Peter Watt Books

This fifteen short story collection contains what if alternate history tales that will delight genre fans. Each tale takes a key scientific or technological element and changes when it occurred so that it either intersects at an earlier pivotal moment in history such as the Sumerians inventing the printing press in BC or never materialized such as Galileo fails to release his findings. The tales are all well written and the explanation of the REVISION point is fun to follow to ascertain whether the reader agrees with the author's logic. Intriguing are those with a modern aspect to include Tesla inventing a laser in the nineteenth century, Livingstone bringing AIDS out of Africa in the nineteenth century and the government pushing aquanauts over astronauts and banning the Internet. Mindful of the Marvel Comics What If series, this terrific collection will have the audience thinking of new ones such as what if an underpaid over paid book reviewer was given a guitar instead of Narnia?

Harriet Klausner

These are not your typical, predictable "what if someone went back in time and gave General Lee machine guns?" type of historical revision tales. Instead, they are based in real science, and speculate about how real, historical (or scientific) events could have changed the world if they happened in a just slightly (and realistically) different way. Brilliantly written, and very fun to read.

Unlike most alternate history anthologies, ReVisions consists of all new and original stories, a great change from the constantly re-hashed collections. All of the stories in ReVisions deal with some sort of technological, social, or anthropological change. There's everything from Nikola Tesla inventing the laser to the Sumerians creating the printing press, to what might have happened if dogs had never been domesticated or if Da Vinci's inventions had actually been put into effect.

The stories themselves, while creative and original, do not seem to have been edited as well as they might have been, keeping me from giving ReVisions a full five stars. It's a new release, and so you probably won't find it in used bookstores. That being said, I have no regrets about spending the full price to buy from Amazon.

The topics featured for diversion are best-suited for scientific and engineering types, but there are a few to satisfy those preferring socially-based or even anthropological stories.

If you're using IBM Netfinity or xSeries Servers, this is the only wisest choice. And if you're using Microsoft NT or 2000, it'll be the excellent one as your reference.

There are 10-50 IBM Netfinity Servers in my company and my job is to ensure them work normally, includes tuning and getting the most performance. If your job is to ensure your NT/2000 to work more smooth, you must try it and you'll get the most from it.

This is one of the good books for Test engineers and QA people or anybody who is trying to learn more about Performance Testing. It is a must buy for an IT professional who works on this kind of stuff.

What makes this book truly special, besides the fact that it is so easy to read and understand that people with little knowledge will find it accessible, is that this book goes in depth into the ins and outs of the hardware in Intel based systems without limiting itself to being marketing hype. Yes, the examples used are laced around the Netfinity, now rebranded xSeries, servers from IBM. However, people who work with Compaq or Dell or whitebox servers will also find this work useful, because SCSI is SCSI no matter whose box it is in, and the same is true of PCI, Intel Pentium CPUs, and all other industry standard hardware.

For the most part, all Intel servers will interact with software in the same basic ways. Since this is true, the performance tuning techniques listed in this book range beyond the Netfinity servers of the book's title. The same is also true of the application tuning information listed in the appendices.
There's a new version of this book expected out 4/02, and it will cover Linux and Netware, as well as Windows, and go into newer hardware that was unavailable, or not in use for IBM xSeries servers, at the time this first book was written. Buy it, you won't be disappointed, and you are bound to learn quite a bit, even if you are a seasoned pro!

I was really excited to buy this book because I had heard so much about it from friends and needless to say, I'm so glad I brought it for myself. It's very interesting and so so true. Now I know why I get certain reactions when I eat food that aren't right for my blood type. This book is a must have in my opinion.

If your goal is to read a book that will provide you with peer reviewed articles cited, scientific studies referred to, etc. before you try the diet then you should save your money because you will not find these things here. If all you do is read the book, and you want hard science, look elsewhere.

BUT, if you are willing to experiment with your diet based on anecdotal evidence only because you want to feel and look better than you have in years, buy this book.

