V Books

This is THE definitive book of New York City trivia. More than just informative and intelligent, it's truly fun. It's a great gift for an NYC smart aleck who thinks they know everything about the city, or for anyone who wants to learn a whole lot about what is, of course, the capital of the world. Apparently the author biked from Queens to Manhattan across the 59th Street bridge at an age when most kids wouldn't be allowed to walk to school on their own. So this is clearly a 40-year or so labor of love. Most of all, it's fun. A great buy.

Celebrate New York City with this book, one of the best ways to explore all of what is special about New York City! From the novice to the tourist, from the born and bred to the commuter who works in New York City or just for the curious planning a visit...this book has it all. Little known interesting facts will make your every day stroll down the block into a history lesson. Fun for the holidays to quiz your friends and family.

You won't be able to put it down. Test your own knowledge. Written in an easy reading style, yet thorough and detailed enough to challenge and entertain at the same time.

Enjoy!!!

Definitely a fun and interesting read. It doesn't take a trivia lover to enjoy this book. Volume 2 has its way of sparking your interest on triv-bits about NYC (even those that you normally wouldn't care to know). Once again, only John Barbieri can show you how to really appreciate NYC.

John Barbieri makes the 'second time around' even sweeter, with Mr New York's Trivia Quiz Volume 2. Mr. Barbieri has a talent in bringing us tid bits of information about the greatest city in the world, but with his own unique and entertaining spin. Run, don't walk, and buy this entertaining read.

I give this book a "10". I just couldn't put this book down. You think you know New York, but now you really know New York after reading it. It's a must have even if your not from New York. This book is proof of why there's no place like New York. New Yorkers are the most wonderful people in the world. Only a true New Yorker could write such a wonderful book. This book brings back such great memories growning up in New York. You cover 38 topics, 563 pages on sports, boroughs, politics, theatre etc... I had to go and buy another book because my friends took it and they won't give it back. Thanks for writing it.

"Probability" is book number 95 in the GTM series. If you really read this book carefully, you will probably learn something (I think that Shiryayev proves this somewhere in the second chapter). This is probably one of the better books in the GTM series. You can purchase this text for a moderate price. You could, however, take advantage of the probable distribution of this text throughout your university libraries. I'm not saying that it's going to be there...I'm just saying that there's a chance.

The most important quality to note about this book is that it is *indeed* a graduate textbook. Thus, anyone who is considering reading this book and who has not yet studied ideas such as random processes (including Markov chains and martingales), the Central Limit Theorem, etc.. should pass on this book and look into one or more undergraduate texts (Ross's "Probability Models" would make a good start). Another question the potential buyer should ask is, "Do I want to apply probability, or do I want to study probability for the sake of probability?". If it is the former, then there are many more suitable books whose union covers all the topics in this book, and does so in a much more clear and inuitive manner (For example, "Ergodic Theory" by Halmos, "Probability Models" and "Random Processes" by Ross, and "Mathematical Statistics Chapters 1-8" by Roussas is one example of such a covering). On the other hand, if the answer is the latter, then stop here and begin reading! In other words, the 5 stars for this review is relative to anticipating that the reader is a grad. student who wants to do research in probability and/or statistics. Conditioning on these assumptions, the clarity and coverage found in this text cannot be matched. The measure-theoretic approach may take some time to get used to, but in the end the reader will be thankful for this, as many of the proofs fall out quite easily.

I write this to pay my highest respects for this guru mathematician's work. This is truly a great book, not only for graduate students but also undergraduate and researchers. The book covers 8 chapters, starting with classic approach, so that one can see the evolution of the theory of probability, and one could avoid the risk of being lost in this forest.

It has a particularly useful Chapter 2, which provides the readers with necessary mathematical foundation for them to go on. Of course, the theory itself is challenging and we will/should never expect an easy-to-read mathematics book. The transformation from classical approach to the modern one is exhibited clearly by this great Russian mathematician. You will find almost everything in here, even some critical part that touches on stochastic differential equations, that are very useful for applied fields of sciences such as mathematical finance.

