Prose Books

This review is for this particular edition.

I love that the first three (and argueably best) books of the Vampire Chronicles were combined with sleek and well designed cover art. The cover was actually taken from the short-lived Broadway musical, 'Lestat', and this was made as an obvious merchandise tie in. It was nice to see, nonetheless.

It's of a much better quality than the mass market paperback versions and a better deal at $13, since each mass market edition will cost you about $7. The book itself is rather heavy (about 4 lbs), so if you have weak wrists it may be a struggle for you to hold, but text is large and easy to read, the ink does not smudge like the mass market editions do, and the pages are thin and smooth.

If you're contemplating 'plunging into the stream' (the words that the Vampire Lestat himself 'lives' by) by giving Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles a try, than buy this particular version. I can't recommend it enough.

Anne's collection is by far and wide the best I have ever read concerning vampires. Far from your run of the mill dime story vampire stories, these books will sweep you off your feet. Blending our love for vampires with a spiritual side that is to be highly commended, I have never been so impressed with a set of novels before. Dont stop with these either! Her next book, Memnoch the Devil is a triumph as well.

I got this book with only knowing about the moive Interview with the Vampire. When I started to read the book I couln't put it down. All 3 of the books are the same way. I like The Vampire Lestat the best. In The Vampire Lestat she goes more in to the history of vampire. Then with ending that will make you want to read The Queen of the Damned right away. The Vampire Chronicles is one of the best series out there. If you havn't read it you are missing out.

to be honest i have read all of annes published works dealing with both the vampires and the mayfair witches and i believe these three books (interview, lestat, and queen of the damned)were what made me keep my interest in them for as long as i have. it is her way of story telling which ensnares the imagination in us all. to be completely honest if you are going to read these three be prepared to be spending more money in a few months to buy the rest of the set.

sort of in response to a review posted prior. without getting into much detail it is expanded more on in her other books but the gist of it is that while akasha was undoubtedly the oldest and first of all vampires they centuries of her slumber made her weaker than mekhare (i believe that is the correct spelling and if not i dont have time to fix it). it is explained out that the longer a vampire stays awake and feeding the faster and greater their powers grow to be. in any event it is a work of fiction one doesnt need to over analyze it to enjoy the book for what it is.

Anne Rice revamped the vampire-horror genre with the publication of "Interview with the Vampire," a supernational drama from the vampire's own mouth. It became an unexpected hit, and spawned a series of sequels that came to be known as the Vampire Chronicles. The first three books of the series are compiled here, and arguably remain her best.

"Interview With the Vampire" is the story of Louis, a grieving young widower and plantation owner, whose life is turned upside down when he meets the charming vampire Lestat. Lestat offers him a way out: become a vampire. Louis accepts, but once it's done, he finds that vampirism is more than he bargained for -- especially for his conscience.

"The Vampire Lestat" takes a totally different tack, showing us the world through the enigmatic, charming Lestat's eyes. After years of dormancy, Lestat wakes up in time for the early MTV years of the 1980s, becoming a rock star in the tradition of Ozzy and Black Sabbath. And like Louis, Lestat relates his long life's story -- how he became a vampire, his wanderings over the earth, and his investigations into the origins of vampirism itself...

"Queen of the Damned" builds on that research. Lestat's metal music has caused quite a bit of mayhem -- but not this much before: Akasha, Egyptian queen and mother of all vampires, has reawoken from her comalike sleep. The lesser vampires are having strange dreams, some are being murdered by the ruthless queen. Apparently she wants to kill virtually all men. What is more, Akasha has taken a shine to the roguish Lestat himself...

Vampiric autobiography is a given in Anne Rice's bibliography -- she has plenty of bloodsuckers telling us about their lives. But Lestat and Louis's were not just the first ones, but perhaps the most compelling and rich, especially since the two had such radically different viewpoints -- including of one another. Is Lestat a heartless fiend, or a roguish good-craving bad boy? I'd lean towards the latter, to be honest.

The first two books are quite personal -- one is Louis recounting his own miserable life and un-life. Then we get Lestat, a radically different viewpoint, a guy who enjoys his un-life even more than his mortal existance. Finally, there's an epic view of all vampires, throughout history, from the ancient Egyptian queen to the modern biker vamps.