In the past I have had trouble with weight and also a great deal of trouble with PMS. For years I have tried to find answers to the problem, but nothing ever did the trick. I would try to eat "healthy" foods, whole wheat homemade baked food, light meats like chicken, soy, lentil soups... things that I thought were good for me. What would happen is that I would feel so tired all the time and gain weight. Terrible! The times I gave up and ate red meat were the times I was my thinnest, but I never got rid of the PMS.

Recently my doctor said I should remove yeast from my diet entirely which meant a lot of foods had to be eliminated. Once again I did a lot of cooking - but because my diet was so restrictive I really noticed how certain foods made me feel. Anything with wheat in it made me feel just awful. I mentioned this to my doctor who then asked my blood type... and so I bought this book.

In two days I found my energy levels and mood to be enormously improved. In 4 days the rash I have always had on my upper arms went away and my arms are a smooth as a baby's behind! Overall, my skin is softer and just healthier looking. I sleep deeper and awaken feeling good. My mood is so stable, I am not irritated or blue half the time - I just feel GOOD. My concentration is better, I feel sharper. As to wieght loss, I feel like I am losing but it is only day 7.

Speaking of weight loss, many people speak about this as a diet book and talk about how much they have lost - but that isn't what this book is about. This is a lifestyle change, and I can tell you that if I can feel this good and yet remain my current weight I would still count myself as lucky. This type O will never miss wheat - or the other things I should not eat - and why would I? I do not remember the last time I felt this good. I don't pick up a hammer and start hitting my knee in spite of the pain, and I won't eat a bagel for the same reason.

Can't recommend this book enough - why not try it?

Having read this book, I keep referring to it over and over. Once you start thinking how your body asks for certain foods and others are intuitively not for you, the information in this book explains why and reinforces what you know about your body, helping you make better decisions about what is best for you.

Shortly after having my son in 1993, my health 'challenges' began to worsen. I've known since age 6 that I was allergic to milk when diagnosed by a doctor, but just had a feeling there was more. I had some allergy tests and all the doctor could tell me was the indoor/outdoor allergies I had and the one thing I already knew...dairy. Eventually body forced me to eliminate numerous foods that I had eaten for years. My body had enough.

One day I had been watching a morning show and saw Peter D'Adomo promoting Eat Right 4 Your Blood Type. I thought it sounded logical and decided to give it a try. As soon as I began reading from the very beginning. I found out how logical it was. I'll let you see for yourself. ;)

As I came upon my blood type and read all that I should/shouldn't have, the exercises, the personality of said blood type, etc; I was amazed. It hit me right on the heat. Everything I had recently eliminated from diet was what I shouldn't be eating. I began to implement the entire regimine for my type and never felt healthier my entire life and lost more than 60 pounds.

Do I recommend this book? I certainly recommend at least reading the introduction and forward. {:O) Everyone owes to their wellbeing. ;)

Eat Right 4 Your Type is a revolutionary work. The author recognizes our differences in heritage and blood type and then makes appropriate diet and exercise recommendations. He explains that people with each blood type process food and fight disease and stress differently, and therefore thrive on different diets. The premise is interesting and makes sense on an intuitive level since blood type is such a fundamental physiological distinction. For example, Type O's should eat more protein, less grains, and do aerobic exercise, Type A's should eat vegetarian, exercise less vigorously, and meditate, Type B's should eat a diverse diet, and exercise moderately, and Type AB's are a combination of A's and B's and should also do relaxation exercises.

