S Books

I seldom reread a book; this book I have read twice and bought three copies to give away. I will read it again; the writing is so funny, so dazzling. The characters are so real, their stories so poignant. Jewish readers will especially love this book; we know these people though we have never met. I fell in love with Bummy Davis and when he died, I felt a loss. My gangster imagination loved reading about all the mob characters, though I am not a fan of violence or boxing for that matter. I read this book as my husband lay dying of cancer; it kept me uplifted during this difficult time. I loved that it was long and hated that it had to end. This is such a special book, and I haven't even mentioned the awesome research it must have taken to write it.

This book is a very satisfying trip down boxing's memory lane. Ron Ross resurrects here the color and drama of a very fascinating, tough NY prizefighter with a heart of gold--Bummy. Ross gives us in this welcomed work, devoted research, clearly a labor of love, and fine writing. Clearly, I see this book being optioned in Hollywood. Boxing translates to the screen in a big way and I see this book making a million bucks for some talented film maker.

The authur Ron Ross is at his best. I could not stop reading amd I recommended the book to all my sons.I lived in East New york during those days.Fascinating.
Harry Keller

Fantastic account of the life and career of Al 'Bummy' Davis, during the time of Mob rule in New York. Fascinating look into the ways and troubles of immigrant communities and their exploitation by gangsters.

Whether you are looking for a boxing or mafia book, this will do the job.

For anyone who loves a good story, written with wit, humor, and style, this book is for you. I couldn't put it down, and found something to chuckle about or a phrase to admire or an ironic comment I loved at least once on each page. I finished the book today (March 29, 2007)and did something I never did before (and I am 80 year's old). I noted from the book jacket that the author divides his time between Oceanside, LI and Boca Raton, Fl, and even though it is 4 years since the book was written and the author's name is a relatively common one, I called information for his Boca Raton number and took a chance that it was the right Ron Ross. I left a message that if this Ron Ross was an author, would he please call me, and I left my number. A few hours later I received a call from Mr. Ross and we had a delightful conversation for 10 minutes or so. For me to have taken the time to locate Mr. Ross and call him is an example that actions speak louder than words. Believe my action and go out and buy, read, enjoy, and love the book. It's cheap enough, and you'll thank me, and more so, will thank Ron Ross.

Ed Gold

Outstanding book that'll nurture your heart and nourish your mind. A must read! It's an awesome book, and I highly recommend it.

Dick Biggs' book has something for all of us, from leaders in our military, to industry, and our society. Every parent should have this book because it lays out what is important in life, read relationships, and how to achieve same. We are the leaders of our children, and Dick makes very stronge leadership points. This book is divided into twenty contrasts of life, twenty short chapters loaded with idea, thoughts, and recomendations that we need to study and commit upon. The first chapter, Image and Integrity, is the perfect start. Without integrity we don't amount to much, but too many of us today are only concerned with image. In this chapter, "grit" is found in the word integrity. This book is small, 5 X 7.5 inches, and the chapters are 4 to six pages that makes for handy reading. Read a chapter with your morning coffee, while waiting for the rest of the members to arrive at a meeting, and at other times when you have ten minutes for good thoughs about where you are going. Most importantly, if you take this work seriously, you can determine who you really are and how others know you. We all need to think about Richard Biggs' words, they will help us and our society. This is a great gift for those people you love.

"Burning Brightly without Burning Out" is a breath of fresh air to those pressed by the demands of life. Besides being easy to read, the content is straightforward and potent. With so many voices calling for our attention, it's wonderful to have some basic principles by which to evaluate our commitments. Bigg's solid foundation gives his life direction and purpose. Instead of trying to do it "all" half-heartedly, Biggs has discovered the secret of doing a few priorities well. Thanks for the lessons well-learned!

They say in five years, you will become the average of the books you have read and the people you have associated with. For two-and-a-half years, I've had the privelege of associating with Dick Biggs as a professional speaker--and now I've been able to read his book. Both have become indispensible resources for me.

Dick is respected among professional speakers for being a man who walks his talk. Reading his latest book, BURN BRIGHTLY WITHOUT BURNING OUT, is almost as good as knowing the man--it will provide very practical assistance if you want to achieve great things in your professional life while building balance into your personal life.

