Q Books

Writing a humorous book is hard enough, but then make it a humorous Trek book? Good luck - but that's exactly what David accomplished in this rich, smart, TOO-QUICK jaunt of the ultimate battle of the sexes - Q vs. Lwaxana. The back-story is slight but you won't might mind in the slightest as David has a true gift for characterization, with nobody getting Worf in particular better. Plus, as a bonus of sorts, this is somewhat indirect sequel to Imzadi with many continuing threads hinted at/glaring for anyone reader of the previous books (though as usual David writes so well that non-readers of Imzadi won't be left out in any way). I can't say enough positive things about this charming little work of fantastic fiction which would have been a truly remarkable episode if ever filmed.

If you are a STNG fan, get this book. Read this book. You will enjoy it - Q guarantees it!

Q meets Lwaxana Troi... Why wasn't this an episode in the series? Peter David who is slowly becoming my favorite Star Trek writer does it again with this incredible entertaining novel.

A wedding among two of the most important families in the Federation is about to happen. And all our favorites make roll call. Including the wonderful and very complex Lwaxana Troi and everyones favorite entity Q. Q returns to the Enterprise because he wants to know about this whole human idea of love. Since there is a wedding not to mention the love sick Lwaxana there it seems like the perfect classroom for him to experiment. In this experiment besides trying to sabotage the wedding he also becomes involved with Lwaxana which is worth the price of the book when she finds out that it is an "experiment". All hell breaks loose and Q I am sure is reminded of an old earth saying "Hell have no fury like a woman's scorn".

There is also a side story involving Wesley Crusher and his gift from the bride. A gift that shows up naked in his quarters. Ol' Wes is not one of my favorite characters but Peter David makes him tolerable without changing who he is which is a small miracle.

As always Peter David knows his Star Trek characters. That along with a wondefully fast paced story it is an impossible book to put down. One of my favorite things about any episode or book that Q is in is the chemistry he has with Captain Jean Luc Picard. This relationship is captured masterfully in this book. Lwaxana Troi is also written extremely well as she is (as usual) on the hunt for a man. This is not one of those save the universe type of stories. Not even the Enterprise can or has to save the universe every day. Still very light and funny but still one of the best Star Trek novels I have read.

A delightful story for Star Trek: TNG fans. The main characters are Deanna Troi's imperious mother Lwaxanna, and the god-like entity "Q." The two huge egos clash at a wedding that Picard is reluctantly hosting on the Enterprise. The bride and groom come from a Romeo and Juliet-like background, as two feuding races come together only for the young couple. But Q has an agenda of his own, simultaneously romancing Lwaxanna - to her daughter Deanna's absolute horror - and stirring up doubts and fears between the bride and the groom. How can Picard take control of what is threatening to become complete chaos on his ship?

Really a fun read. The author has great understanding of the crew of the Enterprise's characters. Q-In-Law has many laugh-out-loud parts.

I have never laughed so hard while reading a Star Trek book in my entire life. Luxiana, please excuse my spelling, Troi who'se Betazed frankness and lack of restraint is evenly matched with the manifestation of Q as we know them.

Within brief moments, we can see why Q are somewhat afraid of Terrans. One day, Q will have to put up with an advanced version of Luxiana! Forget about a civil war in the Continuum, all hell will break loose! As advanced as Q are, they are wise enough to know there's someone always wiser than they are, or will turn out to be.

As Michael Strazinky did with Babylon 5, it would be interesting to see "humanity" one million years from now. What will humanity have evolved into? Just a brief taste of our potential would keep my appetite for Star Trek going for a lifetime.

Peter David demonstrates that not all "Trekkies" and / or "Trekkers" have no sense of humor. In fact, they can be somewhat diabolical.

This book has a very deserved reputation for being one of the funniest pieces of Star Trek fiction ever written. Viewers and readers all know what Lwanana Troi is like, and they all know what Q is like, so just imagine the consequences if the two should meet. Star Trek writers have to be very careful when using Q, and Peter David is a master of it. I actually laughed out loud several times while reading this book, and the ending gives a whole new meaning to the saying "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." Highly recommended.

We are here to live a life with purpose, to learn to love and transcend all that seems to be obstacles in our paths. Buscaglia's contribution to the world is superb. This book is truly a gem full of inspiration that will guide you to remember the loving being you really are.