The Contents include:
Introduction: The Work of Two Lives
Part I: Your Blood Type Identity
One: Blood Type: The Real Evolution Revolution
Two: Blood Code: The Blueprint of Blood Type
Three: The Blood Type Solution: A road Map
Part II: Your Blood Type Plan
Four: Blood Type O Plan
Five: Blood Type A Plan
Six: Blood Type B Plan
Seven: Blood Type AB Plan
Part III: Your Blood Type Health
Eight: Medical strategies: The Blood Type Connection
Nine: Blood Type: A Power Over Disease
Ten: Blood Type and Cancer: The Fight to Heal
Epilogue: A Wrinkle of Earth
Afterword: A Medical Breakthrough for the Ages
Appendix A: Blood Type Charts
Appendix B: Common Questions
Appendix C: Glossary of Terms
Appendix D: Notes on the Anthropology of Blood Type
Appendix E: The Blood Type Subgroups
Appendix F: Resources
Appendix G: References
Appendix H: Survey
Index

A classic - this book is an interesting and worthwhile read. I also recommend THE 3:00 PM SECRET: Live Slim and Strong, Live Your Dreamsas a companion book.

All I can say is that the book did not live up to my expectations. I have read a lot of science fiction, and the premise of the book sounded good. But the book was slow to get started, and frankly, failed to captivate my interest and keep me reading.

A great cast of characters, fascinating premise and obvious expertise with hard science somehow turns into a mess of a book.

If there were less going on it might actually be readable. As it stands there are at least three different books battling to get out.

I've read a lot of science fiction. Old, new, good, bad. I'm something of a snob. Trust me that this is absolutely one of the best. I finished this book overwhelmed, reeling. The mood, the pacing, the writing, the ideas: all top notch. Its in my top five of all time. If you have any interest in "hard" science fiction, just get it.

Dark, vivid, cold as ice, frighteningly brilliant - this is the book that's been lying in wait under my bed to ooze up and touch me in the middle of the night. Relentlessly intelligent, thoughtful, well-written SF such as this is truly a rarety - and Watts' scientific meticulousness makes the the story that much more chilling and real.

This is the first Watts book I've read, I haven't yet gotten hold of his Rifters trilogy - but I'm ordering that now.

With a central premise that is truly amazing, fiercely drawn characters, and aliens that are truly, utterly, alien (but completely plausible), this novel has been on my mind daily since completing it two months ago.

Reads like one of those "new wave" Sci-Fi novels of the 1960's which you suspected the author of was on drugs.
Later, you learned that they WERE on drugs.

This one makes little sense, and the story is a confused mess that leaves you wondering if a few chapters are missing, or you lost your place and missed the explanation for all this.

If you like hard science fiction where the author at least gives you some clues or actually understands reality, this one isn't for you.

This is the original Potter story. I prefer this illustrator to all that I have seen try to update the classic. I used this with Kindergartens to teach story grammar. It is still a winner with little kids to this day.

I bought this for some young friends of mine (3 and 4.5 yrs), knowing that it is a classic that they should know about and will enjoy--just as I did at their age.

The story of a young, gregarious and voracious rodent who can't stop himself from pigging out in a human's vegie garden. Lucky for him, he avoids the usual and deserved case of rabbits when they become pests, and no shotgun pellets for this little critter, as he finally wises up to himself a bit.

That is, until Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen 2, anyway.

Love all of Miss Potters stories! Currently in the process of purchasing all of her books. They make a great addtion to the library. The books are small but beautiful!

Enchanted by the images of the Movie "B. Potter" I liked to hold this little great book made for children of all ages and which contains words and drawings of a person and a world with much more pure feelings than this one we're living.The Tale of Peter Rabbit (The World of Beatrix Potter: Peter Rabbit)

I found this book to be well written. It was clear and presented in a logical order. The material was a very good complement to the material in the Microsoft Training kit. I learned additional test relevant material. Exam Crams are consistently one of my top three study resources, this was one of the best so far.

I used this book as my only resource for exam 70-217. Read the whole thing in about a week and passed. This is not as well written as Exam Cram for 70-210, and there are plenty of test questions that were more advanced than what's covered by the book. But I'm still grateful for this title as it got me passed the exam with less than a week's effort, so I can get back to work on real life instead of wasting my time on dreamed up MS scenarios that are completely twisted and seldom practiced by any IT organization. If you read all the materials and do every question, you will pass. As with other cram books, this title contains the bare minimum you need to pass, so if you skipped any sections or spaced out while reading some sections, you'll likely fail. If your goal is to learn Windows Directory Services or you're not already an MCSE for NT 4, you may be better off looking elsewhere.