Are you a reader? Then you'll really enjoy this book. Are you working on developing the reading habit? Then this book will get you hooked. If Amazon allowed a SIX-star review, this one would get SEVEN!

A friend chose this book and left it at my house. I ran out of books for the moment and picked it up thinking it was another one of those...
How absolutely overwhelmed I was at my age (73) to learn so much in so few pages. Much of what he has said to help guide people to a fuller, richer life, I had already learned and applied, but none of us have ever reached the point we can't learn or see something a bit differently.

My life changed drastically when health dictated this master workaholic was ordered to shut down her thriving business overnight or else...For 2 years I have been under recontruction to learn to be at peace in every situation. I can see, however, how to start over again now that my health is back and the doors are slowly opening to be useful again to myself and the Lord but this time I am going to keep this book right along with my Bible so I will put into practice the principles Richard K. Biggs has put forth. For whatever years I have left I intend to do it right and be a blessing to all I meet because of these excellent guidelines.

I like this book, certainly what I have read of it. I'm now digging around near page 75, and it struck me that for the first time I really "get it" - In particular, this was about the use of the Legendre transform. The authors start with a very gentle introduction of it, and then, while things become more abstract, the text never jumps too far and never leaves the reader too much in puzzling. It's ought to be studied though, and it's not "easy".

This book is a "must have" for those wanting to study topics in functional analysis.

Ok, not everyone needs to (or wants to) know calculus of variations. But if you are among the ones who, this is a great book to get started with (assuming you are in grad school and have a decent handle on calculus and some basis in dealing with differential equations). The text is clear and concise, and the financial investment is minimal. A good buy!

As a physicist I want to find a book to refresh my memory on theoretical mechanics. I came across this one, and after reading its first 4 chapters in continuation, I kow I don't need any other book. What a treat! Written by a past master, the book costs you next to nothing; yet as it's written by sure hand, it hasn't slightest pretention, just plain and insightful, natural and smoth flow, leads you almost effortlessly fowward. Even though I learned the subject before, I don't know of or even imagine a better exposition. Wow, I started to love Russian mathematicians.

This is a classic text and I would recommend it to graduate students and mathematicians who need a review of the subject. Great for us physicists as well.

Enjoyed reading this book. I had family who survived Camille in Nelson County, spent several weeks there during the summers visiting during my youth and remember vividly going there as soon as we were allowed in to see the damage. This book did an excellent job describing the storm, the aftermath and how it changed the lives of so many people who lived in that area.

Once you pick this book up, you won't want to put it down until you've read the very last page and the dust cover notes as well. As a reader all too familiar with the wrath and destruction of hurricanes, I found the historical facts eerily accurate and the human drama so tense that the reader is drawn into the story as if sucked into the vortex of the storm itself. Category 5 is gripping and powerful like a well-written novel and not the true account of devastation and suffering that it is -- without the dry, clinical approach of a mere assessment of storm damage. The human element is often invisible when looking at the overall picture. Howard and Zebrowski take us to ground zero to examine the personal lives of those affected and no reader can ever put those images out of his or her mind. Excellent read!

Tom Aswell
Baton Rouge, LA.

"Category 5" is excellent reading. The plot, with many interesting facts, keeps the reader spellbound. It is difficult to stop reading once you start! Many long hours of research had to be done for this fact filled book. The racial feelings in Louisanna, corupt polititions, and the "state of the art" science of 1969, all combine to make this book all come together for one of the best books I have ever read!

The authors of this book were putting the finishing touches on it when Katrina made landfall in generally the same area as Camille. They went back and added a chapter but for the most part the book was left to stand on its own in light of the more recent disaster and it stood up quite well. All through the book there are obvious parallels between the two storms and especially the response that came in their aftermath. It is to be hoped that government officials took the lessons of Katrina to heart in a much more effective way than they did the lessons of Camille and that when the next major hurricane devastates a costal area the outside response will be far more effective.

One of the few things that did improve in the years between the hurricanes was the ability of forecasters to predict the track of the storm and to get the word out. In 1969 radar tracking and computer models were in their infancy and up until shortly before landfall forecasters were sure that Camille would strike Florida. Once they did realize that it was headed for Mississippi they had trouble getting the word out and had it not been for the foresight of local officials the death toll would have been much higher. These authors take the meteorological aspects of this story and present them in a remarkably easy to understand way and do so to the extent that the reader will almost be able to feel the angst of forecasters as they try to figure out just what Camille is up to. These Hurricane Center people are remarkable.