When I first saw Leo Buscaglia, it was in a college class in the 70's.
The professor showed us a film of his speech on love and up to that time, I had never seen anything like it. By the end of the class, there was not a dry eye in the room. Everyone left in silence. Something had changed. No one in that class was ever the same. His words still ring in my ear to this day, thirty years later. He was a gift to us and anything he ever wrote is gold. In this now jaded world, I doubt we will see anyone like him again.

I have not only read this book myself, but have purchased it for many of my friends that have faced difficult times in their lives. Dr. Leo Buscaglia was wonderful as a Professor at USC, and his books carry forward the legacy of exactly what this title says: Living, Loving, Learning. It can be read many times over, and something new sets into the mind of understanding of who we are, what we are, and how we can have a happy life in all circumstances.

I'm glad people like Leo Buscaglia. Really, I am. If he helps people, fantastic. However, after receiving the book as a gift, I felt smothered by his "love talk", sounding for all the world like a medicated flower child. Considering that his ideas coalesced in the 60's, this may not be far from the truth. The book is a bit like mind control, and I'm sure his speaking presence was compelling. However, I think optimism is best tempered by reality and concrete steps, rather than this unedited exhortation to "love". A simplistic order to love is not going to work for most people. Love must be tempered with reason, intellect, responsibility, and experience. Life is a battlefield, and we are the soldiers. Choose a side and keep your eye on your enemy.

This book is incredible and I believe everyone should own a copy. If I had enough money I'd buy it for the entire world. Very simple, down-to-earth, and humane reading. Leo Buscaglia represents every individual in this heart warming lectures book!

I think the sign of greatness in a contemporary cultural or artistic product is a deeply divided reception, and I would say the reviews for this book certainly qualify. I have read a LOT of romance novels--maybe not as many as some of the super fans, but definitely more than the average reader, and this novel (just narrowly edging out Judith Ivory's "Black Silk") is my favorite. I have read and reread it so many times and it honestly gets better with each new reading. This is NOT your typical romance, as so many have noted; let's start with the fact that the heroine is a proper Victorian lady--and the hero is a ninja! Just like the premise for Kinsale's "Flowers from the Storm" (he's crazy, she's a Quaker), this might make the novel sound silly, unbelievable or gimmicky, but it honestly isn't--Kinsale is probably the only one who can get away with this stuff, and here she does it brilliantly. The novel was obviously meticulously researched, giving it an impeccable sheen of period authenticity, and the characters are incredibly complex, nuanced and minutely drawn. This is Kinsale's best, and there is no one like her in the genre and precious few who equal her proficiency, so that's saying a lot. Please do yourself a favor and buy this novel!

I was so sad about this book. I love Laura Kinsale and her other books are just incredible. This book was so promising but it the story just felt wrong. I don't find it romantic that the hero is in love with another woman(for the entire book) and is just shattered when he must marry Leda. I know that he has issues but I really wondered what he felt for Leda. It seemed to be just lust and nothing beyond that. ALso, Leda herself is not a strong heroine. She just seemed kinda pathetic and with no real character. I'm sorry but the "Dear Sir" thing did nothing but annoy me. However I felt about this book I absolutely will read every other book by Kinsale. She is a wonderful writer.

One bought used, one bought new when this book was reissued.

The emotional depth is phenomenal. I can't say enough good things about it. Some scenes in this book blow me away every time, no matter how many times I have read them.

Laura Kinsale sure doesn't believe in half measures. From what I've seen in three of her books so far, all of her characters are unique and her stories intense, every single one of them extreme cases of a trite plot in romance. I have to say that Kinsale breaths much needed life into trite romance plots. It's a wonder when a romance novel really tells a story beyond the sexually-experienced hero deflowering the innocent virgin. In THE SHADOW AND THE STAR, Laura Kinsale takes the tortured-soul-hero-with-demons routine to an emotional-angst extreme with her pretty-boy hero Samuel Gerard.. Kinsale's writing and prose enrich the reading experience tremendously and it's so nice to read her after so many poor romance novels. Kinsale skillfully sets the scene, builds the tension and concludes very satisfactorily. The oriental flavor and Hawaiian settings are nothing short of magnificent. I officially love all of Kinsale's endings from three of her books: SHADOWHEART (***), FLOWERS FROM THE STORM (****) and now, THE SHADOW AND THE STAR.