While Coriolis does some excellent work with the COMPTIA exams, I found once again that their Exam Crams for MCSE were of little value for a exam.

The test questions at the end of each chapter were nothing like what you will see on the test. The content was OK, but not really presented in a way that easily explained key concepts (use MS Press books for this).

What I did find in this book and the related "Question of the Day" emails from Coriolis for this exam is information that is not really relavant to 70-217. I passed the exam, and the much of subject matter I read in this book in my opinion was not on the exam.

Buy the book if you like reading. Skip it for others if you want to be more effective with your time.

I don't normally write a review for a book but one of the reviews from a guy named Larry Dunn really hit a sore spot. He wrote the same review for all the books in the core pack and just posted it for all books. That indicates to me that he probably didn't read them, nor do I think he has the ability to read.

If you're looking for a book that covers all the subject matter for this exam and want to have key points highlighted and a strong practice test, then this is the book for you. That doesn't mean you shouldn't work with Windows 2000 Server and Active Directory. It doesn't mean you shouldn't go out and get additional testing materials. It doesn't mean you shouldn't surf the web for more help. It simply means that for a 400 page cram this is a great way to review those topics on the exam that you will encounter.

This was my 22nd exam that I've taken and I've used the Exam Prep/Exam Cram books for over half of them. I would say that this was one of the better ones that I've read. The book covered all the topics and gave procedures on how to do things for a couple of key concepts that you need to know. This is something that the other Exam Crams usually lack. I would highly recommend this book to someone who is already familiar with AD and Win2K.

This is the first version of the play. Beautiful writing, incredible fluidity of speech. A must have between Peter Pan and Samuel Beckett.

He writes like a comedian, waving his fist at your face, all while enthronging you to read on!

Peer Gynt is a sort of folk tale character who we see go from being a young man to an old man and who gets in several different adventures. The play doesn't have much of a plot exactly. It starts of in a Norwegian village where Peer is a buffoonish character. He leaves the village, meets up with Trolls, gets in a shipwreck, wanders around the desert, and runs into the button moulder. All of this just happens, disconnectedly. He spends time in America also, but we aren't shown that.

There is a lot of talk about being your self, being authentic, etc. If the play has a theme, I am guessing that's it.

It's completely different from Ibsen's realistic works like An Enemy of the People or The Wild Duck. I'm more a fan of those works. Peer Gynt didn't really speak to me.

On a side note, in the movie Educating Rita, with Michael Caine, Rita takes a test where one of the questions was 'What are some of the difficulties in staging Peer Gynt?' A: It's long. It's not in prose. It has trolls and other fantastical creatures. It has a huge cast many of whom are only on stage very briefly. The main character goes from being a youth to a very old man. The settings vary from a Norwegian village to Egypt and the Sphinx. This is why it's rarely done on stage.

Few works of literature have inspired classical music that has broke into the popular press. One of these is Ibsen's Peer Gynt. Written in the late 19th century, Edvard Grieg wrote two Suites of music for the stageplay version of this Scandinavian classic a decade later. This poem / stageplay is actually a short novel, and tells the story of Peer Gynt, the ultimate ingrate of a son. Growing up raised by a single mother, he is the terror of his village, bullying younger ones and annoying older ones. Eventually he leaves his village and encounters a series of creatures and adventures bound to rattle anyone's cage. One memorable moment is when he finds himself in the Hall of the Mountain King, who happens to be a troll. This is the scene whose song of the same name by Grieg is a classic TV commercial tune. Life soon turns the young Peer into an older Peer. Near the end he reflects on his life with some characters he encounters. At this he realizes the waste his life has been. The moral of the story: don't waste your youth or any other moment of your life causing trouble for yourself or anyone else, for in the end you only isolate yourself and make life miserable for both you and those around you.

