U Books

The Backbone of the World is a collection of random vignettes recording the author's experiences along America's continental divide. From the boot heel of New Mexico to Canada's Alberta province, Frank Clifford finds no shortage of eccentric, hardscrabble westerners with which to commune. Although ostensibly exploring the newly commissioned (and largely conterminous) Continental Divide Trail, the author actually spends little time on it. He prefers to alight sporadically in places collateral to the divide - the story becoming less reminiscent of a "backbone" and more of a vertebra here and a vertebra there.

And there's a larger problem with this appellation, as well. One assumes that Clifford derives "The Backbone of the World" from the Blackfeet name for an area in Glacier National Park, yet, in socio-geologic terms, it seems overly hopeful to apply it to the continental divide as a whole. The world is a big place and Clifford singularly fails to defend the distinction. Indeed, he completely ignores it. Why such a lofty claim when the author's protagonists are so quintessentially local (so local, in fact, that they inhabit only the eastern front)? In the absense of an answer, the reader is forced to conclude that Clifford has bestowed the honorific merely because it sounds good.

Lest I criticize too harshly however, the book's subtitle is right on the money. Frank Clifford meaningfully portrays a vanishing way of life. He has filled his book with people of extraordinary character from which he extracts stories disarmingly genuine. In fact, it is this talent that saves the effort from becoming a run-of-the-mill travel book and compels me to award it 4 stars. The Backbone of the World is recommendable, if somewhat arbitrarily constructed. For a more immersive experience regarding life along the divide, I recommend Leaning on the Wind by Sid Marty.

Clifford writes with too much evenhandedness and too little anger to suit me about what's happening to The West. Even so, there's no doubt that he cares deeply about what's being lost. This book ought to be required reading for anyone who crosses the state lines of NM, CO, WY, ID or MT.

I don't give 5 stars and it's not about me so I seldom toss my twopence in but, this is well-written and easily worth the used price listed. You can get the drift from the other reviews. Fine book, Mr. Clifford! thank you.

I am normally not a non-fiction reader, but this book caught my eye in the bookstore and I'm still recalling stories from it almost one year later!

The stories are told from such a raw human perspective, it's hard not to empathize with each of them. I live in the Rocky Mountains (not far from the Divide) and think about the issues related to life up there frequently as I view it through my windshield every day on my drive to and from work. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in knowing more about the history and present-day issues faced by people along the Divide.

Anyone interested in reading about the glamorized West - artist retreats in Santa Fe, Denver socialites, ski resorts in million-dollar-home settings - will probably be disappointed in this book. Frank Clifford instead takes the reader to isolated outposts where people are just barely surviving: a sheep rancher north of Vail who lives in a ramshackle trailer; one of the last residents of Jeffrey City, WY, who is sick from years of working in the now-closed uranium mines and is too poor to see a doctor; a park ranger in Yellowstone hellbent on stopping illegal hunting practices along the park's isolated boundary; a trapper in New Mexico who sometimes goes six months without human contact; a Canadian environmentalist fighting a losing battle against gas and timber companies; a group of Blackfeet Indians trying to maintain ties to their ancient culture on their reservation near Glacier NP; a ranch family in southern New Mexico frightened of the drugs and violence along the border.

A few things unite most of Clifford's subjects: a fierce independence; a hatred for governmental interference, especially when it interferes with their livelihoods; and a similar disdain for "outsiders" who they feel look down upon them as inferior people, hicks, and want to impose restrictions on how they can and should use the land (i.e. environmentalists). Clifford, who is a journalist from California, must be commended for not taking a position for or against his subjects (he realizes both sides have valid arguments) and for becoming one of them, even if it's only for a short time (he rides horses with his subjects, helps them with their cattle and sheep, etc.). The book will definitely take the wind out of the sails of anyone who pictures the West as merely a drop-dead beautiful mountain backdrop to be enjoyed while sipping red wine on a dude ranch porch. This is the real deal, the other-side-of-the-tracks picture where people count pennies to survive the year and every cow or sheep lost to a grizzly bear or coyote means they go a little bit deeper into debt. It's an eye-opening book - one of the best on the West of today that I've come across. Highly recommended.

