its minor..is that I just hate the feel of the paper. The cover is fine but the pages feel cheap and grainy to me. Harsh, even... It may be a pleasure to read but it isnt really one to hold. Seems to me a smoother paper would be better, altho probably alot more expensive.

That said...its a fun fun book. Easy to read, in a fiction way, as opposed to a non-fiction way. It has flow sometimes lacking in non-fiction.

What I luv about this book is that it tells you what to expect from traditional medicine and what you can do for yourself through herbal and homeopathy. Very thorough and easy to find information in the index.

Great book with lots of choices on how proactive you want to be with your health. Good information to read before going to the doctors, or making alternative lifestyle choices for your well being. Doesn't push one method over another, just the facts. Great reference book for any home.

This book is a wonderful guide to maintaining good health. It embraces Western Medicine, Chinese Medicine, Natural Remedies, and Nutrition.

This book is great. It gives you a variety of solutions to your health issues that fits you individually. It helps you make informative decisions regarding your health. I originally bought Smart Medicine for a Healthier Child. I was happy to find the same version for adults. Great Buy - Helps you determine if your condition merits your own personal care or a physicians.

I got this book and the one for our kids, my husband woke up with a stye in his eye a couple of days after receiving this book. He wanted to run to the Dr., I asked him to wait and followed the instructions the book provided, i like how it gave us many different ways to treat it. I used the homeopathic way and in a day and a half it was gone, it went from this horrible red, bloodshot eye to normal!!Amamzing, my mainstrean husband was very impressed. I really enjoy this book it gives me the power to heal our aliments in a healthy way and I save on the co-pays at the dr. office:)