It's a tribute to Kinsale's characterizations and writing that even though all three of her heroines in the novels above are virgins, they still manage to stand out separately. Kinsale puts her heroes through a unique hell as well, and that too is delicious. I liked the way Kinsale flashed to Samuel's warrior training every other chapter for the first half of the novel and slowly but surely brought his perspective to the present. Our heroine Leda's subservience may rub some readers the wrong way, but if you can get past that, Leda's humor is something else. Leda's propriety and manners even during the most obscene circumstances proves absolutely hilarious. In Kinsale's note to her readers in this 449-page paperback, she reveals her inspiration for Leda's character: "[Leda] embodied the steadfast, kind and courageous ladies...the circle of grandmother and aunts and their friends in a small Texas town. Proper, generous, proud, sure of what was right and what was wrong..." And certainly, the circle of South Street ladies and their culture resonates in this book. I found Leda obstinately clinging to her propriety and morals in the most bizarre of circumstances and situations absolutely hilarious. Even after marriage, she continues to call her husband, "Dear Sir..." Leda is innocent, funny, proper, loyal to a fault and so caring and compassionate, any guy would give the world to her. And she would deserve it. Leda's humor is the highlight of the novel, and the book consequently belongs to Leda Etoile. That the novel belongs to Leda is even more astonishing given the inspiration for THE SHADOW AND THE STAR derives from Samuel's brief appearance in THE HIDDEN HEART which points the spotlight on Lady Tess and Gryphon Meridon.

"Really, I should like to have my own garden, with a fish pond in it, full of goldfish with tails like silk. Do you ever think of things such as that, Mr. Gerard? Whatever do gentlemen think about, I wonder?" She pondered the question, and answered herself. "Political difficulties, I suppose. It must be very trying and dull to be a man."

My problems with this novel stem from a pacing standpoint and the heavy reliance on the Ashland characters (characters from the prior book THE HIDDEN HEART). If you thought FLOWERS FROM THE STORM slow-developing, you'll find THE SHADOW AND THE STAR much more so. In fact, I thought this book never found its drive until the finale. This book also contains elements of the supernatural which fog the action sequences.

Another excellent offering from an adept author.

Others have said it so I won't go into depth. Samuel was simply totally nothing. Not likeable, not even hateable....just a big blah.

The book was like wading through molasses in December. Maybe I just don't 'get' Kinsale, but she says in 3 paragraphs what could have been said in one sentence. And it doesn't do anything but bore the reader.

And I do hate books where the couple don't actually declare their love until almost the last page. In this case, you weren't even sure at the end what 'he' felt for her.... I re-read the last 3 pages about 5 times, trying to decide if it was an "I love you" or if it was "OK, stories over, everyone go home."

Total waste of time.

The QA department where I work already has one of these books, which I actually read cover to cover a ways back. I decided to get one for myself to keep as a handy reference when I am not physically on the job, but thinking of it and planning out my testing. This is a must have for anyone in or interested in the QA/Software Testing field.

I was trying to become a better project manager in our small and new software firm. We had lots of problems, and especially with the QA of our product. This book helped me (and still does) understand the approach and the idea of testing software.
We managed to greatly improve the quality assurance process. Even before this book I knew testing is fundamental to the software development, but now I now "why" and most important "how".

Practical software testing from practicing software testers. Much of the time, books are written with an attempt for the author to launch some new iteration of their career and so forth thereby confusing the application, message and usefulness of the book in question. This book is very simple. It discusses, problem, approach, solution, experience and commentary. Though never as wonderful as being mentored first-hand by an expert, this book is practical enough to leave you with near first-hand experience of how to think through 'what to test', 'how', 'to what extent', etc. No book will solve your testing problem. This book simply takes you on the path of though evolution towards doing such.

The book was very helpful for me as a beginning QA Specialist. I would recommend it for background and foundational info.

I think that Cem Kaner's book was perfect 20 years ago. Right now it's very funny in most chapters. For example we have a whole chapter for printer testing. I don't think that more than 1% of programmers are working now directly with hardware. Also, we have many examples for computers with 640Kb or RAM. Many examples and test types are expired. I was confused why editors didn't remove them or change. Anyway, I recommend to read it as an overview. Moreover, this book is more like reference, not a book for reading. So, buy it and have in your library.

Micheal has an annoying little sister Tara. He feels he is always being blamed when Tara misbehaves.
The sibling's father brings home an old cuckoo. The dad sternly tells Tara not too touch it. This gives Micheal an idea.
Once alone with it, he messes with the clock. This action leads to a big mistake!
Micheal goes to bed waking up to a birthday he had celebrated earlier. He tries to fix the flop party, failing once again.
The further in time he goes back, he worries of no longer existing,as frightening thought for a teenage boy?
Can he do it? If he makes it back, will everything return to normal!?
While many horror stories have some sort of monster, fear here lies in the unknown.

i liked this story and it was good but not that scary actually it was the first book i've ever read. i read it first when i was 10 years old and i enjoyed it.

