Spanish Books Books

Está fabuloso y es muy cierto lo que dice..!
El libro se dedica a la personalidad de cada lector según su signo del zodiaco...Y TODO LO QUE DICE DE MI SIGNO, ES VERDAD !
También leí el de mi esposo y el de mi cuñado: HACES DE CUENTA QUE EL QUE ESCRIBIÓ EL LIBRO LOS CONOCE ! En todo le atina..
Cómpralo y aplícalo a cuanta gente conozcas....

inside this book...
But I SAW MYSELF...ENTIRELY !
UNBELIEVABLY WISE !

If you have a couple, check the signs of this book!
If you don't, know exactly whom to look for !

A treasure of a book

ESTRELLAS Y LOS PLANETAS CON NUESTRA VIDA...
¡Pero he constatado muchas veces lo acertado de sus descripciones sobre nuestro temperamento !

Es como si nos viera por dentro...
¿Alguna vez has conocido a un Tauro que no sea obstinado?
¿O a un Escorpio que no sea buen amigo ?

ES IMPRESIONANTE !
Si lo lees, te vas a encontrar con tu propia personalidad !
No en balde esto del Zodiaco ha sobrevivido durante milenios !

y lo vi con mucho desdén, porque jamás había creído en ese del Zodiaco...
Un día, comencé a leerlo y captó mi atención, porque está muy bien escrito. Luego, comencé a checar personalidades de familiares y amigos según el signo de su nacimiento... ¡Y MI SORPRESA NO TUVO LÍMITES !
No sé cómo le hagan..pero lo que dice es acertadísimo. Este libro me ha empujado a estudiar los signos del zodiaco..Pero todavía no encuentro uno TAN BUENO COMO ESTE
Cómprenlo, amigos. SE LLEVARÁN UNA ENORME SORPRESA !

CUANDO DEJAMOS que el bebè viva y crezca como una plantita silvestre: SIN ESTÌMULOS ESPECIALES, limitàndonos a checar que no estè sucio el pañalito, qie no tenga hambre o còlico...y dejàdolo a su suerte!
Ahora, con la ESTIMLACION MUY TEMPRANA, no solo se estimula dramàticamente el desarrollo de la inteligencia del nene, sino que ademàs, se le da la sensacion que es importate para nosotros y muy, pero muy amado...
Esto, LO PREPARA PARA SER UN TRIUNFADOR y un adulto feliz!
Este libro maravilloso nos da el mètodo y el seguimiento.. y es casi màgico ver como responde el bebito y la rapidez con que desarrolla su inteligencia... NO DEJE DE LEERLO Y APLICARLO!

ESTE LIBRO PONE EN NUESTRAS
MANOS LA TÉCNICA PARA TRANSFORMAR A NUESTRO BEBE NO SOLO EN UN GENIO, SINO EN UNA PERSONITA MUY FELIZ QUE SABRA VENCER EN EL MUNDO !
PRECIOSO !

QUEDABAN BOTADOS EN LA CUNA LOS PRIMEROS SEIS MESES ... ¡QUE HORROR !
Estos ejercicios de estimulacion temprana NOS HACEN COMPRENDER QUE ERROR TAN ENORME ERA ESO: DESDE LA PRIMERA SEMANA, TE QUEDAS BOQUIABIERTA DE VER LAS REACCIONES FELICISIMAS DE LA CRIATURITA...

EXTRAORDINARIO LIBRO !!!!
Y LOS RESULTADOS, AUN MAS EXTRAORDINARIOS !!!!

a los 15 dias, comenzamos a estimularlo con estos juegos.. ¡IMPRESIONANTE !
Mi sobrinito nacio el mismo dia, y mi hermano no se intereso por el libro... hasta ahora en que vio la enorme diferencia que hay entre los dos bebitos:
El nuestro esta muy alerta, es un costalito de risas y yiene la viveza de un nene de seis meses !

que me permitio ver en detalle los avances increibles de mi bebe obtenidos gracias a esta tecnica de estimulacion que se inicia con el primer dia de vida del bebe.
COn estos ejercicios tan sencillos, el bebe florece, se relaciona y su inteligencia brilla mas cada dia.

ESPLENDIDO!