I am very happy with this book. It combines a lot of Service's greatest poems with great Photos of the land and people he wrote about. It is a lovely book that you can be proud to have in your collection.

I love Robert Service's raw tones and poems. He tells them with a grit that is true to heart and really just gives you a feel for what is going on and what it was like to be in the real wilderness days. I have heard he described as crude and if that's how you want to view it...go ahead but these poems aren't crude...they tell the true spirit of the classic days with great detail and life.

I first stumbled upon Robert W. Service when I found a small volume of his poetry from before and during World War One in an antique shop in Maine. I hungered for more, searched the internet, and was thrilled to find this book available, as well as others. Service's poetry is what poetry should be, at least in my mind. It flows evenly, it rhymes, it tells stories about human beings' lives, feelings, and struggles. Plus, he deals with people, places, and times in history that interest me, especially World War One, northern North America, Europe, etc. This is an excellent, excellent collection of his works.

Robert Service, if anyone, could be called "the grandfather of cowboy poets." This has been a popular genre over the past few years and much of the work done by these wonderful men and women can be traced back to Service's poems and style. Being called the "Bard of the Yukon" is certainly true, but sells this particular writer short. His works include so much more that just the delightful poems of the Canadian Territory. Simply written, with a story, they are quite a delight for both old and young alike. I recent years, some of our elitist in our academic world have been less than kind to this poet. This is all well and good with me. They simply don't get it. Service's work will quite likely endure far longer than some of the ranting I read in the professional journals. I read these poems to young folks in my classes, and they seldom fail to delight and indeed, inspire. It is difficult to go wrong with this one. Highly recommend.

I bought this book and another for my father. He was on the USS Enterprise during his time in the navy and has recently started reading old war books. Great price and arrived very quickly. My dad was happily surprised when he opened this gift. I don't expect he'll ever read the whole book but he's read bits and pieces of it since Christmas.

This is one of the best books ever wrote on WWII. I wish it could have gone more into the actual deck operations but you cannot really fault the auther. What astonishes me most is the number of times pilots understood that they had no fuel and would have to ditch into the ocean but still pushed on watching there friends and squadron mates go down in battle. I recommend to everyone.

Two sections in this book stand out in my mind. One was the section talking about the crew as they enter Pearl Harbor immediately after the attack. You could feel the emotions as you read about them and you could imagine how they felt as they saw the destruction. The other is the ending. It was almost as if the author were writing about the death of a person instead of a ship.

This is a very well writen book about a very important ship in our history. There are not too many ships that have the record of the Enterprise and there probably will not be too many more like her. The book reads like a novel instead of a historical book and it breathes life into the ship and her valiant crew.

If you enjoy WW2 History. Specifically US Navy genre, it can't get any better than a book about a ship whose name will live forever(and deservedly so). Got an old 2nd hand book years ago and it remains my prized book.

I absolutely adore this book, and am on at least the third copy I've owned, having worn the others out.

CDR Staffor has written an absolutely magnificient tome. He covers both the scope of the War in the Pacific, and the exploits of the Enterprise herself very thoroghly and in incredible detail.

I've always been interested in the Enterprise, especially considering that my dad was a pilot in the last Air Group ever assigned to the ship.

Her story is the story of the pacific, and the coming of age years of naval aviation. The early giants of naval aviation commanded her, and the greats of this horrible war flew from her decks, and helped to build her legend.

This book is one of the pillars that must be read in order to develop a thorough understanding and appreciation of the war in the Pacific.

It's just a great shame that the campaign to save her from the scrapper's torch failed. It's ironic that the ship that the enemy could never destroy ended up losing her life to a torch a few hundred miles from her birth place.

I finished "The Brave" this weekend; I closed the book with a tear in my eye and a lump on my throat. I was deeply moved by the story and it was sad to see a 20 year chapter of your life end on such a sour note with the inappropriate accusations from that Chief. The book did a wonderful job of revealing all of the different emotions, triumphs and defeats that you and many others were faced with on a day-to-day basis. It showed the deep compassion that the fire fighters have for those they could and could not save while enduring the jeers and lack of respect from the very people they were charged to protect.