Index of keywords is also very useful and in details. We should also notice that the book is not too thick compared to other multi-volume textbooks. This is a real advantage if you have to carry it along while working or when reading for leisure.

However, be careful with some examples and solutions. I found at least one problem in which Prof. Shiryaev provided wrong solution, e.g. problem on girl vs boy child on page 25 of 2nd Edition. The final result is correct, but the evolution shows a wrong method.

Despite this minor thing, a matter of Buyer Beware, I find it a really great book that has accompanied me for over 7 years now. It is worth every penny. Thus do not waste your money on others before trying this. You will agree with me at the end. The book is a piece of art!

Almost everything has been said already by other reviewers, I am just going to confirm it really is that good. Starts from the very basics, builds theory up to startionary random processes, L2 theory, and some basic ergodic theorems, and gets you ready to learn the theory of random processes (which is not what this textbook is about). You'll have to find some other book as your "Part 2", I don't have any recommendations off-hand. However, for basic probability, in a rigorous setting, this is the book. He explains everything, and doesn't skip too many details, which is sweet. Proofs are easy to follow. However, I have found a few nasty typos which may have you bang your head against the wall. But you'll find them if you read carefully. Hopefully they will be corrected in subsequent printings. This shouldn't deter you. It really is an amazing book, in the russian tradition. See also Ya. Sinai's minibook on probability theory, many theorems are proved without the use of measure theory, so you can compare the proofs and get better insight into the machinery of those theorems.

It covers almost all of the "basic" ideas in probability.

This book is one of the most helpful book for me. You will "learn" what is going on in the field of probability theory. The book is especially suitable for self studying. If you want to learn probability theory, buy this book, dig into it, study again and again if you don't understand a particular part. But the book does its best in terms of clarity of exposition, so you can understand with a careful reading.

It will provide a strong tool and you can use this tool efficiently in your professional career. But there is a caveat. You might end up with a tool that you will never use again. The book is suitable for professionals and deep minds.

Este libro te mostrará algunas frases que puedes ocupar para que tus papás te entiendan. Porque es lo mismo que les queremos decir a los jefes cuando tienes 19 años y te quieren seguir manejando EN TODO ! Y lo que te ganas es una bofetada o las lagrimas de la jefa, solo por decir: DEJAME VIVIR MI VIDA ...

GANA !
Mas vale que los padres no les tiremos mucho la rienda ( dentro de cosas sanas ) porque simplemente, se alejan de nosotros. Este libro te enseña a guiarllos con prudencia y diplomacia.. Y funciona bien dejarllos a cargo de su propia vida !
Recuerda tu propia adolescencia !

y que me ha funcionado de maravilla. Dejarle a mis adolescentes la RESPONSABILIDAD DE SI MISMOS...
Los chamacos responden con extraordinaria nobleza. Ya no tienen UNA FIGURA DE AUTORIDAD CON QUIEN PELEAR

They certainly do and this is a wonderful Pro-teen book . I suggest parents get a copy to. Then that contract of trust can be drawn up by both parties. It shows the teen how responsibilty,common sence and truth lead to parental trust and freedom.

por tener padres autoritarios, dominantes, que quieren que nos convirtamos en una fotocopia de ellos....

Estoy de acuerdo en que quieran frenar a los hijos que se drogan o no estudian...Pero a nosotros, los demás, ¿por qué ?
¿Porque no queremos ser ingenieros o doctores sino arquitectos o abogados ???

Ojalá todos los padres de gente joven leyeran este libro !

There is now a 2.0 edition of this booklet.

In my opinion, this book represents an extremely well thought out piece of work. Dr. Berens displays a rich amount of expertise in Temperament. The clarity of theory is remarkable and the quality of work for such a small book is amazing. Well done.

I really liked this booklet and would recommend it to all of my colleagues. I feel it has a strong message and powerful voice. If you have read Please Understand Me then this is a must have resource.