I LOVE Amazon! So efficient and quick! The book is beautiful. I will continue to use this web site for many more things. Thank you so much! jeanne

In this excellent work, the author makes the statement that "... [the human] ability to conjure up methods of torture and death is .... infinite". Indeed, after reading this book, one cannot agree with him more. In a rich and most elegant (and often tongue-in-cheek) prose, the author clearly describes in excess of 69 ways used throughout history to officially execute human beings, frequently with various accompanying methods of torture. These execution methods are presented in alphabetical, as opposed to chronological, order; hence, the book can be read all at once or in dribs and drabs without any loss of continuity. The descriptions are agonizingly detailed and, well, quite colorful. In many cases, several fascinating anecdotes are provided to further enrich the reader's reading experience; these include personal information on some of the executioners and their many clients, the nature of the crimes committed and the attitudes of the attending crowds - all this weaved in the backdrop of the times in which these people lived (and died). This well-written book should be of interest, not only to those interested in the gory, the horrific and the macabre, but also to ordinary history buffs.

This is a great book, read the whole thing in the Loo. I am fascinated by all things macabre, and to find a book that is just NOTHING but descriptions of various kinds of executions and killing devices is like finding a rare gem. I have to say that out of all the different ways one can go, I would choose the Guillotine because it's quick but it's also such a marvelous contraption. This book is full of history, background and some seriously disgusting facts. All I have to say is that a lot of Christian martyrs got to test out the executioner's equipment for the rest of society. Highly recommend this to anyone who likes the darker side of life, but who also is a history buff.

This book definitely cheered me up. There is nothing like reading about mind-bendingly horrendous torture after a hard day on the job. I recommend this to all who dwell on the dark side.

Surprisingly considering the topic of historical references to torture and execution techniques, this tome is a enthralling well written look at how it was applied in western society over the centuries. The book is arranged in alphabetical order with the sizes of each entry varying based on available information and to a degree frequency of usage. The fascination is typically with the smaller sized less known entries. Though more information is valuable on the "popular" techniques such as Madame Guillotine, lethal injection, or hanging, the methods that most people have never heard of like being sewn inside an animal's stomach, the Spanish Donkey or Flayed alive, etc., which are relatively one or two paragraphs are the ones that hook the audience. Though the Guantomino crowd might insist this book is barbaric, history buffs will appreciate this deep look at the darker side of governments and societies.

Harriet Klausner

Drowning in words that crash, rumble, streak past, drip down through the cracks in the ceiling, swell up from the pages and invade my brain, stumble, drop, fall, plunge from every page, topple my usual sense of books, I made it through FADO ALEXANDRINO to the very end, sometimes wondering why I was subjecting myself to such a difficult novel, sometimes rejoicing that I'd heard of it by chance many years ago. Lobo Antunes, whose other works I don't know, has written a nearly-500 page masterpiece which definitely is not for everyone. It demands close attention, it demands patience, and you have to like the flow of language. That this is the case even in English is a tribute to the famous translator Gregory Rabassa, who almost single-handedly, brilliantly, has brought Portuguese-language literature to English readers. Five men gather in the 1980s in a bar. They served together in Mozambique around 1970, fighting in one of Salazarist Portugal's colonial wars. The novel covers their return to Lisbon, the resumption or crumbling of their previous lives, and then the onset of the bloodless Portuguese revolution of April 25, 1974. One man never speaks, but we feel his presence. There's a soldier, become a furniture mover for his uncle's tottering business. There's a second lieutenant from a humble background, married into a rich family who flee to Brazil when the Revolution occurs. Third is a lieutenant colonel whose wife dies just as he returns from Africa and who takes up with "a cloud of perfume" in silver high heels and oyster-colored eyelids. Fourth is a communications officer (also referred to as "Lieutenant" which caused me no end of confusion at first) an underground Communist agitator, jailed for his pains before being freed after April 25th. What happens to the men during that confused period in Portugal's history, and then when things settle down is the subject of the rest of the book. There's a lot of their sex life, a murder and a denouement. Set down like that, the `plot' of FADO ALEXANDRINO doesn't amount to much. No, you'll read this because you want to read a highly unusual work of art, one that weaves stories, the gritty side of Lisbon, times, voices, dreams, thoughts, imaginations, and moments together like a collage, like a Pollock painting, like a tapestry. Lobo Antunes changes direction on pages, in paragraphs, and even in sentences---some of which are extremely long. He draws a detailed picture of Portuguese society seen from the bottom up; no touristy views for him. You can't just skim along; you have to pay close attention.