I, and I am sure the public in general, was truly unaware of how little rest these men really get and how often they are hurt, only to rush back into the fight and be chastised at any point when they failed to be absolutely perfect. I can see where you, the fire fighters would truly be a "Band of Brothers".

"The Brave" would make an excellent movie; in fact you could make a movie out 1/3 rd of the material in the book.

Thanks for enlightening me,

Joey Lee

WOW!! The Brave is full of action from start to finish and would make a great movie! The Brave keeps your attention and makes it hard to set the book down. It gives a great picture to how challenging life is as a NYFD firefighter. The storey is compelling and truthful and I'm sure will be around for a long time. Congratulations to George Pickett on this GREAT book!

A page turning account of life as a New York City firefighter. A little slow at the start, but captivating and exciting by the second chapter. George Pickett does a great job of taking you along on the big red trucks, down the burning halls and into the mindset of the men, who New Yorkers call The Brave. Not only a great story but an important history lesson for anyone who wants a better tomorrow for us all. A Great read! 5 Stars!!! Thanks George!!

Few books have captivated my attention as much as George Pickett's "The Brave: A Story of New York City Firefighters". Both as a native New Yorker growing up in the 60's and 70's in the Bronx, and a volunteer firefighter in Westchester County, NY, I can rerlate to the many references in this action packed book.
Pickett brings the reader into every fire call, every dark smokey hallway and heat searing room. The reader is there, holding the irons, the nozzle or climbing the ladder.
Above all the book is truthful. Clearly, the author;s integrity and honest is eveident during each story-both the flattering and humiliating. George Pickett should be proud of his career, family and work on the compelling effort to document the life of a New York City Firefighter. Bravo!!!
-Michael J. Deegan

The Brave takes you right into the Heart of Firefighting in 70's New York. As a fellow Firefighter who loves to put pen to paper I am always keen to read the experiences of other Firefighters in this vastly underrepresented market.

Every book shelf these days seems to be full of Celebrities, Politicians, Soldiers or sports personalities telling us their stories. It make a refreshing change when a Firefighter, Medic or Policemen puts pen to paper, these people are fighting a never ending war every day on the Streets of our Countries.

The Brave tells the story of Life in a Firehouse on the Lower East Side of New York City in the 1970's, a period now remembered by the Veterans of those days as 'The War Years'. Recession, social unrest, poverty and crime were the catalyst for may Fires in many run down cities in the World. Very Few Cites saw the Fires that New York saw in that period and fewer Still Firemen saw the Fire Duty that the Men of the FDNY saw at this time.

George Pickett has an ability to drag the reader down the stinking burning hallways of the tenements. You can feel the heat searing your skin and the smoke choking your lungs. Time and again you follow page after page wondering will the heroes of the FDNY reach the victim before the room erupts all around them, more often than not they do...frequently with seconds to spare.

I finished this book in 24 hours, such was the draw of the story unfolding before me. I found every possible excuse to pick the book up and start reading again. If action is what you want then give the jungles of South America or the Desert of the Middle East a rest..opt instead for the action in the Blazing sweatshops, tenements and flop houses of New York City in the 70's.

Whether you like President Bush or not, you should read this book. It paints a disturbing picture of the realities of his administration. And it educates the reader how our political process has gone astray. This is another example of the fact that the best non-fiction books rarely make the top seller's lists because mainstream publishers are politically motivated.

This book contains enough history about each candidate to make anyone feel confident with their vote. And, unlike almost any other political book I've read, it is suprisingly non-partisan. Furthermore, it really opens you eyes on the political fund raising system and what the candidates actually have to do before the become president.

After reading this book, it will become much easier to see through the candidates rhetoric, and this book or one like it should be a pre-requisite before voting.

A disturbing book.

It is a terrible thing to contemplate what money has done to prostitute the American political process. People don't support candidates to do better for the country. They're buying influence and -- if you don't pay, you can't play.

