Literature Books

When I bought this I was hoping for some form of indexing of the characters and plots of the novels. What I got was a compendium of author comments on the creation of their novels. Interesting, worth reading, I'm glad I bought it, but it wasn't quite what I was hoping I would get.

Hi all, if you read the star trek novels and have plenty of them this is THE STARTING POINT to figure out what books are placed where in the star trek chronology. Thuis one shows the books covers and gives a synopsis of each book - simply amazing. And its a thick book too, so perfect fot that rainy day to sort through your star trek novels = ) And the price if great too, so click that mouse and get it sent you - highly recomended!!!

Every serious Star Trek fan should have this book. It's interesting and fun.

I cannot imagine all the research that Ayers did to assemble this book. The book is far from complete, but still to track down all the various Star Trek book covers, get interviews, write up summaries is a phenomenal achievement that should help all ST fan writers track down the best in ST fiction.

The factoids concerning the various books are fun and interesting. I, myself would have loved to have heard more on Barbara Hambley's Ishmael where she combined two television shows into one novel.

Another missing fact. That there were major differences in the hard cover and paperback version to the Star Trek:Generations novelization due to the alterations in the last moment on how our beloved Kirk was killed.

Someone at Pocket Books should consider doing a similar type text for all the Star Trek comic books that have been written. Now, that would be a great book. In a few years, I do hope that there will be a second edition to this text, with some of the non-contributing authors telling their side of the story on getting their books out.

Excellent read.

JThree
[...]

Yes, this book indeed contains each and every volume of officially released StarTrek fiction and not only sketches their plots, but also presents b/w pictures of each cover. What makes "Voyages of the Imagination" more than just a simple bibliography is the stories behind the novels, that Jeff Ayers collected in many interviews with the authors. Just the job of conducting these must have been immense. Still more incredible is the time arrow that places every chapter of the fictional world created by the StarTrek novels in the right year since 5 billion years b.c. until 1 012 260. Compared to that, the presumably giant task of finding a nearly practical structure for the bibliography consisting of miniseries which are part of other miniseries that also correspond to tv series, seems small.

But I could think of many other features that I would have expected from this book:
* The plot summary of every novel or short story never tells the ending and usually isn't more detailed than the back covers. I don't like that since I really was interested in the whole story archs.
* There is never a critique of any of the fiction. "Voyages of the Imagination" doesn't tell the readers whether any of the books is worth reading or not so much.
* I would have liked summarizing articles on which characters from the TV and movie productions appear in print fiction and how they develop; who was newly invented by the authors; where are overlaps between the novels that exclude each other etc.

On my rating: Apart from a complete bibliography and some fun with reading the stories behind the stories, this book doesn't offer me anything of what I had expected. But it gets a big bonus from me for the incredible task done and for the fact that it's the first of its kind. Therefore, three stars.

