Reviews Books

this is one of my favorite books of all time. NYRB is now my favorite place on earth! THANK YOU THANK YOU! (ps. this is a classic, all should read it)

Shortly after the death of Daniel Paul Schreber, Sigmund Freud used his (Schreber's) memoirs as the basis for a fantasy of his own. Everyday readers are lucky that Schreber wrote down so much of what he saw, heard and felt during his many years in German mental asylums, for his own observations are far more artistic and harrowing than anything Freud ever wrote.

In this book, Schreber takes us into his world--the world of the genuine schizophrenic. He writes of the "little men" who come to invade his body and of the stars from which they came.

That these "little men" choose to invade Schreber's body in more ways than one only makes his story all the more harrowing. At night, he tells us, they would drip down onto his head by the thousands, although he warned them against approaching him.

Schreber's story is not the only thing that is disquieting about this book. His style of writing is, too. It is made up of the ravings of a madman, yet it contains a fluidity and lucidity that rival that of any "logical" person. It only takes a few pages before we become enmeshed in the strange smells, tastes, insights and visions he describes so vividly.

Much of this book is hallucinatory; for example, Schreber writes of how the sun follows him as he moves around the room, depending on the direction of his movements. And, although we know the sun was not following Schreber, his explanation makes sense, in an eerie sort of way.

What Schreber has really done is to capture the sheer poetry of insanity and madness in such a way that we, as his readers, feel ourselves being swept along with him into his world of fantasy. It is a world without anchors, a world where the human soul is simply left to drift and survive as best it can. Eventually, one begins to wonder if madness is contagious. Perhaps it is. The son of physician, Moritz Schreber, Schreber came from a family of "madmen," to a greater or lesser degree.

Memoirs of My Nervous Illness has definitely made Schreber one of the most well-known and quoted patients in the history of psychiatry...and with good reason. He had a mind that never let him live in peace and he chronicles its intensity perfectly. He also describes the fascinating point and counterpoint of his "inner dialogues," an internal voice that chattered constantly, forcing Schreber to construct elaborate schemes to either explain it or escape it. He tries suicide and when that fails, he attempts to turn himself into a diaphanous, floating woman.

Although no one is sure what madness really is, it is clear that for Schreber it was something he described as "compulsive thinking." This poor man's control center had simply lost control. The final vision we have of Schreber in this book is harrowing in its intensity and in its angst. Pacing, with the very sun paling before his gaze, this brilliant madman walked up and down his cell, talking to anyone who would listen.

This is a harrowing, but fascinating book and is definitely not for the faint of heart. Schreber describes man's inner life in as much detail as a Hamlet or a Ulysses. The most terrifying part is that in Schreber, we see a little of both ourselves and everyone we know.

Others who have posted reviews of this book are certainly correct in their assessment -- it's engaging, harrowing, enlightening, etc. HOWEVER, nobody has addressed the actual CAUSE of Schreber's insanity which, of course, is key to the reading of his memoir. The patient in most cases, and certainly in this case, is unable to tell us matter-of-factly what is troubling him. Instead, he tells us of his dreams or his imaginings, or his horrible delusions. It is then the psychiatrist who untangles the web. I can't recommend highly enough, as a companion to Schreber's memoir, the book "Soul Murder: Persecution in the Family," written by the psychiatrist Morton Schatzman. The book is now out of print, but can still be found used. Instead of describing the book,I'll quote from the jacket flap: "Daniel Paul Schreber (1842-1911), an eminent German judge, went mad at the age of 42, recovered, and eight and a half years later, went mad again. It is uncertain if he was ever fully sane, in the ordinary social sense, again. His father, Daniel Gottlieb Moritz Schreber (1808-1861), who supervised his son's upbringing, was a leading German physician and pedagogue, whose studies and writings on child rearing techniques strongly influenced his practices during his life and long after his death. The father thought his age to be morally "soft" and "decayed" owing mainly to laxity in educating and disciplining children at home and school. He proposed to "battle" the "weakness" of his era with an elaborate system aimed at making children obedient and subject to adults. He expected that following his precepts would lead to a better society and "race." The father applied these same basic principals in raising his own children, including Daniel Paul and another son, Daniel Gustav, the elder, who also went mad and committed suicide in his thirties. Psychiatrists consider the case of the former, Daniel Paul, as the classic model of paranoia and schizophrenia, but even Freud and Bleuler (in their analyses of the son's illness) failed to link the strange experiences of Daniel Paul, for which he was thought mad, to his father's totalitarian child-rearing practices. In "Soul Murder," Morton Schatzman does just that -- connects the father's methods with the elements of the son's experience, and vice versa. This is done through a detailed analysis and comparison of Daniel Paul's "Memoirs of My Nervous Illness," a diary written during his second, long confinement, with his father's published and widely read writings on child rearing. The result is a startling and profoundly disturbing study of the nature and origin of mental illness -- a book that calls into question the value of classical models for defining mental illness and suggests the directions that the search for new models might take. As such, the author's findings touch on many domains: education, psychiatry, religion, sociology, politics -- the micro-politics of child-rearing and family life and their relation to the macro-politics of larger human groups." For me, this book shed a great light on "Memoirs of My Nervous Illness." In reading the other reviews, I get the sense that some people have concluded that Daniel (the son) "simply went mad," or "something went wrong," when the truth is that his father was a border-line personality and one sadistic man who inflicted his own brand of insanity on his children. If only we had something to document the father's childhood . . .