The saddest thing is to look at these obscene expenditures on campaigns and consider what some of that money could do in a good way. And then to consider what more all the money that will be stolen as a result could do on top of that.

This book is THE benchmark for investigative journalism done by the people at www.publicintegrity.org. An honest, fair and balanced presentation of the facts surrounding the Democratic candidates for President 2004 (which has since been whitled down to Kerry) and President Gearge W. Bush. You simply cannot say you are an informed voter until you read this book.

Let me start by saying I do not want George W. Bush re-elected, and I don't have any interest in John Kerry running the White House for the next four years either. I left myself open to have my opinions on American government influenced by this book, but I could never have imagined the magnitude in which this book changed my beliefs of our political process. It's no secret to anyone that money rules each and every major player in our political system. But what this book does is demonstrate just how out of control it's gotten. Author Charles Lewis uses indisputable facts and figures to show the shortcomings each of this year's presidential candidates, especially each candidate's willingness to let money and particular groups dictate the policy he feels is best suited to run the country. He hammers Bush in a bad way, but nothing he says can be considered untrue. Lewis uses the Freedom of Information Act to compile a body of evidence that implicates Bush in a dozen shady financial undertakings and also describes the way in which many of Bush's closest advisers landed high-level positions in government. You simply cannot fathom the number of Bush's advisers who were once employees or board members in companies (pharmaceutical, energy, law firms, etc.) that make up Bush's chief campaign donors. That is, at least until you read this book and Lewis starts listing them one after another. Lewis and the Center of Public Integrity maintained their own integrity by taking a completely non-partisan approach to this book, unafraid to tackle Bush and Democratic challengers alike. I cannot wait until 2008 to see what Lewis uncovers next. Hopefully, Bush and his cronies (or Kerry, for that matter) won't further gut our rights as Americans and refuse us the right to read it -- and Lewis' right to write it.

I gave this book as a gift to a friend who is well versed with Williamsburg and he thought the desription of the period was excellent.

mostly due to the archaic language of the source material but the payoff is immense.

This survey of the literature shows how the seemingly contradictory theories of mixed government and republicanism were synthesized by our founders to form our representative system of government.

If you read this the next time someone tells you what our founding fathers intentions were you'll know exactly how accurate they're being.

This is a wonderful book that any student of the American Revolution should read. Gordon Wood does a great job of highlighting the fact the our founding fathers were brilliant scholars and historians. I also love how they are placed in the context of the Enlightenment and the Glorious Revolution and how their knowledge of these events shaped American history. Gordon Wood is brilliant, as are our founding fathers. Gentle warning though, this book doesn't have that great of a rhetoric style to it and is rammed full of details, so expect reading it to put you to sleep after a while.

I agree with the observations of all of your other reviewers, though I read this book in graduate school and didn't have trouble staying awake. I think R. Albin of Michigan comes closest to the gist of Wood's central thesis, but I would like to elaborate. The Founding Fathers were steeped in 18th century hierarchical society and resented the inherited privilege of Europe's aristocracy because they believed themselves to be the equal of the gentlemen who ruled England. A hallmark of such a society was a requirement that the elite assume the reins of government and exercise power for the benefit of everyone in society. They were required to act "Virtuously" in 18th century parlance. They did not really intend to change this hierarchy with the Revolution and they fully expected that the common men they mobilized as their ground forces would govern the country virtuously. The common man certainly being capable of governing his own affairs, Adams, Madison and the others found that the rustics who controlled the state legislatures during the Revolution and after had no inclination to govern for the larger society. They pursued their own interests and gave little thought to the greater issues at hand, such as the need for organizing a national government and integrating the economy. Because of that sour experience with "direct" democracy, the Founders created a constitution, based on what they saw as the structure of "checks and balances" implicit in the English constitution, that they hoped would restrain the common man and his lack of virtue. Wood's book is the history of their transition through, and adaptation of, highly sophisticated political theories to arrive at that result. Because of their superior understanding of politics and how to control the forces they unleashed, the US passed through its revolutionary era without the full-blown civil war that plagued both the French and Russian Revolutions.