I found this booklet through a link from Please Understand Me and I have found it invaluable as a resource when I am teaching temperament and using the keirsy sorter. I would give it to anyone who has taken the sorter.

This book is easy to read, understand, and apply! Dr. Berens insights into personality (temperament) are refreshing. A much better framework then the "label and blame-men and women" jargon. A good read for all ages. I will give one to every student I teach!

While the subject matter is covered in the text I would not refer to it as "simple". The author is obviously a highly advanced mathatician and the material is presented with highly advanced terminologies that to some laypeople may be a little difficult to understand. That being said, if you stick with it you will learn different methods of doing advanced mathmatics in a much easier way than taught in the Western world.

great book - my teenager is working his way through it in his spare time - wants to be able to wow his math teacher with doing difficult math in his head

This book was given to me by a friend from India. I just have to say that this book is inspiring in such a way that it provides a new way of thinking in Mathematics. What I found most fascinating is that this way of thinking has been around for over 100 years and very little people know about it! It's a pity this is not taught in American schools because it gives a different perspective on how to solve problems - actually a much easier way to solve problems. If you have kids or you yourself want to solve problems easier (and faster), I strongly recommend this book.

The majority of the American public is blind about the rest of the world's great achievements, not just mathematics, but also the arts and sciences. Truly unfortunate.

Vince

It is really amazing book of mathematics. I never knew that mathematics is so simple. Even it gave me explaination about current mathematic principles. After reading this book, I am able to solve equations very easily. This should be teach in every school. It is very easy and very interesting. I am shocked to realize that I did not knew about this book.

This book makes "promblems" rename to "FUN." I never imaged math can be as fun and easy, but this book made it so. I gurantee it will make your brain work faster then the calculators. Shock your co-workers or professor with this methods and over smart your friends.

Joanne Victoria's book invites the small business owner to take a step back, look at your business and think big! Then the pages act more like a workbook - because you have to map out a plan and take massive action. But when you do, your business soars. What a gift to us entrepreneurs. Many thanks to the author!

This book has totally re-directed the way I do business. More money, more leisure time, and more peace of mind are among the benefits that come with following this simple guide.

Vision with a Capital V is a book we all need. JoAnne Victoria gives us a template that is so easily followed for not only creating our vision, but she gives us the action steps to make ithappen, too! I especially appreciated her "Inner Vision" and "Outer Vision" teams. Most of us entrepreneurs seem to think we can do it all ourselves, and JoAnne clearly helps us find the inside and outside resources to complete the business of our dreams. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to live their lives with purpose and joy!

This is a great book for now and ever, I am self employed and loved the material, I had the pleasure of meeting the author, and now I know why the book is so great, she is amazing. She has made me realize I can do anything I set my mind to. I will tell all my friends and family to buy it.

Reviewed by Erika K. Oliver for Reader Views (3/06)

"Vision with a Capital V" establishes the necessity of having a business vision. If you thought you could be a success in business without a vision, Joanne Victoria will convince you otherwise. The author is successful in her own vision to bring about important information in an easy-to-read format.

The gem in this book is the Vision with a Capital V Twelve Step Program. Each of the twelve steps is intended to keep the business owner focused on their vision and not waste energy. Each tip, and subsequent tactics, is good for anyone - business owner or employee, with or without a vision. My favorite, as a business owner, is #12, which instructs the reader to "Stop! Trying to Get New Clients." This novel idea teaches two things: without a clear direction you will make bad choices and opportunity probably exists within your current client base.

I felt that in many places the author asked more questions than she gave direction or answers. More explanation of concepts with additional examples or stories would help the reader understand how to answer the questions she poses and how to apply the material. In my opinion, the concept of vision is not clearly defined until half way through the book. And, about three quarters of the way through, the reader will find good examples of vision statements but not much direction on how to move from the values list to the creation of your own vision statement.