Michael Webster is always getting in trouble.And he knows it's because of his bratty sister. Tara the terible.But now something else is about to make michael's life worse. I liked this book. But it started to get boring
annie walls

In This Story, Michael's dad bought an antique cuckoo clock. When Michael turns the cuckoo back, he is stuck on a time warp.

I made the mistake of reading reviews before I read the book - and half of them seem to refer to things that didn't happen! Michael's little sister doesn't threaten his life, the bird doesn't attack Michael and the shopkeeper doesn't tell a scary story about the clock.

Michael is 12, big brother to seven-year-old Tara, a top contender for "Worst Little Sister in the World". He gets blamed for everything she does, and that's no accident! Tara sets him up, over and over, even ruining his birthday and embarrassing him in front of his friends. When their father brings home an antique cuckoo clock that Tara can hardly keep her hands off, Michael sees a chance to get even. Twisting the head of the cuckoo to face backwards, Michael is sure Tara will be blamed. That doesn't happen, because when he wakes up, it's his 12th birthday - again! - and they don't even own the clock yet. Michael needs to turn time around again before it's too late (or early...) for him!

Stine's horror story for kids is too funny to be horror this time, but it's worth reading anyway. You'll appreciate your own siblings a little more - unless they're worse than Tara, which is hard to imagine.

Great book. I really enjoyed it, and I would certainly recommend it to others. No way this book is NOT five stars plus.

I loved it! I'm learning the piano and thought I could learn something from the best. I learned more. I'm a big music lover and love Quincy and his music. He's worked with the best of the legends, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Billy Holiday, Sarah Vaughn, Dina Washington, Ray Charles, Michael Jackson etc. etc. He's had an incredible life! And not without tragedy and set backs and overcame them all. His family is beautiful. How he forgave the sad and unfair things done to him. Tears and laughter, so moving, especially about his brother Lloyd. Quincy's my hero. I knew he was great, but he's more. I'm so grateful he shared his life with us. I learned so much! Let the Light heal the dark places, and listen to God's whispers is where I want to be. Thank you Quincy!

I was extremely impressed. Scouting the library, I saw the book and I thought, Hey, this might be good. That night, I read 45 pages, with the school the following day: it was almost a priority. He really is a multi-talented fellow. Of his biggest accomplishment, (arguably, I mean besides his 29 Grammys) was Michael Jackson's Thriller album, but this guy can do anything. The stories are humble, the style down to earth and approachable, and above all, the stories were great. This isn't your ordinary 900 page presidential autobiography. I recommend it to anyone who appreciates autobiographies, truly something worth reading.

This is a dangerously important and uplifting book. It is subversive in the sense that it reveals one of the darkest secrets about the "real souls of Black people:" That music provides the streetlights that illuminate "the royal road to hope and survival."

This book recalls in my own mind, during the same times that Q's musical life literally exploded (the two years from 14 to 16) -- the years when he literally went from "street urchin to musical genius" in one giant step, that it so happens that this was the same period that my stepfather and his returning army WW-II buddies were teasing each other about "combat boots" being their first real pair of shoes. Being essentially true made the joke all the more painful.

Yet, all of these Arkansas farm boys were in college on the GI Bill; and most importantly, they could all play musical instruments and could sing and dance and read music - especially the Harmonica, the piano, and the guitar. I naturally grew up thinking that doing these things was innate. It came as a great shock to me: when after getting a harmonic for Christmas, it did not play itself. I could not play a single song on the darn thing? I naturally thought that there was something terribly wrong with me: Maybe I was genetically defective? Although I did eventually learn to play the trumpet after a painful and lengthy apprenticeship, it still mystifies me, as to how it was that those in my father's and Q's generation picked up music as if it blew in through the window from off the wind?

That among other reasons is why this book is so terribly important: right after the war, music and sports provided the cushions for finding a semi-normal existence in a world gone mad with poverty and its racist rules and traditions. Q's life was different than most other inner city black kids only in the fact that his mother had to be committed to an insane asylum while he was young. This of course made the urgency for music in his life an even more important existential imperative: As he notes, his discovery of music became, not just his mistress (as it was for Duke Ellington), but also his mother.