Gordon S. Wood is one of the deans of the so-called "intellectual historians" of the Revolutionary era. I just finished reading this book for the third time in the last 15 years, and I am struck by the sweeping nature of it. Wood's thesis is essentially that Americans' thinking about government and politics underwent a remarkable change in the 11 years between the writing of the Declaration of Independence and the framing of the Constitution. In short, through a series of piecemeal changes during this brief period, Americans largely put together a new mode of political thinking. The key to Wood's argument seems to be his discussion of the changes that occurred in the locus of sovereignty, and the separation of political from social authority. "The people" play the key role here. They went from traditionally being "embodied" in one branch of the gov't (the House of Commons in England, for example), to being the source of all governmental authority. This change brought with it changes in the understanding of representation and of separation of powers, and made possible Americans' unique concept of federalism, and the development of an "American science of politics". Wood uses a dazzling array of sources to support his arguments, and in doing so, shows how many hands and brains were involved in this work. The book is long and the general reader may find it a bit difficult, but anyone interested in the development of American political thought cannot neglect it.

Dr. Kernan's four years overseas, which encompasses the full length of the War in the Pacific during 1941-45 is an autobiographical treasure that is as true a war story as any can be. This book takes us not on a pleasure cruise, but a voyage into a long-forgotten world of young, Depression-era ranchers and shoe clerks turned aviation ordinancemen and pilots. These we meet, however briefly, snaking up the stairs in a long line at the New Congress Hotel whorehouse in old Honolulu, in a below-decks poker game on a rusting, inflammable escort carrier, or seen for a fleeting moment, unconscious in the gaping seas as the result of a slight but deadly flight miscalculation, sinking beneath the waves, impossible to save, gone. Those voices of the past, their thoughts, fears and dreams, are recorded here with a painful honesty and without much sentiment for, as the author admits, he never really intended it for general publication at first. Those of us who appreciate history poured straight up will be forever in his debt that he changed his mind.

War, of course, is the antithesis of wonderful, and yet Alvin Kernan's memoir is so vividly and beautifully written that I wish to have been at his side during that time. The other reviews give a sense of Mr. Kernan's story, but I want to spend my praise on his writing: clear, direct, unadorned prose, which nevertheless conveys an absolute sense of place. If you want to learn to write well, you will read this book repeatedly. If you teach writing (not making up), consider Crossing The Line as a textbook.

Highest recommendation. You can order new copies online at Yalebooks.com.

. When you think of an east coast university professor who specializes in the humanities--Shakespearean literature, in this case--you probably won't be visualizing someone who started adulthood by engaging in vicious aerial gunnery duels with Japanese fighters and otherwise living the stressful, profane, hazardous life of an enlisted sailor on three World War II aircraft carriers, one of which was sunk while he was aboard. Such is the case, though, with retired Yale professor Alvin B. Kernan, author of "Crossing the Line," one of the most interesting and often gripping sagas of navy life that I've read.
. The book came as a surprise to me, on two counts. One, I knew that Kernan had been an aviation ordnanceman on the USS Enterprise during the Battle of Midway, and later an aerial gunner. But I had very little notion of the depth of his wartime experiences, not only as an aircrewman but also in escaping the sinking of the USS Hornet in the Guadalcanal battles and in a harrowing deployment aboard the escort carrier USS Suwanee (CVE-27). Suffice to say in this short review that Kernan earned a Navy Cross, a DFC, and five air medals from inside the turret of a TBF Avenger!
. And two, I had previously read Kernan's fictitious account of the Battle of Midway, "Love and Glory," which I thought was interesting but flawed in a number of regards (see my review on Amazon). For that reason, I was a little dubious about reading "Crossing the Line." Would this be another "interesting but flawed" piece of work that would cause me to keep my red pen handy while I read it? No. Crossing the Line is simply outstanding. Anyone with an interest in WWII naval air action will also want to read this book. I highly recommend it. Yes, there are a couple of minor nits that a very knowledgeable historian might want to pick, but they are so insignificant as to be unworthy of mentioning here. "Crossing the Line" will not disappoint you. In fact, you'll probably find it hard to put down.
. (Reviewed by R. W. Russell, Battle of Midway Roundtable, www.midway42.org)

Alvin Kernan has written one of the best books on WW2 I have ever read, and I've read a lot of them. His descriptions of his wartime experiences are crisp, vivid, and relevant.