These authors do an excellent job of relating how local authorities had taken to heart the lessons learned from hurricane Audrey in 1957 and the precautions that they had taken because of those lessons. It is not hard to see in this narrative that state and federal authorities were far behind the local authorities in preparedness for Camille and that the same was true all those years later when Katrina came ashore. This is not however just a story about the failure of government though, it is also very much a story of the people who were the victims of this great storm. This is a story of the heroism of and resilience of people who were hit with the worst that nature has to offer.

These authors do a marvelous job of relating the stories of individuals and families who were in the path of the monster Camille. Through the reminiscences of those who survived the authors tell the stories of families ripped apart and of whole families who just vanished. They tell the true story of the much publicized collapse of the Richelieu apartments in Pass Christian, they tell the story of a group of men out for a sail who end up weathering the storm near the mouth of the Mississippi as their boat breaks up around them, they tell the story of people who sought refuge in local churches only to find the large old building disintegrating around them and they tell the story of quiet communities in Virginia where the people went to bed with no warning at all that many of them would be washed away before dawn. Through it all the survivors immediately turned their attention toward helping each other once the storm had passed and these survivors, many of them wounded or in mourning themselves immediately began rescue efforts that saved untold numbers of people. It is the heart and soul of these people that is the true story to be found in this book and these authors have truly done these people justice in this highly readable account of one of the great disasters in American history.

This book, the story of 1969's Hurricane Camille, is a breezy (yes, that word APPLIES) read which interweaves several plotlines -- the powerful force of a Cat 5 hurricane, the lives it touched and the tragedies which occurred, the will to survive, the peculiar and corrupt qualities of Louisiana politics, the ongoing civil rights movement of the time, and the surprisingly primitive nature of weather forecasting in the late 1960's.
As a person who once moved out of a city in part due to the fact that the local cable company DIDN'T carry The Weather Channel, I expected to enjoy the stormy aspects of the book. I did not expect the history and politics of the time to carry this story down unexpected avenues. It was a pleasant surprise.
I recommend it without hesitation.

I struggled with my weight especially after having a child 16 years ago. I am a registered dietitian so that made it even more humiliating--knowing what I should be doing, but not being able to do it. I picked up an earlier edition of this book 13 years ago and it changed my life. I walked 6 days a week religiously. I felt the diet was very easy to follow and loved some of the recipes in the book. After 3 years and 40 pounds later, I started running and have been running ever since. Thank you Choose to Lose for transforming my life. I love who I have become.

This is the only plan that has ever worked for me. I had always been vastly overweight and tried every diet. Just do it..it works even without salads and exercise and you are not hungry. You choose your weight with every decision on what goes into your mouth. Just do it.

I read this books years ago, and when I found out the book was revised I had to have it. This book teaches you how to make a healthy eatting change for life, or just to lose those unwanted pounds. It tells you the importance of why you should not avoid carbohydrates, and it is very easy because you choose what you eat to loose weight, as long as you dont exceed your daily calorie or fat intake per day. It also teaches you why on 1000 caloried diets dont work because your body think it s starving and you dont loose weight because of so few calories. You can also save up for splurges. I think the hardest part in following this diet is eatting more than I am use to, when most diets you hardly eat. If interested in a positive eatting change where you can eat what you want, lose weight, drop your cholesterol level, and make this change for life, this is the book for you, I just love it, and the new me, because of it. Thank you Ron & Nancy Goor M.D. and Katherine Boyd R.D. for writing and sharing this book.

This is a great book, I've lost about 15 pounds using the techniques outlined, and have gone down from a 38 inch waste to a 35!!!! And I'm Still loosing. I'ts simple, keep count of those pesky fat calories, you will see results!!! This Book is a way of life for eating.