Despite the more controversial recent novels, Anne Rice's first Vampire Chronicles are often reckoned to be modern horror classics. Rich, intriguing and far deeper than you'd think vampire fiction would be.

I first read this book when I was 11 or 12, circa 1962.

It was so appealing that I adapted it into a play for a 7th grade book report. My teacher, the doughty Mrs. Kerrigan, took me to task for not reading a REAL play. I held my ground, however, and insisted that the dialogue and imagery made it as actable as any "play" could be.

Here I am, lifetimes later, still chuckling over this little masterpiece.

If you like Jean Shepherd's "Christmas Story", you will love this book!

Many times reading this book I related it to my own childhood in the 1980's. It's amazing to think that this was written in the 1950's, about the author's childhood in the 1930's. It's also hard to believe that such normalcy could have taken place in an era when we never hear about anything but misery. Unbelievable as well, is that happiness and life carried on without the direct interference of the New Deal. This book is truly a gem that will bring you back to the forts and treehouses we used to play in.

I'm sure that mothers and daughters will enjoy the book as well, but fathers and sons will get the most from it. I first read a borrowed copy of this book at age 10 back in the 1970s, and I loved it. Its praise of living leisurely, making your own fun, spending time with friends rather than parents, even doing nothing at all, seemed to validate my own boyhood lifestyle. I never forgot the book and finally bought it for myself from Amazon 30 years later.

The book is now more than 50 years old, yet it seems strikingly contemporary because the trends that Smith spotted in the 1950s (structuring children's playtime, always trying to teach and "improve" our kids, being a "pal" to our kids) have only accelerated since. Smith treats everything with nostalgia and humor, making every page a joy, if a tiny bit sad.

I now have a baby boy of my own, and I'm going to save my copy for him to read, years from now. I strongly recommend this book to young fathers, and fathers-to-be.

This book should never be out of print. A glorious, accurate dipiction of childhood from a boy's perspective. We can all relate. Sweet and innocent: when he talks about smoking "weed," it was real weeds from a back lot! When duct tape was the most valuable thing on the planet and an abandoned lot was a wonderland, it will all come back to you.

What a wonderful little book! Very short, only 124 pages, and I think the best word to describe it is - bemusing. I was charmed by the writer's account of his childhood in the Roaring Twenties. Written in 1957, so many of his observations on parenting (and he had two of his own) are certainly true today. We micro-and macro-manage our children. Are they ever left to their own devices any more? I do remember one of the things he did, running a needle under the skin of my finger. I have a note in my copy that says this book should be given to whichever of my children's children reaches 6 first.

I first read this book in 10th grade for a book report, and I loved it. I have read it a few times since. The theme of communication is wonderfully played out.

This book is one more proof of Herbert's mastery. The effort and difficulties in communication between a human and a being that perceives our dimension only as a "wave" is wonderfully laid out. The issue of communication between intelligent beings of different kinds (non-human) and cultures is one that Herbert plays a lot in his books, but in this one it was taken to another level.

I find the book so deep that only after the 5th reading I understood Herbert was trying to conjure a new way to look onto the creation of our universe from a VERY uncustom perspective. OK, so I read it 5 times, and I'm venturing into my 6th now. Willing to sell me your herbert collection, don;t hesitate to contact. :)

One of the best short stories I have read, Whipping Star is most memorable for Fanny-May, an extra-dimentional Caleban whose death will mean the end of life. I definitely recomend it for any lover of fiction

This was a clever book starring bureaucrats whose job is to intentionally derail governmental productivity and a sweet giant supernova named Caliban who just needs a little love. Together they must stop a wealthy & aristocratic S/M Mistress from destroying interstellar transportation. Reading this book will cause you to giggle like a madwoman.

I used this book for a recent Special Needs training I facilitated at South Carolina University in Sumter, SC. The Preschool teachers loved it because it got over and sealed the point I was trying to make. "Don't change the child, change the environment in which the child is in." It gave them a more open mind of how to adapt their classrooms for the children in which they serve.

We have had this book for years and I just purchased it for my daughter's Kindergarten classroom, it is such a fun book, I love the illustrations and it is one that I can read again and again and still enjoy it.

The book was received in good condition and in a timely manner. I would recommend this site to others.