Peer Gynt is a piece of literature that, like Goethe's Faust Part II plays best on the stage of the imagination. It is too lengthy and costly to be performed on stage. Sometimes the first three acts are performed together, sometimes the last two acts are brought together to become a whole for a theatre production.

In terms of reading, this is a great fable piece. Peer is the Trickster with the mirror to his conscience. As a youth, he is Troll-like in his lusts, in his carousing. In his middle-age, he is Troll-like in his financial enterprises. At the end of his life, he is a folorn man, having given up possible true love to run around in search of his self. He is a fraud but we feel sympathy for him. He pursues life in search of distractions and power but ends up empty at the end, soon to be the vicim of the Button Moulder, soon to be nothing more than a button.

This work has many levels and open to numerous interpretations. Ideally, this is the book you read for a book club. There is nothing conventional about it. The conversations will be endless and the philosophy inspired, well, might be inspiring.

According to Watts, this is one of those American split the book in two deals. Not having read the earlier two as yet, what I would characterise this as most like would be 'Revelation Ocean' rather than 'Revelation Space', with that everybody is out to get everybody type of feel with the Ultras.

You have here modified humans whose brains work differently, opposed to their wealthy creators, and crazy viruses, both organic and machine affecting everyone.

Interesting, though. Maybe a 3.75, because this is not yet finished, as two of the architects of the mess go back up to the ground to see if they can finish things off.

Before I can review the content of Peter Watts' "Behemoth: B-Max" there are two facts I need to mention. The first is that it represents the third book of a trilogy, and I would strongly recommend one tackle the first two volumes ("Starfish" and "Maelstrom") before reading this one. The second is that "Behemoth" should be one six hundred page book, but because of trends in the publishing industry it's being published as two separate volumes. The author is completely forthright about this fact, and I believe him when he says that this was not his preferred method of publication. Because of this approach, precious little is resolved in this first volume; so if you aren't a fan of cliff hangers, you might want to wait until "Behemoth: Seppuku" is published in late 2004/early 2005 to read this volume.

For those of you who are new to the series, here is a brief synopsis that should tell you whether or not these books are for you. Essentially, the story arc is about evolution: human, animal and electronic. By mixing a blend of biology, computer science and chaos theory, Watts has created a near future Earth where man is simultaneously at the height of his powers and walking the knife's edge of total ecological failure. In an effort to maintain the high standard of Western living mankind has turned to deep sea geothermal power to meet their energy needs. Miles below the ocean, specially engineered humans culled from the dregs of society maintain these power plants. However, what no one could have expected was that they would encounter an organism that would unleash an apocalypse. Part hard science-fiction, part post-apocalyptic, the first two books represent a genuinely original voice in the genre.

All that said, "Behemoth" represents another superb piece of writing by Watts; it contains all the tension and fascinating science of the earlier volumes, but also displays his increasing talent. The structure of the book is more sophisticated and subtle than the previous volumes, and I say this not to criticize the earlier books, but to highlight the strengths of this one.

Set five years after the events of "Maelstrom", "Behemoth" finds the remaining rifters and the surviving North American elite living in an uneasy truce on the floor of the Atlantic. Presumably safe from the disease that is ravaging the rest of the world, they have managed to come to an accommodation that allows everyone to live and let live. Foremost among the rifters are Lubin, the one time spy, and Lenie Clarke, the Meltdown Madonna herself. Opposite them is Patricia Rowan, their one time nemesis and sometime ally. Alone, they might have formed a shifting but stable triangle; however, their constituents, particularly the more militant rifters, force a situation that is never far from open warfare. This dichotomy is beautifully executed by Watts, and represents a shift in his approach. Where much of the tension in the prior two books was environmental, in "Behemoth" he has created a human drama that surpasses its astonishing location.