Martin Jost


I originally wrote my review in German:
Ja, dieses Buch enthält wirklich ausnahmslos jeden Band von offiziell veröffentlichter StarTrek-Fiction und umreißt nicht nur kurz dessen Handlung, sondern präsentiert auch s/w-Bilder vom jeweiligen Cover. Mehr als nur eine bloße Bibliografie ist Voyages of Imagination durch die Hintergrundgeschichten der Entstehung, die Jeff Ayers zu vielen Romanen in Interviews mit den Autoren recherchiert hat. Die Arbeit, die allein dahinter steckt, muss unglaublich gewesen sein. Noch unglaublicher wirkt aber der Zeitstrahl, der in jedes beschriebene Jahr von 5 Milliarden Jahren v. u. Zt. bis 1 012 260 unserer Zeitrechnung kapitelgenau den Ausschnitt aus der fiktionalen Welt der StarTrek-Romane einordnet, in dem darüber erzählt wird. Daneben scheint die ebenfalls nicht hoch genug einzuschätzende Leistung gering, eine halbwegs übersichtliche Struktur für die Bibliografie zu finden, in der Miniserien mit anderen Miniserien verschachtelt sind und dabei noch einer der Fernsehserien zugeordnet werden müssen.
Mir fallen aber auch noch zahlreiche Features ein, die ich mir von diesem Buch gewünscht hätte und die bei so viel Vorbereitungszeit doch hätten machbar sein müssen:
-Die Zusammenfassungen der Handlung jedes einzelnen Romans bzw. jeder anthologisierten Kurzgeschichte verrät nie die Auflösung und geht selten mehr ins Detail als die Umschlag-Rückseite. Ich finde das schade, denn mich hätten die vollständigen Handlungsbögen interessiert, die in der Roman-Welt ablaufen.
- Eine Kritik der Bücher fehlt völlig. Mit dem Handbuch "Voyages of Imagination" lässt sich nicht entscheiden, ob irgendeines der Bücher lesenswert ist oder nicht.
- Zusammenfassungen wären interessant gewesen, aus denen hervor geht, welche Charaktere aus den TV- und Kinoproduktionen mitspielen und sich weiterentwickeln; welche Charaktere neu eingeführt werden; wo es sich ausschließende Überschneidungen zwischen den Romanen gibt u. s. w. Diese hätten am Ende jedes Kapitels in tabellarischer Form oder am Ende der Beschreibung jedes Plots hervorgehoben Platz gefunden.

Zu meiner Bewertung: Abgesehen von einer vollständigen Bibliografie und einigem Lesevergnügen über die jeweiligen Menschen hinter den Geschichten bietet dieses Buch nichts, was ich mir von ihm gewünscht hätte. Einen dicken Bonus erhält es aber für die gründliche und unvorstellbar umfangreiche Arbeit die drin steckt und dafür, dass es immerhin endlich das erste seiner Art ist. Unterm Strich also 3 Sterne.

Martin Jost

Lois Ehlert takes you on a colorful, intriguing story about the life cycle of a butterfly. Excellent for art students at any level! Text is simple enough for preschoolers and can be enjoyed through the elementary grades. Enjoy this exciting trip through nature and its wonders!

As usual, Lois Ehlert stimulates and educates the young reader about the mysteries of caterpillars to butterflies. Not only are the colors absolutely stunning, she provides factual information about different species. This book was a fabulous preparation for my classroom of small children as they watched their own caterpillars prepare for their magical transformation!

Waiting for Wings is a picture book showing the life cycle of a butterfly. The story uses tantalizing pictures and simple words to explain how a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. The book takes the reader through the stages of the caterpillar's life. Once the caterpillar has become a butterfly the story changes to how a butterfly lives its life. The illustrations pull the reader into this book. The print is large and easy to read for young reader. The text also rhymes for two pages at a time. As the caterpillar grows the pages become larger, until the butterfly hatches. As the butterfly begins its flight the pages are full size. The illustrations and page sizes are wonderful for young readers. This book also contains identification pages on butterflies and the flowers they eat.

I have a three year old daughter who must be read to before sleeping. I also have a three month old baby girl who is often in the bed with us while we read. Often, the baby is restless and cries before we finish our books. Waiting for Wings is a fabulous solution. I find this interesting AND educational for my toddler. In addition, the colors are bright and contrasting, allowing my baby to be entertained while the book is read.

This is a beautiful and very clever book. Pages are cocooned within larger pages, with individual illustrations blending seamlessly into the background illustrations. Like the natural world itself, this book rewards the patient observer, with rich details on the surface and others folded in more subtly. Your kids will be focused in on a little book within the big book, as the caterpillar goes on its journey. It makes the launch to the story within the bigger background pages all the more dynamic, striking as the shift from Kansas to Oz.