We simply adore Winnie the Witch at our house... by we I mean me (38), my husband (44), and our 2 and a half year old daughter. The humor appeals to every age, as do the fantastic illustrations. I recently ordered the three story collection and was not disappointed. Take a chance on Winnie.

This is, I think very much more for a child from 2-4 than anything else. The language is simple as are the concepts. It is very good humoured and beautifully illustrated. This is a book my 2 and 4 year old love to look at.

There are quite complicated illustrations of Winnies house which is a large castle - it is all in black. The problem is that Winnie's cat is also black, she can see the cat when its eyes are open, but when they are closed she keeps tripping over it - so she changes the colour of the cat.

It is a simple story, just a couple of plot elements, a little bit of problem solving and a happy ending (as you would expect) It is a nice book for discussing how to solve problems with children - (for instance what would you do if you kept tripping over the cat? what colour would you like best here? and so on) Its a nice book for opening up dialogue, and also for leading into art and creativity.

It is also a nice book just to read - and it is a favourite with my two at bed time right now. I think the cat is the most appealing thing in it, which is well drawn and a bit leggy, the illustrations remind a lot of Ronald Searle/Quentin Blake style.

I see there are more books in this series and I am keen to get hold of them for the girls before they grow out of them

Beautifully written children's adventure set in the English Lake District in the 1930's. The same cast of characters as Swallows and Amazons and Swallowdale but with the addition of two new characters - Dorothy and Dick Callum, who also appear later in the series in The Big Six, Coot Club, the Picts and the Martyrs and Great Northern. All about an extended winter holiday on and around the lake as it slowly freezes over. Ice skating, sledging, exploring, rescuing crag-fast sheep, the adventures come one after the other. As well-written as all Arthur Ransome's childrens books were, and an enjoyable time-warped look at what life for the english middle class was like in the 30's in Britain. I grew up reading these books and find them just as enjoyable now as I did when I was 10 years old.

Our family has enjoyed the Swallows & Amazon series more than I initially expected. Each book has taken a few chapters to pull us in and we take it slowly; these are worth your time. The children in the stories are what my kids want to be like: independent and capable, fun loving and creative. The plots and themes are simple and interesting. I recommend the whole series for reading aloud and encourage readers to not drop them if they are not as fast paced as other stories.

Coming on the tails of a full-throttle fantasy in PETER DUCK, Ransome comes back down to earth in WINTER HOLIDAY. It's January at the old lake, and now we're seeing things from the viewpoint of Dick and Dorothea Callum, the children of two archaeologists who are digging in Egypt and sent their children to spend their winter holiday with a family friend. The D's, as they become known, are different from the rough-and-ready Swallows and Amazons; Dorothea is a dreamy sort, an aspiring novelist, and Dick is an intellectual, an amateur naturalist and astronomer.

Of course, they meet up with the Swallows and Amazons, quickly making friends and providing their worth to the group with their quick wit and superior ice-skating(!). The group is mourning that soon their holidays will be over when Nancy comes down with the mumps, meaning that the group can't go back to school for another month until they're sure they won't pass the infection to others. Then a huge freeze descends, blanketing the land in snow and freezing the lake.

The story is full of delightful exploring in the snow, something I remember myself from my own childhood. The crew build an igloo, rescue a stranded sheep, and learn field communication techniques (actual practical knowledge there). The D's encounter actual physical danger when they set off for the northern end of the lake after a miscommunication, and end up caught in a blizzard, but all ends well and their place in the group is firmly established when the rest are impressed with their courage and grit.

Again, another delightful adventure from Ransome, something great for kids and parents alike. A good guide for cold-weather adventure, and also a nice antidote to summer heat. Kids will learn the aforementioned field communication bit, but other messages include the importance of good deeds (in rescuing the sheep and also the kids' determination to rescue the D's when they're feared lost), as well as common themes of courage, capability, and that everyone has something to contribute.

Next in the series: The D's take center stage in COOT CLUB.