Having been on every diet in the world,I finally came to my own conclusion that diets simply don't work. I was delighted to find that "Choose To Lose" not only agrees, but encourages you not to weigh yourself and simply eat generous amounts of good, whole, naturally low fat nutritious food. Since I threw my scale out and began following the basic guidelines of "Choose To Lose", I've lost weight, gained back my self-respect and have enormous energy with a steady stable mood throughout the day. Throw out all your diet books and choose to live right now!!

tremendous text for classic bugs bunny enthusiasts. brings a new found appreciation for the masterminds behind the character development and the environment they "grew up" in.

Simply put, this is the best book ever written about Looney Tunes, and what it took to make them. Chuck shares entertaining behind the scenes info about the Termite Terrace and the people who worked there. Chuck say's that it was quite normal to see the animators look like they were going to wack each other with a mallet. Chuck also tells stories about those notorious poducers, Leon Schlesinger (whos lisp was used in Daffy voice) and Eddie Selzer. When Eddie said "I don't want any gags about bullfights, bullfights aren't funny!", Jones and Mike Maltise had something. Result: Bully For Bugs. When he said the same thing about camels to director Fritz Freleng, the result: Sahara Hare. Though Eddie is quoted as saying about Pepe Le Pew, "Nobody'd laugh at that s**t!", he happily accepted the Oscar for "For Scent-imental Reasons", a Pepe Le Pew cartoon. That (and many more) hilarous titbits are spread throughout this superb book, including high-quality backgrounds and scenes for "Duck Dodgers in the 24th and 1/2 Century" and many others. Also included are many drawings and many photos of the directors, animators and producers. The most illistruated and well thought out book about cartoons ever made.

The world lost an animation genius recently with the death of Chuck Jones. Luckily, there is a book like this that celebrates the animation genius he was. Arguably, Jones was the father of some of the best Warner Brothers cartoons ever made, including "Duck Amuck," "Duck Dogers in the 24th and 1/2 Century," and my personal favorite "What's Opera Doc?" He also is responsible for giving us such great pieces of pop culture as the original "How the Grinch Stole Christmas."

Part autobiography, part instruction, part tribute, this book shows us the man behind the screen, or should I say behind the pencil? We often wonder where a genius comes from - Chuck seems to say from anywhere. His mark on the development of the cartoon is undeniable, and monumental. But just as you cannot appreciate art fully until you know about the painter, so it is with Chuck's cartoons. I have a greater appreciation for the work that goes into developing these 8 minute masterpieces. Yes, it's true that Jones gave us some of the clunkers in the 60's as the Warner Brothers studio (and the MGM studio) animation division gasped what seemed to be its last breath. But it's all the more amazing that Chuck could produce such works given what little he had to work with. The world would be poorer were it not for the gives Chuck has given us, including Wile E. Coyote (super genius!),and the Road Runner, Pepe Le Pew, Marvin the Martian and many others. His style was distinctive, his contributions monumental and behind it all, he was a fascinating and talented man. This book stands as a tribute to this genius now that he's no longer with us.

Rather than an autobiography, this book is more a collection of musing from one of America's greatest storytellers (he just happened to tell his stories with pictures shown in rapid succession!) From his love of Mark Twain to his contempt at studio management, we see not how his life unfolded, but rather how Mr. Jones created his vision. Though there is no drawing instruction, I have to agree with the plethora of lists that this should be on the shelves of every animator, professional or aspiring, as it illuminates what goes into a great cartoon before penicl ever touches paper.

Chuck Jones is one of the best known people in the animation business. He's been in the animation business for over 65 of his 88 years(as I write this review, he'll be 88 on the 12th of this month!).

This book lists all of the cartoons he's been involved with (Warner Bros, MGM, Dr. Suess specials, and many others). Also, he talks about growing up, how real life inspired his cartoons, what it was like working in Warner Bros studio, pays tribute to partners Tex Avery, Friz Freleng, Mike Malthese, and Abe Levitow, and talks about other projects he's done (like his How to Draw From the Fun Side of Your Brain). And as the other reviewers have pointed out, there's an animated cartoon of the Roadrunner and the Coyote on the pages of this book.

Since this book was originally published, he's produced one video in the 1990's (Chariots of Fur) and the historical and whimsical book Daffy for President (available through the US Postal Service).

DE LUCHA Y TRIUNFO..ESTE LIBRO TE DEJARÁ MUY SATISFECHO...
Aunque no seas aficionado al box!