It starts with the eggs "hidden from view,/ clinging to leaves with butterfly glue." As we turn the pages of a little book enshrouded in the bigger book, we see the caterpillars hatch, "each one knows what it must do," and we follow the path to metamorphosis. Ultimately, the reader will be rewarded with multiple beautiful butterflies launching up towards the sky, a nice Lepidopterian metaphor for the developmental adventures in store for our little ones. It's a good job of story-telling when we know exactly where the story is going but still find ourselves awestruck.

Finally, as if Ms. Ehlert hadn't done enough, we get several pages at the end on butterfly identification, with information on colors, wingspans shown in actual size, the corresponding caterpillars that precede the butterflies, and the like. We get flower information, and then tips on growing your own butterfly garden. Nice stuff.

Get this book, drill it for a few night-night times, and then take your toddlers to a butterfly pavilion to see the real deal. Good times.

This is a well explained chidrens book about getting another baby in the family and preparing a child for that. If you bottle feed though, you'll have to skip two pages or skip the book.

We bought this book for our two year old boy when I was a few weeks away from expecting our second baby. We started reading it to him then and have continued to do so through his sister's first year. I love that the text and pictures portray our parenting style and have taught him about how we take care of babies. I've bought this book for my friend who is expecting her second.

I got this book (among others) to introduce our 2 1/2 year old to the concept of babies, and what they might need. He's reading it with interest, and I'm glad it was recommended to me. I like that it promotes attachment parenting, nursing, etc. while making it clear that there's always room for more love in a family.

This book was just what I was looking for -- something to help prepare my 2-year-old for her coming sibling, how the family will change, how mommy will feed the baby (breastfeeding), and how the older sibling can help out. Easy text. Nice pictures.

We're expecting #2 & bought this book recently for our 2 y/o. She loves it! The text is very easy to adapt to our family -- we make it personal to our daughter whenever we read it. The tips for parents at the beginning are a great feature that I haven't seen in other books like this, and there are lots of little extras throughout the story for inquisitive kiddos. It is pro-attachment & pro-breastfeeding which is awesome for our family. This book & it's companion "Baby on the Way" are really getting our daughter excited about her little brother or sister -- she even suggests ways she can help with the baby! Our family feels so much more prepared!

I was hesitant to read this book despite the recommendation of a friend and despite the accolades written here. How foolish. Reading this book was like sinking into a great mattress. I was near hypnotized by the beauty of the text which simply flowed. At times I was so overcome that I had to put the book down, the sadness of it all is wrenching. But never is the book depressing or is it hateful while describing the hate that people so easily engender. This is an extraordinary work.

This book was a gift to me from someone who knows my love of the Irish and of writers from that country. I began it hesitantly, not sure of the country I was entering, until I got perhaps ten pages into the book. The protagonist was describing how his mother sliced bread:

"..She did it in a trice. In the sewing of a wren's mitten."

I never looked back. His writing is brilliant, evocative, heartbreaking.

So good that after I had read a library copy, I purchased my own so I could read it all over. This novel takes on indirectly (as in his more recent "A Long, Long Way From Home") Barry's own family's experience as Irish divided between serving the British and aiding those who rebelled against the King. The other reviewers here cover much of the plot, but I might add that a touch of magic realism near the explosive climax makes for a nice touch, and the tension between truth-telling and perceived loyalty moves the story of the modern-day Aeneas along his wanderings efficiently and poignantly.

Barry, also a poet and best known--at least before this novel--as a playwright, brings to his fictional characters a narrative style somewhat at odds with what one might expect. He's not Joyce, that is, striving for a correlative voice to match his character's interior musings. Rather, he takes the rich legacy of Joyce and makes it impel his own telling of the interior life of those that Barry finds empathy with, and whose inner as well as outer itineraries this author feels, you sense, he must tell. This impelling of a writer to find release through his creations makes for a very effective novel, indeed.