There I was just browsing at a store, and just happened to glance at this particular color of this book...and picked it up read the cover and fell in to the illustration, and the breif excerpts on the back cover... I am just so excited over the wanting and longing to snuggle up with my children and read this to them, but not to them...really, but to read for myself...this is going to be a start of something big... I also went researching for Mr.Arthur Ransomes books, and found web sites leading to history and all the good things that come with a curious mind, that wants to discover...where did all those adorable children who seem to live in a perfect world, live, whom were pictured on the cover of "Winter Holiday"... This is a "National Geographic" for children of all ages... I cannot wait for a more perfect day to begin reading this, as the house doesn't have to be clean, nor the dishes washed, maybe this is the perfect front porch with lemonade, book... Best regards on your adventure through "Winter Holiday"

It's been a year and a half since the Walkers (the Swallows) first met the Blackett sisters (the Amazons) and were plunged into Captain Nancy's adventurous worldview (not that they didn't have one of their own already). Now, for the first time, we see the six from an outside view--though still that of young people: Dick Callum, astronomy buff, and his sister Dorothea ("Dot"), aspiring novelist, are staying at the lake while their parents are off digging in Egypt over the Christmas holidays, and are caught up in the adventures of the senior group when they attempt to "signal to Mars" by night. The Walkers and Blacketts, inspired by the coldest winter the lake has experienced in living memory, are training for an expedition to the North Pole (the far upper end of the lake), "only the beastly Arctic won't freeze." Quite unexpectedly Captain Nancy saves the day by coming down with mumps, which requires all the others to be kept out of school for a month lest they spread the contagion. The Blacketts' uncle Captain Flint reappears too, playing a pivotal role in the expedition's preparations. Much of the story is told from the viewpoint of the ever-imaginitive Dorothea, whose writer's mind puts a unique spin on what she sees. As always there are misunderstandings with the "natives" (local adults, rechristened Eskimos for purposes of the season), and a literally chilling sequence during which the Callums are blown to the Pole by a sudden blizzard. Ransome here proves that it doesn't have to be summer for his Lake Country to provide plenty of good story fodder, and in the process gives us a unique children's adventure tale that should be as eagerly welcomed as a read-aloud as any of the others in the series. Not to be missed.

An absolutely beautiful study of the world of a sixteenth-century Flemish achemist and the tribulations he eventually suffers. It's pretty scholarly and there are no shenanigans involving the making of gold etc., the usual tropes. It takes its milieu very seriously and though it's very scholarly it in no way fails to involve the reader with the main character's quest for enlightenment. Things do come to a head, plotwise, in that Zeno is eventually persecuted on trumped-up charges of a heretical nature, admittedly, so there is a bit of the conspiracy element but it's not really the focus. Anyway, this is as good as John Banville's best historical novels such as 'Dr Copernicus' and 'Kepler'. The little essay at the back of the U.K. Black Swan edition is a fascinating document of the 60-year on-off piecing-together of what was originally a fragment and an excellent elucidation of how she researched it, what she took from where etc. 'The Abyss' was first published in 1968 and translated by Grace Frick with the author.

Marguerite Yourcenar is one of the towering novelists of the twentieth century, the first woman to be inducted into the French Academy. The Abyss is an essential for any serious library.

The Abyss is a remarkable study of two men in early sixteenth century Europe. One is looking for worldly pleasures, the other for something more serious. It's the latter man, Zeno, who becomes one of the most unusual heroes in modern novels. Yourcenar traces the man's intellectual growth against the background of a Europe whose collective mind was also growing, and shows how a powerful intellect can triumph over bias, superstition, and intolerance. The writing is wonderful, with long sentences that meander over pages the way Zeno wanders through the continent; the characters met along the way are memorable; the philosophical discourses are fascinating. It's not an easy read, but perhaps as worthwhile as any other book published in the last half century.

I read this book several years ago and although I no longer remember many details I still think of it as one of my favorite books. It recreates around the life of the main character all the main issues of the historical period concerned: The crumbling of the medieval political order and the slow rise of the Nation-States, the Reformation and the Religion wars and, in general, all the chaos generated by the decline of Medieval thought and the emergence of a myriad of new alternative conceptions about mankind, nature and society. What makes this book so marvellous is that it masterly combines all these issues into a literary work elegantly and coherently written.

The book speaks for itself and I would highly recommend it for anyone interested in historical novels. However, I can tell that it is much more enjoyable with some knowledge of the politics and ideas of the time, because that is when you find out all the work that the author had to do in order to present this incredible novel.

Although I do not consider it as a demerit of the work, the only thing I dislike of the book were the final reflexions of Zenon, because they have certain twenty-century sartrian flavor, which -although valid- cause frictions with the so lively historical atmosphere created by the author.