To begin with, the reader should be forewarned that what the author suffers from is not the idiomatic English "nervous illness," or mild neurosis, but a fundamentally different way of seeing the world, stated best by the author at the beginning of Chapter 5:"Apart from normal human language there is also a kind of nerve language of which, as a rule, the healthy human being is not aware." The book's profundity and the author's depth of insight are such that, after reading a few pages of the first chapter, one is reminded of nothing so much as Proust's Remembrance of Things Past: "Souls' greatest happiness lies in continual reveling in pleasure combined with recollections of their human past."....But, after this, the book becomes as disturbing as Proust is essentially soothing. For the author feels himself utterly isolated from other men, not even deigning to recognize them as men at all but as "fleeting-improvised-men" which "creates a feeling in me at times as if I were moving among walking corpses." (Ch. 15) What I found so disturbing about the elaboration of the author's viewpoint and recounting of his tribulations in the asylum is that there is something in his viewpoint that rings essentially true: We do not and can not know even those closest to us on the deep spiritual or "nerve language" level the author exists on in perpetuum. It is this essential truth combined with the author's matter-of-fact, almost cheery, tone that made reading this work such a strange experience for me. For English readers, such characters do exist in fiction (Poe's Usher kept occuring to me, and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein), but the tone of such psychically unstable characters and what we would call their nervous disposition are consonant with a mind gone awry and thus not to be taken so seriously. Of Schreber, just the opposite impresses itself upon the reader. It is this dissonance between tone and subject matter that render the book strange. For the view it expresses is essentially a dark one. If one reads closely, a terribly dark one. The only thing comparable to it is the worldview of the Gnostics: That this world is essentially some sort of mistake, and that there may be no way to "fix" it, as it were. The main reason to read the book, to my mind, is that it is a well-written,non-fiction account of a unique state of being (although readers might want to check out Proust as well as The Gnostic Religion by Hans Jonas for similarities.) But, caveat lector, the book is not for the faint of heart. It may keep you up many a night. It did me!

A lot of these directors have had entire books written about them since this book was published, but the authors manage to make this book so entertaining and fascinating that I've reread it twice-- I usually just read nonfiction once and then use it for reference. If they would put England's The Incredibly Strange Film Show (and the spin-offs Son Of... and For One Week Only)out on DVD, it would rival this book. Until then, this is the most vital source of information on cult movies.

Still in print after almost 20 years? You know it has got to be good. This book was an essential part of my film education, turning me on to a dozen great flicks I might never have heard of otherwise.

Very good - really eclectic coverage. It has a lot of material on underground films from the late 60s, as well as "Rocky Horror", Alexandro Jodorowsky, and John Waters. Highly recommended.

This is one of the first serious film books I ever picked up. The picture of ol' Jack Nance from David Lynch's Eraserhead is what caught my eye. After reading the first paragraph of the first chapter, I was hooked.