...and sure, Mark Twain would likely love the hero of this wonderful book. Eneas is truly an innocent - he never shies from hard work, he loves his family dearly, and (his gift and his damnation) he has no neither mind nor care at all, at all for the politicks. He's not really a simpleton, merely a simple man. Born in 1900, he comes of age with the Irish struggle for independence so vividly painted by events such as the Easter uprising of 1916. When his mates - especially his best boyhood friend, Jonno Lynch - are enlisting in the fight to throw off the British oppression, Eneas, finding it difficult to locate gainful employment, enlists first in the British Merchant Navy (which in itself might have been forgiven by those who deemed themselves his judges later), then in the Royal Irish Constabulary. The RIC being mainly a police force, Eneas couldn't see the harm in lending a hand in that quarter - but as the fight for independence grew more fierce and factional, the RIC was tied too closely in the eyes of some to the hated Tans, who were responsible for some right bloody work. Eneas, finding himself on a blacklist kept by those calling themselves patriots, is given a choice - get close to and kill the much-hated and feared Reprisal Man of the Tans, or suffer the consequences of a death sentence. Our hero cannot bring himself to kill a man, so he refuses - and when he sees that those who have threatened him with extinction mean just what they say, sees no other choice than to flee his beloved Sligo and his native Ireland altogether.

Thus his adventures and travels begin. He signs on with a merchant vessel and winds up in Galveston, Texas. He enlists with the British Army for World War II in order to save France (a country for whom he bears a great love, of unknown origins) from Hitler. After being shell-shocked on the beach at Dunkirk and lodging with a French farmer for a growing and harvesting season, he makes his way back to England, pays a quick visit to Ireland, then winds up in Nigeria, digging a canal for a British company. He finds the best friend of his life in the person of Harcourt, a Nigerian national he first meets on a boat heading to Ireland, then again in Nigeria. Harcourt's friendship becomes one of the true treasures of Eneas' life - and a lifelong friendship it is.

Barry's language and prose capture his characters, the setting and their story perfectly. The reader can't help but feel a great empathy for Eneas, and for others in the book as well. Through the story of one man - and a very believable story it is indeed - Barry lays bare the pain through which Ireland has passed in its journey to find itself. There's a lot of sadness to be found here - but there's a lot of joy as well, so.

Read this book - and read Barry's novel ANNIE DUNNE as well (even better, I think, but that's me...).

The Irish have always been known as great storytellers, but now they're all turning into great writers as well, and it seems they're coming out of the woodwork. Sebastian Barry's The Whereabouts of Eneas McNulty places the protagonist in the small village of Sligo where he is an innocent among angry partisans. When he chooses to alleviate his problems of employment by taking a job with the Royal Irish Constabulary, the British-led police force, he irrevocably alters his life - as you might imagine! With beautiful language and ethereal descriptive passages, Barry allows readers to follow Eneas' travels and travails - all of us hoping for a happy ending.

THis whole series of books is wonderful. For the person who already owns the animal or new to be owner, it is a great reference book.Great for the 4Her or just wanting to learn about the critters.

We bought this book after purchasing our first goat. We are very pleased with our purchase. Always referring to the book and finding the answers that we need. We recommend to any and all goats owners. Well worth the money!

I purchased this for my dad who is a new goat owner. He has read it from cover to cover and uses it as a reference for certain problems he occasionally encounters.

Good reference for anyone new to owning goats!

This is a short book but they make the best out of a small package. It gives you most of the info you need. I wish they would have spent more time on Goat breeds and on Meat and Dairy operations but it was mostly aimed at kids.

I enjoyed this book very much even though I am not a kid. I am a new goat owner and this book makes all the information very plain. It was a very good first read. It is not very in depth and I am reading other books to add to my knowledge, but it is a very good starting place.

Andominii is a great first effort by Lance Dixon. His talent is reminiscent of Richard Bach, author of Jonathan Livingston Seagull, who has the rare ability of being able to entertain and enlighten readers all at the same time. Lance's remarkable insights into truth, combined with formadable story telling capabilities and a genuine gift for verse, result in truly moving passages. Expect big things from Lance Dixon in both his life and his work.