Let's face it. Either you're going to be blown away by this incredible book or you're going to toss it after the first 20 pages.

I just re-read the Amazon description: dense and demanding. That's an understatement! I really enjoy Portuguese and Latin American literature (you know a "but" is coming), BUT why, why, why do the writers not want you to get to know who the characters are until page 17,348? It isn't that the characters aren't important to the story - they ARE the story.

Each of these should come with a disclaimer: "WARNING: you may never know who the characters are or what they are talking about. This is not a fault of your brain or the printer. It is doubtful it is part of a plot to take over the world since they wouldn't know who to put in charge or where to find them if they did. Read at your own risk." Don't be surprised if the warning is written by the author.

If you are patient, you will eventually identify and identify with the characters and the events they are describing. Once you get to that point, the flow of the story will change for you and what went before will be clearer (you'll never be totally clear - Antunes probably planned it that way).

This is one of those books being referred to when you hear "it has to be experienced".

Late one night in Lisbon, Portugal, five army men are reunited on the tenth anniversary of their battalion's return from Mozambique. Since the horror of Africa, some of the men have been promoted, some divorced, married, remarried, demoted, fired, started a business, looked after family members, buried family members. They discuss their lives over wine, tongues loosening as the alcohol flows. In a few hours, one of the men will be dead, murdered, stabbed in the back by one of the other soldiers.

To boil down the plot to its very essence, the above paragraph encapsulates Fado Alexandrino. But this sprawling, extravagant, difficult novel covers so much more with every one of its nearly five hundred pages. The impact of this novel is not what is said, but how it is said, the way Antunes manages to weave five very different lives together into a coherent whole, spanning more than a decade of time.

Antunes uses an interesting style of extremely long paragraphs, broken up by the very rare period, but littered with commas. In one paragraph - this is not rare - a character will begin thinking about something, his thoughts triggered by an off-hand comment, and his mind will wander back to five years ago, or ten, or yesterday, and the focus of the paragraph will switch to this new scene, with new characters, without changing tense, staying in the 'present', and then another character will begin thinking, and they will take over the scene, they will direct the paragraph to another place and time, they will be the focus. This happens again and again, we constantly change from early times, when the soldiers were young and inexperienced, to the moderate years, with wives and children, unhappy or not, to the 'present', the reunion, when some are old and some are older, but all are weary in their own way. Yet somehow it works. It is a testament to Antunes literary skill that we are never completely lost, that there is always a thread to hold the path, that even with rapid, unflagged changes of point-of-view character, or scene, of time, of focus, we can stay on par with the course and understand what is happening. A good example of this shifting focus: What sad pusses dead people have, the soldier thought, what soft rubbery mouths, like a sick clown's, and their hands, Captain, so quiet like that, hanging down, pale, whether it was from the vitamin pills or the ampules, I was soon able to stand on my pins and shuffle along from room to room without any help, the day after tomorrow the little man with the briefcase will dump the furniture into the street and take over the house, the day after tomorrow, the soldier thought, they're going to kill my uncle for good, Odete stopped visiting me, waving, smiling, I'm fine, he remember Olavo in the apartment in Cova da Piedade, newspaper open on his knees, staring at him a little unwillingly with furtive eyes that tried unsuccessfully to congratulate themselves, to be happy, the ferry shaking and leaping on the waves, the trip of the truck to the town, the following day, in the afternoon, he got dressed and sneaked out of the buildings while the concierge went to pay the electric bill, he walked two or three... And so on, and so on, and so on. This paragraph continues on for another page.