Reading a book by M. Yourcenar, a prose writer of great skill, is invariably a delight. The scope of her novels is epic, the composition is as intricate and carefully crafted as a Beethoven symphony. Here in The Abyss, the main theme of the book - the clash between the impetus of momentous historical forces and the destiny of a single human being - is introduced in the very first sentence of the book. It accompanies the reader throughout the book as an insistent motto theme. Yourcenar's prose is carefully polished and aristocratic and reflects her admirable erudition. It is a language with the colour, texture and depth of a precious fabric or an excellent wine. The pace of the book is naturally rather slow, particularly in its second part where the alchemist and doctor Zenon has settled down again in Bruges and is given to long bouts of introspection. But the noble pacing is fully in accord with the gravity of the subject matter and the stakes involved. I think the book has lost nothing of its relevance today, a time in which civil rights are being widely curtailed in the name of abstract principles. As such it warrants closer study by those wanting to resist these pressures and to stick to honest and authentic choices.

When I first read Dispatches some years ago, I was astounded at how a 'parachuted journalist' from the Washington Post could manage to be so empathetic to his new surroundings. Harden displays a questioning and understanding of all the places he reported on in Africa that many who've lived for decades in Africa do not have.

In his travels, it's clear that Harden tries to stick his nose in and experience Africa. He is often more than an observer - he participates first-person - and is therefore able to tell a complete story without having resorting to hollow theorizing and trite conclusions as filler. His trip on the Kisangani-Kinshasa riverboat is a good example where the story and experience tells all - Harden doesn't need to tell the reader what to conclude. Same with his experiences with then President Moi of Kenya. He had the chance to talk to Moi, not just for an interview, but to discuss his deportation! Harden was always personally involved in his stories.

Coincidentally, a few years after Harden's Africa tenure, another Washington Post Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Keith Richburg, wrote his memoirs on Africa - Out of America: A Black Man Confronts Africa. Though Out of America is a very good book, Dispatches is in another class entirely. It's a must read.

Harden, a first rate writer, researcher and observer, does an excellent job demystifying the African political diaspora with insightful anecdote and personal experience. For anyone that has lived or loved Africa this is a must read - it will remind you of everything that is wrong with Africa and everything that is unforgetable about Africa.

It's a pity that the book was written in the early nineties, since the only drawback I can point out of this work is the lack of information about the last fifteen years in the different countries (Sudan, Nigeria, Zambia, etc.) the author describes (this is not his fault, obviously!). Deeply educational, this is phenomenal journalism. If I had to pont out a chapter, the most interesting one is the one that deals with the Turkana tribe in Kenya.

From page one, I was hooked, and I'm looking forward to learning more about Africa, the forgotten continent. This was the perfect starting point.

Blaine Harden's Africa: Dispatches from a Fragile Continent is by far the most interesting book out there about Africa. It is a series of vignette-like true life examples of how the continent is imploding, thanks to "big daddies" and the west's lack of understanding about the people, cultures, values, and even geography of this underdeveloped continent. Truly a masterpeice. It should be required reading in all universities across the country. One of the BEST books I've ever read.

Harden brings one of the least reported parts of the world to light, but his reporting is now a bit out of date. It is hard to give a book this good less than five stars, but many things have happened in Africa in the last five years. I would purchase an update in a minute.

After a fairly slowly paced second volume and a more intense third volume, "The Aftermath" leaves many of the characters of the first three volumes in the background. Gone are Pancho Lane, Lars Fuchs and Martin Humphries, except for some incidental mentions. The main focus is on the Zacharias family and Dorn, (formerly known as Dorik Harbin), a cyborg repaired after an attempted suicide and trying to atone for a life of murder and death.

Essentially, the plot follows different threads as they intertwine with each other and come together with the Artefact on the asteroid forming something of a centre point. Victor Zacharias chases his family across the Belt, trying to find them after being attacked by Harbin. George Ambrose still tries to run the habitat near Ceres, though he is not one of the main characters. Valker and his crew are thrown into the mix as something of the bad guys, and there is the HSS flunkies who are hunting down Dorn and his companions to prevent their speaking out about Martin Humphries little episode with the Artefact.