If any of us are ever tempted to generalize in a negative way about sailors in the U.S. Navy, I suggest they read this book all the way to the end. What Kernan went on to do after the war is just as impressive as what he did while he served Uncle Sam.

Alvin Kernan was a 17-year-old from a poor family when he enlisted in the Navy in 1941. He was assigned to the carrier Enterprise and was aboard on Dec 7, 1941. He served aboard carriers most of the war, including a tour aboard the Hornet and he was aboard when she was sunk. He spent most of the time with the torpedo squadrons and gives a vivid account of the Battle of Midway. Most war histories are written by or about the leaders and it is unusual to find someone who was there for all the battles but who was seeing it all from the bottom up. After the war, he went to college on the GI Bill (as did I) and eventually ended his career as dean of the graduate school at Princeton. This is a vivid and knowledgeable account of the carrier war from one who was there and is a skilled writer. Anyone interested in the navy in World War II should read this book.

My son had this book in class and would read it all the time, so we bought him a copy to have at home.

I bought this book for use with my primary students with Autism. We use the book to facilitate a commenting activity, where my students put together picture symbols on a sentence strip, like "I see dog!" My students love the pop up animals, and the book is short enough to hold their limited attention spans. We have to be very careful when handling the book though, as the pop up components are very delicate. I have a thirteen month old son, and I am hesitant to purchase a copy for him because of that issue. Maybe when he is a little older... One cool thing about the book is that it leaves out the animal names, for example, the author writes, "So they sent me a.." and then you lift the flap to reveal a pop up frog, but it does not state the word frog. This serves my purposes well in the classroom, as I see that my students are not simply matching the words as they form their sentences, but they are picking the word that matches the picture -- a higher level skill.

The pop-up version is good, but the original, lift-the-flap version is better, in my opinion. Dear Zoo is one of the best read-aloud stories I've come across. As a children's librarian, when I'm running around at the last minute looking for storytime books, I can always grab Dear Zoo. No matter what age group I've got, no matter how many times they've already heard the story, they always love Dear Zoo.

I bought this book on a friend's recommendation and it's great! The words are nice and simple, the pop up pages are neat and my son goes and picks this one off the shelf to "read". The only thing is that I make sure I'm there to help as he can get too eager and there would be nothing left to pop up before long.

This is a favorite in our family! My 10 month old son loves this book and we read it at least once a day. We have been reading it to him for several months and it is by far his favorite book out of all the books we read. He now lifts all the flaps on each page and knows what is under each flap. He loves the puppy at the end and pats his head. We also bought the "Dear Santa" book and have started reading that as well. I strongly recommend this book for children 7 months and up.

Marine officers are often required to read this book during The Basic School (the six month infantry-focused training all lieutenants undergo after OCS or the Naval Academy). I have read that some Army schools also list it as required reading. Swinton takes a simple issue, the defense of a small swatch of land during entrusted to a young officer, and uses dream sequences to illustrate shortcomings of various tactical approaches to the problem. The officer realizes via hindsight the solutions to each problem and the reader becomes engaged in a sort of Monday-morning quarterbacking of his methods. Just when you think you have the answer, Swinton tears your theory to pieces with the next report of failure. After reading all of the scenarios, one realizes that the answer was so simple and some basic but careful analysis would yield the answer. That is the heart and core of tactics. Making a quick decision with limited information but moderate knowledge in order to come up with a 90% solution. Not only is this book a must-read, it yields new lessons every time I go back to it. It's one of those books you buy and come back to every few years. Highly recommended for the military historian, NCO or junior officer.

A perfect primer for every small-unit leader and above. Learn guerilla tactics and how to counter them from the series mistakes in a series of dreams of another young Lt. The story is a fast-paced and entertaining story and provides lessons learned by real combat experience. Though the setting is the Anglo-Boer war, the lessons are universal and well thought out. An enjoyable primer on small unit leadership of counterinsurgency.