The primary reason that all this works is because of the Revolution, a turbulent time in Portugal's history, when socialism and communism threatened to take over, when violence, raping and slaughter were commonplace. The novel is split into three section, Before the Revolution, During the Revolution, and After the Revolution. Generally, when jumping around, we are able to tell what is happening because of this time, this character, this situation's proximity to the horrible events in Lisbon. Granted, although the time can change so sudden and dramatically, during the 'Before the Revolution' section, most of the jumping is contained to a time that is before the Revolution, and the same with the other two sections. It is almost as though the primary character of the novel is the Revolution itself, a great maelstrom that sucks in the five soldiers, twisting and turning their lives about.

Antunes has a fantastic sense of imagery, an ability to describe situations and localities unlike anyone else I have experienced. He is very organic with his descriptions, a woman's mouth is 'an orange pulp', her thighs open 'like a marine polyp', and so on. Considering that the focus of the novel is the Revolution and its terrible, deleterious effects upon the nation of Portugal and, in particular, the city of Lisbon, the themes of death and decay are primary in the writing. So that in the daytime, with the sun cruelly exposing the mends, the filth, the lack of paint, and the sores of poverty that the lights disguised, everything seemed smaller, uglier, very depressing, and desolately poor. Unfortunately, this diseased, dirty quality of the writing - so effective when portraying a nation gone to rot - is difficult to read when referencing women. There is not a single positive female character in Antune's Lisbon, they are all selfish, or vapid, or dirty, or rotting, or old, or meek, or domineering, or... the list continues. However, it can be argued - quite correctly, I believe - that these negative qualities are not inherent in women so much as a part of the perception that the soldiers carry within themselves. In Mozambique, they were accustomed to raping and prostitution - male or female - and it is easy to imagine that they would have gained a low opinion of females and sex because of this.

There is one misstep in this book, and it is worthy of mention. The second to last chapter is the only chapter that completely focuses in upon one character, and is the only chapter where the narrator is a woman. The chapter is reminiscent of Molly's soliloquy, as in Joyce's Ulysses, with huge run-on sentences that take up an entire paragraph, long, detailed descriptions of sex and lust, wandering thoughts and ideas, etc. The chapter is written with fantastic skill, but the problem is that it does not really fit the rest of the novel. The tone is different, the pacing is different, the style is different, and it didn't seem to serve much point. Yet, it was an enjoyable read. An interesting dilemma.

By the end of this dense, difficult novel, there was a sense of relief that it was over, a feeling of accomplishment. However, there was loss, because, with Fado Alexandrino, I was able to fall into a decadent, violent world so completely that getting out again was a difficulty, and this is a rarity in a novel. The effect was powerful, almost physically so while reading, and I would recommend to no person reading two Antunes' novels in a row. Beautiful, morbid, complex, difficult, structurally amazing and intricately detailed, Fado Alexandrino is well worth the effort.

This book is a amazing voyage to the most deepest places of the mind. Here you live, and on this book you will really live, the life after the african colonial war of four portuguese veteran. Their most inner desires, feelings and thoughts are exposed in a really vivid picture. You almost see them in a Lisbon City long lost.

I agree with the previous reviewer. Antunes is a marvellous writer. Once you get into his way of writing it is hard to put the book down. His poetic language is so filled with images that you could actually feel the smell of Lisbon. In this story we follow the life stories of a couple of war veterans before, during and after the revolution in 1974. They come from different social backgrounds, so Antunes succeeds in portraying many aspects of his society. But to me is that not the main issue, no it is the moving life-stories of his characters. It is not an easy read but he can also be very amusing in a rather absurd way. Antunes has bee critizised for writing the same book over and over again. This is the second novel I read. His style is very similar but once I get into it I'm moved by the beauty and captivated by the energy of his prose.

Anyone interested in modern fiction must have a go at Antunes.

The editorial review laughably misses the rhythm and the deeper layers of this story. May I gently suggest that it was reviewed in haste?

This book is a tour de force in higher order thinking, randomness and unforeseen outcomes.

A story for children at first glance that is actually a blueprint.

Children get this story. Why can not some adults even begin to scratch the surface of what is available here?

Let your child decide! Buy this book for them, read it, ask questions as to what is occuring in the tale. Then watch and listen to your child.

You may be surprised at the insights of your youngster!

This must be a book for pre-readers because the plot's extremely simple. I got it for a 3 year old and it's perfect -- the kind of story with a repeating pattern of words that the reading adult can embellish on. It's a joy to look at, almost magical. The story is interesting too, with a subtle lesson in patience (I think) and enough whimsy to keep a tired adult awake.

