William Russ Books

this is a very violent play, but there are actually a lot of crude humor (think of it as a Quintin taratino film, except it's a book). it takes on ancient dicotomy between civilization and wilderness. the movie is good as well

I'm a shakespeare fan and I love the story that this one tells.
Sure, gore, blood, and a great deal of depression around the middle, but what story now-a-days isn't?
Great story, love it!

This is perhaps The Bard's least well known work, but a classic nonetheless. If H. G. Lewis had been a playwrite living in Old England, this is no doubt the kind of drama he might have produced. It has more blood & violence than the most exploitive exploitation film. Heads severed off, murdered children baked into a stew & served to their father, rape, vengeance, mayhem, insanity... all served up in the guise of classic literature. PERFECT!

Titus has been maligned by many who have read the better known works of Shakespeare as a violent and gruesome play. That it is, but it is precisely that and other elements that make it remarkable. To truly appreciate Titus one must have read some Roman plays (specifically Seneca's early tragedies) and be relatively well versed in Greek mythology and Roman history. In Titus, Shakespeare gives the audience a great deal of Greek mythology via Ovid's Metamorphoses (compare Lavinia with Philomela and the final "feast" with the infamous dinner that Thyestes had with his brother Atreus). But the play is not only a classic in this sense. It addresses the timeless theme of revenge and the endless cycle of violence begetting violence that ensues as the charachers seek "wreakful vengance" for each horrific deed and pain that one causes the other. There are no heroes in Titus and no "good guys" just raw emotion and passion laid bare. It is at once the worst of humanity recounted with some of the most beautiful poetry that has ever been written.

OH MY GOSH!!! "Titus Andronicus" is one of the best plays ever written, especially when played for the comedy. DEFFINATELY READ THIS BOOK!!!

The whole play basically revolves around the action of the evil Tamora marrying another evil guy. Tamora gets really angry, and lets her two sons, Chiron and Demitrius, rape Titus's daughter, Lavinia. Ever hear that old Greek legend about how two guys raped a girl, and cut off her tounge so she could never tell the tale? In that version, the girl is, fortunately, able to miraculously weave her story into a coat and send it off for help. But Lavinia in "Titus Andronicus" is not quite so lucky. Chiron and Demitrius cut off her tounge AND her hands (I can tell THEY read there nighttime fairytales).

After this everyone runs around like madmen and there are a few casualties. Finally Lavinia is able to communicate to her father and remaining brothers using a book, etc. Eventually Tamora pretends to be a spirt-type-thing called 'Revenge' and her sons pretend to be 'Murder' and 'Rape'. But Titus Andronicus is even smarter. He pretends that he beleives there stupid bluff, and eventually captures Chrion and Demitrius after their mother leaves. Then, to make a long story short, Titus 'plays the cook' and cuts off the guys' heads and has his daughter use her stubs to gather their blood. Then he goes and cooks their guts into a pie.

That night at dinner, he serves the pastry to Tamora, who thinks she has won. After the people have eaten about half of the meal, Titus gets up and basically says, 'Look, Lady, you just ate your own sons, you idiot.' Then there is a huge blood bath and few are spared. The guy who IS spared becomes king, etc. Hehehe. Great, huh?

Seriously, though, I would deffinately recommend this edition of the book because it has REALLLLLLLLLYYYYYYY good footnotes. No joke. Hope you will take some time to read this cool book!!! :-D

I'm from England and I'm studying this play for A level (as a mature student - normally taken when aged 17) but although the UK is the home of 'The Bard' this item is not available in the UK! I'm very impressed with Amazon.com who delivered it quickly and cheaply!

The CD itself is great. It really helps to hear the play, as the intonation is correct, which is sometimes difficult to do when reading it yourself.

The actors' voices are clear and suit their parts perfectly. I'd definitely recommend it - and I will look out for more titles in this series when I've finished studying this one!

Although this play is not one of Shakespeare's better known plays, it is one of his very best. It is a tragicomedy suffused by gentle melancholy. Unreasonable and cruel jealousy are also portrayed. We also have two endearing young lovers to liven up the story. These characters are very well-drawn, and the story is quite beautiful.

I have always favoured the Oxford Shakespeare series over others (Folger, etc), and the Winter's Tale is no exception. It's translation notes and lexigraphical assistance makes reading a joy and brings out the true heart and soul of one of Shakespeare's commonly overlooked tragi-comedies.