The book moves with a very good pace, and I have to admit that I enjoyed the simple, no nonsense style that Bova writes with. Unlike some authors, he keeps details to a fair minimum to allow for a heightened pace to the story. It serves the book well, though sometimes I was a bit confused on how to imagine certain things working. An example is the wheel shaped ships and how the command pods fit into it.

Overall, I enjoyed the series a lot and it was a good read. I would recommend Ben Bova to anyone who likes the idea of near-future sci-fi, and enjoys a good action filled yarn. I definitely enjoyed this one and it kept me absorbed until the last page.

I've been reading Bova for 30 years (wow). He has his fans for his ability to mix action, characters and politics. Sometimes it comes off as cheeky space opera with cardboard villains and heroes, but sometimes the mix is balanced just right and makes for a fun summertime read. This is story of man in search of his family after being attacked by a villain who then has life changing event. Both of these characters offer depths that Bova can lack while not lacking the normal quality of Bova book: page turning action. While this is last of this series Bova adds enough background to read as a stand alone book, and for anybody who has liked a Bova book or two in the past or wants to check him out for the first time I highly recommend this one. Very well could be his best book since Orion.

Admittedly I have only read a handful of his books so far (Jupiter and the Asteriod Wars) and listened to Titan on CD, but this was my favorite yet. Precipice was a little slow for me and then the 2nd and 3rd book got going. I was sad when I finished them. Ben Bova's books feel so real. Even the science fiction element seems extremely plausible. What's even more interesting is that there is no guarantee which character will survive to appear in the next one. None of the characters from Precipice appeared in this book (I think) and several protagonists have died or fallen out of the storyline along the way. The only one that has been a major faction throughout is the bad guy, Martin Humphries!

I can't wait for his new Mars book!

- Todd

The previous entry commented that this was the end of this series. Does this person really think that? Can it not continue? This whole series was outstanding. From Precipice, Rock Rats, Silent War, and now Aftermath, why can't it continue, this work is outstanding!

Ben Bova has written a thrilling conclusion to his Asteroid Wars Series.

Dorik Harbin, a mercenary hired by Martin Humphries to kill Lars Fuchs, has just destroyed the Chrysallis habitat orbiting Ceres. Over 1100 rock rats were killed in Harbin's merciless attack. After the attack, Harbin noticed that another ship, the Syracuse, had witnessed everything. Syracuse is inhabited by Victor Zacharias, his wife Pauline, and two children, Theo and Angela. Victor makes his living hauling ore from the belt back to Ceres. Still in a killing rage, Harbin accuses Victor and his family of hiding Lars Fuchs. Despite their pleas to the contrary, Harbin is convinced and attacks Syracuse. Realizing what is happening, Victor escapes from the ship in the escape pod, trying to draw Harbin away from Syracuse, but leaving his family to fend for themselves. Fortunately, they survive, but at what cost? The ship is badly damaged and Victor has left. Now, Theo, Angela, and Pauline must fend for themselves.

After drifting through space for several months, Victor is rescued by a very seductive woman named Cheena Madagascar. Victor is taken back to Ceres aboard Cheena's ship, where he gets a job working on building the new habitat, but he longs to find his family. Soon, he comes up with a plan.

In the intervening time, Harbin and sculptress Elverda Apacheta have jointly discovered an artifact with mythical powers to change and transform people. Harbin, who tried unsuccessfully to kill himself, has now become a half-human, half-machine cyborg. When he sees the artifact, he is transformed from the murderer he once was into a sympathetic priest. He calls himself Dorn, and has vowed to find every body floating in the solar system left for dead after battles and give them proper burials. Elverda has decided to accompany him.

However, Martin Humphries wants to make sure no one finds out about how his encounter with the artifact affected him, so he's sent out Kao Yuan, another mercinary, to find and eliminate Dorn and Elverda. Also aboard Kao's ship is Tamara Vishinsky and in the end, it is her that seems to wield the real power.

Back aboard Syracuse, after many long months alone, it appears Theo has devised a plan to get him and his family back to Ceres before their supplies run out. But, they are visited by Valker and his crew. They are scavengers who overtake supposedly deserted ships and sell them for profit at Ceres. Unfortunately for Pauline and Angie, it appears that Valker and his men have more on their mind than salvage. Will Victor somehow manage to find his family before its too late? What will become of Dorn and Elverda?