This book is delightful. What a great concept to introduce to young minds. Not just that if you keep at something you might persevere. But also that our ultimate success often comes by way something or someone outside ourselves - when we least expect it!

Tragedies like Columbine are a wake-up call. It's clear that we need to provide our kids ...with tools to counter the violence and knee-jerk aggression ubiquitous in popular culture. These children's stories by Idries Shah are just this kind of tool. They're not preachy. They don't offer simplistic lessons or moral platitudes. They're more like exercises for "mental muscle groups" grossly underdeveloped in this culture: A strong sense of one's own value. Empathy. Flexibility in thinking and responding. Appreciating that not everyone is the same, not every outcome is predictable. Seeing that there are more than two sides to a situation. A sense that patience and perseverance can pay off, sometimes in unexpected ways. Not demanding easy answers. A sense that things are not always as they seem, that the viewpoint of "experts" — or even the whole community — is not always right. The experience of seeing something that even adults don't see, of creating clever solutions. The sense that taking positive action is possible and rewarding—even when one has to buck the tide. That help can come from where and when we least expect it. The sense that life has interesting "loose ends" for us to reflect on. And so much more. At least one of these books should be on every child's book shelf.

This is a new twist on the types of stories that kids love to read and hear over and over. It begins with a lady making a simple request...she just wants her apple. The chain of events that results though, teaches cause and effect in a fun way. What really makes the book a lasting treasure is the art work. We found ourselves going through the book both from front to back and back to front just exploring the colorful and playful art. I highly recommend this book for kids or even adults who like the playful prose and pictures. Two thumbs up for Mary Rose Santiago and Idries Shah. I look forward to seeing more of their works.

Si no has leido la Fundación de Asimov, en realidad no has leido Ciencia Ficcion. Te impactará desde el principio y cuando termines de leerla tendras que buscar su continuación, "Fundacion e Imperio"

Este libro es la chispa de la cual surguio una de las mas grandes historias de CF. Esta historia describe a la humanidad desde dentro una actualidad ficticia hasta un futuro muy lejano. Este libro se situa en ese futuro y tiene todos los elemantos para que se puedan escribir otros libros en torno a el. La idea de una ciancia historica, del los viajes por el hiperespacio y de sociedades en planteas enteros bajo techo es maravillosa. Aunque Asimov no tiene una prosa muy elaborada, no toma pretenciones y solo cuenta una buena historia.

Fundación contiene todos los elementos para ser una de las mejores novelas de ciencia ficción que he leído. Una argumento consistente, entretenido y que plantea una realidad que hace volar la imaginación (Emperadores galácticos, conflictos planetarios, y claro, la "Psicohistoria"). Por supuesto, después de leerlo por primera vez ya no pude detenerme y he comprado 9 libros más de la serie. Excelente!

Esta es una excelente historia de ciencia ficción. La posibilidad de predecir el futuro mediante un modelo matemático del comportamiento de grandes grupos de gente, echa a volar la imaginación. Los héroes de esta historia son personas con grandes cualidades, pero con defectos, que toman decisiones en ocasiones asertadas y en otras equivocadas, que al final forman parte de un plan establecido por Hari Sheldon, muerto hace muchos años, para establecer un nuevo imperio galáctico luego de la caida del actual, predicha por él. La segunda parte de esta historia es del mismo modo excelente, y la intervención del Mulo le da un tono mítico, como en las obras de homero, en esta secuela aparece un personaje que esta fuera de toda predicción y afecta de grán manera el plan Sheldon. Lee toda la serie es muy buena!!!

El inicio de una trilogia sensacional, nada en la obra de Asimov se compara a Fundacion, y sus secuelas. El propio Isaac, ha declarado que su carrera se divide en un antes y un despues de esta obra. Inspirado en el ascenso y posterior caida del imperio romano, Asimov imagina una sociedad humana dentro de unos 20.000 años, en la que la decadencia y la corrupcion empiezan a destruir al grandioso Imperio Galactico. Un libro para recomendar, con personajes grandiosos entre los que se destaca el genio de la Psicohistoria, Hari Seldon.