As usual in Shakespearean plays, the language here is very prettily written. As usual in Shakespearean comedies, there are plot holes that one could easily drive a tank squadron through. But since this is not just a comedy, but a tragicomedy, in which the first part is a tragedy and the second a comedy, not everything comes out well in the end: some worthy characters die. Also, as is usual for Shakespeare, we have a morality play on the evils of jealousy and closed-mindedness. Really, though, other than the pretty Shakespearean turns of phrase, there isn't much to recommend this book.

Early compilers of Shakespeare's plays classified this a comedy, but there is much tragedy in it. Later it was called a romance. Through irrational jealousy a king is apparently responsible for the deaths of his entire family -- wife, son and daughter -- by mid-play. Time is a character in the play and at his one appearance summarizes the passage of sixteen years. If you have an overy high regard for realism, you may not much enjoy this play, but that will be true of more of Shakespeare than just this one tale. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I look forward to seeing it. I've ordered the BBC DVD and it's being performed at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in 2006. These Cambridge School editions have the play's text on right-hand pages; they have summary, commentary and exercises, and vocabulary on the facing left-hand pages. As I read through the play, I'd read the summary, read the play text paying attention to vocabulary, and then read the commentary and exercises. Some additional, unusual vocabulary was only explained in the commentary. I felt I got a deeper understanding of the play than if I had just read the play proper.mmary, commentary and exercises, and vocabulary on the facing left-hand pages. As I read through the play, I'd read the summary, read the play text paying attention to vocabulary, and then read the commentary and exercises. Some additional, unusual vocabulary was only explained in the commentary. I felt I got a deeper understanding of the play than if I had just read the play proper.

I'm always hesitant buying books written by multiple authors. I often find the writing annoyingly inconsistent and the overall structure lacking in cohesiveness. I'm happy to report that this book does not suffer from these conditions. It is a pretty smooth read and provides some insight into the ASP.NET world not provided by standard MSDN documentation. I realize this book is quite old at this stage, but for those still working in that environment it is still worth considering. Overall, I had few complaints with the book. Let's hope a second edition will be made available with .NET 2.0.

Since the book has moved to Apres, the link to download the code for the book has moved to http://support.apress.com/books.asp?s=0&bID=1861007752

I reviewed the orginal version of this book which was in C#. I've been lucky enought ot get my hands on the new VB.NET edition and it is even better than the original. I am more used to VB as it is, and I spent quite a lot of time translating some of the code snippets in the original, but now I don't have to! The book has changed a bit, it looks better than the first edition, and it is now completely 1.0 compliant. I've used the first book a lot, it's told me more or less everything I've needed to know. If you need to know about web services and you prefer VB then this is the only book you'll need!

This book is a must have for any serious graphic artist/freehand user. It covers everything I wanted to know about the Freehand Graphic Studio Suite. Before this book I did not understand the full range of solutions this bundle could be used for

I bought this for use with Freehand Graphics Studio 7, especially Freehand and Fontographer. I soon discovered it's based on an earlier version of FHGS, version 5 (I think).

This book appears to cover Freehand Version 5, not 7, but it does cover Fontographer version 4.1. I cannot say which versions of Xres or E3D it covers, I did not use these programs or the book for them. The downside of it covering FH5 (not FH7 or FH8) can be overcome by many other Freehand books; there are very few for Fontographer, no other 3rd party books that I'm aware of. Even so, there is much useful content for Freehand.

The book is great, it's full of graphics and helpful hints, and the CD is full of helpful hints and Xtras. Well delivered, short helpful examples.

If it were for FH7, I'd give it 5 stars.

It's no surprise that Prof. McDonald has written such an interesting, informative book. Way back when he was my favorite professor. His enthusiam and understanding got me hooked on the Bard. The one major drawback is his complete disregard of the current authorship scholarship that pretty much settles the identity question, proving for all intents that the Shakespeare canon was written by the Edward deVere, the 17th Earl of Oxford. (For those wishing to learn more, a good place to start in this area is Joseph Sobran's "Alias Shakespeare".) Like most scholars in the academy, McDonald chooses to remain in deep denial about this. So much for disinterested free inquiry. Such a pity.

This book is one of the few books of Shakespearean scholarship that I have read which I find completely, unequivocably indispensible. If you have ever been interested in just how Will Shakespeare does what he does with language, Prof. McDonald's book is the one to read. Thorough but not overlong, it is actually a speedy read.
As for spotchboy, there is absolutely NO evidence for an authorship controversy. This "identity question" was created by bored, insipid people who have a penchant for conspiracy theories. Prof. McDonald ignores that question because there is no issue to discuss, and the book deals with the arts of language. I wish the self-proclaimed "anti-Stratfordians" would realize the arts of scholarship. But it is refreshing to see that even they can realize how great a piece of scholarship this is.