But that is only part of the uplifting story told here, somehow, poverty, depravation, and humiliation during the era of "full" American Apartheid, could always be turned on its head: Somehow, there were always unguarded existential escape routes to both sanity and occasionally to success. Q followed his heart and found his talents, which as it turns out were considerable.

Living on the margins, on the outskirts of mainstream society, can either empower you or embitter you, or send you to the insane asylum as it did Q's mother. But either way, music and sports (and not the bible, the only thing that Q's mother took with her to the insane asylum) will help illuminate the way.

Five Stars

I was amazed at how good this book is. This book makes you want to know what's going to happen next. I never knew Quincy Jones had a hard childhood. I think I would rather starve than eat rats. I love the fact that Quincy doesn't just talk about music all the time but Quincy went deep into his personal life. I admire the fact that Quincy never gave up on his dream to become a trumpeter. I'm surprised at how successful Quincy is with all the problems he had. Reading this book inspires me to always follow my dreams, no matter what. I recommend this book BIG TIME to anyone interested in his life!

Sound reasoning stands out, possibly because so few role models demonstrate it these days. McInerny's book offers a solid introduction to strong reasoning, without intimidating notation and without talking down to the reader. The book's five chapters offer an introduction, two sections on strong reasoning, and two section on illogical thought. Beginning with basics, like having the facts straight and using the right words to say them, he develops healthy habits of thought and inference. Of course, this means avoiding common problems in misuse of the rules of logic, which he patiently explains. A logical speaker must also be a logical listener, as well. In part, that means defending oneself against illogic (and ill logic) of many kinds, so McInerny presents a fair sampling of common errors, with the goal of training the reader to identify and defuse them.

This book addresses readers at an introductory level. It presents basic, true/false kinds of logic, without the pain of mathematical formalism. As a result, advanced readers will find it simplistic. It simply does not address soft or multi-valued logics, possibilitic reasoning, and other advanced concepts - a reasonable choice for the author, but one that I'm not wholly comfortable with. And, in some very few places, I disagree with the presentation. He analyzes the sentence "All dogs are not mongrels," for example, which I would paraphrase as "No dog is a mongrel." He interprets that sentence to mean "Some dogs are not mongrels," which allows the possibility that some are. A nuance, perhaps, but logic is about precise meanings. "All are not" denotes something different from "Not all are."

I agree with other of his statements whole-heartedly, though. One truly stood out for me: "If you do not regard a position that you publicly advocate, and are willing to defend in argument, as true, you are abusing reason." This undermines large parts of a lawyer's professional training and skill - not a bad thing, I think. Despite occasional glitches, I recommend this to readers just learning to present their ideas soundly. It might work well for a high-schooler or college freshman. Sound reasoning works well for everyone though, especially as a defense against the unsound reasoning so dismally common today.

-- wiredweird

This is a decent refresher on formal (and not so formal) logic, for anyone who took a logic class so many years ago. Or for those who didn't, it's a good introduction. It's modeled more or less on Strunk and White, so it's concise (maybe a bit too much), and it's not very technical. It doesn't cover all the bases, e.g. there's nothing on truth trees, but it does a good job with the fundamentals, including the more common fallacies.

Someone (maybe this author) said something to the effect that logic is the most neglected subject in US schools today and the most in need of being returned to a central place in the curriculum. If that's not precisely true, it must be pretty close. Just look at what passes for political debate these days, and the fact that almost no one cares that candidates don't actually use premises, don't bother with valid arguments, don't make rational connections, and draw conclusions that can't possibly be supported. Sheesh .... Copies should be handed out with all birth certificates.

I found this book to very helpful. I discuss logic with a close circle of friends now and my rhetoric as well as my thinking process has gotten a lot better. This book is very helpful from start to finish with intuitive examples and provides a solid foundation.

I do wish that there was a section in the back for further reading, but I found my way through regardless.

Highly recommended!

This book is a well-written beginner's introduction to logic. If you are already familiar with the foundations of logic or ethical reasoning I doubt you'll find anything new in the book. I stopped reading it about halfway through because it was so simple, but it would be a good book for someone new to the subject.

Buy A Rulebook for Arguments by Anthony Weston instead of this book. Reasons are below.

Both Being Logical: A Guide to Good Thinking by D.Q. Mcinerny (this book), and A Rulebook for Arguments, by Anthony Weston site the same exact book as their inspiration. Both books are of similar structure, focused on the topic of logic. They both reference The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. (and E. B. White) as their source of inspiration.