This text would serve as a great workbook in addition to a workshop or in conjunction with other, more detailed, business texts. Any level of business owner could read the book but without some background in visioning and business planning, the reader may get lost.

Wonderful story with great humor, satire and imagination about a journey through a fantastic afterlife with all the creations that ever were and ever will be.

I was curious to discover what a book about afterlife would be like in the science fiction realm. THIS book is unique! IT is a GREAT story, about a man, actually, I suppose, a soul, who is in the process of discovering himself - who he is, and what life, the universe, and all creation is all about. He finds out in a cleverly written story if his journey through afterlife - his "afterworld." It is a reality filled with bizarre ceatures from all times and places that ever were, and will be, all of whom enter this incedibly enormous universe, perhaps billions of times larger and more complex than our own, and where travel is by unque vehicles which are divinely powered, as if by magic, and cover the enormous distances involved in afterworld reality. The creatures Gary Townsend (the main character) meets are unique, enjoyable, and satirize in often comic style all man's social customs, religions, and traditions - for here, in afterlife, there are none. Often thought-provoking and humourous, the drama is always enjoyable and fascinating, as we trek through the mind of an author with an incredibly inventive bent. I recommend it highly to anyone who loves sci-fi or fantasy, or who wants an enjoyable, creative read about a place we all have some idea about when we leave here.

A scintillating look at a man's afterlife, which begins as you open the book. It traces the "afterworld" experiences of an unbeliever as he tries to sort his way through his afterlife with a variety of humans, aliens, bizarre worlds and forms of transportation, and it delves into the MANY questions everyone has about what there is after this life. It does so with occasionally tongue-in-cheek humor, and a good amount of satire in poking fun at our religions, customs, and institutions, through the eyes of the many different life forms the main character encounters. It is about this man finding a purpose, even in afterlife, in finding himself, and finding out who else there might be to share it with. This is an extraordinary and imaginative look at a usually untouched subject, and told in an engaging, informative, and poignant fashion. It is an afterworld that we all might wish to attain someday, but if not, it certainly is fun and interesting to look at this one!

I was hesitant to buy this book, since a novel on one's afterlife, or Afterworld, as the author has it, seemed like it might not be too interesting; but I'd heard about it as decent sci-fi/Fantasy, and wanted to read it. BOY, was I surprised!! It is a very clever trek through one man's afterlife, which begins on page one, and takes you through a highly imaginative super universe far bigger and infinitely more complex than the one we now know. We meet a variety of strange characters, many of whom humorously satirize people and political or religious concepts we have, stranger places, and an intersting story of this "doubting-Thomas" main character, Gary. We onder how it will work out for him - after all, he has FOREVER in this place, and all the people to meet that you would ever want to. The author endeavors to pop many cultural and religious myths with tongue-in-cheek style, while uilding a story that grabs you, because, I guess, we all hope there is something positive to look forward to in everyone's afterworld. Gary's is interesting, and he becomes a major afterlife figure in "afterworld future history" by being exactly who he is. Ultimately he finds purpose, love, friendship, and a meaningful place in the universe! Very uplifting and enjoyable.

What a great concept! It's like taking Dante's "Inferno", and racheting it up a notch in fantasy and satire. The first surprise is that the main character, Gary, dies in the first couple of pages. THEN his adventure begins! He phases into his afterlife, his "afterworld", the place which we see, in this ceative vision, is the logical final adventure for all types of beings from all history and all creations from the dawn of time until it's physical end. Here, in afterworld, life NEVER ends, but lays out an endless review of all the created life forms that ever were, fromall the universes God ever created. The afterlife-universe is infinitely larger than the one we know here in "prior life," and infinitely more diverse, with characters, worlds, cities, and creatures, from all the creations God has ever made - plus much more. We get to witness some of the lives and pasts of the many characters, and they are fascinating, as well as their physical appearances - everyone able to "arrive" at whatever age they chose just by thinking about it, and where they can have ANY relationship with ANY other being they choose. The limitless freedoms this novel speaks of are truly staggering, and the satire it has of the stodgy, overly-religeous types is certainly meant to be read in our times! Gary wanders through this infinitely diverse afterlife universe, trying to find meaning in his own short life (he was 32 when he arrived), and also find a relationship with someone that means something, which ultimately he does, with a most unlikely beautiful creature, who unfortunately must die again! How it all works out, and how he finds the meaning to the confusion of existence, how he fits into God's Divine Plan, with humor, and wonder, and always poking fun at our customs and mores, is what makes this novel so delightful.