As mentioned on my review of the Norton Critical Edition of "Othello," I purchased the two versions together so I could put together an online version of the play for a project my professor has been working on for some time now. Personally, I like this version better than the Norton one because it keeps the British spellings, but for the purpose of the project the spellings are being made into the American spelling. Overall, it's a good edition and, as with the Norton edition, came at the suggestion of my professor.

I have my degree in English... I like reading and teaching with this version as "help" not as a substitution. It gives a clearer understanding to Shakespeare for people who have difficulty with it.

I have never intently read Shakespeare before, but enough people told me that I needed to read "Othello" that I decided to break down and buy a copy. Everything about Shakespeare I find intimidating, so with much trepidation did I buy this critical edition of "Othello". Needless to say, this work is AMAZING. Not only does Dr. Honigmann give notes along the way to help the reader interpret what the characters are saying, but he also provides an extensive introduction outlining Shakespeare's sources, some possible motives, and some character criticism. He also provides one of Shakespeare's main sources, a short story written by Giraldi Cinthio, and in this short story he provides notes that link it directly to the text of "Othello". I am completely sold on "The Arden Shakespeare" series, and will continue to use it in the future. A definite buy!

Forty-plus years ago, when I first started reading Shakespeare, I liked the Signet Classic editions.

They were cheap and handy, and the play texts were just about right for a beginner: clear, with an indication of variant and disputed readings without overwhelming the play; a simple, convenient way of glossing the hard words; and useful short explications of some of the allusions.

Recently, preparing to go see a production of "Othello," I picked up the Signet Classic version to re-read, and I did something I had not done in my student days: I read the supporting material.

The background to the original staging and Renaissance playcraft was unexceptionable, but when I got to the "new dramatic criticism," I was appalled.

Not all of it was new. Of three essays, two dated from 1956 and 1960 and no doubt were part of the first issue in 1963. These were tedious and obvious, just the sort of thing that took all the enjoyment out of studying Shakespeare in school.

The third, dated 1980, had been added to pander to current campus fads -- not something you need when reading a Jacobean text. The editors got a three-fer: an essay by Madelon Sprengnether that coughed up psychoanalysis, feminism and PoMo French-Belgian trendiness in a convenient but indigestible hairball.

It's hard to imagine that still in 1980, people were taking Freud seriously and disgusting to see Shakespeare subjected to Belgian Nazis. Of the feminism, all I can say is that sometimes a sword is just a sword.

I have read a fair amount of Shakespeare criticism and liked little of it. But until Sprengnether, none of it disgusted me.

The copy I picked up second-hand dated from 1986. No doubt in the two decades since, more "new criticism" has been added to keep up with the dumbing down of the campuses. To 21st century students, here's some advice. You will be better off doing what I used to do: Stick by the big fish and let his remoras tag along unheeded.

Though I am not a particular fan of Shakespearian work, I instantly fell in love wioth Othello. This play is one of the greatest things ever written. Never has a playwright combined love, extreme decpeption, jealousy, anger, and fear in a play like Shakespeare has in Othello.

Even if you are not a fan of Shakespeare, I highlky recommend this play.

If you do not wish to read the play then I would recommend going out and renting or buying the movie "O" with Josh Hartnet, Julia Stiles, and Mikih Phifer. I would rent/but the 2 disc version because the second disc includes the original silent version of "Othello" from the 1920s.

Like other books of its type by general publishers like Oxford and Penguin, this book is a bit of a chronological overview.

The first story is from the arly 1940s, and Lucy Sussex's Kay and Phil ends the book in the 1990s, which is when it came out.

As far as I can see, it is not an attempt to pick the best stories, just a good collection from different times, as the average rating here is only 3.16. It does include some excellent examples though.

They define fantasy pretty broadly it seems, given that Oxford did Fantasy and Science Fiction collections, as there is a whole lot of science fiction in here, and horror stories, too.