LO QUE PENSE QUE NO ME INTERESABA SABER SOBRE EL BOX Y SUS CAMPEONES...

PERO ME CAUTIVO Y LO LEI HASTA EL FINAL !
AHORA SI PUEDO DISCUTIR DE BOX CON MI ESPOSO Y MIS CUÑADOS...¡Y HASTA CON MI SUEGRO, QUE ES EX BOXEADOR !

Los mejores campeones, sus victorias, sus sacrificios...
FABULOSO !

LLENAS DE MOTIVACION, COMO LAS HISTORIAS DE ESTOS TIRUNFADORES QUE SON COMO MODERNOS GLADIADORES !

Y TAMBIEN LA VIDA INTIMA DE LOS TRIUNFADORES...
Por eso me fascinó este libro que me regaló mi esposa !
Y seguro a mis cuantes tambien..porque alguno de ellos me "incautó " el libro !
YA DEVUELVELO, BRO!

I bought about ten of these because they are so easy to carry around and are printed with easy to read type and sell at a very good price. I have many other editions of Shakespeare's plays but these are perfect for what I wanted. I have lots of other editions with introductions, evaluations, etc. and I don't really need that in my bag. These editions are a great way to read the plays without carrying around five pounds of book!

this is shakespeare's most accessible comedy. it's a farce about mistaken identities among identical twins. nothing complicated here. the play has it's funny moments. it's not the bard's best comedy; that's 'much ado about nothing', imho. but this is not a bad place to start.

Shakespeare's vision grew tremendously over the course of his writing career. However, this play demonstrates that his uncanny power as an artist grew quickly and was present in some form from the very begining. It is exceedingly hard to buy the common notion that this was his first comedy when it is so much better than "The Two Gentlemen of Verona" in nearly every way. The dialogue is fast paced and screamingly funny. The characters interesting if broad and there are some surprising touches that, aside from being interesting in and of themselves, point down the road to later, darker comedies. Chief among these is the amazing opening, perhaps still unequaled in all comedy for the level of grimness. These are the first words uttered in a play long seen as a kind of sitcom of Shakespeare's plays: "Proceed, Solinus, to procure my fall, and by the doom of death end woes and all." The speaker is Egeon, a merchant about to be put to death for simply coming from the wrong country. The whole first scene feels like a cloud is hanging over it and there is a sense of fear-infused urgency that catches the mind off guard and makes the joyous, lunatic story all the more welcome while at the same time coloring it with real drama, making it all the more exciting. To be sure, there is little real depth and much of the play is like a sitcom but only the best of sitcoms and perhaps "Monty Python" at their most absurd is a better comparison. The plot is well chosen (from the Roman comic dramatist Plautus) and well handled. For some reason the play is not well known even among the early comedies which is a shame. It is probably the best of them, even surpassing the wonderful "The Taming of the Shrew". Aside from being an easy read, keep in mind the play is good to perform as it holds up well and doesn't suffer from being tinkered with. I've seen one production that was mostly straightforward but did a few weird things that worked like magic. They would've sunk almost any other Shakespeare comedy. I must also mention the last moment between the two clowns. It is as heart-warming and humane as it is funny. The master is already present AND growing. Do yourself a favor and pick up this play, you'll laugh your head off!

I recently re-read THE COMEDY OF ERRORS prior to attending The Colorado Shakespeare Festival's performance of this farce-like play under the summer stars here in Boulder. Based on Menaechmi by Plautus, William Shakespeare (1564-1616) produced this romantic comedy between the years 1592-93 and published it in the First Folio in 1623. While on its surface this early play may seem superficial and frivolous when measured against KING LEAR or HAMLET, it is not without its own unique depths. It also shows that the Bard had a sense of humor. It tells the hilarious story of two, identical twin brothers (Antipholus of Syracuse and Antipholus of Ephesus) and their identical twin servants (both named Dromio), all of whom were separated at sea during their infancy until redisdovering each other through a series of madcap mix-ups, mayhem, and mistaken identities in the apparently insane town of Epheseus. Meanwhile, Egeon (the father of the Antipholus twins), has been granted a day to raise local ransom for illegally entering Ephesus. In that day, the separated twins are reunited, Antipholus of Ephesus pays his father's ransom, and Egeon discovers his long-lost wife (Aemilia) living in the local priory. In the end, THE COMEDY OF ERRORS is as much about the power of family as the search for completing oneself. It is a play that reminds me that it is perhaps better to re-read and understand Shakespeare than to devour one bestseller after the next.