The eyewitness series is excellent. I own several of these books and we have used them on three different vacations to Europe. The book introduces you to Paris with background and historical information. A summary of seasonal happenings, weather, art, architecture and regional food information. The short essays are occpanied by pictures, maps, photos and graphic representations. It makes the book easy to read and a quick reference for planning daily activities while on vacation. The main section of the book has a break down of "regions" or areas. Each section starts with a map and locations of sights. You can then reference the specific site descriptions, which also include business hours and contact information. The back of the book list hotel and restuarant information. These books are an invaluable resource for planning a vacation itenenary. Also, they make an good refernce tool during your stay. The only negative I have found to these books is they are somewhat heavy to carry in your shoulder bag or packback all day long.

This guide is wonderful - I have never flown anywhere before and was very nervous about going to Paris, but after having this book for a week now I feel MUCH more confident! I am always opening it to look up more info - Theres so much in it I can't imagine how all that stuff can be in Paris!! I researched quite a few travel guides to Paris before buying this one and I am SO glad I chose this guide... it has detailed descriptions of each region, each monument, each street! Even comes with a menu card to help you figure out what you're about to order! haha... It gives detailed walking tours, bus routes, best times and price differences for visiting museums,... The very best part of this book though is the PICTURES!! There are pictures of everything and THAT makes it the best for me... What else can I say - if you're going to Paris - BUY THIS BOOK!

Dorling Kindersley makes the best travel guides hands down. They are extremely well illustrated, have extensive and detailed maps (thank god, because I tend to get lost very easily), up to date information on hotels (rates, rooms etc), restaurants (costs and reservation policies), and sites to see.

The travel guides have wonderful pictures, well researched histories and facts about France and more specifically Paris, what wines to look for and taste (not just by region and vineyard but also by year), sample dishes that one should try, detailed walking tours, information on famous art (there is a great section on the Louvre and all how to speed thru if you only have a limited amount of time).

The guide covers customs, money changing, travel information - you name it! Most importantly, it shares with you the best places to shop (and there are SO many in Paris), where to get good deals and SOOO much more. The book give you wonderful ideas on how to see the city in a limited time or really enjoy it if you are there for more than a few days. The book also covers things to do that many tourists might over look as well as telling you what is worth your while and what to skip. The guide also has great ideas for day trips beyond the city itself.

This is one of the best guides available on the market. It is perfect if you are planning to go to a few cities in a limited time or for more in depth information when planning a longer trip. We always lend this out to people before they plan a trip and everyone else has agreed it is top of the line.

I purchased numerous guide books before our trip to Paris, but the Eyewitness book was the only one I took with me. It is so comprehensive in its coverage of Paris, it was only book I needed. In it's handsome leather case, I felt comfortable refering to it on the bus and metro because it wasn't obviously a guide book. It didn't shout "tourist!" to everyone around me as I consulted it. Do not depend on the maps, however. Invest in a Michelin map of Paris; it's worth it.

I purchased this before taking a spur-of-the-moment trip to Paris with my boyfriend, based on its excellent reviews on Amazon. I was not dissapointed!

This guide provided an incredible wealth of information about everything Paris -- from sights to see, places to eat, and things to do. Almost every site is accompanied with a nicely written description, map, and full-color photograph.

Here are a few notes: 1.) The information (allbeit interesting and informative) is about the touristy stuff. If you're interested in going to visit lesser-known sites, you may want to get a supplemental guide. 2.) Make sure to look up every place you go/have gone. I was surprised to found out that many of the seemingly understated little cafes we visited have long, rich histories, which the book very colorfully described. 3.) The restaurant guide, while good, is not entirely complete. If your visit will center on the French culinary experience,you may want to do a little additional research beyond the confines of this book. 4.) This leather bound special addition also contains 4 laminated, easy-reference information cards (menu reference sheet, address finder, Metro map) and a full-size city map, all of which were incredibly helpful and can not be purchased separately. 5.) The section about customs is good, as it contained valuable information on topics such as tipping and using the bathroom. (Interesting Fact: In many restaurants you have to *pay* to use the ladies room -- even if you have already purchased a meal or snack. Make sure to carry a handful of 2 Franc pieces with you at all times.) 6.) The book, though helpful, weighs a ton. Be prepared -- or beg one of your travel mates to carry it for you!