I've read each book in the Asteroid Wars series, and I rate this one as the best. The last 75-100 pages fly by as the action is fast-paced and exciting. Bova has done his best work with this book.

I give this book my highest recommendation. The Asteroid Wars series is loaded with action and characters that the reader grows to like (or hate). Read this exciting book and series and experience science fiction at its very best.

This book is not just a mega dose of good news, but is a resource rich exposé on where the good news is being generated.

Reading "And Now for the Good News", you are made aware of the limits of corporate media coverage and informed on projects and people who are making positive change, and then empowered to get involved. This book allows all of its readers to be a part of the solution.

Simple energy,small passions,life.We manifest it.Know that our needs are ONE,not few.At a time when our good graces seem under continual assault,this author reminds us of everyday fulfillment.You most likely do these tasks within your own life.But then,that's the GOOD NEWS.I have been able to share this information with friends,associates,and,children in need of a jumpstart in goodness.

And Now for the Good News... is a nonfiction testimony presented to counterbalance the seemingly unending torrent of dismal news that pours from television, newspaper, and internet sources day in and day out. Good news ranges from a major new study (the 2005 Human Security Report) revealing that political violence has sharply declined worldwide since the early 1990s, to the record high life expectancy rate found in the U.S. (77.9 years), to a decline in illegal drug use among U.S. teens (down 23.3% in the last five years with reductions in every drug, including alcohol and cigarettes), and much more. An intellectually, emotionally and spiritually uplifting testimony featuring meticulously documented sources, highly recommended as an antidote to CNN depression.

And Now for the Good News in a society mostly focused on bad news, is news, indeed. Badly needed news at that. What Al Gore does with his video on healing our planet, Sue Ray does with this book to bring into balance our distorted world view. As she says in her book, "how we frame the issue matters." Citing examples of what has already been accomplished gives us the heart and impetus of wanting to do the same. Words are worlds. Instead of focusing on the word `fight' in "the fight against global warming," let us focus on the words `help' and `healing' in "help our planet heal itself." Read this book. It will restore your faith in humanity.

What resonates with me is the conscious creation / law of
attraction aspect of this inspiring book. We get what we focus on, so it
makes sense that what we chose to pay attention to on the news
affects each of us on many levels. Why not pay more attention to the
positive events and people in the world? This book is a great reminder that there are many people in this world creating positive change that benefits us all.

This is a charming and wonderful book. I too am surprised that it did not get more "buzz" at the time it was published.

How fascinating it is to eavesdrop, as it were, on authors' musings about their life and art. The diary entries help me fill in a multi-dimensional picture of what Virginia Woolf, Kafka, Dawn Powell, and others were like.

But not all the diarists are famous. Ordinary people's journals tell us a great deal about what it was like to be a Londoner evacuated during the Nazi bombing, or a wealthy slaveowner in the American South just before the Civil War.

There are, to this American's taste, too many British diarists here and too few Americans. I would have loved to have read a U.S. senator or cabinet member's personal observations of some political dust-up, but alas, that is not here. So I read the book at least partly as a window into British civilization.

For a compulsive reader or diary-phile, I can't imagine a better day book to accompany you through a year. To take 10 minutes out of the day and read the wonderful (really--I wondered at some of the things that people would write in the diaries) selection of entries for the day will provide you with a refreshing start, bookend, or break for your day (your choice). Even the potted biographies of the diarists (found at the back of the book) are delightful.

The authors have provided some lovely groupings of entries. January starts off with three entries from Mahler's lover, stretched over three successive days, that made me laugh. More complex emotionally is the chain at the end of January: two different diarists record the death and funeral services of George V of England in 1936, along with the assencsion of Edward III. A few days later is a recollection of meetings between Charlie Chaplin and Edward III (now the Duke of Windsor after renouncing his crown for Wallis Simpson) in the middle of World War II. Towards the end of January, in the 1930's, Count Ciano records the advice he gives Mussolini--on the same day, but in 1943, a nurse records the arrival of refugee children evacuated from Italy.