My guess is that everyone who buys this book or is interested in buying it, grew up during the "Golden Age'' of comics, circa the 1960s and 1970s. If so, then you're like me and you'd view this collection of comics with a completely biased eye and you'd give it 5 stars as I have (and as have the 9 other reviewers before me). But if I am totally honest and try to read the stories contained therein in a wholly unbiased fashion, I would have to tell you that while the artwork by Kirby, Ayers and mainly Ditko is a joy to behold, many stories are quite frankly, weak. All were written by Stan Lee and in many cases u can tell they were obviously rushed out to meet looming deadlines. It's also obvious that one person wrote them all because although the monsters or aliens might change appearance or names, the underlying storylines are all too similar. Ditto for the supposed surprise endings, which after a while, become predictable. But hey, as I said at the start, none of this should detract from your purchase decision. I honestly don't think people are going to buy this book to discover cutting edge, 21st-century comic book fare - you could get that from hundreds of other titles - you buy this book because these were the pioneers for countless genres to follow. You buy it because this was how it all started.

A visual feast for fans of King Kirby and Sturdy Steve Ditko. Never in my wildest dreams (or forty years of collecting comics) would I have thought this material would be collected and reprinted.

This is a nice historical collection, gathering the full run of Marvel Comics' tumultuous and short-lived "Amazing Fantasy" title. It was one of the last "monster" books Marvel published before the revival of their superhero franchise, and indeed, the last issue featured the birth of Spider-Man, who is arguably the most famous of all Marvel characters. The individual original issues are hard to find and terribly expensive, so this hardbound omnibus is a real blessing for fans who just want to read the old stuff, and not pay a gazillion dollars or have to worry about preserving the fragile old artifacts.

The scripts were mostly by (or credited to) Stan Lee, and illustrators Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko were his main collaborators. A couple of leftovers from the 1950s genre books were also on board, notably Paul Reinman, but the real sizzle is with Ditko and Kirby, who were developing a truly new, explosively expressive style that burst away from the stale, cramped design work of the Atlas era.

The stories, generally speaking, are pretty flat and formulaic: the six-pages-and-a-zinger-ending format did not, in all honesty, leave a lot of room for brilliance. Nonetheless, something was bubbling up under the surface of the moribund genre... There were plenty of hints of things to come: professors named Storm, rocky-skinned monsters, a skinny kid with big, round glasses who discovers he has superpowers, and of course, the proto-Dr. Strange, Dr. Droom, one of the few recurrent characters of the era. In one of the most fascinating later stories, the Ditko-penned teenage hero looks a LOT like Peter Parker, but what's even more amazing is the script, about how the boy is a mutant, and how he must hide his powers due to the prejudice of normal humans -- the entire "X-Men" mythology was laid out in '62: it really should be anthologized along with the early X-books from now on.

The book really hit its stride in the last half-dozen issues, when Steve Ditko basically took over and was given full reign on the creative end. The book developed a strong signature style, and Ditko came into his own. Some of the best surprises come with the famous Spidey issue: the one-page editorial about how they planned to change the look and format of the book (and, boy, did they! they canceled it and started up "The Amazing Spider-Man" instead) and also the fact that the book *still* had back-up features full of aliens and things that go bump in the night.