A moving and insightful book. The author weaves a wonderful tapestry of modern day fable. As I turned the pages, this book consistently ecouraged me to re-examine myself and the superficial success that we all believe we should achieve. The lesson is powerful - it is one that you internally discover while reading, rather than a lesson prescribed by the author.

Different from others in its genre in that it neither preaches sacrifice nor promises salvation through textbook lesson. This story instead almost subliminally challenges you to find the success that we all crave.

I simply found it next to impossible to put this beautifully written book down.

A magnificant book - - for its simplicity and for its truth. I am confident that every reader of this book will find that it helps them find the meaning of their life - - their Success.

If you are reading about Andominii and the online reviews...and are wondering if you should purchase this book...do not hesitate...purchase the book and read it. You are fortunate that your journey brought you to this website and to this book.

You will be very happy that you read this book - for many reasons - on many levels.

This book is a must read for all of those who want to live truthfully and want to be the best they can be everyday -- this book will provide you with the understanding to do so.

Lance, Thank you for putting into words - that which is most important.

What a gift to the world this book is - please share it with someone. Thank you, Roy. It was my pleasure - and a privilege to have read Andominii.

A valuable piece for the theosophy student and young people to grasp the modern version of our Lord.

I have been reading the Aquarian Gospel of Jesus Christ for many years now, and use it my personal spiritual Bible. What is written rings true to me and I refer to it whenever i am seeking 'religious' information about such topics as Faith, Trust, Love or Power, for example.

I believe it was channeled by Levi, the transcriber, as he is called by his children, and was only published them after his death.

The Introduction of the book is worth reading. Here is the first paragraph: "The full title of this book is The Aquarian Age Gospel of Jesus, the Christ of the Piscean Age, and the critical reader is apt to ask a number of pertinent questions concerning it. Among the many anticipated questions these are perhaps the most important: What is an Age? What is the Piscean Age? What is the Aquarian Age? What is meant by the Christ as the word is used in this book? What relationship existed between Jesus of Nazareth and the Christ? Who is Levi, the transcriber of this book? What are the Akashic Records?" These are answered in the Introduction.

This is a metaphysical, or esoteric Bible for those interested in studying what is now called the Ancient Wisdom. As a spiritual teacher, I strongly recommend it.

I also particularly love this book for its Subject Index.

A picture of Jesus Christ from the Akashek records; his entire life, temptations (of man) he had to overcome, through his crucifixion. A picture of the world through time for better understanding of purpose of life.

The Aquarian Gospel is a book that I have read around three times, because many of the nuances of this book (particularly the metaphysical riddles) require second reading. This book is a MUST READ for those who plan to watch the movie based upon this book that is presently under production by William Sees Keenan and Drew Heriot. The Aquarian Gospel primarily tries to fill in the gaps and explain the "missing years" of Jesus that have been dismissed rather casually in the Bible by simply stating "And the boy grew in wisdom and stature." How much you eventually like this book will depend upon your objective. If the objective is to read a mystery novel, The Aquarian Gospel will disappoint (you will probably enjoy The Rozabal Line much more as a fast-paced thriller covering the Jesus in India story). If the aim is to read about the "Jesus in India" theory itself, again there are better books out there such as Jesus Lived in India: His Unknown Life Before and After the Crucifixion or The Unknown Life of Jesus: The Original Text of Nicolas Notovich's 1887 Discovery If, however, the aim is to understand the influences of the Eastern traditions upon the spirituality and teachings of Jesus, then this is an ideal read. Throughout the 1960's, The Aquarian Gospel was a big hit with the hippie movement. To that extent, this book acquired a "negative" and "anti-establishment" connotation. However, with today's significantly more liberal attitude towards questioning the origins of Christianity, this book needs to be looked at in a new positive light.