In contrast from the fragile existence on the ocean floor, the reader is presented with the contrast of Achilles Desjardins, the human god who fights chaos for the CSIRA. While occupying perhaps only a third of the book, these chapters are the most powerful. Consisting only of Achilles' thoughts, history and worldview, they paint a comprehensive portrait of one of the most powerful men on Earth. Perhaps most remarkable is that Watts makes him despicable and sympathetic at the same time, all while keeping him something of an enigma.

Given the fact that this is the third book of a trilogy, and further given the split nature of the title, any more attempts at a plot summary would risk grave spoilers. Simply put, it is science fiction as it should be written. Watts uses his setting as a means to consider our slow suicide as a species in the form of ecological decay, and the complex, and ultimately unknowable workings of the mind. He separates himself from much of what is on the market by injecting humanity and pathos into his writing; his world, no matter how brilliantly conceived and executed, is a means to a greater end. This stands in stark contrast to other "hard" SF novels which exist solely to cram technical information into a fictional setting while ignoring such fundamentals as plot and characterization.

What is perhaps most engaging about Watts' books is that he has made the mundane unique and terrifying. No one gives much though to the web as an environment, but he sees an electronic landscape filled with predators and prey. Most of us think of the ocean as the beach, but Watts reveals a world every bit as alien as the surface of another planet. Finally, his attention to detail is superb, without being overwhelming. Watts' world is replete with history, but much of it is only alluded to; this creates a world that is weighed down by history, and a novel that isn't. An excellent example of this detail is his web site. I can't post the URL here, but a simple web search will turn it up. There one can find mountains of what one might call "side-story" it doesn't fill in any gaps per se, but it does further flesh out the Earth of the 2050's.

If you're a fan, a probably have said more than I needed to to sell you on this book. However, if you are new to the series, I hope I have managed to pass on the incredible originality and superb writing Watts has to offer. This is a trilogy that is unique in my experience, and "Behemoth" represents the best contribution thus far. This is definitely not one to be missed.

Enjoy!

Jake Mohlman

If _Maelstrom_ showed how the world ended, in _Behemoth: Book One: B-Max_, the reader gets to see what life is like after it is all over, at least among some of the survivors.

For the most part, the world of the _Starfish_ novels (the _Rifters_ trilogy, though technically the third book had to be split into two books for publishing reasons) has shrunk to a single location for this novel, a community established at the end of _Maelstrom_ (if community is the word one would use), a sometimes-friends, more-often-enemies collection of rifters and corpses located at the bottom of the mid-Atlantic Ocean. The corpses in desperation had established an underwater city that they hoped was going to make them not only safe from Behemoth (though they also had medical fixes to make themselves immune to Behemoth) but also any reprisals by a spastic, presumably dying world that was lashing out at both old foes and those presumed to be responsible for the world-ending plague. The rifters, lead by Lenie Clarke and Ken Lubin, found the corpses, at first with thoughts to exact revenge, but instead gradually were forced to work together by various circumstances, chief among them the facts that they were isolated from the rest of the world and were unsure who outside their underwater domain was left alive (and afraid to go looking thanks to the both incredibly hostile electronic lifeforms called Lenies and also a real fear of reprisals from nations and powers outside of North America).

Much of the action centers on the swirling politics of the Mid Atlantic Ridge community, largely from the point of view of the rifters, though there was a thread on the spiraling descent into completely amoral evil of the enormously powerful Achilles Desjardins. Readers from _Maelstrom_ will recall that not only is he free from Guilt Trip he is free from guilt of any kind, yet he still possesses the incredible powers of a `lawbreaker, needed now more than ever (and the powers that be are still completely unaware of his changed mental status). Though they weren't too graphic, I will say the chapters exploring the mind of Desjardins were pretty intense and somewhat disturbing, though some of it was a building sick dread, based on information the author gave to the reader bit by bit, and part of it was my imagination of what happened next after the book's focus switched back to the rifters and corpses.