As a result, both books attempt to be a short book, easy to read, with the goal of explaining the basic rules of logic to anyone. This book only meets two of the three goals. The other meets all three.

This book is short, and does review the basic rules of logic and critical thinking. However, while someone can breeze through A Rulebook for Arguments with almost no effort, this book (Being Logical) is a bit tough to read at times by comparison.

For example, there is a passage in Negative Statements section of the Language of Logic chapter where the author spends a paragraph or two concluding that it is always clearer to your audience to use the positive phrasing of a statement whenever possible. The very next paragraph begins with an unnecessary use of a negative statement (middle of page 54). Not only does it dawn on the reader that the author violated their own rule, but the book is full of language that is slightly more complex than it needs to be.

Some of the examples that use science can bother someone with a science background. The author occasionally trys to emphasize how concrete something can be by using a "hard science" as an example. When doing so it became even more mixed up. In one passage the author used molecules and elements as though they were interchangeable terms with identical meaning. If you don't know, maybe it doesn't bother you that molecules are composed of the elements, in a higher more ordered complex structure, and the terms don't have the same meaning. The point of logic trying to be made was still there, but it just got muddied a bit when you get bogged down in "huh? but..."

I thought this book would be more how to be "smooth" and "cool", but it more about getting your life on track, with a few tips on "coolness". It did motivate me though and I have been a much better house keeper since reading this book.

If you want to improve your lifestyle, you need this book.
If you want self-improvement, you need this book.
If you want to gain a happier life, you need this book.

The book is a step-by-step guildline to improve your LIFE. It is practical and easy to follow. It really works.

Thanks Mr. Kyriazi, you wrote a great book.

You'd expect this to be a joke, but Kyriazi takes his Bond very seriously. This is an amazing book, one that gets you excited just thinking of all the possibilities that the techniques could open up for you. Highly recommended!

Kyrazi's Bond seminar book offers a lot of good, practical advice that, upon first glance, seems like a no-brainer. But just the fact that one has purchased this book shows that he or she is motivated to improve his or her lifestyle, and the advice offered in this title becomes more realistic and attainable than it was before with that first step.
Although the text is not the great American novel by any stretch of the imagination, and I would go so far as to say that it is poorly written as far as books are concerned, this is not the point of the book; nor is it the point of the book to turn someone into James Bond or even to get someone to accomplish all of the things suggested therein (you have to be able to pick and choose things that are relevant to your life, personally, as we are all unique individuals). The book is, however, meant to help someone achieve his or her maximum potential as a unique human being, and this is what Paul Kyriazi does extremely well in the book. I have seen immediate results, and I haven't looked back since. The only place to go is up.

I hadn't expected a curious thing that happened while reading "The Complete James Bond Lifestyle Seminar" book: I was already doing a lot of what I found there. But I'm in my early 40's and I've been watching and rewatching the Bond films for most of my conscious life (I'm currently rereading all of the novels and just finished Andrew Lycett's wonderful bio of Ian Fleming), so it stands to reason that something had to rub off.

But if you're in your 20's or 30's, I'm sure you'll pick up a lot of very helpful tips about the style of your new cool life. The author doesn't limit his seminar to 007 but also includes very cool and swingin' insights from Bond's American cousins--Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack.

I have to disagree with the author on page 217. He writes, "I've never seen Bond running out the door yelling, 'I'm late. I'll never make it.'" The section is called "Be Early." Good advice. And it's true that we've never seen Bond rush out late...but that doesn't mean he's always on time either. In THUNDERBALL, M chides him in front of the other double-O's with, "Now that we're all here!" And how many films have shown a flustered Moneypenny trying to track him down?
He might be late once in a while...he just doesn't get excited about it, even if the world hangs in the balance.

But that's a quibble, along with typos and the first half of the book mentioning "Blowfeld" instead of "Blofeld" (it's corrected in the second half).

So with tongue firmly planted in cheek and open to improving your coolness, you'll have a good time reading through this seminar for tips. I did.

Love this book. Haven't found a bad recipe yet. The hot wings got raves from eveyone I've made them for. Have a huge collection of BBQ books. This one is in the top 10.