The Aquarian Gospel is based on the author's ability to "read" the vibrational imprints --akashic records -- of events surrounding Jesus' life, as well as His life and teachings themselves, from the birth of His mother, Mary, to the words of Peter spoken on the day of Pentecost. Many are skeptical of such a work, based as it is on inner revelations of the vibrational records in the realms of spirit, but the words of Jesus and the events recorded by Levi have never been successfully disproven, and are consistent with much that has been brought to light about Jesus and his teachings in recent decades.
For example, the lost gospel of Thomas, discovered in 1945 in Egypt, contains roughly 150 of his sayings, which fit in with his teachings in the Aquarian Gospel, as do his comprehensive discourses on a wide variety of subjects in Glenda Green's book, Love Without End, and in Mary Ann Johnston's book, Messages from Jesus -- A Dialogue of Love. In the latter work, published in 2004, the author asks questions of Jesus, whom she has been able to see and talk with since childhood, and his answers, filled with the power of love, expand your awareness and draw you closer to God. In the other book, Glenda Green was enabled to see and converse with Jesus by means of a beam of energy projected to the point between her eyebrows. This took place in November 1991. If you read either of these two books, you are struck with the sincerity of the authors and the feeling that what Jesus is saying is truth. As for the Aquarian Gospel and the Gospel of Thomas, the narrative in the former and Jesus' words in both are beautiful, inspiring, and, in my opinion, as worthy of acceptance as the four canonical gospels. I have read and studied each of the books mentioned in this review and recommend them to all who seek a more complete understanding of Jesus' teachings.

I have only read the version of Babi Yar by Anatoly Kuznetzov. I'm not sure it is the same book as the one described here by A. Anatoli. However the book I read in 1980 left an indelible impression. The horrors of human cruelty and survival instincts of the oppressed are portrayed very well by the author especially since it is being told from the viewpoint of a 12 year old. As someone else commented; it is not for the squeamish.

I first read this book in high school as a shelf clearing library rat. It was not recommended, it was not widely known, it just sat on a shelf gathering dust. As far as I could tell, I was the first person to check this book out of my high school's library....books used to have cards glued to the back page where you signed your name...this one had no signatures. I read "Babi Yar" 3 times in the next 2 weeks and was stunned at the inhumanity of people towards people. I actually had trouble sleeping for a while. I didn't run across this book again for another 25 years. It kind of jumped at me from the shelf at my local library. It offered the same brutal emotional clubbing at 41 that I had experienced at 16. No different. How horrible can we actually be as humans? Pretty damn horrible it appears. The progessive rape of Kiev (et al) by Stalin, the Nazis, and Stalin AGAIN is a mostly overlooked story. This one tells it quite well. Music lovers should listen to Al Stewart's "Roads to Moscow" for a somewhat hurried reference.

This is by far the most significant piece ever written about the Holocaust. Amazingly, the author was a KGB agent while writing the book. He died under very mysterious circumstances.

It is amusing that one of the reviewers questions the authenticity of the story.

I recommend reading books by Elie Wiesel and Imre Kertesz as well. Read Yevgeny Yevtushenko's great poem too.

I am reluctant to believe that this novel is all true. It is sold as fiction, placed in libraries in fiction, and even teh Library of Congress lists it as such. Whether or not, it remains that this is an intruiging novel. I read it when I was a senior in high school back in 1996, and it has always been in the back of my mind.

Read it, research it, form your own opinions.

Some questions remain that I wonder about. Why were there no forensic tests or archaeological digs? Surely there is nothing to hide anymore. I would really be interested in reading further into this story and seeing what information can be gathered using science.

I am sorry for the above commenter's obvious pain my initial review caused. I was, I believe, researching in the worng way.