G. Merritt

One of the problems that great artists present to us is where to begin in getting to know their works. Their masterworks are often so full of what they have spent a lifetime developing that most of it is lost on those who have not yet put in a significant amount of effort becoming familiar with that artist's style and means of expression. Yet, if one begins with their apprentice works one may become discouraged because they lack the miracles of the masterworks. So, where does one begin?

Shakespeare offers the reader an additional challenge of an English that is removed in style and idiom from us by 400 years. It is not an insurmountable challenge. In fact, it is quite easy to overcome with a bit of time reading it and getting into the flow. It just seems strange in the beginning, but it really does become easy to read once you spend some time with it. However, getting over that small hill has kept many from enjoying the glories of Shakespeare.

This play, "The Comedy of Errors", is clearly an early work. It has many virtues, but despite them it does not offer much of what we really value in Shakespeare. It is a very fine play and is constructed very well. It is a wonderful first work to read of Shakespeare because it is short and has a very simple plot. The new reader does not have to spend much effort contemplating characters or the immense subtlety of language of the great works. Its charms are direct and what it has to offer is pretty much on the surface of the words.

The plot is, like all farces, ridiculous. It involves twin brothers who are served by twin slaves. They are separated early in life and when the play opens one set does not know the other exists. One set (the Antipholus and Dromio from Syracuse) visits Ephesus where the other set (the Antipholus and Dromio of Ephesus) lives. The play involves people confusing the two sets to the bewilderment of those suffering from the confusion. It really is quite funny. Of course, eventually, all is resolved to everyone's delight.

This edition, like all of the individual editions Arden offers of these plays, has a wonderful opening essay that offers a great deal of background on the play including a discussion of its performance history, sources, and discussion of the play itself. The appendices in the back offer excerpts from the sources and some brief information on the Gray's Inn performance of 1594.

If you desire to study Shakespeare and are willing to spend time reading many of his plays, "The Comedy of Errors" is a good work to start with just to ease into the language and get a feel for some of the conventions of Elizabethan theater. Just don't stop here. Shakespeare has so much more to offer that you owe it to yourself to continue your exploration of this supreme artist.

To my mind, Course of Empire is the best book written by Bernard Devoto (1897-1955). With it, he won a National Book Award to add to his Pulitzer and Bancroft prizes. DeVoto's integration of American exploration with the political quarrels of Europe is exceptionally good, and his understanding of western geography is overwhelming even to the well-traveled.

Most important, this is the work of a novelist manqué who should have been a historian all along. The book is everywhere readable and sometimes sings. A couple of examples:

"The best hope of peace lay in the fact that for half a century Spain had been falling like Lucifer son of the morning and was now prostrate. Its possessions spread across Europe without logic of geography or nationality. If they could be satisfactorily distributed among the powers peace might follow like the well-being of a man who has dined well." (164)

"In 1744 [Arthur Dobbs] published An Account of the Countries Adjoining to Hudson's Bay, a vigorous, absorbing book which assembled everything that was known, rumored, guessed, logically deduced, and imagined about the Northwest. It is a visionary's argument and perhaps the most shining eighteenth-century example of what the imagination can do when it has a blank map to work on and is handicapped by no empirical knowledge whatever." (244)

Finally, in Course of Empire, Native Americans are treated knowledgeably and thoroughly yet without the stifling political correctness of our own day. DeVoto writes of "savages" who do savage things; and he is right. Of course, DeVoto had the advantage of writing at a time when Europeans could no longer get a pass for being white but before Native Americans got one for not being so. DeVoto could not have chosen his era, but he certainly made the best use of it.

This is a magisterial history of the exploration of the west by an icon of western histiography. DeVoto takes in the whole sweep of New World history, from the conquistadors up to Lewis and Clark. Lewis and Clark are the clear apogee of the narrative, and the hundred or so pages on their expedition function as a hundred page mini book within a book.

I learned alot about the exploration of the west in this book, especially in the sections devoted to spanish (inept) and french (daring but lacking ambition) exploration. All forces eventually will yield to the english and later the americans.