This is a fascinating look back at the history of Marvel Comics. Probably best appreciated for the dynamic, colorful artwork (which looks fabulous in the glossy archival format) but also good, goofy fun in its own right. Face Forward, True Believers! (Joe Sixpack, Slipcue)

This tome is absolutely perfect! The writing by Stan Lee and the art by Steve Ditko and Jack Kirby are prime indicators that the Marvel Age Of Comics is about to begin! The production on this MASSIVE collection is top notch! The oversize format showcases Ditko's brilliant yet subtle illustrations, while Kirby's bombastic and kinetic storytelling explodes off of every page! The rich, vibrant colors originally used in these tales get a whole new life in this format! Every page is the comic book equivalent of watching a 52" plasma HDTV! Stan Lee's tales of the unknown, suspense, twists and valuable lessons learned do author O. Henry proud. You can almost see Stan gaining steam as a storyteller on this series!
Bottom line...Amazing Adult Fantasy Omnibus was worth every penny I spent on it.
'Nuff Said!

This is another outstanding addition to Marvel's Omnibus series, which has the added bonus of being somewhat shorter so that it's not so hard to hold the book! The art restoration and reproduction is first rate, and the coloring is excellent. And if you're a Steve Ditko fan (and would you be reading this review if you weren't?), then you'll be absolutely delighted to see "Sturdy Steve's" art and story-telling presented so beautifully. Yes, many of the stories are silly, but when Lee and Ditko were at their best, they were masters of these short "Twilight Zone" type tales. Kudos to Marvel for bringing us this fine volume.

I bought this book because it received high ratings in one of my magazines: sort of half as a joke and half because I did feel like I was cussing too much.

This book was hilarious and not at all preachy. He used humor very effectively for deterring cussing. He's right, when you think about what you are ACTUALLY, literally saying...a lot of cuss phrases sound really stupid.

The personal narratives were also really effective. Not only did you see how this kind of negativity hurt others but sometimes...when you actually see the cussing in print it's embarrassing. What I am saying is, when you read it you realize that you may be being a little irrational.

A great book...a humorous look at working towards a behavior change. Good fun.

Ooh, this book made me cringe. I recognized myself more times than I cared to. I bought this book for the specific reason to help me curb my cursing and not only did it curb it, it has pretty much eliminated it.

Mr. O'Connor does an excellent job keeping the reader's attention. I appreciated his explanation of the two types of cursing: causal and casual. I have been able to eliminate casual cursing from my vocabulary and for the most part do very well with causal cursing even to the point of hopping around shouting 'shoot, shoot, shoot' when I stumped my toe recently.

I wish this book were required reading in public schools. My son's junior high is rife with colorful language. I know his language must have been just as bad as everyone elses. I had him and his buddy read through the book, and even through faked shocked giggles at the list of 'dirty' words the book got the point across to them and I've noticed that their language has cleaned up. I've even seen a dramatic decreases in the "Oh Gods" and "Gods" they say. They both said the book made a point of letting them know how ignorant they looked when their language was peppered with foul words. No, I didn't get them to read all the book but enough to make a difference.

Who am I? Well, suprisingly enough, a middle class college educated housewife with a strong religious backing who had found her language filled with the 'f' word and the cursing habit seemed ingrained and hard to break. Until I read Mr. O'Connor's book. Cringe, cringe, cringe....but it was worth the squirming hard look at myself to break this habit. I have been relatively curse free now for three months. The lessons learned in this book are not easily forgotten!

I first learned about this book when I saw the author (and two imposters) on the game show "To Tell the Truth". One of the panelists, comedienne Paula Poundstone (besides picking the wrong guy as the REAL James V. O'Connor), seemed to have a problem with the very idea of people encouraging others and themselves to clean up their language. After all, she curses and even allows her children to curse. Well, Paula, I think even you might enjoy this book if you actually read it. Far from advocating censorship, this book can be a valuable help to those who want to curb something that is as much a bad habit as smoking. Plus it is very entertaining, even hilarious in some places.