I have had Mr Willingham's book for over 8 years now and still consider it part of my bbq inner sanctum. It's not just his great rubs and sauces but his enthusiasm for the process! In my opinion the key to having fun with BBQ is experementing with various rubs, mops, marinades and pastes (wet rubs if you will). John's book for me was what got me started "Having fun". I highly suggest John's rubs and sauses, espicially if you ar just starting out. They are very good and work with a wide variety of meat, poultry or fish. John's instructions are very straight forward. If you catch the bug I also recomend Paul Kirk's "Championship Barbecue Sauces". Paul's book will take you deeper into the variaties of rubs, sauces etc. Above all remember - Have Fun and eat well!

I received John Willingham's book as a gift and have read it cover to cover. It's packed full of bbq secrets from the greatest bbq contest cook to ever put on an apron. Willingham details basic cooking methods including what wood to use and what wood not to use, temperatures to cook at, and he provides his personal recipes. I especially like the rib recipe and his recipe for pork shoulder. These recipes can be used as written, or you can tweak them slightly to suit your personal taste. The recipes alone would be worth the price of the book.

I found this book to be an overhyped offering by a veteran of the competative BBQ circuit, and I'm of the opinion that their publisher went along for the ride and joined in the overhyping frenzy because they want to make money too ... regardless of whether or not the book lives up to its own hype.

STRENGTHS:
* The author does at least cover some of the basics of classic BBQ, including dry rubs, mop sauces & marinades, basic wood use, and the like, and he waxes nicely poetic in places about the joys of slow cooking. Props for the latter, because it's sadly going out of style.

* There's some modestly decent introductory information in here on hardcore BBQing.

* Some of the recipes in back actually appear fairly decent old fashioned offerings ... like shoofly pie.

WEAKNESSES:
* There's only 150 recipes in here, many of them borrowed from friends and acquaintances, and ranging widely in quality from very good to merely adequate. So in a word, this book is thin on serious content, and it's padded with recipes that aren't even the author's. Wait, lemme re-check the cover ... yes, the cover clearly implies that the book is indeed SUPPOSED to be about 'world champion' BBQ recipes - so how did all the padding by non-champs and non-BBQ get in there ?

* You can't have a serious book on BBQ without spending a decent portion of the page count on primal cuts of beef and pork, how best to break them down and approach each. The author spends too little time on such material, to the book's detriment. I expected more effort from a 'world champion' - not that the title really means all that much.

* Many of the condiments, mixes, rubs, and sauces called out are proprietary, and are primarily available from the author's own little startup company (very convenient and opportunistic, yes ?). The author does deign to lay out recipes for a dry rub or two, and a basic mop sauce or two, but he could have done more on that. My philosophy is simple - either tell me how to make it (and why), or keep the book (and the product placements) and get stuffed.

* Much of the equipment that the author waxes poetic about is his own personal (and highly customized) BBQing rig, which the readers will never have a chance to work with. He doesn't spend enough time/depth covering the type of equipment commonly available to most readers (ex: basic 'bullet' water smokers, basic offset smokers, electric smokers), and the result of this somewhat self-serving focus is that the usefulness of the book to the everyday reader is significantly undermined.

BOTTOM LINE: Lots of hype, and a pretty cover photo, but thinnish on genuinely useful content. I'm not saying that the author can't cook - rather, I'm saying that he doesn't do nearly a good enough job passing such skill on the readers. So, this book is a bit like a meatball hero ... it looks pretty when you order it, but one you bite in, it's mostly filler and not enough meat. There are LOTS of better book on BBQ out there. Save your money, and avoid this one. This book is proof positive that having BBQ trophies on one's wall does NOT mean that someone's any good at writing cookbooks.

Incidentally, shame on everyone who raves about this book - it seems rather clear to me that people who do either know relatively little about serious cooking or reviewing books about the same, or they're chiefly interested in boosting their personal amazon stats ... perhaps both.

This book has very good tips and methods on HOW to BBQ, and is then followed by a decent number of recipes. The recipes are not quite my style, but they are good anyway. One big positive thing about this book is how it describes building your own pit. Not all books do that, and information on building your own pit is fairly scarce. I agree with an earlier reviewer that this book tended to advertise the authors products a bit, but the author also gave some knock-off recipes so you don't have to buy his products. I would recommend this book for a beginner who doesn't want a really big book. This book is thinner than some of the other big BBQ compilations, and that is nice, but I prefer some of the larger books personally. My favorites and "Smoke and Spice" by Cheryl Jamison and "Paul Kirks Championship Barbecue". These are both large books, but worth every ounce in pure BBQ heaven!