Modern Fantasy by Women : The Demon Lover - Elizabeth Bowen
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Tooth - Shirley Jackson
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Lake of the Gone Forever - Leigh Brackett
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Old Man - Daphne du Maurier
Modern Fantasy by Women : My Flannel Knickers - Leonora Carrington
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Anything Box - Zenna Henderson
Modern Fantasy by Women : Miss Pinkerton's Apocalypse - Muriel Spark
Modern Fantasy by Women : A Bright Green Field - Anna Kavan
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Ship Who Sang [SS]] - Anne McCaffrey
Modern Fantasy by Women : Marmalade Wine - Joan Aiken
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Fall of Frenchy Steiner - Hilary Bailey
Modern Fantasy by Women : Cynosure - Kit Reed
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Wall - Josephine Saxton
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Foot - Christine Brooke-Rose
Modern Fantasy by Women : Baby You Were Great - Kate Wilhelm
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Second Inquisition [Alyx] - Joanna Russ
Modern Fantasy by Women : Murder 1986 - P. D. James
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Milk of Paradise - James TiptreeJr.
Modern Fantasy by Women : When it Happens - Margaret Atwood
Modern Fantasy by Women : Angel All Innocence - Fay Weldon
Modern Fantasy by Women : Night-Side - Joyce Carol Oates
Modern Fantasy by Women : Fireflood - Vonda N. McIntyre
Modern Fantasy by Women : Wives - Lisa Tuttle
Modern Fantasy by Women : Red as Blood - Tanith Lee
Modern Fantasy by Women : Sur - Ursula Le Guin
Modern Fantasy by Women : Peter and the Wolf - Angela Carter
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Pits Beneath the World - Mary Gentle
Modern Fantasy by Women : Two Sheep - Janet Frame
Modern Fantasy by Women : Relics - Zoë Fairbairns
Modern Fantasy by Women : The Evening and the Morning and the Night - Octavia E. Butler
Modern Fantasy by Women : [Learning About] Machine Sex - Candas Jane Dorsey
Modern Fantasy by Women : Prodigal Pudding - Suniti Namjoshi
Modern Fantasy by Women : Breasoobs - Suzy McKee Charnas
Modern Fantasy by Women : If the Word was to the Wise - Carol Emshwiller
Modern Fantasy by Women : Trial by Teaspoon - Lynda Rajan
Modern Fantasy by Women : In the Green Shade of a Bee-Loud Glade - L. A. Hall
Modern Fantasy by Women : Death in the Egg - Ann Oakley
Modern Fantasy by Women : Kay and Phil - Lucy Sussex

Taxi horror.

3 out of 5


Dental decay.

2.5 out of 5


Transuranic memories.

3.5 out of 5


Swanflict.

3.5 out of 5


Prison island procurement.

3 out of 5


Handy to have invisible tv stuff for boring school.

3 out of 5


Flying saucers, right brand.

3.5 out of 5


Paddock power mowers.

4 out of 5


Rogue rejection replacement return.

3.5 out of 5


Future stuff means houseguest ok.

3.5 out of 5


Oracle deflowering devastating for prolonged ratzi power.

4.5 out of 5


A bit of mess and dirt can do you good.

3 out of 5


Driven home love.

3 out of 5


Ghost pain fight.

4 out of 5


Reality show acting job way too long.

4 out of 5


Trans-Temporal Time Authority temptation.

3.5 out of 5


Disease daughter letdown other's putdown showdown.

3.5 out of 5


Big grotty Crotties.

3 out of 5


Pickling is old fashioned. Shoot to kill, point blank.

2.5 out of 5


Ghost state.

2.5 out of 5


Going under medium.

3 out of 5


Hybrid distaste.

3.5 out of 5


Domestic role, mammaries aplenty, no arguments woman.

3.5 out of 5


Witch Queen reflection.

3 out of 5


Antarctic women trip, even a really small one.

3.5 out of 5


Crying it, literally.

3 out of 5


Grow up or be eaten.

3.5 out of 5


Smart sheep look dumb.

3.5 out of 5


Female research.

3.5 out of 5


Concentration of disease.

4 out of 5


Chipboard, brainboard, shagboard.

4.5 out of 5


Like less cat is a bad thing.

1.5 out of 5


A well-built werewolf still has to eat Billy.

4.5 out of 5


Library pre-eminence rulebreaking.

3 out of 5


Ghost spoon surprise.

3.5 out of 5


Garden exile, temporary?

3 out of 5


Teenage girl just inhuman to deal with.

3.5 out of 5


Author's spectral ratzi confab.