Written by, arguably, the two best critics around -- J. Hoberman (who writes for the Village Voice) and Jonathan Rosenbaum (who writes for the Chicago Reader) -- this is an excellent look at a bygone era of movie-going. They document the midnight movie circuit that used to exist across the country for films too weird and strange for mainstream consumption. Sadly, most of these theatres are gone now -- swallowed up by the multiplex monster.

These guys clearly did their homework -- their chapters on the early careers of Lynch, Alejandro Jodorowsky, John Waters and George Romero are definitive. Best of all, their writing style is never dry or academic but very readable (it helps that these guys write for weeklies).

This book is a must-have for any fan of cult movies (and esp. the above mentioned directors). I have read it many, many times and it inspired me to be a writer myself. Great stuff.

If you're a libertarian -- or any liberty-loving person -- this book will delight you! Unique, original, very well written, overflowing with valuable information!

Jon Osborne is a wonderful reviewer and researcher. Each review is succinctly written, interesting and informative. I especially enjoy the actual quotes from the movies.

You'll enjoy seeing your opinion in print; you'll be reminded of special movies you may have forgotten about or might not have thought of in the same light as the author; AND you'll discover treasures that will surprise, intrigue and delight you.

Talk about entertainment: You'll have hours and hours of fun just reading about the movies, but then you'll have the movies themselves to look forward to!

A great reference that I refer to over and over.

No need to waste your time watching movies that end up just making you mad -- check out the movie first in this book. Don't head for the video store or switch on the TV without it!

I have just one question for the author: when's the sequel coming out?

I've been a subscriber to the Miss Liberty newsletter for three years. As a result of Osborne's reviews, I've discovered a number of difficult to find, but wonderful gems. For example, I loved the _The Man in the White Suit_ (1951), which stars a young Alec Guiness as a brilliant scientists who invents an indestructible fabric. It's a comedy that explores the obstacles innovators often face from entrenched interest groups. If it weren't for Osborne's reviews, I probably would not have found out about the movie.

Osborne writes well--dip into the book at random, and you will find insightful, witty commentary (even if the movie itself isn't particularly good.) I've already given copies to several of my libertarian/objectivist friends. Highly recommended!

When I was a young kid, somehow I always kept catching repeats of classic films on T.V. with my mom like "The Sea Hawk", "Casablanca", "The Man in the White Suit", "Johnny Tremain" and "Harvey" while reveling in catching films that I remember most and consider my favorites in the theaters, VHS or on cable like the "Star Wars" films, "Red Dawn", "Trading Places", "Moscow on the Hudson", "Ghostbusters", "1984" and "Total Recall". In some way or another, each of these films that I consider my favorites had a freedom/libertarian message to them and I guess its safe to say that their lasting impression was one of the things that contributed to my being a libertarian today. I find it interesting how Osborne is able to point out the libertarian themes of films like the ones I outlined above and have been able to go back and re-enjoy them again as well as see films I never thought of viewing. Its too bad that he didn't include films like "Independence Day" or "Braveheart" and this book was published prior to the release of other great, freedom-oriented movies like "Gladiator" as well as the "Lord of the Rings" or "Matrix" trilogies. Oh, well. There will be other editions I am sure. Until then, this book is well worth adding to anyone's library. Libertarian or otherwise.

I like the libertarian slant to this witty and inciteful guide, but really, that's just icing on the cake. The book is a great compendium of good films, fun films, and godawful films that anyone (even commies) would want to see. Each film gets a synopsis and commentary on its Libertarian content, but any guide that lists "Ghostbusters" next to "The Girl Who Spelled Freedom" has got to be good. If the Marxist Guide to the Movies were this fun, I'd buy it too. A must for any Cineaste.

Norbert Davis was one of a kind when it came to writing hard-boiled mysteries. He put an amusing twist on them no-one else could match. In this book, a private eye with an enormous dog takes a trip to Mexico to try to convince a fugitive to lie low. The story is fun, but the characters are a joy. A lost classic!