A fascinating man talks about his life. Small format means the artwork is a little hard to read, tho.

Includes a great CD Sampler with some hard to find Cheap Suit Serenaders songs, along with some of R. Crumb's other bands. Worth the price for the disc alone, and you get a great book as a companion!

Before I got this a few weeks ago, I didn't think much of Crumb in comparison to the other 60's underground cartoonists that I read of in a book called "rebel visions". But that tome contained skimpy explainations on the featured artists, and really only contained Crumb's more "commercial" (crappy) work. But this handbook, with extensive artwork, photos, and narration by Crumb himself is a different, and oddly uplifting critique of the media illusion, personal failure and triumphs, family values, and of being left handed-I know, I'm one of em'-yes, were all perverts, yes, were all useless people with a knack for genius, and yes, were all attracted to music, concepts, and culture that few people can possibly comprehend or appreciate. Read it for all the gory details! The CD is okay. The cartoons are hilarious.

R. Crumb just may well be the most honest observer of the American scene of our generation. Since the mid-60s he's been looking at us and himself and putting his findings on paper. His eye has shifted focus several times over the past 50 years: early, cute satire; greeting card stuff that frequently was too risque to make it into print; the zapped LSD-inspired hippie drawings that made him the "father of underground comix"; the sexual confessions that earned him the hatred of some feminists and got him blacklisted from libraries (see the librarian's review of this book); the social critic who deplores consumerism, agri-industry, mass media, the ratrace, and the worship of the Almighty Buck; the music afficionado who writes incredible stories about his favorite musicians and musical genre; the philosopher who speculates about life, sex, fear, fame, and death; and always the autobiographer, who plumbs and probes and fingers his own psyche.

The R. Crumb Handbook is the latest chronological/autobiographical compilation of his work. It's a good companion volume to The R. Crumb Coffee Table Art Book, which came out a decade ago. Crumb apparently doesn't like putting these things together, and does so only when he needs some cash (the Coffee Table Art Book paid for putting central heating in his French house). But both books are fine introductions to Crumb's work for those who've just discovered him, and nice walks down memory lane for those who are longtime fans. The artwork is punctuated by short Crumb essays, as well as a few appropriate quotes from folks like James Kunstler, C.G. Jung, and Charles Bukowski. The Crumb essays are interesting, but not as detailed as those found in the Coffee Table Art Book. But the Handbook includes the fantastic CD of music recorded over a period of 30 years by Crumb and his music pals

But there are some pleasant surprises in the hefty Handbook. There are several pages, for example, of "The Crumb Family," a strip co-authored by Crumb and Aline Crumb-Kominsky (pp. 218-229). It's absolutely hilarious, and exceedingly clever--which may be why the strip never made it to serialization. There are photos of Crumb-inspired tattoos--including one on a woman's firm tush--is it Aline's?--and of the life size statues of Devil Girl and Vulture Goddess Crumb sculpted in the 1990s. The Handbook also documents several European exhibitions of Crumb's work, including the one at the 1992 Angouleme comics Festival in France which featured a huge walk-in sized Crumb exploding head.

For my money, though, the best of the latest stuff collected in the Handbook are the "philosophical reflections" on knowledge, personal identity, significance, and so on, with which Crumb filled his sketchbooks in the late 90s (pp. 370-390). They suggest a man who's beginning to feel his time running out and who wants to try to figure out a few things before the night closes in.

One of the most touching--and revealing--illustrations in the Handbook is its final illustration in which Crumb lists the cartoonists and illustrators who've influenced him. At the very top of the list is his genius and tragic older brother, Charles Crumb, Jr.

I'm not vouching for the viewpoints taken or the commentaries on our bizarre human condition and culture necessarily, but this thick book (with a great cd of original and funny music) with its outrageous take on everything sacred is an inspiring dig into an artist's convoluted (but somehow eerily solid) psyche. I first saw many of these strips and characters in underground comics, tabs, independent newspapers, etc. back when I was a teen in the 70's and always was amazed at the hard-hitting art and dialogue. IT IS A TRIP! Sometimes, when the right frame of mind is brought around, this book will have you laughing more than you can barely stand. Just flow with it and forget your rigid alter-ego at the coat check. This is theater for the insane (with strong metaphorical realism). TAKE IT FOR FOR WHAT IT IS! A WINDOW INTO THE MIND OF A TRUE ARTIST. Makes a great gift for the moral majority members of your local PTA.