2.5 out of 5

The readership of fantasy has been said to be predominantly feminine (as opposed to the predominantly masculine readership of science fiction), so it is perhaps not much of a surprise that one of the best collections of fantasy writing would be one dedicated solely to the work of women authors. If one were looking for non-patriachal, original, stimulating fantasy generally uncluttered by the cliches of the genre one could do worse than one of the most important collections to come out of the field in the last few decades. The range of the book, which also traverses science-fictionesque territory, is impressive, from straightforward space opera (The Ship Who Sang, by Anne McCaffrey; the short story that birthed the famous novel of the same name), to revisionist visions of classic fairy tales (Red as Blood; a revisionist Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs story with a distinctly Stokerian--re: Vampiric--twist). Classy packaging and a beautiful cover illustation (Baby Giant) complete a pleasant reading experience. The Penguin Book of Modern Fantasy by Women is a welcome mainstay on the bookshelf of essential science-fiction and fantasy writing.

Kevin Randle was a Pro-Ufo writer 15 years ago when he wrote
not 1 but 2 excellent and believable books on the Roswell Incident with co-writer Donald Schmidt.
At those time for him the Roswell Incident was totally real and alien.
Then for some unknown reason he started a debunking campaign against everything he could debunk (even the cases he supported before!) and the aliens no longer existed, furthermore he clearly thought that readers are nothing more than a bunch of idiots whose mind can be set as he wished.
This man (along with many other official debunkers in history, unfortunately) does very bad to the real and sincere Ufo Study, a study that, thanks to these obscure figures, after nearly 60 years has succeeded in leaving the mind of the everyday people totally unaware of the phenomenon and with the big question of the beginning still present:
"But, after all, are Ufos real or not ?" (!!!).
Read some Jacques Vallee, John Keel, Richard L.Thompson, Patrick Harpur, Richard Haynes, Donald Keyhoe for Real Studies and on the Abduction field stay on John Mack that was not the usual moron easily discredited but a REAL prominent Psychiatrist with decades in the medical field, including hypnosis.
And remember, when analysing Ufo phenomenon at the end use your own mind not the debunker's one!

There is voluminous evidence, much of it from government files retrieved through the Freedom of Information Act, which makes it quite certain that we are, and likely have been for a very considerable time, being visited by one or more types of beings from places unknown.

To think that these 'visitors' are benign just because they are obviously vastly superior technologically is ludicrous. One thing that is probaly true is that they have their own agenda, and this is NOT necessarily to the benefit of the human race, but to theirs.

The idea proposed by the authors that most researchers have been using leading and suggestive statements or questions in their examinations of those who claim abduction is simply not the case. Quite often, the subject of abduction experience only comes up when someone is in therapy for vague fears and unusual feelings and seeks such therapy to discover the cause of it.

I find the way that most of the material is presented by the authors does not represent open enquiry, but a presumed outcome which they attempt to twist the facts around to make a fit.

Several months ago, I managed to obtain Kevin Randle's "The Abduction Enigma" at a local used bookstore and read it thoroughly. My thoughts on it are quite upsetting yet few data are interesting.

There are couple of things to point out here. I was able to finish reading Karla Turner's works, such as Masquerade of Angels, Into the Fringe, and Taken: Inside the Alien-Human Abduction Agenda. Knowing that Turner was one of the individuals was taken apart by Randle et al in this "The Abduction Enigma," I went to search where she was mentioned and I have noticed how she was 'taken apart.' Randle has used Karla's dreams from her book "Into the Fringe" to support his theory that her alien abduction was only a 'dream.'

From reading Karla's "Into the Fringe," I do not think that she wanted to believe in alien abductions. However, Randle seems to have implied that she (as well many other alien abductees) does believe in alien abductions when the 'dreams' started. Randle was stressing that alien abductions are only dreams and nothing more. I am not certain if Randle is aware of a possible theory called 'soul abductions' which might be relating to 'dream' experiences. Physical abductions are really rare, but soul abductions are known to be common. This "soul abduction" goes into detail in Laura Knight-Jadczyk's The High Strangeness of Dimensions, Densities and the Process of Alien Abduction.

Secondly, Randle pointed out that half of all alien abductees are homosexuals. It is an interesting theory, but his research did not reveal more details. I was looking at a specific part in the book where Randle has discussed homosexuality and there was no list of questions was being used for interviews that Randle, et al has conducted. But, I think he should have included a sort of questionnaire in order for us as readers to understand what was being asked.