Bon voyage!

I have read numerous accounts (most notably in the journal of the Mencken Society) that assume that Mencken was being ironic in the pages of this book, but I am gladdened and relieved to see that the other reviewers here got it right. The omniscient Mr. Mencken simply observes that men are forever being bamboozled by women.

But there's a great variety of Mencken's wisdom on tap in this slim volume -- such as,
"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by an endless series of hobgoblins, most of them imaginary." (Page 53 of the 1926 edition)

Reading this book made me wonder "where are the men of today who are writing like this on these topics?" -- things like soul mates, monogamy/polygamy, affairs, prostitution, romance novels, Darwin's theory of sexual selection, the double standard, the "Madonna/whore complex" (not called that then), sexual harassment, employment discrimination, abolishing marriage, and declining marriage and birth rates all make an appearance in the book. And much of it retains its essential truth. The more things change...

It's especially interesting to see where HLM was right and where he turned out to be wrong. For instance: the book was written just before men gave women the vote (i.e., during World War I, when Mencken was in his mid-to-upper thirties and still a bachelor); Mencken thought women voting would cure politics of rampant corruption -- because women wouldn't allow such shenanigans. This is not to say that he had any kind things to say about the suffragettes. He didn't, and some of what he wrote was outrageously funny. One can extrapolate in a straight line to some of today's feminists.

His basic thesis -- which may or may not have been meant to be taken seriously -- is that women are more intelligent than men, the proof being the ease with which they typically defeat men in the war between the sexes:

"I am convinced that the average woman, whatever her deficiencies, is greatly superior to the average man. The very ease with which she defies and swindles him in several capital situations of life is the clearest of proofs of her general superiority. She did not obtain her present high immunities as a gift from the gods, but only after a long and often bitter fight, and in that fight she exhibited forensic and tactical talents of a truly admirable order. There was no weakness of man that she did not penetrate and take advantage of. There was no trick that she did not put to effective use. There was no device so bold and inordinate that it daunted her."

It would be fifty years before Esther Vilar's "The Manipulated Man" continued with many of the same themes. But Mencken was quite prescient in the section on women's martyrdom, which today we'd call their claim to victimhood or being "oppressed". I could go on at some length about how close his description of marriage is to what prevails today (based on reports which come to my attention), but I'll spare you.

I'm sorry I waited so long to get around to this book, as it's truly a classic written by a great mind -- a highly recommended trip above the stratosphere for all men and, especially, bachelors.

Mencken's "In Defense of Women" has such a bad reputation in some circles that I'm almost afraid to review it for fear of virtual grenades. But surely the bad reputation is unjustified, for whether one approves of Mencken's conclusions or not, it would seem hard to deny the nobility of the his intentions in publishing them. He simply wished to help us rid ourselves of some harmful and incorrect stereotypes. To wit: men think they are intelligent and clear-headed while women are emotional and sentimental. But in reality, Mencken explains, it is men who are prone to sentiment and women who are intelligent and clear-headed. Of course many things follow from both the misconception and the "truth." Although it may be useful to some people to know Mencken's ideas about the sexes (I find this knowledge useful), perhaps the best reason to read "In Defense of Women" is that it is incredibly entertaining. If you are not amused by Mencken's style, or if you are afraid that you might encounter an uncomfortable truth or two, then by all means keep safely away.

This is not a book for faint of heart. No one was better at invective than Mencken, and his defense of women is far more of an attack on men than a defense of the "unfair" sex, as Ambrose Bierce signified our better half. Mencken's basic argument goes something like this: women are pretty bad; men are worse; therefore, women are better than men. This is, to be sure, a gross over-simplification. Mencken's argument is really much more sophisticated and ingenious. He picked it up, he tells us elsewhere, from a madame of a bordello. It contains a great deal more truth than most people would be willing to admit. Mencken's hillarious presentation is recommended only to hardened cynics (which is to say, hardened realists). Sensitive people with "beautiful" souls are well advised to avoid this brilliant book.