I am a sucker for mysteries set during WWII. this one was actually written mid-way through the war rather than just being set in the period so it is even more attractive. The story reflects a simplier era, even though the country was fighting for it's life at the time. The Great Dane is the brains of the outfit but he is not a cartoon character. He doesn't talk and the reader doesn't hear his thoughts. In fact he's not a friendly beast at all. As might be expected the plot boils down to German spies under cover in the US. It ends with the unexpected war hero getting the girl. Yea team!

Norbert Davis is an almost forgotten hardboiled mystery writer for the pulp magazines who flourished in the 1940s. Davis had an incredible talent for combining the tough, violent pulp mystery style originally created by Dashiell Hammett with the screwball comedy of a Preston Sturges movie. Tough bruisers and back-stabbing dames mix it up with assoerted nutcases, obnoxious kids, goofy waiters, and English mangling bus-drivers. (Davis's own world apparently wasn't so hilarious: he committed suicide in the summer of 1949.)

Some of Davis's terrific stories were available in a recent volume, "The Adventures of Max Latin," now about of print and expensive to find used. Thankfully, a small mystery press, The Rue Morgue Press, has put out this re-print of Davis's 1943 novel, "The Mouse in the Mountain." It's the first of three books Davis wrote about an unusual detective team: pudgy P.I. Doan and his partner Carstairs -- who happens to be an enormous Great Dane. Carstairs ain't no animal sidekick, and he's no wimpy Scooby-Doo: he's the dominant member of the partnership, cool under pressure, nobody to mess with, and constantly saving Doan from trouble.

This novel takes Doan and Carstairs to the tiny Mexican town of Los Altos, apparently to convince a possible informer to stay put. Along on the trip is a gaggle of typical Davis comic creations: pretty Janet Martin, fascinated with the history of Los Altos and the romantic explorer who chronicled it; toilet salesman Henshaw, his crabby wife, and obnoxious little son Mortimer; Patricia van Odsel, glamorous heir to a flypaper fortune, and her gigolo Greg and maid Maria; and the rude and domineering Captain Emile Perona, looking for a fugitive of his own. Soon, an earthquake strikes (wonderfully, vividly described) cutting off the town from the rest of the world, fugitives with dark secrets and assassination on their minds start crawling out of the rocks, and certain people end up dead. Who's the killer? What are the strange secrets buried in the crumbling buildings of Los Altos? Will Henshaw manage to sell a new toilet to the grouchy hotel owner? Will Carstairs sitting on Henshaw's awful brat Mortimer ever shut the kid up? Learn all these answers and more in this hilarious, fast-paced mystery from a forgotten master!

The book also contains a helpful introduction about Norbert Davis's life and his unique style, a funny and helpful cast of characters, and the original back of the 1943 book jacket, urging readers to buy War Bonds -- a great way to get you in the right frame of mind for a hardboiled mystery set during the war years.

Get a copy today before Rue Morgue Press runs out of them! Also look for the sequel, "Sally's in the Alley."

Looking for the most dangerous, enigmatic and ruthless sidekick in the mystery genre? Have you decided it's Joe Pike? Or Hawk? Or Bubba Rugowski? Well forget about it. The meanest, most unsympathetic and unpredictable sidekick out there would have to be Carstairs, partner of private detective Doan. He's huge, aloof handsome, successful, ruthless and...a Great Dane. Who could ask for more?

This is the first of three Doan and Carstairs mysteries and is a comical hardboiled mystery set in the Mexican mountains in the tiny village of Los Altos. Doan accompanied, by his multi-talented partner Carstairs, visits the village in the guise of a tourist, but by the time Los Altos is cut off from the rest of the world thanks to an earthquake, it was already clear to him that there was more than the average amount of foul play taking place in such a small village. Plenty of murders, thieves and double crosses keep the action lively, while the banter from Doan continually jollies the mood along no matter how desperate the situation. For all his good-naturedness and happy go lucky exterior, there is a tough side to Doan which he is forced to exhibit on occasion and, like all hardboiled detectives, shows no hesitation in using deadly force when necessary.

This is an extremely fast book to read with plenty happening surrounded by snappy, often whimsical dialogue. A real pleasure to experience.