I didn't think the book was quite a strong as either _Starfish_ or _Maelstrom_ and some of the stridently one-note political attitudes of some of the rifters got tiring and too much time spent at the underwater city made the setting feel a bit claustrophobic (though it did really help drive home themes of the rifters' and corpses' isolation and the destruction of the world). I also felt Watts could have developed some of the corpses a bit more, though as the books are really about the rifters that is understandable. Still, a good book and it held my interest. I am reading book two of _Behemoth_ at the moment and am enjoying it greatly.

Not only was this book believable and its characters eerily recognizable, in regards to such tense people in our own reality, but it compliments virtually every other sci-fi available, from the space operas like "Starship Troopers", "2001", "2010", "Rendezvous with Rama", "Advent of the Corps", but incorporates the high tech level of cyberpunk like "Neuromancer", "Prey", "Snow Crash", "Cyber Hunter", and many more. Great read!

Five years have passed since a vengeful cyborg Lenie Clarke released Behemoth on the world destroying everything in it path as the microbe is eating up matter. Digital monsters add to the pandemic devastation using Clarke as a rallying cry to devastate survivors through what is left of the Internet. Meltdown Madonna cults dedicated to Clarke pledge mass suicide as they rule alongside deadly war lords on the surface.

However, on the ocean floor, Lenie Clarke has learned the truth that her grudge was built on a false premise. As the altered rifters and the technoindustrial corporate executives hide in fear in Atlantis on the ocean floor of the Midatlantic Ridge, the grim reaper comes for them. Only Lenie Clarke can save the few, but first she must face the consequences of what she wrought for she knows she can never achieve salvation as she can not wash the blood from her hands even with water everywhere.

As with STARFISH and MAELSTROM, BEHEMOTH: B-MAX is an ultra dark and gritty action-packed thriller yet the tale as with the first two books is character driven especially by Lenie. The story line moves forward at a current faster than most science fiction novels, but contains irony throughout as Lenie learns the truth and like Lady Macbeth cannot simply wash the blood from her hands. Though B-Max is book one of a two book conclusion , this is a well written gripping entry, but fans of post apocalypse thrillers would be better served by waiting a few months for the release of the climatic novel and then read all four books in succession.

Harriet Klausner

Peter Clarke's book on Tigran Petrosian is the indispensable counterpart to his classic volume on Mikhail Tal. Tal and Petrosian could not have been more dissimilar, yet Clarke treats each subject with equal mastery. Tigran Petrosian was at first a modest amateur player who, nevertheless, believed that ultimately he had a field marshal's baton in his knapsack - and he set out to prove it. Not for him the sudden and dramatic storming of the highest chess bastions - Petrosian gradually moved up the ranks, perfecting his ultra strategic style and focussing on the elimination of loss, rather than victory at all costs. This softly-softly approach brought Petrosian the world crown and enabled him to retain it for six years, thus outperforming Smyslov, Tal, Spassky and Fischer. The games in this book, which bring us to Petrosian's successful match against Botvinnik, demonstrate an ethereal beauty of which few other champions were capable.
Peter Clarke won numerous silver medals in the British Championships, he represented England in the World Championship cycle and he played top board for England in the Chess Olympiad at Havana 1966. He is a fluent Russian reader and his notes access the very best of contemporary Soviet commentary.