Mencken wrote that "Nothing could be plainer than the effect that the increasing economic security of women is having upon their whole havit of life ... The diminishing marriage rate and the even more rapidly diminishing birth rate show which way the wind is blowing . . . large numbers of them [women] now approach the business [of marriage] with far greater fastidiousness than their grandmothers." So as a result, only relatively skilled men are marriageable, and lower-class men go without. By contrast, in the past "even marriage with a fifth-rate man was better than no marriage at all."

Mencken also correctly predicted that even after the influx of women into the workplace, women will still lag behind men economically: he writes that "it is impossible to imagine a genuinely intelligent human being becoming a competent trial lawyer, or buttonhole worker, or newspaper sub-editor, or piano tuner, or house painter. Women, to get upon all fours with men in such stupid occupations, will have to commit spiritual suicide, which is much further than they will ever actually go. Thus a shade of their present superiority to men will always remaijn, and with it a shade of their relative inefficiency, so marriage will remain attractive".

Mencken also predicts loosened sexual mores: "With the decay of the ancient concept of women as property there must come inevitability a reconsideration of the whole sex question."

And of course all these things have come to pass, both in America and in Europe: well-employed women marry later or not at all and get divorced more quickly, and low-income women have virtually abandoned marriage altogether.

Mencken only runs aground when he looks at war and peace. He correctly predicted World War II (in particular predicting wars between France and Germany, and between Japan and America) but thought that it would be so devastating, and wipe out so many of the world's men, that women would vastly outnumber men, which in turn would radically modify marriage- perhaps by causing the reinstitution of polygamy. Had WW 2, like WW 1, killed only soliders, Mencken might have been right. Instead, of course, millions of civilians were killed- including many women, thus limiting the male/female imbalance.

Un método muy práctico sin maestro, si eres una persona dedicada y le dedicas 1 hora diaria, en menos de dos meses, ya hablarás y inglés y lo comprenderás.! Te lo recomiendo...

and the book is one of the best tools I have seen to learn English without a teacher.
When you finish studying it, you will speak, write correctly, speak and understand !

It's worth the effort!

IGUAL DE EFICIENTE QUE SUS OTROS TEXTOS DE INGLÉS...
Este me pareció excelente y mejoró lo que aprendí con otros dos libros de ella.

Si tienes este libro en tus manos y la voluntad y el interès suficiente de aprender inglès...LO LOGRAS EN MUY POCO TIEMPO .

GANO UN BUEN BILLETE COMO GUÍA DE TURISTAS!

In this work, the reader finds an incomparable poetic voice, distilled to its best and resounding at the most basic, unseen, human level of experience. Benedetti aims for, and makes contact with, that part of the human self which is often not able to be conveyed in words, not apparent or obvious, but which is essential to experiencing and interpreting the meaning of human experience itself.

This Uruguayan poet's aesthetics are unique and explorative, given to stripping away the unnecessary obstructions of visual grammar, and using the exchange between space and text as a rhythmic and lyrical guide to the reader. Here, the poetic activity is found in its essence, and many, who ably read Spanish, will find their own internal or poetic voice being newly inspired by the stunning breadth and penetration of the work compiled in this volume.

Reunir toda la poesia de Benedetti es una idea genial. Así uno puede disfrutar de todos sus poemas sin salir de un libro y conocer algunos menos afortunados en popularidad pero igualde buenas. Benedetti es un agasajo para los ojos, para la razon, el intelecto y el corazón. Nada puede decirse que sea no sobre de un libro tan completo y exelso como este.

if you consider yourself a poetry lover, you got to read bennedetti. he's a poet unlike others, he writes with passion, and lets you know that he still bealive that love is par of poetry.

la poesia de m. benedetti es la expresión de pensamiento profundo a través del lenguaje sencillo. con las obras de esta antología m. benedetti construye ventanas en su corazon por las que los lectores podemos mirar, luego construye puertas por las que podemos entrar y como nos sentimos a gusto volvemos una y otra vez.

Mario Benedetti, es sin duda alguna uno de los mejores analistas poetas de la vida humana Latinoamericana de nuestra epoca. Es la pasion y amor hacia la realidad de nuestros pueblos,de nuestra gente! es la vision del amor que se traduce en poesia.