I read this book in the original Russian. I could not put it down until I read the whole thing. As far as truthfulness I have absolutely no doubt, since his accounts are the same that I have heard from my own grandparents who fought in and survived in the war. To the reviewer below - Jeannette DuPree (South Carolina), what do the modern historians doubt? The thousands of victims (including the immediate members of my family) of German brutality? It's revisionist lying.

Harold Jaffe's Beyond the Techno-Cave : A Guerilla Writer's Guide to Post Millennial Culture consists of essays, docufictions, and various amorphous texts which address contemporary topics and subject matters that echo and reverberate the conditions which these post-millenial times are bound by.

And although inhabiting such world equates into being continually subjected to the origins and residues of 9/11, Harold Jaffe's artistic impulses, motivations, and responsibilities are ever more persistent, in gravitating towards fulfilling the need to further examine particular interstices, which define these current times, while simultaneously being driven further into exposing the obstructions, which sustain the governing bodies' stranglehold on our freedoms.

Since each text is different from one to another, the entire collection is a multi-faceted, omnibus range of literary blueprints, which, either individually or as a whole, point them towards what it means, what it takes, and, more importantly, why one must resist, reject, and subvert such conditions, at all costs.

Recent memory suggests that Beyond the Techno-Cave:A Guerilla Writer's Guide to Post Millennial Culture is arguably one of Harold Jaffe's most commendable works yet, but it is, without question, one of the best examples of the most noteworthy Brechtian ideal:

" art is not a mirror held up to reality, but a hammer with which to shape it"

Having been acquainted with some of Hal Jaffe's previous work I was pleased to explore this new book. Techno-Cave features a collection of compelling pieces that will evoke the dialogue lingering on the tip of the tongue, the intense outrage that has been muted by our suppressive society. Chapters such as Schizo-Terrorist and The Writer in Wartime hit dangerously close to home. As a developing writer, pieces such as Suu Kyi/Giacometti deliver invaluable insight into the potential art still holds. The art of docufiction is at it's best here and Jaffe gives the under-appreciated genre an immediate and lasting appeal. Jaffe's nonfiction is raw yet tightly controlled, passionate yet discreet. The Chapters are interesting read individually but most satisfying from start to finish.

Techno-Cave is a really interesting work of docu-fiction unlike any I have encountered before. Jaffe uses innovative structure and language to push life into this genre. The writing is charged with the personal, political and emotional sentiments that are coursing through our post-9/11 global community. Jaffe does little, and rightfully so, to avert the readers eyes from the realities of our present day situation: the struggle of the incarcerated, political prisoners, mass-media, the cult of celebrity, etc. The pieces that comprise this collection, in my view, are an attempt to stretch the versatility and scope of prose which inevitably will pave the way for future generations of socially-conscious writers.

In a time when people and society are interrogated on a daily basis, overtly and covertly, Harold Jaffe turns around interrogates the mainstream culture many have come to blindly accept. Its tentacles are far reaching. Therefore, one must be unconventional when challenging or questioning contemporary culture. Harold Jaffe draws from a palette in Beyond the Techno Cave, a tapestry that includes formal essay, docufiction, and "treating" current events to lay "counter-ideological mines" which intricately weave and skillfully move to engage the reader, writer, and activist in us all. Beyond the Techno Cave is a clarion call to action, to engage in discourse, to unplug ourselves from the screen, to endure and resist like in "Suu Kyi/Giacommeti". It is "committed writing" like in "The Writer in Wartime," in a time when the only commitment is that of omission and repression. With a graceful sense of craft, Harold Jaffe assembles voices to form a compound of reality.

Harold Jaffe plants a literary mine with Beyond The Techno-Cave, dealing a decisive blow to the hands that claim to feed-but always poison. Jaffe spares virtually no domain, no topic, no political entity. He secretes literary bombs on a diverse array of powerful adversaries, all with the style and grace of a skilled guerrilla fighter dug in trenches of an oppressive-totalitarian-culture-war.

for the full review visit: www.thetripwire.com

This is a great anthology on Asian American history that's well worth your time to read!