Saw a movie and what to know more? Planning to rent a video and what to know more? Look here. Not all movies are reviewed, but almost every important film, some sleepers, some low-budget gems, and some you may hate but are important within film history. Our 1995 edition is worn out, and I wish we had a 'cover' for this one; that's how often we refer to this. We have also use it to build our own film library, now numbering over 500. Directors, actors, Academy Awards, obscure information and the source - whether book, play or original screenplay are all included. Now, if they had only included "The Reivers" and "Sometimes a Great Notion!"

Many of the reviews in this book are actually from an earlier encyclopedia called the Motion Picture Guide, perhaps the most comprehensive and best written source for pre-1990's films ever published. TV Guide adopted the same database for their online film review database and updated editions of The Movie Guide have been published for years as The Virgin Film Guide (avail. from Amazon.uk) This guide favors quality over quantity and so you get long, detailed, informed reviews of Sunrise, Das Boot, Mala Noche, Drugstore Cowboy, Blue Velvet, The Bicycle Thief, La Dolce Vita, etc. instead of thousands of thumbnail sketches of mediocre films you will have no interest in ever seeing. This is, as a previous review noted, along with Katz' Film Encyclopedia one of the few, truly essential books that every film lover should own.

This volume, along with Katz's, The Film Encyclopedia, are the foundation of celluloid information. The two will be sufficient for most viewers. Saw a movie and what to know more? Planning to rent a video and what to know more? Look here. Not all movies are reviewed, but almost every important film, some sleepers, some low-budget gems, and some you may hate but are important within film history. Our 1995 edition is worn out, and I wish we had a 'cover' for this one; that's how often we refer to this. We have also use it to build our own film library, now numbering over 500. Directors, actors, Academy Awards, obscure information and the source - whether book, play or original screenplay are all included. Now, if they had only included "The Reivers" and "Sometimes a Great Notion!"

This is hands down the single best reference for films from the 1930s on. Detailed reviews of works that are deserving of them, with sharp analysis that puts films in their proper historical context.

I wish that I had this book when I was a beginning Spanish student. I have a B.A. in Spanish and found it much later. The explanations are simple, but give you all the explanations you need. It was quick to use and easy to find what you needed. You may need a verb conjugation book to go along with this as very few verbs are actually conjugated here. The book is quite short which is part of the reason it is so helpful. This is a good preparation guide for teacher certification purposes as well. Definitely recommended!

When the book arrived, I was really surprised at how short it is. At first I almost felt ripped off. Then I realized the authors simply cut out all the extraneous material found in most Spanish texts. It's an outstanding synthesis of the "must know" Spanish grammar. I've used it to study for two finals, and it has been most helpful. In fact, I've spent more time preparing for exams with this book than my course textbooks. There's nothing about culture, history, or Latin food -- very little vocabulary either -- just pure grammar. It's of most use to elementary and intermediate students, but it makes an excellent reference for more advanced students too. The section on the subjunctive tense (my nemesis) is outstanding. I actually had a bad dream that I lost it and couldn't replace it because it was out of print (horrors!) so I actually bought another as a backup and keep it in a safe place. Go ahead and buy Más fácil: A Concise Review of Spanish Grammar. You won't be sorry.

I purchased this book in for College Spanish almost ten years ago, and I still use it for reference. It is a very complete book that focuses on what is useful. I recommend this book to anyone who wishes to learn Spanish and learn it well.

Concise yet thorough coverage of Spanish grammar. Gives English comparisons -- or tells you if the grammar is unique to Spanish so you can save time hunting for an English "equivalent". Appendices include: English Grammar Terms, Commonly Confused and Misused Terms, Conjugations of 30 Common Verbs. Ten verb tenses are summarized, including common irregular present & past participles. This has been my "go-to" aide for Freshman Spanish I and II. I highly recommend it!

Reading David Collin's My Louise was a very moving experience for me.

Having "lived" through a similar experience, I can relate to much of the content, meaning and feelings described by David. Although my wife was fifty-six when she died of cancer, and I didn't have a two year old daughter to raise alone but four grown sons to be concerned about, I was easily able to relate to David's agony, his great feeling of loss and particularly his loneliness. He took me back to 1989 when I suffered my loss.

I was powerfully moved by David's story, his grief journey and his enduring love for not only Robin but for Louise, as well. His total commitment to give Robin as normal (whatever that is) a childhood and life as possible makes me feel good for Robin. She was so unlucky to lose her Mother at such a young age but so lucky to have such a caring and committed Father.