O'Connor is assuredly no stick-in-the-mud. There are probably more bad words used in this book than in 95% of the books out there, but they are there to make a point. When you read how these words are used, you can see how ridiculous they really sound. Plus, he gives many ideas for word substitutes, but he goes beyond that. Differentiating between "casual" and "causal" cursing, he suggests that it is easier to get rid of casual swearing. As for the causal, he attempts to attack it at the root, which is often anger and frustration, and points out that an attitude change is what is needed. If nothing else, this book makes you more aware of your use of language and how it affects you at work, at home, and, yes, in traffic. I know a guy who read this book and his cursing was curbed almost immediately because he was more aware and alert to it. (What, do you think I'm talking about myself? Hey, someone who knows me might be reading this right now, so keep your doggoned mouth shut!)

I was in the bookstore yesterday and the title of this book caught my eye. My first thought was "Why the @*!# should I control my cursing? That's when it struck me that my language has gotten a bit um...colorful lately and I bought the book. I'm happy to say that it's entertaining, clever and it makes it's case. Will it make me curb my salty tounge in the future? Well, for a little while anyway, yes.

A surprisingly entertaining read with a lession for all of us.If you want to clean up your mouth-or clean up your act-I strongly recommend Mr. O'Connor's highly original book.

A very good book for those who want to learn advanced concepts in OS. Since it is a open source the book is very useful in understanding how they look like. The paper quality is too good, which makes u read non stop. i luv reading this book. Price worth it. A good buy.

A BSD Bible. I never could read the Bible. I do Believe ...

650+ pages of truth and gore. I (as a sysadmin and BSD boomer) related most to the History (Ch.1) and Startup/Shutdown (final Ch.14). Memory management and other gore escapes me. GOOD JOB!

First of all you should be warned that this is not an introduction to get started with UNIX kernel programming. The Design of the UNIX Operating System by M.J. Bach provides a good general introduction to UNIX kernel programming. The design and implementation of the FreeBSD operating system is an excellent book to deepen knowledge of the UNIX kernel by looking how a current UNIX is implemented in practice. Even if you plan to write code for another kernel, working through the FreeBSD kernel with this book as a guide is a good excercise to become consious of the fundamental problems and solutions in kernel design. FreeBSD (or any of the other BSDs) is a good starting point, because the BSDs have relatively stable kernel subsystems and APIs due to the long cycles in BSD development.

The writing style of the authors is to the point (don't expect a novel) and clear. The troff typesetting of the book gives it a consistent style and simple, but clear diagrams (though I heard that some diagrams were hand-drawn). The book doesn't just drop the reader in a kernel subsystem. The second chapter gives a detailed explanation of the various kernel subsystems, and the relation between the subsystems. The third chapter gives a summary of what is expected from a kernel from the user level. Combined these two chapters give the reader the necessary conception of the FreeBSD kernel to start looking at individual parts of the kernel in detail. Most remaining chapters are logically ordered, in that subsystems are ordered from parts with less dependencies to parts with more dependencies (e.g. memory management and I/O are covered before filesystems).

If you are interested in UNIX programming, you should have this book on your bookshelf (as well as a CVS checkout of the FreeBSD kernel tree to read the implementation).

Before I encountered this book it was quite a bit of frustration in attempt to learn BSD and UNIX to the point I can really use it. For some reason there so many good books in a subject with one of two inclinations: or the book is too theoretical and very little of the real workflow provided or it is too down to earth and it is difficult to understand what is behind the sophisticated command line zingers.
I found this book to be well balanced, well written and generally providing good, accessible way to get into BSD. I have followed advise in someone's review here and coupled this book with Linux and UNIX for a beginner training suite, 4DVDs + 2CDs includes 4 Unix Academy Certifications ed.2008. To my great surprise I have to say they really have made an outstanding training outfit!
If you really ready for a training and do not expect that UNIX will come to you overnight it is worthy book and deserves your attention.

For the other side of the story, you may wish to check out the most recent "Inside Microsoft Windows" or "Microsoft Windows Internals" by Mark Russinovich.