I am a proud owner of the Big Aiiiieee. It is absolutely refreshing to hear from other voices than the popular writers such as Tan, Kingston, and Hwang. Chin certainly has made many great and valid points. Tan, Kingston, and Hwang, together, represent a body of cultural sensationalism against especially 'Asian American' men. I agree with Chin on many points; however, Tan, Kingston, and Hwang are wholly to be blamed.
First of all, the term "Asian American" should be eradicated. I am not an Asian American. I am a Chinese-Vietnamese American, as specific as that. With that in mind, this anthology is mainly composed of Chinese and Japanese-American perspectives. Where are representational voices of Vietnamese, Cambodian, Laotian, and South Asian people (India, Parkistan, Burma).
Secondly, I agree with Mr. Chin that Tan's and Kingston's portrayal of Chinese culture is primitive and backward. Tan's Joy Luck Club contains lot of images that promote cultural sensationalism and exoticism. For example, An Mei's mother cuts her flesh from her arm and dumps them into her grandmother's soup. The non-asian readers will subsequently thrive on this stereotype and apply it for all "Asians." This is like another form of canibalism. Another example of cultural sensationalism is the uncle eating live, jumping shrimps with his chopsticks (or Did I miss something?). As for Kingston, the Woman Warrior clearly was written with an intention as a feminist piece. Because there is no greatly equal novel to dispute its exaggerated feminism, mainstream readers take this as a true portrayal of Chinese/Asian men -- brutal rapists.
Furthermore and on a positive note, what makes this anthology fresh is the fact that it includes other fresh(not new)but neglected voices such as Louis Chu, John Okana, Monica Sone, Gish Jen, and so on, writers that are not given a fair chance in mainstream publishing.
Finally, I think this is a great anthology. Unfortunately, it does not truly represent me and my Vietnamese American community. What I got from reading this anthology is a sense of freshness as far as perspective is concerned; however, emotionally, I am more identified with Flannery O'connor, Toni Morrison, and Duong Thu Huong.
For those dire fans of Mr. Chin and harsh critics of interracial relationship: He married a caucasian woman, so are some of his colleagues.
Beware of whom you worship!

What gives people like Amy Tan, Maxine Hong Kingston, and David Henry Hwang the right to take my cultural distinctions and cater it to a white audience who want the stereotypical Chinese?! I'm glad Frank Chin exposed these sell-outs in this important book. There are Asians who are far from being these sorts of stereotypes described in the literatures of Tan, Kingston, and Hwang, and these editors prove it. Read this book and you'll find that out yourself.

and I know how much these editors helped my ethnicity in the first Aiiieeeee! These people (Chan, Chin, Inada, and Wong) know their stuff, and they're not ashamed of their cutlure. They are unassimilated, brave, talented, and strong. You would be more proud of your Asian race after reading this book.

Since the publication of this book, it has been criticized for it's "machismo, misogynist" morale. Guess who these criticisms are coming from? White feminists (or those who support them). They cannot look beyond history and textual matter, instead they force and assume their principles and try (and unforunately, they succeeded) to make this a battle of Women's rights. I have read Chin's "Come All Ye Asian American Writers of the Real and of the Fake" and in nowhere is there any misogynistic dictum. Why? Because this isn't a matter of Women's views or MEN'S! It's about history and how it should be interpreted. People like Kingston, Hwang, and Tan want to deconstruct Asian American history. Feminists want to help Kingston's and Tan's deconstructive views by arbitrarily labeling Chin as a misogynist. If Chin or the editors of The Big Aiiieeeee! were misogynist why would they have women writers in this anthology? Just because there aren't that many women writers doesn't mean it's totally and utterly sexist. Could it be because there aren't that many authentic Asian American women writers?! If there are no authentic texts to Asia America, would it hurt to say that stereotypes (or whatever) are actually right?