Jefferson emerges as a far sighted hero of manifest destiny. This book gives great little known detail on the interaction between westerners and native americans without being biased or unduly sentimental to the existing native cultures.

I thought on the whole he was even handed about alot of controversial issues and his awesome prose and thorough research make this an enduring classic of american history and the "course of empire"

Although the various European powers moved sometimes disorganizedly, in fits and starts, DeVoto shows how the course of empire's path is laid out.

As the first volume of a trilogy, DeVoto foreshadows America's later claims of Manifest Destiny and "democratic-imperial" dreams in "Course of Empire," based on the expansionist energy he details in "Across the Broad Missouri."

All three volumes are worth a read.

This is a book about the exploration, not the settlement, of North America. As such, it traces the 278 year history of European and American efforts to penetrate and understand the North American continent.

The Course of Empire then is a compendium of various and sometimes quite different national interests. Utilizing a chronological, fill in the blank approach, DeVoto literally fills in the map of North America as viewed, rightly or wrongly, by each succeeding explorer. Chapter by chapter this story unfolds across the entire history of North American exploration. Thus, the reader meets everyone in chronological sequence, starting with Balboa and ending with Lewis and Clark.

Since subsequent explorers often had access to the records of those that preceded them, DeVoto is not only able to fill in the North American map with the contribution of each exploration, he is also able to link each exploration to its fundamental drivers: national intent and economic interest. As a result, he is able to underscore the ebb and flow of New World power as each country's global interests and economic situation changed over time.

For example, Spain's 16th century interest was mostly focused on conquest and plunder. As a result, Spain's more northern explorations, led by De Soto and Coronado, were limited by the lack exploitable civilizations. In contrast, after the defeat of the Spanish Armada and Spain's decline as a world power, England's subsequent 17th and 18th century efforts were more driven by land acquisition, sugar and the fur trade. It is easy to see why then that the French and Indian War was fought and why Britain's explorations are so much more consistent and focused on such dramatically different sections of North America.

Of critical interest is how the author weaves the unbelievable scope of this effort into a consistent whole, telling the story of how the geography of North America limited and encouraged continental expansion and ultimately defined the national borders of the United States. This is an excellent work and well worth your time.

Like many readers I was led to DeVoto by Stephen Ambrose, and I was not disappointed. This book combines meticulous historical scholarship with a real skill in storytelling, and it gave me a new understanding of how Europeans perceived and penetrated the continent. I began with the intention of reading the three volumes in historical order, and I'm eagerly continuing to "Across the Wide Missouri," which is all the review you should need.

My only complaint -- and the only reason to deny it a fifth star -- has nothing to do with DeVoto's work itself. The edition I read (purchased here, and as far as I can tell identical to the one for sale above) had black-on-white, pen-and-ink maps that appear to date from the original printing. They can be hard to read, which is a significant drawback in a narrative that relies so heavily on geographical references.

I would be very happy to see either a companion volume filled with modern maps (as has been done so admirably with the Aubrey-Maturin novels), or a new edition of the book that incorporates them directly.

I have no illusions about the sales volume of this title, or its power to induce such a new printing. Nor do I ignore the charm in presenting these maps with the same "period" style that DeVoto's first readers saw. But I found this book so instructive that I hope for others to derive the same benefit -- and that means using modern techniques to make it the most effective educational instrument it can be.

It's important to disclaim that I'm only talking about the illustrative maps. The ones used as chapter headers, that show the continent gradually "filling in" over the centuries, are priceless and should be left as-is in any future printing.

About 10,000 same-sex couples have wed in Massachusetts since 2003, when that state's Supreme Court handed down a decision that made such unions legal in the state. Since then, the state legislature has rejected several attempts to reinstate a ban. This wonderful book is about the civil-rights struggle waged by LGBT activists in Massachusetts and the celebrations that followed the court decision, beautifully told and illustrated.

This book chronicles the struggle for marriage equality brilliantly! The authors tell the back story of how activists built on other court cases branching back to the seventies to make it possible for marriage equality to happen in Massachusetts. It is filled with touching stories of real families and their reactions to the news that their rights would finally be protected! They put a human face to this issue and prove without a doubt that all families should have the same legal protections. This book is a must-read for GLBT right supporters and historians alike.