David's portrayal of Louise and the courage displayed by both Louise and David, which came shining through in this memoir, was most moving.

I thank David for freely sharing so much of himself and his family. It was a privilege to have had the opportunity to be allowed to share such an intimate experience.

Ever been on a rollarcoaster of emotions~we all have and this book does just that through words and the overwhelming history of love and loss~given to David by fate. I laughed, cried, and truly "felt" the words David Collins used in his book. I picked it up and couldn't put it down because he let the reader feel his pain through the eyes of a husband struggling through his personal rollarcoaster. In the end, you just wanted to love him for who he was and what he has done for himself and his daughter. Powerful. Pick it up and enjoy!

At some point or another--and whether we like it or not--we are bound to experience tragedy within the course of our lives. For some, that personal loss may refrain until we've spent innumerable years with our loving spouse, but for others, a tragic blow may be dealt much sooner and with absolutely no remorse. In David Collins' case, he was forced to watch a ravenous cancer steal away his young wife's life, and as if that wasn't enough, he was then left to raise their new daughter on his own. His memoir is an account of experiencing a horrid loss, but also of how to pick up the pieces and move on with life, if only for their daughter's sake. Fortunately for Collins, however, his daughter (Robin) provided one true tangible link to his lost wife. And throughout the struggles of raising a child without his Louise, he hints at the idea that--without Robin--moving on after such defeat may have been impossible.

What Collins has done so efficiently (along with his intense appreciation for aesthetics) was to encompass all the feelings that one might have while losing their spouse, and then vividly depict them throughout the story. At one point, he personified the disease, citing several times how he would have liked nothing better than to pummel the rapacious cancer from his wife's withering body. He was tired of failed treatments and hospitals; he just wanted to get this disease in a ring and duke it out.

Furthermore, Collins aptly described the frailty of life, which most of us tend to forget about until real disaster strikes. Amidst his drowning in a sea of hopelessness, he yearned for powers beyond his reach - anything that could save his young wife, he was ready to do. Yet the harsh reality of this world proved that there was nothing more that could be done. His defiance of the impending loss seemed as obstreperous as his wife's own battle with the unabated cancer, but Collins (appropriately) never delved too far into the details of Louise's personal struggles. He may have stripped his own emotions down to their purest and rawest form; but he managed to give the reader a heartfelt glimpse of Louise's suffering without being superfluous.

These were real emotions that any one of us could feel, and Collins held nothing back when expressing his disgust for Louise's cancer. And while he hints at an ambivalent God during his incessant bouts with frustration, he manages to exert hope that perhaps someone up above took his Louise for a good reason.

From his indelible love for his wife and countless battles with his precocious daughter, to a brief stab at imperialism and questioning of piety, Collins has written a daring work, one which I thoroughly enjoyed. I found that I shared with him many of the same opinions: relationships (and marriage) are not always utopian, but with mutual work, life with your loved one has the potential to be sublime. Moreover, when that fortuitous battle arrives (be it cancer or some other tribulation), it can be vehemently fought as a team, not unilaterally.

We don't ever want to give in or give up, but how do we carry on when that battle has been inexorably lost? As Collins stated, "...a miserable situation can be endured..." but that doesn't mean it's going to be easy. This story of grief seems like it could only be found within the pages of a book, but the fact of the matter is that it did happen; it happens to both good and bad people, and it's going to happen whether we like it or not. The true task is perseverance and subsequently finding the needed strength to carry on. For David Collins, he found his strength each day when he looked at his daughter. He had to carry on, if not for Louise, then quite simply for Robin.