An interesting volume of annotated chess games of an American chess genius who sadly died shortly after an attempted suicide. Nevertheless the book deals with a great chess player who played some fine games in his all too brief career. Published by Hardinge and Simpole.

lets get the problems out of the way first-the notes to these games are very light and being a reprint of a book from the 1920's the notation is descriptive and the typeface and diagrams look antiquated.

however this remains the best record there is of harry nelson pillsbury an american chess genius in the same mould as morphy and fischer. he came to europe-won hastings 1895 the strongest tournament ever held up to that time-won superb games against the european champions including steinitz and lasker-but then he tragically went insane and died at a pitifully early age.

pillsburys best games all appear here and they exhibit a grand sweep and vitaity of purpose which would make them the envy of any modern grandmaster. his win against tarrasch from hastings for example is a classic race between pillsburys king side attack and tarraschs slaughterous juggernaut on the other wing- richard reti likened it to a hollywood film drama where the heroine is tied to a rail track and the hero dashes nail bitingly to rescue her in time.

until something superior comes along this is the best book on pillsbury and there is no doubt that his games are still full of instruction and can impart sheer pleasure at the vigour and clarity of his onslaughts.

Everyone knows the story of Pillsbury - he was one of the greatest players who ever lived.

A dashing young man, he went as a completely unheralded talent to Hastings, 1895 - perhaps one of the greatest tournaments of chess history - and surprised everyone (but himself!) by taking clear first place. This placed him firmly in the ranks as one of the World's very best players.

The original book was ... and is a classic. (The first ever book in English on this player!) It is also in DESCRIPTIVE NOTATION.

This volume is simple profiteering. It is a copy of the original by the publishers. (Hardinge Simpole) It looks like a bad copy, and it is. Many of my pages are so washed out; I can barely make out the words and the moves. On one page, there is a large ink blotch that practically obliterates the move. The diagrams have NOT been re-done; they are simple, extremely poor copies of an old-style type of diagram that was not all that great to begin with. Virtually all the defects of a really bad photo-copy are present in this volume. This might be bearable in an old book, or in a very inexpensive volume. But in a book I paid nearly 35 bucks for ... this is simply unacceptable.

If you are a huge fan of Pillsbury - and cannot live without this book, you may want to consider purchasing this offering. But my advice is don't waste your money.

Having just adopted a one-eyed hedgehog, I was eager to get my hands on anything "hedgie." Not so easy! This reminded me of "Odin's" classic roots in great literature! A solid acquisition.

Lucy is a human character introduced to the Peter Rabbit series, has a bad habit of losing her pocket-handkerchiefs and this time she lost 3. She search for it high and low but couldn't find them anywhere. But what she found something else in the hills while searching and it is a door going straight into the hill.

There, she meets an intriguing character with "hairpins" sticking out of her back who calls herself Mrs Tiggy-Winkle, who happens to be a washerwomen for all of the other animals. Turned out her missing hankies and pinny are being wash by Mrs Tiggy-Winkle.

This is an interesting book and my favorite part is the ever so questions answered with "it you please'em". Beautiful colourful illustration to enjoy. Weird storyline though but it's an interesting non the less. Kids owuld enjoy this with an awe. Not a keeper but it's a good read.

Lucy is always misplacing her things. No matter how good she tries to be, she still loses her hankies and other things. One day, she decided to go on a hunt for her hankies. Along the way, she asks creatures if they've seen her handerchief. And she meets Mrs. TIggy-Winkle.

It is a charming story with beautiful illustrations. My boys really enjoy looking at the pictures of this book! I enjoy reading this one to them! When they are older, this book will be perfect for their beginner's lessons. The pictures are charming and the story itself is lovely.

10-29-03

"The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle" is another perfectly splendid story by Beatrix Potter. This time the author introduces a human character to the world of animals. A little girl, Lucie, has a bad habit of losing her pocket-handkerchiefs. On this particular day she has lost three, as well as a pinny. She goes searching for them in the hills where she finds a door going straight into the hill. When she opens it she discovers a clean kitchen and a peculiar little person. Her name is Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and she is a washer-woman. Lucie's missing hankies and pinny are being washed and ironed by her. I love the way Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle's little black nose goes sniffle, sniffle, snuffle, and her eyes go twinkle, twinkle. Also, the way she always answers questions with "if you please'm". The illustrations are nice and children will enjoy Ms. Potter's beautiful narrative and finding out Mrs Tiggy-Winkle's true identity.