Some small errors in the bios at the back that I noticed: Goebbels kept his diary right until 1945 (not just until 1941); Delacroix did start his diary at 24 but dropped it after 2 years and did not resume it until he was 50 (the bio suggests that he kept his diary continuously); Pepy's diary wasn't kept in code but written in shorthand (a contemporaneous book describing the system Pepys used has been discovered)--but these are hardly the point with this delightful book. On the other hand, I didn't think that Woodeforde's diary revealed author to be a glutton (as the editors suggest) but I may not have read between the lines sufficiently.

I found this book on the remaindered shelf of my local bookstore (a crime!) but it even made the price right for me: $7.00 Canadian.

Wonderful book.

January 1, 2003: Bought this collection of diary and journal entries based on a review that said it would be a great book to leave in the guest bedroom for visitors. Have resolved to read a day's worth of entries each morning, and finish the book in one year.

February 16, 2003: Have discovered that this book is much more conveniently placed in the bathroom, where I am sure to spend five minutes each morning, rather than the guest bedroom.

April 13, 2003: What a remarkable collection of fascinating historical figures! The featured diarists are carefully chosen, as are the selected entries. Together they span four centuries and at least as many continents.

June 1, 2003: Have started to develop personal favorites among the many diarists. Pepys, for his unrepentant lasciviousness. Chips Channon, for his loveable pretentiousness. Kafka, for being Kafka. Warhol, for being Warhol. Coppola, for her intriguing insights into the life of her film-making husband. Woolf, for her introspective moodiness. Gide, for his sarcasm and arrogance.

July 5, 2003: Have become utterly addicted to my morning routine with this book, and have now started reading ahead.

July 29, 2003: Have only two minor complaints so far. One is that the diarists are predominantly British - perhaps a more diverse selection would have been better. The second is that there is a disproportionate number of entries during the WWII time period. Without doubt a fascinating and important time, historically, so I guess this is understandable.

August 7, 2003: Finished the collection, almost five months early. Will now return this book to my guest room, where friends and family will be sure to enjoy it for years to come.

Fascinating stuff. The book progresses through each day of the 366 (leap year, too) calendar days. Excerpts from all the diaries are organized in chronological order (from earliest year to most current year) within each day.

The earliest you get is from the 1600s (usually Samuel Pepys) on up through Alec Guiness and others in the mid 1990s. The excerpts vary from only one phrase to about a page. The stuff from the 1660s is rendered with its own peculiar spelling and grammar. You really get an amazing sense of our shared humanity across the ages.

I deemed its only overall flaw to be a preponderance of British entries and World War II entries. Plus, two entries I wished I hadn't read: the artist Delacroix blandly witnessing the mistreatment of a horse, and some English guy shooting a heron.

The excerpts from Jewish diarists right before the Holocaust were chilling.

There were diarists who became my favorites:
Eleanor Coppola (a shy woman in a high-profile world);
Virginia Woolf (wonderfully perceptive about herself and her social class);
Noel Coward (often hilarious);
Alan Bennett (gentle irony);
Evelyn Waugh and H.L. Mencken (both funny like Coward but even more acerbic);
Andy Warhol (so banal); and
Katherine Mansfield (haunting).

There were other diarists I grew to dislike:
Goebbels (fanatically anti-Semetic);
Brothers Goncourt (misogynistic);
Alan Clark (also misogynistic);
Marie Bashkirtseff and Liane de Pougy (twits);
and Leo Tolstoy and Franz Kafka (both morbid and difficult).

Overall, a varied and fascinating window on the world of journal-keeping.

What a surprisingly marvellous anthology. I was initially put off by the arrangement - with wildly disparate entries for each day of the month, at first this seemed more like a novelty book than a serious exploration of diarists and their work. Yet I've found this eclectic approach to be absolutely perfect, not least because the entries for each day have been so thoughtfully selected: some amplify the themes of the others, while some offer instead a comic or tragic counterpoint. Indeed, comedy is one of the hallmarks of this edition: diaries are always "bitchy", to some extent - as the title suggests, the diary is like an assassin's cloak we wear while stabbing comrades in the back with a pen - and the dark, neurotic humour so typical of the diarist is here in spades. The Taylors have also been kind enough to package their selections with an insightful introductory essay, thumbnail biographies of all their sources, along with full bibliographical references and a comprehensive index by diarist. The only thing missing is an index by subject - but that would probably be bigger than the volume itself. This is a brilliant, must-have anthology for anyone interested in literature, social history, and the art of the diary.