A timeless classic of Military instruction set forth in simple and fast reading manner. It is truly amazing how many principles never change. If you are an instructor make your students read it, if you are an NCO memorize it, if you have a new junior officer assigned to you tie him down with 100 mph tape and read it to him. Any individual who does not learn anything from this text should be reassigned to a position where they cannot influence or harm soldiers in the field.

Hypothetical Lt Backsight Forethought has 50 men and a mission to hold a drift in South African territory during the Boer War of 1899-1902, and he starts his mission fresh from officer training and being totally unaware of the realities of combat. In the first trial he gets beaten really bad but he analyzes his faults and learn from them. He also gets beaten in his second, third, fourth and fifth trial, every time making different mistakes which the enemy does not forgive. Finally, when he has a sixth chance to re-fight the battle he puts up a splendid performance making his opponent to pay dearly and holding the drift until friendly reinforcements arrive. It is a very enjoyable little book and although it was written a hundred years ago it is still very useful for anyone who wants to learn about the core of tactical prowess in infantry battle.

Swinton is a military professional with experience in the Boer War who wrote this famous short book based on a series of thoughts he had on how a infantry unit with only 50 men could defend a river crossing. A young Lieutenant has the role but you are given his perspective, the terrain features, the political situation, conflict with civilians and limits on your own military support. There is a brief history of the war with the "Dutch" and then your Lieutenant receives his assignment. With the use of maps, there are six scenarios of the Lieutenants approach to defending the crossing (drift). Each scenario is acted out and with each of the first five scenarios there are several lessons learned such as the effect of enfilading fire, the limitations of a simple trench, the use of the military crest versus being located on top of the hill, the effect the local sympathetic population may have on aiding guerrilla fighters, the effect of surprise, disguising your defense from view, proper posting of sentries and responsibilities, how to combat artillery, dealing with multiple directions of attack, using the terrain to advantage and on. As the Lieutenant in each scenario learns from his mistakes, he alters the outcome to his advantage but only incrementally. Only at the end and sixth scenario does he get it right but with realistic loss. The same map is introduced in each scenario with defense features matching the new defensive tactics. Fascinating book for all interested in basic infantry tactics, which has been used as a training manual for militaries world wide. This is a very readable book that can be read in less than 2 hours time. Applicable to any war but this book would be interesting to read with an account of Rappahannock Station, which was a spearhead position held by Confederates in advance of Lee's line on November 7, 1863 where Meade's forces overwhelmed the defenders and took almost 3,000 prisoners. Duffer's Drift would be very applicable here.

XXXXX

"I have collected in this book memories extending over fifty years...I am trying in this book to describe to people who are not scientists the way the human situation looks to somebody who is a scientist. Partly I shall be describing how science looks from the inside. Partly I shall be discussing the future of technology. Partly I shall be struggling with the ethical problems of war and peace, freedom and responsibility, hope and despair, as these are affected by science...

The methodology of this book is literary rather than analytical. For insight into human affairs I turn to stories and poems. [In fact, the title of this book comes from a poem by T.S. Eliot]...A substantial part of this book is autobiographical...It is not that I consider my own life particularly significant or interesting to anybody besides myself. I write about my own experiences because I do not know much about anyone else's...To understand the nature of science and its interaction with science, one must examine the individual scientist and how he confronts the world around him."

The above comes from the beginning of this fascinating book by theoretical physicist (encompassing pure mathematics, nuclear engineering, space technology, and astronomy), author, and professor of physics at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton University, Freeman Dyson (born 1923). He has also been awarded a number of distinguished prizes in science.

Dyson is involved in a field of pure science, but this book clearly shows that he is a man of conscience and compassion concerned with humanity's well being.

The first two parts of this book traces his years of growing up between two world wars and his early working years. Soon thereafter, while pursuing with great success--first with scientist Hans Bethe at Cornell University and then with scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer at Princeton University (and others such as scientists Richard Feynman and Edward Teller)--his own vocation of perceiving and describing the laws that run the universe, from sub-atomic particles to galaxies, he has also been continuously involved in the moral issues affecting all of us--from disarmament to the control of recombinant DNA research.