Thirdly, a certain part from this book (p. 99-101) made me a bit uneasy where he may be implying that the 'evidence' would lead to common human problems, not alien problems. If the evidence pointed out that it is a human problem, would the individuals be ignored as alien abductees? And, he also said that 90% of the abductees seemed to have 'sexual dysfunction.' Would he have ignored those 90% as evidence of alien abductions if the individuals were 'discovered' to have some sort of 'sexual dysfunction'? What I mean to say is that if the abductees were discovered to be homosexuals or having some kind of 'sexual dysfunctions,' would he ignored them as real alien abductions and labeled them under "psychological problems?"

And, while reading Karla's "Into the Fringe" and I came across a section in her book where Budd Hopkins and Turner discussed alien interests in human sexuality. I am somewhat surprised that Randle did not include it or discussed about it in his 'study' of homosexual issue in his book.

What made me uneasy most of all about "The Abduction Enigma" is the fact that Randle et al have 'tear apart' the very people who have asked the same questions as they did, except theirs were considered to be 'new' questions. In my opinion, this book is considered to be biased.

Seems the whole purpose of this book is clearly stated in the first paragraph of the conclusion.

"Here's what it all comes down to. There is not a single shred of evidence that alien abductions are taking place other than the tainted testimony of the abductees. The physical evidence to support the claims is nonexistent. What has been offered as proof has been eliminated through testing by objective scientists or additional research by unbiased investigators."

Really?

Since Randle is one of the leading proponents of the view that the Roswell incident may have indeed been the crash of an alien craft, he can hardly be accused of being a debunker. That being said, this book does present a very harsh and dismissive -- BUT EXTREMELY VALUABLE -- perspective on the "alien abduction" phenomenon. The core phenomenon (as represented by cases such as Villa-Boas, the Hills, Travis Walton and the Allagash Four) has become buried beneath so many layers of psychobabble and silliness that I had the feeling the authors were intentionally being overly harsh and dismissive in an effort to restore some semblance of balance. There is quite a bit of overlap and repetition from chapter to chapter; I feel certain that each of the chapters was written by one of the three authors and that the final product perhaps wasn't edited as carefully as it might have been. Nevertheless, the book is extremely valuable as a warning against the dangers of hypnotically recovered "memories" and researcher contamination. The authors effectively analogize the abductee phenomenon to the bogus Satanic Ritual Abuse phenomenon, which likewise relies almost entirely on hypnotically recovered "memories." The chapter on abductee "support groups" should be required reading for everyone involved in any type of "experiencer" group. The authors absolutely hit the nail on the head with their analysis of the dynamics and pitfalls of these dangerous groups, where the "support" is of a perverted type that only exacerbates the attendees' problems and fosters an unhealthy dependency on the group. Whatever flaws this book may have, it is highly readable, serves as an important counterbalance to the "abductee" fluff that dominates the market, and effectively makes its key points. (I'm not a debunker either. I've studied UFOs for nearly 40 years and had a close-up disc sighting myself -- but I'd bet everything I own that these authors' perspective on the abduction phenomenon is far more accurate than that of Budd Hopkins, David Jacobs, Whitley Streiber, et al.)

This book's title is misleading, as it appears to feed off the familiarity with the Applied Programming series of books from Microsoft Press. It is truly a mixed-bag, as the above editorial review admits. After expounding on the 'revolutionary' idea that software should be people oriented, it dives into pages of code that lays out an Asp.Net application. It then sandwiches in a C# fundamentals tour, and then dives right into more code. If there is a purpose to this book, I couldn't distill it. It truly appears as if each author wrote their portion of their book without talking to the other, and then the editor mashed them together the night before the deadline hit.

If you have kept up with the .NET revolution, you have no doubt seen and read a lot of books on .NET and the .NET languages. Most of the books on C# deal with the basics of syntax with a couple of small samples applications. Very few, however, deal with any sort of real world situations.
While this book does cover a few of the basics, it is more focused on the people aspect. I feel this is an important, often overlooked, aspect of software development and the fact that it is overlooked is why so much software is hard to use.
If you are looking for a best practices book, this tome is not quite there. The same goes for a book strong on code. While you can use the CD to look at a good amount of sample code, the book is rather thin. This is not, however, the focus of the book; and, since so many other books cover this, the niche filled here is rather nice.
If I had to pick the proper audience for this book, there would be two categories: 1) Anyone who has ever had a piece of software fail as the end-users never bought in, and 2) anyone who wants to ensure this never happens. While it is not an excellent book, I have to laud the publisher for taking a chance on this subject matter selling. I hope it does.