Gozemba, Patricia A. and Karen Kahn. "Courting Equality: A Documentary History of America's First Legal Same-Sex Marriages", Beacon Press, 2007.



"Going to the Chapel"



Amos Lassen and Literary Pride



May 17, 2004 is an important date for us. On that day at midnight close to 10.000 people came together in Cambridge, Massachusetts on the lawn of the City Hall. They were waiting for history to be made. When the building opened, the first legal same-sex marriage licenses in the United States were issued and Susan Shepherd and Marcia Hams, who had been together for 27 years, were not officially granted the right to marry. From that day forward, thousands of gay and lesbian couples from across the state followed the lead. Meanwhile, other couples in other places are fighting for the same right.

"Courting Equality" follows the experience with wonderful text by Patricia A. Gozemba and Karen Kahn and extraordinary photographs (more than 100 in all). We are given a front row center seat to see the battle for same-sex marriage in Massachusetts. There entire story is here--the early efforts of activists and the celebrations that followed the decision and the protests following the decision of the Massachusetts Supreme Court in the case of "Goodridge vs. The Department of Public Health. What a joyous book this is.

The photographs illustrate the text beautifully and further demonstrate the dignity of the issue. The faces in the photographs are elated and proud and exemplify the importance of everything that went on in front of and behind the scenes. Some of the photographs are so touching that it is difficult to look at then with dry eyes. Others make you smile and grin with pride. They represent what the struggle for equality is all about and what it looks like. The text writers have documented an important part of American history and show the efforts to end discrimination and we read and see how our own legislators and fellow citizens got to know us and our families and helped us gain the justice we so deserve.

Here is testimony to the power of commitment. The stories of the people involved are beautifully related and we see humanity at its finest hour. What makes this book important is that it is not only a chronicle the events that led up to Massachusetts allowing same-sex marriage but it shows how political support grew as we witnessed the reality of the demolition of prejudices against us. Most of all, I feel, it reinforces our worth and that we do, indeed, gain equal treatment under the laws of our country. The look at the way social change occurs is beautifully expressed in this beautiful coffee-table sized book. It is an album of our lives and a picture of freedom.

I'm a long-time admirer of the photography of Marilyn Humphries, whose political conscience and capacity to connect deeply and unobtrusively with her subjects place her in a very special class of her art. I'm also a heterosexual male who had quietly been part of the majority of Americans who favor, in principle, the right of every adult couple to marry. But this magnificent book has turned me into an activist who will stand up at every proper opportunity and fight for that right alongside the many courageous individuals who have worked for it by themselves until now. The concrete story of that fight (superbly written by Ms. Gozemba and Ms. Kahn) sweeps away a merely abstract understanding of what has been happening. A detailed history of the legal fight in Massachusetts is riveting. But if that isn't enough for some who still question the right of an adult to marry, then they will have to search their feelings as they look at Marilyn Humphries' photographs of the seven couples who won Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, photographs that often include their children, neighbors and pets. I was profoundly moved and inspired by these individuals (whom I will certainly never meet in person). I was reminded that everything we call a "human right" is the result of great struggle, and I was also encouraged that those who persevere do so for all of us. And yes--this book is magnificently produced! It should be owned and circulated by every American who believes our country needs to continue its self-examination and willingness to advance.

Lavish in prose and photography, COURTING EQUALITY presents the struggle to equal rights in marriage by Massachusetts' gay and lesbian community. Beyond the obvious, and above the gloss of Marilyn Humphries' stunning photo journal, Patricia A. Gozemba and Karen Kahn offer the reader a journey through worldwide discrimination which bends a bit as same sex couples arrive on the page grasping that one little piece of paper that unbars so many doors. These couples are sometimes both in wedding gowns or both in tuxedoes or anything else that expresses the joy of the moment, and Humphries, Gozemba, and Kahn order the rise of this movement in a powerful narrative that's hard to put down. I am happy to see Kahn and Humphries working again together for I so fondly remember their collaborations at Sojourner The Women's Forum during that publication's heyday late last century. I assume Gozemba has rallied this writer and this artist and added her own pizzazz to the endeavor. Huzzah!!! Good reading for anyone.