The third and last part is concerned with Dyson's "obsession with the future" and in fact, he tells the reader that "the future is my third home." It is (at least to me) an interesting section where we get to see a glimpse of the far future through the eyes of a prominent scientist.

Finally, there is only one problem I had with this book: it has no illustrations (diagrams, sketches, and pictures)! I think these would have enhanced the book's readability. (The original hardcover version of this book has a picture of Dyson on its back cover.)

In conclusion, this is a unique book that's beautifully written giving us a snapshot into the life and mind of one of the world's greatest thinkers!!

(first published 1979; author's preface; 3 parts or 24 chapters; main narrative 260 pages; bibliographical notes; index)

<>

XXXXX

"We are scientists second and human beings first. We become politically involved because knowledge implies responsibility." -Freeman Dyson-
This phrase struck me years ago when I read Dr. Dyson's book. Then, as a new graduate student in physics, I enjoyed the collection of poetry and personal thoughts, and the anecdotes of famous physicists whom I worshipped. Then, it inspired me to continue with my work. Now, with PhD in hand, I'm combing the country for a physics job and I find DISTURBING THE UNIVERSE to be an enormously comforting companion. Freeman Dyson is a complex and highly evolved man who pondered both physical law and the higher moralities binding those who wield this knowledge. I use this book as a roadmap, giving a context in which to think about research and life. I highly recommend this book.

Excelente libro, es sorprendente simpre deleitarse con las ideas y la forma magistral de Freeman Dyson, para contranos y aconsejarnos sobre ciencia y futuro

some reviewers say this book is a masterpiece,and the greatest book written by Freeman.Dyson, I really can't agree with them.
I read the book twice, I find it is an interesting book. Dyson is undoubted a successful scientist, this book ,I think it as autobiography of Dyson. of course, it is very interesting and full of stories. But just like other autobiographies, it is just a story book, not a masterpiece. for these resons, I give it four stars.
F.Dyson wrote some popular book, they are all excellent, but the greater work of Dyson is about scientific research, such as QED.
I also like his "infinite in all directions", because it give me a special viewpoint about science, society and universe.anyway, The book,and others by dyson is worth of reading.

I was first introduced to Freeman Dyson as a colleague and sometimes other half of Richard Feynman. I regret that during our brief meetings I never got to know him for being more than a physicist. Therefore, when I started reading this book I was expecting something akin to the biographical material on Feynman. Instead, I found not only a more richly multidimensional book, but a glimpse into the soul of a thinker for the ages and a new window into timeless issues that world news thrusts upon us every day. Dyson explores topics as diverse as his early work in physics, to his work in the nuclear disarmament programs of the Kennedy-Kruschev era, to the politics of the McCarthyist efforts against Oppenheimer, to his thoughts on what it means for a one-time Brit to become an American, to gedanken experiments about colonization of the universe. Beneath each of these topics lies a set of fundamental moral imperatives. This book is an inspiration for professionals to look beyond their profession, and beyond science, to grapple with the great human questions.

The open pages of Dyson's life, as recalled here, take the concept of "laws of nature" far beyond the realm of subatomic particle physics into the space of everyday social experience. This is a book about the development of social conscience, fueled by the ethical questions of nuclear weapons development. It is perhaps predictable that the book dwells on the questions of the morality of war, but the fresh perspectives and depth of thought on this topic kept me engaged. Reaching far beyond the role of science in war, the book extrapolates this discourse into the broader question of technology's role in a conscionable future of humanity. It is one of those uncommon writings from a "science" author that we dare call literature, both in terms of its rhetoric and in terms of its universality.

There is a small bit at the end where Dyson describes what I believe to be an overly ambitious attempt to create a unifying metaphysic of subatomic behavior and human psychology, that seemed out of character with the rest of his book. But I can forgive the author that small distraction in light. And even as strange as it is, it bounces around in my head and--as is true of many ideas from this book--has been the source of numerous thoughtful discussions with colleagues.