Seems to me the makers of so-called reality tv would do well to find a new name for their "craft."
Collins' book is nothing if not a clear, concise report on the cruel blows that *real* reality can deal to the innocent and unsuspecting. It's at times chilling and at others amusing, but always real. Reads like a reporter's notepad, with the pages ripped out and put back in no particular order, recounting a harrowing battle, with bits and pieces of gripping narrative, fanciful recollection and heartfelt observation.
From a strictly logistical standpoint, it's a quick, easy and unfettered read--pretty difficult to put down once you get it going. The language is straight and pointed, the tone at once hopeful and gut-wrenching, the pacing nearly perfect as it effortlessly blends seemingly contradictory descriptions of the clinically sterile and the fiercely emotional.
The author lays his soul bare, with all the sadness, bitterness, love and unrequited vengefulness you'd expect from someone in his shoes. Collins is painfully forthright in his presentation, though at times a bit repetitive, the repetition merely a byproduct of his brutal honesty and the constant self-examination that frames the story, refusing to conclude even as the book itself does.
Because at its heart, this story of love and death is really an exercise in dealing with very real emotions, and it contains the requisite accompanying conflict, backtracking and soul-searching. It's a struggle in which the narrator frequently questions the motives of a supreme being that he'd have you believe he isn't sure exists, but of course then to whom are all the questions being directed?
Anyone who has been through this awful struggle, with or without the worst imaginable result, will see a reflection of self in the author's words, feelings and deeds. And anyone who hasn't will see what they would imagine themselves to be in the same situation.
And that is the book's greatest triumph. It's the real deal. Unvarnished, unpasteurized, unadulterated, unglossed and unfair.
A must-read.

So far I'm only about 1/3 of the way through "Names on the Land," but I'm enthralled. The sub-title, "A Historical Account of Place Naming..." is right on. The book approaches it subject from a historical perspective. The reader travels with the early explorers as they encounter landmarks on their journeys, so one learns about the namers and their times, as well as about the names they left behind them. Based on my reading so far, I can strongly recommend this book.

Names On The Land is narrative almost to a fault but it is a FASCINATING exploration into how and why we name the landscape, and how as we name the land, we give it meaning, just as the landscape give meaning to us.

Anyone that is interested or works with geography (especially historians or natural scientists) will find this book a very powerful perspective.

A very cool book. I think it is a shame it is out of print!

Wallace Stegner was not only a great writer ("Angle of Repose") and teacher (Stanford English Dept. who mentored people like Harriet Doerr), he was also a great lover of writing. His UC Berkeley colleague and friend George Stewart appeared on Stegner's list of "must read" Western American writers for "Names on the Land" as classic non-fiction and for fiction ("Earth Abides" that he recommends as reading in tandem with Miller's classic "A Canticle for Leibowitz").

Dr. Stegner points out that Stewart was not prolific as a writer and, for that reason, is sometimes overlooked as a star in Western American literature. "Names on the Land" underscores the painstaking process of good writing as it was practiced by Stewart and very much appreciated by Stegner. The research is incredibly precise and reliable; the language is as clear and fast running as a mountain stream; and the effect on the reader is overwhelming.

In an era of instant gratification and 10 second sound bites, "Names on the Land" doesn't seem "contemporary." But for a thoughtful reader of books, Stewart's masterpiece merits a place of honor in his or her permanent collection and (as Stegner admitted) a lifetime of periodic re-reading and reference.

In this unusual little book, George R. Stewart has compiled an endlessly intriguing account of the whys and wherefores of American place-names. The book as a whole provides a haunting, curiously oblique perspective on American history, as he delves into the cultural, historic, and (sometimes) military themes behind the names we use every day. The book goes into the names of cities, states, rivers, mountains, streets, and more.

I think you might get more out of this volume if you are aware of the way it is organized. I myself half-expected this book to be organized by state, perhaps in alphabetical order. This is not the case. Stewart has organized his data by THEMES in naming, and how these themes have emerged in our history. Therefore, the book (very roughly) follows our history chronologically, as various naming trends have come and gone, in the context of various cultural waves. This pattern tends to approximately follow the "peopling" of the continent (by descendants of Europeans) from east to west. Some chapters are mostly devoted to single states, but this is the exception, rather than the rule.

The chapter titles are not necessarily always very helpful, which is the closest thing I have to a caveat about this book. I'm telling you right now that the chapters roughly follow the settling of our continent, from east to west (and from south to north in the far western states). So, this should help you get oriented if you are browsing around... You might want to think of each chapter as a little independent essay. That might help you break the whole text down into digestible parts.

Some themes in naming include: the popularity of the name "Columbus," during and shortly after the Revolution; the tendency to adapt feminine names for the Southern plantations; Greek or Latin names; ancient indian names; English town names given new life on our shores; and many, many more.

One interesting fact I learned, reading this book, is that five of the six states in my native New England should, technically, probably be considered to be spelled wrong. (New Hampshire is the lone, proud exception). Stewart tells the tale of how each state was named, although he doesn't clump the five stories all together. You have to do saome digging... If you happen to harbor an inner, pedantic curmudgeon, who sometimes likes to rail against the stupidity of all humanity apart from him- (your-)self, this is the kind of thing that could give you great, and prolonged, delight. Also, you might be surprised at how many place-names have warm, human stories behind them. This can foster a real sense of human connection to our nation's past -- a connection that is not necessarily to participants in our nation's huge struggles, but simply to quiet, thoughtful people who tried to come up with words that just sounded right.

I would like to post here a private theory I have about George R. Stewart, which may be of interest to you in this context. Professor Stewart taught English at Berkeley, for much of the twentieth century. Concurrently on the faculty at that institution was the great American anthropologist Alfred Kroeber, who today is perhaps best remembered for his work with the last Yahi indian, Ishi, and also for his status as the father of acclaimed science fiction author Ursula Kroeber LeGuin. This last-named person, Ursula K. LeGuin, would have grown up hearing about Professor Stewart, and his odd hobby of place-names. If you read her young adult fantasy trilogy, the Earthsea Trilogy, you will find there a character called the Master Namer, who is a sort of professor in a school for young wizards. He and his classes exhibit many of the traits that we find in evidence within "Names on the Land." I believe that Ursula K. LeGuin probably based this character upon the fascinating George R. Stewart, and his hobby. Therefore, if you enjoy this book, you may wish to read Ursula LeGuin's "A Wizard of Earthsea," to encounter there a thinly disguised fictional version of Professor Stewart.

At any rate, this book is really something special. I recommend that you seek out a copy, and if you know a local history teacher, maybe you could lend it to him and suggest that he fashion some lesson plans from its singularly neato contents. Two thumbs up!

you need this one. loaded with info, small, current and high yield. the price makes the value exceptional. it does fall short on the explanation side, so it is not a reference text in any way but it is a great review manual.

Excellent review source for neuro-ophthalmology. Hits highlights of important topics, much more concise than the ophthalmology basic science series neuro-ophthalmology book or other texts such as Glaser, walsh & hoyt etc. A must to use for studying for the ophthalmology boards. There are even some surgical diagrams such as the basic steps in performing optic nerve sheath decompression.

And in response to the previous review, Dr. Kline is an ophthalmologist, and the book is geared more toward ophthalmologists than neurologists, although it is certainly beneficial for both.

This book is a brilliant summary of neuro-ophthalmology which is a perfect guide to writing clear essays in exams and useful for sorting out diagnostic issues in the clinic.

Fantastic, skinny little neuro-ophtho review book. Good for neurology residents and the eye guys seem to like it, too. Great chapters on visual fields, and also on ocular motility.

Diana Rigg has compiled the most hilarious book I've ever read. If you keep it in the bathroom guests or other family members will wonder why you are roaring with laughter behind the commode door. British wit and droll sarcasm at its finest.

One of those rare books that consistently leaves the reader in tears of laughter (albeit at someone else's expense).
I must say that I have newfound respect for actors after reading this book. The performers in these pages are some of the world's most renowned actors and yet no one escapes unscathed.
My favorite selection is the diary of an actress in a touring company of Romeo and Juliet and her description of the problems she encounters during a performance.
I wish I could give it more than five stars!

The world of theatre criticism can be a brutal and mean place where careers are lost and broken. The chance for comedy is just as enormous. Diana Rigg has compiled some of the meanest, nastiest, and funniest theatre reviews ever published. Playwrights, actors, actresses, directors and the productions themselves are all hung out to dry. This book is a hilarious addition to anyone's collection.

Diana Rigg, as an actor, has turned the other cheek by collecting and editing reviews of theatrical productions, past and present. Although the reviews are often at the expense of the principals in a production, they are written and edited in such a manner that makes them possibly more interesting than the production itself. If biting wit that sometimes draws blood is your thing, then you will enjoy this book.